2005 Bernadotte

Tasted blind. Shaded garnet. Light but well-melded nose. Juicy and sweet with overtones of Bovril meat extract. Satisfying vitality. GV ? (JR)

Slightly dull crimson. Some odd oak? Very thick and painful to taste – this is pure drying tannins style of Bordeaux – and not really Bordeaux! Nasty aggressive tart finish. (JR)

Space limitations did not allow complete tasting notes for this Cru Bourgeois, but 2005 is the finest vintage for these wines since 1982. The range of scores for these wines should give readers an idea of just how consistent this vintage is at this level. Given the style of the vintage, most of these wines should be accessible young yet evolve for a decade or more because of their concentration and tannic structure.