July 15, 2023 - PnP. Excellent.
July 17, 2021 - Nose: Tobacco. Leather. Dates. Vanilla. Medium aroma intensity.
Palate: Leather. Tobacco. Dried fruits. Raspberries. High tannins. Medium to high acidity. Dry. Medium body. Medium flavour intensity.
Finish: Dates. Raisins. Sour cherries. Herbaceous. Long finish.
February 2, 2021 - Dark garnet red. Nose is deep and savory, with smoke, cedar, dark fruit. Palate delivers some brooding tannin, around a faint line of dark fruit, this is more savory than fruit driven, with bitter spice, some oak. Nicely fresh. I’m probably marking this down somewhat due to the rubbish glasses it was drunk in, but was still a nice accompaniment to an opulent raclette dinner!
November 20, 2020 - Open again in 2022-26
September 6, 2020 - Not my cup of tea at this moment, too much ripe fruit, no finish! Anyone knows if it will improve?
June 29, 2020 - Bordeaux 2010 - 10 Years On - 61 Reds: Bordeaux 2010 after 10 years. 61 reds, mostly big names, tasted blind. Average score 92.1 and lower than the more open and charming 2009 vintage last year (93.4). A few observations: A) It’s not yet the harmonious, complex, classic, clean vintage. Especially the masculine appellations of the left bank need at least 5 more years to just open up, potentially longer to soften. B) Left bank trumps right bank thanks to less detectable alcohol, cleaner lines and the two best wines of the vintage (Mouton, Margaux). C) Pomerol shines bright with many strong wines which can all mask the high alcohol levels (best AOC slightly ahead of Pauillac). D) As in 2009, there are several right banks already past peak, incl. big names (Duffau Lagarosse, Ausone). All in all, 2010 is a very good vintage with pockets of greatness but today 2009 shows more open and hence complex. More information, top and worst 10 list, appellation rankings from five participants in the story link.
TN: Rather muted on the nose with a bit more expression on the palate dominated by darker red berries and lots of herbs. Fairly simple and with tannins still showing some hard edges. An ok wine without any particular strengths.
Decanting: 2 hours are advised.
Group average score: 90.4
Group rank: number 52 out of 61 wines
June 21, 2020 - Grand Bordeaux 2010 ten years on tasting; 6/21/2020-6/22/2020 (Fribourg): Big Bordeaux 2010 2-day horizontal hosted by a private collector. My 3 main takeaways from the vintage were 1) more frequent perception of heat, 2) a slightly stronger left bank and a less consistent right bank, 3) while in general it is still too early to pop the 2010s, wine selection is key as some appear to be in decline already, especially on the right bank. The top wines were Mouton (99), Margaux (98) and VCC (98). The biggest positive surprise was Clos Manou (95). Biggest disappointment was Pape Clement (86). More details and complete tasting overview included in the tasting story.
Tasting notes:
Red and dark cherry presented in a ripe fashion, some roasted coffee beans, dried herbs of thyme and rosemary. Intense palate with lots of tension, but a finish gets cut short and only. Mouth-coating tannin remain. A simple but well-made St Estèphe and appeared to perform as you would expect.
March 20, 2020 - Heavy thick - little overexpressed, ripe and just too much...st estephe - bit one dimensional
April 10, 2019 - Cedar, blackberry and plum. Uncomplicated and a bit hot.
***1/2
November 4, 2016 - Good example of left bank red, settled and well worth the holding time.