Tasted in Spiegelau Burgundy Stems. Splash decanted for about an hour and 10 minutes in the glass before trying. Darnk over the next 2.5 hours. Served with a Mario Batali dish of monkfish. Bad pairing theoretically, but it actually worked really well (yes, I used some of the wine in the dish).

Toasted nuts, black raspberry, cranberry and loads of bright red cherries. Modest amounts of sage and a hint of eucalyptus. Well integrated, but still a bit tight even after 3.5 hours. IMO, the 99 would be singing a nicer tune than this by that time.

This is worth 87 TJ points. Not a great QPR at like $40, though. I am glad I only bought one bottle to sample, first.

TJ-
Drinking one of these almost a year after you posted this. Tannis are not as rough and the flavors have better structure. This was good but not up to snuff with the last few premier cuvee's. the 98 was a bomber pinot. 88-89 pts.