An amazing wine, the 1996 La Mondotte (approximately 800 cases made from a 30-year old parcel of 100% Merlot planted on a hillside between Le Tertre-Roteboeuf and Canon La Gaffeliere) is a super-star. If readers cannot get excited by tasting the 1996, they should change beverages. It is amazing for both its appellation and the vintage, revealing a remarkable level of richness, profound concentration, and integrated tannin. The thick purple color suggests a wine of extraordinary extract and richness. This super-concentrated wine offers a spectacular nose of roasted coffee, licorice, blueberries, and black currants intermixed with smoky new oak. It possesses full body, a multidimensional, layered personality with extraordinary depth of fruit, a seamless texture, amazing viscosity, and a long, 45-second finish. The tannin is sweet and well-integrated. This blockbuster St.-Emilion should be at its best between 2006-2025. A dry, vintage port Fonseca! For its immense size, this wine is neither heavy nor over-done.

Shows pretty berry and wet earth character, medium to full body and firm tannins. It's an elegant young wine, but slightly woody and austere on the finish, needing a tad more fruit concentration in the midpalate to be outstanding, and not quite as good as when tasted from barrel. Still, an impressive debut wine from this estate after it was upgraded by the owner of Canon-La Gaffeliere. Best after 2005. -JS