2017 Petrus

There was no frost here, but they still had to contend with 100mm of rain at the end of June, then one-third of regular rainfall over July and August, then rain again in September. The young vines were more affected by drought, but the older vines had to be left for a few weeks to digest the early September rains. As you might expect, we don't need to worry unduly about winemaker Olivier Berrouet's ability to handle it - but you can certainly see that he had to make a number of careful choices. The harvest, for example, was from 8-28 September - a long spread for such a small vineyard, but they needed to be really careful and work plot by plot. The resulting wine has an extremely powerful nose; the aromatics are high and very complex. On the palate I get dark chocolate, slate, liquorice and damson flesh, giving a dense, compact structure followed by a floral finish. It's fresh and complex, with notable spice. The tannins are deceptive, building over the palate to a fairly tannic finish, and it's very persistent, not a large step down from the last two years, even if it's not quite at their heights. Higher alcohol than most this year, but well balanced.

Very dark and super-fragrant. Beautifully intense cassis aroma, very pure, gorgeous dusty graphite nose, and a light note of violets. Beautifully dry and with finest of textures. Opens up to sweet spice and some red fruit. Iris root – used in perfume – says winemaker Olivier Berrouet. Caressing texture, supple. Becomes ever more floral with air. Incredibly smooth. A beauty. (JH)

The 2017 Petrus is deep garnet-purple in color and opens with incredible notes of preserved plums, baked blueberries and cherry compote with nuances of hoisin, violets, lilacs, licorice and exotic spices—a very open-knit, flamboyant and atypical Petrus barrel sample! The palate is medium to full-bodied, rich, plush and decadent with a firm frame and layers upon layers of perfume and spices on the very long finish.