Nice blend of elegance and autolysis, rich and full bodied palate, finish is medium length. Very nice NV, but then again this is a lot more expensive than a typical NV. 89-90

Golden; high intensity aromatics, brioche, lemon-lime, complex and balanced; palate is medium-full bodied, lovely tart lemon-lime acidity with a bit of richness. A nice blended style, and certainly complexity worthy of a tête du cuvée. 93

Golden, slight oxidation but not premoxed; palate is a bit honeyed, peach and pear; finish is medium length. This is interesting, but perhaps better a bit younger. 89

Yellow-golden; a bit of matchstick, a bit of sulfur and reduction, white fruit; palate is medium-full bodied, white fruit, but not quite as much complexity as I usually see in Clos de la Mouchere. 91

Light ruby, red bramble fruit, nice core of minerality; palate is light bodied, youthful, red fruit, length a bit clipped but quite nice balance. 90

Light ruby; deeper red fruit, youthful; palate is medium bodied, medium-plus acid, tannins pretty integrated, red fruit; finish is medium length. Good but not a stand out. 90-91

Superb nose with high intensity, mature fruit, forest floor, superb; palate is medium bodied, elegant alcohol, integrated tannins, capsicum, still some remaining fruit; finish is medium-long. Absolutely amazing and classic Bordeaux. 95

Medium ruby with age-appropriate bricking, noticeably lighter than the '99 and '03; complex aromatics on the nose with red fruit, sois bois, black currant; palate is medium-full bodied, integrated tannins, low balanced alcohol (12.5% on the label), medium-plus acidity, black cherry, blackberry; finish is medium length. Very good, seems fully mature with integrated tannins compared to the '99 which might have a decade left in it. 93
Day 2: Absolutely no oxidation or decline at all. This is still a lovely St. Julien, maybe even better balanced today. Certainly this will improve for 5-10 years and last another decade after that. 93-94++

Not that aromatic, some black fruits; palate is full bodied, still plenty of deeper black fruits, medium-plus acidity; medium finish. Nice balance and still youthful, but doesn’t have the complexity of other vintages here tonight. 88

Deep ruby but with age-appropriate bricking; nose is highly aromatic with red and black fruits, slight forest floor mulch, leafy greens, slight capsicum; palate is full bodied, balanced low alcohol (12.5% on the label), medium-plus fresh acidity throughout, still a good amount of black fruit remaining, tannins still present and a touch youthful but fairly well integrated; finish is medium length and clean. This is a beautiful, classic Bordeaux. 6 years since my last taste, this is now at maturity but certainly not on the decline and probably has 5-7 more years ahead of it. 92-93.
Day 2: Still drinking well, but today not as complex as the '96. Also comes across as still youthful with still some tannins present and plenty of primary fruit. 92

Decanted, appropriate amount of sediment for its age. Deep youthful ruby; nose is aromatic and youthful with blackberry, some plum, some St. Julien minerality, a bit of iodine; palate is full bodied, smooth rich blackberry fruits, alcohol is present but not at all out of place (13% on bottle), medium fresh acidity; medium to medium-plus length finish. Perhaps a touch more modern than most Leoville Barton, but still classically bordeaux by any measure and well balanced; this is a youthful bordeaux with character on a lovely maturing curve with 1-2 decades of growth ahead of it. My next bottle in 3-5 years. 93++
6 hours double decanted: rich, more full bodied than the others in the lineup but still balanced and very nice. Tannic and needs a lot of time. 93++
Day 3: Still well balanced, richer than other vintages in this lineup but delicious and showing well.

From a 375. Lovely light golden color; highly aromatic, floral, light apricot; palate is light to medium bodied, very youthful actually, elegant texture throughout, balanced medium alcohol but shows just a touch; finish is medium, a bit shorter than previous bottles. Lovely climens, excellent year, but not showing quite as well as my last bottle. Seems younger and less mature. 92