November, 2011

Well it’s certainly interesting to compare the best and the worst that Bordeaux has offered in the past decade within a few weeks of each other. If October 2011’s Union des Grands Crus 2009 tasting showed the impressive heights to which red Bordeaux has recently soared, then November 2011’s Master of Wine Institute’s tasting of the 2007 vintage showed the decades lows. To be fair what was actually most surprising was how the latter vintage has turned out. Tasted after bottling two years ago, I think you could safely say you’d find more joy in a Trappist monastery than in a glass of 2007 red Bordeaux. Moreover these were wines released in 2008 at such high prices for the quality that much cheaper thrills could easily be found elsewhere. Don’t get me wrong, two years down the track and 2007 Bordeaux remains a pretty meagre and angular affair amongst the reds, but in the main they have generally rounded out for the better. Maybe they bear comparison to that other great ‘restaurant’ year 1997.

Of course there are exceptions and the very best are very good indeed. Still of the eighty odd reds shown by the MW Institute in the hallowed [if gloomy] halls of Vintners’ Hall, to me less than a dozen were outstanding, and four of these were first growths. Even that remains quite an achievement though in a dismal growing season that at one stage looked simply catastrophic, only saved in the nick of time by a sunny September. Looking for the vintage’s silver lining many pointed to the promise of the vintage’s white wines from Pessac-Léognan and, in particular the sweet wines in Sauternes and Barsac. The former weren’t on display but those from the half dozen that were shown were flavoursome, full and sweet though they lacked the race and verve of both 2009 and 2010 which are both terrific vintages in Sauternes.

On the other hand you’d have to be a merchant with anxiously large quantities of claret sitting on your books to say the reds in this vintage are generally anything more than modest, early drinking vintage in the main. For my money you’re far better off looking at 2009 now it’s becoming physically available, as of writing often offered cheaper than at en primeur given all the current economic gloom and which will give pleasure from day one. After you’ve exhausted the delights of 2009, I’d consider every other vintage in the past decade before resting your sights on 2007. I’m not writing the vintage off entirely for the reds, that’s absurd, but really I’d only stump up for the very best in a restaurant [where their early drinking charms will be of benefit] or where they are offered at a considerable discount to recent vintages.

ST ESTEPHE

Only four wines were shown from St Estèphe appellation but Cos d’Estournel has turned in an excellent effort in 2007. Montrose meanwhile felt much more backward. Cos Labory and Lafon Rochet both felt light and lacking in depth and it’s really worth searching out their 2006s, 2008s and 2009s instead.

Chateau Cos d’Estournel

Deep and arterial looking; legs; ripe and plush nose; satin and surprising ripeness and lovely black fruits and wet stone elements; density and layers; palate ripe and fleshy with ripe and nicely handled tannin; dense and ripeness and not at all over-extracted. Very good length. Excellent effort 93+/100

Chateau Cos Labory

Some depth; red at edge; some oak resin and wet stone alongside leaf and tobacco notes; palate lacks depth and feels light, though not extracted at least and better now for some time to round out. 86/100

Chateau Lafon-Rochet

Mid red; some depth; tobacco, spice some resin; light effort on the palate and lacks depth; some structure and grip. Chewy finish. Not a bad effort. 86+/100

Chateau Montrose

Deep and dense looking; still youthful at the edge; strong minerality; little unyielding but lots of cool Cabernet fruit; some leaf and lift on aeration; layers revealed; palate pretty dense and structured as you’d expect and feels a little austere on the finish. Lots of structure and grip but density here too. Very good but pretty backward effort. 90+/100

PAUILLAC

For me the best wines of the vintage are to be found here in this tricky vintage. The first growths live up to their reputations. Lafite and Mouton, though chalk and cheese, have made very strong wines. For me Mouton, the more flamboyant of the two, has the edge but both these wines defy the vintage vicissitudes as have Pichon Longuevelle, Lynch Bages, Pontet Canet and Pichon Lalande. Grand-Puy-Lacoste and stablemate Haut Batailley also seemed very successful efforts. Where the price is right all these wines bear consideration, and if you can find them at a significant discount to 2008, 2009 and 2010, they could be shrewd buys for drinking [Mouton & Lafite excepted].

Chateau Batailley

Mid depth; fraction short; weedy, leafy blackcurrant notes; feels quite light; light and lifted palate; not unattractive but an early maturing style; some oak; earthy blackcurrants on the palate; has come round in bottle. 87/100

Chateau Clerc Milon

Mid depth, some red; blackcurrant and minerals; quite tight but feels polished; fresh blackcurrants on the palate; quite angular and boney but with density. Quite structured and rather angular tannins but otherwise pretty correct and feels fresh. 87/100

Chateau Croizet-Bages

Mid red; lacks depth; some tobacco and leaf; palate lean and lacking in fruit with dry tannins. Pretty unappealing. 78/100

Chateau d’Armailhac

Mid depth; some red at rim; that meaty, rose hip d’Armailhac style present even in this vintage; blackcurrants too, some layers here in fact; attractive leafy, spicy blackcurrant palate, quite open and easy with round tannin and a reasonably generous palate; some grip on the finish. Pretty good and more come-hither than stablemate Clerc Milon. 88+/100

Chateau Duhart-Milon

Mid red; some development at the edge; earthy blackcurrant nose; quite weedy and leafy, not unattractive [reminds me a little of the ‘97] some spice too; polished palate, blackcurrant, leaf and undergrowth. Fairly lightweight overall. Not a bad effort. 88/100

Chateau Grand-Puy Ducasse

Mid depth, red at edge; pure blackcurrant fruit nose, little additional development and feels fresh, though lacking complexity; palate full, rocks, wet stones and dusty tannin, a little angular overall. Maybe needs another year or two? 86+/100

Chateau Grand-Puy-Lacoste

Mid red, depth; earthy feral lift initially with leafy blackcurrant behind; layers here; palate feels fresh with some herbal blackcurrant notes and nicely handled tannin. Elegant, harmonious and nicely proportioned. 89+/100

Chateau Haut-Batailley

Quite deep; not dissimilar to GPL; some mineral and leafy blackcurrant tones; earthy and attractive; elegant and harmonious on the palate with blackcurrant, tobacco and undergrowth tones. This works well in 2007. 88+/100

Chateau Lafite-Rothschild

Deep looking; pretty saturated in colour; cooler and calmer than Mouton; very pure blackcurrants here alongside the tell-tale lead pencil/graphite accent; layers and depth here; leafy and tobacco on further aeration; lots of harmony and typicity here; pure blackcurrant fruit on the palate, very clear and precise flavours; a little austerity to the tannins but lots of material and extract perfectly focused. Very good length too. Excellent effort in this tricky vintage. 95+/100

Chateau Lynch-Bages

Deep and saturated looking; deep nose; blackcurrant cassis and real polish; sweet attack reveals surprisingly ripe blackcurrants on the palate; tannin here too but plenty of material and fruit; quite grippy on the finish but has nice length. Excellent effort. 91/100

Chateau Lynch-Moussas

Mid red; lacks a bit of depth in the glass; some leafy tobacco notes; feel warm and fully mature if lacking in obvious fruit; palate light and lacking density but pleasant enough in a ‘charming’ if light style. 85/100

Chateau Mouton Rothschild

Deep and dark; wonderfully decadent nose of Asian spices, blackcurrants and espresso notes; real sweetness here; very attractive; leaf and tobacco come later; sweet and ripe blackcurrant fruit on the palate; terrific purity; some earthiness but layers and layers of flavour suggest a much better vintage than ’07. Excellent. Wine of the vintage at this tasting. 96+/100

Chateau Pedesclaux

Mid depth; dub, some wet rock, some oak; simple and almost Rioja like; some blackcurrants on the palate but a bit minimal and tannins hard and palate angular. Dry finish. 80?/100

Chateau Pichon-Longueville (Baron]

Deep, dark and dense looking; equally saturated in aroma too; lots of blackcurrant cassis; very deep and layered; satin palate of blackcurrants, earth and tobacco notes; very promising nose; nice entry on the palate, deep, layered and quite open; real ripeness, best Pauillac outside the first growths; this is very good wine. Fruit and tannin feel ripe and there is remarkable concentration which has been achieved without extracting bitterness. Very good length too and an excellent effort. Worth serious consideration if you’re tempted to take a dip into 2007. 94+/100

Chateau Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande

Mid red; some depth and darkness at centre; real beauty and polish to the nose; graphite and cool blackcurrant here on the nose; good palate; blackcurrant fruit that feels elegant and charming; little dryness towards the finish. Classis Pichon Lalande though dips a fraction compared with Pichon-Longueville. 90+/100

Chateau Pontet Canet

Deep and dark; red at edge; very inky, intense and resinous nose; meaty tones and cassis along with a creamy character; big, bold explosion on the palate, minerality, blackcurrants and herbal tones; chewy and dense. I prefer Pichon-Longueville in ’07 but this is a very good effort too. 92+/100

ST JULIEN

Usually the most consistent and dependable appellation the best wines, notably all the Léovilles, have performed as well as you would imagine and Lagrange has turned in a very good effort. Still this is a sinewy vintage at best, even here.

Chateau Beychevelle

Good colour; depth and legs in the glass; some leaf, tobacco but a little dumb at first; opens up; blackcurrants, tobacco flavours on the palate; fairly modest body; tannin, structure evidence and lacks middle palate richness. Sinewy effort. 86/100

Chateau Branaire-Ducru

Mid depth; fresh, some stalkiness, blackcurrants beneath; not showy; spicy palate with herbal tines, oak influence and elegance. Again lacks a bit of middle like the Beychevelle. Should round out further but will always remain a fraction short of the mark. 86/100

Chateau Lagrange

Deepish; dark centre; legs; ripeness here on the nose; layers if flavour; feels glossy, plush almost and some oak influence; blackcurrant fruit on the palate with real chew and guts but has sufficient stuffing and guts to fill out the evident structure. Some length on the finish. Very good effort. 90/100

Chateau Langoa-Barton

Deepish; legs; some red fruits, some rasin; almost Italinate lift with resin and dark fruits; ripeness here some spice and layers; this has put on weight; grippy palate; chewy and dense; blackcurrant flavours; feels a bit old fashioned; lots of structure and acid; will settle in the long term but don’t expect the chewy tannins to fully resolve. 88+/100

Chateau Léoville-Barton

Dark in the glass; minerality and depth on the nose; blackcurrants and graphite too but sense in which it is unyielding; fresh blackcurrants on the palate; quite structured wine with lots of bones and pointy shoulders; grip and acid. Dense and needs time. Potentially 91+/100

Chateau Léoville-Las Cases

Deep; some youthful tones at edge; some animal and earthy tobacco notes and ripe black fruits; layers but tightly wound; dense and layered palate; spicy blackcurrants; flesh is here but plenty of grip and structure too. 92+/100

Chateau Léoville Poyferré

Deep core; red fruits, tobacco and undergrowth; attractive spicy notes and polish; feels nice and open and already attractive; palate similarly round and approachable but with sufficient depth and fruit. Not at all hollow as some are. Very nicely handled. 91+/100

Chateau Talbot

Earthy red; some depth; rather stinky, reductive nose initially; blew off to reveal more tobacco and meaty characters but remained a little on the feral side; earthy blackcurrant notes with some tobacco on the palate; meaty but then dips away and feels attenuated. Short finish. 84?/100

MARGAUX

Usual mixed back in this appellation with diverse terroir, blends and wine-making styles. The best are worth considering at the right price [Palmer, Lascombes, Rauzan Segla] but there are many here to avoid.

Chateau Brane-Cantenac

Mid depth; darkish; some coffee and leaf; earthy and some bell pepper/capsicum notes; feels a bit tight, angular and not at all generous; thin and mean though not over extracted. May come good with another year or so? 86?/100

Chateau Cantenac Brown

Deepish, dark at core, saturated looking; earthy, peaty nose with smoke and some sweet oak and stalky blackcurrants too; ripe red fruits on the palate along with chewy blackcurrant fruit, stalks and lots of grip; still pretty angular and grippy with acid but the flesh is there at present. 87/100

Chateau Dauzac

Deepish; earthy red at edge; some spice, coffee, fresh blackcurrant notes without the leafy, peaty notes; extracted palate; tannin feels dry and chewy, starting to meld maybe, but inky certainly. Fraction short. 84/100

Chateau Desmirail

Mid depth, dark at centre, red edge; earthy and meaty note; some tobacco; quite forward and developed; solid meat and tobacco flavours on the palate, quite chewy, lacks finesse, dryish tannin but just enough ripeness to get by. Shortish finish. 85/100

Chateau d’Issan

Mid depth, earthy, reductive nose; feral and a bit farty, could do with decanting; meaty flavours on the palate, ripe and more polish than the nose suggests; quite harmonious. 87/100

Chateau Durfort-Vivens

Mid depth, quite dark at centre; dusty tannic nose; some spice and blackcurrants on the palate but lacks joy; angular and dry and tannin very dry and chewy. Not sure where this is headed? 84?/100

Chateau du Tertre

Deepish, earthy red at edge; some leafy Cabernet; very light palate which lacks depth; feels thin; some chew on the finish and grip but overall feels light and dilute. 84?/100

Chateau Giscours

Mid depth, darkish central core; leafy, spicy herbaceous nose; some lifted blackcurrant notes too; feels a little green; leafy, tobacco and blackcurrant, some and light palate, feels a bit dilute with a streak of green; harmonious and drinkable effort though in its way and not over extracted. 87/100

Chateau Kirwan

Deep and dark; ripe, mineral, wet rocks, slightly Northern Rhone-ish; blackcurrants; some ripeness  here; blackcurrants on the palate, quite angular, green tannin but reasonable effort. 86/100

Chateau Lascombes

Mid depth; lifted violets and floral tones, feels very Margaux like, quite seductive; some leaf and slightly green coffee bean streak; palate polished, easy and attractive with harmony. This feels a successful effort. 88+/100

Chateau Margaux

Mid depth; some spice and lift; fresh blackcurrant, some tobacco; some resin and camphor notes but lacks the apparent depth of Lafite and Mouton on the nose; spicy blackcurrants on the palate; velvet quality; much better palate; elegant and balanced. Pretty composed, elegant style. 92/100

Chateau Marquis d’Alesme

Mid red; some leaf and lift; quite light; red fruits, some sappy fruit and grip on the palate but rather green tannin on finish. 84/100

Chateau Marquis de Terme

Mid depth; some feral/earthy tones; tea and tobacco too; palate lacks fruit, feels tannic and lacks depth. 82/100

Chateau Palmer

Nice deep colour; looks promising; legs; earthy notes followed by meaty tones; some plushness; pretty full and deep; blackcurrant notes; nice palate and feels like really fine Bordeaux; chewy tannin but sufficient density of flavour. Excellent length. Very successful effort for the vintage. 92+/100

Chateau Prieure-Lichine

Deep and dark; muscular feel if a little dusty; solid palate, grip; chunky and lacks harmony but good body and chew. 86/100

Chateau Rauzan-Gassies

Deep; some lifted ripe red fruits; some wet stone and leaf; modest palate; red fruits lacks a bit of depth but not a bad effort for the vintage or this property. Elegant if light. 86/100

Chateau Rauzan-Ségla

Mid red; not huge depth; some earthy tobacco notes and cool Cabernet freshness; clean; ripe entry; quite solid and structured; depth to the palate; chewy tannin; grippy but not a bad effort. 88+/100

HAUT-MEDOC

Reasonable efforts here in this mediocre vintage but I wouldn’t rush out to buy any of these over their efforts in 2009 or even 2008. Lightish wines and lightish in flavour, I’m not sure they will never ditch their angularity or tannin.

Chateau Belgrave

Mid red; some toffee; not knockout nose; resin; some coffee; structure evident but lacks concentration; feels hollow; some grip at the end 84/100

Chateau de Camensac

Mid depth; some leaf and blackcurrant; high toned as this often is; feels elegant; some red fruits; some spice and herbal tones; vigour and freshness to the palate; Cabernet freshness; though ultimately a bit angular and grippy. Fresh,stalky,blackcurrant style. 86+/100

Chateau Cantemerle

Good depth and colour; blackcurrants, freshness, though it feels a bit angular; clean nevertheless; and some spice, tobacco and blackcurrants beneath; quite good, though some hardness to the tannins which needs to resolve but overall clean, fresh and direct. Will come good – and may be worth drinking sooner rather than later whilst the fruit is there. 86+/100

Chateau La Lagune

Deep colour; some reductive, feral tones to start; blew off towards the tobacco and lifted notes; some satin here but also some eggy notes too – this needs decanting. Palate initially has a sweet entry but the fruit feels a bit angular with a sour edge; comes away feeling a little mean. Will it come together? 84-86?/100

Chateau La Tour Carnet

Deep core, saturated centre with legs in the glass; Magrez red fruits, quite full and very ripe styled. Resin and oak; quite satin-y palate with red fruits though maybe has a little too much extraction. Chewy. Not bad effort. Some savoury notes on the finish; charred earth and coffee. 86/100

PESSAC-LEOGNAN

Pretty good results overall, especially amongst the top wines, which have made some of the most attractive wines of the vintage.

Chateau Bouscaut

Mid red; some earthy tones; some cream, mineral and solidity; not fantastic and alluring; sofish; easy palate, not huge character; some spice and earth but pretty light 84/100

Domaine de Chevalier

Deepish colour; tight to edge; earthy, mineral tones; some meaty, malty tones; quite full, seemingly; some red fruits on the palate; some chew and depth; not that bad, though feels a tad extracted on the finish with rather angular tannin and some tartness 87/100

Chateau de Fieuzal

Mid depth; reasonable colour; some stalky, leafy blackcurrant; not unattractive though a bit green; sweet entry on the palate, some herbs, spices with some grip here and extraction though overall feels pretty harmonious. Good, earthy wine with some harmony. 88/100

Chateau Haut-Bailly

Deepish colour; very animally and lifted; almost sweet and peaty with a mineral fatness beneath; some sour notes at the edge of the palate and feels a bit mean. Hmm – disappointing effort on this tasting even in the context of the vintage. 86/100

Chateau Haut-Brion

Mid red; depth; attractive nose; some gravel and herbal notes; menthol, earth and tapenade notes on the nose; clean and full on the palate; density and pretty big with a lot of grip to the tannin. Good length, just that dryness to the tannins. 92/100

Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion

Mid depth, dark core; lovely nose; nicely balanced between the earth, the tobacco notes and the blackcurrants; deep and very polished; seemingly lots of layers; density on the palate with earthy blackcurrants and grip; some dry-ish tannin, some acid and a little sourness at the very edge but overall very good. 92/100

Chateau Malartic-Lagravière

Deep colour, red at edge; very lifted red fruits, some very ripe qualities; mineral tones beneath; not that complex, some oak resin and also a vegetal streak; red fruits and chew on the palate; quite dense but still that vintage tartness and sourness at the edge. 87/100

Chateau Pape-Clément

Deep, saturated colour; earthy, deep but round – blackcurrants, undergrowth and cassis; leaft tones too; some coffee/espresso from the oak; layered and plush palate, very flattering [as usual] quite opne; dry tannin but it works because there’s plenty of fruit. Very effort for the vintage and nice length. 92+/100

Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte

Deep and dense; red at edge; leaf, tobacco, blackcurrants and earth; some peat and reductive notes too; thickish; earthy palate, some polish, inky and lots of earthy, blackcurrant fruit; chewy finish and some bite. Again very good for the vintage. 92+/100

ST EMILION

Less promising than I remember tasting some of these a couple of years back in 2009 at UGC. Again dryness to tannins here and a forced/overly worked style of winemaking seemed the main and considerable drawbacks. That said a few looked pretty good and had harmony and balance. Others too thick and extracted.

Chateau Balestard La Tonelle

Deep core; red at edge; some boiled sweet, earth and red fruits with lift; pretty simple; some raisin; red fruits on the palate with toffee notes. Chewy. This is OK but lacks sophistication. 85/100

Chateau Beauséjour-Bécot

Deep centre; meaty notes alongside mineral tones; feels quite compact on the nose; some depth and thickness here; meat and weight to the palate; some sourness too; chewy wine with dryish tannin. 86/100

Chateau Canon

Deep centre; red fruits, some meal and mineral tones; feels quite pent up; dense palate with some sweetness [red fruits] and chalkiness; tannin on the finish. A pretty good effort but less thrilling than I remember. 88/100

Chateau Cap de Mourlin

Dark black at centre; thick and resinous nose; blackcurrants and tar; thick palate with lots of density and chewy tannin. Feels a little tiring. 86/100

Chateau Corbin

Black and extracted looking; colour tight to the rim; more ripe red fruits here; lifted and figgy; feels seriously worked [almost Canon-La-Gaffeliere style]; thick and oaky palate bit over-the-top and very tannic on the finish. 86/100

Chateau Dassault

Deep and dense; lifted and leafy and far more appetizing; earth and tobacco notes; not unattractive with a meaty edge; some herbaceousness here but not off putting, quite the opposite; red fruits on the palate along with the leaf; firm and rather dry tannins but not that bad an effort. 86+/100

Chateau Figeac

Deepish; freshness on the nose; leaf and tobacco; attractive and quite forward style on the nose; grip on the palate; lots of peat and earth; some harmony here and not at all forced – in keeping with the vintage. Lightish but has harmony and digestibility. 88/100

Chateau Grand Mayne

Deep and fat looking in the glass; rasin and fig – on the superripe end of things; lifted and some VA notes; thick palate with black fruits and molasses and tar notes; OK in its way but not much fun for me. 85/100

Chateau Haut Corbin

Deepish; full nose, rich with earthy notes, tobacco and spices, but doesn’t feel overdone; coming together on the palate, OKish and goodish effort. 86+/100

Chateau La Couspaude

Thick and deep looking; some satin and rasin; meaty edge; rocks; thickish; quite saturated in flavour; almost Chateauneuf. Chewy and tannic but there is enough fruit. 86+/100

Chateau La Gaffelière

Deep and dark at centre; red fruits and some leaf; some stony, mineral notes with coffee at edge; stalky blackcurrant palate; chewy and a little foursquare; bit compact and tannin very dry on the finish. Tricky to judge. 84-86?/100

Chateau La Tour Figeac

Deepish colour; ripe, opulent and sexy on the nose; upfront and lifted; thick and dense and pretty tannic on the palate. Too much extraction here and feels very dry. 86?/100

Chateau Magdelaine

Deep and dark central core; red fruits; feels fresh, some thickness and richness; some red strawberyy fruit too; black fruits on the palate; pretty rich and also thick but retains surprising harmony. Good length. Nice grip and bite and this works. Excellent effort. 90/100

Chateau Petit Faurie de Soutard

Deep and arterial; superripe and raisiny – almost liquorice Pontefract cakes here; feels overdone and rthick; feels dry and very extracted on the palate. Tannic. 84?/100

Chateau Trottevielle

Deep and dark; satiny and ripe Cabernet Franc nose; blackcurrants on palate and some density and layers here. Chewy wine with density. Goodish effort. 87+/100

POMEROL

Only half a dozen on show but overall felt nice and full with less dry tannins and better handled extraction than in St Emilion. Nice full flavours and some style.

Chateau Beauregard

Deep and earthy looking; attractive leafy, tobacco and black fruits nose; blackcurrant, gum and leafy tones on the palate; some grip and tannin but this is an attractive effort. 88/100

Chateau Clinet

Deep and saturated look; blackcurrant and cassis; fresh and uncluttered; depth too; blackcurrants and cassis on the palate too with some chocolate but not tired or seemingly overworked; fresh. Chewy on the finish. Good effort. 91+/100

Chateau Gazin

Deep at centre; very ripe and lifted nose; ref fruits, seductive; lots of oak and coffee aromatics; thick on the palate but with more poise than St Emilions of similar weight and style in 2007. Thick and big but this works. Good length. 90+/100

Chateau Le Bon Pasteur

Thick and very dark looking; earthy, some tea and meat; polished palate; tannic but not drying and lots of blackcurrant fruit washing around. Pretty good effort. 89+/100

Chateau Nenin

Deep and dense, tight to the edge; deep and plummy, earthy with tar and tobacco; attractive soft and easy palate; almost sweet entry; dense and a bit chunky but nicely done. 89+/100

Chateau Trotanoy

Dense, red [tight] to the edge; red fruits, quite lifted, some minerality too, some earth; sweet entry, ripe, some minerals, wet rocks; tannin here with some dryness but fruit envelops them. Certain elegance and not overdone. 90+/100   

SAUTERNES AND BARSAC

Overall 2007 is a good sweet wine vintage in Bordeaux. Just seven sweet wines shown by the MW Institute [the first time they have included them] which were pretty full and sweet. That said they felt as if they lacked the race of 2009 and 2010. Time will tell. Chateau d’Yquem is amazing, while Chateau Climens and Chateau Suduiraut are excellent.

Chateau Climens

Gold; thick and creamy on the nose; quite unctuous; very fat palate, rich and pretty thick; attractive wine with nice sweetness. 92+/100

Chateau Doisy-Védrines

Gold; more lifted; real lemon tones and race alongside a VA whiff; sweet on palate with fatness and goodish length. 88+/100

Chateau d’Yquem

Golden straw; butterscotch, honey and cream; citrus highlights with lemon zest; elegant palate with real substance; honey, cream and citrus notes and a certain fatness. Excellent 96+/100

Chateau Guiraud

Gold; some nutty tones, lift and butterscotch; thick palate with lots of sweetness and body; some zip at the end. 90/100

Chateau Lafaurie-Peyraguey

Pale straw; oily and thick nose; fat and thick on the palate; feels surprisingly big and fat – maybe lacks a bit of zip and focus. 89/100

Chateau Lamothe-Guignard

Golden; honeyed and fat on the nose; double cream; honey and cream tones on the palate too; thick and some sweetness but lacks a bit of zip. 87/100

Chateau Suduiraut

Pale straw; tight on the nose; lemon peel and citrus zest; botrytis and creamy tones; palate sweet and full. 91/100