TIME TO BUY?
2010 Château Lafleur
This is just magisterial.
Neal Martin, vinous.com
2010 Château Lafleur, Pomerol
£6,750 per 6 bottle case in bond
The Liv-ex Market Price of has fallen just 10.26% from a peak of £15,600/12 (August 2022) to its current level of £14,000/12, while the Liv-ex Average List Price has fallen 15% from a peak of £17,085/12 (February 2023) to its current £14,576/12. Although these percentages themselves are less headline-grabbing than some of the falls highlighted in our TIME TO BUY? series, it is precisely this resilience over time that makes Lafleur 2010 so interesting. There have only been 4 recorded trades on Liv-ex in 4 years, suggesting that people who own this wine want to hang on to it - hardly surprising given the calibre of the 2010 vintage and Lafleur's evident position within it, having been declared one of the wines of the vintage by numerous critics ever since its original release. The price softened but already appears to be returning to growth, with Liv-ex Market Price up 7.69% over the last 6 months.
With this case available below current Market Price and with price growth back on the agenda for this wine, is now a good Time to Buy?
A summary on Lafleur:
- It regularly rivals or exceeds the quality of Petrus and Le Pin in the last ten vintages as judged by critics’ scores, making it one of the handful of finest wines made in Bordeaux today.
- Production is tiny – from a 4.5-hectare vineyard, which neighbours Petrus, just 1,000 cases are produced per annum.
- It is a unique, distinctly different style of Pomerol – largely from Cabernet Franc on gravel as opposed to the norm for Pomerol of Merlot on clay. 60% of the blend is invariably Cabernet Franc.
- Many vintages are reference points for Bordeaux; the 1982 is one of the best ever made in the region and, if it could be found, would be circa £35,000 per 6 bottle case subject to provenance.
- Lafleur is a fraction of the price of Petrus or Le Pin.
• Lafleur 2010, Liv-ex Market Price: £7,000 per 6 bottles (98 points, Neal Martin)
• Petrus 2010, Liv-ex Market Price: £19,000 per 6 bottles (98 points, Neal Martin)
• Le Pin 2010, Liv-ex Market Price: £20,160 per 6 bottles (96 points, Neal Martin)
The Liv-ex graph of price evolution of Lafleur 2010 over time is below.
Liv-ex Market Price in dark blue. Liv-ex Average List Price in pale blue.
2010 Château Lafleur, Pomerol
£6,750 per 6 bottle case in bond
98 points, Neal Martin, vinous.com, September 2025
The 2010 Lafleur is simply magnificent. It just oozes class and complexity on the nose with intense blackberry, graphite and light tertiary scents, yet there is a sense of brightness and clarity that surpasses the 2009. The palate has an unerring symmetry that roots your feet to the post. With sensational mineralité, this fans out effortlessly towards a sapid finish that urges you back for more. Yes, for sure, it requires more bottle age, but what a fabulous Lafleur. Tasted from ex-château magnum at Kate & Kon's 40-Year vertical in Austria. Drink 2032-2075
99+ points, Neal Martin, vinous.com, November 2018
The 2010 Lafleur is a Pomerol that has long flirted with perfection. Even after 8 years the bouquet is still tightly wound and backward, yet extraordinarily pure with scents of blackberry, wild hedgerow, a touch of gravel and iodine. Yet, these are fleeting glimpses of the bouquet to come. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannin, masculine and almost surly in personality and yet, utterly compelling. There is layer upon layer of spicy black fruit intermixed with white pepper and sage, with aeration developing a haunting sense of precision and silky texture that leaves you urging for a second sip. This is just magisterial. Tasted at the Christies’ Lafleur masterclass in London. Drink 2030-2070
99 points, Neal Martin, robertparker.com, December 2016
Tasted blind as a vintage comparison at the Valandraud vertical, the 2010 Lafleur put in an absolutely no holds barred astonishing performance. Lafleur is wont to improve in bottle and this is certainly the case apropos the 2010. It has a boisterous ripe blackberry, cranberry, sous-bois and graphite-scented bouquet that is an absolute beauty. Power mixed with quite brilliant precision, you almost want to laugh at its sheer audacity. The palate is medium-bodied with very fine tannin; there is immense depth and wonderful cohesion. Mineral-drenched black fruit, a slightly chalky texture and outstanding energy and tension on the finish - this is a magnificent Pomerol from the Guinaudeau family. Drink 2025-2070
97+ points, Stephen Tanzer, vinous.com, July 2013
Bright ruby. Captivating nose combines blackcurrant, blackberry syrup, vanilla, minerals, dried rose, violet and white pepper; the cabernet franc element (roughly 54% of the blend) really comes through. Sweet and pliant on entry, then more austere in the middle, with penetrating but youthfully reticent flavors of dark berries, minerals, coffee reduction, cocoa and tobacco leaf. With its rather silky texture, good breadth and restrained sweetness, this 2010 offers considerable early appeal but has the structure to last several decades. Finishes subtle and gripping, with a rising, palate-dusting finish featuring notes of smoke, herbs and flowers. This stellar wine will go down in memory not just as one of the greatest Lafleurs in memory, but of all Bordeaux. For me, it's also the wine of the vintage right now.
96-99, Ian d'Agata, vinous.com, May 2011
(a blend of 62% cabernet franc and 38% merlot; 3.7 pH) Good, deep ruby-red. Deep, brooding but lively aromas of raspberry, strawberry, violet, licorice and minerals, plus an element of chocolate mint. Bright and fresh on entry, then shows a steely, austere quality to the strawberry, raspberry, tar and iodine flavors. Distinctly less floral and forward than the 2009. Strongly mineral on the long, pure back end, with ultrasmooth tannins; in fact, I would say that Lafleur's are the finest, most polished tannins of all in 2010. This is destined to be very long-lived. Incidentally, Baptiste Guinaudeau couldn't recall if any previous vintage of Lafleur had such a high percentage cabernet franc. My early candidate for wine of the vintage, along with Latour