2010 La Fleur de Boüard, Lalande-de-Pomerol (Pre-Arrival)

SKU #1066998 91-92 points James Suckling

Lovely fruit and berry character, with hints of citrus fruit and a clean and bright finish. (4/ 2011)

92 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The 2010 La Fleur du Bouard (80% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon) is bottled unfined and unfiltered and hit 14.5% natural alcohol. The wine offers up notes of black raspberry and blueberry pie intermixed with incense, lead pencil shavings and plenty of underlying floral notes. Some background oak is also present. The wine is medium to full-bodied, beautifully pure, voluptuously textured, rich, long and hedonistic and satisfying. Drink it over the next 10+ years. The other cuvee, a limited production wine, can be absolutely magnificent with some bottle age, as the 2000 is certainly proving to be. The standard of excellence for Lalande de Pomerol is Hubert de Bouard’s 50-acre property, over half of it located on the highly prized Neac plateau, which consists of clay, sand and gravel sub-soils. (2/ 2013)

89-92 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar

(100% merlot) Fully saturated ruby-red. Aromas of blackcurrant, licorice, balsamic coffee and cocoa. Juicy, powerful and penetrating, with bright dark berry, cocoa and mineral flavors. This seemed excessively tannic at first, but with a few minutes in the glass it showed a much plusher texture and building sweetness. The long finish throws off notes of smoky torrefaction. (6/ 2011)

91 points Wine Spectator

Offers a density and lushness that belies the appellation, with a full, polished structure and deep plum, blackberry paste and steeped black cherry fruit flavors. The long, anise-filled finish is seamless and fully integrated. This has some amped-up weight for now, but the purity is clearly there. Best from 2014 through 2020. (3/ 2013)