Good pale colour.Spicy, perfumed, slightly high-toned aromas of ripe citrus fruits and mint. Concentrated and bracing in the mouth, with penetrating acidity and a distinct lemony flavor. Sharply focused, graceful and extremely youthful. Very long, subtle aftertaste features terrific grip. Finishes with notes of spicy oak and butterscotch. Today the above sample seems more dominated by the wood.

Very complex but reserved nose combines deep notes of marzipan and coconut with a lively fruit salad and floral brightness. Thick and rich; this is downright voluptuous for Barsac. But, tasted next to a representative sample of the '97, this showed a bit less grip. Very strong, oak-spicy finish.

The 1996 is a light wine, offering a lemony, citrusy, and white fruit-scented nose with notes of minerals and spice. Medium-bodied, with good acidity, lively fruit, some sweetness, and a youthful finish, this wine should be at its finest between 2003-2015.