2014 Branaire-Ducru (St-Julien)

The 2014 Branaire-Ducru has a `quieter` bouquet than its peers, a little muted at first, though well-defined with mainly black tertiary fruit laced with tobacco. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins. It`s a classically styled Saint-Julien that might lack a bit of substance for some on the finish, though it conveys a sense of drinkability. It`s one of the few Left Bank wines to show better now than six years earlier. Tasted blind at the Southwold 10-Year-On tasting. 91 points