Chateau St Pierre 2011, St Julien
Deep ruby; a tight rim with no sign of maturity. Rightly put by BBR tasters, this is an old-style, classic St Julien built to last, with masses of structure and potential. It maybe too woody start, but this scent mingles well with dark fruit from the 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, which also account its firm, curranty aroma as well as the crisp, fresh acidity on the palate. Eventually, the black jammy fruits abound in bigger glasses, with fruit sweetness and intensity. Intense blackberries coat the palate with lots of focus and concentration. A very generous yet very well balanced wine and a very long finish. There is a real sense of density to the core of the wine, a lovely persistence on the finish and considerable class overall. Insiders consider this wine as a wine with quality between 4th Growth to Second Growth.
Not too, St Julien, you may say, given its power, body, amount of tannins and texture, but this château punches well above its weight with the structure of 2011. This wine is no longer the hidden gem of St Julien as the five previous vintages have propelled this wine to the forefront of the appellation.
Not many international tasters score well this wine. GG gives 91 points; my friend Jean-Marc Quarin 92 Points. Hence, the price is still closer to daily consumers. With a lot of Left-Bank stylistics.
