Storming wine, still generous and full of pleasure, a reminder of just how good Beychevelle has been in the past, and why it's such a joy to see how far it return to form over the past decade. I last had this two years ago, and it hasn't budged one bit - still full of smoked earth, truffles, rose petal and peony floral aromatics, tobacco and undergrowth, softly spun tannins and an unhurried desire to please, still fresh and treading lightly through the palate. Maurice Ruelle winemaker. There is bottle variation in this vintage, but we were lucky with this beautiful example, as I was last time, giving me confidence to put a high score against it.

Remarkably complex with rich, concentrated, tannic currant, spice and anise flavors, wrapped in smoky, cedary oak that gets tastier with every sip. It's best to wait until this one can fully develop, in 1997 or '98.

This remains one of the best Beychevelles in the last 30 years. With its saturated garnet colour and bouquet of roasted fruit, licorice, plums, and currant, this full-bodied, concentrated, rich wine is close to full maturity. Anticipated maturity: now-2015.

The 1986 Beychevelle, which I tasted from magnum at the château, has what you might describe as a light-hearted nose with joie-de-vivre. Even from a larger format, among many 1986s tasted, this is one of the most approachable with wild strawberry, mulberry, cola and graphite aromas that unfurl in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with spice and clove on the entry. It comes across as fleshier than I was anticipating and atypically for the vintage, tapering towards the finish. Arguably rustic compared to some of its Saint Julien bedfellows, it nonetheless has charm and a sense of classicism. Tasted July 2016.