Saint Emilion

Tasted at Bordeaux Index's annual 10-Year On tasting in London and at the château, the 2006 Château Barde Haut has a soft, raspberry preserve and crushed strawberry-scented bouquet with just a dab of marmalade. The palate is fully matured after ten years with slightly dry tannin on the entry, quite masculine in style and needing more flesh and depth to come through on the finish. I have tasted much better bottles of this in recent years; I recommend drinking bottles sooner rather than later.
(Interim - May 2016, The Wine Advocate)

Since being purchased by Bordeaux’s well-known aircraft manufacturer, Dassault has gone from strength to strength. The fruit-forward, supple-textured 2004 offers abundant amounts of plum, black currant, and cherry fruit, medium body, silky tannin, low acidity, and an undeniably charming, sensual style. Drink it over the next decade.

(171, The Wine Advocate)

Tasted at the Château Figeac vertical at the property. I have never really got on with the 1999 Figeac and with 16 years now on the clock, it is vindicating my initial tepid reaction to this wine. Served against the 2000 and 2001, it is clear that the nose is disjointed, a bit "scruffy." This of a young urchin without his shirt tucked in. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly hard tannin and without the flesh to counterbalance it. It's a "pass" from me, I'm afraid. Go for the 1998 or the 2001.
(226, The Wine Advocate)

A blend of 75% Merlot and the balance Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon, this up-and-coming estate has fashioned an outstanding 2006. While not as prodigious as the 2005, it is an exceptional effort boasting a dense purple hue as well as sweet aromas of blueberries, dark raspberries, licorice, camphor, and pain grille. Full-bodied, powerful, and layered with impressive purity, texture, and length.
(181 The Wine Advocate)

Another sleeper of the vintage from an estate that has been doing everything right since 1998, this deep purple-hued 2006 exhibits sweet blue and blackberry fruit intermixed with notions of licorice, camphor, and flowers. The wine possesses outstanding concentration, medium to full body, moderately firm, but sweet, noble tannins, and a long finish. The ripeness of the fruit suggests a certain degree of accessibility.
(181, The Wine Advocate)

This attractive, seductive 2008 reveals plenty of oak and earth along with copious quantities of red and black fruits in its perfumed, supple textured, succulent personality. Drink this medium-bodied wine over the next decade.
(194, The Wine Advocate)

This tiny garagiste St.-Emilion, 7.5 acres, is a blend of 51% Cabernet Franc, 46% Merlot, and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon. Proprietor Jean-Philippe Janoueix has fashioned a full-bodied, deep, concentrated wine revealing sweet notes of licorice, chocolate, espresso, cassis, and cherry. Long, dense, full-bodied, rich, and pure with enough oak and acidity to add complexity and focus, it should drink well for 12-15 years. Interestingly, this cuvee received a Burgundian-like treatment of malolactic in barrel after frequent pigeages in small oak fermentation tanks, an unusual upbringing in Bordeaux. The wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered.
(181, The Wine Advocate)

A hedonistic, modern-styled St.-Emilion, the dark ruby/purple-tinged 2004 La Couspaude reveals plenty of pain grille/new oak aromas intermixed with notions of espresso roast, kirsch liqueur, and plums. Medium-bodied with loads of fruit and wood characteristics, this is an uncomplicated, but delicious, forward style of wine to drink over the next decade.
(171, The Wine Advocate)

This stylish, elegant, mid-weight, dark ruby-colored St.-Emilion reveals pretty black cherry and strawberry aromas and flavors, a delicate constitution, and a restrained, reserved personality.
(171, The Wine Advocate)

Another sleeper of the vintage from Perse, this wine shows lots of licorice, underbrush, blackcurrants and black cherries, cedary wood spice, a round, expansive, full-bodied mouthfeel, beautiful texture and again, stunning purity, all while remaining relatively youthful. This wine probably won’t hit its prime for at least another 4-6 years and is certainly capable of lasting a quarter of a century afterward.
(220 The Wine Advocate)

This 23-acre vineyard, acquired by Gerard and Chantal Perse in 1997, is situated on the south-facing limestone plateau above Chateau Pavie. This blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc (from vines averaging 41 years of age) was cropped at a meager 30 hectoliters per hectare. After a five week maceration, the wine was aged 18 months in 100% new oak, and bottled unfined and unfiltered (as are all the Perse wines). An inky/ruby/purple color is accompanied by rich aromas of Asian spices, soy, black truffles, licorice, espresso, and intense cherry and blackberry fruit. It displays great intensity, medium to full body, low acidity, and high tannin. This beauty is not far off the pace of the blockbuster 2000.

(153 The Wine Advocate)

This small estate owned by Chantal and Gerard Perse (9 plus acres planted with 43-year-old vines) is composed of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc. In 2004, yields were a low 28-30 hectoliters per hectare, resulting in 400 cases being produced. The dense ruby/purple-colored 2004 offers smoky creme de cassis, kirsch liqueur, crushed rock, and spring flower aromas. Opulent, flamboyant, rich, dense, and lavishly endowed, it possesses enough fruit and glycerin to nearly conceal its elevated tannin.
(171 The Wine Advocate)

Made when the proprietor was Dr. Alain Raynaud, this 2005 is a blend of 70% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec from a vineyard that is a true clos within the town of Libourne. Moderately intense mulberry and blueberry fruit are present in a medium-bodied, delicate and finesse style of dark ruby/purple-colored wine that is fresh and not nearly as powerful and extracted as most 2005s tend to be.
(219 The Wine Advocate)

The 2006 Quinault l’Enclos exhibits the elegant style that Raynaud has achieved in every vintage over the last decade. Sweet black raspberry and currant fruit along with hints of spring flowers and smoky oak are followed by a round, gentle, restrained wine revealing outstanding purity, medium body, and a fine finish. While it is not as prodigious as the 2005, it is a strong effort for the vintage. There are also 5,000 bottles of a kosher wine which Libourne’s local rabbi produces and serves as administrator.
(181 The Wine Advocate)

The 2006 Soutard’s astringent tannins and emaciated, austere, lean personality are dominated by a powdered rock-like character (which gives the wine an undeniable minerality). Although fresh, it lacks concentration, and reveals some of the dilution that plagued a number of wines in this vintage.
(181, The Wine Advocate)

A super value, this deep ruby/purple-colored St.-Emilion offers aromas and flavors not too dissimilar from a top vintage of the famed L'Evangile. Sweet blackberry and wild mountain berry fruit is interwoven with hints of raisins, plums, and white flowers. Medium-bodied and fleshy, with excellent purity and sweet fruit, this is undoubtedly a sleeper of the vintage. As the wine sits in the glass, more black raspberries seem to emerge.
(146, The Wine Advocate)