One almost expects each bottle to be packed with a cashmere cardigan thrown over its shoulders, so dapper is proprietor Stephan von Neipperg. Purchased by his family in 1991, it really started to show its class in 1995. 90% Merlot, it sits in cold clay soils on a slightly sloping clay limestone part of the plateau. The processes here throughout are as meticulous as one might expect, with hand picking and the fruit sorted both before and after the destemmer. 80% new oak is used in the cellar and the wine is neither fined nor filtered. We`re talking lush, dense and plummy here, with frequent rich and concentrated. (CW 09/06/10)