Pichon Lalande 1978 750ml

Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande, the celebrated second growth on the Pauillac and Saint-Julien border, was guided for decades by the legendary May-Eliane de Lencquesaing, who took the helm in 1978, the very year of this wine. The vintage was famously rescued by a warm, sunny late summer and autumn after a cool, difficult start, giving classic, firmly built Médoc wines. Vinous found it powerful and full of Cabernet-driven character, noting a touch of austerity but calling it "deeply expressive and gorgeous." Now well over four decades old, this is a fully mature claret with cedar, tobacco and dried currant notes. Drink now; stand the bottle upright and decant carefully.