Served blind against the ’50 and ’75, this was the most expressive of the three, but lacked the delineation of the latter. But it really started motoring after 90-minutes in the glass and by the end of the meal was obviously the best wine of the three and simply one the finest Saint Emilion’s ever made. It is remarkably deep in colour, slightly exotic on the nose with macerated black cherries, hung game, chimney soot, cooked meats, smoke, sloes, singed leather and yes, just a touch of volatility. You cannot take you nose away from it! The palate is sinewy and full-bodied with notes of blackberry, roasted herbs, black tea and an undertow of something fresh and citrus/orange sorbet. It just gets better and better although one senses it has the end of its glorious plateau in sight. You need to taste this Cheval once in your life. Drink now-2015. Tasted September 2008.

The 1964 is a wonderfully rich, thick, powerful, and concentrated wine that is the most authoritative Cheval Blanc produced since the monumental wines made by this chateau in 1947, 1948, and 1949. Opaque dark ruby, with only some amber, and a powerful, yet restrained bouquet of roasted ripe fruit, cedar, herbs, and gravelly, mineral scents, the wine remains amazingly young and tannic, with layer upon layer of ripe fruit. This is a heavyweight, old-style Cheval Blanc that should be pure nectar for at least another 10-15 years. It continues to evolve at a snail's pace. Anticipated maturity: now-2010.