Medium rusty-red. The nose is a blend of stemmy perfume – and at this age it really is perfume – and a higher-toned fresh plum fruit that flirts with a floral dimension; it’s quite lovely and keeps drawing me back for another sniff as the fruit changes to cherry and even redcurrant with time. In the mouth it doesn’t quite have that melt-in-the-mouth texture that you get with a perfectly matured wine, but there’s freshness and a structure that remains bright, indeed almost stern. The acidity is just about perfect, being the baseline for a beautifully understated but fine finish. Such a shame that I have only three or four more of these.

Medium ruby-red colour with a faint browning at the rim. The nose is sweet and rather stemmy, there’s a faint beefy note that has me flirting with the notion of brett, and some mixed herbs. In the mouth the wine starts narrow, slowly opening over tongue. The acidity is a little sharp and metallic in flavour, it makes you forget to look for tannin, which whilst understated, is still a little blocky. Reasonable length and some sweetness, but today, no love.

Medium-pale ruby-red. The nose is heavy with the musky scent of strawberry, raspberry and the smoky stems – it’s a beauty. The palate has a soft entry that nicely widens with the help of understated acidity. The equally soft tannin is still there as an undercurrent as you head into a finish of creamy baked red fruit and still just a little bitterness – here for the first time the acidity is not so seamless. As is usual for this village cuvée in a reasonable vintage, it’s still not quite ready to drink at 12 years of age, but I’m happy there are more in the cellar!

Medium-pale ruby-red centre further reducing in intensity as you head for the rim. The nose is a sweet mix of stems and hint of red and orange. Concentration is on a higher level than the colour suggests. Good acidity and a slightly coffee tinged finish. Delicate and pretty much open for business – but absolutely no rush as the balance is very fine – I’ll drink the remaining six over the next 10-15 years.