The 2018 Monbousquet is composed of 60% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, harvested September 27 to October 9 with yields of 39 hectoliters per hectare. The wine has a pH of 3.78 and 14.38% alcohol. Deep purple-black in color, it sashays out of the glass with beautiful, flamboyant red roses, chocolate box and molten licorice scents over a core of crème de cassis, plum preserves and Morello cherries plus fragrant wafts of underbrush, lavender and cloves. Full-bodied, rich and wonderfully elegant, the palate delivers layers of black fruits and spices, wrapped in a cashmere shawl of tannins, finishing very long and incredibly perfumed. Tasted: April 19; Rating: 93-95 Points; Lisa Perrotti-Brown; Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate

Very refined and savory with a lovely core of dark fruit and round tannins. Silky and oozing with finesse and class. Date Tasted: April 19; Rating: 94-95 Points; James Suckling