Beychevelle 1982

The 1982 Beychevelle is still quite young and primary from magnum, but its ultimate quality is very much in evidence. The nose is deep, ripe and sappy, as it offers up scents of black cherries, cassis, a touch of eucalyptus, smoke, nutskins, a beautiful base of soil, cigar wrappers and a floral topnote redolent of violets. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and quite big for Beychevelle, with a plush core of perfectly ripe fruit, suave, but substantial tannins, lovely nascent complexity and outstanding length and grip on the very long, pure finish. The 1982 Beychevelle is quite similar stylistically to the 1982 Figeac, which in my book, is hardly a bad thing! In magnum, this is still a fairly primary wine that needs more time in the cellar, but it may well be drinking beautifully out of regular-sized formats right now. A superb vintage of Beychevelle.
Drink between 2018-2075