Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey: Tasting & Drinking
The 1986 vintage was a turning point for Château Lafaurie-Peyraguey, one that indicated the estate was clearly on the up following the installation of Michel Laporte during the 1970s, replacing the outgoing Pierre Patachon, and later perhaps influenced by new direction from GDF Suez. As indicated on the previous page, Michel himself has since been replaced by his son, Yannick Laporte, in 2000. Nevertheless, some commentators enjoyed the wines of Patachon’s regime, and I was interested to see that Clive Coates had respect for the 1975 vintage, describing it as a ‘major success’. It was drying out somewhat when I tasted it in 2002, and was certainly a wine of quality, but it was not up to the standard of some vintages from the 1980s.
The 1986 vintage was also a turning point for me, a wake-up call that told me I should be doing more than just appreciating Sauternes at tasting events from time to time, but actively seeking out, purchasing and drinking them. Ever since I encountered that wine I have done so, and they now form a significant part of my cellar (you could probably argue I have too much, but I certainly won’t get bored as I work my way through it).
Other older vintages I have enjoyed include the 1981 vintage, as well as the stunning 1989 and 1990 vintages; I was fortunate enough to acquire quite a few bottles of the former early on in my buying days, and I am sure I still have a few bottles left.
Coming closer to modern times, I also through the 2003 and 2007 were strong, but things really kicked off again with the magnificent 2009, 2010 and 2011 vintages, all of which were exceptional. The first vintage completely under Denz was the 2014, and this was a good result in a decent vintage, followed by fine results in 2015, 2016, 2017 and 2020, stepping up a little in 2018 and 2019, although at the time of writing some of these latter vintages are young, and the most recent pair not even bottled. It should be obvious by now, but if it isn’t, let me declare myself; this is one of the leading estates in the appellation, a long-time favourite of mine, and I rarely find a wine here which disappoints.
Of course I cannot finish without mentioning the stunning 2001 vintage, made during the Larramona-Laporte partnership; this is another vintage of which I am glad to have a good stock. I look forward to seeing more wines of this level of quality, or even higher, during the Denz era. Given that he can afford to have a barrel made of pure crystal to celebrate the estate’s 400th anniversary in 2018 (after Sieur Raymond Peyraguey settled here in 1618) we can only assume that ongoing investment in the estate and its wines will be considerable. (28/8/02, updated 1/6/06, 27/6/07, 31/10/08, 4/7/12, 1/3/14, 6/12/14, 25/9/21, 7/7/24)
