Farr Vintners Logo

Giscours 2009

RegionBordeaux
Subregion France > Bordeaux > Left Bank > Margaux
ColourRed
TypeStill
Grape VarietyCabernet Sauvignon/Merlot

View all vintages of this wine | View all wines by Château Giscours

Label

Tasting Notes

The finest Giscours in my professional career (I said the same thing from barrel), this dense purple wine has a stunning nose of burning embers, charcoal, creme de cassis, new saddle leather and damp, forest floor notes. It is full-bodied, with exceptionally sweet, well-integrated tannins and a multi-dimensional, almost skyscraper-like mid-palate and finish. With its low acidity and remarkable substance and depth, this gorgeous wine should age beautifully for 20-30 years.

94
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate, March 2012

The 2009 Giscours has a generous and complex bouquet with well defined blackberry, cedar, mocha and light ferrous notes, more like a Saint-Julien than Margaux. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, fresh and vibrant with curry leaf and graphite. A dash of white pepper pops up towards the finish. This is a very fine Giscours to enjoy over the next 15 to 20 years. 2023 - 2040

93
Neal Martin, vinous.com, March 2019

Aromas of blueberries, blackberries and flowers. Very beautiful. Full body, with a solid core of fruit and firm tannins. Balanced and refined. This is ultra-refined. Best wine from here since 1970. One of the great values of the vintage. Best after 2018.

95
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com, February 2012

The 2009 Giscours has a medium to deep garnet color and delivers evolved prunes, baked blackberries and fruitcake scents with an earthy, dried herbs and potpourri undercurrent plus a waft of sweaty leather. The medium to full-bodied palate has a rugged frame of chewy tannins and a firm grip on the somewhat rustic finish. 2019-2025

89
Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW, Wine Advocate (March 2019), March 2019

Very dark and lustrous. Odd herbal note. Very sweet start on the palate. Rather drying tannins but some Margaux polish and not too hot until the very end. A little drying and exaggerated on the finish. Date tasted 31st March 2010. Drink 2016-2026.

16
Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com, April 2010

Serious improvements are taking place here (and also at sister property du Tertre) under the Dutch manager, Alexander Van Beek. Those who remember the 1970 Giscours will know that this Chateau has the ability to make really great wine. This year it is 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 7% Cabernet Franc. Dense, concentrated. A big, bold masculine structure, ripe tannins and a rich, voluptuous mid-palate. Generous, powerful dark cassis fruit with beautiful balance. While 2000, 2003 and 2005 were all oustanding, this is probably the best Giscours yet.

94
Farr Vintners, April 2010

There is a lot of flesh on the nose with ripe feeling cassis backed by bramble and black cherry. Fruit weight enriches the mid palate, a complex mix of flavours filled out by ripe tannins, all very dark chocolate. The back palate is fleshy and sweet but there is enough freshness to balance. Drink 2020-2040.

89/94
Derek Smedley MW, April 2010

A wine that continues the impressive progress made at Giscours over the last decade or so, this is on the rich side for a Margaux, but none the worse for that. Soft, rich and yet quite forward, with good concentration, well-integrated tannins, red and black fruits and an undertone of liquorice. Another wine that should be reasonably priced and will provide superb drinking in future. 15+ years.

94
Tim Atkin MW, April 2010

Fine black red, very expressive black fruits with the elegant lift from Cabernet, fine density of fruit, very good natural middle sweetness and lots of depth and vineyard character, a very good wine. Drink 2015-25.

18
Steven Spurrier, Decanter.com, April 2010

This powerful, yet well-structured Margaux has a lot of positive cabernet sauvignon character (cassis, ripe plum) for the appellation. Long, very clean positive finish. Drink or hold. (Horizontal Tasting, London, 2019)

94
Stuart Pigott, JamesSuckling.com, March 2019
Read more tasting notes...

This is the finest Giscours I have tasted in my professional career. Succulent and sexy with an inky/purple color, it offers sweet aromas of subtle barbecue smoke, graphite, blackberries, blueberries, and spring flowers. The tannins are remarkably sweet, substantial, and well-integrated, and the wine is full-bodied as well as voluptuously textured. It is a head-turning, exuberant, flashy effort that should drink well for 20-25 years. Bravo! (Tasted three times.) Drink 2010-2035.

Robert Parker added an asterisk to this wine score to signify that it is a wine he considers has the finest potential of all the offerings he has ever tasted from this estate in nearly 32 years of barrel tasting samples in Bordeaux.

91/93
Robert Parker, Wine Advocate (188), April 2010

The Giscours '09 has a pleasant, savoury bouquet with good definition - hints of beef stock coming through. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, dusky black fruit with hints of spice and pain grille. It is quite masculine and foursquare on the finish - but it shows good length.

91
Neal Martin, RobertParker.com, July 2013

Tasted at the chateau, at a negociant and at the Margaux UGC. The harvest began on 22nd September with the Merlots and finished on 13th October for some parcels of the Cabernet, a blend of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Cabernet Franc and 40% Merlot using 50% new oak from seven suppliers. This is taut on the nose, very tight, introspective and slightly earthy. The palate is full-bodied with grainy tannins, deep broody dark berried fruits, touches of coca and a hint of cracked black pepper. Quite toasty towards the finish, moderate length, just a little attenuated towards the finish although the sample at the UGC was much more "strident", containing the chutzpah that it was missing before. Like the du Tertre, I think this will show better in a couple of months. The second sample at the negociant was a better sample with some pleasant coffee notes on the aftertaste. Difficult to discern at the moment but I remain optimistic. Tasted March 2010.

90/93
Neal Martin, RobertParker.com, April 2010

Subtle and pretty on the nose, with blueberry, blackberry and hints of flowers. Full and very fine, showing a beautiful texture of polished tannins. Wonderfully long and balanced. 53 percent Cabernet Sauvignon, 7 percent Cabernet Franc, and the rest is Merlot.

92/95
James Suckling, WineSpectator.com, March 2010
Please note that these tasting notes/scores are not intended to be exhaustive and in some cases they may not be the most recently published figures. However, we always do our best to add latest scores and reviews when these come to our attention. We advise customers who wish to purchase wines based simply on critical reviews to carry out further research into the latest reports.