1986 Pape Clément, Graves

The 1986 Pape Clément was the first vintage of this wine in many years to garner any positive attention from Robert Parker, and the early promise it showed out of the blocks remains in evidence, but the rather tough structure of the ’86 vintage must be waited out before this wine really starts to deliver a lot of pleasure on the palate. The first rate nose offers up a really lovely blend of sweet cassis, dark berries, black truffles, Cuban cigars, gravelly soil tones, a touch of new wood and a bit of cigar ash in the upper register. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and shows off a great core of sweet fruit, with still some firm tannins buttoning up the backend, good acids and very fine length and grip on the focused finish. This still seems right on track for an excellent apogee of drinkability, but it remains too young for primetime drinking at age twenty-five. (Drink between 2017-2050) 92+