Wine Advisor
Petrus 1950
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Description
Petrus is made almost entirely of Merlot grapes grown in Bordeaux's right bank Pomerol appellation. Although never officially classified, the chateau has long been considered on par with the First Growths from the left bank. The ownership of the estate has passed between the Arnaud family in the 19th century, to Madame Loubat at the end of WWII, and finally to Jean-Pierre Moueix in recent years. Petrus's clay soil is rich in iron and the estate's average vine age is 40 years. Chateau Petrus produces approximately 3,000 cases of wine each year.
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Last Tasted 12/91 I have had bottles of this wine that were close to perfection, and this one was not far off. A massive, opaque, purple-colored wine, the 1950 has more in common with the great 1947 and 1961 than any other vintages of Petrus with which I am familiar. Extraordinarily extracted, with a decadent perfume of herbs and berry fruit, lavish quantities of glycerin and alcohol, and a spectacular finish with considerable tannin still present, here is a Petrus that can easily last another 20-25 years.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Tasted 3 Times With Consistent Notes It was the extraordinary 1950 Petrus, along with the 1950 Lafleur, first served to me years ago by Jean-Pierre Moueix, that made me realize how spectacular this vintage must have been in Pomerol. The wine is still a young, mammothly-constituted Petrus that is less evolved than more recent knock-out vintages such as 1961. Massive and rich, with spectacular color saturation and the sweet, unctuous texture Petrus obtains in ripe years, this wine will last for another 20-30 years.
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
It was the extraordinary 1950 Petrus, along with the 1950 Lafleur, served to me years ago by Jean-Pierre Moueix that made me realize this vintage must have been spectacular for Pomerol. This wine is still a young, mammothly-constituted Petrus that is less evolved than more recent knock-out vintages such as 1961. Massive and rich, with spectacular color saturation and the sweet, unctuous texture Petrus obtains in ripe years, this wine will last for another 20-30 years.
About the Producer
The Patus winery has 11.5 hectares of vineyards. The top layer of the soil in the garden is pure clay, the bottom layer is terracotta, and the deeper layer is lime soil with high iron content, and has a good drainage system. The grape varieties planted are mainly Merlot, accounting for about 95%; the remaining 5% is Cabernet Franc. Because Cabernet Franc matures earlier, unless the vintage is particularly good, Patux winery is generally not used for winemaking. The planting density is 6,000 trees per hectare, and the average age of the trees is around 40 years, and some are even 80 years old. The operator adopts a more traditional method in the renewal of the vineyard, that is, through the selection, the best quality grape vine is used as the "mother plant", which is the same as the method when the Chateau Conti eradicated the old roots in 1946. The vineyard also adopts strict "fruit control". Each plant retains several bud eyes, and each bud eye leaves only one bunch of grapes. The goal is to fully ripen, but avoid over-ripening, otherwise it will affect the delicate flavor of the wine. In terms of the brewing process, Chateau Patus set the grape harvest time in the afternoon, the purpose is to let the morning sun dry the residual dew from the previous night. Each harvest employs 180 harvesters and takes about half a day to complete 2 to 3 harvests. During the brewing, Patus Winery spared no expense, replacing the wooden barrels (of different materials) every 3 months, and the aging time is about 20-22 months. Patus winery attaches great importance to quality and only selects the best grapes. In some bad years, such as 1991, it even stops production. The average annual output of Chateau Patus is no more than 30,000 bottles, which is extremely limited and expensive. Petrus, Pomerol, France is dark in color and has a delicate and rich aroma. Among the aromas of blackcurrant and mint, there are also many aromas such as blackberry, cream, chocolate, truffle, milk and oak. The taste is silky Slippery, long aftertaste.
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