Medium ruby-red colour with a hint of amber at the rim. A very deep, wide, earthy and impressive nose. Mouthfilling, still with plenty of drying tannin. Given the nose and structure this slips disappointingly unobtrusively into the finish – but it’s one very long, if slightly oaky finish! In the end the astringent (though ripe) tannins dominate the mid-palate and finish a little too much for current enjoyment. Taking stock there’s a modicum of maturity on the nose and surely a great grand cru nose at that. If the nose hints at maturity the palate is way too young; it’s concentrated and long but the structure is dominant today. When the palate catches up I think this will be a stunning bottle.

Medium, medium-plus cherry-red. Both depth and width on the nose, mixing meaty and red berry notes, eventually coated with vanilla. Really super texture with density and acidity to match. Finally a slight rasp to the tannins as they fade into the spicy and very long finish. Yes, this is a real RSV – excellent.

Excellent medium-plus colour, clear and bright, ruby cored with an amber edge. The nose initially disappoints majoring on sous-bois elements – slowly it builds meat then chocolate aspects before finally giving up spicy red fruit. On the palate acidity is the dominant aspect, still coupled to mouth wrapping tannins of some grain that dominates what fruit there is. There is one saving grace, the finish is very long and has a compelling raisin aspect to it. That the wine easily held-up in the glass, indeed improved over 2 hours, implies that this wine isn’t simply over-the-hill, rather that it was never a great wine – the fruit was perhaps never a match for the structure. An interesting, but ultimately disappointing wine.