2003 Petrus – 95+ Points Parker
Parker Fleshy, fat, and already sexy, the dark plum/purple-tinged 2003 Petrus is exceptionally ripe and rich. While not as exotic as its rival, Lafleur, it is rich, heady, and loaded. A tour de force in winemaking for Pomerol, it vindicates Christian Moueix’s decision to harvest nearly all his Merlot on September 3 and 4, and the Cabernet Franc on September 17. However, production is tiny ... less than 1,700 cases. Full-bodied, powerful, and exceptionally pure without losing its nobility and elegance, this stunning Petrus can be drunk in 2-3 years or cellared for three decades.

2000 Petrus – 100 Points Parker
A magical effort from Petrus, the 2000 has continued to gain weight and stature. From the bottle, it is a perfect wine, much like the 1998. The colour is inky plum/purple to the rim and the nose, which starts slowly, begins to roar after several minutes, offering up scents of smoke, blackberries, cherries, liquorice, and an unmistakable truffle/underbrush element. On the palate, this enormous effort is reminiscent of dry vintage port, with fabulous ripeness, a huge, unctuous texture, enormous body, and a colossal 65-second finish. I did not have the benefit of tasting it side by side with the equally perfect 1998, but it appears the 2000 is a more massive, macho/masculine wine, with more obvious tannin and structure than the seamless 1998. It is another wine to add to the legacy of the great vintages of Petrus. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2050.

1998 Petrus – 98 Points Parker
The 1998 Petrus is unquestionably a fabulous effort boasting a dense plum/purple colour as well as an extraordinary nose of black fruits intermixed with caramel, mocha, and vanilla. Exceptionally pure, super-concentrated, and extremely full-bodied, with admirable underlying acidity as well as sweet tannin, it reveals a superb mid-palate in addition to the luxurious richness for which this great property is known. The finish lasts for 40-45 seconds. Patience will definitely be required. Production was 2,400 cases, about 1,600 cases less than normal. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2040 .

1995 Petrus – 95 Points Parker
It is interesting how this wine continues to evolve. Unquestionably one of the vintage's superstars, the 1995 Petrus is taking on a personality similar to the extraordinarily backward, muscular 1975. This is not a Petrus that can be approached in its youth (i.e., the perfect duo of 1989 and 1990). The wine exhibits an opaque ruby/purple colour, followed by a knock-out nose of pain grille, jammy black fruits, and roasted coffee. On the palate, it possesses teeth-staining extract levels, massive body, and rich, sweet black fruits buttressed by powerful, noticeable tannin. A formidably endowed wine with layers of extract, this is a huge, tannic, monstrous-sized Petrus that will require a minimum of 10 years of cellaring. Forget all the nonsense about Merlot producing sweet, soft, ready to drink wines, because low yielding, old Merlot vines made in the way of Petrus and other top Pomerols frequently possess as much aging potential as any great Cabernet Sauvignon-based wine in the world. Look for the 1995 Petrus to last for 50+ years. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2050.

1990 Petrus – 100 Points Parker
The 1990 Petrus remains incredibly young, one of the least evolved wines of the vintage (along with Montrose and Beausejour-Duffau). This dense ruby/purple-colored effort is beginning to hint at the massive richness and full-bodied intensity lurking beneath its wall of tannin. The vintage’s sweetness, low acidity, and velvety tannins are present in abundance, and the wine is massive in the mouth as well as incredibly pure and well-delineated. I thought it would be drinkable by now, but it appears another 5-10 years will pass before it begins to reach its plateau of maturity. This wine is capable of lasting at least four more decades.

1989 Petrus – 100 Points Parker
Multi-millionaire collectors will have fun comparing the 1989 and 1990 Petrus. The 1989 has a slightly more saturated colour, and seems more tightly knit both aromatically and on the palate. However, this is splitting hairs, as this is another stunningly opulent, rich, full-bodied, amazingly concentrated, exotic, flamboyant Petrus that remains remarkably youthful, and in need of 7-8 more years of bottle age. Additionally, the tannins are slightly more elevated, at least from a tactile impression. However, the 1989 looks to be another 30-year wine, with extraordinary equilibrium between all of its component parts.

1982 Petrus – 93 Points Parker
Given what I thought this wine would achieve, the 1982 Petrus has not turned out to be nearly as profound as expected. It reveals a certain herbaceousness, and there is significantly less concentration than I initially believed (too much filtration?) along with a cedary spiciness. Tasters who have had no previous experience with this wine will find it to be an outstanding effort that has reached full maturity much faster than some of its peers. It is capable of lasting a long time, but there is an underlying vegetal character, and the 1982 is far less concentrated than the vintages of Petrus that have been produced since 1989. I believe this wine is fully mature, and is capable of lasting another 10-15 years, but it is unlikely to improve.

1975 Petrus – 98 Points Parker
The 1975 Petrus reveals a youthful, rustic, brutally powerful style, with an opaque garnet/ruby/purple colour, and an emerging nose of over-ripe black-cherries, mocha/chocolate, and truffles. Extremely full-bodied, ferociously tannic, but awesomely concentrated, the 1975 Petrus can be drunk, provided readers have a penchant for slightly uncivilized wines. This behemoth Petrus (the last made in this style) is at least a decade away from full maturity. It is potentially a 50 year wine, with exquisite concentration and intensity.

1970 Petrus – 98 Points Parker
The 1970 Petrus has developed magnificently over the last 4-5 years. Tight and reserved early in life, it has blossomed into a true blockbuster. This massive, highly-extracted, full-bodied, jammy, thick, unctuously-textured wine possesses a huge, spice, tobacco, black-cherry, mocha-scented nose. It is a real turn-on. The wine is fully mature, but it has at least 20 years of life remaining. A spectacular Petrus, it is now superior to the 1971, which out-performed it for nearly two decades. Owners of this wine have a true nectar in their cellars.

1964 Petrus – 97 Points Parker
Deep, dark ruby/garnet-colored, with a hint of orange and rust at the edge, the 1964 Petrus offers a huge, smoky, roasted bouquet of jammy fruit, coffee, and mocha. This huge, massively-endowed wine is packed with alcohol, glycerin, and high tannin. There is stupendous extraction of fruit and amazing length. The only criticism is that it is perhaps too big and robust for its own good. Lucky owners of well-stored bottles are advised to cellar it for a few more years.

1961 Petrus – 100 Points Parker
An estate only needs to produce a handful of wines such as the 1961 Petrus to garner an international following. Not surprisingly, the 1961 Petrus was pure perfection. This fully mature wine possesses a port-like richness (reminiscent of the 1947 Petrus and 1947 Cheval Blanc). The colour revealed considerable amber and garnet, but the wine is crammed with viscous, thick, over-ripe black-cherry, mocha-tinged fruit flavours. Extremely full-bodied, with huge amounts of glycerin and alcohol, this unctuously-textured, thick wine makes for an awesome mouthful. Imagine a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup laced with layers of coffee and cherry, and encased in a shell of Valrhona chocolate!

1950 Petrus – 99 Points Parker
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 colour saturation and the sweet, unctuous texture Petrus obtains in ripe years, this wine will last for another 20-30 years.

1949 Petrus – 95 Points Parker
While variable, the 1949 has always been a huge, thick, chewy, immense wine without the unctuosity and port-like quality of the 1947 or 1950. The first time I tasted it a decade ago it seemed to be chunky and one-dimensional, but enormously rich. Since then the wine has begun to display the huge, exotic, fleshiness of Petrus, as well as marvelously pure, plum, black-cherry, mocha, and coffee-flavoured fruit. It is developing well and remains remarkably youthful for a 45-year old wine.

1947 Petrus – 100 Points Parker
The 1947 Petrus is the most decadent "wine of the century." While not as port-like as the 1947 Cheval Blanc, it is a massive, unctuously-textured, viscous wine with amazing power, richness, and sweet fruit. The nose explodes from the glass, offering jammy fruit, smoke, and buttery caramel scents. The wine's viscosity is reminiscent of 10-W-40 motor oil. It is so sweet, thick, and rich one suspects a spoon could stand upright. The wine is loaded with dream-like quantities of fruit, as well as high alcohol, but there is no noticeable tannin. While drinkable now, given its amazing fruit extract, and high levels of glycerin and alcohol, it is capable of lasting two more decades.

1945 Petrus – 98 Points Parker
While the 1947 Petrus is a big, juicy, succulent, fruity wine, the 1945 remains a backward, tannic colossus needing another 5-10 years of cellaring. The colour reveals more purple hues than the 1947, and the nose offers aromas of black fruits, liquorice, truffles, and smoked meat. Massively-constituted, with formidably high tannin and extract levels, this sleeping giant may evolve into another perfect example of Petrus.

1929 Petrus – 100 Points Parker
I had never seen, much less tasted the 1929 Petrus. The wine was perfect. The deep ruby/garnet colour exhibited some amber/orange at the edge. A huge, thick wine with extraordinary aromas of coffee, mocha, black-cherries, herbs, and cedar, this unctuously-textured, thick, tannic, massively concentrated wine was remarkably intact. It could have easily been mistaken for a 30-35 year old wine. This must be one of the rarest wines in the world as even Christian Moueix claimed he had never tasted it.

1921 Petrus – 100 Points Parker
The 1921 Petrus (never before tasted) was, to state it mildly, out of this universe! The opaque colour displayed considerable amber at the edge, but the blockbuster nose of black-raspberries, freshly brewed coffee, and mocha/toffee-like candy was followed by one of the sweetest, most opulent, thick, juicy wines I have ever tasted. Extraordinarily rich and opulent, with interesting cedar notes to the succulent flavours, this huge, unbelievably concentrated wine could have been mistaken for the 1950 or 1947. If ever I were to kill for a wine .....