(90% cabernet sauvignon, 7% merlot, 1.5% cabernet franc and 1.5% petit verdot; 71IPT; from a yield of 39 hectoliters per hectare; 13.5% alcohol; a roughly 38% selection) Good, full, dark ruby-red. Aromatic nose offers red fruits, sweet spices, dried bay leaf, soy sauce and an intense saline note. Large-scaled and powerful, with a distinctly salty, scorched earth quality to the cassis, herbal, inky and meaty flavors. The mounting tannins are dry and tough at present and will need extended aging to resolve. This broad-shouldered wine boasts plenty of power and freshness but seems a little disjointed presently. Though it spreads out impressively on the back end, I find that it lacks the finesse and balance of the greatest vintages of Chateau Margaux.

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Amazingly dark purple. Very, very strongly Cabernet Sauvignon (90% of the blend - only 2006 matched it) with some light vegetation at first which opened out and mellowed to something utterly seductive in the glass. Dry and intense. Very rich on the front and amazingly supple – it smells as though it may be going to be a bit of brute but on the palate it is still so intense and polished initially but then it is clear that there are masses and masses of tannins. There is noble, fine, perfectly confident, minerally fruit that opens out on the palate. It is thinkable to drink this already! Paul Pontallier: 'We decanted the samples but it still grows in the glass.’

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The 2010 is a brilliant Chateau Margaux, as one might expect in this vintage. The percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon in the final blend hit 90%, the balance Merlot and Cabernet Franc, and only 38% of the crop made it into the Chateau Margaux. Paul Pontallier, the administrator, told me that this wine has even higher levels of tannin than some other extraordinary vintages such as 2005, 2000, 1996, etc. Deep purple, pure and intense, with floral notes, tremendous opulence and palate presence, this is a wine of considerable nobility. With loads of blueberry, black currant and violet-infused fruit and a heady alcohol level above 13.5% (although that looks modest compared to several other first growths, particularly Chateau Latour and Chateau Haut-Brion), its beautifully sweet texture, ripe tannin, abundant depth and profound finish all make for another near-perfect wine that should age effortlessly for 30-40 years.

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A mouthwatering tobacco leaf note leads the way, quickly followed by steeped black currant and fig fruit, with dark tar and ganache on the back end. Roasted alder and juniper hints hang in the background. Extremely backward, with a firm, tannic structure, this is girded for the long haul. Judging from the finely beaded acidity and lilting echo of lilac that peeks in now, this should acquire sensational aromatics and incredible grace with age.

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