Shop Wine

wines

After tasting it three times from bottle, I am convinced this prodigious wine is one of the greatest young Bordeaux I have ever tasted. Inky blue/purple with notes of camphor, forest floor, blackberry, cassis, sweet cherries, licorice, the wine has stunning aromatics, unctuous texture and an almost inky concentration, but without any hard edges. With considerable tannin and just enough acidity to provide definition, this wine transcends even its premier grand cru classe terroir. It is certainly the finest Clos Fourtet ever produced. Give it 5-7 years of cellaring to allow some of its baby fat to fall away. There is certainly enough structure underneath to keep for 30-50 years. Bravo!From my barrel score of 95-98, I suppose I should have seen this perfect score coming, particularly considering what proprietor Philippe Cuvelier and estate manager Tony Ballu have accomplished over the last decade. This is one of the great terroirs of St.-Emilion, nearly 50 acres high on the clay beds and deep limestone plateau of the region, just a stone’s throw from the luxury hotel and restaurant Hostellerie de Plaisance. Yields were moderate at 34 hectoliters per hectare, and the final blend is 88% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon (somewhat unusual) and the rest Cabernet Franc, aged 18 months in 80% new oak.Robert Parker | 100 RPThe greatest Clos Fourtet I’ve ever tasted, eclipsing the heavenly 2005 and 2015, the 2009 Château Clos Fourtet offers an insane bouquet of black cherry and black currant fruits as well as a loads of smoked tobacco, chocolate, licorice, and toasted spices. It shows a touch of classic limestone-influenced white truffle with time in the glass and is as majestic as they come on the palate, with full-bodied richness, a seamless texture, beautiful tannins, and a monster of a finish. A blend of 88% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 4% Cabernet Franc brought up in 80% new French oak, this magical Saint-Emilion can be enjoyed any time over the coming 30-40 years. Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDStrikingly different in construction from the Pomerol that it was paired with in the blind tasting, this is rich and hedonistic both on the nose and the attack, with a punch of ripe raspberry, blueberry fruits and clear oak finessing. Give it a minute in the glass, and the definition and precision pulls everything into an orderly line, with lift, spiced clove and salinity on the finish that stretches out in your mouth, giving a reflection of the Asteries limestone terroir that is covered with just 40cm of topsoil in much of the vineyard (up to 1m in other sections). Tasting more in line with its En Primer promise than when I had this wine two years ago, a brilliant St Emilion and a classic of its type. Drinking Window 2020 - 2045.Decanter | 97 DECThe 2009 Clos Fourtet has a generous and opulent bouquet with red cherries, kirsch, fig and light mocha aromas that gently unfold, retaining admirable definition and poise. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, a fine bead of acidity, good structure. A more masculine, serious finish exerts impressive control. This is a classy Saint-Émilion with plenty of ageing potential. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.Vinous Media | 95 VMElegant as well as rich, this is a beautiful wine. It has great depth of flavor, the sweetest fruit, deliciously ripe. At the same time, the tannins are an underlying sustenance to the impressive ageworthiness.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WETons of black fruit, plenty of smoke and some balsamic character make a dramatic statement on the nose. On the palate there’s rather sweet fruit at the front, then major tannins come through at the finish that still need time to fully resolve. Better after 2022. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019)James Suckling | 94 JSRather ripe, but nicely framed by singed apple wood, which keeps the core of damson plum, black currant and black cherry flavors at bay for now. Licorice root and black tea notes undercut the finish, which is on the grippy side. This opens steadily in the glass, too. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2014 through 2027. 3,750 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

Clinet has been on a hot streak lately and the 2009 appears to be the greatest wine ever made at the estate, surpassing even the late Jean-Michel Arcaute’s monumental 1989. A blend of 85% Merlot and tiny amounts of Cabernet Franc (12%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (3%), this big Pomerol boasts an opaque, moonless night inky/blue/purple color in addition to a gorgeous perfume of blueberry pie, incense, truffles, black raspberries, licorice and wood smoke. Viscous and multi-dimensional with silky, sweet tannin, massive fruit concentration and full-bodied power, there are nearly 4,000 cases of this thick, juicy, perfect Clinet. It should drink well in 3-5 years and keep for 25-30.Robert Parker | 100 RPA big-shouldered, powerful and classic Pomerol. Inky black in colour even at 11 years old, this is concentrated yet juicy and built for pleasure, filled with dense black cherries, fleshy raspberries, liquorice and shaved chocolate. On soils that are largely clay and gravel, with sandier sections, making it an excellent reflection of the appellation, and more than showcasing its ability to deliver superbly brushed tannins that gently pillow the Merlot-dominant fruit. Drinking Window 2020 - 2040.Decanter | 96 DECAromas of dark fruits, hazelnut and dark chocolate, follow through to a full body, with velvety tannins that are polished and refined. Beautiful depth of fruit to this. Best in 2018.James Suckling | 96 JSThe 2009 Clinet has an impressive and complex bouquet with liquorice and truffle infused black fruit, hints of desiccated orange peel and even a dab of honey. The palate is medium-bodied with ripe, succulent, and fine tannins (although not as fine as the 2009 La Conseillante) with a dense, precocious and heady finish. There is hedonism here, but it is on a tight leash. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.Vinous Media | 95 VMVery lush and exotic, boasting plum sauce, crushed fig, warm raspberry confiture and steeped black currant fruit all dripping over a racy but buried graphite spine. The long, dark finish has plenty of stuffing for the long haul. Really beautifully rendered. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2015 through 2034. 3,750 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WSA smooth, superripe wine, full of the sweetest fruit, big and rich. It is opulent, a powerhouse of dense Merlot fruits, rounded out with soft tannins.Wine Enthusiast | 92 WE

Along with the 2005, the 2009 is the greatest Angelus I've tasted and is a perfect wine in every way. Based on 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc raised in (I believe) 100% new oak, its still youthful ruby/purple color is followed by an incredible perfume of crème de cassis and blueberry fruits as well as notes of white chocolate, Asian spices, flowery incense, and a hint of white truffle. Full-bodied and powerful, it still stays weightless and elegant on the palate, and as all truly great wines do, it offers an amazing amount of both hedonistic and intellectual pleasure. It has a wealth of tannins, incredible depth of fruit, and a finish that won't quit. Drink this magical, heavenly 2009 any time over the coming 20-30 years or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDA candidate for perfection with a few more years of bottle age, this great vintage of Angelus has an almost impenetrable black/purple color and a gorgeous nose of incense, graphite, blackberry liqueur, truffles and spring flowers. The wine is full-bodied, with a voluptuous texture a magnificent concentration and purity of fruit, a stunning finish of close to a minute, and wonderfully sweet, velvety tannins that make for a prodigious Angelus that should turn out to be one of the all-time greats ever made at this estate. Drink it over the next 25-50 years.Robert Parker | 99+ RPA brilliant wine that has taken on depth and character with every year of ageing. At 11 years old you still find plenty of exuberant black cherry and cassis fruits, along with muscular tannins and a gripping slate texture, but there are also grilled oak notes that are evident although not dominant. A big jump up in the percentage of Cabernet Franc in the blend also, which no doubt helps keep focus and a sense of restraint even in a warm year, allowing for a counterbalance to the opulence. Harvest September 25th to October 14th. Drinking Window 2022 - 2045.Decanter | 96 DECIf you've ever eaten really good British Christmas cake then you know what this lavish 2009 St.-Emilion smells and tastes like. Every bit as rich as it is polished with a long moderately dry finish packed with powdery tannins. Drink or hold. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019).James Suckling | 96 JSThe 2009 Angélus has a very refined bouquet with a mixture of red and black fruit, quite lavish in style with hints of crushed violet developing in the glass. You cannot help but be taken by the purity of this Angélus. The palate is medium-bodied with ripe and supple tannin, well judged acidity, beautifully balanced with supremely well integrated oak towards the finish. This is a wonderful Angélus that should give another two or three decades of drinking pleasure. Tasted at BI Wines & Spirits' Ten Year On tasting.Vinous Media | 96 VMRich and rather stolid now, this features a wall of roasted apple wood and charcoal flavors in front of the dense core of black Mission fig, steeped black currant fruit and espresso notes. Extremely dense on the finish, but the inlaid spice and tobacco hints are there just beneath the surface, needing only extended cellaring to emerge fully. One of the larger-scaled efforts of the vintage. Best from 2018 through 2035. 8,165 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSClosed at this stage, this promises a huge, ripe future. Toast and spice notes are balanced around a black plum flavor. The dense, dark tannins create a brooding character, which is balanced by freshness on the finish. Give this wine at least 10 years.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WE

Pure perfection in a glass, the incredible 2009 Troplong Mondot offers off the chart notes of blackcurrants, licorice, truffles and saddle leather that just soar from the glass. This is a big, ripe, incredibly sexy wine that hits the palate with a huge texture, building, ripe tannin, no weight, and a finish that just won’t quit. Utterly brilliant stuff, it’s slightly more approachable than the 2005, but both of these vintages play in the same style. Drink bottles anytime over the coming two to three decades. Bravo!Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDIt boasts an inky/purple color along with a gorgeous bouquet of mocha, chocolate, blackberry and cassis fruit, an unctuous texture, a full-bodied, viscous mouthfeel and a skyscraper-like, multilayered finish. This spectacular wine is nearly overwhelming in its richness, thickness and intensity. Once all its baby fat falls away, the terroir characteristics and additional nuances will emerge. This blockbuster, fabulous Troplong Mondot will benefit from 10-15 years of cellaring and keep for three decades or more. It is not shy either, bouncing over the palate with 15.5% natural alcohol.The 2009 Troplong Mondot will provide plenty of competition for the 2010, 2005 and 2000. It comes closest in style to the prodigious 1990 that proprietress Christine Valette produced 22 years ago. A phenomenal effort, it unquestionably justifies its relatively new Premier Grand Cru St.-Emilion status. Readers should keep in mind that the 1990, which probably has lower acidity and not the level of concentration found in the 2009, is drinking incredibly well at age 22 and reveals no signs of falling apart.Robert Parker | 99 RPA very concentrated wine with such a stylish feel. It balances ripe berry fruits with chocolate and wood flavors in the richest, ripest combination. The wine has power, without losing its poised character. It’s ready for long aging.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEAlthough this is very ripe and rich with a generous body and a slew of black fruit aromas it’s also elegant and poised. The bitter chocolate character is more restrained than in many modern-style Right Bank wines of this period and there’s a lovely balance of lively acidity with fine dry tannins at the complex finish. Drink or hold. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019)James Suckling | 96 JSVery dark, with strong pastis-soaked blackberry and roasted plum notes leading the way, with layers of sweet spice, mocha and tobacco filling in on the finish. Rather lush and perhaps a touch too roasted in style for some folks, with enough just grip to keep it going. Best from 2013 through 2024. 6,288 cases made.Wine Spectator | 92 WSThese were the St-Emilion excess years and you see it here, with kirsch flamboyance on the nose from the off. You hover around before tasting, not quite sure of how close to get. There’s gloss to the palate, with high-toned silky fruits that are not balanced perfectly with the heat running through the palate. I remember this at En primeur, and it hasn’t calmed down enough over the last 10 years. It’s got all the stuffing to impress, but you need to be looking for a very specific style. Lovers of subtlety should look elsewhere. Drinking Window 2021 - 2046Decanter | 91 DECThe 2009 Troplong-Mondot has a completely over the top, gregarious and raisin-like bouquet that frankly comes as no surprise given the philosophy of the estate at this time. The palate is sweet on the entry with candied black cherries, cassis and cough candy, unlike Bordeaux in some ways with a rather cloying and alcoholic finish. Now it seems like an anachronism. Tasted at BI Wines & Spirits’ Ten Year On tasting.Vinous Media | 90 VM

Extravagant and exotic, but still lively, this is a super-concentrated and elegant wine that’s already breathtaking, yet has enormous aging potential. Plenty of wet earth and mushroom character alongside the cassis and blackberry aromas. Super-long, perfectly balanced finish. Drink or hold. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019)James Suckling | 100 JSWhat a blockbuster effort! Atypically powerful, one day, the 2009 Haut-Brion may be considered to be the 21st century version of the 1959. It is an extraordinarily complex, concentrated effort made from a blend of 46% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 14% Cabernet Franc with the highest alcohol ever achieved at this estate, 14.3%. Even richer than the perfect 1989, with similar technical numbers although slightly higher extract and alcohol, it offers up a sensational perfume of subtle burning embers, unsmoked cigar tobacco, charcoal, black raspberries, wet gravel, plums, figs and blueberries. There is so much going on in the aromatics that one almost hesitates to stop smelling it. However, when it hits the palate, it is hardly a letdown. This unctuously textured, full-bodied 2009 possesses low acidity along with stunning extract and remarkable clarity for a wine with a pH close to 4.0. The good news is that there are 10,500 cases of the 2009, one of the most compelling examples of Haut-Brion ever made. It requires a decade of cellaring and should last a half century or more. Readers who have loved the complexity of Haut-Brion should be prepared for a bigger, richer, more massive wine, but one that does not lose any of its prodigious aromatic attractions.Robert Parker | 100 RPInky purple in colour, this has a rich, intense nose of damson, blackberry and olive paste. The palate is generous in texture and weight, more broad-shouldered than Château Margaux - which is already beginning to show its florality. This is balanced but well built in every inch. The warmth of the vintage coming through as fruit ripeness, liquorice, spice and punch, with the beginnings of truffle notes. There’s no question of its excellence and its bonhomie. Drinking Window 2022 - 2044Decanter | 98 DECThis enormous young wine is among the most backward of the vintage at this early stage, with iron-clad grip holding the broad, deep core of blackberry, cassis and roasted fig notes in check for now. The finish is a torrent of dense, almost compressed layers of tobacco leaf, hot paving stone, singed bay leaf and tar that will take at least a decade to massage together fully. This one is for the kids born in 2009. Best from 2020 through 2040. 10,500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 98 WSThe 2009 Haut-Brion has a less precocious but more detailed bouquet, more nuanced perhaps with warm slates baking in the summer sun, tilled loam and cedar infusing the black fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, perfect acidity, layers of mineral-rich black fruit. This seems to have gained more complexity in recent years and is beginning to flirt with perfection. It’s not there yet, but it is moving in that direction. Tasted at BI Wines & Spirits’ Ten Year On tasting.Vinous Media | 97 VMSolid, very structured, packed with dense and dry tannins. There is a core of acidity and darkness that gives the wine a brooding, powerful character. At this stage, it seems austere although it does have the weight of fruit typical of the year.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WE(Château Haut Brion) I was rather surprised by the shape and style of the 2009 Haut Brion, which seemed to have at least dipped a toe in the water of the Luxury Wine camp in this vintage. Not a direction I would take if I were the Prince of Luxembourg and in charge of the greatest terroir in all of Bordeaux, but I am not the Prince of Luxembourg. The wine is less ripe than the 2009 La Mission, as it weighs in at a slightly less heady 14.3 percent in this vintage. The bouquet is deep, pure and beautiful, as it offers up a fine mélange of dark berries, cassis, espresso, plenty of soil tones, smoke and a very generous dollop of toasty new wood. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, pure and intensely flavored, with a rock solid core of fruit, excellent focus and a fair bit of wood tannins still in need of absorption on the long, tannic finish. Today the wine is quite marked by the Taransaud component in its oak cocktail, which I have to believe is higher than the percentage used in the second wine. There is little doubt that this wine will eventually gobble up its oak tannins and smooth out a bit on the backend, but one has to ask why there is a need for so much new wood and why so much of it has to be so damn aggressive in its wood spice? These are not the aromatics or flavors of great, traditional Haut Brion, and lest we forget, this magical terroir is really where the entire Bordeaux world as we know it today once originated. Haut Brion’s historical legacy is so deep and wide that it needs take a backseat to no one on the Gironde, so let’s dial back the new wood next year and let this hauntingly mystical terroir once again become the focal point of the grand vin. Not that the 2009 Haut Brion is not a superb wine, but it so clearly could have been even better with a bit more of a traditional focal point. (Drink between 2020-2060)John Gilman | 91-93+ JG

A profoundly generous wine with coffee grounds and patisserie notes revealing grilled oak that’s subtle but extremely pleasing. The quality of the tannins is exceptional - they are drawn out, elongated and shrouded in smoke. Layer upon layer of complexity unfurls in the mouth, getting better and better, with tons of juicy black fruit. The liquorice is black and tight on the perfectly balanced finish right now, with sprinkles of star anise and a gentle lift of fresh mint. Give it a good few years before opening. Drinking Window 2022 - 2046Decanter | 100 DECThe 2009 Château Cheval Blanc continues to just blow me away every time I’m lucky enough to taste a bottle. It has that rare mix of elegance and power that can be hard to describe. Offering a massive bouquet of black cherry liqueur, flowery incense, crème de cassis, toasted spices, and forest floor, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a magical, seamless texture, and a great, great finish. Its tannins and structure are just now starting to emerge from under ample baby fat, but it still has incredible opulence and richness as well as flawless balance. Enjoy this masterpiece any time over the coming 20-30 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDDeep garnet colored, the 2009 Cheval Blanc offers up profound notions of baked blueberries, blackberry compote and crème de cassis with suggestions of chocolate mint, new leather and cloves plus a waft of candied violets. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is an exercise in elegance with very classy, super fine-grained tannins, beautiful freshness and layer upon layer of mineral-laced blue and black fruits, finishing long and perfumed.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 100 RPSuper-spicy, this is an extremely elegant 2009 with enormous concentration and finesse. The complex finish lights up the sky and you wonder how this spectacular ripeness could have been more perfectly expressed. Drink or hold. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019).James Suckling | 99 JSThe 2009 Cheval Blanc has a rambunctious nose with copious red fruit, meat juices, sage and crushed stone aromas, ineffably complex. This is so refined, constantly mutating in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine, saturated tannin. There is a mixture of red and black fruit, hints of cassis, cardamom and allspice. Immense depth and grip towards the finish expresses ripe Cabernet Franc. This is an outstanding 2009 destined for long-term ageing. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.Vinous Media | 98 VMDense, brooding and richly coated, with a well of steeped black currant, fig paste and roasted plum fruit to draw on while the layers of charcoal, Kenya AA coffee and loam resolve themselves. This displays both breadth and depth, offering a great undercurrent of acidity to match its heft. Should be among the most long-lived wines of the vintage. Best from 2017 through 2035. Tasted twice, with consistent notes. 7,330 cases made.Wine Spectator | 98 WSAn impressive wine, a true return to form for Cheval Blanc. The fruit is enormous, packed with sweet black berry juice, and with a brilliant freshness. There is a lovely smoky character, topped by ripe figs.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WE(Château Cheval Blanc) The 2009 Cheval Blanc really is stunning. The wine is probably the most serious contender to Lafite-Rothschild’s crown as the ultimate luxury cuvée amongst the red wines in Bordeaux this year, as it is clearly cut from the same cloth. The bouquet is deep, pure and very sophisticated, as it offers up scents of dark berries, cassis, coffee bean, sappy black cherries, menthol, tobacco leaf, smoky soil tones and a generous dollop of smoky, luxurious new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and seamless, with beautiful focus and mid-palate depth, fine-grained tannins, superb focus and a very, very long, suave and complex finish. Like Lafite, Cheval Blanc wears its luxurious gloss very well in 2009, and it will clearly make a lot of friends amongst the jet set and should make some serious inroads into the Chinese high end luxury market, which seemed to be the obsession of every non-Lafite executive at the top estates on this trip. The wine will really need at least fifteen years to fully blossom, but is so finely crafted that it will provide plenty of pleasure early on and is likely to fall prey to infanticide in many circles. But as brilliant as the Cheval Blanc undoubtedly is this year, I would rather have the old-fashioned beauty of 2009 Bélair-Monange in my own personal cellar. (Drink between 2025-2075)John Gilman | 95-96+ JG

If you want to drink a Margaux 2009 any time soon, you need to go for the Pavillon - the grand vin is still extremely young, holding back its power and impact for another five or 10 years time. It’s still closed up enough to hint rather than reveal. The smooth, silky tannins are joined by blackberry and cassis fruit with a great sense of vibrancy and concentration, and some tingling minerality with a pulse of electricity. There’s a latent generosity here, a slow confidence that builds through the palate as the flavours layer up, yet it’s clear that there’s still lots to be revealed, particularly the hints of violet and peony florality that just peek through on the finish. This is very, very good - up with the best ever from this estate. 31% of production went into this wine, and it has the same amount of Cabernet Sauvignon as in 2005. 2% Petit Verdot completes the blend. Drinking Window 2022 - 2046Decanter | 100 DECThis marathon runner is currently in the no-man’s land between youthful vitality and mellow maturity. There’s a very serious tannin structure here, but it needs a lot longer to fully resolve. Very tight and closed. A perfect wine usually. But not today. Try in 2020. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019).James Suckling | 99 JSA brilliant offering from the Mentzelopoulos family, once again their gifted manager, Paul Pontallier, has produced an uncommonly concentrated, powerful 2009 Chateau Margaux made from 87% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest primarily Merlot with small amounts of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. As with most Medocs, the alcohol here is actually lower (a modest 13.3%) than most of its siblings-. Abundant blueberry, cassis and acacia flower as well as hints of charcoal and forest floor aromas that are almost Burgundian in their complexity are followed by a wine displaying sweet, well-integrated tannins as well as a certain ethereal lightness despite the wine’s overall size. Rich, round, generous and unusually approachable for such a young Margaux, this 2009 should drink well for 30-35+ years.Robert Parker | 99 RPA massive wine for Margaux, packed with tannins and ripe fruit. It has more Cabernet Sauvignon than usual, giving intense black currant flavors with enticing acidity balanced by the sweetness of the fruit. Ripe swathes of this opulent fruit are also elegant and structured.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WEThe 2009 Château Margaux is intense and powerful on the nose with blackberry, forest floor, graphite and rose petals that unfurls with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with fine grain tannin, impressive density and plenty of freshness, perhaps more than the 2009 Mouton-Rothschild. There is a genuine Pauillac-like drive to this Château Margaux thanks to the Cabernet Sauvignon, clearly a First Growth destined for long-term ageing. 13.1% alcohol. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.Vinous Media | 97 VMThis offers gorgeously caressing fruit, with steeped plum, blackberry and red currant notes, finely embroidered with accents of rooibos and black tea, tobacco leaf, alder and sandalwood. Delivers loads of fruit, with the structure already melded into the core of fruit--but that’s the vintage style. A stunner, though I still find the ’10 a full step ahead.--Non-blind Château Margaux vertical (December 2013). Best from 2018 through 2035.Wine Spectator | 97 WS(Château Margaux) The 2009 Margaux is again, very, very ripe, but never strays over the line. The bouquet is deep and flamboyant, as it offers up scents of black cherries, cassis, dark chocolate, cigar smoke, fine soil tones and plenty of spicy new wood. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and black fruity, with a firm core of ripe fruit, low acids, fine focus and impressive length and grip on the beautifully balanced and ripely tannic finish. This is a very well-made, low acid and big-boned Margaux that will need a good decade in the cellar to start to blossom and should provide a solid forty year window of peak drinkability. A fine result. (Drink between 2020-2060)John Gilman | 93-94 JG

This is what the Medoc is all about. The freshness and delicacy of this wine in combination with its serious concentration and firm core are totally stunning. Time has already worked its magic and this is already delicious, but has decades in front of it. Drink or hold. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019).James Suckling | 100 JS(Château Lafite Rothschild, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pauillac, Bordeaux, France, Red) This wine is stunningly impressive but almost the opposite of the 2010 vintage. The year offered a warm, wet spring followed by a hot, dry summer and cool nights in September, giving a riper, more generous impression. A bit of smoke and spice on the initial attack with a ripe, plummy fruit character that is more black than red and a supple, dense richness on the palate that lingers sumptuously on the finish. This vintage will drink sooner than the 2010, yet should easily last as long. The finished wine is a blend of 82.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, and a half-percent of Petit Verdot. Picking began in mid-September for the Merlot and early October for the Cabernet, with 45% of the fruit going into the grand vin. (Drink between 2032-2082)Decanter | 99 DECThe main reason the 2009 Lafite Rothschild did not receive a perfect score is because the wine has closed down slightly, but it is unquestionably another profound Lafite, their greatest wine since the amazing 2003. Among the most powerful Lafites ever made (it came in at 13.59% alcohol), the final blend was 82.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot and the rest Petit Verdot. The selection was incredibly severe with only 45% of the crop being utilized. A tight, but potentially gorgeous nose of graphite, black currants, licorice and camphor is followed by a full-bodied wine revealing the classic elegance, purity and delineated style of Lafite. It is phenomenally concentrated with softer tannins than the 2005, the 2003’s voluptuous, broad, juicy personality, and low acidity. There are several vintages that I thought were a replay of their colossal 1959, most notably 1982 and 2003, but 2009 is also one to keep an eye on. It is still extremely youthful and seems slightly more backward than I would have guessed based on the barrel tastings, but it needs 10-15 years of bottle age, and should last for 50+.Robert Parker | 99+ RPThis is stunning for its ability to take massively endowed fig, currant paste and crushed plum fruit flavors and harness them with ultrasuave freshly roasted espresso, black tea and ganache notes. A seductive style, long and velvety, with the dense core of black fruit and smoldering iron just waiting and waiting. Best from 2020 through 2040.Wine Spectator | 98 WSThe 2009 Lafite-Rothschild is quite high-toned and expressive on the nose, perhaps the most ostentatious of the top flight 2009s with upfront black cherry and boysenberry fruit, lavish new oak and touches of violet. The palate is sleek and satin-like in feel with copious dark cherry and boysenberry fruit, fig and dates, almost honeyed in texture towards the precocious finish that has an opulent bent, almost hedonistic, unusual for this First Growth. But it is kinda irresistible. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.Vinous Media | 96 VMA powerful expression of Cabernet Sauvignon, solid in structure. The wine is rich and concentrated, very textured. Great spice go with just enough fresh acidity, in this big wine.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WE(Château Lafite-Rothschild) The 2009 Lafite-Rothschild is a beautifully crafted wine that is all poise and seduction. This is the world’s ultimate luxury wine these days, and while the style has changed rather dramatically from the great Lafites of the decade of the 1980s, there is little here to complain about, as everything is done as perfectly as is humanly possible. The bouquet is deep and stunning, as it soars from the glass in a blaze of cassis, blackberries, coffee, tobacco smoke, a great base of gravelly soil tones and a generous coating of nutty, smoky new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, very suave and utterly complex, with a great core of pure fruit, moderate, refined tannins and stunning length and grip on the utterly seamless and completely seductive finish. This wine is crafted like a truly great Swiss watch, and consequently it offers up unprecedented accessibility at a very young age for those that will not be able to defer gratification, but it is so poised and beautifully balanced that it will also have no difficulty aging for many, many decades. Whether one prefers the old style of Lafite that took decades to really blossom or this new style that is the ultimate in seduction from the start is really just a matter of personal taste. There is certainly nothing in the makeup of the 2009 that is anything but exemplary in nature, and this is a beautiful wine. (Drink between 2020-2075).John Gilman | 93-95 JG

A brilliant wine that stands out as one of the high points of the vintage, the 2009 Montrose unwinds in the glass with a rich and incipiently complex bouquet of dark berries, cigar wrapper and loamy soil, framed by a deftly judged touch of new oak. Full-bodied, broad and enveloping, it’s a velvety, layered and impressively dynamic wine that’s deep and concentrated, exhibiting terrific balance and a long, resonant finish. While it is still five or six years away from showing all its cards, I have drunk this benchmark for contemporary Montrose with immense pleasure three times this year. In style, it’s hard to find an obvious comparison (and I have drunk Montrose back to 1895), but I would be inclined to invoke a fresher, more complete and more powerful version of the estate’s very successful 2003.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 100 RPFor the very ripe vintage this has a herbal and wet earth nose that’s very cool. Then on the palate there’s a ton of ripe cassis, polished fine tannins and a tremendous freshness powering the very long dry finish. One of the stars of the vintage that’s just beginning to enter its best form. This is normally a perfect wine but perhaps not a perfect bottle? Drink or hold. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019).James Suckling | 98 JSThe 2009 Montrose has a taut, brilliantly defined bouquet with intense black fruit laced with crushed stone, forest floor, crushed rose petals and a touch of slate. Magnificent. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannin, good depth and grip, plenty of graphite locked in here with a bravura finish that indicates that this Saint-Estèphe is in for the long-haul. It may well deserve a higher score as it evolves in bottle. Everything you wish for in a Montrose. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.Vinous Media | 98+ VMA brilliant Montrose, and a great window into what St Estèphe can deliver. This is fresh and concentrated, with ripe cassis fruits, sweet vanilla bean and black pepper spice notes alongside robust tannins, 1% Petit Verdot completes the blend. Jean-Bernard Delmas was estate director for this wine, and is making the most of the complex soils that are gravel-dominant towards the river, with pockets of sand over clay and limestone where the Merlots tend to be planted. Starting to feel ready to drink, but is going nowhere in a hurry. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042.Decanter | 97 DECA bit of a brute, with a very chewy bittersweet ganache, tobacco and roasted fig core splayed open right now by a dagger of roasted apple wood, allspice and cedar. Long and dense through the finish, with a strong singed iron edge. The stuffing is certainly there, but this will take a while to come together as it’s running unbridled right now. Proves you can still get classic old-school Bordeaux. Best from 2020 through 2040. 17,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WSEnormous tannins, dominant black fruit and a solid, dense structure. The wine, packed with dark fruits, dry tannins, very firm in character. With its huge tannins as well as fruit, this is a wine that really needs many years of aging.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WE(Château Montrose) For lovers of old school claret, the 2009 Montrose is your wine! Jean Delmas has eschewed every modern accoutrement in this traditionally-styled, broad-shouldered and very structured Montrose, and I am hard-pressed to think of any vintage since the legendary wines of the 1920s that have emerged from this property with this kind of potential. The bouquet is deep, reticent and bottomless, as it offers up scents of cassis, black cherries, tobacco leaf, cigar ash, a very complex base of gravelly soil tones and a bit of cedary wood. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and powerful in a very classic way (in comparison to the caricature of a wine at Cos this year), with a rock solid core of fruit, very firm, but ripe and well-integrated tannins, tangy acids and a very, very long, focused and soil-driven finish. This is the real deal in 2009 and clearly one of the wines of the vintage. (Drink between 2025-2075)John Gilman | 93-95 JG

A blend of 91.3% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8.7% Merlot with just under 14% natural alcohol, the 2009 Latour is basically a clone of the super 2003, only more structured and potentially more massive and long lived. An elixir of momentous proportions, it boasts a dense purple color as well as an extraordinarily flamboyant bouquet of black fruits, graphite, crushed rocks, subtle oak and a notion of wet steel. It hits the palate with a thundering concoction of thick, juicy blue and black fruits, lead pencil shavings and a chalky minerality. Full-bodied, but very fresh with a finish that lasts over a minute, this is one of the most remarkable young wines I have ever tasted. Will it last one-hundred years? No doubt about it. Can it be drunk in a decade? For sure.Robert Parker | 100 RPDark and chocolatey with a lot of richness, but also a cool herbal freshness this is a very impressive Medoc wine that’s already delicious to drink. Very long, surprisingly supple finish for this château. A perfect wine. Drink or hold. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019).James Suckling | 100 JSAn incredible wine in every way, the 2009 Château Latour displays the ripe, sexy style of the vintage while still offering classic Latour power, density, and regalness. Currants, spicy wood, smoked tobacco, graphite, and ample minerality all define the bouquet, and it’s full-bodied, with incredible density, perfectly integrated, ripe, polished tannins, and a finish that leaves no doubt about the insane quality of this wine. Based on 91.3% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8.7% Merlot, and checking in at 13.7% alcohol, it’s drinking brilliantly today given its incredible texture and balance, and I suspect it has another 50-60 years of prime drinking. This is as good a Bordeaux as I’ve had and is as good as wine gets.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDThis is still closed, although a softening of the tannins is apparent. It has a gorgeous nose full of Pauillac power and finesse, with brambled fruits and touches of hedgerow as the Cabernet Sauvignon count heads upwards. The fresh core is clear from start to finish, giving that high-wire feeling that makes great Médocs so thrilling. There’s a sense of drama to the cassis fruits, controlled but with impact and a sense of purpose, leading to a chewy finish. This is barely bedded down and has the shoulders and backbone to carry it for years. Don’t approach it yet. Drinking Window 2024 - 2046.Decanter | 99 DECThe 2009 Latour is endowed with a simply magnificent nose with intense blackberry and cassis fruit laced with minerals and graphite, extremely focused to the point of overwhelming the sense. Wow. The palate is medium-bodied with filigree tannin, multilayered black fruit infused with crushed stone and a hint of white pepper, though it clams up towards the finish as if to say, not yet. Outstanding. This is Latour firing on all cylinders. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners’ 2009 Bordeaux tasting.Vinous Media | 99 VMThis seems to come full circle, with a blazing iron note and mouthwatering acidity up front leading to intense, vibrant cassis, blackberry and cherry skin flavors that course along, followed by the same vivacious minerality that started things off. The tobacco, ganache and espresso notes seem almost superfluous right now, but they’ll join the fray in due time. The question is, can you wait long enough? Best from 2020 through 2040. 9,580 cases made.Wine Spectator | 99 WSA big, powerful wine that sums up the richness of the vintage. It is densely fruity, spicy with an enormous black plum and berry fruit character to go with the acidity. It’s concentrated while still showing such wonderfully pure fruit. The aging potential is immense.Wine Enthusiast | 99 WE(Château Latour (barrel sample)) Château Latour’s lack of graciousness this year was the talk of the journalistic circles during the week of the En Primeur tastings, as the estate was hell-bent on restraining access to tasting the 2009s here to only the best and the brightest. Naturally I was not on the short list of those allowed access (good lord, what would the world be coming to if I was on the list!), but thanks to the generous persistence of another wine writer (who shall remain nameless), I was eventually granted a brief audience with the Left Bank wine of the vintage. The 2009 Latour is a great classic and perhaps the best wine to issue forth from this great estate since the 1961. The wine offers up a fantastically complex and quite closed blend of espresso, cassis, black cherries, dark berries, tobacco leaf, a magical base of gravelly soil tones and a discreet framing of cedary new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and quite closed on the attack, with a rock solid core of fruit, ripe tannins and an absolutely stunning finish of profound focus, length and grip. There are a boatload of tannins in the 2009 Latour and it will clearly take several decades before it even considers being enjoyable to drink, but this is a great classic in the making and an uncompromisingly brilliant and traditional vintage of Latour. A seamless powerhouse from the old school. (Drink between 2030-2100).John Gilman | 96-98+ JG

Deep garnet colored, the 2010 L’Eglise Clinet begins unassumingly with gentle notions of fragrant dried flowers and wild sage leading to savory nut and meat characters over an expanding core of preserved plums, blueberry compote and black cherry coulis plus a waft of menthol. Full-bodied, concentrated and wonderfully decadent, the palate is absolutely packed with rich, ripe black fruit preserves and loads of spicy sparks, framed by super ripe, super plush tannins, finishing very long and decadent. I love the interplay of subtly and power here - this is truly a WOW wine!Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 100 RPSo much elegance and complexity to this young wine with plenty of flowers and dark fruit notes. Full and super refined, with amazing complexity and firmness. It is very tight and silky. Long and intense. This is a super 2001 or a 1961.James Suckling | 97-98 JSRich but delightfully pure, with a stunningly gorgeous, pure beam of unadulterated raspberry preserves driving through the middle, showing hints of plum, anise and blueberry hanging in the background. The long finish drips with fruit, but maintains the racy acidity needed for balance and elegance, while a fine minerality slides in underneath. Drink now through 2030. 1,333 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe 2010 L’Eglise-Clinet comes across a little introverted and sullen on the nose compared to its peers in this very strong flight. It is attractive in its own way with pretty red berry fruit, briary and rose petals, but declines to reveal its complexity. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, slightly lactic in style, modern in the context of this Pomerol cru, but well balanced on the finish. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 94+ VM

This is crazy. The nose is so unique with the iodine, stones and currant aromas with wet earth and mushroom. Aromas like this don’t usually come out until 10 years or so in the bottle. Classic nose for this estate. Full-bodied, with an amazing palate of firm yet polished tannins and a solid palate. So dense and gorgeous. It is really stunning. Try in 2020.James Suckling | 100 JSDeep garnet colored, the 2010 La Mission Haut-Brion has a commanding, profound nose of baked blackberries, boysenberries and warm cassis plus suggestions of candied violets, red roses, chocolate box, cedar chest and smoked meats with a waft of iron ore. Full-bodied, powerful and hedonic, the palate bursts with expressive black fruits and floral sparks, framed by exquisitely ripe, grainy tannins and beautiful freshness, finishing with epic length. A real head-turner, this beauty is already very impressive, but for that full WOW experience I would give it another 3-5 years in bottle to blossom.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 100 RPMore subdued on the nose but with striking cinnamon and black pepper notes alongside the blackberry and spiced dark chocolate, this is concentrated and velvety and extremely high quality. Again it is the texture, the construction, that grabs you. There is a similar feel to Haut-Brion, in its weight and power, just a little less elongated stretching out of the tannins through the final furlong. But believe me, you’ll enjoy this too. Drinking Window 2025 - 2050Decanter | 98 DECThe 2010 La Mission Haut-Brion has a very flattering bouquet with detailed red and black fruit laced with chestnut, cedar and sous-bois. This is supremely well focused. The palate is medium-bodied with fine grain tannins. There is immense depth here, more savoury than expected with chestnut once again, white pepper and a tinge of dried blood towards the finish. Outstanding. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the BI Wines & Spirits 10-Year On tasting.Vinous Media | 98 VMThis rich, open wine has both acidity and impressively ripe white and yellow-fruit flavors. The creaminess creates a sense of richness underlined by the wood aging. This is a balanced wine, already well integrated and likely to age well. Drink from 2024.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEIntense and engaging. Despite showing lots of heft and tarry grip, the singed apple wood and alder notes are well-defined in this red, accentuating a core of roasted fig, blackberry coulis and macerated red and black currant fruit. The long, bramble-edged finish sports showy ganache and Lapsang souchong tea notes, while the structure refuses to yield until everything has finally played out. Muscular and vivacious. Best from 2019 through 2040. 5,100 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WS(Château La Mission Haut-Brion) The 2010 La Mission Haut-Brion is the most mammoth of all the wines in the Dillon stable in 2010, as it tips the scales at an unprecedented 15.1 percent in alcohol. The nose is very, very deep, very ripe and amazingly, also quite compelling, as it offers up scents of black cherries, sweet cassis, bitter chocolate, soil tones, cigar smoke, gravel and a very well-integrated and generous base of new oak. I much prefer the wood integration on the 2010 La Mission to the 2009 at the same stage a year ago. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, powerful and sharply acidic, with a rock solid core of pure fruit, very hard tannins, excellent focus and great length and grip on the tensile finish. The acids today are quite coarse and one hopes that they will eventually be tamed. They tend to really sharpen the expression of the fruit, but they are not currently integrated into the body of the wine and cause a fair bit of discordance on the finish at the present time. The 2010 La Mission, despite its higher alcohol content than the 2010 Haut-Brion, shows less signs of overripeness on the backend than its First Growth stable-mate. It too is a very forcefully-styled and bruising young wine at the present time, and I have a hard time imagining its ultimate shape. Perhaps it will turn out as well as the 1975 La Mission, but it may also always be a wine that never fully pulls its currently disparate elements into a cohesive and compelling whole. There is a lot of sound in the fury currently in the glass, but not much enlightenment. (Drink between 2025-2075)John Gilman | 83-92+ JG

The nose is phenomenal with perfect aromas of Cabernet Sauvignon with currant bush, blackberries and minerals. A pure expression of Cab. The palate is perfect with a full body, but has perfectly integrated tannins with a texture like the finest cashmere. It’s strong but noble with perfect form and beauty. All in harmony. A fabulous wine that everyone who loves Bordeaux should have a bottle or case of. Better in 2020.James Suckling | 100 JSWhile I loved the 2010 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou on release I’ve always preferred the 2009. However, the 2010 showed sensationally on this occasion, and while in a different style than the 2009, it’s unquestionably as good. Still ruby/purple-hued, it offers up extraordinary notes of pure crème de cassis, unsmoked tobacco, spice, and damp earth, and it’s the purity of fruit as well as the incredible depth and intensity that makes this wine so special. Full-bodied, deep, profound, and seamless on the palate, it offers incredible pleasure today but it’s going to be a 50-year, if not a 100-year wine. Hats off to Bruno Borie.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDVery deep garnet in color, the 2010 Ducru-Beaucaillou is just slightly closed to begin, featuring subtle wafts of baked plums, espresso and bay leaves before kicking it up a notch with expressive notes of blackcurrant cordial, chargrilled meats, woodsmoke and crushed rocks plus a tantalizing touch of truffles. Full-bodied, concentrated and oh-so-decadently fruited in the mouth, the palate is built like a brick house with firm, ripe, grainy tannins and bold freshness supporting the tightly wound flavor layers, finishing with epic length and depth.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 99 RPThere is tannin build up at this point in the vertical, but in the most enjoyable way - a clear indication of how much complexity there is in these wines and how densely knitted together they are, bedding down for the long term. This wine in particular has barely an end in sight, it just stretches out before you, confident in its fleshy texture and layers of expression. This is really at the top of what you hope from St Julien, confident and intense yet still with the balance and freshness of the appellation. It has great persistency and keeps hanging on, delivering flavour an inch at a time. Wonderful. Drinking Window 2023 - 2045Decanter | 98 DECNot shy at all, with a flamboyant, aromatic profile of roasted apple wood and warm ganache, featuring more than enough stuffing in the form of thickly layered blackberry paste, steeped fig and pastis-soaked plum flavors. The structure is massive but incredibly polished, and the fruit displays terrific purity through the graphite-supported finish. Large-scale and extremely well-rendered. Best from 2020 through 2040. 8,416 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WSThe 2010 Ducru-Beaucaillou, picked 29 September to 14 October, was matured in 100% new oak for 18 months. This is more backward, sultry compared to the 2009, but there is a payload of black fruit laced with violet and cedar, a very faint ash scent emerging with time. The palate is full-bodied with powerful black fruit, a lovely granular texture and a killer line of acidity. There is a certainly headiness on the finish, atypically more so than the 2009, although it delivers extraordinary persistence. It needs another 10 years before it even thinks about entering its drinking window. Tasted at the Ducru Beaucaillou vertical at the château.Vinous Media | 96+ VMA grand wine, it has great ripeness and richness, majestic in its structure and upright character. It is concentrated, perfumed and opulent. The style of Ducru Beaucaillou is both generous and powerful, and obviously ageworthy.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WE(Château Ducru-Beaucaillou) The 2010 Ducru-Beaucaillou is a riveting success for the vintage and one of the best three or four wines to be found on the Left Bank this year. The bouquet is deep, pure and stunning, as it soars from the glass in a mélange of sweet cassis, dark berries, tobacco, a superb, gravelly soil signature, coffee and a fair dollop of spicy new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and fabulously structured, with great intensity at the core, impeccable focus and balance, plenty of ripe, beautifully integrated tannins and outstanding length and grip on the palate-staining and dancing finish. Here is one of the extremely rare 2010s that actually is worthy of all the hyperbole bantered around about this vintage! (Drink between 2022-2100)John Gilman | 95+ JG

Rampolla’s 2010 d’Alceo is utterly spellbinding today. Even better than it was last year, the 2010 impresses for its exceptional balance and pure finesse. Everything is simply in the right place. Silky, layered and unbelievably expressive, the 2010 d’Alceo is a thrill from the very first taste. Over the decades the Di Napoli family has made so many breathtaking wines, but the 2010 d’Alceo is something more than breathtaking, and that something more is hard to express with words. Readers lucky enough to taste the 2010, however, will know it right away. What a magnificent wine this is.Vinous Media | 100 VMPlenty of currant, herb and mineral character. Bright and lifted with so much complexity. Medium to full body, fine tannins and a fresh finish. Layered and beautiful. From organically grown grapes. Cabernet sauvignon and petit verdot. Better in 2016.James Suckling | 95 JSA mix of blackberry, black cherry, cedar, tobacco and spice flavors runs up against dense, muscular tannins in this tight, linear red. Juicy and vibrant, with plenty of fruit, this just needs time to harmonize. Terrific length. Best from 2018 through 2028. 1,250 cases made. — BSWine Spectator | 95 WSThe 2010 Vigna d’Alceo Vino da Tavola is Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot folded so deep within one another, it’s difficult to hear the varietal voice of the wine. Dried cherries and blackberry appear as primary tones, but the wine also offers a good dose of spice, black olive, rosemary twig and dried plum. The wine takes its time to open in the glass and will probably require much patience in terms of cellar aging as well.Robert Parker | 94 RP

This is a magnificently solid wine, initially even a bit severe. At this young stage, the tannins dominate, but it’s also full of black fruit notes. Very dense and concentrated, this is a wine that’s even better than the legendary 2005. The structure tells of its extraordinary aging potential: don’t even attempt to drink this for 10 years.Wine Enthusiast | 100 WELove the depth and the power of this, it grips the walls of the glass. These tannins are muscular and yet ready to roll and still so powerful that you can’t help but smile. The cassis fruits are concentrated and layered with tobacco, slate, pencil lead and smoked earth. Hard not to recommend this wine. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042Decanter | 97 DECAromas of pure blackberries and violets follow through to a full body, with super velvety tannins and a delicious balance of sweet fruit, light vanilla and nuts. Really savory and beautiful. Superb wine. I like this better than 2009. Try in 2018.James Suckling | 97 JSTakes a modern approach, with dark mocha- and espresso-infused toast leading the way, featuring an extra ganache kicker before dark currant preserves and roasted plum fruit strides in. Dense and extracted through the polished finish, this features a charcoal spine that gives rise to extra blueberry and pastis notes. Should cruise in the cellar. Best from 2018 through 2038. 13,750 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe 2010 Léoville Barton is cut from a very different cloth to the Langoa this year with more amplitude on the nose and more red fruit. It is very well delineated, very intense with almost honey-like aromas emerging with time. The palate is medium-bodied with succulent, ripe tannins. This is a multi-dimensional Léoville-Barton with tobacco-infused black fruit gripping the finish and not letting go. Afford this wine another few years in bottle. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the BI Wines & Spirits 10-Year On tasting.Vinous Media | 95 VMThe 2010 Leoville Barton is deep garnet in color, and the nose is a little tired, with notes of stewed plums and dried cherries over hints of balsamic, tobacco, spice box and fried herbs. The medium to full-bodied palate has a solid backbone of firm, chewy tannins and plenty of freshness supporting the mature fruit, finishing spicy.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 91 RP

Complex aromas of walnut, dark fruit, stone, oyster shell, chalk and dried fruit. This shows fabulous intensity and balance with layer upon layer of fruit and polished tannins. Builds on the palate. It goes on for minutes. Better in 2019.James Suckling | 100 JSGiancarlo Pacenti’s 2010 Brunello di Montalcino Vecchie Vigne is another superb wine. The contours are more modern and the fruit leans towards the darker end of spectrum, yet all the elements are wonderfully in balance. Surprisingly open and expressive for a young Brunello, the 2010 is sure to improve with a little more time in the bottle. All of the Pacenti signatures are in place, though, and the house style is unmistakable.Antonio Galloni | 95 AGThis brooding version is lean and sinewy in profile, with dusty, chewy tannins gripping the cherry and strawberry fruit. This comes around with air, showing more sweetness and balance. Best from 2019 through 2033. 2,500 cases made. — BSWine Spectator | 95 WS

The 2010 Grange arrives with much expectation and does not disappoint. This is a powerhouse, structurally superior to both the 2009 and 2008 vintages and breathtakingly dense, long and precise. The nose has cola, blackberry, vanillin, hard brown spices of all kinds, coal smoke, meaty charcuterie elements and a strong tarry, savory note that speaks of the 85% Barossa Valley componentry. The palate has super deep tannins that fan out through flavorsome black fruits. These are purposeful tannins - they bristle on the palate, tantalizing and assertive yet playful; strong not aggressive. The power here is the thing: This has mouth-coating density and terrific drive, so tightly coiled, it gives enough away to suggest a very, very long cellaring wine is here. This is a classic Grange that will please the serious collectors. A wine of genuine pedigree. Drink in 2026.James Suckling | 100 JSWith its veritable vortex of rich but dynamic blackberry and blood-plum, exotic satsuma lift, creamy praline oak and supple tannins of deep-pile velvet, this is a sumptuous wine to sink into - a bottomless pit. Hints of sarsaparilla and tar lend savoury nuance. This oozes confidence and charm. Sourced from Barossa Valley, Clare Valley, Adelaide Hills, McLaren Vale and Magill Estate, it spent 17 months in 100% new American oak hogsheads. Drinking Window 2018 - 2045Decanter | 99 DECThe 2010 Grange is a 4% Cabernet Sauvignon and 96% Shiraz blend made from Barossa Valley, Clare Valley, Adelaide Hills, McLaren Vale and Magill Estate fruit that was aged 17 months in 100% new American oak hogsheads. Very deep purple-black in color, this is classic Grange - amongst the finest produced - replete with fresh, vibrant and youthful black fruit notes showing some blueberry aromas and accents of camphor, anise and the slightest floral hint plus a whiff of oak in the background to lend a cedar-laced lift to this textbook Shiraz nose. Medium to full-bodied in the mouth, it is very taut and finely constructed showing typically firm, grainy, uniform tannins, great concentration and wonderful persistence on the finish. If I have any very slight complaint of this near perfect wine it is that it seems a little too clinical and appears to speak less of the land and the heart of South Australia and more of the very skilled winemaking than did the Grange from the magical 2008 vintage.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 99 RPThis inky, embryonic wine deserves to be cellared until at least 2025 and should drink well for at least 25 years after that. It takes its time opening up in the glass to reveal notes of grilled meat, vanilla and plum. In the mouth, it's full bodied and firmly built, with a wall of chewy tannins surrounding a deep ripe core.Wine Enthusiast | 99 WEFocused, elegant, powerful and layered, exhibiting plum, currant, floral, spice and coffee flavors that come together seamlessly and persist on the long, complex finish. This has presence and deftness in equal measure, with well-integrated tannins. Best from 2018 through 2030. 371 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 98 WSPeter Gago is excited about the 2010 Grange, having followed it through a moderate, relatively dry growing season, then shepherding his best lots of shiraz through the end of their fermentation and extended aging in new American oak hogsheads. The fruit is a blend from Barossa Valley, Clare Valley, Adelaide Hills, McLaren Vale and the Magill Estate, delivering powerful richness and deep intensity without any perception of alcohol. American oak provides an accent, dominated by the fruit concentration that brings its own herbal spice. The volatility that lifts that spice is a trademark of Max Schubert’s winemaking style, and adds to the detail that develops as this turns into a grand wine. More accessible than many Grange releases, this presents a sleek and sophisticated composure rather than the fireworks that often accompany a young Grange. It should age beautifully.Wine & Spirits | 94 W&S

This is considered to be among the greatest vintages ever made in Montrose, right up with the 1929, 1945, 1947, 1959, 1961, 1989, 1990 and 2009. Harvest was October 15 to 17. The wine has really come on since I last tasted it, and it needs at least another 10 years of cellaring. The blend was 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. The wine is opaque black/blue, with an incredible nose of blueberry and blackberry liqueur, with hints of incense, licorice, and acacia flowers. Tannins are incredibly sweet and very present. The wine is full-bodied, even massive, with great purity, depth and a finish that goes on close to a minute. This is a 50- to 75-year-old wine that will repay handsomely those with good aging genes. (Note: The Chateau Montrose website gives an aging potential of 2020-2100.Robert Parker | 100 RPThe 2010 Montrose is insanely beautiful. A vivid, eternal wine, the 2010 dazzles right out of the gate with its explosive energy. Soaring floral and mineral notes are immediately captivating on the bouquet. All that carries through to the palate, where the wine is dense and expansive. Readers lucky enough to own it should be thrilled. This really benefits from aeration. What a wine! Vinous Media | 100 VMFabulous inky rich depths to the colour here, and right off the nose you feel it enticing you in. Spice is evident, as are the ripples of muscles and walls. This is in the Lynch Bages school of not being ready yet, the tannins are still fully standing to attention. Fruit is dark, tight, hiding its fleshier side for now, and it is extremely clear that this is a vintage with ambition and no intention of going anywhere for many decades. A great wine, needs to be opened for five to six hours if drinking soon, but my suggestion would be to put it away for another three or four years at least. Drinking Window 2022 - 2050Decanter | 98 DECRock solid, displaying a dense core of plum, steeped currant and braised fig fruit, with racy charcoal and ganache notes. Intensely chalky, offering flesh and refinement to match the bracing minerality, this shows hints of grilled savory, iron, warm paving stone and bitter orange on the riveting finish. Should age very slowly. Best from 2019 through 2038.Wine Spectator | 97 WSA perfumed and pure Montrose, with lots of currants, berries and spices that evolve to chocolate and light coffee. Full body, with super racy tannins and bright and clean finish. Very fine and structured. A balance and freshness to it all as well as beautiful form and tension. Try in 2018.James Suckling | 97 JSThis is such an elegant wine that has all the structure of the vintage. Surrounding the tannins, the wine is sweet and ripe, with smokiness from the wood. It’s powerful, elegant and sophisticated with a strong sense of poise. The tannins promise long-term aging.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WE(Château Montrose) The 2010 Montrose is another very, very good example of the vintage, but I suspect it will always have to live in the long shadow of the 2008 and 2009 wines from this estate. The wine is probably a tad riper than the 2009, as it weighs in at 13.6 percent, and at this very early date, it seems to have lost just a touch of focus and delineation at this slightly higher octane level. The bouquet is certainly deep and impressively complex out of the blocks, as it offers up scents of sweet cassis, dark berries, Cuban cigar ash, espresso, gravel, lead pencil and a bit of singed earth. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and truly massive in shape, with impeccable balance, a superb core, very substantial, but well-integrated tannins, tangy acids and outstanding length and grip on the powerful finish. There is a fine spine of minerality in the 2010 Montrose that promises very fine evolution on into the future, but the ripeness here seems to have taken just a touch of backend lift away from the wine in this vintage. It is a very good wine, and it may prove that after it has fifteen or twenty years of bottle age on it, I will have underrated it a bit. But at this stage, as good as the 2010 Montrose is, I would rather own the superb 2008 or 2009 vintages from this great estate. (Drink between 2027-2100)John Gilman | 93+ JG

Layered, textured, deep, cigar box, cassis and earth, managing to simultaneously stretch out, and burrow down. The edges open slowly but surely and seductively. Still inky in colour, this has all the powerful texture and tannic architecture that you expect from Leoville, and unlike the 2009 at its ten year point it is still keeping plenty of secrets close to its chest. But you are going to want to be around when it fully opens. Drinking Window 2022 - 2050.Decanter | 100 DECA hugely powerful wine, full of dark, brooding tannins. It’s a wine for seriously long-term aging, a sculptural vision of classic Bordeaux structure with with classy, ripe blackberry fruits. It has fresh acidity and an immense full-bodied character, cut through with mineral acidity. A great wine, with great potential.Wine Enthusiast | 100 WEThe aromas to this wine have a beautiful purity of raspberries, blueberries, currants, and flowers that follow to a a full body, with super integrated tannins that are like the finest silk in texture. It shows elegant and pretty fruit character and a reserve and finesse of such great years as 1989 and 1995. The bright strong acidity gives a crunchy and creamy texture. This has a tiny bit more Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend than 2009. Give it at least six to eight years of bottle age.James Suckling | 99 JSStunning and pure from the get-go, with intense cassis and blackberry fruit. Ultimately takes a slightly austere approach, with a wrought-iron structure driving along while pastis, black tea, licorice snap and asphalt notes course underneath. Long and loaded with grip, this remains remarkably fine-grained. A very chiseled Cabernet that is wonderfully precise and incredibly long. Best from 2020 through 2040. 12,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 99 WSBlended of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot and 8% Cabernet Franc, the deep garnet colored 2010 Léoville Las Cases delivers tons of evolving black fruits on the nose with notes of crème de cassis, prunes and incense plus wafts of cloves, cedar, cigar box and powdered cinnamon. Full-bodied, rich, bold and decadently fruited, it has a solid frame of grainy tannins, and the oak is faintly notable on the palate. It finishes impressively with long-lingering mineral notes. This one probably needs 3-5 more years to really hit its stride!Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97+ RPThe 2010 Léoville Las Cases has a clean and precise bouquet, beautifully focused with blackberry, melted tar, cigar humidor and crushed stone aromas. It gains intensity with aeration without ever losing its precision. The palate is medium-bodied with lithe tannins, a fine bead of acidity, a sense of abiding symmetry and detail as it fans out on the mineral-driven finish. This is an absolutely awesome Saint-Julien with a long life ahead. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the BI Wines & Spirits 10-Year On tasting.Vinous Media | 96 VM(Château Leoville Las Cases) The grand vin in 2010 at Leoville Las Cases is outstanding and one of the top wines on the Left Bank this year, but it is a wine of immense power and concentration and will need a long time in the cellar to fully unfold. At 13.7 percent alcohol, the wine is ripe, but certainly not overripe and most impressive in its purity and focus, as it offers up a very, very deep nose of sappy black cherries, dark chocolate, tobacco leaf, espresso, a great base of soil (particularly for this vintage), smoke and plenty of spicy new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and very powerful, with rippling muscles, ripe, well-integrated tannins, great depth at the core and a very, very long, focused and slightly heady finish. This is a big-boned and very ripe Las Cases that should last at least seventy-five years, and I like it better than the also very powerful 2009, as the 2010 seems to have harnessed its power much better and integrated it into a more seamless whole. The 2010 is a beautifully made wine, but of the last three vintages at this estate, there is little doubt in my mind that the utterly profound 2008 Leoville Las Cases is the greatest wine of the trio, and perhaps the best wine made at this fine estate in a generation! (Drink between 2025-2100).John Gilman | 94+ JG

As ever when tasting the two together, the striking thing is the difference in character rather than quality between 2009 and 2010. This is tighter, more structured in its concentration, more broad shouldered, but still intensely impressive and full of pleasure. Neither are ready to go yet, but this feels like it will last longer, and feels extremely Haut-Bailly in spirit, with an elegant but complex personality, and a grip that doesn’t make a big deal of its power but refuses to give up. Blackberry, bilberry, black chocolate and pencil. Harvest September 22 to October 14. Drinking Window 2020 - 2045Decanter | 100 DECGreat aromas of crushed blackberries with flowers and stones that follow through to a full body, with super silky tannins and a long, long finish. It fills your mouth with beautiful fruit and velvety tannins yet shows tension and form. This lasts for minutes on the palate. Structured and superb. Don’t touch until 2020.James Suckling | 98 JSDeep plum/purple, Haut-Bailly’s 2010 required some coaxing to appreciate its subtle notes of barbecue smoke, lead pencil shavings and creme de cassis as well as its touches of pomegranate and forest floor. The oak is pushed far into the background and the tannins are extremely silky, but the intensity of the wine is profound and the finish lingers for close to 55 seconds. This wine is ripe yet delicate, powerful yet stylish, and essentially resembles a remarkable fashion design from a house of haute couture. This wine needs a good 7-8 years of bottle age and should keep for 40-50+ years.Robert Parker | 98 RPThe 2010 Haut-Bailly has an outstanding bouquet with intense blackberry, briary, crushed stone and subtle violet scents, more backwards and more precise than the previous vintage. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins and firm grip. Layers of tar and tobacco are infused with black fruit and a touch of liquorice on the finish. This is a Haut-Bailly on another level from previous vintages that will age with style. Superb. Tasted at the Haut-Bailly vertical at the château.Vinous Media | 96 VMChewy and brambly, but integrated, this carries a very hefty core of espresso, ganache, mulled plum and blackberry fruit. The purity starts to shine through on the finish, which drips with cassis and is threaded with a long warm paving stone note. Tight and backward today, this extremely well-built wine will need substantial cellaring. Best from 2018 through 2035.Wine Spectator | 95 WSA powerful and complex wine from an estate performing on its top form. Solid tannins, layers of wood and dark fruits combine to give a wine that offers both richness and a dense structure. This Haut-Bailly should age impressively and for many years.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WE(Château Haut-Bailly) The 2010 Haut-Bailly weighs in at 13.9 percent alcohol, making it quite ripe, but there is a lot of complexity here to be found on both the nose and palate and this could eventually prove to be one of the best wines of the appellation. The nose offers up a very ripe (but not overripe) blend of cassis, black cherries, tobacco smoke, soil tones and spicy new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and quite ripe, with a good core of fruit, good focus and plenty of tannins from a combination of new oak and skin tannins. One can sense just a bit of heat from the high alcohol on the backend here at the present time, but this may well simply be a passing phase for this wine and it could ultimately come around quite nicely. (Drink between 2022-2060)John Gilman | 87-90+ JG

Pure gold, the 2010 Château Léoville Poyferré, which was drunk beside a perfect 2009 Latour, offers everything you could want from wine. Sporting a deep purple hue as well as an incredible array of crème de cassis, graphite, damp earth, leafy tobacco, and beautifully integrated oak, it hits the palate with an incredible amount of fruit and opulence while always staying pure, precise, and as seamless as they come. It shows the density and power of the 2010 vintage, but it’s remarkable in its balance, purity, and length. As with most 2010s today, it’s still youthful and certainly in its early drinking plateau and has another 40-50 years of prime drinking.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDThe wine out distances both Leoville Las Cases and Leoville Barton, but all three of them are compelling efforts. Full-bodied, dense purple in color, with floral notes intermixed with blackberries, cassis, graphite and spring flowers, this full-bodied, legendary effort is long and opulent, with wonderfully abundant yet sweet tannin, a skyscraper-like mid-palate and a thrilling, nearly one-minute finish. This spectacular effort from Poyferre that should drink well for 30+ years.Another spectacular wine from the Cuvelier family, Leoville Poyferre (along with Ducru Beaucaillou) may be one of the two best wines of St.-Julien year after year these days. This is a large estate, covering nearly 200 acres, and the final blend of the 2010 Leoville Poyferre is 56% Cabernet Sauvignon, a whopping 34% Merlot and the rest 7% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc.Robert Parker | 98+ RPA wine of architectural strength and classical proportions, this has straight lines that mark the packed, concentrated fruits, which are sustained by its tannins. This is certainly the best wine that Léoville-Poyferré has produced, sumptuous while so finely structured.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WERich and round with cinnamon, anis and black pepper. This has a luxuriously silky texture; very much signature of the property sitting perfectly against the fresh push and kick of the vintage. One of the few that has maintained its violet edging around the rim of the glass, giving great expectations that it has decades ahead of it while maintaining this level. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042Decanter | 97 DECOpulent aromas of blackberry, black cherry and orange peel follow through to a full body with round, creamy tannins and a flavorful finish. A big, significant wine that is starting to open and come around. A long life ahead of it. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 97 JSThe 2010 Léoville-Poyferré takes the 2009 and ups the ante with brilliantly defined, intense black fruit. Perhaps it is just a little more "serious" compared to the previous vintage, but is finely chiseled and displaying more mineralité. The palate has mellowed since I last tasted it, developing more rondeur and a more caressing texture. Extremely pure in style, this fans out wonderful, fills the mouth and lingers for a minute. One of the highlights of Didier Cuvelier’s career, this has a long future ahead. "LP" just does not get better than this. Tasted at the Léoville-Poyferré vertical at the château with Sara Lecompte Cuvelier.Vinous Media | 97 VMFeatures a coating of warm cocoa, with notes of solid currant paste, steeped fig and blackberry fruit. The pastis- and graphite-filled finish pumps along, revealing a well-embedded structure that should soften in the cellar. Best from 2015 through 2030. 17,833 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

The aromas to this are incredible with blueberry, minerals, dried flowers, and stones. It goes to dried meat and spices. Full body and incredibly integrated with blackberry, licorice, and minerals. There’s a wonderful purity to this. It goes on for minutes. The quality of tannins is amazing. Seamless. There’s an amazing transparency that shows you all the elements of the wine’s unique terrior. Try after 2018.James Suckling | 100 JSAn absolutely amazing wine, from grapes harvested between the end of September and October 17, this blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot has close to 15% natural alcohol. It comes from one of the few biodynamic vineyards in Bordeaux, but you are likely to see many more, given the success that Tesseron seems to be having at all levels, both in his vineyards and in his fermentation/winemaking. An astounding, compelling wine with the classic Pauillac nose more often associated with its cross-street neighbor, Mouton-Rothschild, creme de cassis, there are also some violets and other assorted floral notes. The wine has off-the-charts massiveness and intensity but never comes across as heavy, overbearing or astringent. The freshness, laser-like precision, and full-bodied, massive richness and extract are simply remarkable to behold and experience. It is very easy, to become jaded tasting such great wines from a great vintage, but it is really a privilege to taste something as amazing as this. Unfortunately, it needs a good decade of cellaring, and that’s assuming it doesn’t close down over the next few years. This is a 50- to 75-year wine from one of the half-dozen or so most compulsive and obsessive proprietors in all of Bordeaux. Is there anything that proprietor Alfred Tesseron is not doing right? Talk about an estate that is on top of its game! Pontet-Canet’s 2010 is a more structured, tannic and restrained version of their most recent perfect wine, the 2009. Kudos to Pontet-Canet!Robert Parker | 100 RPThe 2010 Pontet-Canet lags behind the 2009, but these two vintages can be hard to compare due the drastically different styles. Where the 2009 is broad, expansive, and showy, the 2010 starts our more reserved and classic in style, with beautiful notes of cassis, cedarwood, lead pencil shavings, tobacco, and damp earth all developing with air. Deep, beautifully concentrated, full-bodied, and powerful, it’s built for the long haul and needs 5-7 years of bottle age, but I suspect will see its 50th birthday in still fine drinking form.Jeb Dunnuck | 98+ JDDense, yes, but this is also a handsome wine that balances complex tannins with pure black currant fruits that shine. This biodynamic wine has a generous, full and rich feel, ripe with just a touch of restraint. The greatness of the wine shows in its purity with a deceptive simplicity that hides the final complex tannins and structure.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WE(Château Pontet-Canet, Merlot, Pauillac, Bordeaux, France, Red) Class in glass. Deep ruby, youthful tone. Such sumptuous red berry, cassis and tobacco aromas. Juicy and full bodied, with smoothly textured tannins. The creamy mid palate texture is framed by an impressive arc of tension and balancing acidity, ensuring long life. Long finish. Super! Aged 50% new oak. (Drink between 2021-2060)Decanter | 97 DECThis is big, broad and powerfully rendered, but remarkably polished and refined at the same time. An enormous core of roasted fig, blackberry and black currant fruit is suavely wrapped with roasted apple wood and sandalwood, while dark espresso, loam and warm paving stone notes drive the finish. Very long, with a great tug of scorched earth at the end. A terrific combination of power and precision. Best from 2020 through 2040. 25,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WSThe 2010 Pontet-Canet is noticeably deep in colour compared to its peers. This is unusually ripe and sweet on the nose, more red than black fruit, maybe a little jammy and confit-like. I would never guess this was a 2010 Left Bank. The palate is medium-bodied with a fleshy mouthfeel, plenty of graphite tinged red fruit. Approachable in style and sensually fulfilling, it just lacks a bit of grip and backbone on the finish. I have fonder memories of previous bottles but I could not identify any specific fault. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 92 VM

The aromas here are crazy with flowers, mushroom, forest floor, and fruit. It seems like I am walking through a row of the vines in Cheval Blanc when I have my nose in the glass. It’s full-bodied, with fabulous layers of ultra-fine tannins and milk chocolate, raspberries, and a phenomenal finish. Truly one of the greatest Chevals ever. Better than 2009. Try in 2020.James Suckling | 100 JSShowing even better than a bottle a few years ago, the 2010 Chateau Cheval Blanc is perfection in a glass and wine doesn’t get any better. As with the 2009, it’s a powerful, concentrated Cheval Blanc, yet it has a slightly dark, cooler profile in its smoky black fruits, graphite, new leather, crushed rocks and cured meat aromas and flavors. Where the 2009 hits the palate with a sunny, sexy style, this stays more inward and masculine, yet it still has incredible sweetness of fruit, flawless integration of its fruit, tannins, and acidity, a great mid-palate, and a finish that goes on for over a minute. It opens up with time in the glass and offers incredible pleasure today, with an exotic masculine yet sexy style, but feel free to enjoy this legendary wine any time over the coming 3-4 decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDThe 2010 is one of the most impressive two-year-old Cheval Blancs I have tasted in 34 years in this profession. The final blend of 54% Cabernet Franc and 46% Merlot has the tell-tale berry/floral nose with subtle hints of menthol, blueberry, raspberry and flowers in addition to some forest floor and a delicate touch of lead pencil shavings. The wine exhibits more structure and density than it did from barrel, and it was already remarkable then. The foresty/floral notes seem to linger and linger in this surprisingly full-bodied, powerful Cheval Blanc, yet it possesses a very healthy pH that should ensure enormous longevity. Dense purple in color, and a bigger, richer wine than usual, this is one Cheval Blanc that will probably need a decade of cellaring. I like the description from the estate’s administrator, Pierre Lurton, who said it tasted like “liquid cashmere,” a perfect expression, despite the wine’s structure and intensity. This is another 50-year wine from this amazingly structured, rich vintage.Robert Parker | 100 RPThis is the finest Cheval Blanc for many years. It is, quite simply, magnificent. The wine shows the greatness of Cabernet Franc in the vintage, with 57% of the variety in the blend. It is beautifully structured and perfumed, with velvety tannins, balanced acidity and swathes of black-currant and black-cherry fruits. It’s well on course to becoming a legendary wine.Wine Enthusiast | 100 WEThis is stone-cold shut down right now, but why worry? You’ll want to wait at least a decade before breaching a bottle as massively endowed as this, with loads of loamy bass notes thumping along underneath a riveting track of licorice snap, pastis-steeped black currant fruit, maduro tobacco and espresso. And then there’s an echo of petrichor at the very end that hints at the aromatic fireworks to come with cellaring. Should compete for wine of the vintage. Best from 2020 through 2040.Wine Spectator | 98 WS(Château Cheval Blanc) The 2010 Cheval Blanc is also 14.5 percent in alcohol and was made up with a fairly high percentage of merlot for this estate, with the blend comprised of only fifty-six percent cabernet franc and forty-four percent merlot. It is an extremely powerful young vintage of Cheval Blanc and worlds away from the refined and opulently seductive style of the 2009 here. The bouquet offers up a dense and very ripe blend of black cherries, menthol, coffee bean, a good base of gravelly soil, cigar smoke and new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and seamless on the attack, with plenty of overt ripeness in evidence, a rock solid core of fruit and plenty of substantial, well-integrated tannins on the very long and powerful finish. This will need plenty of time in the cellar to blossom, but should probably turn out to be a fine bottle with sufficient bottle age. It avoids the pitfalls of sur maturité, questionable balance and uncovered alcohol that plague so many of its neighbors in St. Émilion in this vintage, but it is a rather atypically broad-shouldered vintage for this great estate. (Drink between 2025-2075)John Gilman | 92-93+ JGThe 2010 Cheval Blanc has another extravagant bouquet with ample red cherries, raspberry preserve, mulberry, fig and singed leather. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, quite dense and assertive, backward with a sinewy finish that just feels a little forced compared to some of the other wines in this flight. With time in the glass, the new oak seems to dominate the finish. I have definitely had far superior bottles, but that’s the way it goes. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 93 VM

Absolutely remarkable is the 100% destemmed 2010 Cote Rotie Lancement Cote Blonde which sees 50% new oak barrels (175-200 cases produced). It offers spectacular aromas of bacon fat, tapenade, cassis, raspberry jam, graphite, subtle smoke and a hint of acacia flowers. Dense, opulent and full-bodied with decent acidity and sweet, velvety tannin, this stunning wine may merit a perfect score when released.Ogier's wines just keep getting better and better, so if you haven't yet jumped on the Ogier bandwagon, it's time to do so. Michel Ogier, and more recently his son, Stephane, are the leading craftsmen in terms of wines from the steep hillsides north of the old Roman town of Vienne. These are still entitled to only a VDP designation, but current vintages are the finest he has yet produced.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 100 RPInky ruby. Powerful, expansive aromas of raspberry liqueur, Asian spices, sandalwood and smoky minerals, with an exotic floral nuance that gains power with air. Deeply concentrated but lively, offering palate-staining red fruit and floral pastille flavors and a strong spicy quality. Fine-grained tannins add grip to an incredibly long, sappy and penetrating finish, which clings with remarkable tenacity. One of the great wines of the Rhone from this outstanding vintage.Vinous Media | 97 VMShows stunning depth and richness, with loads of velvety tannins carrying waves of blackberry, fig and dark plum confiture flavors. The long finish cruises throughout, with charcoal, black tea and roasted alder notes all deftly inlaid. An echo of iron lingers. Best from 2017 through 2035. 20 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 97 WS

An eternal wine, the 2010 Pichon Lalande is a total showstopper. The first impression is one of explosive power, but time in the glass brings out the wine’s more delicate, floral side. Violet, graphite, crème de cassis, licorice and menthol overtones recall the 1996, but the tannins here are much softer, sweeter and more polished. In two recent tastings, the 2010 has been positively stellar. The alternation of hot days and cool nights led to a late harvest. The Cabernet Sauvignon harvest did not start until October 7; by that date in 2009 all the fruit was in. Readers who can still find the 2010 should not hesitate, as it is a modern-day classic. That’s all there is to it.Antonio Galloni | 98+ AGBrilliant – double decant and wait an hour so the wine can better express its sensual aromas of faded rose, cassis, homemade strawberry jam, graphite and iodine freshness. The palate is enveloped in cashmere-like refinement, leading to a long finish with sea air and floral freshness. Best to hang on another five years for a proper drinking window, but if you insist, try it now with filet mignon. Drinking Window 2021 - 2055.Decanter | 98 DECWith signs of new wood on the palate, this is a wine that maintains the polished feel of the wines from Pichon Lalande. It has a stronger presence of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend than in the past, making it more structured than its predecessors, with a dominance of black currant flavor. It shows the soft side of the vintage, but is also meant for aging.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WEThe 2010 Pichon Lalande is performing extremely well and at the top of the range I predicted several years ago. A final blend dominated much more by Cabernet Sauvignon than usual (66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and the rest Petit Verdot), the wine is a tighter, more tannic and structured version of this famed Pauillac, which often tends to have more of a St-Julien-like personality than most Pauillacs. Structured, backward and tannic, yet showing a fat mid-palate that is more savory, broader and more expansive than I remember from barrel, this wine is somewhat reminiscent of the 1986, given the Cabernet Sauvignon domination of the blend. Full-bodied, impressively endowed, and less sexy and velvety than normal, this is a somewhat different style of Pichon Lalande than most readers have been used to. Whether you like it more or less will depend on your point of view, but this wine, unlike most Pichon Lalandes, needs a good 5-7 years of cellaring and should keep for 30+ years.Robert Parker | 95+ RPRock-solid, with a classic Pauillac profile of cassis, iron and graphite. Layers of blueberry, blackberry and boysenberry fruit cover the grip for now, but there’s serious muscle for the longer haul, revealing a lingering pastis hint.--Non-blind Pichon Lalande vertical (July 2014). Best from 2020 through 2040.Wine Spectator | 95 WSThe 2010 is based on 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, and the balance Petit Verdot that was raised in (I’m assuming) a good bit of new oak, although you wouldn’t know this by tasting it. Revealing a still youthful ruby/plum hue with just a touch of lightening at the edge, it has a Saint-Julien-like perfume of darker currants, tobacco, earth, sous bois, and flowers, without that classic cedar and lead pencil character of most Pauillacs. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it has a wonderfully focused, seamless texture, ultra-fine tannins, and a great finish. It’s still relatively closed and reticent, so give bottles another 4-5 years if possible.Jeb Dunnuck | 94+ JDThis is a pretty and refined Pichon Lalande. Aromas of blueberries and blackberries with hints of earth and mushrooms. Full body, with velvety tannins and a juicy finish. I slightly prefer the 2009. Better in 2017.James Suckling | 94 JS(Château Pichon-Lalande) The 2010 Pichon-Lalande is another unequivocal success for the vintage. The classy bouquet is deep, ripe and impressively pure, with a classically reserved blend of cassis, dark berries, espresso, tobacco leaf, gravel and discreet new oak wafting from the glass. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and quite suave on the attack, with a fine core of fruit, ripe, well-integrated tannins, good acidity and impressive focus on the long, youthful and beautifully balanced finish. A very, very fine young Pichon-Lalande the strongly recalls the young 1986 at this estate. (Drink between 2020-2070).John Gilman | 94 JG