Nicolas Labenne

Coming Up

At Château Lynch-Bages and Château Ormes de Pez, Nicolas Labenne serves as Technical Director, and the work is measured in timing, observation and restraint rather than display. The discipline is vineyard-first: reading each parcel, weighing each decision against the shape of the vintage, and letting the pace of the season set the terms.

Where They Are Now

For Labenne, the season is a matter of calibration. Cabernet Sauvignon, he notes, will come later, “around October 10.” In a year where ripeness arrives step by step, the task is to hold balance in view: tannins softening, acidity staying taut, and fruit reaching the cellar with its texture still intact.

Signature

Lynch-Bages 2020 is among Nicolas Labenne’s signature wines, and it reflects the kind of exacting control his role demands. The bottle reads as the result of a demanding harvest brought into line through steady technical judgment.

In Their Words “This 2016 vintage is quite sunny, with very beautiful conditions from June 15 to September 15. The sunshine and dry conditions suit the vines well. The storm around September 15 made it possible to finish tannin ripeness and sap flow.” Labenne frames the vintage through weather, timing and vine response. The long, dry stretch from mid-June to mid-September set the conditions, and the late storm became part of the finishing work, helping push tannins toward maturity and sap flow toward completion. “We are here on Graves soils, very suitable for Cabernet Sauvignon, which is the majority planting this year. We hope for a blend with beautifully ripe tannins and good balance between alcohol and acidity.” Place comes first in this reading of the year. On Graves soils, Cabernet Sauvignon has the ground it needs, and the objective is clear: a blend with ripe tannins, measured alcohol and acidity in balance, and no excess beyond what the site can support.