This wine turned out much better than I expected. At a young age, it was somewhat disjointed and seemingly lacked acidity, but there is no doubting its level of concentration. It has firmed up and lost some of its baby fat, and now reveals plenty of sweet, smoky, leathery black currant fruit, a plush, opulent mouthfeel, and has reached full maturity. The color is starting to brick at the edge of the glass. This complex, rich 1982 is best consumed over the next 5-8 years.

Tasted at the London Pichon-Baron off-line. This is certainly the best bottle of Pichon-Baron ’82 that I have encountered. An expressive, open-knit nose with autumn leaves, earth, cedar and a touch of Asian spice. The palate is well balance and demonstrating more vigour than I presupposed. It has an elegant, slightly furry finish with a tang of dried orange peel. A little ‘stewy’ but no signs of oxidation, but it does not have the depth of length an ’82 Pauillac should own plus it paled next to a Pichon-Lalande ’82 tasted the previous evening. Soft leafy finish.