Lynch Bages 1981

After a period in the late seventies where Lynch-Bages seemed to be taking suppleness in winemaking too far, I detected with the 1981 a partial return to the very rich, robust, ripe, huge extract style of the great Lynch-Bages wines like the 1970, 1962, and 1961. Certainly the monumental 1982 and excellent 1983 will eclipse the 1981 in stature, but this wine is quite good, and the best Lynch-Bages since 1975. Very dark ruby, with a strong, aggressive bouquet of black currants, cedar, and new oak, this ripe wine has surprising density on the palate, with plenty of tannin. The 1981 Lynch Bages shows lots of gutsy character.