2011 Pontet-Canet, Guiraud en primeur

9 May 2012

Pontet-Canet's rise over the past decade has been meteoric. One of Parker's "Magical 20" - wines of first growth quality which are under-valued and "very smart acquisitions" - the past two vintages may both end up with perfect scores. It seems that proprietor Alfred Tesseron leaves no stone unturned in the pursuit of quality. This year, he'd even pinched Bruno Borie's glamorous greeters. For those who've missed it in recent vintages, this may be a rare opportunity to snap up an allocation.

'Once again proprietor Alfred Tesseron has produced a wine of first-growth potential. One of the superstars of the vintage, Pontet-Canet's 2011 exhibits an opaque purple color and a glorious bouquet of incense, subtle toast and copious quantities of creme de cassis. There is a floral underpinning, decent acidity and ripe tannin to this full-bodied effort. Big, rich, round and generously endowed, it should drink well for 20-25+ years. 93-95 points.' - Robert Parker, erobertparker.com

From Sauternes, another strong effort from Guiraud, which was acquired in 2006 by a quartet which includes Olivier Bernard of Domaine de Chevalier and Stephan von Neipperg of Canon-la-Gaffeliere:

'As it did in 2009, this bio-dynamic estate has made one of the sweet wines of the vintage, with a marked percentage of Sauvignon Blanc adding verve and freshness to the blend. There's a tangy, citrus peel note underlying the 139g/l of sugar here, giving some backbone to the sweet, exotic fruit flavours. 8+ years. 95 points.' - Tim Atkin MW, timatkin.com

/AR

Halves & magnums £10 extra per 9 litre case; other formats on request

View all 2011 Bordeaux en primeur