2013 Petrus

Shaded crimson. There's something quite animal about the nose and the palate is much more jagged than Lafleur's. Maybe it's still evolving but there's quite a bit of dry tannin, and this doesn't seem ready yet. Really quite unformed and chunky. Though there is undertow of complex fruit. Youthful. An extraordinary price! (JR)

In contrast to many estates, Petrus believes ‘above all you should not chaptilise; you need to take what nature gives you and make the most of it. Nature is the boss’. These were the words of winemaker Olivier Berrouet when I was tasting the En Primeur version of this wine, and it was clearly a sensible choice because it still feels unforced and full of pleasure at 10 years old. You'll find both grip and character, the tannins offering finely-boned architecture for the blueberry and blackberry fruit, and there's a kick of life through the finish. Confident, deft winemaking and in many ways an excellent way to approach Petrus and understand a little bit what it is about - although the price difference from other vintages doesn't reflect the difference in concentration and ageing potential. Harvest took place over three days, 2-4-6 October, bringing in a yield of 25 hl/h compared to 33 hl/h in 2012.

Tasted blind. Deep garnet. Savoury and dark on the nose but a bit cardboardy. Chewy and dry and short on fruit in the middle. Tough. Second bottle seems a little less tough. Absolutely crazy price/quality ratio. (JH)