Wine Spectator: This has good ripe plum and black cherry fruit woven with a currant eau-de-vie aroma. There's fine-grained structure and an easy, vanilla-tinged finish. Not as dense as the to...

Wine Spectator: Very polished and stylish, with a velvety feel to the layers of crushed plum, currant and blackberry, while bittersweet cocoa and black licorice glide in on the gorgeous, blac...

Wine Spectator: Tightly wound, with a good chalky vibrancy and taut red currant, damson plum and bitter cherry notes that show ample length. Tasted non-blind.-J.M.

Wine Spectator: This red offers a grippy, charcoal-laced feel, cloaked by very fleshy plum, currant and blackberry confiture flavors. The long, tarry spine drives the finish, with extra bay l...

Wine Enthusiast: For anybody looking for classic Bordeaux, this is the bottle to seek. "Classic" here means a wine with a tannic structure that also relies on a black currant flavor, with acid...

Wine Spectator: This has density, structure and drive, offering seriously dark baker's chocolate, plum, currant and fig flavors all wound up tightly by singed cedar, tar and dark tapenade not...

Wine Spectator: Dark but racy, with chocolate-covered raspberry and blackberry fruit carried by graphite and toasty cinnamon, black tea and anise flavors. Firms up on the finish, with a lovel...

Wine Spectator: Lilac and violet aromas quickly give way to dark toasted spice and black tea notes, followed by remarkably creamy-textured cassis and plum compote flavors, all offset beautifu...

Alexandra Fondren: Medium garnet core fades to a brick rim. Though it takes some coaxing, with air the bouquet reveals dried plum and black cherry, along with tobacco, savory mushroom and roaste...

Wine Spectator: Offers pure, driven plum, cassis and black cherry notes inlaid with graphite and roasted wood spice. Dense without being overextracted. Very sleek. Rock-solid.-J.M.

Wine Spectator: ; A luscious Lafite that is silky and elegant with layers of wonderful violet, berry, cherry and chocolate flavors. It's full-bodied, with racy, refined tannins and good lengt...

Wine Spectator: Starts well on the palate but slows down. Lovely aromas of cherry and dark chocolate and hints of earth and vanilla. Full-bodied and velvety, with medium fruit and a medium fi...

Wine Spectator: A real achievement for the vintage, boasting plenty of fruit, tobacco and dark chocolate character. Full-bodied and velvety; impressive richness of ripe tannins. Better in 199...

Wine Spectator: Solidly built, with a roasted edge to the steeped fig, blackberry and black currant flavors, quickly followed by brambly tannins and notes of bay leaf and espresso. Stays dark...

Wine Spectator: Focused blackberry, currant and cherry sauce flavors show notes of sweet tobacco and nicely roasted spice on the finish, with integrated grip.-J.M.

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: This is an up and coming Pauillac estate that is making better and better wines. Moreover, they remain realistically priced. This is a Medoc 1998 that is revealing more mid...

Wine Spectator: This is nicely packed for the vintage, with flavors of apple wood, cherry preserves and sandalwood laced with black tea and plum notes on the finish. A step up in range and de...