Wine Spectator: Stunning and pure from the get-go, with intense cassis and blackberry fruit. Ultimately takes a slightly austere approach, with a wrought-iron structure driving along while pa...

Wine Spectator: An extremely well-sculpted, modern wine, with an enormous core of plum sauce, blackberry coulis and cassis fruit to match the ambitious roasted apple wood-, black tea- and tob...

Wine Spectator: Ripe and silky, with a flamboyant edge to the plum sauce, anise-soaked currant fruit and dark blackberry paste flavors. The tannins are dense but velvety, and the finish casca...

Stephen Tanzer's IWC: Slight SO2 and a whiff of licorice on the nose. Fat, oaky and moderately thick; fairly sweet but doesn't offer the shape or depth of flavor of the '97. The finish, though, is ...

Wine Spectator: A tremendous effort, dark, ripe, rich, deeply concentrated, with layers of thick currant, black cherry, wild berry, spice, anise and toasty oak, finishing with a long, complex...

Wine Spectator: Delivers a pure beam of cassis, raspberry and cherry, with lightly toasted spice notes and a firm plum skin edge holding sway on the finish. Stretched out somewhat already, th...

Wine Spectator: Features substantial but very velvety structure running from start to finish, delivering a muscular feel for now. The hard edges are fully absorbed by the core of plum sauce, ...

Stephen Tanzer's IWC: Slight SO2 and a whiff of licorice on the nose. Fat, oaky and moderately thick; fairly sweet but doesn't offer the shape or depth of flavor of the '97. The finish, though, is ...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: The 1982 vintage, seriously maligned because of the rains that plagued the harvest in Sauternes, was actually an outstanding vintage for both d'Yquem and its nearby neighbor, ...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: Winemaker John Duval called the 1981 a "big, tannic Grange." It is just that, a very powerful, inky, purple-colored wine that is still almost primary and unevolved i...

Wine Spectator: Juicy and direct, with a relatively friendly feel to the plum, blackberry and blueberry fruit, all coated with a ganache note that hangs through the finish. Surprisingly acces...

Wine Spectator: Breathtaking aromas of crushed blackberries, dark chocolate and cassis. Full-bodied, with big and velvety tannins and intense fruit. Long finish. Massive. But polished and ver...

Wine Spectator: A big, broad-shouldered style, with lots of bittersweet cocoa and coffee up front, followed by thick-textured blackberry and black currant fruit. Shows a bit more brute force ...

Wine Spectator: This is lavishly oaked, with dark espresso, mocha and bittersweet cocoa notes proudly leading the way, while the core of fig sauce, melted licorice snap and blackberry confitu...

Wine Spectator: This is grace and power, delivering stunning Lapsang souchong tea and pain d'épices aromatics, followed by incredibly lush, yet refined blackberry, steeped black currant and d...

Wine Spectator: This delivers a slightly chewy-edged feel, with charcoal and roasted alder hints holding sway over the core of steeped damson plum, black currant and anise notes. Shows grip t...

Wine Spectator: Very ripe and flattering, with loads of linzer torte, cassis and crushed cherry fruit, but well-supported by notes of cocoa, graphite and toasty spice. The finish is long and ...

Wine Spectator: Dark, intense and deeply concentrated, with a sharp, tight beam of currant, blackberry and cherry, complex and spicy. The tannins are woven in, giving it seamless texture, and...

About this Wine: Made mostly from Merlot, this elegant wine displaying silky tannins has grown into a grand cru in its own right.

Wine Spectator: This takes a broader approach, with almost stolid tobacco and charcoal structure guarding the core of black currant, roasted fig and blackberry confiture flavors. Long and ver...