Simon Field | Rich mahogany color, its fade gradual and discreet; a hint of russet; more Turner than Boucher; the nose is meaty, with hints of digestive biscuit and late-season orchards; a little clumsy maybe, with hints of oxidation evidenced; a slightly medicinal, resinous feel, therefore, pine needles and raisins evidenced, with a hint of Christmas cake despite the bake of high summer; the structure is imposing, Palladian, with ornate buttresses discreet behind the facade; marked acidity is not yet volatile; the weight is incredible for one so old; or maybe it’s merely a touch on the young side. Let’s see in a couple of decades... | 93

Andrew Jefford | Mid-depth of garnet and oxblood, with some russet glints. Sweet, warm, and very clean in aroma, with a vine-fruit precision and lift; some barley-sugar, but some herbal complexities, too: teasing and intricate. A little meatiness behind, and a sense of warm stone. Very complete and ample; nuanced; and a visceral note to the appeal which many of its peers don’t have. This is another wine that evokes mushrooms; indeed, there is almost something truffley here. Excellent aromatics. On the palate, it is mouth- filling, ample, and very assured, with great wealth of flavor, justified sweetness, a lingering flavor (if not texture) from its starting tannins, and with those truffley fungal notes exerting a visceral appeal that I find hard to resist. It has ample wealth and depth and is in general still very much at the top of its game. That meaty, truffley cling on the finish is admirable. This would be my dream ’63, I think, on the basis of aromatic complexity and pull allied to energy and wealth within. | 97

Richard Mayson | Mid-deep brick-red to tawny, showing some freshness of youth; similarly, showing both depth and freshness on the nose, a touch floral with the spirit just showing through; lithe and spicy on the palate, some peppery tannin gives the wine structure with a lovely minty freshness on the finish. All there, if not just quite as much as in some of the other ’63s. | 93