Possibly the youngest wine of all the 2005 Médocs in terms of its evolution, at age 10 the inky purple 2005 Pontet-Canet tastes more like a two-year-old wine. Loads of pure blueberry, blackberry and cassis fruit are present along with a hint of licorice and background oak. It is full-bodied, ripe, and excruciatingly fresh, vigorous and exuberant. This is a tour de force, and a sensational effort that rivals the first growths. Give it another 5-10 years of cellaring, and drink it over the following 30-40 years.

Black in color, with aromas of blackberry, black licorice, tar, mineral and fresh flowers. Full-bodied and powerful, with ultrafine tannins that last for minutes on the palate. A polished, though-provoking wine. Shows wonderful purity of Cabernet Sauvignon. Best after 2014. 20,830 cases made.

($120-$190) Good full ruby-red. Complex, enticing aromas of black raspberry, licorice, minerals, bitter chocolate, lead pencil and pungent cedar; just this side of exotic. Wonderfully silky, sweet and thick, with a powerful minerality framing the currant, graphite and spice flavors. This boasts superb inner-mouth energy and great length, with the full, ripe tannins totally enrobed by the wine's mid-palate richness. (My sample of the 2006 was old and tired, so I'll wait until next year to report on the finished wine; this was a star in the early going.)

92-94 Barrel sample. A beautiful, aromatic, minty wine that has dusty, warm tannins, still within the Bordeaux structure. It's very dry, but the fruit is already enjoyable. This is going to be a delicious wine.