AJ | Astonishingly dark; ebony at the core to walnut at the rim. Quite a quiet, restrained, almost subterranean aroma: a gentle sussurating brood which brings cream and polish and old nuts and historic houses into its frame. Few top notes: ginger? saffron? Too quiet to be sure. But the ensemble is softly magnetic and impressively complex. Intense, deep and driving on the palate. This is a sweetened Oloroso, and a magnificent success as such: a liner freighted down with ballrooms and dining rooms, smoking rooms and billiard rooms, sailing its brightly lit way across an silent ocean. It's wide, deep, broad, challenging, scouring, driving; and the 'quietness' of the aromas is suddenly amplified on the palate to orchestral-climax levels. Splendid extract and density; almost a substitude for tannins. Whatever has gone into this wonderful liquid deserves to be there. Huge volume and presence in the mouth -- and in the tasting brain. But it's fully ready and there is no point in waiting. Drink Dates: 2025 - 2030. 96
SF | Dense matted colour and aroma, caramel and molasses, figs plum and hints of spice and licorice; layered and richly contoured without becoming cloying; a slightly unusual Oloroso style to be sure...a treat too. Balanced acidity, plenty of tertiary personality; chocolate, figs, (very) ripe plums and dried fruit and spice; nicely tapered on the finish and very complete. After such a gush, I suppose I had better reiterate that it slightly unusual as an Oloroso! Drink Dates: 2025 - 2045. 92
RM | Deep nut brown to mahogany with a thin olive green rim; deep, rich and powerful with a black hole of concentration and a touch of molasses; gloriously rich and smooth in the mouth, textural richness with a touch of treacle mid-palate offset by a beautifully posied, balanced finish that sets density against the acidity. A very beautiful wine. Drink Dates: 2025 - 2040. 97