Pauillac Wines

wines

The 1996 Clerc Milon was surprisingly closed on the nose, tightly wound at first but gently unfurling with scents of melted tar, desiccated orange peel and leather that are interwoven into the black fruit. I noticed a more pronounced tobacco scent developing with time. The palate is medium-bodied with a little more flesh than the 1996 d’Armailhac, spicy with cracked black pepper, Hoi Sin, bay leaf and Asian spice notes liberally sprinkled over the finish. Decant this for an hour before pouring folks.Robert Parker Neal Martin | 90 RP-NM

The 1998 Pontet Canet was made at a time when the property practiced green harvesting that began in 1994 but is not done today. “The changes were in the mind at this stage,” commented Jean-Michel Comme wryly. Initially it felt a little muddled on the nose but it gains focus with time. Eventually it offers straightforward blackberry, briary and cedar scents. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, crisp acidity, plenty of cedar and mint-laced black fruit with a pleasant, quite lively and lightly spiced finish that lingers in the mouth. This is a commendable 1998 from the château before they really began to embrace biodynamics. Tasted at the château.Vinous Media | 90 VM

A charming, lush, round, generous Lynch Bages, the 1999 offers plenty of sweet black currant fruit, damp earth, licorice, cedarwood and spicy herb-like characteristics. Medium-bodied, savory and broad in the mouth with no hard edges, this fully mature effort is a somewhat underrated vintage for this estate. Enjoy it over the next decade.Robert Parker | 90 RP

This is almost the perfect time to drink this wine, although it still needs decanting to bring out the plush strokes of fruit. Aromatically, it majors on cassis, liquorice, cedar and patisserie. This is a lovely wine, a classic Pauillac that is not overly intense and retains a sense of juiciness. Of the three Pauillac estates tasted here, this 2005 is the one to open today. Drinking Window 2017 - 2028Decanter | 92 DECVery pure black currant fruits pour out of the glass with this wine. Yes, there are tannins, but the fruit is uplifting, fresh and very vibrant. Delicious, and likely to remain so.Wine Enthusiast | 92 WELocated in the north of Pauillac, between Mouton and Pontet-Canet, this 123-acre estate is also part of G.F.A. Baronne Philippine de Rothschild. The aroma balances meaty fruit and mineral scents, and while the pungent red fruit is always there, the tannins seem to increase their intensity with air. They cover the pure black cherry flavor like a powerful skin, deep and plush with an iron-knuckle punch. The tannins don’t go away, but their inner velvet eventually wins out. This has improved significantly since the en primeur tastings and will continue to evolve for ten to 15 years in the bottle.Wine & Spirits | 92 W&SThe 2005 d’Armailhac is in a gorgeous spot today. Early signs of aromatic nuance have started to develop, but the 2005 has at least a handful of years of fine drinking ahead of it. Quite frankly, I am surprised how fresh the 2005 is. Dried flowers, cedar, mint, pipe tobacco and sweet red toned fruit are all very nicely delineated. Readers looking for an affordable, mature Claret to drink now will find much to like.Vinous Media | 91 VMD’Armailhac’s 2005 offers notes of cedar wood, forest floor, black and red currants, spice box and earth. It is medium-bodied, relatively soft for a 2005, and best drunk over the next 12-15 years.Robert Parker | 90 RPExhibits blackberry, currant and licorice on the nose. Full and velvety, with plenty of good fruit. A balanced, fruity red. Best after 2012.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

From the same stable as Mouton Rothschild and d’Armailhac, Clerc Milon, despite the relatively high percentage of Merlot (44%) combined with 50% Cabernet Sauvignon and the balance Cabernet Franc, is dense, rich, tannic, and backward. Surprisingly muscular for this offering, which often exhibits a more precocious side, it offers up abundant amounts of creme brulee, chocolate, cedar, and black currants. This full-bodied Pauillac displays gorgeous purity and depth as well as moderately high tannins in the finish. Because of its freshness, structure, and density, it is reminiscent of a 1996 Medoc. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2028.Robert Parker | 91+ RPOffers a gorgeous nose of crushed blueberry and cream, with a hint of milk chocolate. Full-bodied, with velvety tannins and a pretty finish. Best after 2014. 15,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 91 WSAromas of currants and dark berries with hints of minerals. Full body with super-integrated tannins and a slightly austere and intense tannin backbone. But it’s pretty and attractive. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 90 JSBright ruby-red. Expressive aromas of currant, tobacco, graphite, herbs, roast coffee and smoky oak. Supple, solid and broad, with a mouthfilling fleshiness leavened by good energy and vinosity. There's a medicinal reserve to the redcurrant and dark chocolate flavors. Finishes broad and long, with substantial dusty tannins and very good length. A more muscular style than Armailhac, also from the team at Mouton-Rothschild, and in need of at least five years of cellaring.Vinous Media | 90 VMRounded, relatively soft wine, but one that shows balance. Sweet fruit plays with black currant acidity, giving density, even if the tannins are lightweight. Clerc-Milon, made by the team that also produces Mouton-Rothschild, has become a delicious Pauillac.Wine Enthusiast | 90 WE

Tasted at a vertical tasting at the château. The 2006 Haut Batailley is a wine that I have always appreciated and at ten years of age, I have no reason to change that view. It has a such a lively and vivacious bouquet, especially when compared to the sultrier (if ultimately superior 2005 Haut-Batailley). The palate is underpinned by very fine tannin, the acidity quite noticeable but simply lending freshness and tension. There is a sense of this being a Pauillac that is tightly coiled and there is a lot of energy on the finish. This is a great success for the vintage, but if you can wait another couple of years, it should manifest more intriguing secondary notes and turn into a more interesting Pauillac. Tasted July 2016.Robert Parker Neal Martin | 91 RP-NM

A balanced young wine, with smoky, blackberry and chewy aromas and flavors. Full and velvety, with a fresh finish.James Suckling | 92-93 JSDeep garnet in color, the 2010 Haut Bages Liberal is a bit subdued to begin, unfurling to offer glimpses at mature stewed plums and warm figs scents with touches of mossy tree bark, unsmoked cigars and truffles. Medium-bodied, the palate delivers lovely freshness and well-managed, approachable tannins, finishing on a mineral note.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 91 RPThe wine from this chateau, whose vines touch those of Latour, is solid and dense, with a sense of severity that is often the hallmark of this fifth growth. It is dark and the fruits whisper in the distance. This needs to age for several years. Wine Enthusiast | 91 WEThe 2010 Haut-Bages Libéral does not quite convey the same lift on the nose as its peers, not as cohesive. There is a very slight metallic element underneath the black fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins, good acidity, plenty of tertiary black fruit with a liberal sprinkling of cracked black pepper on the slightly raw finish. Fresh, but I was expecting more from this cru. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 90 VMDark in profile and rather stolid, with a beam of currant, plum and fig allied to a prominent iron shaft that clamps down on the charcoal-textured finish. Showing rather austerely today, but has the length and cut to develop in the cellar. Best from 2015 through 2025. 8,500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 90 WSThe 2010 Château Haut-Bages Libéral is a ripe and powerful example of this consistently fine estate, as the wine weighs in at 13.7 percent alcohol in this vintage. However, the wine shows no signs of overripeness on either the nose or palate, as it delivers a bouquet of cassis, sappy black cherries, cigar smoke, soil, espresso and cedary new wood. On the palate the wine is deep, fullish and impressively pure, with a fine core of fruit, moderate tannins, tangy, well-integrated acids and very good length and grip on the nascently complex finish. A fine example. (Drink between 2020 - 2050)John Gilman | 90+ JG