Michael Schuster: Sweet but freshly ripe blackberry fruit nose, where you notice the new wood just a touch; very nicely balanced, quite concentrated middleweight; overall supple, but with a very gentle, dry tannin; ripe yet fresh, moderately complex, spicy, easy, and accessible without being simple, and with good, scented, fruit length; very nice lesser Pauillac—with all the fruit of the year, but the lesser structure to make it attractive early. 2012–18. 15/15+