Solid garnet. A touch of richness on the nose. Nicely cedary. Very smooth, just a touch attenuated on the finish. Lovely start.***

Dense garnet. Quite surly onthenose,adense almost rubbery green note; a touch of pine perhaps. Again, firm on the attack, and drying a little. Fits one’s mental image of St Estelle. Does open out though and round quite nicely without losing its dry frame. Works with food.(*)**

Similar showing here to last bottle 30 months ago: a touch of green and quite cedary on the nose. Similar onpalate, but nicely elegant and with a purity too. Some sweetness to the fruit and a persistence with air, but overwhelmingly an elegance that transcends the vintage. ****

Dry sludgy/muddy with dense fine sediment throughout. Earthy coffee grounds. Sweet-fruited and Roy did palatedespite the sludge. Dense and meaty. Lots of wine here. A cleaner bottle could be top notch. ****

Hmm, feels corked. Shame because there’s a silky, elegant St Julien underneath it. Corniness comes and goes, and after a couple of hours departs completely to leave a host of other issues. Not sure quite what’s up, but it’s a volatile, sweet-fruited, slightly tarty mess. It’s finer points merit a bare ****, its less good points,NR

Coffee and black currant leaf nose. Soft and silky. Really very attractive. Dark red fruit. Silky and elegant. Punching well above it’s weight. Confirms this as the best Batailley vintage I can remember tasting. ****

A touch of sweetness and fruit on the nose. The suggestion of raspberry ripple isn’t as daft as it sounds. A touch of oak too.harmonious though, and nothing overdone. A touch of leather on the finish. Very good. ****

Slightly sweaty and minty nose. Irile and fresh. The sweaty thing does persist though and is joined by an atypical, spikiness. Fluctuates between 93 and 94 — has the energy if not quite the harmony and balance for top flight. ****

Mellow, dark red fruit and a touch of green pepper. Fresh and elegant. Densely silky. Very poised and complete. Classic whilst still being a little racy. *****

Dark red fruit. A touch of configure. Red and black fruit on the palate. Dense yet elegant. A touch of spice too.just lovely, and a touch more youthful than the LLC! *****

Dense red fruit and lapsang nose. Bright and vibrant. Just so much energy. A touch more verve and vibrancy than the Ducru. Impressive and lovely. *****

Horribly, totally and incontrovertibly corked.