Intense aromas of sliced meat, with tobacco and flowers as well as ripe fruit. Full body, with soft and silky tannins and a juicy finish. A little short hollow in mid-palate. But outstanding all the same.

It has been many years since l’Arrosee made a wine this brilliant. Always one of the more delicate, Burgundian-styled St.-Emilions, the 2009 exhibits seductive, beautiful raspberry and black cherry fruit intermixed with hints of minerality as well as spicy oak. Lavishly concentrated, full and fresh, ethereal in both its texture and weight, and light on its feet, it can be drunk early in life yet has the stuffing and balance to last 20-25+ years. Note: Bottle variation was an issue. This note is for the best tasting examples.

Wine Advocate February, 2012

It has been many years since l’Arrosee made a wine this brilliant. Always one of the more delicate, Burgundian-styled St.-Emilions, the 2009 exhibits seductive, beautiful raspberry and black cherry fruit intermixed with hints of minerality as well as spicy oak. Lavishly concentrated, full and fresh, ethereal in both its texture and weight, and light on its feet, it can be drunk early in life yet has the stuffing and balance to last 20-25+ years.

This outstanding l'Arrosee is consistent with the Burgundian style that this terroir routinely produces. Never massive, at its best it offers intense flavors of kirsch, raspberry, crushed rock, and spice box. The full-bodied flavors are ethereal in their delicacy. Full, but stylish, precise, intense, and never heavy, this beauty can be drunk early or cellared for two decades or more. (Tasted three times.) (92-94)

A very sleek, perfumy style, with lightly singed vanilla bean and mulling spice notes giving way to a range of damson plum, cassis and blackberry fruit. The lovely, fine-grained finish lets a mesquite hint chime in. JM

Bright ruby-red. Superripe aromas of strawberry, red cherry and cedar are nicely lifted by a floral note. Smooth and creamy on entry, with flavors similar to the aromas. Soft, polished tannins contribute to the textural appeal of this highly successful wine, which should offer early appeal. This estate has been wildly inconsistent for a long time, although recent vintages have been more promising. Certainly the terroir here is intriguing: essentially a prolongation of the Ausone slope, with the soil higher up on the plateau mainly clay and limestone, and the portion at the foot of the hillside more sandy.

The 2009 L’Arrosée does not possess the most complex aromatics amongst the Saint-Émilions, although it is fresh and conveys a sense of joie-de-vivre. Perhaps it does not quite have the same amplitude as the finest wines. The palate is quite sharp on the entry with a citric-like note that lends good tension, although overall it just does not quite deliver the complexity and persistence of the best wines in this vintage.

[44M/28CF/28CS] Moderate colour; fine, gentle, scented nose, subtle minerality and freshly ripe soft red fruit; very finely tannic, moderately concentrated, fresh middleweight – lovely delicate balance; sweet, supple, graceful, refined - very burgundian in style, all delicacy, transparency, freshness, perfume; nice tenacity in the mouth, followed by a long, gently warm, fruit and fragrance infused aftertaste. Accessible, harmonious, a beauty in its style. An easy delight to drink, and a wonderful contrast to so much of what is made in St Emilion today. Refreshing in more ways than one! Just Lovely. 2015-25+

Tasted blind. Hint of mint and some black-cherry fruit on the nose. A little bit of furriness – not the freshest, nor the most eloquent. Fades away to nothing on the finish. (JR)