I tasted this wine on release and remembered it as being very intense, dense and oaky. So it was good to try it again, 10 years on from vintage. Syrah 89%, Viognier 11%, average age of vines over 100 years. Some slight browning at the glass rim. A beautiful, complex nose of dark fruit, sous bois, mushrooms, smokey barbequed meats and cinnamon. Detailed on palate, showing some evolution, layers including red and black cherries, dry brushwood, dark chocolate, cool minerals, mocha and leather saddle. Good acidity and ultra-fine grained tannins. Drinking well now. Fresh but the oak, the wine had 42 months in new barrique, is now largely integrated and in proportion. It'll cellar for at least 10-20 years easily.

A more evolved colour than the similarly aged Bordeaux beside it but still pretty dark. An expressive, complex bouquet of dark fruit, sandalwood, meat broth, tobacco, black spices and tar. Quite a primary nose for a 17 year old wine. No real oak artefact on bouquet or palate. In the mouth, multilayered and nuanced, constantly evolving with time in the glass. The impression of youth, the wine is not much more than a baby. Fairly closed, tight and grippy but overall very well proportioned, balanced and elegant. Savoury flavours of cooked meats, creosote, earth, blackberries and espresso. Wayne said that the last glass showed even better the next day, thicker and spicier. Better than the recent 2006 La Mouline. Excellent now, it'll benefit from another 10+ years in the cellar.