1961 Chateau Petrus Pomerol Bordeaux (1-E)

“A consistently perfect wine. 100 points.” - Robert Parker, Wine Advocate

“The greatest Pétrus tasting of them all. 99 points.” - John Kapon

“Wow.” - The Hedonist

Once in a great while, a wine’s reputation truly and deservedly precedes it. It is with great pleasure that we present this offering exclusive to our membership: an exceedingly limited supply of 1961 Pétrus Pomerol Bordeaux. Made almost entirely of Merlot grapes grown in Bordeaux's right bank Pomerol appellation, these bottles were originally purchased by Sherry-Lehmann NYC in the mid-1960s. Last fall, the parcel was meticulously inspected by appraisers, and seeing that there had been one sole owner and they never left their special Manhattan storage facility, provenance was as excellent as it could possibly be. These exceptionally rare bottles now reside under expert watch in Sonoma County, California in temperature-controlled storage.

The Pétrus chateau, although never officially classified, has long been considered on par with the First Growths from the left bank. Pétrus's clay soil is rich in iron and the estate's average vine age is 40. Sommeliers the world over heap the highest of praise upon the 1961 Pétrus. Robert Parker commends it for being “fully mature, offering a huge, sweet nose of ginger, mint, exotic spices, and gobs of jammy black fruits. Its extraordinary viscosity, sweetness of fruit, and heady alcohol level, as well as its remarkable extract, make for one of the most sumptuous, hedonistic bottles of wine anybody could ever consume. The color is revealing noticeable amber/rust, and the tannin has melted away.”

Upon tasting the 1961 Pétrus in 2012, John Kapon hailed it as “delicious as it gets,” with fruit as black as midnight, and a taste that is fervently rich, thick and incroyable. “It was so fresh,” he said, “I could see it lasting for another fifty years.”