Michael Schuster: Sweetly ripe cassis fruit; fresh, fairly concentrated middle weight, finely tannic; long, ripe, refined, even and classy; fleshier, warmer and sweeter than Canon, Belair and Magdelaine, for example, but new-wave winemaking with its St-Emilion soul intact. Very nice indeed. 16+

Michel Bettane and Thierry Desseauve: One of the finest efforts in recent years from this estate, with all the depth of the leading first-classified growths. The quality of its Cabernet Franc grapes (at least 50% of the blend) is unprecedented in living memory, with majestic tannins of incomparable finesse, which to my mind outrank even the Cheval Blanc. 18