The colour of this wine is something to behold - an opaque, yet vivid purple, with a barely 2mm rim. The nose is packed with aromas of bramble, stewed plum, citrus, cedar and leather, with a hint of meaty/herby savouriness. The palate is full-bodied, young and vibrant, yet beautifully poised and fresh, with plenty of acidity to match the ripe fruit and grippy tannins. I guess the faint of heart might want to give this 2 or 3 years in the cellar to let the tannins soften a little, but I was quite happy to drink it now - with food, of course. I just happened to pair it with a grilled pork chop, but it would be ideal with a medium-rare steak, sausages, or a hearty winter stew.

It isn't quite black, but it is almost blue! As dark as the Tradition, if not a little more so. It has pungent aromas of bramble, black cherry and plum, with all sorts of spice, tobacco and kirsch notes and a strong whiff of freshly-baked bread. And despite the colour (which is a bit daunting!) this is certainly no highly-extracted brute - rather, it is beautifully balanced, supple and not without elegance, even at this early stage. Yes, there are tannins in abundance, but they are wonderfully ripe and velvety, and once again the acidity is ample. The fruit is very ripe, but nicely extracted, whilst the judicious oak-ageing keeps it all together. It really is a lovely wine, which doesn't bore you after a single glass. Another wine which can be drunk now, with pleasure (and of course with food) or aged for a further 5 to 8 years.

Not quite black, but not far off - the colour is deep, dark, opaque purple with barely even a visible rim! On day one, this is pretty difficult to taste, such is the sheer taughtness of its structure, although there is clearly a very serious wine lurking beneath. On day 2, it begins to open-up and show real class, displaying intense aromas of bramble, blackcurrant, black cherry and plum, with background notes of damp earth, polished leather, cedar and charred oak. And whilst the tannins are still very grippy and tight, the fruit is much more expressive - ripe, extracted and spicy, though certainly not overtly rich or sweet, with plenty of balancing acidity. Previous vintages of this wine have come across as rather modern and - though possibly also built to last - made to be approachable at a relatively young age. This one, however, makes no attempt to please the moderinists and probably needs at least 5 more years (and possibly 10+) to even begin to show its true potential. But with that much structure - and that much fruit - this is a wine which will eventually blossom into something rather special - and blow much loftier (and far more expensive) so-called "classed growth" Claret out of the water.