Château Beychevelle 2007: A slightly meaty and stewed character to the fruit on the nose here, lacking the freshness and brightness of the vintage. The palate feels quite solid but there is a nice, bright style of fruit struggling to emerge through the midpalate. Rather stolid in terms of composition, there is a light chewiness to the texture of the wine, largely influenced by some rather meaty tannins coming in at the edges. The acidity is there, but it all feels a bit chewy and robust. This one will need time; nothing is particularly out of kilter - there is enough weight there for those tannins - so it could come good. 15/20

Château Branaire-Ducru 2007: A dark, blackberry crumble kind of nose, a mix of dark fruits, fairly ripe in terms of hue, with a buttery layer perhaps from the oak. Sweet and bright blackberries on the edge of ripeness here, I think this shows through rather well. A polished and elegant beginning on the palate, building a little to a midpalate which has a supple texture, moderate weight, and fairly bright acidity. In the finish it shows grip, structure and freshness. This seems to combine ripeness of fruit, bringing a light but crunchy sweetness, with a very convincing structure. I find that overall it is at least commendable. It should give some good pleasure given time. 15/20

Château Lagrange 2007: Rather a muted nose here, the fruit hidden behind the oak at present, although given a little time in the glass it does come out very nicely. It has an interesting, slightly gritty character, reminiscent of dark red fruits, cherries in particular. A supple start on the palate, one that seems much better composed than I expected considering the slight reticence of the nose. There is a supple style of fruit, the tannins give a good backbone, and the acidity is on the fresher side, and overall it all works together very well. There is a light texture to it but in the middle it is undeniably grippy and tense. A wine with certain promise. 15/20

Château Langoa-Barton 2007: Rather an open and enticing nose here, very expressive and full of dark fruits, crunchy in style but open and accessible. There is certainly an edge of sweetness to it too. The fruit style moves away from red here to black, with notes of blackcurrant and smoke. Rather cool and stony at first, then warming up a little but always maintaining that rather detached and firm feel, along with a layer of chewy fruit that forms over the top. This chewiness also applies to the tannins. There is also a little hint of perfume and chalk. Supple and stony rather than weighty. Attractive. 15.5/20

Château Léoville-Barton 2007: A very open, expressive and convincing nose here, perfumed and bright, with a direct style of fruit. Really very convincing and a leader within the appellation and vintage. Really well-formed fruits, defined and yet with substance and polish, with only the faintest hint of oak in the background. The palate seems as if it is from another vintage; the fruit is supple, the texture harmonious, and from within there emerges grainy tannins and a fine, bright acidity which give the wine lovely shape and definition. Rather dry in terms of texture but that's not a problem. It is grippy and youthful, with more of this grip showing in the finish. A really very convincing wine. 16.5/20

Château Léoville-Las-Cases 2007: A very impressive nose here, with dense fruit apparent, but it remains very expressive despite this weight and concentration. The fruit has a lightly exotic style to it, dark and concentrated but bright and very well defined. The palate has a very appealing texture, with a glossy weight to it, blended very harmoniously with a supple tannic backbone and a fresh acidity. This has a wonderfully earthy seam, savoury and fresh as well as dense. The finish is dry, leading into a long grip with a lightly chewy feel to it. Another very impressive wine for a difficult vintage. 16.5/20

Château Léoville-Poyferré 2007: There is smoke and cedar on the nose here, dark fruit with somewhat more meaty tones than that which I found in the Léoville-Barton. It is dark and a little sooty too. The palate seems supple and relaxed (whereas Léoville-Barton was more linear and tight) but there is still a very fine definition here, and it holds together very well, with the structural elements very nicely contained within the substance of the wine. A good weight to the finish. This is a very good effort indeed for the vintage. 16/20

Château Talbot 2007: There is the usual Talbot funk on the nose here, with notes of bacon and roasted meats, some smoky oak alongside perhaps, and overall although it sounds quite atypical I do in fact find this aromatic profile quite appealing. A soft palate, with chalky red fruits, redcurrants especially, with a very firm acidity not found in the grander wines of the appellation. This dominates the palate somewhat, and the wine takes on a rather astringent feel as a result, and this persists through into a rather biting finish. 14/20

Château Brane-Cantenac 2007: I find rather a hot and smoky nose here, somewhat like burnt candle wax, charred and most probably a barrel-related aroma. The palate is lean, fresh, light, and with a little structure behind it. There is moderate acidity and some rather soft tannins, giving the palate a very light and undistinguished feel. It's not a very impressive wine. A short finish. 14/20

Château Dauzac 2007: Rather a sexy nose here, with gritty fruit and new-oak barrel aromas. It is flashy, smoky and potentially seems quite seductive. It is rather warm as well of course, and underneath all this dressing I think I sense a greenness to the fruit as well. The palate is supple and bears a better definition than I expected from the nose. There is a gritty sugar-coated sweetness to the fruits, with a soft and chalky feel to the red fruit character, with soft tannins and moderate acidity. This seems acceptable but nothing more striking than that. 14.5/20

Château Giscours 2007: This has a surprisingly open, soft, accessible fruit character here, with some perfumed evolution already. It has a light, chalky suggestion to it. Rather a stolid palate, it has some texture but not the fruit or interest to match. It seems a little dull in terms of form or definition. It feels rather shapeless, with smoky and vegetal notes alongside what structural elements I find. 14.5/20

Château d'Issan 2007: Dark, smoky, really rather matchsticky as well on the nose, I wonder if there is some reduction here? There are little elements of meat and game coming in as well. The palate is light and shows some bitter and rather hot fruit elements. It seems fiercely composed and a little astringent too, and there is some green fruit here, not just on the palate but, returning to the nose, aromatically as well. It feels soft in the finish. This wine lacks substance. 14/20

Château Lascombes 2007: Dark and rather chunky fruit here, with a lots of meaty, gamey elements coming in from behind. The palate doesn't have the weight the nose suggested. There is more texture here than in some other wines but it feels a little hollow when I look at the tannin that sits around this core of fruit, and which dominates in the finish. Is some of this tannin wood-derived? I suspect so, and it has not been entirely to the wine's benefit. Plenty of acidity here though. If the tannins fade there could be something here. 14.5/20

Château Margaux 2007: A really appealing nose here, full of black bean, green tea and olives, this wine has such an appealing and exotic perfume it is hard not to be sucked into the glass. This is why I love Margaux! The palate is very restrained and reserved, showing the softness that so many others show, but with a tannic seam running down the middle of it, and a bright acid backbone too. It has a supple character, but sits on the slightly firmer side of elegant integration, and as such although it seems remarkably convincing within the context of the commune it does not stand up so well to the first growths from further north in my opinion. 16.5/20

Château Marquis d'Alesme Becker 2007: A really gentle character on the nose, rather perfumed, with gentle tinges of violet, along with some maturing elements suggestive of undergrowth, autumn leaves, tobacco, indeed quite a few elements that suggest maturity, far more than I would expect for a wine of this age. The palate has a nice supple feel to it, softly formed over a very nice seam of tannin and rather firm acidity. The maturing characteristics from the nose don't come though here so much as they might have done, but that doesn't lessen their concern for me. I'm not convinced this will make old bones. 14/20

Château Marquis de Terme 2007: A lean and slightly vegetal twist to the fruit here, the green pepper elements very evident on the nose. The fruit is supple and gentle, and in that respect attractive, but there is a bitter grip underneath it. The fruit character here does at least move away from green and more into red, which is certainly a good thing. But I can't get past that stewed green element on the nose. 13.5/20

Château Palmer 2007: This was impressive during the primeurs, allowing for the difficulties of the vintage in this statement, and here it performs in a similar manner. It is beautifully perfumed, smoky, with crunchy fruit, aromatically very convincing, close to compelling in fact. The palate does not quite offer the definition found on the nose though, with a soft start slowly moving towards a more defined midpalate although it doesn't quite get there in my opinion. There is a lovely supple character and a gentleness to the fruit which appeals, and there is still something of a gap between this wine and the rest of the pack. 16/20

Château Prieuré-Lichine 2007: Dark, with warm fruit, and a touch of green peppercorn here too. This is certainly a very well composed wine aromatically, with good definition, although I can't help feeling I would prefer some different aromas to be so well defined, if you see what I mean. The palate is towards the leaner end of the spectrum although there is some substance here, and the fruit character has a slightly bright, sour, rhubarb-like tinge to it. Rather an astringent finish too, with firm acidity. 13.5/20

Château Rauzan-Gassies 2007: Some smoke-tinged fruit here, with an ill-defined fruit profile, suggestive of sweet red candy but it is difficult to discern anything more specific than that. The palate has an appealing composition though, stylish and not too substantial in terms of weight. It seems very appropriate for the vintage. It comes across better in the mouth than it did on the nose. There is actually some promise here, despite that rather dry and dusty finish. 14.5/20

Château Rauzan-Ségla 2007: I find dark fruits here, quite well defined unlike those in the Gassies, with scents of plum and damson skin with a fresh and bright style, quite distinctive for the commune which has not done well as a whole in this vintage. The palate is also fairly convincing, with a savoury polish to the midpalate, with a nice balance of acid and tannin. This is without doubt one of the better wines in this appellation, although to be fair the competition is not strong in this vintage. 15.5/20