Wine Advisor
Petrus 1949
View analysis
Description
Petrus is made almost entirely of Merlot grapes grown in Bordeaux's right bank Pomerol appellation. Although never officially classified, the chateau has long been considered on par with the First Growths from the left bank. The ownership of the estate has passed between the Arnaud family in the 19th century, to Madame Loubat at the end of WWII, and finally to Jean-Pierre Moueix in recent years. Petrus's clay soil is rich in iron and the estate's average vine age is 40 years. Chateau Petrus produces approximately 3,000 cases of wine each year.
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Robert M. Parker, Jr.
Tasted 3 Times With Inconsistent Notes 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-flavored fruit. It is developing well and remains remarkably youthful for a 45-year old wine.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
Tasted at a private dinner in Antwerp. This bottle of Petrus 1949 was unlabelled, but came from a full case courtesy of an impeccable source in Belgium where other bottles did carry a label. It is thought to have been bottled in Belgium, though having said that, stylistically it felt more like a chateau-bottling. Whatever, it displayed a deep garnet core with russet rim commensurate with its age. The bouquet is quite astonishing with intermarried red and black brambly fruit tinged with eucalyptus that if anything it becomes more pronounced with continued aeration. It has a crystalline delineation that is a wonder to behold. It is the kind of spellbinding aromatics that intimate you might be in the presence of a “perfect” bottle. However, if I am being truly objective, it does not quite reach the ethereal heights of the bottle of 1950 tasted the previous November, although at this level it almost becomes irrelevant. The tannins are very fine and lend the ’49 immaculate focus. It is not a powerful Pomerol, but it is suffused with an effortless quality that is a wondrous to behold. There is a harmonious, seamless quality to this wine, effortless and almost playful as it glides across the palate and yet towards the finish is just fades where other vintages (and bottles?) might choose to reach for the stars. No, not a perfect Pomerol but you won’t care about that. Tasted February 2013.
Reviewed by: Neal Martin
The 1949 Petrus ranks as one of the greatest Pomerol wines that I have ever tasted. Its appearance is indicative of its age, although there is less degradation compared to the 1947. The bouquet is breathtaking: a mélange of red and black fruit, that faint eucalyptus scent that is more common on 1945s. The details and precision is profound. The palate is perfectly balanced with filigree tannins. It never presses down hard on the accelerator, more squeezes it gently, a discreet crescendo as it builds with more red fruit laced with undergrowth and black truffle towards the perfectly pitched finish. In an odd way it is reminiscent of mature Burgundy insofar that it conveys beguiling, almost ineffable transparency. It is a wine that can bring grown men to tears. Tasted at a private dinner in Belgium.
About the Producer
The Patus winery has 11.5 hectares of vineyards. The top layer of the soil in the garden is pure clay, the bottom layer is terracotta, and the deeper layer is lime soil with high iron content, and has a good drainage system. The grape varieties planted are mainly Merlot, accounting for about 95%; the remaining 5% is Cabernet Franc. Because Cabernet Franc matures earlier, unless the vintage is particularly good, Patux winery is generally not used for winemaking. The planting density is 6,000 trees per hectare, and the average age of the trees is around 40 years, and some are even 80 years old. The operator adopts a more traditional method in the renewal of the vineyard, that is, through the selection, the best quality grape vine is used as the "mother plant", which is the same as the method when the Chateau Conti eradicated the old roots in 1946. The vineyard also adopts strict "fruit control". Each plant retains several bud eyes, and each bud eye leaves only one bunch of grapes. The goal is to fully ripen, but avoid over-ripening, otherwise it will affect the delicate flavor of the wine. In terms of the brewing process, Chateau Patus set the grape harvest time in the afternoon, the purpose is to let the morning sun dry the residual dew from the previous night. Each harvest employs 180 harvesters and takes about half a day to complete 2 to 3 harvests. During the brewing, Patus Winery spared no expense, replacing the wooden barrels (of different materials) every 3 months, and the aging time is about 20-22 months. Patus winery attaches great importance to quality and only selects the best grapes. In some bad years, such as 1991, it even stops production. The average annual output of Chateau Patus is no more than 30,000 bottles, which is extremely limited and expensive. Petrus, Pomerol, France is dark in color and has a delicate and rich aroma. Among the aromas of blackcurrant and mint, there are also many aromas such as blackberry, cream, chocolate, truffle, milk and oak. The taste is silky Slippery, long aftertaste.
Package Size
