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The 2010 Clos Saint Jean Châteauneuf-du-Pape La Combe des Fous is an utterly brilliant wine! A blend of 60% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 10% Cinsault, and 10% Vaccarese, it offers an extraordinary bouquet of spring flowers, sappy garrigue, ground pepper, and searing minerality that is anchored by a core of sweet red and black fruits. More elegant and seamless than the Deus-Ex Machina, it has full-bodied power, layers of texture, and a blockbuster finish that highlights masses of silky tannin. Thrilling stuff and my favorite vintage of the cuvee to date, it deserves 3-4 years of bottle age, and will evolve for 2+ decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDAlso up with the top wines of the vintage, the 2010 Chateauneuf-du-Pape Combe des Fous shows the darker fruit and minerality of the vintage with its creme de cassis, blackberry, ground pepper, licorice and ample crushed rock-like minerality. Gaining more than one expletive in the notes, this full-bodied 2010 has thrilling purity of fruit, massive underlying structure and a rich, layered and decadent feel on the finish. As with most 2010s, it needs another 3 to 4 years of bottle age and will easily have two decades of overall longevity.Since taking control of the estate in 2002, and bringing on board rock star consultant Philippe Cambie, the Maurel brothers has been knocking it out of the park in literally every vintage. 2004? Gorgeous wines and easily at the top in a recent retrospective. The cooler, rainy 2008? Beautiful ripeness and texture, and again, at the top of the hierarchy. 2011 is the same story, and it’s amazing what this team has accomplished in all of their vintages. Looking at this retrospective, we went through all of their cuvees going back to 2003. Unfortunately, there’s no new information here, and this tasting simply confirmed what myself and Robert Parker have been saying for some time now; Clos Saint Jean is at the top of their game and producing some of the most singular, hedonistic and brilliant wines in the world.Starting out with the classic Chateauneuf du Pape, it’s normally a blend of 75% Grenache, with the balance a mix of Syrah, Mourvedre, Cinsault, Muscardin and Vaccarese. As is common at this estate, the Grenache is aged all in tank, and the other varieties in a mix of tank and barrels. While I think this cuvee always lags the Vieilles Vignes bottling, it is consistently outstanding and always a super value.Moving to the old vine cuvee, this is made especially for the US Market and is 85% tank aged, old vine Grenache, and the balance Syrah and Mourvedre. It too almost always represents a crazy value and has a broad drink window. I’m currently finishing up a case of the ’08, and purchased two cases of the 2010, which is just starting to open back up after closing down shortly after release.As to the Combe des Fous release, this cuvée comes from a single plot of vines and is based largely on Grenache, with roughly 20% Syrah and 10% each of Vaccarese and Cinsault in the blend. The Grenache is aged all in tank and the other components see time in mostly demi-muids. While the Deux ex Machina always impresses more with its overt power and muscle, this cuvee always seems more polished, fine and elegant to me.One of the greatest cuvees on earth, the Maurel brother’s Sanctus Sanctorum is 100% Grenache that comes from a single plot of vines in the La Crau lieu dit. Aged all in demi-muid, it’s been one of the greatest wines I’ve ever tasted, every time I’ve tasted it. All three of these were sheer perfection on this occasion, yet each has its own unique profile.Lastly, and always the most powerful of the cuvees, the Deus Ex Machina is a blend of 60% tank aged Grenache and 40% demi-muid aged Mourvedre that all comes from 70-100 year old vines. The Mourvedre component is really what defines this cuvee, and it possesses the most obvious structure and mid-palate richness in the lineup. Seeming to hit maturity around age 10 or so, it can be consumed relatively early in its life due to its wealth of fruit, texture, and incredibly polished tannin. In addition, don’t miss this cuvee in the lighter vintages, as even their 2004 and 2008 show classic character and no shortage of richness.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 99 RP(made from 60% grenache and 20% syrah, with cinsault, vaccarese and muscardin): Inky ruby. Heady, spice-accented aromas of dark berry preserves, potpourri and smoky minerals. Stains the palate with intense black raspberry and lavender pastille flavors and becomes spicier with air. Powerful yet lithe and seamless, with superb finishing clarity and lingering floral notes. Tannins make a late appearance but are quickly absorbed by this wine's luscious fruit.Vinous Media | 95 VMThis is very densely packed, with toasted fig bread, charcoal, roasted espresso bean, steeped black currant and blackberry fruit, followed by a flash of pastis on the finish. Very dark and rich, but has grip and length for balance, revealing a terrific, but deeply embedded, graphite spine in reserve. Best from 2015 through 2030. 500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

Dense purple, with classic notes of cedar and lead pencil shavings as well as gobs of back currants and licorice, the wine has a full-bodied mouthfeel with fabulous precision and density. It also possesses a long, silky finish with moderately high tannins, but they are ripe and well-integrated. The wood is clearly pushed to the background in this dense, full-bodied Pauillac, which should drink beautifully for 30+ years.If you can’t afford Lafite-Rothschild (few can)or even their second wine, Carruades de Lafite, you still have Duhart Milon, which has become a profound wine over the last 5-7 years due to the extensive amount of attention and investment the Rothschilds have pumped into this estate. This blend of 73% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Merlot is fabulous, a dead ringer for Lafite in a great vintage. (It is probably better than many of the Lafites of the 1960s and 1970s, and even some of the vintages in the 1980s).Robert Parker | 96 RPGravel over limestone, similar to Château Lafite Rothschild and under the same ownership. Cooler northern exposure of the terroir requires more time to ripen, but that was no problem in 2010. This has ripe fruit with graphite and wet stone. It may not be as dense as Clerc Milon, but the expression of finesse and refinement is unmistakable. Long, subtle finish. Pleasing, high-toned fruit perfectly matches grilled lamb chops with roast potatoes. Drinking Window 2021 - 2045.Decanter | 95 DECLike a lot of 2010s, the 2010 Duhart-Milon-Rothschild is tight and backward, yet has serious potential. Sporting a deep ruby/purple color and classic notes of currants, lead pencil shavings, cedarwood and saddle leather, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a tight, firm focused texture and beautiful concentration. Its tannins are present, yet ripe and integrated, and it has the purity and freshness that’s the hallmark of this great, great vintage. Give bottles another 2-3 years and it should keep for two to three decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 94+ JDThe 2010 Duhart-Milon has a backward nose that is going through a dumb phase. There is plenty of fruit here but it is “locked down” at the moment. The palate is very well defined with crisp acidity, fine-boned tannins and superb balanced. It is not a deep or grippy Pauillac, but it feels...streamlined, athletic and wonderfully poised on the graphite infused finish. Excellent. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 93 VMA wine with an intense sous bois, fresh tobacco and dried flower character on the nose and palate. Full body, with ultra-fine tannins and an attractive finish. It’s structured yet polished with a beauty and stature. Try in 2015.James Suckling | 93 JSJuicy black currant fruit mingles with bright acidity and dark-chocolate tannins. This often overlooked château, with the same production team as Lafite-Rothschild, has an intense and concentrated 2010, balanced superbly between firmness and fruitiness.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WEWell-polished, with sleek edges to the fleshy plum, cassis and blackberry fruit, while the finish is embedded with black licorice and violet notes. Approachable now, but the stuffing is there to cellar this for a bit. Drink now through 2025.Wine Spectator | 91 WS(Château Duhart-Milon) While both the Carruades and Lafite steer clear of any signs of overripeness in this vintage, the same cannot be said for the 2010 Château Duhart-Milon, which, while not overtly overripe, does show a rather forceful personality that is rather out of character. The bouquet is deep, very ripe and quite powerful, as it offers up scents of cassis, dark berries, cigar ash, gravelly soil tones, tobacco leaf and new oak. On the palate the wine is full, broad-shouldered and really a bit four-square at the present time, with a rock solid core, plenty of firm, well-integrated tannins and a very good grip on the long and palate-staining finish. This will need some extended cellaring to soften, but it is hard to imagine that it will ever develop the customary charm of this property. This is another 2010 where the ripeness of the vintage has seemingly robbed this wine of a bit of focus and detail, and it is an open question if those qualities can be revived with extended cellaring. (Drink between 2022-2050)John Gilman | 88-90+ JG

Tasted the following day from the rest of this vertical, because I couldn’t resist adding another wine, and I had kept this one in my own cellar for the past decade. It was too young to open to be honest, but was just stunning, and kept getting better over the two days following opening. Opulent and luscious, with balsamic, black chocolate and cloves, damson, kirsch and black cherry fruit, and the precision and swirl of campfire, ash and incense that mark out François Mitjavile’s approach. 100% new oak. An exceptional vintage with many great wines, and yet this stands out.Jane Anson | 99 JAWhile I don’t think the 2010 Château Tertre Roteboeuf matches the 2005 (or 2016), it’s a brilliant Saint-Emilion that offers textbook Tertre notes of cassis, spicy wood, graphite, white truffle, sappy tobacco, and earth. Taking lots of air to open up and integrate its ample tannins, this beauty is full-bodied, has a seamless, layered texture, flawless balance, and a rock star of a finish. It’s beautifully done and just now at the early stages of its prime drink window. It needs at least 2-3 hours in a decanter at this stage (and was even better on the second day). It’s going to evolve for another 20-30 years in cold cellars.Jeb Dunnuck | 96 JD Deep garnet in color, the 2010 Le Tertre Roteboeuf reveals notes of leather, cedar and balsamic with a core of raisin cake and unsmoked cigars. Full-bodied, the palate is firm and chewy with a lively line cutting through the dried berries and savory layers, finishing just a little warm.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RPThe 2010 Le Tertre Rôteboeuf has an impressive bouquet with a mixture of red and black fruit, melted tar on a hot summer day, warm gravel and allspice. This exhibits very fine delineation and focus. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, a fine bead of acidity, a little toasty towards the finish where the oak seems to obscure the terroir and fruit expression, even after ten years. Hopefully that will be addressed with further cellaring because otherwise this is a fine Right Bank. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 92+ VM

A big, bold wine with unbelievable power and concentration. Low yields and a dominance of Cabernet Franc have produced an immensely concentrated wine. Still very young, this magnificent wine holds the promise of great aging.Wine Enthusiast | 99 WEThe 2010 Ausone struck me as another brilliant, potentially perfect wine, which should come as no shock to people who have been following Vauthier’s work over the last decade or more. Backward and intense, this wine offers up notes of crushed chalk/rock mineralilty interwoven with blueberry, black raspberry and cassis as well as some graphite and vanillin. It is incredibly rich but at the same time precise, fresh and vivacious. This is a super wine, but it will require enormous patience from its potential suitors. Forget it for a decade and drink it over the following 50+ years.One of the other perfectionist, compulsive producers in St.-Emilion is Alain Vauthier, who is now capably assisted by his daughter.Robert Parker | 98+ RPThe nose is so deep and almost endless with dried strawberries, blueberries, and incense. Citrus too. Some prunes. Full body, with chewy yet polished tannin quality and tension. Beautiful focus and balance with a richness and delicacy at the same time. Something almost Burgundian. It's the purity of fruit. 55% Cabernet Franc and 45% Merlot. Try in 2020.James Suckling | 98 JSThe 2010 Ausone has a rich, opulent, modern style bouquet with crème de cassis and blueberry aromas tinged with crushed violet. There is plenty of new oak here. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins and a ton of blue and black fruit. It does not quite deliver the personality of its peers, although the velvety texture is very alluring. Maybe it will develop into something more interesting with bottle age, possibly going through a close phase? Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 94+ VMVery sappy and intense, offering racy red licorice, red currant and violet notes, with nice taut acidity and a long, minerally finish. Combines power and austerity, with excellent drive. For those who like backbone in their wines.Wine Spectator | 94-97 WS

(Château Canon, St-Émilion, Bordeaux, France, Red) Vivid, crystal-clear fruit aromas, juicy black cherry, ripe plum and succulent blackberry, combining with artisanal dark chocolate, violet and fresh tobacco leaf, making this wine incredibly complex and still very youthful. Its layered and finely textured palate almost hides powerful density, with freshness to balance opulence, leading to a long finish. Serve with beef Wellington. Or cellar for 10 years for more tertiary flavours. (Drink between 2022-2065)Decanter | 98 DECDeep garnet colored, the 2010 Canon features wonderfully expressive notes of dried mulberries, stewed plums and baked black cherries with hints of mocha, bay leaves and fallen leaves. Full-bodied, opulent and super spicy, it has a plush texture with a racy line supporting the hedonic fruit, finishing with jaw-dropping persistence.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RPWonderful nose with strawberries, cherry blossom, and vanilla. The red opens up with blueberries, milk chocolate and sweet licorice. Full and juicy on palate with pure dark fruit and velvety tannins. So nicely layered texture and long in the finish with red fruit and crushed chalk. The texture is superb. Drink from 2018.James Suckling | 96 JSPowerful, complex and ripe, this is a magnificent and concentrated wine. Juicy blackberry fruits, tight acidity and finely integrated tannins give a smooth, rich texture. This beautiful wine has long-term aging potential.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEShows the velvety, more hedonistic style that marked the wines under the previous winemaker, with lush blackberry and boysenberry fruit inlaid with ample toast and singed spice, displaying wonderful integration. This has shed some of its flash, as the vintage is big enough to soak it up. Still has a ways to go to.—Non-blind Canon vertical (December 2016). Best from 2020 through 2030. 6,665 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS(Château Canon) The 2010 Château Canon is one of the absolute successes in the commune in this vintage. The bouquet is deep, powerful and nicely reserved, offering up scents of black cherries, dark berries, menthol, woodsmoke, tobacco ash, soil and just a touch of new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, broad-shouldered, full-bodied and impressively pure for the vintage, with a fine core, substantial, ripe tannins, low acids and excellent length and grip on the chewy finish. The blend this year is comprised of seventy-five percent merlot and twenty-five percent cabernet franc and (sadly), one-quarter of the wine’s malo was done in small barrels this year. There is no mention of the wine’s alcohol level in 2010 in the technical data that I received, but it is probably around 14.5 percent. But a noteworthy success. (Drink between 2025-2075)John Gilman | 93+ JGThe 2010 Canon is a little disappointing on the nose in the context of a strong Right Bank flight. It feels a little loose-knit, lacks the same pixelation as its peers. It almost reminds me of a mature Chambolle-Musigny! The palate is medium-bodied with a slightly minty opening. Matters improve with fine structure, gentle grip and some lovely black truffle notes towards the finish. Perhaps there are better bottles out there? Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 91 VM

One of the finest wines to come from Cantenac Brown for many years, this is powerful and dense, dominated by Cabernet Franc tannins and fruits. The structure has a smooth, polished character that locates it firmly in Margaux, giving elegance and discreet fruitiness. Age this fine wine for many years.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEThe greatest Cantenac Brown I have ever tasted, the 2010 is one for the ages. Dense purple, with an extraordinary nose of sweet forest floor, blackberry jam, pen ink and graphite, this wine soars from the glass, giving it an aromatic dimension and intensity I have never seen from this estate. The tannins are present, as they are in most Cantenac Browns, but the wine’s sweetness, broad, skyscraper-like mouthfeel, dense, purple color and spectacular length (close to a minute) make this a giant classic and a fabulous sleeper of the vintage that still remains under-priced, considering how great its potential may be. This is a wine for those with cold cellars and youthful DNA. It is going to need at least a decade of cellaring and should last for 20-40 years. A classic!Robert Parker | 94+ RPThe 2010 Cantenac Brown feels a little muted on the nose compared to its peers, but with modest aeration it develops very attractive, leafy black fruit, tertiary in style and beautifully defined. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, very well judged acidity and plenty of substance towards the finish. I love the cohesion and focus of this Margaux. I wrote to buy this after its impressive showing at Southwold in 2014 - yet another blind tasting confirms its pedigree. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 94 VMBeautiful dark inky purple with ruby highlights. The difference with 2009 is clear in terms of structure, style and knitted-down fruit. They are both brilliant, and quality-wise it’s hard to pick as they have such different personalities. Higher acidity in 2010 set against confident tannins means your mouth is watering by the mid palate and it doesn’t let up. Tons of black fruits and evident spice, slate, cigar box and liquorice bud, savoury and still zipped up. It needs a few more years in bottle before it will really start to soften. 45% of harvest in the 1st wine, 60% new oak. Drinking Window 2022 - 2038.Decanter | 94 DECA wine with firm tannins that are polished and reserved yet there’s an underlying richness of fruit. Plums, blueberries and citrus character. Some tar too. Juicy and delicious to taste. Try in 2016.James Suckling | 94 JSVery fresh, with a bold display of dark blueberry, loganberry and plum fruit aromas and flavors that push ahead, followed by singed spice, black licorice and toasty vanilla bean notes. Displays a polished feel on the finish, kept honest by a buried charcoal accent. Shows plenty of length for the cellar. Best from 2014 through 2028.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

Probably La Tour Carnet’s best since their 2001, the 2010 La Tour Carnet exhibits wonderful ripeness, a dense ruby/purple color, notes of licorice, camphor and some toast as well as lots of black currant and blueberry fruit. It is medium to full-bodied, with attractive sweetness of tannin, good acidity, excellent delineation to its component parts, and a full-bodied, impressively long finish. This wine may close down somewhat, given the moderate tannins, but it seems relatively accessible despite being a 2010. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2035.Another spectacular effort from proprietor Bernard Magrez, this Haut Medoc was harvested very late in 2010. The final blend is 60% Merlot, 34% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest a small amount of Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot.Robert Parker | 93 RPImpressive concentration for this appellation with aromas of prunes, plums and black pepper. Full body, with round and velvety tannins and a long finish. Tight. Better after 2015.James Suckling | 92 JSBright, dark red. Sexy aromas of black cherry, blueberry, licorice, menthol and flowers seemed to shut down with aeration. Densely packed and fresh, with sound acidity intensifying the pretty, well-delineated black fruit flavors. The wine's firm spine of tannins and acids is nicely supported by its mid-palate concentration. A very impressive vintage for this bottling, and in need of patience.Vinous Media | 91+ VMPacked with new wood, very polished wine, its tannins smooth and velvet. It has a delicious juicy red berry fruit character that shows a fine elegance.Wine Enthusiast | 91 WE

Loads of tension and form. It can be cellared for decades, but it’s balanced and beautiful already. Lots of blueberry, licorice and blackberry character. Try in 2018.James Suckling | 96 JSThe 2010 Lagrange was picked from 29 September to 20 October. This is even better than the 2009 on the nose with beautifully defined brambly red fruit, crushed stone, violet and iris aromas, almost pixelated in detail. The palate is medium-bodied with very fine tannins, precise and focused with a silky mouthfeel. This fans out beautifully, certainly one of the more approachable 2010s but a wine full of class and immense breeding. Outstanding - a benchmark for the estate. Tasted at the Lagrange vertical at the estate.Vinous Media | 95 VMThis again is a brilliant St-Julien - full of joy and finesse and elegance. Black fruits and smoke combine with a slate minerality - I love it.This is also one that offers good value for money and will be a perfect match for food. Can drink now, or wait, and will age. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042Decanter | 94 DECWith vineyards in the west of Saint-Julien, Lagrange produces wines that are polished and elegant. In 2010, that style has been suffused with tannins while also delivering a black currant flavor. The wine is rich and ripe, with just the right amount of tannic structure for the fruit.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WEThis property, on the western plateau of St-Julien, includes 292 acres of vines on soils that vary from coarse to fine gravels, combined with sand or clay. Suntory purchased the property in 1983 and hired Marcel Ducasse, who restored it to prominence during his 24 years at the helm. Now run by Matthieu Bordes and Keiichi Shiina, Lagrange produces sleek wines. This is not a fat St-Julien, though their 2010 is succulent, opening over the course of several days to racy, dark plum fruit and a narrow course of tannins. Still youthful, this is approachable and lovely after long hours in a decanter, and it will reward patient cellaring.Wine & Spirits | 93 W&SNotes of singed alder, graphite and charcoal wrap around the core of intense blackberry paste, warm plum sauce and currant preserves. Turns sleek and racy on the well-knit finish despite the notable grip. Best from 2015 through 2030.Wine Spectator | 92 WS(Château Lagrange) I did not have time to drop by Château Lagrange to taste the 2010 sur place, so I do not have a note this year on their fine second wine, Les Fiefs de Lagrange, but the grand vin was showing very well at the UGC event. The bouquet is deep, pure, refined and seems decidedly less ripe than several others, as it offers up a black fruity mélange of cassis, dark berries, gentle herb tones, tobacco leaf, espresso, gravel and a deft base of new wood. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and impressively seamless, with a ripe personality, lovely mid-palate depth, well-balanced tannins and very fine length and grip on the reserved and classy finish. A really lovely example of the vintage. (Drink between 2022-2075)John Gilman | 92+ JGDeep garnet in color, the 2010 Lagrange gives up notes of baked blackcurrants, stewed plums and fried herbs with nuances of crushed rocks and balsamic plus a touch of fungi. Full-bodied, the palate has a firm line of grainy tannins and fantastic freshness helping to define the black fruit and earthy flavors, finishing a little lifted.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90 RP

A very classic wine for patient connoisseurs, Sociando Mallet makes no compromises and continues to produce one of the finest wines among non-classified estates in Haut-Medoc. Dense purple to the rim, the opaque purple-colored 2010 offers up notes of graphite, blueberry and black raspberry fruit, a hint of cassis, some licorice and wet rocks. Deep, full-bodied and almost excruciatingly tannic, this full-throttle, balls-to-the-wall style of wine needs at least 8-10 years of cellaring and should keep for three decades or more.Robert Parker | 91+ RPThe 2010 Sociando Mallet has a well defined, pure bouquet with blackberry, bilberry and light estuarine scents that gently waft from the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, a fine bead of acidity and good weight. It just needs more complexity and terroir expression on the finish. Give this another two or three years. This is one wine where I have encountered better bottles. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 90+ VMLifted aromas of eucalyptus and menthol, with an initial attack of juicy dark fruit - but this drops on the mid-palate, and the tannins still feel a touch drying. Needs more time. Drinking Window 2019 - 2029.Decanter | 90 DEC

The 2010 Solaia rounds out this flight in style. Swaths of tannin give the 2010 a real sense of explosive energy and vibrancy that only builds with time in the glass. A whole range of dark aromas and flavors give the 2010 its brooding, inward personality. Tasted from magnum, the 2010 is very young, but its pedigree is unmistakable.Antonio Galloni | 98 AGA triumph for Solaia: it suggests the greatness of the legendary 1997. This is a wine with very subtle, complex aromas and flavours of currants, licorice and raspberries. Wonderful nose. Full body with ultra-fine tannins and a long, long finish. It lasts for minutes on the palate. The precision of the cabrenet sauvignon comes through here. Better in 2016.James Suckling | 98 JSThe 2010 Solaia puts on an incredible show that hits all the senses and keeps your unyielding attention for as long as there is wine in the bottle. There are various ways to describe the bouquet. First, is the wine’s sweet side, as this beautiful 75-20-5 blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese and Cabernet Franc delivers ripe cherry, black currant, baking spice and dark chocolate. After that, the wine becomes redolent of tobacco, balsam, bay leaf, rum cake and dark licorice. The bouquet is all encompassing and complete. A firmly structured backbone is padded generously by the fleshy richness of its consistency. This is a gorgeous wine that will age for decades. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2040.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RPAlready one of Italy’s most iconic bottlings, this gorgeous 2010 is already a classic. Its complex and intense bouquet unfolds with ripe blackberries, violets, leather, thyme and balsamic herbs. The palate shows structure, poise and complexity, delivering rich black currants, black cherry, licorice, mint and menthol notes alongside assertive but polished tannins and vibrant energy. This wine will age and develop for decades. Drink 2018–2040.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEWith intense black olive and tapenade aromas, this wine remains almost entirely knitted down and is still a long way from lift-off. But everything is in place for it to be exceptional. The tannins are beautifully ripe, building up through the palate to give shoulders and heft to the spiced blackberry, pepper and fig notes. You can feel the warmth of the Tuscan sun through the exoticism of the spice structure, with fresh Cabernet elegance pulling everything upwards on the finish. A great wine from a growing season that was long and relatively cool until harvest, when hot sunny days lasted through October. (Drink between 2019-2038)Decanter | 94 DECA dense, powerful red, with a good lashing of oak, this evokes black currant, blackberry and spice flavors. Finds equilibrium with air, gaining suppleness and finishing long and complex. Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2016 through 2028. 7,000 cases made, 500 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

Structured but extremely elegant, this opens with an intense fragrance of violet, rose, wild berry, leather, underbrush and balsamic notes. The delicious, focused palate delivers crushed black cherry layered with notes of exotic spices, licorice, sage and black pepper, perfectly balanced by assertive tannins and vibrant energy. It already boasts gripping depth, but this has serious aging potential.Wine Enthusiast | 99 WEFlashes of exotic fruit aromas with notes of coffee and spice. Full and round on the palate with a hint of velvet already. A beautiful flower still tightly in bud. Drinking Window 2020 - 2040.Decanter | 98 DECThe single-vineyard 2010 Barolo Cannubi Boschis speaks in confident tones at high volumes. First produced in 1985, Cannubi Boschis is among the first single vineyard cru expressions made in Barolo. Thirty-five-year-old vines enjoy south and southeast exposures at 250 meters above sea level. The long 2010 growing season has favored optimal tannin ripeness and fine complexity on the bouquet. This is one of the standout wines of this celebrated vintage. It is well worth putting this wine at the back of your cellar where it will be untouched for years. Drink: 2017-2030.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RPThe 2010 Barolo Cannubi Boschis is just starting to show the first signs of aromatic maturity. Dark and dense on the palate, the 2010 remains massively tannic in feel, though. Tasting the 2010 next to the current releases shows the style prevalent at the time that favored more overt fruit, greater extraction and heavier oak signatures. Black cherry, espresso, chocolate, menthol and dried flowers all develop as the 2010 opens up with time in the glass. This is dark, virile and powerful in style; I would wait a few years, as it is going through a phase of closure today.Vinous Media | 97 VMA beautiful and refined wine with plum, dried berry and flower character. Full body, with fine tannins. Wonderful length. Super integrated. Long finish. Try in 2017.James Suckling | 95 JSInitially reduced and showing more woodsy, balsamic notes than fruit, this offers firm, ripe tannins and a complex structure that supports the eucalyptus, sage, juniper and tobacco flavors. The cherry character is submerged for now, though this fans out on the lingering, refined finish. Best from 2018 through 2033. 850 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

A little darker and deeper in colour than the 2009 at this stage, but both remain young, fresh and full of promise. The depth to the fruit is evident, black cherry, chocolate shavings and black truffles with great shots of acidity through the entire body of the wine. Just dripping with succulent fruit and seduction, this is the most Pomerol of the lineup, surprisingly, perhaps, taking that crown from the 2009. Still young even at 11 years old, will settle in and open further over the next few years. Violet aromatics curl out of the glass as it opens. 85% new oak. A yield of 39hl/ha. (Drink between 2021-2044)Decanter | 98 DECBeautiful nose with cocoa powder, exotic flowers, candied violets and loads of dark berries. Great aromatic complexity. Amazing texture on palate with a superb precision and silky tannins. So beautifully composed showing already great harmony. Difficult to wait! Better in 2018.James Suckling | 98 JSThe 2010 La Conseillante has a magnificent bouquet with pixelated black fruit laced with cedar and pencil lead aromas. It is a penetrating and multi-faceted bouquet that just blossoms with aeration. The palate is supremely well balanced with filigree tannins and immense purity, very sustained and conveying immense energy on the finish. Surely the best La Conseillante under former winemaker Jean-Michel Laporte. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the BI Wines & Spirits 10-Year On tasting.Vinous Media | 97 VMThe 2010 La Conseillante is a tour de force that will rival the 2005, 2000 and 1990 at maturity. Just loaded with notions of blackcurrants, damp earth, tobacco leaf, violets and toasty oak, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, building, ripe tannin, and a huge finish. Sexy and opulent, yet also classy and elegant, it’s a sensational Pomerol that has another three decades of life ahead of itJeb Dunnuck | 97+ JDA brilliant effort from this property, known for the sheer elegance and finesse of its wines, the 2010 La Conseillante offers back-to-back monumental efforts, particularly given the remarkable 2009. This estate has been on a hot streak of late. The 2010 is a slightly bigger, richer wine, but without losing its floral, elegant mulberry, black raspberry and sweet kirsch notes. Combine those with some licorice, subtle new oak and a hint of forest floor, and the result is a medium to full-bodied, rich, complex wine that has striking aromatics and perfect balance in the mouth. Forget it for 3-5 years and drink it over the following 30.Robert Parker | 96 RPFeatures substantial but very velvety structure running from start to finish, delivering a muscular feel for now. The hard edges are fully absorbed by the core of plum sauce, steeped blackberry and warm boysenberry reduction notes. The finish offers gorgeous tobacco and ganache accents lurking in the wings, along with flickers of anise and incense that should guide this version to increased elegance with age. Best from 2016 through 2034. 4,000 cases made, 800 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe tannins are huge, very dense, packing through the ripe fruit. At first it tastes like a mouthful of wood and fruit tannins, then the potential of the fruit becomes apparent. That gives a wine with a great, final acidity and finish.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WE(Château La Conseillante) Despite the 2010 La Conseillante tipping the scales at 14.5 percent alcohol, this wine seems decidedly cooler and more poised than its 2009 counterpart did a year ago. The blend this year is made up of eighty percent merlot and twenty percent cabernet franc. The lovely bouquet is deep, pure and shows no signs of overripeness in its mélange of black raspberries, black cherries, chocolate, gravelly soil tones, smoke and a very judicious base of new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, suave and tangy, with lovely focus and mid-palate depth, moderate, ripe tannins and excellent length and grip on the classy finish. One can certainly sense that the folks at La Conseillante were very careful not to over-extract the wine in 2010, and the result is one of the best, “hot vintage” La Conseillantes that I can ever recall. A superb wine. (Drink between 2020-2060)John Gilman | 93+ JG

Rose petal and ripe fruits on the nose. Full-bodied, with well-integrated tannins and a citrus undertone. Lemon rind texture. Juicy and delicious. Give it a year or two to soften. 50% Merlot and 50% Cabernet Franc, aged 15 months in French barrels.James Suckling | 90 JS

An intensely floral nose features notes of rose petals and lavender along with cool red berry fruit liberally laced with wet stone nuances. The taut and muscular broad-scaled and concentrated flavors are precise, intense and explosively long on the focused and stunningly persistent finish that is youthfully austere and breathtakingly intense. This faultlessly well-balanced but very firm effort will require extended cellaring and 15 to 20 years is probably what the structure will require to completely resolve.Burghound | 96 BHThe 2010 Clos de La Roche from Dujac is an infant, but it is also fabulous. All of the signatures are there; soaring aromatics, finely sculpted fruit and vibrant, pulsating tannins. What a privilege it is to drink the 2010 over several hours at dinner. An intensely perfumed, multi-dimensional Burgundy, the 2010 captures all of the potential I have seen in previous tastings. Ideally, the 2010 should be cellared for at least a handful of years, as it is built for a long life that will go out for several decades. Readers who own the 2010 should be thrilled.Vinous Media | 96 VMThe 2010 Clos de la Roche is a tad more reserved than any of the previous grand crus served in the range in the Dujac cellars, but every bit as transparent, sappy and seamless. The great nose offers up a classy mélange of red and black cherries, plums, cocoa, incipient notes of venison, lovely soil nuances, woodsmoke and vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, very pure and nascently complex, with a rock solid core of fruit, ripe tannins, brilliant transparency and stunning grip on the very, very long and youthful finish. A great wine in the making. (Drink between 2022-2075)John Gilman | 95 JGThe 2010 Clos de la Roche wafts from the glass with sweet scents of tobacco, crushed flowers and spices. Tasted after the Charmes, the Clos de la Roche comes across as decidedly feminine, but there is plenty of weightless energy being held back, at least that is the sense I get today. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2035.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93-95 RP

A wine with great beauty and finesse. Such elegance and ethereal quality for this estate. Full body, with ultra-fine tannins and a juicy delicious finish. Long and beautiful. This is the best Lynch in a long, long time. I love the precision here. Try in 2018.James Suckling | 98 JSStill a saturated ruby-black in hue, the 2010 Lynch-Bages offers up aromas of rich cassis fruit mingled with hints of pencil shavings, loamy soil and cigar wrapper. Full-bodied, deep and muscular, it’s rich and layered, with a concentrated core of fruit that’s framed by firm, powdery tannins and lively acids. The most brooding, backward Lynch-Bages of the decade and one of the real successes of the vintage, this is a vibrant, tightly wound wine that is still an infant at age 10. Readers with bottles in their cellars might try one now out of curiosity, but this 2010 won’t begin to hit its stride until age 20.Robert Parker | 97 RPDeep inky purple in colour, this is a majestic Pauillac to be savoured by Bordeaux lovers. Again we are far from it being ready to drink and the tannins continue to be dominant, although not hiding the layers of rich earthy loam, slate, pencil lead and concentrated cassis that lie underneath. It’s impressive and built, muscular, taut and architectural. An excellent reflection of what 2010 brought to the wines in this corner of the Médoc. It’s not the most enticing for drinking today; give it another few years to soften and open further, or really allow it to have a good four to five hours in a carafe. But there is no mistaking the future of this wine. Drinking Window 2022 - 2050.Decanter | 97 DECRoasted cedar, tobacco and bay leaf notes start off this structured but lively bottling, with intense currant, blackberry and black cherry flavors at the core. The iron-laced grip and pleasantly austere plum pit and licorice snap accents fill in on the tar-tinged finish. Great range, character and typicity. If you ever need to explain Pauillac to someone, give them this. Best from 2018 through 2037. 25,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThis sumptuous wine is driven by perfectly ripe fruit as well as dense, dusty and dry tannins. Great swathes of blackberry sweep across the palate, followed by juicy acidity. Such a combination will make this impressive wine a delight to drink in 10 years and beyond. *Cellar Selection*Wine Enthusiast | 96 WEThe 2010 Lynch-Bages has a stunning bouquet with pixelated black fruit, crushed stone and graphite aromas that soar from the glass. This is just amazingly focused. The palate is medium-bodied with concentrated black fruit curiously tinged with cough candy, which here I find just a bit out of place. The acidity is extremely well judged and there is immense persistence on the finish. Bold, brassy and ambitious, this is an extremely impressive wine, although I suspect that there are better bottles out there. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 95 VM(Château Lynch-Bages) The 2010 Lynch-Bages is one of the stars in the Left Bank this year, as the Cazes family has fashioned a superb and perfectly balanced example of the vintage. The deep and complex nose soars from the glass in a mélange of cassis, dark berries, espresso, cigar ash, a touch of lead pencil, gravel, leafy young cabernet tones and cedar. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, complex and most impressively soil-driven, with a fine core of pure fruit, excellent focus and balance, bright, well-integrated acids and fine length and grip on the ripely tannic and beautifully delineated finish. A fine, fine vintage for Lynch-Bages. (Drink between 2022-2075)John Gilman | 94+ JG

One of the best second wines, and possibly the best since the 1990 is the 2010 La Dame de Montrose. This represents 36% of the production and is a blend of two grapes – 64% Cabernet Sauvignon and 36% Merlot. A superb second wine, opulent and substantively textured, it shares more in common with a flamboyant, exuberant year such as 2009 than most 2010s. Dense purple, its oodles of fruit, luxurious mouthfeel and terrific finish make it a sleeper of the vintage. It’s a wine to buy in abundant quantities and drink over the next 10-15+ years.Robert Parker | 94 RPWonderful aromas of blueberries, spices and chocolate with a hazelnut undertone. Creamy texture. Full and very fine with lovely texture and spices and berries. Currants too. Long and gorgeous. Second wine of Montrose. Try in 2016.James Suckling | 93 JSMontrose’s second wine has something of the same gravity as the top wine from the estate. It shows firm tannins as well as black currant fruits. These flavors are followed by spice, leather and drying tannins. It does have a sense of elegance that promises well for its mid-term aging,Wine Enthusiast | 93 WEA vintage where you can explore second wines with great confidence. An excellent wine, with a real signature of its big brother, with dark brambly fruits and tight tannins, barely unfurling, it grips the side of your mouth, and needs a good hour or so in a carafe if you are going to drink it in the next few years. I tried the third wine from 2010 also, Le St-Estèphe de Montrose, and while it captures the intense spice of La Dame, it lacks its length and roundness. Drinking Window 2015 - 2030Decanter | 92 DECA textbook example of the vintage and appellation, showing a bright savory edge, a chalky spine and mouthwatering damson plum, red currant and cherry pit notes. Displays enough grip to warrant short-term cellaring, and should stretch out well over the mid-term. Best from 2015 through 2024.Wine Spectator | 91 WS(La Dame de Montrose) The 2010 La Dame de Montrose weighs in at 13.7 percent alcohol, which is plenty ripe, but the wine is impressively precise and pure for its octane. The deep and sappy nose offers up scents of sweet cassis, black cherries, gravelly soil tones, cigar smoke, a touch of violet and a discreet framing of cedar. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, complex and ripely tannic, with lovely balance, sound acids and very good length and grip on the finish. The 2010 La Dame de Montrose does not seem, at this early stage, to possess quite the same precision and mineral drive as the superb 2009, but it is very well-balanced and pure and may blossom with extended bottle age. (Drink between 2022-2060)John Gilman | 88-90+ JG

Salvioni makes stunning wines that appeal to die-hard Brunello fanatics. The 2010 Brunello di Montalcino La Cerbaiole shows enormous purity, varietal personality and beautifully balanced intensity. The wine hits all of your senses at once. The bouquet offers red cherry, licorice, dried rosemary, ginger and cola. You taste the most elegant, delicate and ethereal notes that can be extracted from Sangiovese. The tannins are super fine and the texture is silky and supple. This is an iconic wine.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98 RPOne of the many highlights in this vertical, the 2010 Brunello di Montalcino is exceptionally beautiful. Today, the 2010 comes across as refined and polished, with veins of bright acidity that give the wines its sense of energy, drive and polish. Over the last few months, the 2010 has begun to close in on itself. I can’t say that is surprising given how much stuffing there is. Readers lucky enough to own the 2010 are in for a real treat. When all is said and done, the 2010 is profound and riveting in every way.Antonio Galloni | 98 AGNo written review provided | 97 W&S

Even more concentrated, structured and dense than the Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Galitzine Vineyard (99% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% Merlot all from the Red Mountain AVA) delivers an incredible array of black currant, dark chocolate, cedar, tobacco and assorted spring flower-like nuances that give way to a massively concentrated, tannic and structured 2010 that has brilliant mid-palate depth, integrated acidity and a pure, detailed and energetic texture that carries through the finish. As with the 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon, this is more fun to taste than to drink presently and needs 5-6 years or more of bottle age to round into form. It too will have two to three decades or more of ultimate longevity. Drink 2018-2035.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RP(15.2% alcohol): Good deep ruby-red. Aromas of blackberry, black raspberry, cassis and coffee are complicated by sexy dark-chocolatey oak. Fat, lush, sweet and outsized, showing an almost port-like quality to its dark fruit, licorice and graphite flavors. More open-knit and Right Bank in style than the winery’s flagship cabernet; today this is almost too big for the mouth. But with its immediate sex appeal, suave dusting of ripe, pliant tannins, and outstanding breadth and length, this wine may out-pleasure the cabernet for the seven or eight years.Vinous Media | 95 VM

The wine has an opaque blue/black color and abundant notes of forest floor, spring flowers, black raspberry and blueberry liqueur in the aromatics along with hints of espresso and white chocolate. The wine is dense, full, rich, unctuously textured and very full-bodied, with its extravagant glycerin, fruit and extract covering the wine’s somewhat tannic structure. This is a bigger, more restrained and structured wine than the outrageously flamboyant and prodigious 2009. Give it 5-8 years of cellaring and drink it over the following 30-40 years.This property has been on fire, qualitatively speaking, for well over a decade. Another compelling effort from the Cuvelier family, the 2010 Clos Fourtet is a blend of 87% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Cabernet Franc that came in at 14.5% alcohol. Yields were modest at 31 hectoliters per hectare. The harvest was late, starting at the very end of September and not finishing until the beginning of the third week of October.Robert Parker | 98 RPThe 2010 Clos Fourtet has a well defined and focused bouquet with tarry black fruit, black pepper and tobacco notes, almost equidistant between Left and Right Bank in style. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins, supple and underpinned by a fine bead of acidity. Very harmonious towards the finish with well-integrated oak, this is a superb Saint-Émilion. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 95 VMVery winey, with a saturated, sappy feel as kirsch, blackberry preserves and blueberry coulis notes tumble around, while the frame of charcoal, smoldering tobacco and licorice root keeps them penned together. The tannin structure is significant, but very refined, and that should carry this through extended cellaring while the aromatics and midpalate develop harmony. Best from 2016 through 2030. 4,167 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WSA beautiful wine, with everything in the bottle. Blackberries, minerals and blueberries. Full and silky. Long, long finish.James Suckling | 93-94 JSThis chunky, fruity wine is full bodied and rich. It shows all the structure and weight of the vintage allied to ripe black fruits and a dense texture edged with minerality. Still very firm and youthful, it will need many years to mature.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WE

Dense ruby/purple, it tips the scales at 15% natural alcohol and was bottled unfined and unfiltered. Full-bodied in texture, it offers up loads of blueberry, blackberry and raspberry fruit intermixed with some cedar, vanilla and a touch of spring flowers. Impressively built, with good acidity and light tannin, this is a superb example of wine that reaches its prime in 3 or 4 years and lasts two decades. It’s right up there with their brilliant 2005.From an estate owned by Dominique and Florence Decoster, this wine has been a real treasure to follow over the last decade. Another over-achieving, brilliant effort from the Decosters, the 2010 from their 45-acre vineyard is a blend of 70% Merlot and the rest equal parts Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.Robert Parker | 95 RPThis for me has a better balance than the 2009, same alcohol but here it is effortlessly eaten up by the rich dark fruits, with cassis, blueberry, bilberry and blackberry all apparent, with texture and juice. It’s gourmet, with a black chocolate, slightly bitter edge, even with traces of menthol as the Cabernets take the lead here. Small yield at 36hl/ha. Harvest October 18 right through to November 5, which sounds extreme but bear in mind this is the cooler section of the plateau back towards the border with Castillon and these soils take longer to fully ripen their grapes. Drinking Window 2019 - 2044.Decanter | 94 DECBlack ruby. Superripe, sexy aromas of blackberry pastille and blueberry. Creamy-sweet-verging-on-confectionery, but with harmonious acidity giving shape and energy to the wine's superconcentrated dark fruit and floral flavors. Best today on the broad, energetic finish, which features substantial ripe, fine-grained tannins and slowly mounting floral persistence. A knockout.Vinous Media | 94 VMWow. This shows an impressive richness on the nose of cappuccino, ripe berries and dried flowers. Full body with velvety tannins and a fine finish. Rich and delicious. Harmonious and luscious. So delicious now but better in 2017.James Suckling | 93 JSThis is rich and very plush, but really pure as well, with gorgeous macerated cherry, cassis and blackberry preserves flavors gliding along, carried by remarkably polished tannins. Flecks of bergamot, blood orange and apple wood fill in on the finish, with a fine minerality buried as well. This should be lovely after some cellaring. Best from 2015 through 2030. 6,083 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

(Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux Romanée St. Vivant Grand Cru Red) A notably floral character adds breadth to the highly spiced and exceptionally fresh nose of cool red currant and plum. The rich, refined and admirably pure middle weight flavors are supported and shaped by ultra-fine tannins that coat the mouth on the incredibly long finish. Despite the underlying tension, this is essentially a wine of finesse and harmony that should also age for a very long time if desired. Brilliant and remarkably complex. (Drink starting 2025)Burghound | 96 BHGood full red. Vibrant perfume of raspberry, spices and minerals. Boasts outstanding dark berry intensity, with powerful crushed-stone minerality and a saline quality giving great energy and tension to the middle palate. Finishes with remarkable rising length, utterly suave tannins and superb lift. Like the Suchots, this is already wonderfully aromatic but is built for a decade or two of improvement in bottle.Vinous Media | 95+ VM(Romanée-St.-Vivant- Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux) The 2010 Romanée-St.-Vivant from Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux, not surprisingly, ash the best depth of fruit to stand up to the wood tannins here, and this wine is not bad at all. The nose is a complex and classy blend of cherries, orange peel, coffee, Vosne spices, lovely soil tones and plenty of smoky, luxe-styled new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and complex, with a good core of fruit, fine focus and very good length and grip on the chewy and only modestly over-oaked finish. This will have no trouble eventually absorbing its wood tannin, as it is only showing a touch of backend dryness at this time, and it will be a pretty good bottle at its apogee. But, should one expect more from an expensive example of Romanée-St.-Vivant in a great year? This will certainly not offer up even a modicum of value. (Drink between 2016-2040)John Gilman | 91+ JG

The 2010 Palmer is one of the superstars of the vintage, a blend of 54% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot, which is just slightly different than what I indicated two years ago. The alcohol level hit 14.5%, and the wine comes across like a more stacked-and-packed version of their 2000. It is tannic and backward, but has a sensational black/purple color and a gorgeous nose of camphor, barbecue smoke, blackberry and cassis. Full-bodied, with oodles of glycerin but a relatively healthy pH, this wine has a precision and freshness that belie its lofty alcohol and extravagant concentration. This is a sensationally rich, full-throttle Palmer that could well end up being one of the all-time great wines made at this estate. It needs a good 7-10 years of cellaring and should keep for 50 or more years.There’s no question that Thomas Duroux and the staff at Palmer are producing wines of first-growth quality, and have been for nearly a decade.Robert Parker | 98+ RPOne of the great years of Bordeaux now at 10 years old and showing why this is such an unusual vintage in terms of the depth of structure and muscular concentration that was achieved. In fact, I am upping the drinking window from the last time I tasted this, as there is such a pulse of life and grip that shows no signs of going anywhere. The initial layers are starting to be peeled back, but this retains primary black and blue fruits that are still full of flesh alongside baked earth, tons of liquorice and black chocolate with a grippy tannic structure, fresh acidities and a serious attitude. Brilliant stuff, that is clearly going to power on for decades. Harvest September 22 to October 20. Drinking Window 2022 - 2048.Decanter | 98 DECA purity of fruit here with plum and dark chocolate undertones. Spices and treacle tart as well. Full body, with ultra-fine tannins and a long, long finish. Very fine indeed. Fit, fruity and reserved. Superb. Try in 2020.James Suckling | 98 JSWhile outwardly this wine is generous and opulent with great juicy sweetness, the core is structured and powerful. The wine is concentrated and complex, with dark tannins and a brooding, dense texture. This is a wine with a long-lived future.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEThe 2010 Palmer has an outgoing, intense and multifaceted bouquet with black cherries, boysenberry, crushed violets and hints of cassis - your quintessential Margaux turned up to eleven. The palate is medium-bodied with very supple tannins and a fine bead of acidity. Headier than its Margaux peers, it builds in the mouth with a complex, marine-tinged finish with cracked black pepper lingering on the aftertaste. This is an outstanding Palmer but it needs more time in bottle. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the BI Wines & Spirits 10-Year On tasting.Vinous Media | 96 VMThis is riveting, with terrific tarry grip coursing underneath layers of smoldering bay leaf, warm plum confiture, freshly brewed espresso, dark cassis and well-steeped black tea. The charcoal and tobacco backdrop is gorgeous and should move forward through the core of fruit over time. Be patient though, as the structure is ironclad. This will really be electric once mature. Best from 2017 through 2040. 8,500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WS(Château Palmer) The 2010 Château Palmer is a quite powerful rendition of this fine estate, but without any signs of the ripeness here obscuring any of the potential purity that makes this great estate so beloved by claret fans the world over. My notes do not include the alcohol level on the grand vin this year (which was also absent from the technical sheet handed out by the estate), but the literature from Palmer this year does observe that “although the alcoholic degree is very high, like in 2009, the acidity and tannic concentration are greater (than 2009), making for wines with an extremely solid foundation.” Given a cépage in 2010 that is comprised of fifty-four percent merlot, forty percent cabernet sauvignon and six percent petit verdot, one has to assume that the alcohol level is in the range of 14.5 percent in this vintage. But the wine shows no ill effects from this level of ripeness, as it offers up a superb nose of black cherries, blackberries, coffee bean, tobacco smoke, gravel and a suave base of new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and quite powerful for Palmer, with a rock solid core of fruit, very good focus and balance, substantial, but well-integrated tannins and excellent length and grip on the tangy finish. Stylistically, this will probably never be my favorite vintage at Palmer, as I tend to prefer this wine when it is at its most elegant, but there is no denying that the 2010 is beautifully-made and does show extraordinary purity and focus for such a broad-shouldered wine. (Drink between 2025-2100)John Gilman | 95 JG

The 2010 Langoa-Barton has a very serious complex and involving bouquet with blackberry, cedar, sage and light sous-bois aromas that are exquisitely defined. The oak here is seamlessly integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with supple rounded tannins that frame its payload of black fruit laced with white pepper and cedar. It fans out brilliantly towards the finish. It is so velvety in texture that you could almost broach this now, but its substance and weight suggests that it deserves another few years in the cellar. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 95 VMTightly focused, with a beam of cassis and blackberry fruit framed by integrated espresso and charcoal notes. The ample structure drives the polished finish, allowing extra notes of plum sauce, pastis and blueberry coulis to stride through. Shows serious grip at the very end. Best from 2016 through 2035. — JMWine Spectator | 94 WSLighter framed than Leoville, and while this is delicious, it is not quite at the level of its sibling. Not that anyone is going to complain, and this will be ready to crack out sooner. Opens up to show bramble berry fruits with confident tannins that provide a frame that is going to hold on tight for a good decade at least. Plenty of St-Julien character. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042.Decanter | 94 DECFruity and juicy, this showcases the accessibility of this estate, while also highlighting some of the tannic structure of its big brother, Léoville-Barton. There is a classic black-currant note that’s balanced by the firm tannins of the vintage. Wine Enthusiast | 94 WEAnother wine showing better from bottle than it did from barrel, the 2010 Langoa Barton has the typical structured, dense style, but just as I thought earlier on, it is a much softer and more developed wine than one ordinarily expects from proprietor Anthony Barton. It is full-bodied and impressively endowed with subtle oak, rich cassis fruit and notes of new saddle leather, forest floor, cedar wood and spice box. Full, authoritative and dense, this wine should be at its best between 2018 and 2035.Robert Parker | 93+ RPBlueberry and blackberry aromas with hints of mint. Full body, with fine tannins and a chocolate, vanilla and berry aftertaste. This builds on the palate with fruit and tannins. Extremely polished. Better in 2017.James Suckling | 93 JS