Dark berries, spicy herbs and sea shell undertones. Graphite, too. Ripe but fresh and crunchy with medium to full body and firm, very fine, linear tannins. Long and mineral and delicate on the finish. Really attractive.

The 2022 Haut-Marbuzet has a detailed nose, perhaps less precocious than I anticipated, focused with brambly red fruit, cedar and sous-bois aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins, a fleshy middle, white pepper and clove toward a harmonious finish that gently fans out. There is a pleasing peacock's tail here - a very promising and classy Saint-Estèphe. Tasted three times.

Dark plum and damson, cigar box, grilled cedar and sandalwood, this is highly charged but has lovely eucaplyptus fruit, nice balance, grippy tannins, old school but enjoyable, even with the flash of heat on the finish.

A blend of 50% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot, the 2022 Haut-Marbuzet is a beautiful wine in the making, wafting from the glass with aromas of cherries, sweet wild berries, cassis, mint and pencil lead, intermingled with hints of licorice. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and supple thanks to its ripe and velvety tannins, this is a deep, concentrated and vibrant Saint-Estèphe that is likely to number among the more attractive propositions of the en primeur campaign.

The 2022 Haut-Marbuzet is terrific. Ripe red-toned fruit, blood orange, spice, mint, licorice, mocha and dried herbs are nicely dialed up in this fleshy, racy Saint-Estèphe. Haut-Marbuzet is often one of the most distinctive wines in Bordeaux, as it is once again in 2022.