Cheval-Blanc St-Émilion Le Petit Cheval 2010

95 points James Suckling: "The second wine of Cheval shows such glorious yet subtle fruit with chocolate, dark berries such as blackberries, and a light spice character. A walnut undertone. It's soft and silky with wonderful balance and beauty. It goes on for minutes. Hard not to drink now. (11/14/13)"

94 points Lisa Perrotti-Brown (The Wine Independent): "A blend of 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc, Le Petit Cheval 2010 has a deep garnet-brick color. The nose is still incredibly youthful, bounding out of the glass with notes of plum preserves, blackberry pie, and blueberry compote, leading to wafts of Indian spices and fallen leaves. The medium to full-bodied palate is rich and downright delicious, featuring mouthcoating black and blue fruit layers, with a firm, grainy texture and plenty of freshness, finishing with great length. (9/14/23)"

94 points Tim Atkin, MW.

92-94 points Wine Enthusiast: "Great dusty tannins, almost too powerful, very solid in character. The wine is chunky, allowing juicy fruits to show. It is a dry wine, certainly not hard. (Jun 2011)"

93 points Robert Parker: "The best second wine I have ever tasted from Cheval Blanc is the 2010 Le Petit Cheval. This wine is essentially three-fourths Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc. Rivaling the brilliant 2009, thirty percent of the production from this monstrously sized estate made it into this wine, which offers up plenty of white chocolate, cassis and mulberry as well as a hint of roasted herbs. With fleshy, round flavors, full-bodied texture and an amazing finish, this is no second wine, and considerably better than some of the Cheval Blancs of the 1960s and 1970s! Drink it over the next 15 or so years. Drink: 2013-2028. (Feb 2013)"

93 points Wine Spectator: "This is rather backward, with a thick coating of bittersweet ganache over a massive core of roasted fig, blackberry confiture and kirsch, backed by a long, charcoal- and tar-coated structure. The finish is broad, deep and very dark, with plenty of power in reserve. An impressive second wine. Best from 2015 through 2025. (3/31/13)"

93 points Falstaff: "Dark ruby, purple reflections, slightly watery rim. Fine plum fruit, ripe cherry underlay, delicate nougat caramel. Juicy, elegant texture, fruity and persistent, fine tannins, very harmonious, taut and long lasting, chocolate nuances on the finish, it has good ageing potential. (2/12/16)"

93 points Jeff Leve (The Wine Cellar Insider): "With a perfume consisting of minerality, cocoa, plums, red and black plums with licorice. In the mouth, the soft, round, sophisticated wine ends with a fennel coated, red and black fruit finish. (Jul 2011)"