The 1998 C?te R?tie Les Grandes Places is beautiful, with lots of peppery herbs, currants and cured meats to go with a medium-bodied, elegant, seamless style on the palate. Seeing 32 months in new oak, its tannins are completely integrated, yet it still has solid depth and richness, and it’s drinking beautifully. I was also able to taste another release of this cuvee that saw an extra 22 months in oak, for a total of 54 months in barrel prior to bottling. It was similarly styled, yet had slightly more obvious oak, more mid-palate depth and tannic grip on the finish. I rated it a point higher, but it’s most likely nonexistent in the marketplace.