Allen Meadows - Score: 93 (2017 April)

This is a perfect example as to why it's impossible to ever be 100% sure that one's experiences with a given wine are necessarily definitive. I say this because I have had the '72 RC on multiple occasions over multiple years and in multiple formats and I have never found it to be exceptional, either for the vintage or for the vineyard. And then along comes this bottle, which was tasted side by side with the '72 Richebourg (see herein) and while the Richebourg was lovely, the RC was even better. Bricked almost through to the center. The perfumed and still fresh if by no means youthful nose speaks of primarily sous-bois, spice, sandalwood, dried rose petal and Asian-style tea wisps. The sleek, intense and overtly mineral-driven flavors possess outstanding delineation while delivering excellent depth and length on the somewhat linear finish where the only reproach is a touch of dryness. Note however that other examples have displayed more acidity than the mid-palate could reasonably buffer and lacked grace. In sum, my experiences with this wine have been anything but consistent and the 2017 bottle was by far the best that I have tried; other bottles have largely been in the 87 to 90 point range, which is to say perfectly good but well short of distinguished.