2003 Château Villa Bel-Air

"Raffy Two Sleeves" brought this wine over tonight, and was the second wine following the 2006 Kosta Browne Russian River Valley. This too was popped and poured through the Vinturi and into the decanter. This wine had a great, dark ruby color in the glass, and a classic Bordeaux aroma on the nose. From the nose, I would think that this wine was predominantly merlot, but I am not sure. Hints of lush, ripe fruit on the nose, with more hints of cigar box, tobacco, mocha, and earth. Raph and Zelda also picked out a bit of cappuccino, but again, I couldn't find it because of my challenged nose. On the palate, I still could not really tell what varietal was dominant here, but it had a nice ripeness to it, with hints of cherry, mocha, and oak. A smooth finish rounded out this 2003, with very little tannin and acidity. For what Raph paid for this bottle, I wouldn't mind seeking out this chateau and vintage to revisit. A solid wine for the money, and a good QPR. 88 points. Cheers!