Tasted ex-château and single blind in Southwold. With yet another strong performance under blind conditions, the Lagrange 2008 continues as one of the most consistent performers in this consistent commune. It has a slightly bretty nose that subdues the fruit, notes of iodine and violets emerging with time. The palate is medium-bodied with firm, ripe tannins, well balanced with a much cleaner entry than the nose suggest. It improves all the time in the glass but those tannins will take years to melt. Impressive. Tasted January 2012.

(92-94 pts)
Good fruit concentration on the nose, but it has clammed up a little since primeur. Notes of cigar box develop with aeration. The palate is masculine, fine structure, good density and balance with a structure, almost foursquare finish that displays impressive persistency. Excellent. Tasted September 2009

The rather overt oak often found in this cuvee seems to have been considerably tamed in the 2008. It is more charming, displaying a plush texture along with sweet cassis and black cherry fruit intertwined with intriguing notes of Christmas fruitcake, spice box, and herbs. There is plenty of sweet tannin in this medium-bodied effort, but unlike the tannins in the right bank wines, the tannins in most of the northern Medocs are more prominent, largely because these wines possess high percentages of Cabernet Sauvignon. Five to eight years of patience will be required, and the 2008 Lagrange should last for 25 years.