Wine Spectator: This sleek red shows nice intensity to its damson plum, black cherry, toasted vanilla and tobacco flavors, with a bright, floral-tinged finish. -J.M.

James Suckling: This organic wine shows lots of dark fruits and mineral character with hints of wood. It is really enticing. This seems almost like a St. Emilion in structure with its intense...

Wine Spectator: Very lush and expressive, with caressing plum sauce, mulled blueberry and blackberry fruit and melted licorice and warm fruitcake flavors, all gliding together through the fin...

Wine Spectator: Nicely polished, featuring dark plum and currant flavors laced with cocoa powder and roasted vanilla bean notes, which extend through the finish. Drink now through 2013. -JM

Wine Enthusiast: Barrel sample. Spicy, initially this wine seems to have too much wood. But in the end, the dense fruit tannins come through to dominate, giving a bright final character. R.V. ...

Wine Spectator: Fab nose. Licorice and dark cherries. What a palate. Full body, with super silky tannins and a long, long finish. Seductive juice, polished and gorgeous. This is next to Tertr...

Wine Spectator: This is ripe, with a succulent core of braised fig and crushed plum framed by tangier iron and savory herb notes, which stay defined through the nicely racy finish. Not big, b...

Jancis Robinson: Dark purple. Aromatic. Sweet start, rather flattering. Mouthfilling with a hint of spearmint. Fresh and rather appealing.

Wine Spectator: Plenty of violet, berry and vanilla in this red. Medium- to full-bodied, with well-integrated tannins and a licorice aftertaste. I like this as much as the 2000. Best after 20...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: Another major sleeper of the vintage, produced under the consultancy of Dr. Alain Raynaud, this Pessac-Leognan exhibits loads of charcoal, sweet kirsch liqueur, licorice and a...

Wine Spectator: Solid, if a bit chunky, with cocoa and ganache coating a core of black currant and blackberry fruit that hangs through the muscular finish, where a warm paving stone note ring...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: From very sandy soils east of St.-Emilion, this 2010 also has a big, ball-busting level of alcohol. It offers up loads of black cherry fruit, some underbrush and loamy soil un...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: This dense ruby/purple-colored, opulently-styled 2011 displays terrific fruit intensity, velvety, well-integrated tannins, surprising density and richness as well as decent ac...

Wine Spectator: This expressive red delivers floral, vanilla, red berry and licorice aromas and flavors that are bright and focused. Offers firm tannins and fresh acidity. Vivid and long, in ...

Wine Spectator: Lime and lemon aromas and flavors, with a thick and powerful palate. Seems more like a red wine in texture. Dense and rich. -JS

Wine Spectator: This is polished and open, with a core of juicy plum, briar and black cherry fruit. Nicely rounded through the finish and accessible now. Drink now through 2018. –JM

About this Wine: Land: A plateau of limestone; bordering slopes with chalk and clay soils....

Wine Spectator: Riveting acidity carries the sweet pea, mâche, chalk and kaffir lime notes in this superracy, light-bodied version.-J.M.