Lafon Rochet - Saint-Estèphe 2009

Wine Advocate

93 / 100

byNeal Martinthe1/1/2013

Served blind at the Southwold 2009 tasting. This is a strong performance from Lafon-Rochet. There is a lot of high class new oak on the nose here, but there is plenty of ripe black fruit to support it: dark plum, blackcurrant and graphite. The palate is medium-bodied with a dense, grippy entry and a rather saturnine mid-palate. Closed, broody, obdurate and yet there is certainly decent weight of fruit here. At the moment it is unapologetically charmless but its time will come. Kudos Basile Tesseron. Tasted January 2013.

Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

91 / 100

byStephen Tanzerthe7/31/2012

Good ruby-red. Superripe aromas of plum, dark chocolate and menthol. Dense and fine-grained, with good energy to its dark fruit, cinder and woodsmoke flavors. Very glossy in a 2009 way. Finishes rich and ripe, with substantial dusty tannins.

Wine Spectator

91 / 100

byJames Molesworththe3/31/2012

Juicy and very lively, with lots of briar, currant, cherry, toasty spice and anise notes all framed by bright floral and iron hints. The long finish has excellent cut and drive. Best from 2013 through 2021. 11,250 cases made. –JM

Wine Advocate

90 / 100

byRobert Parkerthe2/29/2012

This wine seems to be one of the few that has not yet recovered from bottling. In a somewhat monolithic, latched-down style, it has plenty of stuffing, lots of structure and an impressive dark ruby/purple color, but it is very hard to coax from the glass. It is a rather classic St.-Estephe made by the Tesseron family, with its distinctive blood orange label, but this wine seems to beg for another 5-7 years of bottle age. The final blend of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc has some impressive fruit, but the wine just seems slightly more clipped and narrow than I remember it from barrel. Hopefully, time will mellow out this impression. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2035.

Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

91-94 / 100

byIan D'Agatathe6/30/2010

Good full purple-tinged ruby. Spicy red cherry, cedar, tar, ash and incense on the nose, complicated by a hint of coffee reduction. Then more restrained and refined in the mouth, with terrific depth and freshness to the smoky blackberry, dark plum and mineral flavors. Sound acids give this fleshy wine admirable clarity and cut on the long, youthfully tannic finish. This very pure, dense wine appears to be one of the most accomplished Lafon-Rochet wines in recent memory.

Le Figaro

92-94 / 100

byBernard Burtschythe6/30/2010

Robe sombre. Nez intense, ananas, noix de coco, assez exotique. En bouche, l’attaque est souple, le vin est rond, suave, tout en souplesse, gourmand, mais finit assez tannique. Grande réussite du château.

La Revue du Vin de France

17,5-18,5 / 20

the5/31/2010

Depuis quelques millésimes, Lafon Rochet s'impose comme l'une des meilleurs affaires du Médoc. Le 2009 poursuit la série, avec un vin très réussi qui déploie une belle énergie et un côté très juteux.

Le Point

15,5-16 / 20

byJacques Dupontthe5/6/2010

Fruits noirs, bouche ronde, souple, frais, élégant, tendu, bien fruité et assez carré, bonne longueur. O=2015 G=20 ans

WeinWisser

17 / 20

byRené Gabrielthe4/30/2010

Tiefes Purpur, satt in der Mitte, Granatschimmer am Rand. Röstiges, eher warmes Bouquet mit Schwarzbrotnoten und Kaffee, dahinter Dörrpflaumen. Eleganter Gaumen, schöne Cabernet- Expression, fein und lang, müsste aber vielleicht etwas mehr Druck aufbauen, um bei den grösseren St. Estèphes mithalten zu können. 2017–2034

TAST

17,5 / 20

by Bettane & Desseauvethe4/30/2010

Légère réduction au nez, vin puissant, équilibré et harmonieux en milieu de bouche, aux notes de cèdre typiques des confins de Pauillac, grand avenir. Petite trace de stress dans le tanin, très légèrement anguleux.

Wine Advocate

91-93 / 100

byNeal Martinthe4/30/2010

A sample taken on 23rd March tasted at the property. A blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 1% vin de presse, a pH of 3.65 and alcohol 13.5% with 50% matured in new oak. This has a tightly wound that unfurls nicely over 15 minutes, a nice minerality here, really exposed at the moment. Blackberry, a touch of raspberry, wild hedgerow, very pure and refined. The palate is medium-bodied, firm tannins, quite tight at the moment, very focused, gentle grip, and racy acidity towards the finish. Very Cabernet dominated finish, more structure than usual thanks to the higher percentage, perhaps just needing to flesh out on the finish, although that should come with extended barrel ageing. (N.B. A second sample at a negoçiant showed more flesh and suppleness towards the finish) Tasted March 2010.

Decanter Magazine

17,5 / 20

bySteven Spurrierthe4/30/2010

Black red, colour sticks to the glass, big smoky Cabernet cassis nose, excellent natural concentration, intense yet lifted fruit, lots of succulence and lots of grip, a really well-expressed, well-made wine with a very good future. Drink 2015-30.

Wine Enthusiast

88-90 / 100

byRoger Vossthe4/30/2010

Sweet vanilla aroma, fruit that is ripe, soft, fleshy. This seems to have suffered from super-mature fruit, although a final juiciness does help.

Falstaff

92-94 / 100

byPeter Moserthe4/30/2010

Balsamische Nuancen, zart nach Dörrobst, florale Noten, Mandarinenzesten. Komplex, süße Zwetschkenfrucht, Brombeergelee, extraktsüß, feines mineralisches Gerüst, Nougat im Abgang, sehr gute Länge, großes Entwicklungspotenzial.

Wine Advocate

91-93 / 100

byRobert Parkerthe4/28/2010

Perhaps the finest Lafon Rochet ever made, the purity, freshness, and sweet, rich, blueberry and boysenberry fruit and hint of pen ink that are found in this opaque purple-colored wine are impressive. Massive in the mouth, with freshness, delineation, and sweet tannin, it is a major sleeper of the vintage that should last for 25+ years. (Tasted two times.) Drink 2010-2035. (91-93*) points

Anthony Rose

92-94 / 100

byAnthony Rosethe4/26/2010

Dense youthful ruby colour, aromatic vivid fruit quality, with stylish cedary oak, excellent concentration of red and black fruits flavours, well-handled cedary / vanilla oak, succulent tannins, fine texture and juicy acidity; quite dense and firm, but not overmuscular, powerful or dry; handles itself very well and should be hugely pleasurable in the medium to longer term. 92-94+

Wine Spectator

89-92 / 100

byJames Sucklingthe4/9/2010

Currant and spices on the nose follow through to a medium body, with fine tannins and a medium finish. Solid structure.

Jancis Robinson

16,5 / 20

byJancis Robinsonthe4/7/2010

Very dark. A slightly burnt note. Very much taken to the limit. A bit awkward in terms of tannins but with refreshment. Drink 2018-2028