An unimpressive medium ruby color is followed by a textbook Graves nose of berries, tobacco, and spicy scents with that notion of scorched earth and hot rocks. This is a lighter wine than the great 1990, but within the style of the vintage, it is well-balanced, exhibiting sweet, redcurrant, plummy fruit, undeniable elegance and finesse, and a soft, round finish. The wine is more pleasurable than the score indicates. Drink it over the next 7-8 years.