1993 Château Lagrange

Good bright ruby. Complex, inviting nose combines blackcurrant, licorice, espresso, cedar, smoke and pepper, plus a slight leafiness that Ducasse says is now disappearing. Leanish and slightly herbaceous but fresh and intensely flavored, if a bit pinched in the middle. Finishes with fairly dry tannins. Nineteen ninety-three was Bordeaux's "last classical climate year," notes Ducasse. "Since then we've gotten more summer sunshine and more grape sugar. "

Readers should be able to find the 1993 Lagrange at a relatively attractive price. A very good effort in this vintage (which produced a surprising number of good wines considering the difficult conditions), the 1993's dark ruby/purple color is accompanied by Lagrange's lavishly wooded, spicy, powerfully extracted, sweet, jammy, blackcurrant-scented bouquet and flavors. This surprisingly dense, concentrated, medium-bodied wine possesses some tannin in the finish, but to the credit of this estate's winemaking, the tannin is unobtrusive. While it serves its structural purpose, it does not contain any astringency or bitterness. The 1993 Lagrange can be drunk now or cellared for 10+ years. It is a very good wine for the vintage.