Robert Parker – 98

Served blind at the Southwold 2009 tasting. I suspected this was Lafleur merely because it was so damn broody under blind conditions. The 2009 is far more conservative on the nose than its peers: tightly coiled, earthy black fruits, mint, rose petals and Asian spices beginning to emerge. The palate is medium-bodied with crisp, taut tannins. There is great focus and tension here, but it is surly and backward with a penetrating, graphite-tinged finish. Could the 2009 finally be closing down like the 2005? It will last decades, not years. Tasted January 2013. [Neal Martin, 01/01/2013]