1948 Cheval Blanc

This is the bottle that attests to numerous eulogies I have heard. The Château Cheval Blanc 1948 has a nose that duped me into thinking it was the 1982, and yet the bricking on the rim gives away its age. It is high-toned with kirsch, cedar, maraschino cherries and salted licorices. Powerful and opulent, this kaleidoscope of aromas leaves you intoxicated, even without imbibing the wine. The palate is supple and lithe, blessed with satin-like tannins and an intense, effervescent finish that is brilliantly focused. Layers of vibrant red fruit seem to just wash over you, sensual and profound in equal measure. This is a sensational post-war Saint Emilion that finally delivers everything I expected. The 1948 Cheval Blanc is a masterpiece. Tasted September 2014.

This wine can often be surprising next to the more famous 1947…. Small crop. 13.6% – high for the era! Very dry and hot weather. Very concentrated wine. Very big and broad and rich and complete. Powerful and long and the sort of comforting rich wine that would heal a sore throat. Very rich dried fruit note. Fireworks aroma. Energy. A little dried out towards the end in the glass. Not a wine to keep. But very impressive at first. Just a bit dry and dusty on the finish in the end. We were being killed by kindness at this point. (JR)

A blind tasting dinner at Hinds Head in Bray-on-Thames. 'Expedié en barrique' (sent in barrel, by the merchant Eschenauer to Petersens in Copenhagen), it says on the label of this Danish bottled wine Not as rich as the 1961 with quite a whiff of volatile acidity. Fresh, brisk wine with more than a hint of oyster shells on the nose. A relative lightweight without the sheer concentration of classic château-bottled vintages. Not surprisingly, starting to age. (JR)