1996 Clos Vougeot

After a prolonged slumber, the 1996 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru is at last beginning to drink beautifully, wafting from the glass with a captivating bouquet of peonies, exotic spices, plummy fruit tones and ineffable carnal nuances. Full-bodied, velvety and layered, it's deep and concentrated, with its racy, vintage-typical spine of acidity cloaked in fruit. Long, penetrating and sapid, it's a real success that's evolving very gracefully. In fact, I suspect that with further bottle age, the gap between the 1996 and the 1993 and 1999 will narrow.