98
James Suckling - Jamessuckling.com
A wine with great beauty and finesse. Such elegance and ethereal quality for this estate. Full body, with ultra-fine tannins and a juicy delicious finish. Long and beautiful. This is the best Lynch in a long, long time. I love the precision here
98 Jeb Dunnuck - jebdunnuck.com
The 2010 Château Lynch-Bages is straight-up brilliant and shows the quality of this incredible château – as well as the vintage – beautifully. Still deep purple-hued, with a stunningly pure and classic Pauillac nose of cassis, darker currants, smoke tobacco, and lead pencil, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a layered, multi-dimensional mouthfeel, polished yet substantial tannins, and an awesome finish. This beauty is up with the finest vintages from this château and has another 30-40 years of prime drinking.
97 William Kelley - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Still a saturated ruby-black in hue, the 2010 Lynch-Bages offers up aromas of rich cassis fruit mingled with hints of pencil shavings, loamy soil and cigar wrapper. Full-bodied, deep and muscular, it's rich and layered, with a concentrated core of fruit that's framed by firm, powdery tannins and lively acids. The most brooding, backward Lynch-Bages of the decade and one of the real successes of the vintage, this is a vibrant, tightly wound wine that is still an infant at age 10. Readers with bottles in their cellars might try one now out of curiosity, but this 2010 won't begin to hit its stride until age 20.
97 Jane Anson - Inside Bordeaux
This is tannic architecture fully realised in a glass, one to taste to understand just how muscular Pauillac can become. Even at 15 years old it is still closed and a little austere, even a little raw, but with zero doubt that it will smooth out. Punchy, liquorice root, black fruits, bilberry, crayon, crushed rocks, smoked earth, pomegranate, gunsmoke, curling violets as it opens.
97 Panos Kakaviatos - Decanter Magazine
Similarly Cabernet Sauvignon-driven, like Grand-Puy-Lacoste, but with more depth and power. Exudes dark, ripe blackberry and cassis with distinct iodine freshness. While the 70% new oak is fully integrated, it will be even better in 10 years (the 2000 vintage is perfect today). The length is amazing. A regal wine requiring a regal dish. Try with beef Wellington.