Château Pichon Baron 2010

Solidly built, with a roasted edge to the steeped fig, blackberry and black currant flavors, quickly followed by brambly tannins and notes of bay leaf and espresso. Stays dark and tarry through the finish, with superb drive and verve. Best from 2017 through 2030.

Cool blue and black fruits, crayon and floral scents. Bright, fleshy and round at first but quite serious and then lean where the fruit quickly fades, leaving chalky tannins and a metallic tang. Feels like power over poise, but there is cooling menthol and a long finish, with lingering tannins and gentle fruit expression.

A dense and layered wine with lots of ripe and sweet fruit. Loads of currants, plums and tar. This is concentrated and almost jammy with velvety tannins. Powerful. Chewy. Try in 2020.

Fleshy, succulent, satisfying and classic, with loads of liquorice, leather and menthol character. Taut structure. (RH)

This continues to develop in the right direction. There is a wealth of concentration to the fruit on the palate, as well as in its tannic structure. But the tannins are as ripe as the fruit, giving you freshness, energy, and a non-stop wave of sweet, ripe, dense fruits that fill your palate. It is impossible not to see the quality of this wine, but patience will be rewarded. Give it a few more years of bottle age and this is going to be a stunning vintage for Pichon Baron. Drink from 2025-2055.

Deep dark ruby garnet, opaque core, purple reflections, somewhat restrained, black berry fruit with delicate smoky undertones, blueberry notes, fine tobacco nuances. Juicy, ripe cherry fruit, some sour cherries, firm tannins, fresh structure, pleasant extracted sweetness, still somewhat edgy overall, mineral finish, red berry aftertaste, still needs some time.

79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot. 15% smaller harvest than last year. Extremely dark purple with lilac and violet highlights. The color is incredibly dark even compared with other crus. Licorice and smoke, dried blueberries, Black Currant, Corinth notes. Creamy palate; the acidity shows but, thanks to the wine’s massive body, feels surprisingly soft; black pepper notes and a mineral imprint in the rich, fleshy extract; massive concentration. A monument that clearly recalls the estate’s 1989 in its youth. When I shared this theory with cellar master Jean-René Matignon, he visibly agreed. Tasted twice. (19/20). 17: Very dark garnet-purple with almost black highlights at the core. The bouquet—despite understandable reticence—comes across directly and shows the full power of this mega vintage. Black cherries, Black Current, noble fine woods, black olives, not as overripe as 2009, not underripe like 2008. I was able to compare it directly with those. On the palate, straightforward, muscular, fleshy and above all… mighty. It shows kinship with the legendary vintages 1928, 1945 and 1961. Extremely ageworthy. There’s a 50-year guarantee here. (19/20).

Concentrated, compact, finely opulent, closed bouquet, black cassis, dried fruits, prunes, dark chocolate, black olives. Powerful, dense, massive palate with plenty of fine tannins, a concentrated, muscular structure, complex, dark aromatics, dense fruit, a very long, dense, aromatic finish with many dark lingering notes. Still has room to improve. 19/20 2020 - 2050

Ticks all of the Pauillac boxes and then some – powerfully sculpted tannins, muscular and confident, crushed rocks, crayon and liquorice root, cassis and bilberry, slabs of cocoa bean and espresso. At the height of its powers. Jean-Rene Matignon technical director. 80% new oak.

Great sap, a wine splendidly constructed on the nose and palate, excellent integration of new oak, racy, pure tannins, perhaps a tiny lack of finesse due to the very high ripeness of the grapes.

With a dark hue, the nose shows black fruits—blackberry and blackcurrant—set against a backdrop of spices. The palate is dense, strict, straight, and long, with a beautiful, concentrated tannic structure; the licorice and cedar finish is superb. The wine accounts for 40% of the production.

Fresh and complex, the bouquet of the 2010 stands out for its freshness and youthful character. After all, it is barely 15 years old! Shades of licorice, blackcurrant and elderberry come before subtle notes of graphite, black pepper and mint. Dense and creamy on the attack, the wine impresses with its poise, quiet strength and fine-grained tannins. An exceptional wine that can now be enjoyed.

The nose is fresh, elegant, racy, mineral, and offers a certain concentration. It reveals notes of fairly ripe wild blackberry, raspberry, and, more lightly, dried violet, together with touches of clove, nutmeg, and lily, as well as fine hints of dried plum, discreet nuances of tobacco and underbrush, and an imperceptible hint of grey pepper. The palate is fresh, mineral, and balanced, offering lovely definition, gourmandise, beautiful freshness, a zesty backbone, tension, precision, a subtle airy quality, a certain well‑controlled richness, depth, a fine precise grain, and a certain straightness. On the palate, this wine expresses notes of fairly ripe wild blackberry, raspberry, and, more lightly, redcurrant, combined with small touches of dried violet, lily, and dried blackcurrant, as well as hints of clove, racy minerality, tonka bean, and an imperceptible hint of hazelnut, almond, and chocolate. A lovely tanginess on the finish/persistence.