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.) 96-100 points

Château Pavie 2009 Saint-Emilion. A super-rich wine, but one that has managed to retain a superb balance. It is powerful, dense and concentrated, but there is also complexity from the wonderful juicy fruits. - 95–97 points R.V., Wine Enthusiast Magazine