Pavie 2009

St Emilion, Premier Grand Cru Classé A

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Tasting Notes

The 2009 Pavie has a gorgeous bouquet, very pure and refined with seamlessly integrated oak and wonderful delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, perfectly judged acidity. Fine grip with compelling tension on the finish. This shimmers with energy. Easily, this is the best bottle that I have encountered over the years

Score: 96

Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2022-2045 01 March 2019

Tasted at Chateau Pavie and then at a negociant. Cropped between 5th and 15th October at 28hl/ha, a blend of 70% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. At the chateau: this has a very dense, introverted bouquet that opens up with aeration, to show some dense black fruit, boysenberry, kirsch and a touch of dried prune. Another bottle that had been open for 30 minutes is much fresher. The palate is full-bodied and well balanced, fine definition and brightness of fruit, not an elegant Pavie but it has panache. Firm grip on the finish with fine minerality. Excellent. The sample at the negociant had more forthright tannins that were very aggressive and dry on the finish. Difficult to pin down with so many different showings, hence the question mark for now. Tasted March 2010.

Score: 93 - 95

Neal Martin, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com 21 April 2010

Bottled the week before I arrived, the 2009 Pavie appears to have barely budged since I tasted it two years ago. Many experts consider this phenomenal terroir to be nearly as great as that of Ausone. Made from a classic blend of 60-70% Merlot, 20-25% Cabernet Franc and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon, this inky/blue/purple-colored blockbuster reveals wonderful notes of blackberries, crushed rocks, roasted meats, spring flowers, cedar, blueberries, graphite and a hint of vanillin. With extravagant fruit and high extract as well as a hint of minerality, this structured, massively intense effort is typical of all the luxurious, perfect or nearly perfect Pavies produced under the Perse regime (which began in 1998). While built for 40-50 years of cellaring, the softness of the vintage and its flamboyant style is slightly less apparent in the 2009 Pavie than in some of the other Perse wines. Anticipated maturity: 2020-2050+.

Score: 100

Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2020-2050 01 March 2012

Another brilliant effort from Gerard Perse, this great vineyard (now just over 90 acres in size with the average age of the vines 45 years) was cropped at 28 hectoliters per hectare. It obviously missed all the damaging hail in mid-May of 2009, and was harvested between October 5 and 15. Everything here is done with extraordinary gentleness and precision. The result is a powerful, full-bodied, remarkably intense wine that is black/purple in color. It will require considerable patience, much like 2000 and 2005. It displays enormous creme de cassis and boysenberry fruit with some cherries, spice box, and crushed rock in the background. It is intense, with loads of minerality, huge extraction, massive power, yet again, the vintage character seems to have given it a freshness and vibrancy despite the wine’s obvious viscosity. The minimum patience required is at least a decade, as this is another 40-year wine from Gerard Perse. (Tasted five times.)

Score: 96 - 100

Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2020-2060 27 April 2010

Dense and profound. Layered fruit. Tight, firm tannic frame. Muscular and powerful. Built for the long haul. A confident wine but misses a little of the charm of the vintage. Drink 2018-2040. (18 points)

Score: 18

Decanter, Decanter.com Maturity: 2018-2040 01 April 2010

28hl. 70M 20CCF 10CS. Subtle nose of super-ripe black cherry. Big, broad and concentrated, with huge power and authority, kept in check by excellent freshness. Considered potentially better by the Pavie team than their 2005 due to its higher acidity. 14.5% alcohol.

Score: 95 - 97

Albany Vintners, - 01 April 2010

Blackberry, black cherry, licorice and mineral. Full-bodied, with a big core of velvety tannins and rich fruit. Full throttle, and all there. Really massive. Blockbuster and more. Could be a tad overdone. But we will see in bottle.

Score: 94 - 97

James Suckling, Wine Spectator 01 April 2010

Blackish purple. Suddenly interesting! Very distinctive. Very appetising and succulent. All pleasure but with a promise of future development. So much more satisfying and succulent than its stablemates. Blackish crimson. Minerals and lively and FRESH!! Juicy and gouleyant and eye-catching but with sufficient juice and not too dry on the end. Really tastes as though it comes from an interesting slope. Sun dried but not to excess. (This note was written when I tasted it blind while the other, made later that same day, was written at the property tasting sighted.)

Score: 18

Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2018-2035 30 March 2010