The 2022 Château Petrus showed brilliantly and is clearly in the top handful of wines in the vintage. The usual 100% Merlot and harvested between the 1st and 7th of September, it checks in as 13.5% alcohol with a pH of 3.63. Deep purple-hued, with a tight yet layered nose of darker cherries, cassis, spring flowers, violets, and perfectly integrated oak, it's full-bodied and has the vintage's pure, concentrated, powerful style, gorgeous tannins, and that classic, salty, mouthwatering finish of this château. It opens up beautifully with time in the glass, and given its purity and tannin quality, it's going to offer some up-front appeal yet have 50 years of longevity. I suspect it will take 10-12 years to hit the early stages of its prime drink window.

Plush ruby red in colour, this is a seductive but serious and skilfully constructed Petrus with layers of dense black choclate, seductive texture, and luxurious density to the black fruits. The skill of the winemaking, and the brilliance of the terroir comes through in the sense of contrast and relief, with a chalky edge to the tannins that manages to both hug your mouth while giving breathing room. Intense spice on the finish, waves of coffee and cocoa bean, graphite, rose petals, black liqourice, mint leaf, serous structure , this is a Petrus for the ages. 6% press wine, 50% new oak. Harvest September 1 to 6. Potential upscore in bottle.

The 2022 Pétrus has turned out brilliantly, bursting with aromas of mulberries, cherries, raspberries and violets, followed by a full-bodied, rich and fleshy palate that's ample and enveloping, its succulent core of fruit entirely concealing its sweet structuring tannins. Concluding with a long, resonant finish, its purity of fruit and structural suavity are deceptively effortless, but in reality result from incredible attention to detail in a vintage like this. Olivier Berrouet felt that maturity hadn't yet been attained by late August, picking a little later, with the core of the vineyard harvested on September sixth and seventh. Low yields and elevated concentration led him to reduce pumping over but prolong vatting, letting the wine take its time to come together. While I don't think it will quite rival the brilliant 2020 (time will tell!), it is a superb achievement and remarkably harmonious for such an extreme vintage.

The 2022 Petrus is initially quite standoffish (as usual), and so I wait 10 minutes, gossiping (as usual) with winemaker Olivier Berrouet, during which the Pomerol gradually reveals very pure blackcurrants tinged with blue fruit, hints of freshly shucked oyster shell and black truffle shavings. Clean and precise, the aromatics effortlessly shrug off the warmth and dryness of the summer. The palate is very detailed, extremely pure, with blackberry and wild strawberry fruit, cracked black pepper and hints of spice. It gently builds in the mouth with a vibrant and peppery finish that leaves the mouth tingling, long after the wines has bid adieu. Berrouet has captured so much freshness and energy in this Petrus, no doubt thanks to its blue clay soils. I envisage it evolving and astounding over the next half-century.

The 2022 Petrus is a complex, vibrant wine that I can only describe as wonderfully alive in the glass. At this stage, the 2022 is distinctly red-toned leaning, with lively floral and citrus accents that lend freshness. Silky tannins give an air of grace to a Petrus that impresses with its total finesse and class. Harvest took place from September 1 to 7, a compact window relative to the 10-14 days that are typical here. Technical Director Olivier Berrouet opted to extend maceration times from 16 to 21 days, but with a diminished volume of pumpovers. Berrouet added that he may ultimately choose for shorter élevage in oak. Today, the 2022 Petrus is pretty special. That much is very clear.