2005 Château Gruaud Larose, St Julien, Bordeaux

This is a stunning wine, epitomising St Julien's breed and elegance but with an extra dash of generosity. A fabulous rich nose leads to a structured palate with a lovely weight of ripe, creamy raspberry and loganberry fruit with liquorice and toast hints. The fruit quality is outstanding, with real energy and freshness, topped off by a long, pure finish. The harvest was very late here so the Cabernet Sauvignon (60%) and Merlot (30%) were able to really blossom. Given their reasonable pricing policy this is one of the wines of the vintage for value as well as quality.

Berry Bros. & Rudd