Chateau Lynch Bages 2002

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "The 2002 Lynch-Bages is showing brilliantly, after a four-hour double decant, wafting from the glass with an utterly classic nose of cassis and loamy soil mingled with hints of cedar and oak vanillin. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated and layered, with plenty of rich, powdery tannins and lively acids, as its structure begins to melt, the wine's depth and length is becoming more and more apparent. Like the best examples of this vintage, the 2002 Lynch-Bages has proven a real sleeper."

WEINWISSER: "Dunkle, leicht matte Farbe, in den Reflexen ein Hauch von erster Reife. Auch in der Nase erste Reife, Schokotöne, erdige Süsse, getrocknete italienische Kräuter und darunter eine aufsteigende, pflaumige Süsse. Angenehm geschmeidiger Gaumen, Malz, Haselnusspralinen, weich und schon enorm süffig, fast an einen Pomerol erinnernd, vom Charme und der Souplesse her, fein kerniges und somit rassiges Finale."

WINE SPECTATOR: "This was not at the tasting, but it is outstanding. A blind tasting for the magazine late in 2004 resulted in this note and score: Aromas of currant bush, berries and sweet tobacco follow through to a full-bodied palate, with medium tannins and a long finish. Lovely texture to this wine.--Lynch-Bages non-blind vertical."