Chateau Lagrange 2005, St. Julien (1x75cl)

Twenty years in bottle is the headline here. Château Lagrange sits in Saint-Julien on Bordeaux's left bank, and a left bank blend with this much age has usually shifted from primary fruit into the savoury, complex register that people spend years waiting for.

This is a bottle for an occasion — a milestone dinner, a 2005 anniversary, or a gift for someone who has been collecting long enough to appreciate what two decades does. Free delivery over HK$800, flat HK$80 below that.

Tasting notes

An aged left bank Bordeaux blend typically shows dried blackcurrant, tobacco leaf, cedar and leather, with earthy notes replacing the fresh fruit and tannins that have gone soft and fine. Stand the bottle upright a day ahead, decant carefully off the sediment, and pour over the evening rather than rushing it.