Wine Advocate 89 / 100 byNeal Martinthe1/1/2013 Served blind at the Southwold 2009 tasting. The Nénin ‘09 has a high-toned nose with just a touch of over-ripeness: dried prune, truffle scents and a touch of bay leaf. The palate is medium-bodied, fleshy but simple, with rather a hard finish that needs more harmony and finesse. Tasted January 2013.
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar 90 / 100 byStephen Tanzerthe7/31/2012 (the label says 14.5% alcohol): Bright, full red-ruby. Musky dark berries, black cherry and underbrush on the fresh nose, complicated by a smoky minerality. Lush, smooth and minerally, with lively flavors of plum, chocolate and smoke; nothing heavy about this Pomerol. Finishes with ripe tannins and very good length. This tightened up with air, showing the structure to age.
Wine Advocate 89 / 100 byRobert Parkerthe2/29/2012 The grand vin, the 2009 Nenin, is a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc with 14% natural alcohol. This wine is the product of Jean-Hubert Delon, the proprietor of Leoville-Las-Cases and the excellent northern Medoc estate of Potensac. The wine has closed down considerably since I saw it from barrel, with a Medoc-like, structured minerality and backwardness. The tannins have moved to the front, and the wine displays loads of raspberry and black cherry fruit with a hint of earth in addition to floral notes. Give it 3-4 years of cellaring and drink it over the following 15-20 years.(89+ points)
Jamessuckling.com 94 / 100 byJames Sucklingthe2/15/2012 A racy red. Aromas of ripe raspberries and lemon rind, with hints of flowers. Full body, with tangy acidity and a creamy tannins and bright fruit. Very intense . Best in 2018.
Wine Spectator 93 / 100 byJames Molesworththe1/18/2012 This is a noticeably grippier style, showing a chunky edge to the bittersweet cocoa and charcoal notes which support the core of dark fig and blackberry fruit. This has good, racy structure though, so it should settle down with cellaring. Best from 2014 through 2027. 4,580 cases made. –JM
Le Figaro 93-95 / 100 byBernard Burtschythe6/30/2010 Robe très sombre. Nez fruits noirs, un peu d’épice. En bouche, attaque dense, beaucoup de moelleux, long et serré, 80 % merlot, 20 % cabernet-franc.
Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar 89-92 / 100 byIan D'Agatathe6/30/2010 (an 80/20 blend of merlot and cabernet franc; 13.9% alcohol; pH 3.68; IPT 73; 30% new oak) Medium-deep ruby. Initially closed but deep nose opens slowly to reveal black cherry, blackberry jam, coffee and minerals. Dense and tactile, but with harmonious acids keeping the ripe black fruit flavors light and buoyant on the palate. Though it maintains some of that classic Nenin chunkiness, this is more refined than usual for this wine and perhaps the best Nenin at this stage of its development made under the ownership of the Delon family. Unlike La Fugue de Nenin, which comes from sandy clay soil, Nenin's flagship wine is made from grapes grown on sandy-gravelly and clay-gravelly soils in the western part of the vineyard.
La Revue du Vin de France 16-16,5 / 20 the5/31/2010 La clé de la réussite de Nénin réside dans la sélection. Seuls 44% de la récolte ont été jugés dignes d'entrer dans le grand vin: on ne saurait se montrer plus sévère! Le vin est très coloré, malgré un soutirage récent, la bouche est ample et la finale structurée.
Wein Wisser 17 / 20 byRené Gabrielthe5/17/2010 Sattes Purpur-Granat. Backpflaumenbouquet mit Gewürznelkenton und schwarzen Kirschen. Stoffig-satter Gaumen, wiederum Kirschen im Extrakt. Ein kompakter, muskulöser, verlangender Pomerol mit Rasse und Kraft. 2017-2029.
Le Point 15,5 / 20 byJacques Dupontthe5/6/2010 Fruits noirs, épices, poivre, frais, élégant, bien fondu, équilibré, floral, fin. O=2016 G=18 ans
TAST 16,5 / 20 by Bettane & Desseauvethe4/30/2010 Très représentatif des meilleurs pomerols de l'année. Soyeux, onctueux, long exprimant des notes savoureuses de fruits noirs au nez comme en bouche.
Falstaff 91-93 / 100 byPeter Moserthe4/30/2010 Tabakig unterlegte süße Zwetschkenfrucht, Dörrobstanklang, Orangenzesten. Stoffig, kraftvoll, rund, elegante süße Textur, schokoladiger Nachhall, präsente, anhaltende Tannine, Bitterschokolade im Abgang.
Wine Advocate 91-93 / 100 byRobert Parkerthe4/28/2010 A blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Cabernet Franc that achieved nearly 14% natural alcohol, the 2009 Nenin is the finest wine I have tasted since the estate was acquired by Jean-Hubert Delon (the family that also owns Leoville Las Cases). The full -bodied Nenin exhibits lots of cranberry and boysenberry fruit, a hefty, rich mouthfeel, and a fresh, lively, long, rich style. It can be drunk young or cellared for three decades. (Tasted once.) (91-93*) points
Periodic Review of Wine 93-95 / 100 byAlan Duranthe4/28/2010 Another top-nothc Nénin rivaling the exceptional 2008! Its crushed-stone, cherry, blackberry, graphite, wet-pebble aromas precede a broad, backward, potent, full-bodied, dense impression, an old-school stype, and stunning richness. This is intricate and structured with extravagantly ripe fruit. Deliciously irresistible wine! Maturity period 2015-2033.
Wine Spectator 93-96 / 100 byJames Sucklingthe4/9/2010 What a nose of raspberry jam and violets. Amazingly rich and ripe, yet balanced and elegant. Full-bodied, with layers of ripe tannins and wonderfully ripe fruit. Opulent and sexy. Best since the 1950s?
Jancis Robinson 17,5 / 20 byJancis Robinsonthe4/8/2010 Very dark crimson. Much more restrained than La Fugue. Quite a farmyardy nose and then very rich and poished and dense. Lots of tannin obvious here – a much more long-term proposition than La Fugue. Serious stuff... (17.5+) Drink 2017-2030