Floral, mango and pineapple nose. Nicely rounded mouthfeel with enough acid to reign it in, finishing dry.

Floral and lime aromas. Very well balanced, long and tight. Very good and much better than a previously tried bottle.

Surprisingly developed aromas of kerosene and honey on the nose. Round on the palate and doesn't seem to have the acid structure of the '06 and '07, leaving it feeling a bit flabby. Medium length. Wonder if this bottle was a bit off, I'll have to try another and report back.

Lime, orange peel and spice on the nose. Grippy palate with good texture. Good length. Really classy and enjoyable.

Toast, citrus and a bit of butter. Palate was awkward and prickly.

Honey, toast, caramel and nutty nose. Palate is rich with aged characters, it really needed food to bring out its best. Drinking rather well, but needs to be consumed soon I feel.

Corked. After some discussion a second bottle was opened and proved to be significantly better.

Apricot, floral, smoky and meaty aromas. Palate has good texture and verve. Length is very good. Still plenty of upward potential for this over the next 6-7 years.

Spice, pepper, blackberries and cherries on the nose. Spicy and texturally interesting palate. Balanced, with complex layers complimenting the still youthful fruit. Excellent.

The disappointment of the wines tried at this vertical. Coffee and VA with some briary notes. Palate is hard and quite green with bitterness coming through toward the back of the palate. Not very appealing.

Amazingly lifted florals and pepper - really beautiful nose. The palate shows the same freshness but with excellent depth as well. Long and brilliantly balanced. Ultra classy and it just kept on getting better the longer it was in the glass.

This was the second bottle opened after the corked one below. It was much more expressive on the nose with tobacco, spice and cherry. The palate is where the scalped nature of the previous bottle is really shown. This bottle was medium weighted and had excellent length and depth. Really very good and it may get better over the next 5 years.

Bacon fat and smoked meats, some floral notes and raspberry. Primary palate, with elegant fruit definition - very good, but lacking the magic and depth to be great.

The viognier is perhaps the most evident on this out of the 97-06 vertical that this was tasted at. Very floral with apricots and spice prominent. The palate is lovely and luscious. Elegant and balanced. Give it a chance to develop complexity in the bottle and I think it will be great.

Chocolate, coffee beans, spice and a floral lift from the well integrated Viognier component. The palate has astounding length and depth. Layered, complex and delicious. Exceptional wine showing superb class already and one of the standouts of the 97-06 vertical.

Milk chocolate, smoked meat and violets. Palate is tightly structured. Good length with the restrained fruit. Very good and will get better with time in bottle.

Soft floral notes from the Viognier, tea leaves, cherry and a touch of five spice. Palate is suave and sophisticated - silky smooth mouthfeel with superb integration of tannin and oak. Superbly structured, this is bursting with the potential to be brilliant.

Raisins, ginger and chocolate aromas. Sweet palate, not much complexity but it is very drinkable.