Savory and meaty, with scents of molasses and very ripe fruit that give it an almost Australian Shiraz character. Creamy textured thanks to fully ripe tannins, with flavors of roasted meat, blackberries and crushed pepper, yet its detractors found it overly tannic and gamy. The result is a middle-of-the-road rating that doesn’t tell the full story of this love-it-or-hate-it wine.——W.E.(9/1/2005)—— 85