An elegant, pretty Quinault, the 2004 displays a dense ruby/purple color along with a big, rich nose of licorice, black raspberries, cherries, and spice. This blend of 71% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec possesses an excellent texture, beautiful elegance and complexity, and no hard edges. A seamlessly made, supple-textured, evolved, forward effort, it can be drunk now or cellared for 12-15 years. This is a very strong effort in a challenging vintage.

(tasted from tank; to be bottled in June) Red-ruby. Maraschino cherry, raspberry, mocha, iron and smoky oak aromas. Suave and sweet; less intense than the 2005 but ripe and juicy, with a subtly persistent finish of spices, cherry and boysenberry. This is showing a lot of personality today despite the fact that it's on its finings.

Exceptionally deep crimson. Oddly stewed nose. Some more vitality on the palate. Some green notes too though. This tastes almost more New World than St Emilion. Very tight, sandy tannins. Hard work at this stage. It may take on fat? (JR)