2006 Château Certan de May

Full, deep red-ruby. Sexy aromas of roasted raspberry, plum liqueur, coffee, smoke, mocha and chocolate. Enticing and exotic Pomerol, with lush flavors of roasted plum and musky coffee leavened by a medicinal reserve. In spite of its enticing sweetness and fullness, this is rather backward today, with the dusty, substantial tannins calling for at least a few years of patience. But the wine's firm backbone and excellent breadth and length suggest it should age well.

This property is finally hitting on full cylinders and has returned to the form it had in the late 1970s and mid-1980s. This is a deep ruby/purple-colored wine with notes of graphite, menthol, licorice, and truffle. The fruit character verges between black cherry and creme de cassis notes. The wine exhibits noble and complex aromatics, moderately high tannins, but a full-bodied, firm, muscular structure that will require some patience. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2028.

Sweet, big and bold and juicy. Quite open and loose compared with some other Pomerols in the Moueix stable. Slightly green tannins on the finish. Lacks a little intensity and nerve. (JR)