PRODUCTION: 1,097 cases. The most controversial vintage over the last several decades, the 1983 reveals a dark ruby/garnet color with noticeable lightening at the edge. The intoxicatingly perfumed bouquet offers up intense aromas of earth, mushrooms, sweet, overripe black-raspberry fruit, prunes, smoke, and Asian spices. The complex aromatics are followed by a powerful, tannic, highly concentrated wine with immense body, some astringency, and a huge, alcoholic, rich, glycerin-dominated finish. While it is not the purest example of La Tache, it is one of the few great expressions of this vintage. It should drink well for another 10-15+ years, although the color will continue to become more degraded with aging.