Vinous - Score: 94+ (2004 July)

Medium yellow. Reticent, liqueur-like aromas of yellow plum, vineyard peach, spices, white flowers and menthol. Impeccably balanced and impressively structured, with its new oak component to the fore. But this extremely bright, intense, focused wine possesses a strong core of spicy, botrytized fruit. Finishes with terrific fruit and an almost tannic firmness. Like so many of these 2001s, give this long aeration if you plan to taste a bottle any time soon.