The color was a bit darker than expected and the nose showed perhaps a bit advanced with good intensity of aromas that started out a bit wooly slowly revealing layers of light petrol, slate, dried figs and lots of pollen and dried floral notes. Crisp and focused in the mouth this offers great rapier-like acidity and crunchy minerality with rich apricot notes appearing on the backend leading to a long finish with citrus and peach pit notes. Relaxes with air offering a but more body and softening at the edges. This drinks more youthful than I expected from the nose. Will improve.

This started out with some dirty barrel funk that caused quite some discussion before it blew off. Started right out the gate with that dirty nose complimented by lots of roasted and dried fruits with a floral almost spicy herbal note The floral aspect of the nose built and when the funk blew off there was great intensity of raspberry fruit with gentle blond tobacco nuances. In the mouth this was young at first blush, even though it was double decanted 2 hours before service, offering an initial impression that was a bit tough and lean. The palate fills in and offers glimpses of raspberry confiture that remain just a touch muddy but turns admirably more complex with an autumnal tone, some black spice/minerality up front and a moderately long finish. This is drinking well today with decanting but will benefit from another 2-5 years in the cellar.

Coming after the Reservee I was not particularly impressed with this. Not revealing much on the nose with a cool, menthol tinged woodsy/pine balsam tone this was obviously bigger and richer in the mouth but was overly tannic, and dry stemmy tannins at that. Once you peaked behind the wall of curtains there appears to be a solid core of dark, slightly jammy cherry fruit and the nose offers up intirguing notes of violets and aspirin with some coaxing but this is not delivering tonight and while it appears to have excellent potential is very possibly just too tannic to ever be well balanced.

This is offering a fairly intense array of aromatics from the git go with beef blood, pepper, smoke, creosote and a significant dose of brett. In the mouth this was at first promisingly rich with meaty, cherried fruit but the acidity is to low to offer any lift or persistence to the flavors and the wine seems clumsy and short.

This wine just crushed the Landonne, Earthy and leathery on the nose but without any dirtiness, in its stead just layered and pure raspberry with a lightly smoky, gamy adge, subtle sagy green herb notes a touch of green peppercorn. In the mouth this offers great intensity of flavor with dark strawberry fruits and a note of green peppercorn as on the nose followed by complicating noes of pressed flowers and nut oil. Elegant and bright in the mouth with fairly resolved, soft tannins and wonderful energy in the mouth that lead to a long, resonant finish. This is firmly at peak and just singing tonight.

This has a lovely and typical nose with good depth to the nuanced array of camphor, thistle, chalk and huckleberry. In the mouth this is soft and chewy with a mouthfilling presence to the flavors of cherry and mineral. Starting out just slightly austere this fills in well with light spice notes and incipient sweetness across the palate and into the long finish that ends with a flourish of porcini. at peak and holding it's a shame that this wine this was to be paired with was infinitely corked.

We changed speeds with the Bordeaux flight and this offered a good introduction with it's roasted beef notes on the nose that were joined by espresso crema, butter toffee, roasted green herb and sweet spearmint notes that complicated the dark, jammy fruit. With time a bit of leather, limestone and cigar join the fruit. This offers great integration in the mouth with bright acidity though the tannins remain slightly drying. Good mineraly grab in the mouth followed by lots of cedary tinged fruit that leans toward the more delicate, mulberry end of the spectrum with a gentle leafiness. This could still use 5-7 years in the cellar.

This on the other hand offers up a more feral nose full of ass, leather, light toast, intense with more earth and iron rich greens than the Troplong though similarly beefy. Rich and packed with soft tannins this has a very appealing mouthfeel with great red berry fruit up front leading to an almost praline cream and mocha tinged midpalate that is folowed by a short, tight finish. An interesting combination of wood and fruit notes that still needs time to integrate but seems to have excellent balance and a promising future. Give it 3-5 years.

This is rocking> Apon opening this is just a poof of something lactic followed by a decidely ferny green herb note with hints of perfumey soap and light cedar notes to the rich, fresh red fruits. This is lighter and much more elegant than either the Troplong or Figeac with fresh red fruits in the mouth and wonderfully ripe tannins. Medium bodied with solid, vibrant acidity, this could easily be underwhelming in a crowd but it is exactly that subtle complexity that warrants and rewards attention. A great Bordeaux, really quintessential and at peak with a long future ahead.