Top 2010 wines: A decade on

The paradox of Bordeaux is that some of the greatest vintages are almost unapproachable until they are 20 years old or more. 2010 almost certainly qualifies to be in that bracket, and no one would say this is ready to drink yet (head to Les Pensées for a good few years yet). But at 10 years it practically runs you over with its brilliance the second you get anywhere near it. This is intense with lashings of tannins yet finely wrought and elegant. Power without weight, loaded with graphite, olives, sage, rosemary and violets. This really shows how expansive Lafleur can be, and yet without the slightest trace of heaviness, this is suspended over the glass. So much nuance, texture and layers here - an utterly amazing wine from a year that had a cool early season then turned hot right through until harvest, but always with fresh nights. A standout that makes the most of its high Cabernet Franc content.

A magical union of opulent, juicy blackberry wrapped discretely in a regal oak robe. Captured at optimal ripeness, the fruit notes remain bright and vital, and especially soft tannins carry the long flavours gracefully, with just the right amount of bite and grip. Winemaker Sue Hodder says this was an easy vintage to make good wine, such was the quality of fruit picked; she has captured its best attributes perfectly.

The deep spectrum of dark flavours – wild blackberry, mulberry, liquorice – speaks in an imposing baritone. The palate is rich, full and even, riding on a velvet carpet through the mid-palate, but then the curtain falls abruptly, suggesting more than its tightly wound finish currently reveals. This vintage remains a slightly impetuous youth growing into its skin, as behind the plush fruit there are tight tannins that still have a prickly edge. Let’s look again in another decade.

Unico is Tinto Fino, with 6% Cabernet Sauvignon, in contrast to Valbuena No.5, which has a small dash of Merlot. It opens with alluring aromas of dark plums, spice and oak. As expected, it's powerful, intense and very long, but within that you can note the very fine tannins, the result of the assiduous attention to ageing in different types and sizes of vats over the years. There's an element of tobacco smoke, of black fruits, of the dark plums promised in the aromas, the whole beautifully integrated. A vintage and a wine that's hard to better. This has 25 to 30 years ahead of it, but you could also enjoy it within a few years - that's the essence of Vega Sicilia, its interplay of youth and ageability.

This was tasted at a friend's birthday party at Julo wine bar in Bordeaux's old town. There was a line up of ten magnums that had been generously provided, all great names, but this was the one that at the first sip just blew everyone away, and was the first to be emptied. Perfect for drinking now, with leather and truffle notes just starting to appear, but still full of juicy black fruit, tension and promise. Natural yeasts and no new oak - just more proof of the talented winemaking going on with Stephane Ogier.

The Armagh vineyard – a northwest-facing sun trap – was planted to Shiraz by Jim Barry in 1968. A bottomless pit of perfumed, plush, liquorice-edged cassis, blackcurrant, blueberry and mulberry fruits, with bitter chocolate and roast coffee oak nuances, this spent 16 months in French (60%) and American oak hogsheads (85% new). Harmony trumps opulence here, and its supple tannins and acidity harness and extend the fruit, subtly tapering the finish, leaving you wanting more.

Undoubtedly one of the greatest Châteauneuf vintages of recent times, up there with the 1990 - and perhaps the 2016; time will tell. It's deeply coloured still at seven years of age. Deep, dark and brooding on the nose, it's starting to take on some balsamic and forest floor notes. The palate is very harmonious, powerful and assertive, with firm, structural tannins. This is still very fresh, sinewy and tightly wound - it's not ready yet, but will be spectacular when it is.

Planted in 1860, these remarkable 150-year old Shiraz vines unquestionably produce one of the greatest wines of Australia. Its spice, tar and tabasco fragrance is intense and complex, repeated in a super-intense, opulent (but not sweet) palate. Pure black fruit flavours laced with spice are underpinned by an elegant balance of succulence and finesse of texture. Behind it there is a firm, muscular structure tapering to a long and satisfying finish.

Flashes of exotic fruit aromas with notes of coffee and spice. Full and round on the palate with a hint of velvet already. A beautiful flower still tightly in bud.

Rosemary Cakebread's home estate (winemaker at Spottswoode for many years), there is a clear smoky edge from the first nose. As it opens in the glass, the complexity is effortless, with a savoury black olive and earth edge to the berry fruits underlined by an extremely silky texture. This wasn’t the easiest of vintages in Napa, with a cool wet spring then a hot August where they used shade cloth for the first time, but this feels perfectly balanced with a juicy upturn on the finish. 78% new oak. Unfiltered and unfined.

Only made in the best vintages – and they don't get any better than 2010 – this is a brooding, ageworthy blend of mostly Tempranillo, with 20% Garnacha and 10% Mazuelo. It's rich, dark and complex with stylish tannins and scented oak.

This historic estate (pronounced ‘Kal-chin-aya’) has been home to the Counts Capponi since 1524 and is today managed by brothers Sebastiano and Niccolò Capponi. Located in the heart of Chianti Classico, close to the town of Greve in Chianti, the estate includes 30ha of vineyard, which have been farmed organically since 1992. This Riserva is made from 100% Sangiovese, sourced from two blocks of old vines. Each block is aged separately for 15 months in 500-litre French oak tonneaux. After blending the two blocks, the wine is then aged for another four to six months in Slavonian oak casks before bottling. Susan Hulme MW: Aromas of dried cherry and herbs mirror the palate, which boasts an assertive structure and a lingering finish. Intriguing. Andrew Jefford: Very attractive red fruit aromas, embellished with a bay-leaf sweetness. Fine, rich, luscious and long on the palate, while exhibiting a magnificent resonance and great harmony. This is perfectly accessible now, but with the potential to age further. Monty Waldin: Very smooth, pure and balanced, with a fine fruit expression and an inner freshness.

This demonstrates amazing aromatic complexity. Balsamic herbs like rosemary, sage and thyme meet red forest berries, sous-bois, creosote and warm stones. There is a sinewy precision to the tannin and lively succulent acidity, both of which are seamlessly integrated with the elegantly restrained fruit. Still tightly wound, it could do with a bit more time to expand on the palate and will offer plenty of drinking pleasure for years to come.

The only Riserva in the line up for this masterclass, Biondi-Santi's 2010 shouldn't be a pick for drinking now – instead, it demands more time in the bottle to allay its formidable structure, which is enhanced by the vintage conditions of the year. Dark cherry fruit with a hint of meatiness is framed by those closed-rank grape and wood tannins. Sturdy yet with a glimpse of succulence and a streak of salinity, make sure you're there when it's time for this dark and herbal Brunello to come out of its shell.

Darker in colour than most in this vertical tasting, Château Beychevelle reached its best maturity levels for Cabernet Sauvignon in 2010. This is a really beautiful wine, very much reflective of St-Julien’s qualities with its balance and brushed tannins. It's not ready yet and is still pretty closed, the succulent tannins closing in for the final moments, but they have flexibility in their structure and this is going to run and run. Rich and concentrated, it's a gorgeous Beychevelle. 5% Cabernet Franc makes up the blend.

We were very much in the years here where Malartic was flexing its muscles and rising through the ranks of Pessac Léognan. With this wine you get not just potential for future development from this point, but also tons of pleasure if drinking today. Clear depth and concentration on display - you just keep on drilling down and finding more truffle, black pepper and chocolate notes alongside the fruit.

A remarkable achievement from a challenging vintage for Walla Walla reds. The lengthy palate has great freshness, texture and viscosity, while the depth and concentration comes as a surprise as copious dark fruits are woven together with minerals, dusty tannins and sagebrush undertones. This vintage is outstanding now but will show brilliantly over the next five to seven years.

Somewhat like the white of the same vintage, this is a taut wine, but time in glass yields impressive, cool,blueberry fruit that tastes more youthful than its age. The Cabernet Sauvignon dominates the palate with vivid blackcurrant, graphite and tannic power. Give it another decade and it will gain in complexity and interest.