PETRUS 2009

This offers a beautiful balance between its two sides: dark fig, roasted plum and toast flavors versus racy raspberry, cassis and perfumy black tea notes. Silky overall, but with terrific latent grip and a mouthwatering minerality that drives through the finish, pulling out extra fruit paste and charred spice hints. Very, very impressive range. (JM)

(100% merlot; 14.2% alcohol; 3.8 pH; 40 ha/hl; a 65% selection; 50% new oak) Fully saturated ruby-red. Mindblowingly intense, utterly hedonistic nose redolent of sexy, superripe blueberry and blackcurrant complicated by sweet Oriental spices, cocoa and coffee. Then creamy-smooth and downright voluptuous, with superconcentrated blackberry, blueberry and plum flavors complemented by delicate smoke and flint nuances. The utterly palate-saturating finish features silky-smooth tannins and finishing fruits, spices and minerals that go on for minutes thanks to harmonious acidity. I should note that the strength of finishing minerality goes beyond what I usually associate with this wine. The final wine may contain 1% cabernet franc, but that decision had not been made at the time of this tasting. This wine merits 100 points on the strength of its nose alone.

Tons of truffle and chocolate make this lush and fleshy Pomerol very seductive. The power and concentration are impressive, but right at the opulent and silky finish there's just a hint of warmth from the alcohol. Drink or hold.

Medium to deep garnet colored, the 2009 Petrus gives up glorious scents of preserved plums, redcurrant jelly, dried rose petals, blackberry compote and mulberries with touches of licorice, Chinese five spice and fragrant earth. Full, rich, plushly textured and oh-so-decadent, it reveals layer upon layer of spice box, black fruit and ferrous notions, finishing long and fragrant. (LPB)