The set includes 6 prestigious selected vintages from some of the top Chateau in Bordeaux, and those are the following :
a. 2010 Lafaurie-Peyraguey, Sauternes
96 points Wine Enthusiast- Big, concentrated botrytis flavors, layering the honey with the rich dried fruits. This is a powerhouse of a wine, densely structured.
93-94 points James Suckling- Already a slightly dark color. Beautiful concentration. It's rich and very sweet with intense notes of bitter oranges and honey. Superb finish that long and racy with notes of botrytis.
91-93 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate- The Chateau Lafaurie Peyraguey has an ebullient nose of Tropicana, dried honey and quince that intensifies in the glass whilst maintaining impressive definition. The palate is very well-balanced with superb tension and focus, a Sauternes built of minerality and poise, leading to a citrus, almost spicy finish that leaves the mouth tingling with pleasure.
90-93 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar - Deep yellow-gold with an amber tinge. Captivating nose offers fresh yellow peach, dried apricot, ginger and lemon zest. Dense, bright and focused on the palate, with orange jam, tangerine and saffron flavors complicated by marmaladey botrytis. A touch of vanillin oakiness emerges on the long, bright finish. Zippy acidity extends the flavors on the back, giving this Lafaurie-Peyraguey a refined, polished mouthfeel and making it seem less sweet than it really is.
b. 2016 Chateau Malartic-Lagraviere, Pessac- Leognant
96 points James Suckling: I love the deep and complex nose, in which the cassis and mint of cabernet sauvignon are beautifully married to the more generous blackberry of ripe merlot and the vanilla and toasty notes from the oak are marvelously integrated. On the palate it creeps up on you slowly; the first impression is ripe yet delicate, then the fine-grained tannins charge through and light up the sky. Very long finish. Drink or hold.
96 points Wine Enthusiast: Beautifully wood aged, with subtle hints of spice, this is an elegant, textured wine, ripe with white fruit tones and layered with intense, fresh acidity. Its bright highlights are tempered by warm fruitiness and by the mineral texture that promises aging.
95 points Decanter: The color is rich and deep but with luminosity that gives nuance and fresh air. It's a lovely 2016, poised but not as powerful as some in the vintage, yet every inch the sophisticated reflection of the appellation. Restrained grilled berry fruits take their time to unfurl. It's still very closed but the liquorice and slate notes become clearer after 10 minutes in the glass, and the wine has already deepened in the few years since bottling. 3% Petit Verdot completes the blend.
94 points Jeb Dunnuck: As to the red, the grand vin is the 2016 Château Malartic-Lagravière (53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and the balance Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot). Aged in 80% new barrels and hitting 13.5% natural alcohol, it offers a deep purple color with beautiful cassis, tobacco, crushed rocks, and subtle incense aromas and flavors. Balanced, medium to full-bodied, and straight-up seamless on the palate, it’s another brilliant Graves that offers ample pleasure today yet will keep for 20+ years or more.
92 points Wine Spectator: Ripe and fresh, with bright cherry, plum and currant pâte de fruit flavors that have a racy edge while roasted apple wood, sweet tobacco and red licorice notes fill in through the lengthy finish. Thoroughly delicious, and approachable now or capable of some cellaring. Drink now through 2030.
92 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: The 2016 Malartic Lagraviere is blended of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot. Medium to deep garnet-purple in color, it opens with wild blueberries and black cherries with cassis, bay leaves and dark chocolate nuances plus a hint of charcoal. Medium-bodied with a lively backbone and solid frame of ripe, rounded tannins, it finishes with an herbal lift.
91 points Connoisseurs' Guide: Doing a very nice balancing act at being potent and polished at one and the same time and showing a nice sense of sophistication, even if fairly on long juicy richness, this wellfruited working smacks of currants and berries and ripe cherries with scant hints of dried herbs and loam lending it a good bit of complexity. It is supple to start and slightly firm at the finish with fine fruity persistence, and, while it is not tough or overly tannic, neither is it a wine that should be opened and poured without a minimum wait of some four to six years.
c. 2016 Chateau Beauregard, Pommerol
96 points James Suckling: Beautiful aromas of plums, flowers, truffles, earth, and hot stones. Full-bodied, yet the very fine and polished tannins have fabulous poise and elegance. Plush. Love the finish. One of the best ever from here. Drink from 2025.
95 points Decanter: This has more concentration than the 2015, less immediately seductive but the layers are evident, and it's hard to fault the construction. Plush and sexy and full of Pomerol pleasure, but also real depth, power and spice. Lovely wine, with the juicy saline kick on the finish that you want in Beauregard. Love this, but needs time - those tannins are chewy right now.
94 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2016 Beauregard is a little closed on the nose, opening to warm black plums, blackberries and mulberries with touches of chocolate box and dried herbs plus violets hints. The palate is medium to full-bodied, firm, grainy and packed with muscular fruit, finishing long and earthy.
94 points Jeb Dunnuck: I loved the 2016 Château Beauregard, which was firing on all cylinders during my visit. Medium to full-bodied, beautifully pure, with good acidity and a meaty nose of black fruits, truffle, bouquet garni, and earth, it’s beautifully balanced and about as classic Pomerol as it gets. Give bottles another handful of years and it will deliver the goods over the following 10-15.
WS92
92 points Wine Spectator: Structured from the start, with a light charcoal edge and a strong graphite spine supporting the core of dark plum, blueberry and açaí berry flavors. Tobacco and alder details are etched on the finish, with the fruit driving through. Slightly taciturn in style, but cellaring should lighten the mood.
90 points Wine Enthusiast: The ripe fruit is showing well in this property, which has the same winemaking team as Château Smith Haut Lafitte in Pessac-Léognan. It is a rich, spicy wine with soft tannins and acidity at the end.
d. 2015 Chateau Dezauc, Margaux
94 points Wine Enthusiast: From one of the most southerly of the Margaux vineyards, this attractively fruity wine is bright with black-currant flavors. Delicious acidity and layers of spice from wood aging promise a fine, ripe future.
94-95 points VertdeVin: The nose is elegant, complex, racy and offers a beautiful structure, a fine concentration as well as deepness. It reveals notes of ripe / crunchy wild cassis, wild strawberry and small notes of ripe / crunchy raspberry associated with touches of ripe / crunchy berries, violet, toasted touches, chocolate, a discreet hint of lily as well as discreet hints of lily, Sichuan pepper, violet, nutmeg, toasted oak and spices. The mouth is fresh, fruity, aerial, well-balanced, silky, aerial and offers juiciness, a beautiful definition, a beautiful finesse of the grain, concentration, tension as well as a beautiful and very discreetly tight structure. On the palate this wine expresses notes of fleshy blackberry, fleshy black cherry and small notes of wild raspberry associated with touches of fleshy red berries, toasted hints, chocolate, discreet hints of almond, tea, graphite as well as very discreet hints of caramelization and spices. Tannins are elegant and well-built. There are a very discreet chew and crushed almond on the finish.
e. 2014 Chateau la Gaffeliere, Saint-Emilion Grand Cru
96 points Wine Enthusiast: This is a fine and aromatic wine that has great structure while also considerable elegance and superb balance. Dense tannins are coupled with freshness and bright black-currant fruit, keeping the palate lively. The finish is bright and fruity.
94 points James Suckling: I love the precision and verve to this with berry, sliced mushroom and flower characters. Full body, yet so tight and refined. Beautiful length and focus. Drink or hold.
94 points Decanter: Things were really getting into their stride at this point at La Gaffelière, with a clear step forward in terms of precision, balance and power. The replanted Cabernet Franc had now entered its second decade, starting to express undercurrents of black pepper spice, liquorice and gentle floral aromatics, adding acidity and power without overdoing anything. It's a great wine, with the generosity and impact of a St-Emilion Premier Cru Classé, building in complexity slowly over the palate. This will deliver for many decades.
93 points Wine Spectator: A lovely blackberry puree note leads this off, followed by hints of fig and plum. Alluring licorice and juniper flavors start to fill in, backed by an accent of smoldering tobacco. The structure is persistent but very fine-grained. Best from 2020 through 2030.
91 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: The 2014 La Gaffeliere appears to have improved since it's showing in barrel (I did hint at this at the time). The nose is perfumed and slightly floral, certainly well defined with neatly integrated oak, dark fruit emerging with aeration in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly edgy, chalky tannin on the entry, shrouded by plenty of dusky black fruit and a potent, graphite-tinged finish. This is one to watch.
f. 2014 Chateau Leoville Poyferre, Saint-Julien
94 points Wine Enthusiast: The wine is concentrated with tannins that come from both the firm fruit and the wood aging. It is packed with blackberry flavors that come through the structure strongly. The velvet texture (that is just a hint at the moment) is going to bring out the richness of this wine produced with consultation from Michel Rolland. Drink from 2024.
94 points James Suckling: A ripe, generous and substantial wine for this appellation with some real concentration. Plenty of beautiful currant and blackberry character, as well as a solid core of ripe, dusty and velvety tannins and enough acidity to carry the long, savory finish. Slight lean now. Better in 2024.
94 points Decanter: Very deep red. Bold, ripe and fleshy blackcurrant nose steeped in new oak, without being too overbearing. Rich, dense, and flamboyant, very concentrated and intense. Fleshy and forthright, it has a long finish that's spicy and complex.
93 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: The 2014 Leoville-Poyferre was surprisingly backward and tight on the nose (usually it is the most expressive and generous Léoville in its youth). The precision and focus is intact, but it is broody and sultry at the moment. The palate is medium-bodied with firm structure, which suggests that it has turned volte face since its opulent showing in barrel. Overall, this comes across as perhaps a slightly more austere and masculine wine from Didier Cuvelier, though that is not a criticism, just an observation. I would like to see a little more persistence on the finish, but the tidings bode well for this mercurial and fascinating Léoville-Poyferre. I can see it improving with bottle age, hence the plus sign against my score.
93 points Wine Spectator: Very pure, with a beautiful beam of violet and plum sauce carried by a chiseled graphite spine. Gorgeous anise and roasted apple wood notes are inlaid seamlessly on the finish. Shows ample grip and drive. Rock-solid. Best from 2020 through 2030.
93 points Jeb Dunnuck: A blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc and the balance Petit Verdot that wasn’t harvest until the middle of October (this is later than most), the 2014 Léoville Poyferré is a ripe, concentrated, seriously impressive wine in the vintage that offers more exuberance, texture, and character than most. Crème de cassis, graphite, toasty oak, and hints of tobacco all emerge from this purple colored, pure, medium to full-bodied 2014 that has sweet tannin, beautiful purity of fruit, and a great finish. While it doesn’t have the depth of a truly great vintage, it shines for its balance, texture, and sheer charm. Drink this beauty anytime over the coming 15-20 years.
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