Château Troplong Mondot 1995

Totally shut down and enclosed, with an impressively saturated purple/black color and a promising but tightly strung nose of mineral, vanilla, espresso, black cherry and currant, this wine has beautiful purity, medium to full body, relatively high but sweet tannin, and a long 30–35 second finish. The wine is very firm but impressive as well as promising. Patience please! Anticipated maturity: 2007–2020. Last tasted, 11/02.

Aromas of violet, berries and cedar follow through to a full-bodied palate, with firm tannins and a medium finish. The fruit is still tied up in knots. Give it time. — ’95/’96 Bordeaux retrospective. Best after 2008.

Very dark, seductive, polished, smooth and appetising. Velvety texture. Odfjell admits theirs is a bit different! (JR)

On the hard, tannic and austere side of the style range, the tannins were almost obtrusive. The nose was better than the palate. This clearly showed the difficulties faced by many 1995 Bordeaux wines with hard tannins. The wine was produced from a blend of 70% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and reached 13.5% ABV. Perhaps the large percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc explains the solid, tannic structure of the vintage.

96: Barrel sample (18/20): crazy, perfumed Merlot bouquet; hints of Amarena cherries, coffee, fine woods, quite forceful – just at the starting blocks of its aromatic development. On the palate, complex, homogeneous, bound extract, lots of extract sweetness, concentrated without becoming monstrous, long finish. Close to the almost legendary ’90 from the same house. Top performance! 96: Three months later it was so sweet and full of jammy notes that you could almost have enjoyed it straight from the barrel. The extract is homogeneous, velvety and full of charm. A fat Troplong – a kind of Chambertin from St. Emilion. Will gain another point at peak drinking pleasure (18/20). 03: Very dark colour; almost black highlights. Noble, elegant bouquet; mahogany note, red Bounty (dark chocolate and coconut), black olives, dark rock candy, forceful with an Amarena cherry touch. On the palate, dark malt, dried prunes, comes across over-extracted and completely drawn. The bouquet promises an elegant wine, the palate is too brutal, sandy, mealy, and it lacks harmony to be called a truly great Troplong. Downward trend? (17/20). In a course at the Académie du Vin this wine, in the meantime, lost another point. On the palate strict, dry, it feels forced and will struggle to gain any charm with further bottle age. On the contrary – the wine risks drying out. 16/20 drink – 2012

Logo on the cork: SBM Intense, slightly evolved color. Fine nose, fruity, ripe, subtle and aromatic. A hint of raspberry. A smooth, appealing entry on the palate; the wine unfolds with aromatic intensity, flavor, plenty of fruit, richness, and notes of tobacco. Very flavorful and powerful, it finishes long and noble, with depth, density, and character.