Château BEAUSEJOUR DUFFAU-LAGAROSSE 2010

Description

Robert Parker 100 points www.robertparker.com

The 2010 is a more structured, masculine and steely version of the utterly compelling 2009. Tasting like black raspberry confiture with subtle notes of graphite and crushed chalk along with enormous floral notes, the wine displays a slightly smoky character but a voluptuous attack, mid-palate and finish. Its is full-bodied and massively endowed, with every component perfectly etched in this extraordinary wine, which should be drinkable after 7-8 years of bottle age and last for a half-century or more. This is brilliant stuff. Composed of 73% Merlot, 23% Cabernet Franc and 4% Cabernet Sauvignon from yields of 21 hectoliters per hectare, the alcohol is the highest ever registered at Beausejour-Duffau, coming in at 15%, but remarkably, the pH is modest and the acids relatively elevated, giving the wine an astonishing freshness and precision that is hard to believe in view of its power, density and length. Anticipated maturity: 2025-2055+. Anyone who has read this publication or visited St.-Emilion knows that this is a magical terroir capable of great things. It was only fully exploited in the past in the 1990 vintage, but has reached more consistently great heights over the last three or four years. Kudos to the duo of Nicolas Thienpont and Stephane Derenoncourt for what they have achieved over the last few years at Beausejour-Duffau.

Jane Anson 97 points  www.decanter.com (at BI London, 30 Jan 2020)The Left Bank character of this St-Émilion wine is on full display. Concentration and depth, liquorice root and dark bitter chocolate. This is intense and the tannins remain just a little impenetrable. An impressive wine that speaks of its terroir and is packed with estate signature. Will age extremely well (I enjoyed a 100 year old wine from Larcis Ducasse in 2019, and wouldn’t bet against this one making the grade). 60% new oak. Drinking Window 2022 – 2045

Jeff Leve 100 points www.thewinecellarinsider.com (mars 2018)
The color is still inky, like a barrel sample. And that is just part of the story. The nose knocks you out with its power, complexity, and depth. On the palate, the wine is insanely concentrated. But don’t let that fool you. This is no one trick pony! The waves of fruit just keep on coming. They are dark, pure sweet and taste like you took a basket of fresh picked plums and cherries at their perfect level of ripeness and squeezed them over rocks and stone before placing all that gorgeous juice in the bottle. This is a legend in the making that will be talked about for future generations. The texture, weight, density, and quality of the fruit is surreal. There were only 1,100 cases produced, so if this sounds like your style of wine, you should have this in your cellar.