Allen Meadows - Score: 97 (2019 October)

As good as the Roumier '96s are, his '95s are even better and they are among the very best wines of the vintage. This wine has finally arrived at a point where it's no longer infanticide as the ripe and very densely fruited dark berry fruit nose and robust, powerful, muscled and concentrated flavors are beginning to open and the signs of what is to come are now in evidence. There is massive density and incredible sap and while there are prominent tannins, they are ripe and perfectly integrated for what is still a moderately young Bonnes Mares. The fabulous potential this displayed from cask is now almost realized and while it will need another five years to really be at its best, it should last for two to three decades after that. In short, this is a truly great Bonnes Mares. Tasted many times with mostly consistent notes though two of the most recent bottles were so good that I have upgraded my score slightly; that said I had another bottle in 2016 that displayed quite a bit of volatile acidity and was clearly much less interesting - why I cannot say.