Bright gold with a lively mousse. Deep, pungent nose features powerful scents of minerals, saffron, pear, lilac, buttered apple, pear, white peach and marzipan. Broad and improbably concentrated, the pear and apple flavors packing a huge punch and complicated by buttery, leesy tones. As rich and supple as this is, it also boasts brilliant cut. Finishes with expansive, exotic spice and pear notes, and superb focus and length. This spent nine years on its lees. Already delicious but I'd opt for holding this one for another decade before popping the cork. (JR)

Pol Roger’s 1996 Winston Churchill is fabulous. One of the most expressive, complete 1996s today, the Winston Churchill is in a great spot. Butter, spice, almond and lemon oil notes meld together effortlessly in the glass. In 1996, the Winston Churchill is a clear overachiever. Best of all, it remains reasonably priced vis-à-vis its peers. (AG)

Out of magnum, the 1996 Cuvée Winston Churchill from Pol Roger was initially quite tight, but it blossomed beautifully with extended aeration and really showed stunning potential. The superb nose eventually offers up a complex and classy mélange of apple, pear, caraway seed, a great base of complex soil tones, just a faint whisper of honeycomb and a nice touch of rye bread. On the palate the wine is deep, complex and quite powerfully built, with a rock solid core, firm structural elements, pinpoint bubbles, great acidity and stunning length and grip on the beautifully focused and utterly refined finish. The 1996 is one of the most powerful vintages of Cuvée Winston Churchill that I have ever had the pleasure to taste and it should prove to be a legendary year for this consistently fine wine. This drank better on day two than it did on day one, strongly indicating that several more years of bottle age will prove most rewarding. 94+