Tasting Notes
Vinous – 91+
Good medium red. Higher-pitched, briary nose hints at raspberry liqueur, Cuban tobacco and exotic fruits. Very sweet entry, then structured and penetrating, with sound acid backbone. Perhaps not now as charming as the last three samples, but the biggest of these wines. Very subtle, long, slow-building finish. Balanced to age.
Robert Parker – 94
This estate’s 1997 Bonnes Mares is seductive and ruby-colored, revealing a gorgeously feminine nose of salty, iodine-laced, sweet, red fruits, this is a fat, super-ripe, and concentrated powerhouse. It regales the palate with dense layers of jammy, black and red fruits, interspersed with earth and stones. This complex, extremely long-finishing, complete wine should offer wonderful drinking over the course of the next decade. Bravo! Importer: Wilson-Daniels, St. Helena, CA; tel (707) 963-9661.