This must be a great wine night as this also shined. Very complex nose, big, brioche, a hint of mint a la Ramonet, sea breeze, cooper and sweet ripe yellow fruits. Excellent concentration, bright acidity and long finish. My wife mentioned very sweet fruit in the palate and I agree. I need to organize the 96 Champagne tasting soon.

The oak blew off and showed nice ripe Californian fruit. Light caramel, baked apple, mostly yellow fruits but not too tropical. Not a bad showing.

Lately I have been trying very hard to enjoy rather advanced white Burgundies from 1995 and younger. These were quite premoxed but not fresh as they should be. This bottle along with the 96 Montee de Tonnerre reminded me why I love aged white Burgundies. A bright golden color, a petrol and botrytis spicy blew off in a few minutes. The nose was complex and constantly changed, getting fresher with time. I am always pleasantly surprised by how with air, the color gets lighter and the nose fresher. This is a great example of how a top PC white burgundy from a ripe year can remain fresh and enjoyable despite the low acidity. The last drop was the best.

Barry mentioned that this was a recent ex-cellar bottle from the US importer. Mineral, this is all about different expressions of menerality. So fresh and precise, I would have guessed as a 2001 or younger. Drinking perfectly right now.

what a difference six months can make, fully open, fully singing, young and primary but complex. This is drinking extremely well. No longer displaying masculine expression, fresh yet sweet ripe fruit, bright acidity and mineral components all in perfect harmony. I agree with the CT user Cosini, “elegant , almost slim for a Batard”. The nose displays expensive perfume, lemon and limestone. My concern in lieu of the premox issue is that this is too delicious too soon. I guess I shouldn’t complain. A great showing!

SHL – A good showing, tell tell signs of 2003, very ripe dark fruit, a hint of green that is not bothersome perhaps even adding extra complexity. The nose displays chocolate, mocha, cassis, tobacco, lead pencil and etc. The recently SHL seem to be very ripe and highly extracted as well as showing a hint of green and this fits that mold. Quite approachable and jammy fruit driven.

Barry mentioned that the fruit is not too sweet and I agree. This is a classic 96 and a classic Montrose. Incredibly perfumed nose, crushed blue and black berries, cedar, earth and etc. Excellent concentration with the structure to last. The nose reminded me the 89. A great showing and open for business. Pop and pour.

Was very much looking forward to try a bottle as the last bottle was hand carried to HK and the sediments made the wine too bitter and metallic but displayed excellent concentration. So much VA, undrinkable. Purchased at a NYC auction and appears to be in good shape. I suspect it is the wine which makes one to wonder about the cellaring the recent cult cabs. Caveat emptor.

Fully matured. Rene commented that it may be corked and I could see why. The high dosage of VA gave almost TCA like funk. Fruit cake, roasted coffee beans, a hint of mint/eucalyptus. Fully matured but somewhat monolithic. This along with the 01 Abreu caused me to worry about how the cult cabs with extreme ripeness and noticeable VA will age.

I noticed Jeff Leve’s TN and I actually have very little to add. This is damn primary. The nose is somewhere between Chave Hermitage and Guigal La Las. Jeff wrote “Coffee, smoke, crushed stone, licorice, blackberry jam, pepper, spice, truffle, earth and tobacco notes” and that is the perfect description although this bottle was as open as Jeff’s bottle. Incredible concentration and balance. This has a long life ahead. The modern day version of the 61 La Chapelle? 97 for current drinking and 100 for +potential. Another bottle with the last drop being the best.

Pop and pour. Incredibly youthful, dark fruit, leather, strong presence of lead pencil, very slight hint of green and the cordier funk that blew off. Excellent concentration and balance. A great youthful example of the 82 GL. Still room to improve.

One of the biggest and most concentrated cult cabs that I have encountered. This may well be the most concentrated wine of my life time. 10W40 or molasses. The nose is expressive, cassis, coffee, toffee, Licorice, balsamico, espresso and etc. It reminds me a young bottle of Dr. Parcel’s banyul s in coffee/chocolate flavor profile. Despite Incredible concentration of ripe fruit, it retains the freshness. I did notice high level of VA and this is worrisome. If you are a fan of cult cab, this should merit 100. This is an impressive wine.