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The 1995 Petrus is one of the finest vintages of the decade, a silver medal behind the brilliant 1998. This bottle might well constitute the best that I have encountered. It has a beautiful, focused nose with hints of game and humidor infusing the black fruit. With aeration more red fruit becomes evident, allied with a touch of roasted chestnut. The palate is supremely well balanced, slightly gamey and with impressive grip. There is a bit of chutzpah about this Petrus, the way in which it fans out towards the finish. You could broach bottles now, although this example suggests that it is going to be very interesting to follow over the next 20 years. Tasted at the Petrus dinner at Hide restaurant in London.Vinous Media | 97 VMThis is like a genie in the bottle. Fascinating yet subtle aromas of blackberry, minerals, fresh flowers and Spanish cedar. Full-bodied, with wonderful layers of ultrafine tannins. It coats your mouth and tantalizes your palate. A gorgeous thing all around.--’95/’96 Bordeaux retrospective. Best after 2010. 3,200 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WSIt is interesting how this wine continues to evolve. Unquestionably one of the vintage’s superstars, the 1995 Petrus is taking on a personality similar to the extraordinarily backward, muscular 1975. This is not a Petrus that can be approached in its youth (i.e., the perfect duo of 1989 and 1990). The wine exhibits an opaque ruby/purple color, followed by a knock-out nose of pain grille, jammy black fruits, and roasted coffee. On the palate, it possesses teeth-staining extract levels, massive body, and rich, sweet black fruits buttressed by powerful, noticeable tannin. A formidably endowed wine with layers of extract, this is a huge, tannic, monstrous-sized Petrus that will require a minimum of 10 years of cellaring. Forget all the nonsense about Merlot producing sweet, soft, ready to drink wines, because low yielding, old Merlot vines made in the way of Petrus and other top Pomerols frequently possess as much aging potential as any great Cabernet Sauvignon-based wine in the world. Look for the 1995 Petrus to last for 50+ years. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2050.Petrus, the undisputed King of Pomerol, was an inconsistent performer between 1976 and 1988, but since 1989 there have been few Bordeaux wines that match this property for its extraordinary combination of power, richness, complexity, and elegance. The 1995 and 1996 are both noteworthy efforts.Robert Parker | 96 RP

Seven years ago I said this was a monumental wine, and at two different recent tastings, it was a true star of the vintage. Its stunning dark plum color offers up notes of caramelized red and black fruits, toffee, smoke, Asian plum sauce, sweet cherries, chocolate, and espresso. Its spectacular aromatics do not disappoint on the palate, as this multi-dimensional, highly complex, opulent wine seems to have hit a magical point in its evolution. Full-bodied, and concentrated, there is no issue with drinking this dazzling effort now, but those who own it can certainly cellar it for another 15 or more years. Bravo!Robert Parker | 96 RPThis is a ripe and intense red with a layered and intense character of chocolate and dried tomatoes. Full-bodied, layered and spicy with cloves and dried thyme. Very flavorful.James Suckling | 95 JSThis is rather dramatic, with lush, layered blackberry puree and mocha notes that just keep going and going, picking up juicy black licorice and Black Forest cake flavors along the way. This has the spine to pull it off but is really for the all-hedonism-only crowd.--Blind 2000 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2015). Drink now through 2025. 1,250 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WSFull ruby-red. Superripe, alluring aromas of raspberry, cherry liqueur, mocha, coffee, game, violet and truffle. Thick, concentrated and sexy, with perfectly integrated acidity giving the wine uncanny vivacity and lightness of touch considering its great ripeness and richness. Underlying minerality contributes to the impression of precision. Very intensely flavored and long on personality. An utterly captivating drink.Vinous Media | 93 VM

The 2000 La Conseillante is brilliant (this was tasted from magnum) and while mature, is still youthful and vibrant. Deep ruby/purple colored and loaded with notions of currants, plums, chocolate, Asian spice, and incense, it offers full-bodied richness, fine tannin, and a silky, elegant, yet concentrated style on the palate. This beauty can be drunk anytime over the coming two decades or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDLa Conseillante made an excellent wine in 2001, another great one in 2005, and the estate hit home runs in both 2008 and, above all, in 2009. In fact, the latter vintage may well end up being the modern-day reference point for La Conseillante. Nevertheless, there’s a lot to be said for this 2000. An elegant, gentle style that is never a blockbuster, the 2000 La Conseillante has a deep ruby/plum/purple color and an unbelievably expressive nose of sweet kirsch liqueur intermixed with raspberries, incense, toast, and licorice. Full-bodied yet ethereal in the sense that it seems to combine power along with eloquence and delicacy, this is a beautifully pure wine that has just hit its plateau of full maturity, although ideally I think it would benefit strongly from another 4-5 years of bottle age and drink well for two to three decades.Robert Parker | 96 RP(Château La Conseillante) The 2000 vintage of La Conseillante has produced an absolute classic and all this beautiful wine needs is another six to eight years of cellaring to start to come into its own. The exceptional bouquet offers up a complex and really pure blend of red and black raspberries, cigar wrapper, a superb base of soil, fresh herbs, coffee, cedar and a smoky topnote. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and very pure, with a rock solid core of fruit, great structure, moderate tannins and outstanding length and grip on the very focused and blossoming finish. This is a high class vintage of La Conseillante that will probably prove to be superior to either of the riper vintages of 2009 or 2010 and end up being one of the longest-lived vintages from this estate in many, many years. A great wine. (Drink between 2017-2060)John Gilman | 95 JGPretty, with a perfumy hint to the range of bergamot, blood orange, kirsch and damson plum fruit flavors, which are backed by a graceful, floral-edged finish. Very silky and suave, this expands steadily and dramatically in the glass but still forgoes power for a lacy seduction. This really stands apart from the powerfully ripe general profile of the AOC in ’00 but seems likely to last just as long in the hunt as the other top dogs.—Blind 2000 Bordeaux retrospective (December 2015). Drink now through 2028. 5,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WSThe colour tells you so much here - it’s clearly rich and concentrated, with younger and more complex layers of cassis and blueberry fruit compared to the the 1999. A tannic backbone is in evidence, and this is still relatively closed up; the 2000s are in general moving in and out of a closed phase, so give this time once opened, perhaps even an hour or so in a carafe. Give it the time it needs and the nose really does evolve very beautifully in the glass and produces crackling, warm autumnal flavours. No need to get stuck in just yet. Drinking Window 2018 - 2034Decanter | 94 DECThe 2000 La Conseillante is much broodier than the previous two vintages, 1998 and 1999. This demands encouragement from the glass, eventually opening with blackberry, briary, black truffle and terracotta scents. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly “furry” tannin. It is not as precise as say, the 2005 or 2010. There is impressive weight here, a concentrated and broad-shouldered La Conseillante, but what is missing is the finesse and poise that more recent vintages have shown. I find the millennial La Conseillante more impressive in its youth, though now it is just looking a little heavy-handed. Tasted at La Conseillante vertical at the property.Vinous Media | 92 VMAn incredibly subtle and sexy nose of perfume, flowers, red fruits, and sliced plums. Full-bodied, yet refined and silky. This is delicious and pretty, and just starting to open up with flavors of tobacco, cedar, and cigar box. No need to wait.James Suckling | 92 JSNo written review provided. | 91 W&S

One of the candidates for the Pomerol of this challenging vintage, Le Pin’s 2002 boasts a deep plum/purple color in addition to sweet aromas of dried herbs, roasted coffee, chocolate, plums, and sweet cherries. This luscious offering possesses terrific fruit, medium body, low acidity, and a long, heady finish. Drink it over the next 12-15 years. It is an amazing wine for the vintage!Robert Parker | 93 RPFull red-ruby. Ripe aromas of plum, dark raspberry, chocolate and espresso. Fat, lush and fruity, with a lovely pliant texture and impressive richness for the vintage; hints of espresso and roasted herbs. Alexandre Thienpont likes this wine very much but told me he gives the edge to the 2001, so I was pleasantly surprised by the high quality of this bottle.Vinous Media | 91 VM