Le Crock

Rich black cherry fruit on the nose with a high floral tone, this is fleshy and full bodied, with admirable depth. The fruit is simple, forward and expressive, textures are welcoming and the finish is fresh. Well done to the Poyferré team. Drink 2015-2025 - armit

The 2009 Le Crock is the finest wine I have tasted from this vineyard owned by the Cuvelier family (who also own Leoville Poyferre). A picture postcard chateau sandwiched between Cos d'Estournel and Montrose, it is good to see this under-performing St.-Estephe finally producing better wines. A blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, the 2009 displays an inky/purple color in addition to an opulent nose of black and blue fruits intermixed with licorice, crushed rocks, and flowers. Fat, plush, and fleshy, with terrific fruit purity and a long, layered finish, this sleeper of the vintage can be enjoyed over the next 15+ years. (Tasted two times.) - Robert Parker

Capbern Gasqueton

Juicy fruits and a breezy, lifted style on the nose, on the palate there is natural balance and ripe, fine tannins. This is easy and classic in the best sense of the word, a good middle-weight that is impossible to dislike. This shows admirable precision and is excellent value. Drink 2015 - 2025 - armit

From the Calon-Ségur stable and very impressive! Blueish purple crimson. Very juicy and meaty. Lively fruit. Polished. Great vitality. Very much St-Estèphe on the finish. Minerals. But a quite amazing amount of sweetness on the front palate. Really wonderful expression of St-Estèphe 2009 - though not of St-Estèphe in most vintages. - Jancis Robinson

Phélan Ségur

Dark cherry fruit with notes of fruit coulis and dark currants on the nose. On the palate, this wine has plenty of energy and seems to be full of life and vigour, with good density of material, big but ripe tannins and the sort of scale associated with much grander properties. A little smokiness adds complexity and there is a promising mineral note on the finish. Everything is in place here for the long term. Well done again. Drink 2017-2030. - armit

Like many of the top 2009s, Phelan-Segur is a huge, full-bodied effort with massive fruit as well as good freshness, precision, and elegance. This is all rather paradoxical given previous great vintages that either lean toward cooler vintage characteristics or hot ones. This 2009 possesses both styles. It exhibits lots of mulberry, boysenberry, and crushed, jammy black fruits, abundant tannin, medium to full body, an opulent mouthfeel, and enough structure to evolve for two decades or more. This is a sleeper of the vintage. (Tasted two times.) Drink 2010-2030.
Robert Parker

Tronquoy-Lalande Cru Bourgeois

Pure blueberry and cassis nose with notes of dark plum and spice underneath. This is made in a full, concentrated style with excellent depth of material and quality of fruit, exuding health and vitality. The tannic structure is serious but perfectly ripe, in harmony with all of the other elements. Excellent length here too and a wine undoubtedly representative of the best features of this appellation. Drink 2017-2030 - armit

From the expanding, under-construction Ch Montrose stable. 64% of production. 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, 51% Merlot, 7% Petit Verdot. 46 hl/ha. Minerals and opulence and lots of charm. Sinewy and exciting and depth of flavour but definitely St-Estèphe. Real vivacity. Very luscious in the middle. Very long and satisfying. Drink 2015-2025 - Jancis Robinson

Lafon Rochet, 4ème Cru Saint Estephe

Dense, rich black fruits, smoky and sweet and with plenty to say. On the palate, the wine is very concentrated with smooth textures and highly polished tannins and no lack of muscle either. The is a full, powerful style taken to the limit of ripeness but without losing track of its origins. Drink 2019-2030+ - armit

Perhaps the finest Lafon Rochet ever made, the purity, freshness, and sweet, rich, blueberry and boysenberry fruit and hint of pen ink that are found in this opaque purple-colored wine are impressive. Massive in the mouth, with freshness, delineation, and sweet tannin, it is a major sleeper of the vintage that should last for 25+ years. (Tasted two times.) Drink 2010-2035.
Robert Parker

Château Cos d'Estournel, 2ème Grand Cru Classé

Jancis: 16.5+
Wine Spectator: 97-100
Neil Martin: 89-91 

Very dark indeed. Blackish crimson. Not much scent though obviously very ripe. Firmer than some of the more obvious Napa Valley-style wines in 2009 with the tannins much more obvious. But a coolness on the finish. This may come round eventually. It is much more demanding than most 2009s and will need SO long. A very exaggerated wine with a bit of a hole in the middle. A definite lack of freshness. Does remind me a little bit of Pavie 2003. To be generous I’m assuming that in the far distant future it may resolve itself but I can’t quite understand why they let the grapes get so ripe. Harvest dates are pretty similar to Ch Latour but the results are very different. 14.5% - Jancis Robinson

This smells like Harlan a bit. Supercharged in fruit, with intense aromas of tar, spice, cardamon, clove, blackberry and black pepper. Crazy nose. Full-bodied, with masses of fruit, yet focused and in form. Chewy tannins, with great length. This goes on and on. Incredibly exotic. Could be best ever from here? - James Suckling

Tasted twice on separate occasions at the property. Stylistically, the Cos d’Estournel sets itself apart from the entire Left Bank, though I am uncertain whether this is a positive thing. Coming in with an IPT of 99 and tangible 14.5% alcohol, it is endowed with an extremely rich, decadent nose with macerated black cherries, cassis, a touch of crème de menthe, melted chocolate and a hint of fig. This is an extremely powerful nose that bears more relationship with the Douro than the Gironde. It is endowed with Leviathan tannins that form a massive, arching structure, moderate acidity, the power seeming to dominate the finish at the expense of a little finesse. This is a Cos d’Estournel that wants to make a bold impression. Leaving it for 15-20 minutes there is a change in the glass, becoming rounder and more harmonized, certainly some of the heat dissipating and yet one has to question whether stylistically, it has forsaken its identity as quintessential Saint Estephe? Another sample with one hour decanting with a little smoother and yet still showed a little hardness and alcohol on the finish. Tasted March 2010.- Neil Martin

Pagodes de Cos

Jancis: 15.5+
Wine Spectator: 93-96
Neil Martin: 91-93
armit: 16

Sweet bilberry and blueberry liqueur leap out of the glass like a liquid summer pudding on steroids. On the palate, the wine is more grounded, showing some muscle and considerable tannic presence but coated in glossy, silky textures. This is a huge wine and certainly not a typical second wine made for early drinking. At 14.5 degrees alcohol, this is unlikely to win awards for subtlety but this is by some distance the most impressive Pagodes we have ever seen. Drink 2017-2030. armit

Château Montrose, 2ème Grand Cru Classé

Jancis: 16.5
Wine Spectator: 97-100
Neil Martin: 95-97

72% of total production. 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot. Picked 17 Sep to 5 Oct, much earlier than Cos! Average yield 38 hl\ha. Extremely dark crimson with strong purple notes. Low-key but modestly confident nose – much more married than some recent vintages. Pretty raw and austere and very much St-Estèphe. Very inky finish. Lovely nose and succulence but a little bit tough on the end. Certainly harks back to classical St-Estèphe in a way that Cos very much doesn’t. 13.7% - Jancis Robinson

Big and structured, delivering wild aromas of Indian spices, crushed berry, sweet tobacco and coffee. Full-bodied, with loads of velvety, chewy tannins and a long spicy finish. The château says this is like the 1990, but I think it could be even better. It's certainly better made. - James Suckling

Representing 72% of production, a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, cropped between 17th September and 5th October, 13.7% alcohol and an IPT of 98 and 3.7 pH. this has a ripe blackberry, boysenberry, oyster shell and briary nose that soars from the glass. Fine definition with a very tangible mineral component. The palate is full-bodied with smooth tannins, very powerful with superb definition, great sense of tension here. There is a great deal of panache in this Montrose, layers of black fruit interwoven with graphite and earthy notes towards the long finish tinged with a touch of cardamom. Sophisticated and regal. A modern day ’89? Tasted March 2010. - Neil Martin

Château Calon Ségur, 3ème Grand Cru Classé

Jancis: 18
Wine Spectator: 93-96
Neil Martin: 91-93

Dark crimson. Wonderful electric vitality on the nose. Great vibrancy. Great integrity in the same way as Pontet-Canet is seamless right through the palate – great line. Pure and dense and polished. Really vibrant. Lovely minerality on the finish. Complete. - Jancis Robinson

Delivers gorgeous aromas of blackberry, blueberry and licorice, with hints of tobacco and spice. Full-bodied, offering a lovely texture and refinement. Very long and beautiful, with tangy acidity and lively fruit. A rich, yet very balanced, Calon. This is almost all Cabernet Sauvignon instead of the normal blend with 40 percent Merlot. The château is now using 100 percent new wood. Like the changes. - James Suckling

Tasted at the château. This has a very strict nose with brambly black fruit, wild hedgerow, a touch of plum and Mirabelle with cold stony aromas developing with further aeration. The palate is medium-bodied, firm tannins, good balance, just a little tough at the moment, briary and blackberry, a very saline finish with moderate length. Very taut, coalescing nicely in the glass, just a little hard on the finish. It will interesting to see whether this softens with age: perhaps a little less oak would have served this redoubtable Calon-Segur better? I will remain prudent with my score for now. Tasted March 2010. - Neil Martin

Château Ormes de Pez, Cru Bourgeois Exceptionnel

Jancis: 17+
Wine Spectator: 92-95
Neil Martin: 90-92

Very dark. Lively and dense and complex. Thick and sweet. Pretty dry finish – arguably more typical St-Estèphe than most. Lots there, not least alcohol, but a wine to reckon with! - Jancis Robinson

Superb concentration, with spice, currant and berry character. Full and velvety. So long. At same quality level as the legendary 1955, or 1959. - James Suckling

Tasted at Chateau Lynch Bages, this Ormes de Pez is a blend of 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, matured in 40% new oak, this ’09 Les Ormes de Pez has a deep, garnet colour. The nose is very pure, very focused, tightly would at first, a certain “strictness” to this Saint Estephe. Not as earthy as other wines, subtle aromas of black cherries, a touch of cassis, cedar and sandalwood. Good definition, but despite coaxing it is relatively closed at the moment. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins, quite peppery on the entry, nicely balanced, masculine as usual, a saline note towards the finish that is quite linear at the moment. This is like a tightly coiled spring but it should drink well after 6-8 years year of ageing, which this wine usually needs. Tasted March 2010. - Neil Martin

Haut Marbuzet

Neil Martin: 89-92

Tasted at a negociant. This has a typical Haut-Marbuzet bouquet: soft and rounded, very plush with unashamed exotic fruit interlacing the red-berries, hints of honey and marmalade. The palate is full-bodied with grippy tannins, very toasty at the moment with the new oak dominating. But there is good balance on the finish, a firm backbone here and the persistency is linear but long. Very fine. - Neil Martin