Stephen Brook | Opulent black-fruits nose, super-ripe but without jamminess. Rich and broad, fleshy and weighty, with firm tannins to give structure. A complex wine, with heft and spice and admirable concentration. There’s an earthiness that is decidedly appealing—and welcome after the airy flightiness of the 2015s. The finish is solid without being clumsy or tough, and there is good length as well. | 92

Alex Hunt | The initial aroma of classy, spicy oak gives way to some rather grand, understated blackberry/blueberry fruit. On the palate, although there’s no confusing the fruit style, there is a structure and mineral dryness that recalls limestone-influenced red Burgundy in a warm vintage. This is very moreish, dynamic wine that still gives flashes of exuberant plummy Zin fruit on the finish. Intriguing. | 93

Andrew Jefford | Saturated dense black-red; one of the deepest-colored wines in the tasting. Dense, meaty, promising aromas, though this 2014 wine probably needs longer to get into its aromatic stride. Very attractive already: red and black fruits, forest resins, classy vanilla, and in poised, fresh style, without any dried-fruit notes. On the palate, too, this is a genuinely impressive and commanding Zin, with freshness and true concentration born of density of fruit rather than a heavy hand on the acid tiller. There is some texture to help the wine cling to the tongue, and its oak is absorbed by the fruit and lends the fruit a secondary wealth in turn. Exuberant (as Zin must be) but classy, too, and a Zin to serve at table rather than swig on the sofa. | 92