2008 Petrus
Buying options
Tasting Notes
It is hard to call Petrus a “sleeper of the vintage,” but the 2008 will merit more attention than most consumers would think. Low yields of 30 hectoliters per hectare resulted in only 25,000 bottles of this beauty. A wine of great intensity (possibly the most concentrated wine of the vintage), this 100% Merlot boasts a dark purple color as well as a sweet perfume of mocha, caramel, black cherries, black currants, earth and forest floor. Deep, unctuously textured, full-bodied and pure, it will benefit from 4-5 years of cellaring and should drink well for 25-30+ years. May 2011, www.robertparker.com
Critic Scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Wine Spectator
More reviews and scores
There's lots of rose in this wine, with hints of dark chocolate and berries. Full and powerful, with chewy tannins and a long finish. A big, juicy wine. Very impressive for the vintage. James Suckling, Wine Spectator 2009
Tasted ex-chateau and single blind in Southwold. I was initially quite mean to this Petrus, probably because as my note from October 2010 suggests, it is now a more reticent wine and has far less of that “showboating” it displayed out of barrel. So whilst you initially wonder what all the fuss is about, leaving the wine in my glass for a few minutes eventually, almost reluctantly, reveals a very intense bouquet of wild strawberry, raspberry and crushed stone. It has great precision, real intensity and sense of purpose. The palate is medium-bodied with very smooth, rounded tannins and it feels velvety smooth in the mouth. There is still some oak to be subsumed, which meant I was parsimonious with my score handed in at the tasting. But even after a few minutes the wine is unfolding before my senses and you become aware that this will evolve into a top class Petrus. Jan 12, www.erobertparker.com
About the producer
Ask any wine-lover to name the world’s greatest fine wines, and the answer will invariably include Pétrus.