TN: 2010 Pibran

[JimHow]

It was like I was in a wrestling match with this wine the whole night. We had this wine at an epic tasting at Chateau Pichon Baron in May 2015, matched up against numerous vintages of the Purple Baron, as part of our epic Bordeaux Wine Enthusiasts trip. (bordeauxwineenthusiasts.com) As I recall, they changed the mix in this wine starting with this vintage, if I'm not mistaken? If I recall correctly, the 2010 is predominantly merlot. I could be wrong. It seemed like very young northern Medoc merlot to me. It was monolithic, oaky, rugged, rustic, usually the way I like them. Kind of a chewing on nails kind of effort at this point. The 2009 La Dame de Montrose was noticeably better. 89 points.

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

So where did the Cabernet go then? Into the Baron? Didn't we discuss this in passing already? I've always been interested to try Pibran and Fonbadet but the Pauillac handle keeps them a good $10-$20 above their Haut-Medoc peers and so I've passed.

[JimHow]

The 2010 Pichon Baron is an amazing wine.
Unfortunately, it's also going for $200 per bottle.
Yes, I think they put the good stuff in the Purple Baron.
I remember we had a discussion about this at the estate, although I don't recall all the details.

[AKR]

How are Pibran and Pichon Baron related? I didn't know that

[jckba]

It appears that they are both owned by AXA group and the wine is made by the same technical team as Pichon Baron and is also vinified at Pichon Baron before being moved into barrel for aging in the cellars of Pibran.

[JimHow]

That is correct. Pibran used to be more Cabernet based but I believe with 2010 it became predominantly merlot. I always was interested in this wine because it seemed ideally situated between Mouton and Pichon Baron.

[AlohaArtakaHoundsong]

Arv, your Jack Daniels case study looks to be spot on. I'm sure the McKinsey way would have the superbrands simply acquire as much property as appears seemly and incorporate it into the brand using the best technical methods.

[robertgoulet]

I really liked this wine

Had a nice rustic quality and I loved the olive note I was getting.
I would choose this over La Dame any day of the week...but that's me.
Good qpr

[AKR]

Aha. I didn't realize the linkage.

How does it compare to Tourelles de Longueville or Gryphon or whatever the various secondary labels are called?