Showing 1-14 out of 14 items
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Chateau Latour,
Ready, but will keep,
Latour is a model for consistancy and excellence in even the poorest of vintages. In a superb year like 1996 the results are heavenly! This is a textbook Latour, massively concentrated, rich, with polished tannins and full bodied without being heavy. The extraordinary power and balance of this wine is phenomenal. It should continue to evolve to 2030.
Chateau Lagrange,
Drink now,
This third growth estate was purchased by the Japanese group Suntory in 1983. There followed a period of significant investment and now the Franco-Japanese management team have a stringent selection process that has helped restore the wines to a high standard. Following fermentation the wines spend 20 months in 50% new oak. The 1996 is a powerful, St. Julien with cedary notes and cassis aromas, concentration, robust character and length.
Chateau Leoville Las Cases,
Ready, but will keep,
One of the best Lascases I have ever tasted. Whilst the ripe 1990 is the more seductive wine at the moment, the 1996 has a linear class, focus and balance that is pretty much in the first-growth league. It’s often said that there is a very strong argument for Lascases being reclassified as a first growth; in vintages such as 1996, 2000 & 2005 it’s all the more compelling. One of the most complete clarets available.
Fine Wine Team
Fine Wine Team
Chateau Calon Segur,
Ready, but will keep,
Ch. Calon Ségur, the most northerly of all the Médoc Grands Crus Classés, is the château with a heart on its label. That is because the former owner, Marquis de Ségur, though he owned such Estates as Lafite and Latour, declared, "My heart belongs to Calon." For the last century the Third Growth has been owned by the Gasqueton family.
After the success of the 1995 vintage, another classic wine from Calon Ségur. Full bodied, robust, with masses of sweet fruit, complex palate of dried herbs and Asian spices intermixed with truffles and chocolate overtones. This wine is a sensational effort, fully approachable now, but it will continue to improve with further ageing.
After the success of the 1995 vintage, another classic wine from Calon Ségur. Full bodied, robust, with masses of sweet fruit, complex palate of dried herbs and Asian spices intermixed with truffles and chocolate overtones. This wine is a sensational effort, fully approachable now, but it will continue to improve with further ageing.
Ready, but will keep,
A superb wine from this the leading 2em cru class Margaux property. Aromas of ripe black fruits, minerals and spices with hints of toasty new oak lead on to a refined palate displaying very good depth of fruit bolstered by silky smooth tannins. Approachable now but will be drinking at its best from 2006 - 2012.
Ready, but will keep,
Unlike Right Bank Bordeaux properties, special cuveés are a rare phenomenon in the Médoc. There is nothing that compares to this very fine, limited-production cuvée from Ch. Sociando-Mallet – Cuvée Jean Gautreau. Jean Gautreau purchased Ch. Sociando-Mallet in 1969 and turned it into one of the most popular Cru Bourgeois on the market today. In 1995, driven by a quest for quality, Jean Gautreau and his team decided to select the 15 best barrels from the vintage to make a special blend.
The 1996 is a classic Cabernet Sauvignon vintage and drinking beautifully now. There are substantial savoury depths to this blackcurrant and briary fruit-driven wine, with a satisfyingly firmness to the palate that still shows its capacity to age. Fresh and vibrant with cedar notes on the finish. Drink now to 2022.
The 1996 is a classic Cabernet Sauvignon vintage and drinking beautifully now. There are substantial savoury depths to this blackcurrant and briary fruit-driven wine, with a satisfyingly firmness to the palate that still shows its capacity to age. Fresh and vibrant with cedar notes on the finish. Drink now to 2022.
Showing 1-14 out of 14 items
(Simon Staples - Berrys' Fine Wine Director - 20-Feb-2009)