We are always on the lookout for wines that fight well above their weight class. When this happens year after year for a bottle of wine, you have to wonder why these great wines are so underrated compared to their piers. Chateau Lanessan is a prime example of this phenomenon, a perineal favorite of all the wine geeks here because we see the value in the wine, and we are all inherently cheap, but mostly because our history with the wine goes really deep. Tim G made a lot of commissions off this wine when he sold it as a salesman for a boutique wine distributor going back to the 2015 vintage. Tim K bought and promoted it when he was the buyer at another large retailer and has committed to it as part of our Bordeaux futures campaign since his arrival here at Yankee. When I was in sales, I have sold against it, much to no avail, in my accounts, and the wine has always been a major part of any store selection I have worked at. Pretty much all of our staff has verticals of some degree of Lanessan, and as Gundy said, “I would really like to age this wine in my cellar, but I keep drinking what I have.” Why is this non-classified Bordeaux such a big deal? Let me offer up some reasons why.

Château Lanessan was founded by Jean Delbos in 1793, and eight generations later, the Château remains in family hands, run by the Bouteiller family, direct descendants of Jean. The estate has always been considered one of the best in the Médoc, and by many classifications prior to 1855, was listed as a 4th growth. However, Jean Delbos’ son, Louis, did not submit a sample to the Bordeaux Wine Classification of 1855, believing that any ranking would not add to the Château’s stellar reputation. The 1855 Wine Classification was part of the Paris Worlds Fair, hastily put together by the wine distributors of the day. Who would have known that being on that list, that has still used today to rank the wines for quality, would have a significant impact on wine market pricing for almost 170 years. A mistake that Lanessan, if classified as a 4^th growth, could have charged twice their bottle price over all those years if only those samples were submitted. As a result, this property, which would have been classified, missed out on its rightful Grand Cru Classé classification. The wines remain of Grand Cru Classé quality at a fraction of the price. 

Another reason that Lanessan gets no respect has to do with location, location, location. Chateau Lanessan borders the commune of St. Julien and is a direct neighbor of famed second-growth Gruaud Larose ($99) and fourth-growth Chateau Beychevelle ($110). Because they are a few feet outside of St. Julien commune’s border, they garner less money at the market.

Lanessan wine is old-school in style, delicious, and has a reputation for being very long-lived. The terroir is primarily gravel-based soil. Chateau Lanessan is planted 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37 Merlot, 8.5% Petit Verdot and 2.5% Cabernet Franc. On average, the vines are 30 years of age. The vineyard is planted to a vine density of 10,000 vines per hectare. Close to half of the land owned is not used for vines. While 111 acres are planted to vines, the remainder of the property features 50 acres of parkland. Here, you also find beautifully manicured gardens and even a large space for growing vegetables and horse riding trails. Yes, you heard that right, horse trails.

Aside from their evident passion for wine, equestrian activities have always been a part of the makeup of Chateau Lanessan. They have numerous stables, which were constructed at the same time as the chateau in the shape of a horseshoe. These stables were ultra-modern for their time and were specially designed to facilitate the care and comfort of the horses. They feature marble feed troughs, an oats distribution device fed from the central store, and mechanical ventilation. As horses and carriages played an essential part in the history of Lanessan, the estate also maintains a museum devoted to historical carriage featuring family horse-drawn carriage rides, full saddlery, and period stables with marble mangers. 

The fermentation of the new vintage takes place in thermo-regulated concrete vats. The vintage thus sees the pumping over, and its maceration time adapted according to the quality. Aging of the new vintage of Château Lanessan in oak barrels for one year. There is a third of new wood, a third of one-year-old, and a third of two-year-old barrels.

Purple color. Intense and clean nose, dominated by black cherry notes, candied black fruit with floral nuances, rose and violet. A rich and lively attack on the palate with very silky tannins, sweet and savory. Lingering and fresh finish showing off powdered, candied, mineral nuances. A well-balanced wine, powerful and fleshy.



52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot.

The 2020 Lanessan is just as compelling from bottle as it was from barrel. Dark, virile and imposing, Lanessan offers up a mix of black cherry, plum, gravel, incense, tobacco, scorched earth and licorice. Firm tannins wrap it all together in style. This is a terrific showing. Drink: 2026-2040. Vinous 92 pts

Lovely texture here, deep and intense but also smooth, with high-toned blackcurrant and black cherry. There’s a pleasing chalky dryness to the tannins and an appealing minerality that comes through. Solid core, well presented but not hugely long. Drinking Window: 2022-2030. Decanter 92 pts

Flowers, cigar wrapper, mint, black, and red currants, and a hint of toasty oak create the perfume. On the palate, the wine is round, supple, fresh, and fruity with layers of sweet, ripe, clean, juicy currants with a touch of peppery spice in the finish. Drink it within a year or two of age, and enjoy it for at least 15 or more years after that Drink from 2024-2040. The Wine Cellar Insider 92 pts

Readers looking for a great buy in the vintage should check out the 2020 Château Lanessan, which offers ample dark (almost blue) fruits, cassis, and spring flower notes to go with a medium-bodied, nicely concentrated, balanced beauty that has enough tannins and structure to warrant 2-4 years of bottle age. Jeb Dunnuck 92 pts

This has aromas of blackcurrants, graphite, tomato leaves and iodine. Medium-bodied, with chewy, slightly rustic tannins. Clean, mineral and a little austere. James Suckling 91 pts



The 2020 Lanessan has a very attractive nose, more floral than its fellow Haut-Médocs, focused and tensile with blackberry, pencil lead and light mint aromas. The palate is medium-bodied fresh and vibrant. Graphite and a dab of black pepper towards the persistent finish. Neal Martin 91 pts

Chateau Lanessan 2020

I almost got trampled by the group of staff tasters who wanted to try the Lanessan 2020. As I mentioned earlier, most have bought the wine before, and many have verticles of the wine in their collection. The urgency was that they knew that this wine would sell out on this offer and the window would be drawn for this vintage, so they had to decide how much more they could afford of this house favorite. The wine did not disappoint. The wine had a great opaque garnet color to the rim. It has a classic Bordeaux nose of lead pencil, black fruit, and cassis. In the mouth, the flavors are elegant fruit, garden herbs like Thyme, raspberry leaf, black olive, and cocoa nibs, with hints of young leather. Full-bodied with balanced acids and tannins followed by a very long bitter cherry finish. The wine needs to breathe before enjoying, so we sent it through the wine aerator, and wow! The mid-palate filled out even more, fruits became much more noticeable, and the weight in the mouth filled out. Although this wine will age remarkably well for years, the problem we have is that it drinks so good right now that very few of us will see it aged to perfection. The 2021s are arriving, so our bean counters tell us this wine must go. At this price, our loss is definitely your gain.

Regular Price: $24.99

*Sale price is on 6 or more bottle purchase

Wine is packed in a 12-bottle wooden case

Quantites are limited

*Wine pricing for these wine promotions are held for two weeks after the email offer.

We can hold wines in unpaid reserves for two weeks to allow you time to pick up your wine. If it takes you longer than that to pick up your wines, give us a call, and we can process your wine and move it to paid reserves.

Orders must be done by replying to this email. The reason is that I need to keep control of the inventory in one central spot. Emailing or calling your favorite wine geek at one of our four stores may not get your orders in on time to be counted or processed and this creates a helter-skelter for us to get you the wine. For the same reason, ordering on our online Web Store is linked to our regular price, and this sale price is only offered on the email platform. It is also why it takes me some time to respond due to the deluge of orders that I sometimes get. We haven't reached the efficiency or volume of Amazon yet. Thank you in advance for your patience.

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Cheers!

—John Hannum, Fine & Rare Wine Specialist

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