2010 Château Larrivet Haut-Brion

Description

94    James Suckling
“Wonderful spicy nose with white pepper, lime peel and lots of raspberry. Full and very precise on the palate with juicy well-dosed acidity and great focus. This white has a smooth texture with minerals on white fruit and good length. Drink now or hold. Serious effort here!” (2/2013)

90-93    Stephen Tanzer
(50% merlot, 45% cabernet sauvignon and 5% cabernet franc) “Dark inky-purple. Deep, brooding aromas of blackberry, black cherry, licorice and balsamic herbs. Creamy-sweet flavors of ripe black fruits and oak deftly combine the power of the vintage with an elegance that I don’t always find in this wine. Finishes supple and sweet, with fine-grained tannins and hints of caramel oak and plum.” (6/2011)

92    Wine Spectator
“Dense, winey and energetic, but also supple and alluring, with steeped plum and boysenberry fruit inlaid with hints of singed anise, violet and warm stone. The tarry finish strides with authority, revealing ample grip for cellaring. A strong showing for this estate in ’10. Best from 2015 through 2028.” (3/2013)

91    Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
“A sleeper of the vintage from this under-the-radar estate, this is a complex, fragrant, sexy style of wine with deep ruby purple color, loads of red and black fruits intermixed with caramelized character, supple tannins, a savory and expansive mid-palate and finish, and sweet tannin. I found this wine extremely endearing and far better from bottle than it had shown from barrel. Give it several years of bottle age and drink it over the following two decades.” (2/2013)