Chateau Lynch Bages Cru Classe, Pauillac, 2014

Château Lynch-Bages is situated in the Pauillac commune of the Médoc region in Bordeaux. The grand vin, which is made predominantly from Cabernet Sauvignon, is known for its structure and intensity, and can age for 20 years or more. It ranks among the best in the appellation.

The property in the village of Bages takes the other part of its name from Thomas Lynch, a Bordeaux merchant of Irish lineage who owned the property from 1749 to 1824. It was rated a fifth growth in the Bordeaux Classification of 1855, although the reputation of the property, now in the hands of the Cazes family, soared from 1945 after a string of excellent vintages.

Vineyards and winemaking

The vineyards are situated on a plateau west of Pauillac town on gravel, chalk and sand soils. There are over 100 hectares (247 acres) of vineyards, which beginning from- 2006 have been divided into 200 parcels to more closely match viticultural practices to terroir.

Cabernet Sauvignon currently accounts for 68 percent of planted area. The rest is planted to Merlot (26), Cabernet Franc (4) and Petit Verdot (2 percent).

Fermentation takes place in temperature-controlled stainless-steel vats with extensive remontage (pumping-over) for concentration and color intensity. Lynch-Bages is aged for around 15 months in oak barrels, roughly two thirds of which are new. A notable feature of the estate is the old vat-house with its traditional slatted floors, ropes, pulleys and buckets, which give the advantages of gravity flow, a process incorporated into many modern winery designs.

The 2014 Vintage.

Produced from 69% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, this classically styled Pauillac has bite, lift, fruit, tobacco, cassis and all the tannin and structure needed to age for decades.

" The 2014 Lynch-Bages is full of promise, offering up a classic bouquet of rich but vibrant blackcurrant fruit mingled with hints of loamy soil, cedar and vanilla pod. Full-bodied, deep and layered, with an abundance of ripe but youthfully assertive tannin, lively acids and a long, resonant finish, it will hit its stride in 10 to 15 years. This is an excellent Lynch-Bages that represents especially good value in the contemporary marketplace. "