Chateau Giscours 2005

JAMES SUCKLING: "This is a beautiful Giscours with tension and finesse. It's full-bodied and shows plenty of berry and spice character, not to mention a long, silky-textured finish. It seduces you with each sip. Why wait?"

WINE ENTHUSIAST: "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."

WEINWISSER: "Mittleres Purpur-Rubin. Frisches Maulbeerbouquet, fein und parfümiert, Veilchennoten, verspielt, eine traumhafte, mitschwingende Süsse. Cremiger, seidiger Gaumenfluss, Wildkirschen, Himbeeren und Cassis, gebündeltes Finale. Weinkenner, die anderen etwas über Harmonie erklären wollen, schenken am besten von diesem femininen, hoch zarten Giscours einen Schluck ein. Kann noch zulegen."

DECANTER: "This is a powerful wine with good ageing potential. The nose is ripe and creamy with plenty of dark fruit and spice complexity. The palate is rich, full and gourmand with Cabernet-cassis notes coming through. There's a big tannic frame that shows the more masculine side of this Margaux. The finesse may be missing but there's a lot of wine here."

THE WINE CELLAR INSIDER: "Fresh, vibrant, energetic, a bit reserved but, still packing a boatload of red berries, flowers, spice, and a background note of mint. Elegant, reserved, and working its way to soft, the wine finishes with sweet, red currants and cherries. Drink from 2023-2037."

WINE SPECTATOR: " 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."

THE WINE ADVOCATE: "Tasted at the Château Giscours vertical, the 2005 Château Giscours is a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon and 38% Merlot picked between September 22 and October 6. Conspicuously deep in color, both the aromatics and palate replicate the strong performance from earlier this year. The bouquet offers very fine intensity with blackberry and cedar, here a tinge of cassis that becomes accentuated with time. The palate is medium-bodied with fine, slightly grainy tannin. It is very well balanced and almost Saint Julien in style. It is clearly very focused with a sustained, mineral-rich finish that (as I said before) contains real energy. This is an excellent Giscours that will age nicely over the next 20-25 years."