Rauzan Segla 1986 (750ML)

96 RP / 94 WA / 92 VM

A great effort from Rauzan-Segla and one of the finest wines made at the estate in many a decade, this youthful, exhilarating effort still reveals a dense ruby/purple color with no signs of lightening. Tasting more like a 5 to 8-year-old wine than one that is already 16 years of age, this wine reluctantly offers up a nose of liquid minerals intermixed with tobacco, smoke, black currants, melted licorice, and hints of blueberry and compost. Very full-bodied but still exceptionally tannic in an intense, concentrated, very delineated style, this wine remains an infant in terms of its development. Anticipated maturity: 2007-2040. - Robert Parker, Wine Advocate

Deep garnet-brick colored, the 1986 Chateau Rauzan-Segla offers a complex dried berry and leather nose with nuances of Indian spices, smoked meat and black truffles. Led by structure in the mouth, it has a generous amount of mature fruit for the medium level of finely grained / youthful tannins and enlivening acid, finishing long. It’s drinking very well right now, though there’s no rush to consume. - LPB, Wine Advocate

Picked between 1 and 21 October, it is quite youthful at first, it clearly has more energy and focus, more cohesion than either the 1983 or 1990: blackberry, melted tar and smoke, hints of iris and violet emerging with time. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, structured and dense like many 1986s but with a fine bead of acidity. This feels solid and almost Pauillac-like with huge insistent grip on the finish. Excellent, but one for those that enjoy traditional classic Claret. Tasted at the Rauzan-Ségla vertical at the château. - Neal Martin, Vinous Media