Last year in the first week of April I tasted a wide range of wines from the 2010 vintage and found the wines to be outstanding and generally a notch above the sensuous 2009 vintage. I think the 2010 vintage to be as good as 2005 across the board with its concentration of ripe fruit, exotic spice, firm structure and its freshness in the best produced wines. Truly outstanding.
Here are my favorites tasted during the UGC tastings;
Tasting of Wines from St Julien, Pauillac, St Estephe at Château Branaire Ducru (St Julien);
St Julien; Branaire-Ducru (almonds, fresh smooth, delicious), Leoville Barton (perfumed, spice, good volume, freshness, cassis), Saint-Pierre (smokey, pure, concentrated, thick, texture, fresh)
Pauillac; d’Armailhac (spice, rich, rounded, enticing)
St Estephe; de Pez (spice and cream, exotic black fruits, power), Ormes de pez (spice, creamy, rich), Phelan Segur (firm and meaty)
Duluc de Branaire-Ducru 2008 and 2005 Branaire-Ducru served with the property’s classic dish ‘Seven Hour Lamb’ see recipe http://wp.me/pa6F2-5X
Tasting of Wines from Margaux at Château Lascombes;
Giscours (aromatic cream and vanilla, silky, good fruit, firm finish), Marquis de Terme (concentration, spice, fine, elegant) Kirwan (concentration, spherical, integrated, firm finish)
Tasting of Wines from St Emilion at Château la Couspaude;
Beausejour Bécot (very rich, creamy, good fresness, very attractive finish), Clos Fourtet (tight and masculine, intergrated), Figeac (exoitic spice, finesse, tight), La Dominique (liquorice, spice, cream, rich), Larmande (blueberry and cream, juicy), Pavie-Macquin (cream, vanilla, spice, very concentrated, very long finish)
Tasting of Wines from Pomerol at Château La Pointe;
Clinet (very deep colour, blackcurrant, silky smooth, tannic finish), la Conseillante (creamy, vanilla, gourmande, powerful yet elegant), La Pointe (intense vanilla cream fruit, smokey, concetrated, tight finish, class)
Tasting of Wines from Péssac-Léognan at Château Malartic Lagravière;
WHITES
Bouscaut; (nice balance wood and fruit, nice richness), Domaine de Chevalier (lemon, toffee, pineapple, weighty, citrus, long finish), Haut Bergey (toffee, cream vanilla, butter), La Louviere (citrus, fresh grapes, simple), Latour Martillac (lemony oak, fresh fruit), Malartic-lagravière (powerful mineral nose, rich weighty, intense complex fruit, long powerful finish), Pape Clément (intense grapefruit nose, caramel and citrus fruit combined, some banana, powerful woody finish)
REDS
Haut Bailly (smokey notes, aromatic, very concentrated, silky smooth, masculine finish), Malartic-lagravière (blackberry, spice, very thick and silky, freshness, long firm finish), Pape Clément (smokey wood, leather, chocolate, toffee, thick concentrated fruit, extracted, tight finish), Les carmes haut brion (exotic nose, very silky soft, thick, concentrated, finesse, soft structure), Latour Martillac (silky thick fruit, firm finish), Haut Bergey (deep colour, exotic fruit, freshness)
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