Seductive nose dominated by raspberry, cherry and redcurrant aromas. Soft and smooth on th palate developing aromas of small red berries.

Regarded by many as a candidate for wine of the 2009 Bordeaux vintage. A huge accolade indeed for La Mission Haut-Brion considering the quite phenomenal wines being released. The 2009 can boast a colour that is almost impenetrable and a exciting bouquet of blackberry, truffles and spicy earth. The concentration of the palate is something to behold itself. A vinosity that is hard to find elsewhere, the flavours in the mouth follow on from the nose in nice order, yet the sheer power of the wine quite extraordinary. Layers of flavours continue throughout the palate and continue well into its length. Will no doubt be in short supply as all clamour to get a piece of this Bordeaux masterpiece.

While Chateau Latour might be proximate to the famed Leoville estate, Chateau Leoville-Las-Cases is individually distinguished for its own unique character, and regularly is called the best wine of St-Julien. Classic Las Cases wines show incredible perfume, a result of lower temperature fermentation and an adherence to around three quarters of their barrels being new oak. The 2010 is as always Cabernet Sauvignon dominant, and shows with elegance, finesse and yet a layered complexity that draws the drinker in. Potential for this wine is immense; a life of 30 to 40 years in cellar should be considered.

Chateau Canon shows no shy and retiring character in 2010, set to a naturally ripe and high 15% alcohol. Though power and density is a motif in 2010, there is a surprising suppleness in this wine, born from central St-Emillion vineyards and the same family of wine as Chateau Rauzan-Segla of Margaux. Almost evenly split between Merlot and Cabernet Franc usually, it''s three quarters Merlot in 2010; the wine matures in oak barrel for 18 months, with around 70% of those offering new wood character. While dense and compact, there is a succulence to the wine that suggests cellaring to two decades would be apt.

Cos d'Estournel remains today one of the true icons of Bordeaux, and the trademark of Saint Estèphe. With it's pagoda like house (as it's one of the rare Bordeaux's without a Château) it is a must visit for all travelling along the route des châteaux. Always of great reputation, the wines soared in esteem throughout the tenure of Bruno Prats through 1971 to 1998 and continue to this day with their Cabernet Sauvignon based wines of extreme purity and elegance. The 2009 vintage will be highly sought after with the conditions in the left bank region at their very best. Showing a more riper, plump fruit nature than the usual masculine, long-lived trademark, this years Cos will be quick out the door.

Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste produce some of the best value wines in the Pauillac region, if not simply some of the best quality in general. Cabernet based reds are their staple and generally produce wines of a robust and masculine nature. In recent years the wines are close to rivalling the famed Pichons .

Reputed to be the leading star of the ''Super Seconds'' of Bordeuax, Chateau Ducru-Beaucaillou is set over 50 hectares of vineyards in the south of St-Julien. The wine is composed from predominately Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, with lesser influence from Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot and spends around 18 months in half new and half seasoned oak barriques. The 2010 vintage has conspired to produce what could arguably called one of the greatest releases of this wine, resplendent with fine, firm tannin, subtle oak, quiet power and a capacity to cellar for another half century.

Chateau Leoville-Poyferre''s reputation as a 2nd growth of note has been buoyed by the engagement of renowned consultant winemaker Michel Rolland, whose work has been an influence at the estate since the mid 1990s. Prior, the reputation had struggled until the 1970s and the arrival of Didier Cuvelier, whose labour has helped create a greater reputation, more befitting the Leoville name. The wine has increasingly become one of the finest modern examples of St-Julien, with a move towards later harvests, fuller body, deeper concentration and exceptional length of flavour. 2010 reinforces that Chateau Leoville-Poyferre is a St-Julien wine to relish and cellar for up to and beyond another 30-plus years.

Left in a sorry state by the previous owners, in 1962 the Rothschilds of Lafite took over the property and begun to reconstruct the vineyard which was planted mostly to Petit Verdot. 4 decades later and the wines of Château Duhart-Milon are now showing the flavour and concentration you expect from such a site in Pauillac.

Château Brane-Cantenac sits in a prime position on the plateau of Cantenac and makes full use of its excellent terroir. No doubt something that Baron de Brane was aware of and along with his viticultural talents were the reasons behind the estates rise to fame. Now tended by the Lurton family, the wines continue to be in great hands. Of the 2009 vintage, Henri Lurton is known to have said that the winery was enveloped in aromas of raspberry and blackberry even before fermentation began! Even though fruit ripeness is an obvious trait, the balance and structure of the wine are also clearly evident which will see the wine age for a decade or two more.