The outstanding 2005 Cote Rotie La Garde exhibited a beautiful nose of red and black fruits, spring flowers, subtle wood, a touch of tar, and a judicious use of oak. The wine has superb purity, medium to full body, as well as real elegance and length. It should drink beautifully for 10-15 years. Importer: Diageo Chateau Estate Wines, New York, NY; tel. 646-223-2200

One of the more youthful wines in this retrospective, the 2005 Cote Rotie La Garde from Domaine de Bonserine sports an inky purple color to go with lots of cassis and blackberry fruit, graphite, licorice and cured meats. Aged a whopping 36 months in new oak, of which it’s absorbed almost every trace, this medium to full-bodied, concentrated and still moderately tannic Cote Rotie should hit full maturity in another 4-5 years, and keep for a decade or more past that.