Domaine René Engel Echezeaux

The wine looks pale ruby colored. There is moderate sediment in the bottle. It tastes like red currant, strawberry, prune and soft notes of leather/black pepper. The body is medium. The wine has silky texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has low acidity. Fantastic wine! Unlike other older vintages, this wine became better as it aired throughout the night and we were not in a rush to finish it. No hints of aging or needing to be consumed anytime …

Tasted at the Cherwell Boathouse in Oxford. P&P, enjoyed over 3 hours. The lack of stems and whole clusters are instantly recognisable for anyone who is familiar, and there is a wonderful purity of fruit coming through which is contrasted by strong acidity which perhaps was a little too prominent in the balance of things. Tannins are soft at this age and well integrated. Unfortunately, I don't think this quite has the complexity of a top Echezeaux, and perhaps this …

beautiful balance to this wine although it seems to have withdrawn into its shell a little - plenty of life left and may well just get better and better

Musique & Vin Festival BYO Dinner (Chateau de Meursault) : Small glass, brief note. Perhaps the biggest upside surprise of the evening. No surprise this was ripe and powerful, but the structure is so well balanced that this wine was persistent and meticulous for a 2003. What a joy.

Friend wine broker brought this. I love the 2003's as I find them pretty fruity and approachable. Easy to drink. This was drunk side-by-side with the Richebourg from Gros Frere 2001. And indeed, it felt like a lightweight next to it. Fruity and delicate compared to the bomb of Gros. not remotely the same concentration and length. Still a very good drink but definitely for lighter meals, even as an echezeaux

Odd nose, blind I would have certainly said Californian, a mix of overripe cherry, verging on bubblegum, smooth tannins and overall a bit dim.