(like the Tychson Hill bottling, this is 15.6% alcohol) Good deep ruby-red. Highly nuanced nose offers raspberry, violet, minerals, licorice, mocha, tobacco and flowers, plus a whiff of game. Large-scaled, fat and rich; a bit plumper and more oily in the middle than the Tychson Hill and Herb Lamb offerings but ultimately less nuanced. But this impressively sweet and sexy wine is a no-brainer for those who can find and afford it. Finishes broad and spicy, with very fine-grained tannins. This is mostly from vines planted in the late '80s in Madrona Vineyard.

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Performing even better than when I originally tasted it (scored 96+ at that time), the 2005 is composed of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Franc and 9% Petit Verdot. The first vintage where Allison Tauziet had complete control after Mark Aubert left to pursue his own wine venture, the 2005 continues to grow in stature and complexity. It exhibits an opaque purple color, a youthful style (it tastes like a 2-3 year old wine) and abundant notes of black fruits, acacia flowers, espresso, white chocolate, crushed rock and licorice. Full-bodied and velvety textured with fabulous concentration, high but sweet tannin and a 60+ second finish, it needs 4-5 more years of cellaring and should age effortlessly over the following 25-30 years.

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Ripe and intense, with firm, minerally tannins that have a dry, dusty edge wrapped about the earthy dried currant and black cherry fruit that's deep and concentrated, ending with a long, persistent finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

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