1999 Brane Cantenac, Margaux

Tasted at the chateau with Henri Lurton. This has a very intense nose: much more opulent and ravishing than you would expect from a ‰۪99. There is a strange aroma, sort of, sage and onion inflecting the ripe red-berried fruits but it clears up to offer more orthodox scents of saddle-leather and cedar. The palate is medium-bodied, quite a gutsy Margaux, sinewy although perhaps lacking a bit of finesse towards the linear finish. (NM)