YQUEM 2005

This has a deliciously pure feel, with juicy, inviting green plum, ginger, heather, creamed pineapple and Jonagold apple flavors all melded together and gliding through the lengthy finish, which echoes with lilting flowers and dried citrus notes. Best from 2015 through 2045. 12,000 cases made. (JM)

The 2005 Yquem is limpid golden in hue. The bouquet is gorgeous, finely tuned and precise with clear honey, vanilla pod and saffron, with less almond than I’ve noticed previously. The palate is built around its exquisite poise, the acidity keeping this Yquem on its tiptoes. As I’ve noted before, it appears to be gaining in concentration and viscosity with age, with lovely fig and tangerine notes combining with a slight nuttiness on the finish. Tasted at 67 Pall Mall in London.

What an incredible nose of flowers, honey, spices such as clove, and...