Chateau Lagrange 3eme Cru Classe, Saint-Julien 2009

Finessed, displaying St Julien balance, even a little reserved at first, but studded with oyster shell salinity, firm cassis and blackcurrant fruits, cocoa bean and liquorice. Great quality, impressive depth through the mid palate, a wine for sharing that will make your friends extremely happy. Plenty of appellation typicity, with a juicy finish, this is a buy. 42hl/h yield, 60% new oak. Eric Boissenot consultant.

The 2009 Lagrange was picked from 28 September to 6 October. This has a sensual and very floral bouquet with lavender and violet aromas infusing the plush and generous red berry fruit. It retains fine delineation despite its concentration. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, velvety smooth with layers of red berry fruit laced with clove and thyme, gently fanning out towards the caressing finish. Superb. Tasted at the Lagrange vertical at the estate.

Bright and perfumed, with loads of blueberry, flower and licorice on the nose. Full body, with super well-integrated tannins and a long, long finish. Class. Best wine from here in a long, long time. Try after 2018.

Medium to deep garnet colored, the 2009 Lagrange rolls out of the glass with beautiful redcurrant jelly, warm blackcurrants and blueberry preserves notions plus hints of fallen leaves, camphor and pencil lead. Medium to full-bodied, it fills the palate with red and black fruit preserves and lively herbal sparks, with a firm grainy backbone and great freshness on the finish.

Saturated medium ruby. Sexy aromas of cassis, licorice, menthol and cedar. Tightly wound, classic and intense, with sharply delineated flavors of dark berries, violet and minerals complemented by well-integrated oak. Dense, suave Saint-Julien wine with a very fresh, slightly austere finish. With its solid structure and excellent length, this will require at least five or six years of cellaring. A superb vintage for this property.

Tightly knit, oaky and rich, with formidable concentration, but broodingly backward and not showing the charm and concentration of the top wines of St.-Julien, this 2009 from Lagrange is still an outstanding effort that has length, richness and character. It should be cellared for a good 5-6 years and then consumed to 2042.

(73% cabernet sauvignon and 27% merlot; 13.5 % alcohol; pH 3.7) Dark ruby. Precise aromas of flowers, redcurrant, dried herbs, cedar and tobacco. Lush, rich and fine-grained, with lovely inner-mouth spicy and floral lift to its pure redcurrant and cranberry flavors complicated by graphite and ink. Finishes with a pretty mineral persistence and high-quality but youthfully aggressive tannins that beg for a little more time to resolve fully. Not a blockbuster but charming and stylish, in typical Lagrange fashion. The higher-than-normal cabernet presence makes this a distinctly sturdy example of Lagrange.