November 17, 2023 - Fruit Day - no ingress into the cork at all. Wine level at just above the bottom of the neck. Decanted off quite of bit of sediment which was (fortunately) stuck to the side of the bottle making it difficult to see the finer sediment. In the glass it’s translucent garnet with just a bit of browning showing. The nose is wonderfully Old World Bordeaux - cedar, damp earth, old leather, pipe tobacco and dried dark fruit. On the medium bodied palate it shows the cedar, tobacco, leather and dried fruit as a composite with the leather and dried fruit continuing into the long finish. There’s still some tannin showing as the fruit has faded making this for me a food wine but it’s a very mellow and somewhat sophisticated wine. Drink now only because the fruit is fading - it’s well balanced.
Fruit Day - 7 days later and it has been sitting on the sideboard with only the cork in it (about 1/3 bottle of wine). It has remarkably stayed almost the same at the first day - if anything the fruit is showing much better today than a week ago! Today (last glass) it’s got a nose of coconut, light spice, plum compote and just a hint of cedar. On the palate there’s the cedar, damp earth and tobacco I noted on the initial glass but there’s also some fresh fruit showing (perhaps the tannin has mitigated just enough for it to show?) as well as some dried fruit. I like this version of it even better than my original glass. Not changing the points but it suggests this wine is still on the plateau and could hold another couple of years under good cellaring conditions.
June 19, 2022 - Perfect RB bdx.
March 8, 2022 - Very nice wine. Maybe a bit heavy-handed, but really lush and big-bodied. Slight edge on the finish. Drink now or in the next few years.
February 20, 2022 - Dead
January 22, 2022 - Further to my Note of Apr 18, '20: this has finished the first case. Decanted with normal sediment for its age. Dark purple, no amber; mature, muted red fruit that follows on the palate, good mouthfeel but a bit flabby. Holding well for a Merlot but not worth holding longer--good for everyday. Still notable+.
December 14, 2021 - Nose a little heavy with the wood but swirling brings out some floral qualities. The palate still very alive with black cherry and blackberry in moderate intensity with lush mouthfeel and some burly tannins. Low to medium acid. Decent length on the finish!
July 13, 2021 - Cherry jubilee! Nose has nice aged notes - earth, cigars, oak - but the palette is fresh with ripe juicy black cherries. Not very complex but the focus and the nice balance of acid and soft tannins make it worth the very reasonable price.
June 12, 2021 - Decanted and drank over 3 days. Nose with cassis and cedar with hints of barnyard and menthol. Palate medium bodied with dark cherries, cassis - low to moderate acidity. Finish moderate length with woody tannins that are somewhat drying; however this effect softened up with time. Best to decant for a few hours I figure - will try this next time.
Overall, moderately complex aged Bordeaux at an excellent price.
November 25, 2020 - Drinking really well. Lush wine with structure to hold it for several more years. Nothing wrong with drinking it now
July 12, 2020 - This is a truly splendid example of a perfectly made 2003 Bordeaux. The color is still very deep with no hints of ageing. On the nose an explosion of red and black fruit. Very chewy on the palate, lots of substance, quite tannic, needs a good 45 min in the decanter. Great length, a fantastic wine at a truly remarkable price. So glad I bought 60 bottles en primeur a! Don’t hesitate buying at least a case if you can find it.