It's extremely rare to taste older vintages of Angelus. It's utterly sumptuous, and it's such a shame that the reserves at the estate are so low for these older wines. This has a higher percentage of Cabernet Franc than usual, and is showing a garnet-orange edge. A sense of abandon kicks in through the mid-palate, with black cherry, raspberry and blueberry flavours still going strong, before moving to the most gorgeously spicy notes, with cinnamon, saffron and undergrowth. There are clear touches of salinity on the finish, giving a mouthwatering send off.

Saturated ruby-red. Expressive, floral aromas of black raspberry, black cherry, toffee, licorice and chocolate; suggests an almost roasted ripeness. Chocolatey and very dense in the mouth; rather tightly wrapped today but still much broader than the '97. Finishes very long, with substantial tongue-coating tannins. Powerful and impressive for the vintage.

A massive, powerful Angelus, this wine exhibits a saturated black/ruby/purple color as well as an impressively-endowed nose of dried herbs, roasted meats, new saddle leather, plum liqueur, and cassis. In the mouth, olive notes make an impression. This sweet, full-bodied, exceptionally concentrated wine is atypically backward and ferociously tannic. It was revealing more sweetness and forwardness immediately prior to bottling, but I would now recommend 7-8 years of cellaring.

Complex and intense aromas of forest floor, wild berries and dried flowers. Full-bodied, with ultra silky tannins and a long, long finish. Racy and classy. Wonderful now but has a long life ahead of it. Better than I remember.