The 2012 Château Petrus is stunning stuff. All Merlot as always, it's still youthfully ruby/plum-hued yet has a kiss of maturity in its smoky red and black fruits as well as incredible aromatics of tobacco leaf, lead pencil, chocolate, and scorched earth. Deep, full-bodied, and concentrated, it has classic Petrus power and richness, beautifully integrated tannins, a stacked mid-palate, and a gorgeous finish. This beauty builds beautifully with time in the glass and has another 20-30 years of prime drinking.

Bright, deep ruby. An exotic blueberry scent is complicated by sexy notes of violet, cocoa, coffee and flint. Very rich, dense, supple and sweet on the palate, with noteworthy complexity and precision to the spicy black fruit and floral flavors. Conveys a strong impression of energy on the sweet, very long finish. This wine possesses silky tannins and lovely purity of fruit, but while flattering and easier to taste today than some recent vintages of Petrus at the same stage, it doesn't have the structure of the better vintages. Still, there is no trace of the dilution or of the tough tannins that plague other big names in Pomerol in 2012. One of the five best wines of the vintage.

Tasted blind at the Southwold 2012 tasting, the 2012 Petrus demonstrated a forward, fruit-driven, ripe raspberry and wild strawberry bouquet underneath which lies graphite and forest floor aromas. It seems refined, understated, nonchalant even. The palate is medium-bodied with a slightly savory opening, as if there was a tiny drop of Cabernet Franc. The tannins are fine but firm, the red fruit infused with cooked meat, black pepper and sage notes, although I was anticipating a finish armed with more body. That may well develop in time, yet it remains a regal Pomerol that will probably merit a higher score with bottle age, hence the plus-sign against the score. Tasted January 2016.