A beautiful rich damson colour, this is powerful, intense, classic Sociando - and for me it`s even better than the 2016. It has good tannins, and lots of them, with a core of plum, damson and cassis with a side of fresh herbs, liquorice and subtle spice. It shows great persistency. A wine to look out for. 94 points

66% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc. pH 3.5-3.6. 48 hl/ha. Black and barely a purple rim. Intense and very slightly charry on the nose. Dense and introvert. A little charry on the palate, too. Massive tannins and the wine is all locked up in the tannins at the moment. Needs a lot of time. Very chewy but the fruit is fresh enough. 16.5 points

The deep garnet-purple colored 2018 Sociando-Mallet has a nose of baked fruits, stewed plums, earth and herbs with a waft of menthol. The palate is full-bodied, firm, hard and chewy with an herbal, hot finish. 85-87 points