You start to feel the dial turning up the power as this travels through the palate. Even at 10 years old, the tannins go in deep around the fruit, with luscious menthol notes on the finish. This is one of the juiciest of the Pauillacs, with layers of plum fruits, tobacco and melted tannins. It's totally firing on all cylinders, although not a blockbuster, reflective of this vintage. But that means you can drink this now, or you can wait; either way you can enjoy what is going on here. (Drink between 2018-2034)

Earthy tannins that are a little austere, this is classic Pauillac but is softened and beginning to show hints of tertiary, soy, olive and sweet strawberry notes. If you are going to drink now, give it a good 2 or 3 hours in carafe to really stretch out, as there are some subtle layers of smoke and cedar that become clearer with time, and this wine is far from giving up all its secrets yet. No mid palate dip, and still with depth to the cassis fruits, but not as concentrated or powerful as the best years. Harvest October 2 to 14, 70% new oak.

The wine is showing some signs of aging, which matches its secondary development as you find forest floor, cigar wrapper, cedar wood and softening of the fruit and tannins. The wine is full bodied, juicy, crisp and fresh. You can start drinking this now, but it will be even better if you wait another 5-7 years for more of the tannins to soften. Read more at:https://www.thewinecellarinsider.com/wine-tasting-note/?vintage=2008&wine=Chateau%20Grand-Puy-Lacoste

Tasted from a bottle opened at the chateau, since the one in Southwold was not showing so well, the 2008 has a lovely, lifted bouquet of blackberry, blood orange, crushed stone, cedar and tar. It is much more vigorous than the previous bottle. The palate is medium-bodied is very supple on the entry with crisp acidity. Smooth and harmonious, the oak needing time to subsume into the fabric of the wine. The finish is fresh, vibrant, nicely poised with good grip and a fine, supple raspberry and briary.

The 2008 Grand-Puy-Lacoste was not showing quite as well as its stable-mate, Haut-Batailly, during my visit to the property in April, but one has to assume that this was simply a moment of adolescent awkwardness for the wine. The nose is very deep and still very closed, as it reluctantly offers up scents of black cherries, cassis, tobacco leaf, plenty of gravelly soil tones, cedar and a smoky topnote. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and rock solid at the core, with lovely, nascent complexity, a superb signature of soil, plenty of ripe tannins, very good acids and fine length and grip on the very gravelly and smoky finish. This will take longer to come around than the Haut-Batailly, but should also prove to be a fine example of the vintage.