Tim Atkin: Medium purple; youthful, faintly Porty, overalcoholic nose. Heat. Very high alcohol on the palate, too. Some pepper, firmish tannins, some sweet oak, but it finishes hot and a little pruney. Less oak would be preferable, ditto alcohol, but there is enough concentration here for the wine to age for 3–5 years. 16

Gerard Basset: Deep purple, with violet rim; medium-high intensity. Blackberry and damson and some smoky touches. Solid and ripe on the palate. Slightly sweet aftertaste. 15.5

Anthony Rose: Good youthful color; it has a slightly sawdusty, oaky, rice pudding-like nose that also, if not offensive, seems to suggest a wine with almost cooked, baked characters. It’s not quite baked on the palate, but it teeters between opulence and overripeness. Very powerful, suggesting high alcohol, while the tannins are quite firm and extracted, the perky acidity preventing the wine from falling flat. 15.5