2014 Château Rauzan-Ségla

The 2014 Rauzan-Segla has a fragrant nose with red berry fruit, cedar, mint and a dab of dark chocolate. Fairly backward at first, it opens nicely in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins. It is a bit rustic in style, but there is satisfying depth and fruit concentration. Blackberry mixes with white pepper and bay leaf toward the finish. For the château in question, it comes across a bit assertive in style, but it pulls it off. It is not bad, though it's surpassed by almost every subsequent vintage. Tasted blind at the Southwold 10-Year-On tasting.

Tasted blind. Dark and youthful colour. Intense rich aroma of dark fruits and the first signs of leafy undergrowth. The tannins are still prominent but there’s deep dark fruit here, not generous but sufficient for a refined and complete wine with good ageing potential. (JH)

High rose petal count on the aromatics of this Rauzan-Ségla, and it is just peering over into its ageing window, gathering up its generous raspberry and cassis fruits, with touches of creme caramel. Love the flexibilty of the tannins as they soften into their second decade, with delicious peony and volet character, excellent. 60% new oak, 37hl/h yield, harvest September 22 to October 16. Last year with John Kolasa as director.