Chateau Petrus 2010

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "Deep garnet colored, the 2010 Petrus opens a little broody, with gentle crushed rocks, cast iron pan and fragrant earth notions giving way to a core plum preserves, baked blueberries, licorice and Black Forest cake plus wafts of pencil shavings, garrigue and violets. Full-bodied, the palate is beautifully poised with a firm line of exquisitely ripe, fine-grained tannins and fantastic freshness bolstering the generous fruit, finishing very long and very, very classy. Collectors fortunate enough to have a few bottles of this vintage are advised to be patient and allow it a further 7-10 years to loosen-up and emerge gloriously from this rock-solid structure."

JAMES SUCKLING: "This a Petrus with extraordinary balance and depth. It shows such elegance in the nose with complexity of black olives, dark fruits, and flowers. The palate is full and ultra-velvety yet there is a cashmere quality to the texture. It takes your breath away. There's almost a Burgundian quality in the mouthfeel meaning it takes you deep into the soil and captivates your attention. Greatest modern vintage of Petrus ever? Try after 2018."

FALSTAFF: "Dunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, dezente Randaufhellung. Zart balsamisch unterlegter Hauch von Nougat, schwarze Trüffeln, süße Herzkirschen, kandierte Orangenzesten, dezente Gewürzanklänge, feine Edelholznoten. Saftig, angenehme Extraktsüße, seidige, fast schmelzende Tannine, verfügt über perfekte Proportionen, eine finessenreiche Struktur, einen fruchtsüßen Abgang und bleibt minutenlang haften. Bereits heute ungemein verführerisch, rote Beerenfrucht im Nachhall, einfach gang große Klasse!"

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "At close to 14% alcohol, (which is high for Petrus) the wine offers intense aromas of chocolate, truffle, minerality, earth, blackberry essence, plum liqueur, blueberry, flowers and black cherry liqueur with kirsch accents. Offering a beautiful sensation of lift and purity along with decadent textures, polished, dark berries, plums, bitter chocolate, fresh cherries on the palate. Seamless and expansive, everything was balanced and in harmony. The finish remains in your mouth for one full minute! There were 3, polished spit buckets in the room. This was Petrus. I did the right thing and put that wine right where it belonged."

DECANTER: "Maybe surprising to see a Pomerol that is so well-built that it is not anywhere near ready even at 10 years old, but this is Pétrus, a place that writes its own rules. The brushed silk exuberance is there, but hidden underneath a still-pulsating wall of tannins. You expect this level of concentration in Pauillac, so it is more of a surprise on the Right Bank, but here you are in no doubt that 2010 is an intellectual, demanding vintage that needs to be given time. You need to look to 2009 Pétrus to begin enjoying any time soon - this is structured, full of dark fruits, structured, savagely built, out to impress."

WINE SPECTATOR: "The most fun in Bordeaux these days is getting a '10 and '09 side by side. This has the fruit to match its older counterpart, though it's a shade darker, with anise, plum, blackberry and black currant notes stitched together, while the charcoal and graphite structure is more evident but just as integrated. Remarkably dense, but without any sense of brooding or unnecessary muscle, this is about as finely tuned as a wine can be.—Non-blind La Fleur-Pétrus vertical (December 2015). Best from 2020 through 2040. 3,700 cases made."

WEINWISSER: "100 % Merlot. 35 hl/ha. Sattes Purpur-Granat. Pfeffriges Bouquet, sehr rotbeerig, rote Johannisbeeren, rote Pflaumen, dann dunkler werdend in der Frucht, dezent pflaumige Noten und ein Hauch Cassis, wirkt noch recht roh im Ansatz, strahlt Noblesse aus, aber auch ebenso noble Zurückhaltung. Im Gaumen zeigt er sofort seine grosse Klasse, sattes Extrakt, viel Fruchtmark im Innern, aufsteigende Adstringenz, Kokosnoten und feines Vanillin, nachhaltiges Finale. Selten hatte ein Pétrus in seiner Jugend vom Geschmack wie vom Körper her so viel Burgunderaffinität. Zwischen Richebourg, Romanée St. Vivant und Romanée Conti hin und her schwankend und dann doch wieder so richtig nach Pétrus schmeckend. Auf dem Weingut wird gerade umgebaut und es entsteht dort, wo die Cabernet-Franc-Parzelle war, ein unterirdischer Keller. Im alten Fasskeller lagern derweil die zwei letzten Barriques Cabernet Franc. Ob sie in die Assemblage des Pétrus 2010 gelangen, weiss man noch nicht so recht. «Eher nicht!», meinte Olivier Berrouet, als ich ihn danach fragte."

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "A majestic wine, grand in every sense. It has weight, the firmest of tannins and an immense sense of structure. This neighbor of Château Pétrus is firmly dense, showing both the fruits and the tannins in balance. Give this wine at least 10 years in the cellar."

JANCIS ROBINSON: "Light, well-mannered nose. Rather more savoury than sweet and with very polished tannins. Quite different from its peers in terms of structure. Nothing overdone. Almost muted. But already a fine, rather elegant drink. The tannin/fruit balance is pretty clever."