Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. Really nice, aromatic nose, with tons of white fruit and aromatics. Spicy, a touch of melon, and some high-toned aromas, but they're subdued and seem to integrate nicely. The palate, however, is a little less attractive; showing some bitterness and waxiness. Almost a touch of sweetness (certainly feels that way), but lacking in acidity. Seems clear that this is a white Rhone -- it's nice, but definitely not in my style.

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. A slight bit of barnyard and campfire on the nose here, but there's so much to love, with the intense spice and ripe fruit. There's a moderate hint of plum here as well. The palate has some very nice sweetness and richness, with a nice hint of iron on the finish. Definitely one that is showing its age. Not too weird and funky; but I definitely liked the nose far more than the palate here. (My 4th, group's 1st.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. The nose on this feels a little muted, and there isn't too much expression, apart from a bit of dirty earth. There's a slight bit of an alcoholic burn on the nose as well, and when you dig for it, the fruit starts to show up, even if it is, at the end of the day, on the muted side. Air changes the story, and you start picking up a bit of coffee on the nose too. The palate shows lots of acidity, and the fruit isn't too sweet. This is also likely a cooler vintage, but overall, it's a little more dumb and mute than I'd like. (My 2nd, group's 2nd.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. Slightly farm-forward on the nose here, with a bit of heady, sweet fruit. The palate here shows its acidity much better than many of the other wines, but this one certainly feels a little more ornery as well. It's a cooler year, with the fruit not showing as flashy, but there's a restraint here that I just love. With some extended air, I feel that the brett gets more prominent. (My 1st, group's 3rd.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. This shows a lot of rust and iron on the nose, to the point where it's almost distracting from some of the other things. Perhaps it's not the soundest of bottles? The palate seems slightly cooked too, with more brown and oxidative flavours than I'd expect. There's still a pretty strong tannic structure here though. (My 5th, group's 10th.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. Corked. (My 12th, group's 12th.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. There's ample volatility on the nose of this, with tons of high-toned balsamic notes, as well as a hint of strawberry. The palate is quite rich, and shows a lot of dried fruit, as well as sweetness. The tannic structure has some ways to go, but to my palate, it's sufficiently resolved to give this a little bit of a fight. Here, the palate is definitely a lot better than the nose. (My 6th, group's 11th.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. Clearly a younger wine, with its generous amounts of black fruit. Intense, with a massive tannic structure, and loads upon loads of tannin. Quite ripe, but not too expressive. Feels a tad alcoholic as well, especially in comparison with the older wines. 2005? (My 7th, group's 9th.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. A hint of sweet fruit here, as well as some almost perfumed floral tones, though this is hardly a delicate wine. I also picked out a little bit of rust on the nose, which leads me to think this has more than a decade under its belt. The palate feels a little soft, and the structure isn't quite there. On the other hand, this definitely seems to be higher in acid than most. The hints of dried fruit here seem to be at odds with the acidity. (My 3rd, group's 7th.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. Very dark and intense nose, with an almost inkiness to it. Black cherry and vanilla, but not in an over-the-top sort of way. The palate is really roasted, and shows an incredible amount of tannin. Really chunky and coarse, hard, and slightly bitter. 2003? (My 11th, group's 6th.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. A bit of heady alcohol on the nose here. This is clearly a relatively recent version of this wine. Almost a slight hint of mint to go with all that extreme fruit. Then, the palate. How weird! It's almost sour, and the tannic structure, while young, is clearly unresolved. Really chewy. 2006? (My 8th, group's 4th.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. Immensely ripe and high-toned on the nose. Dried fruit, to the point it's almost a little pruney. The palate shows just a little stewy fruit, with some acidity that seems to be coming from the decay of the wine rather than from the beginning. Chunky, unintegrated tannins, and not a particularly convincing wine. (My 10th, group's 8th.)

Served double-blind in a Beaucastel lineup. There's a hint of brett on the nose here that seems to cloud all the rest of the black fruit. I'm not enamoured with the balsamic notes here either. Really sweet and juicy on the palate, but the tannins are really coarse and hard here. Black fruited as well, but a tad alcoholic and raisiny for my taste. (My 9th, group's 5th.)

Served double blind, from half bottle (and correctly identified, no less!). What a treat to have this brilliant wine again. To my palate, this is probably one of the best wines that SQN has ever made. This is a low-octane fruit bomb, with intense black fruit all over the place. Yes, it's straw wine, but it actually doesn't come off as particularly raisiny. The intense sweetness seems to be balanced more by the chalky tannins than anything else. Extremely complex and rich, but without the alcoholic heaviness.