Excellent red-ruby color. Multifaceted nose hints at dried rose, raspberry, cherry, white pepper and minerals. Dense and thick in the mouth; conveys an impression of lushness in spite of its strong backbone and firm acidity. Finishes with terrific grip and length, with tannins buffered by fruit. This will develop in bottle for many years but has the early balance to give pleasure now.

Displaying a dark ruby color and a fabulous nose of candied red fruits and cookie dough, this wine is an immensely rich, multi-dimensional masterpiece. This broad-shouldered, ample, oily-textured, masculine, structured, and medium-to-full-bodied wine is formidably concentrated and complex. Highly-focused blackberries, violets, lilies, stones, earth, and cassis flavors are intermingled with grilled and spiced new oak. Its prodigiously long finish is expansive, rendering its copious and supple tannins invisible. Anticipated maturity: 2005-2017. Roumier informed me he was planning to bottle his 1996s earlier than usual to "trap the fruit." He is of the opinion that they will not be exuberant, charming, and seductive following bottling. Virtually every vigneron agreed that the 1996s have been a delight to drink from the moment the grapes were pressed. Yet Roumier thinks they will need years to be expressive. Those 1996s that I have tasted stateside have maintained their forward, fruity character, but time will tell. Importer: Chateaux and Estates Wine Co., New York, NY; Tel; (212) 572-7725.

The 1996 Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru is a little subdued on the nose and does not quite convey the same complexity as the 1998 by direct comparison. Dark and broody, this feels aloof and distant. It is much better on the palate with an almost rigid tannic backbone, sturdy and grippy in the mouth, although you have to say, you would have liked a little more charm. This is one Bonnes-Mares that reflects the style of Burgundy winemaking at that time, maybe just a little over-extracted in the winery? Tasted at the Roumier vertical in London.