($135; 76% cabernet sauvignon, 13% merlot, 8% petit verdot and 3% cabernet franc) Ruby-red. Smoky cherry and cassis aromas are complicated by wilted rose, cured meat, licorice and sexy oak spices. Lush and creamy in texture, offering well-delineated red- and blackcurrant flavors, good dusty tannic grip, and a sweet, expansive finish. Impressively deep and chewy, but good mineral lift keeps everything in check.

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Particularly dark and dense – strongly marked by Cabernet aromas yet very graceful tannins as well as being so ambitious. Very virile. 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, 8% Petit Verdot, 3% Cabernet Franc.

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The 2004 Monte Bello (76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc) reveals a similar dark ruby/purple color, but it is not as thick looking as the 2003 or 2005. A lighter, more elegant example of Monte Bello, the finesse-styled 2004 does not possess the power one normally sees in this wine. It offers pure fruit, a pretty, St.-Julien-like style, notes of cedar, spice box, herbs, background oak, and red as well as black currants, and silky tannin. It is capable of lasting 15-20 years.

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A mix of elegance and power, with deep, dark, concentrated cherry cassis, spicebox and cedar notes. Chewy, rustic nuances of herb, eucalyptus, leather and sage flavors fill out on the finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc.

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