The Richebourg rivals the best of the vintage, with an explosive nose of minerals, black fruits, flowers, and smoky new oak. In the mouth, this is great stuff - smashingly rich, voluptuous, opulent and full-bodied, with layer upon layer of sweet black fruits that are bolstered and defined by new oak and adequate acidity.

A very ripe though not stewed nose offers lovely spice, game, leather and earth nuances on the mostly sous-bois suffused aromas. The big, rich and robust flavors display ample muscle on the velvety and sweet finish underpinned by softening though still firm lingering tannins on the lingering and lightly mineral-inflected finale. This still vibrant effort should continue to drink well over the decade. Moreover, I have had relatively consistent experiences with this wine as my scores have mostly ranged from 91 to 93 points. I would point out that I have had one bottle that merited 94 points though none of the others have matched it.