Love the 2003 right now in the St Julien appellation, fully ready to drink, welcoming and surprisingly fresh when you think about the heat of the vintage. Full emphasis on cloves, cumin and tobacco, campfire, brambled...

This is a blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18% Merlot, and the élevage was 18 months in 100% new oak. A surprisingly perfumed example of Ducru-Beaucaillou, forgoing the dark intensity of Cabernet Sauvignon I intended...

A classic Leoville Las Cases with blackcurrants, blackberries, stone, graphite and lavender aromas that follow through to a medium body with firm and refined tannins and a juicy finish. Plenty of subtle flavor at the end...

Dark plum and blackberry fruit is a touch sedate, but has depth and avoids the vintage's grainy feel as it integrates with the solid toast and tobacco notes on the finish, which shows a subtle tug of iron at the very end...