1996 Lanessan, Haut-Médoc

My introduction to Château Lanessan was their lovely 1982 wine, which was one of the 1982s that a young university student could effortlessly afford, even back in those good old days when Bordeaux offered great value. But, I have not seen it with too much regularity since those vintages of the first half of the 1980s, so I was delighted to see just how good the 1996 has turned out. The wine is deep, ripe and nicely complex on the nose, wafting from the glass in a fine mix of sweet cassis, black cherries, cigar smoke, chipotle pepper, dark soil tones and a nice touch of new oak. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, ripe and blossoming nicely, with a good core, melting tannins and fine length and grip on the nicely balanced finish. This is a very good wine and still a good value in the context of today’s pricing. (Drink between 2019-2050)