The luxury cuvee of Chateau La Dominique can be overly ripe and oaky, but the 2001 appears to have gotten everything right. Bottled unfined and unfiltered after spending 18-22 months in 100% new oak, it exhibits ripe fig, blackberry, overripe cherry, and sweet licorice characteristics in a heady, full-bodied, opulent, fleshy concoction that is too sexy to resist. Its low acidity, supple tannin, and wealth of fruit as well as extract offer a smorgasbord of flavors. Drink it over the next 7-8 years.

Undoubtedly the most impressive Saint-Domingue I have tasted, this wine tastes like proprietor Clement Fayat's La Dominique on steroids, opaque purple-colored with a glorious nose of creme de cassis, vanilla, chocolate, and espresso. Once past the ostentatious aromatics, this chewy, low-acid, plump, full-bodied wine is dense, rich, with great intensity, purity, and plenty of power. This is obviously a modern-styled St.-Emilion, but a huge crowd-pleaser and a wine capable of lasting 12-15 more years, possibly longer. Anticipated maturity: 2006-2017.

This has turned out to be a strong, exotic effort offering opulent black fruits intermixed with a hint of mint, leather, and licorice. This sexy, lush, aggressively oaked wine is not for everybody, but it possesses considerable glycerin and fruit. Anticipated maturity: 2003-2012.