Wine Spectator: An extrovert, with enticing plum, anise and blackberry fruit and a long, supple finish. There's plenty of stuffing and grip, but this is velvety and nicely assimilated, with p...

Wine Spectator: Dark and nicely packed, with lots of crushed fig, boysenberry and cassis notes. Shows some solid depth on the finish, with ample but velvety tannins and a dark spice element. ...

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: Clos Manou, a well-run estate in the northern Medoc, has fashioned a blend of 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot that achieved 13.5% natural alcohol...

Wine Spectator: Solid, with a very juicy core of lightly mulled plum and blackberry fruit, a polished apple wood note that runs along the edges and a solid, gravel-tinged finish. Sports nice ...

Wine Spectator: Dense but caressing, with polished black currant, cassis and pastis notes that flow along, while tobacco, tar and violet notes chime in throughout. The long, sleek finish has ...

Bob Campbell, MW: Dense, bright and vibrant wine with cassis, plum and black cherry flavours. Quite oaky but long and with good layering on the finish.

Stephen Tanzer's IWC: Bright ruby. Fresh raspberry and cherry on the nose, with sexy Asian spice and rose notes adding complexity. Lively and deep, offering sweet red berry and bitter cherry flav...

Wine Spectator: This starts with a caressing mocha and freshly brewed espresso crema note, but there's plenty of pleasantly austere charcoal and singed iron behind that, along with an ample c...

Rhone Report, The: A voluptuous, hedonistic, and pleasure bent blend that is mostly Grenache, the 2011 Orin Swift Abstract delivers loads of creamy red and blackberry fruit, sweet spice, licoric...

Wine Enthusiast: One of the best vintages of Rubicon to date, and for the price it's a fantastic value that's great for building up your cellar. Right now, the wine is still young and tight, w...

Wine Spectator: Very solid, with a graphite spine that drives through the core of dark plum, currant and blackberry fruit. The finish lets the anise and violet notes play out, retaining some ...

Wine Spectator: Very lush and expressive, with caressing plum sauce, mulled blueberry and blackberry fruit and melted licorice and warm fruitcake flavors, all gliding together through the fin...

Wine Spectator: This sports a very ripe, focused beam of linzer torte and cassis notes, with dark toasted anise, violet and fruitcake showing up on the finish. Fairly extracted, but with the ...

Stephen Tanzer's IWC: Ruby-red. Aromas of raspberry and blackberry, with bright floral and spice notes adding lift. Bright and focused, with taut red and dark berry flavors displaying very good ene...

Wine Spectator: This is rounded and fresh, but shows good persistence, as damson plum, red currant and blackberry fruit glides along, laced with hints of sandalwood, black tea and roasted tob...

Stephen Tanzer's IWC: Dark ruby. Black raspberry and cherry compote on the pungent, intensely perfumed nose. Sappy, palate-staining red and dark berry flavors are impressively deep and braced by ...

Wine Spectator: A fresh, elegant style, with a lively mesquite and sanguine spine that cuts through the silk-textured damson plum, cherry and blackberry fruit. The long, mineral-tinged finish...

Wine Spectator: Solid, if a bit chunky, with cocoa and ganache coating a core of black currant and blackberry fruit that hangs through the muscular finish, where a warm paving stone note ring...

Wine Spectator: Very ripe, with boysenberry and fig notes laced with spice and blueberry. Juicy and focused on the finish. All pleasure. Tasted non-blind. -J.M.

About this Wine: Land: A plateau of limestone; bordering slopes with chalk and clay soils....