Deep, bright ruby. Blackberry and blueberry liqueur, licorice, spices, graphite and toffee on the nose, with a pungent mineral lift. Dense, sappy and superconcentrated, with a silky, voluptuous texture to its flavors of dark berries and graphite. The combination of smooth, plush texture and penetrating minerality is truly exhilarating. There's a coolness here and a deep vinosity, not to mention substantial building but noble tannins, that suggest this wine is going to go on for decades. Hands off for at least a few years.

Tasted blind at Farr Vintners' 2006 tasting, the 2006 La Mondotte offers a pleasant bouquet with red cherries, iodine and blueberry fruit, quite warm and generous, a nose that comes out and hugs you. The palate is mature with a slightly smudged entry: dusky black fruit, earthy and with moderate depth. It does not really fan out towards the finish as I was expecting, though there is a pleasant saline edge that beckons you back for the next sip. This is well crafted and elegant, packed full of flavor with good prospects to age over the next decade. Tasted April 2016.

Tasted blind. Blackish crimson with a ruby rim. Very light nose. Sweet and rich and tarry. Good confident make-up but I’d like a little more freshness. It is more youthful and punchy than most. (JR)