Extraordinary nose of berry, chocolate and flowers. Amazing, jaw-dropping quality. Full-bodied, with supersilky, seductive tannins and a finish that lasts for minutes. Out of this world. JS

Deep, healthy red-ruby color. Multidimensional aromas of mulberry, plum, smoked meat, leather and mocha are at once vibrant and slightly wild. Then sweet, densely packed and powerful, and showing little or no sign of the excesses of the vintage. This has a wonderfully tactile texture and great breadth on the back end. The tannins are sweet but firm and serious, giving the wine outstanding grip-even a touch of youthful austerity-for a 2003 from the right bank. This really coats the mouth. I'd keep my hands off this wine for at least seven or eight years.

An early September harvest in this hot year produced a 2003 that has reached full maturity. It offers notes of roasted coffee, melted chocolate, figs and black cherry jam. There are some rustic tannins in the finish, but this expansive, rich Petrus displays far more intensity and complexity than most expected given the difficulties in Pomerol in 2003. It should be consumed over the next 4-6 years.
(WA#214, Aug 2014)


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.
95+ pts (WA#164, Apr 2006)

The 2003 Petrus was born in a difficult vintage for Pomerol, although its blue clay a.k.a “smectite” soils probably gave Christian Moueix and Jean-Claude Berrouet a slight advantage given its propensity to retain moisture and prevent hydric stress. That said, I would not mark it down as a top tier Petrus. After a timid opening it settles down with attractive mulberry, wild strawberry and clove scents, quite rich but not overpowering. I would argue that it is not as detailed as other vintages. The palate is very well balanced and surprisingly well defined considering the heat of that summer. Rich and opulent for Petrus (maybe the most opulent that Jean-Claude Berrouet ever made) and yet it retains a sense of symmetry and freshness on the finish that I think is unique to this Pomerol. Who says there is no such thing as terroir? Tasted in London with a Bordeaux merchant. www.vinous.com

Tasted at Bordeaux Index’s “10-Year On” tasting in London. The bouquet on the Petrus 2003 seems slight disjointed at first – in fact, I spent a few minutes ascertaining with there might be a touch of TCA? Eventually it pulls itself together and offers attractive aromas of wild strawberry, cloves, cedar and bay leaf. The definition is impressive for the vintage and that is translated on the palate, which is fresh and lively, underpinned by fine, slightly edgy tannins. Petrus clearly is on a different track in this vintage with a sense of symmetry and poise that is atypical. This illustrates how those smectite clays of Petrus can nurture a singular wine. Tasted March 2013.

(96 pts)
A very intense nose with blackberry, a touch of liquorices and cedar, although there is just a faint hint of greenness that soon passes. The palate is a little abrasive at first, very tannic with moderate acidity. This wine takes to time to settle in the glass – it certainly improves with vigorous swirling with cassis and ripe blueberry fruits developing. Has a slight broodiness about it. Drink 2012-2025+ Tasted January 2007. www.robertparker.com