Château Giscours Bottle 2005

Good ruby-red. Lovely lift to the aromas of black fruits, licorice and minerals. Pure, intense and sweet, offering an enticing combination of black fruit, mineral and dark chocolate flavors. Finishes long and sweet, with plenty of tannic structure and a lingering note of bitter chocolate. A juicy, serious wine with some power. This has turned out very well.

Displays blackberry, cherry and hints of sweet tobacco. Full-bodied, with soft, velvety tannins and a long, caressing finish. Very pretty and solid. This is structured and chewy. Needs time. Best after 2013.

Aromas of blackberry, black olives and licorice. Medium- to full-bodied, with velvety tannins and a fruity finish. Refined and nicely done. Best after 2010.

This chateau gets better and better. The wine has power, but it is harnessed by the intense fruits, the blackberry flavors, the density and the wood. With the power, though, comes elegance, resulting in a wine that is ready to develop over many years.

A dense ruby/purple color is followed by seductive aromas of smoky dried herbs and jammy currants, and a rich, dense, layered, velvet-textured wine. The sumptuous attack narrows slightly in the mid-palate and finish, but this is a totally charming, well-balanced, pure beauty to consume over the next 12ndash;15 years.

Giscours should be taken seriously by consumers as the quality has been ratcheted up over the last 7ndash;8 years. The deep ruby/purple-hued 2003 offers complex, evolved aromatics of wood smoke, chocolate, charcoal, black cherry jam, and cassis. Lush, medium to full-bodied, and broad, with low acidity, copious glycerin, and a layered, persistent finish (it lasts for 40+ seconds), this beauty can be drunk now or cellared for 15 years.

Good full red. Roasted fruits, leather and a whiff of game on the nose. Fat and powerful, with impressive material and volume for this Margaux. Seems rather heavily extracted, but the winersquo;s sweetness is impressive. The young 2005 is finer, though.