2005 Chateau Leoville Poyferre Saint-Julien 750 ml

We remember the buzz about 2005 Bordeaux like it was yesterday.

From the moment the grapes came in, the world couldn’t stop talking about how great the wines would be. Now, the wines are developing beautifully—and the true stars are beginning to shine. 

It goes without saying that the 2005 Léoville-Poyferré is one of the wines of the vintage. 

The wine’s opulence and complexity was carefully crafted by one of the best winemaking teams in Bordeaux, guided by Michel Rolland—the Right Bank–born genius who has earned countless 100-point scores en route to revolutionizing Bordeaux winemaking—and benefiting greatly from owner Didier Cuvelier’s investments in the vineyard and cellar.

Léoville Poyferré was born in 1840 out of the division of the historically renowned Château Léoville, but the estate didn’t live up to its promise until 26-year-old Cuvelier took over in 1979. What followed was a visionary reworking of the cellars and vineyard, which involved a 19-year replanting project that more accurately matched grape varieties to specific sections of the vineyard.

That attention to detail continued in the cellar, where Cuvelier installed an array of double-walled stainless-steel fermentation tanks. These allowed for pinpoint temperature control to regulate extraction, enabling the team to vinify on a parcel-by-parcel basis for maximum blending precision.

Cabernet Sauvignon makes up 68% of the 2005 blend, and it provides Poyferré’s hallmark: powerful, dark fruit and a ferrous structure. It’s rounded out with 26% Merlot—which is profoundly rich when it comes from Saint-Julien—along with 6% Petit Verdot for vibrant color. Aged in 75% new French oak to give it a finishing layer of polish and decadence, cellared in Bordeaux since it was bottled, this is a truly grand wine that is showing perfectly right now.