Château d'Issan 1996

This property continues to reassert itself, with a renewed commitment to quality. The 1996 d'Issan has turned out beautifully in bottle. It exhibits a dark ruby/purple color as well as an elegant, floral, blackberry, and smoky-scented nose. The wine is medium-bodied and complex in the mouth, with subtle new oak, gorgeously ripe, sweet black currant fruit, and well-integrated tannin and acidity. This quintessential Margaux-styled wine is elegant and rich. Anticipated maturity: 2004-2020.

Tobacco, berry and cedar aromas. Full-bodied, with sour cherry flavors and a cedary, tobacco aftertaste. Hasn't held up that well.--'95/'96 Bordeaux retrospective. Drink now. 10,000 cases made.

Fully mature, medium-bodied, soft, silky and elegant with a nose packed with tobacco leaf, flowers and red fruits, the refined finish wraps everything up nicely with its earthy, red currants and cigar wrapper endnotes. No decanting is needed, just pop and pour.

97: Deep ruby-purple. Floral bouquet with a slight inky note, tobacco, sour cherries. On the palate, the attack is still quite pleasant, but the mid-palate is hard and metallic, with firm acidity—too strict. Potential rating: 16/20 2004 – 2022

Fruity bouquet with red berries. Unpleasant, dry taste. Dry finish. 13/20

Fresh and slightly tart, this 1996 is made for the table. One might regret a lack of volume and a certain austerity on the finish.

Deep red colour. Medium intensity. Lively. Nose of medium intensity. Discreet. With aeration, fruity. Quite fresh. Liquorice notes. As with the 99, this wine first stands out from the others for its structure and its length on the palate. A little less “tender” and velvety than the 99, its tannic frame is more austere and closer to oak. I sense a transitional period in the selection approach, but there is also a great vintage here that offers suavity despite the tight tannic structure. Built for ageing. Perhaps a little less aromatic purity than in the more recent vintages 98, 99 and 2000.

The 1996 Château d'Issan has a savoury bouquet, bacon fat infusing the red fruit. Black truffle and sage come through with time. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy, slightly dry tannins. This is quite an austere Margaux, a little coarse with perhaps a bit of Brettanomyces towards the finish. Bottles should be approached in the near future.