Marked by toasty new oak now, this flashy red shows extracted black cherry and blackberry notes, sweetness and a fresh structure. Plenty of tannins, yet they're ripe and well-integrated. Good spicy length. Best from 2006 through 2012. – BS

A still quite somber nose of distinctly earthy dark pinot fruit aromas leads to round and admirably concentrated medium-bodied flavors that possess good phenolic maturity but culminate in an unusually one-dimensional if persistent finish. There is good underlying material and there is nothing wrong with the balance but as good as this wine usually is it would be fair to observe that at this point it leaves something to be desired. You'll note from my suggested drinking window that this has by no means reached its peak so my score offers the benefit of the doubt that better things are in store. I stress however that this is not a given as 10 years is typically enough to assess reasonably well where a wine is headed. In short, this is disappointing relative to its usual quality.