Constantia Glen, Constantia (South Africa) 2017

 This outstanding producer turns out three wines sold in the USA, all Bordeaux-styled.  This one is a “Left Bank” blend of 32% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Franc, 17% Petit Verdot and 10% Malbec.  The wine geeks and statisticians who read those numbers will notice immediately that these are truly meaningful components of all five varieties, whereas most Bordeaux blends lean heavily on one or two varieties and then add token amounts of the remaining candidates.  So, this wine delivers on its proprietary name of “Five,” and then it delivers also in the glass.  2017 was a serious drought year in South Africa but not seriously hot, so concentration was superb in the reds from very small berries, but without the frequent down-side of raisined or over-ripe fruit.  This displays all the year’s virtues but none of its challenges, showing very deep pigmentation, expressive aromatics of ripe but pure fruit and plenty of spicy, high-class oak, and lots of rich, satisfying flavors.  I hasten to add, however, that there’s nothing soupy or sticky about this wine on the palate; we’re still in South Africa here, so this sits in a lovely spot between the New and Old-World profile, with no in-your-face “fruit bomb” character at all, but rather a truly Bordeaux-like reserved, savory quality that makes this enduringly interesting sip after sip.  There’s fresh acidity in the finish to balance out the fruit concentration and the wood, and though this is terrific now, there’s every reason to believe it will be better –  and perhaps much better — in a decade.  At 95, this is a high score for a wine with suggested retail pricing of $50, but if my score is off, I’m sure it is off on the low side.