Dark and still a touch tight, with a wall of bacony, mesquite-tinged toast holding the core of blackberry and fig fruit at bay. Lush, exotic fruit pushes through on the finish, with notes of musk, aged tobacco, roasted vanilla and hoisin sauce. The dark, toasty finish still needs more time to unwind fully. There's no Viognier, and, except for the 2002 vintage, this is never destemmed. *Collectible*
WS98November 2008
Deep purple. These last three reds were served in the reverse order and gave us a lesson in the increasing concentration and oak influence of the wines over time. This was the most focused. Deep purple. Extremely fresh and dense and energetic yet velvety. Some liquorice. Dramatic but a bit drying on the finish.
JR18March 2006