The 2005 Pommard Clos des Epeneaux was still in three lots segregated by age and location of vines when I tasted – each fascinatingly delicious in itself, and the concentration of the old vines portion in itself almost too severe. Fascinating dark berry, carnal and mineral notes mingle in the nose. Low-tone sirloin meatiness, black cherry, cassis, faintly bitter black chocolate, and toasted hickory inform a glycerin-rich, polished, yet firmly structured palate. Notes of licorice, horehound, and mineral salts add complexity to a finish of palate-staining intensity and grip. This superb Pommard should require 5-7 years of cellaring and reward considerably more.

David Schildknecht (Wine Advocate #170, Apr 2007)

Like the 2006, this is presently brooding and even more backward with only grudging and very ripe notes of plum, spice and earth in evidence where the earthy character can also be found on the textured, velvety and mouth coating full-bodied flavors blessed by superb depth of material and so much dry extract that the finish is borderline chewy but not at all aggressive. A serious wine that will need at least 15 and probably 20 years to really be at its best but when it arrives, it should more than repay the wait. Note that in my strong opinion it is pointless to purchase this and try to enjoy it young as it really will need extended bottle age to justify the price of admission.

– Burghound.com, Issue 30. Tasted: Apr 2008

Saturated ruby. Superripe but fresh aromas of black raspberry, licorice and spices, with a hint of more exotic fruits. Sweet but not quite jammy, with very rich and distinctly black fruit flavors complicated by spices and bitter chocolate. A Pommard of compelling depth and verve, with flavors mounting slowly and inexorably to take over the entire palate. Finishes very long, with a boatload of tannins. This is huge in terms of its fruit, tannins, alcohol (14%) and acidity (the pH is just 3.3). Leroux believes that it's even riper than the 1990 version, but notes that this style of wine "is not why I'm working in Burgundy." This should evolve in bottle for at least two decades, but I believe it's already beginning to shut down.

The 2005 Pommard Clos des Epeneaux is a rather controversial wine. Benjamin Leroux was not as enthused by the vintage as others. “We went for more extraction to see how far we could go,” he rued, “It is not a wine that I hate. But it is not a wine that I love.” I concur. It has a youthful nose of quite powerful, almost burly black fruit laced with iodine and dried petals, that is nicely focused. The palate is full-bodied and sinewy, with layers of spicy red and black fruit and a dash of white pepper and cloves. Though it offers impressive dimension, it is exactly that – more impressive than pleasurable, and there is a distinct lack of finesse and terroir expression toward the finish. A Clos des Epeneaux showing off? Drink 2015-2025.

– eRobertParker.com, Aug 2013