Château Meyney 2010

Another price/pleasure alternative just under the 30-euro mark, yet a wine with classy substance and notable depth, with tannins of excellent quality, built for long aging.

Solid, if a bit chunky in feel, with a slightly squared-off charcoal and ganache frame surrounding a core of dark plum, black currant and licorice root. Shows more austerity than flesh, but displays outstanding length and cut. This has added lots of grip in élevage. For fans of the taut style. Best from 2016 through 2026. 11,250 cases made.

A wine with a lovely balance of spices, blackberry, mint, and ripe fruit that carries through to a full body, fine tannins, and a spicy, chocolate and walnut character. Lovely balance of fruit and tannins. Better in 2016.

55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 15% Petit Verdot. Deep, dark cherry red. Smells more pure-fruited than the 2009 and doesn’t have its dusty mineral character. Much more straight-down-the-line Cabernet aromas of cassis and cedar, but the fruit is intense so there’s also a touch of dark chocolate — in a thick, chewy texture as well as in the flavour. Firm and chewy, with real weight as well as structure, and it still finishes fresh thanks to the fruit’s clarity. This has some way to go but has fine St-Estèphe direction and firmness and the fruit to fill out the mid-palate. Long and satisfying, attractively aromatic as well as powerful. (JH)

Bright ruby-red. Medicinal black fruits, menthol and bitter chocolate on the nose. Dense and rich if a bit chunky, offering very good intensity to the flavors of blackberry, black cherry and fresh herbs. The medicinal aspect repeats on the finish, which features broad, dusty tannins and a slightly green character.

Earthy, mineral-driven dark berries, cassis and spicy scents open to a tannic, fresh wine that should improve for another decade or two.

Extremely dark purple with lilac and violet highlights. Brilliant spice, tobacco, truffle, black peppercorns and equally black fruit notes, showing a baroque depth. On the palate, fleshy, with an imposing body, a rich mid-palate supported by structuring astringency. A truly great, characterful Saint Estèphe. If Grands Crus are too expensive for you, here is another of the many alternatives.

Barrel sample 2011: 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 15% Petit Verdot. Extremely dark purple with violet highlights. Brilliant spice, tobacco, truffle, black peppercorns and equally dark fruit notes, showing a baroque depth. On the palate, fleshy, displaying an imposing body, a full mid-palate with supporting astringency. A truly great, characterful Saint Estèphe. If Grand Crus are too expensive for you, here is another of the many alternatives. (18/20). 17: Dark purple-violet, dense to the rim. Brilliant, soothing bouquet, black cherries, rose scent, liquorice, showing depth, power and freshness at the same time. All components are in the right place. On the palate, extremely dense without turning crumbly, fleshy, muscular, with a great, still-demanding astringency. The tannins are of great class and at the same time convey immense ageing potential. This is a truly great Meyney that requires a lot of patience. I estimate the first drinking maturity from around 2030. (19/20).

Silky, dense, dark, complex and profound bouquet: black cassis, plums, dark noble woods, dark chocolate, licorice, truffle, black pepper, flint. Concentrated, multi-layered, powerful palate with dense, dark fruit, a velvety, dense, muscular structure, concentrated dark aromatics, very long, dense finish. 19/20 2024 - 2050

A strict, straight, tannic wine with firm tannins, more Saint-Estèphe than usual.

Beautiful deep, dark red. Fine, fruity, suave nose with floral nuances at the same time. Juicy on the attack, the wine immediately offers a lovely texture and a flavor reminiscent of blackberry jelly. Graceful, it melts on the palate while maintaining its breadth. Long, delicious finish with fine-grained tannins. It's beautiful.

It is good to see this well-situated estate in St.-Estephe get back on track. The 2010 has loads of beef blood, charcuterie and smoked game along with black currant fruit. Some underlying graphite notes are also present in this full-bodied, meaty, fleshy wine, which has outstanding concentration and the potential to last for 15 or more years. It is a major sleeper of the vintage.