April 26, 2024 - Another beautiful '96 with a bit more heft than the Pichon but not as refined. What was interesting was how clear the difference was between Pauillac and St. Julien with the Ducru showing more on the red fruit spectrum with a fabulous spicy complexity on the finish. As David said correctly, it did begin to fade in the glass while the Pichon held up better so drink this with a short decant. 95
April 19, 2024 - Excellent condition. Spicy nose. Medium to full bodied. Drinking beautifully. From Julian
March 2, 2024 - Same notes as last year’s bottle
February 25, 2024 - A concetrated and deep nose of wet soil, cassia, black fruit, leather, and fresh tobacco.
Med+ body, med+ acid, med+ tannin.
This is drinking great. Plenty of fruit on the palate and a nice fresh acidity to balance it off. Tannins are grippy. This is in a nice spot. Not sure how much upside there is to holding but suggest trying again in the next year or two.
February 24, 2024 - Lovely bottle. Aging gracefully with plenty of time to age and drink even more beautifully over time. Have one more bottle that I’ll tuck away for 10 years or so.
February 11, 2024 - Medium deep red to slight browning at edge, lovely cedary bouquet with plenty of fruit, fairly soft tannins on the palate, nice fruit and beautifully balanced & a long finish.
A lovely bottle of claret.
January 24, 2024 - Dark ruby red with orange rim. Blackcurrant, blackberry, cedar, cigar, pu'er tea, old saddle, and liquorice. Medium bodied, medium acidity, medium silky tannin, medium structure and medium alcohol. It was high tone (cool) but certain Zen to it. Long classic old school finish.
December 26, 2023 - Turning
December 25, 2023 - Another fabulous showing for this wine. The aromatics of cedar, tobacco, forest floor, red and dark fruits presented themselves from the outset, becoming more pronounced over a couple of hours. Carefully decanted off its fine sediment. Medium-bodied palate with predominantly red fruit and a cedar-infused finish. Long finish fanning out like a peacock's tail. A profound bottle that is at its apex and may hold at this level for a number of years still.
November 3, 2023 - Sadly my last bottle as it was absolutely brilliant drinking.
Decanted maybe an hour as there was a minimal amount of sediment. Classic aged Bordeaux on the nose, with cassis, wet leaves and leather reflecting the tertiary aspects. Having said that, there was still plenty of fruit left - this is in perfect balance for drinking!
Nose slightly better than palate but that was nit-picking.