2006 CHÂTEAU PRIEURÉ LICHINE 4ème Cru Classé Margaux

Briary and full and sleek and with a great mouthful of fresh fruit which completely disguises the fine tannins until the very, very end. Bravo! Real complete wine that expresses the vintage and commune. Graceful. Very clean. Whisks over the palate - and actually you could probably drink this over a very long period and enjoy it. 2011-21   17.5

Vigorous, spicy, cedary nose with well-judged oak, black fruit, liquorice, chocolate and floral perfume. Very sleek and supple wine with everything in the right place. Poised, with a fine attack, silky texture and beautiful balance. Decanter June 2011 Medoc Tasting. 17.67 points   ****

Silky, with mineral and currant character, medium body and a fresh finish. Long and caressing. Well done.   89-91/100

A muted nose, lacking lift with faint notes of blackberry leaf and hedgerow. The palate is tannic, a little coarse with a brawny finish. It lacks poise and finesse, so hopefully barrel ageing will smooth things out and make this normally great wine a little less aggressive.   84-86/100

With the highly respected Right Bank consultant Stephane Derenoncourt providing advice, Prieure-Lichine has moved to a complete, savory, and for lack of a better description, broad, lush, sexy style. This has always been a wine that was drinkable at an early age, but I think they are building more texture and flesh into the wine, as well as more concentration, without losing the estate’s early appeal. The 2006 is an outstanding wine, with complex notes of spring flowers, forest floor, sweet black currants, and earth. Medium to full-bodied, flavorful, without a trace of astringency or hardness, this is a succulent, fleshy wine to drink over the next 15 or more years. (Feb 2009)   90/100

(55% cabernet sauvignon, 40% merlot and 5% petit verdot) Ruby-red. Pure aromas of blackberry, violet and licorice. Sweet, bright and pliant, with a chocolatey quality on the firm, lingering finish. Very nicely made. This massive estate harvests more than 200 parcels of vines, and under consulting winemaker Stephane Derenoncourt less than half of the total holdings went into the grand vin The firm cabernet sauvignon nicely balances the estate's much softer merlot, noted Derenoncourt.   89-91/100

Intense colour, hugely concentrated fruit, ripe blackcurrants and good fleshy, smoky savoury flavours, seductively full and quite forward style. 2011-18.   ***