Features fig and blackberry paste notes that meld into a backdrop of alder, tobacco and warm loam elements, ending with a well-integrated swath of flavor on the finish. Delivers a lovely tug of earth. Best from 2021...

With an incredibly dark hue, the wine is as expected, concentrated, full bodied, rich, multi-layered and multi faceted. Once the wine is in the glass, your met with waves of ripe, dark, red fruits and a wall of tannin...

The 2016 Syrah Rodgers Creek Vineyard has classic Rhône-inspired markers of savory cured meats, black pepper, lavender, and black plum. It displays richness without weight and has fine structure throughout. Drink 2022-2035.

Very ripe blueberries here, married to delicate, smoky-oak and baking-spice character. Concentrated and succulent with a wonderful, mineral freshness at the long, energetic finish. A very flexible food-wine. Drink or hold.

A more brooding bouquet of wild berries, rich forest floor and wood smoke introduces a similarly supple, elegantly-structured palate, with a bit more depth and fat on its bones than the Clos du Roy - the soils richer in...

A broader, more expansive wine, the 2016 RMS Red Wine is equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc brought up in new oak. It offers a full-bodied, powerful yet surprisingly elegant style to go with...

The deep purple-black colored 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Aida Estate Vineyard comes strutting out of the glass like a total rock star, giving up flamboyant notes of warm cassis, blueberry compote and preserved plums with...

Dried cherries, tar, nutmeg, forest floor, red licorice and chili pepper all spring out of the glass. Very chewy and structured on the palate with loads of ripe but harmonious tannins and a plethora of dried and fresher...

94+ The 2016 Aglianico del Vulture Superiore Cruà takes things to a more serious level, as musky black currants, plums, flowery underbrush, wild scrub and herbs smolder up from the glass. This splashes across the palate...

Plenty of menthol, blackberry and blackcurrant aromas in this elegant, medium-weight Haut-Médoc that’s got as much freshness as ripeness and a long, clean, mineral and herbal finish. An incredibly food-flexible wine!...

A red with very deep and intense fruit character, yet rich tannins to back it all up. Full-bodied, layered and powerful. The second wine of Cos d’Estournel is serious again in 2016. Try from 2025.

A warm wine rich in tannins and with succulent berry fruits, this is both powerful and elegant. Its density doesn't detract from the fruitiness that shines out of the wine and balances with the structured aging potential...

What a brilliant vintage this is - just so complete. Honestly at this level, where prices don't change that dramatically between vintages, you should go for the 2016 if you have the option. It's on a different level in...

The 2016 Smith Haut Lafitte has a deep garnet color. It bursts onto the scene with dramatic notes of crème de cassis, blueberry compote, and chocolate-covered cherries, plus suggestions of star anise, lavender, and fallen...

Pale to medium ruby, the 2016 Pinot Noir Cleary Ranch The Settler has a nose of granite dust, tobacco leaf, crunchy cranberry and Bing cherry with soft potpourri touches. Light to medium-bodied, it's earthy and minerally...

Readers looking for the next superstar in Bordeaux need to jump on the bandwagon of Les Carmes Haut-Brion, who have produced one of the wines of the vintage in 2016. The 2016 Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion checks in as a...

Inky plum colour, the deepest in the vertical at this point, autumnal fruit and grilled spice come in rich waves on the nose and plump textured blackberry, blueberry, creme de cassis, autumn hedgerow, tobacco, pencil...

The 2016 Fleur Cardinale is a muscular, beautiful and profound wine full of olive tapendade, tar, smoked earth, and tons of liquorice, bitter chocolate shavings, cassis and blueberry fruits. Things close in to a slate...

Inky depths to the colour, this is powerful, full of character. Grilled sandalwood oak notes are dominant on the attack, with the bitter almond and cracked black pepper on the finish not just welcome but essential to...

Such a vibrant pink/purple rim to this, loud, full, bright, shining, rich and confident. Tannic and firm, full bodied with supple tannins that have spiced edges full of clove, aniseed and liquorice lacing the blackcurrant...

The 2016 Clos de la Roche Grand Cru Cuvée Vieilles Vignes is superb, bursting from the glass with aromas of juicy cherries, peonies, blood orange, licorice, raw cocoa and espresso roast. On the palate, it's full-bodied...

This is beautifully rendered, with a core of focused red currant, plum and raspberry coulis flavors that stretches out nicely while flecks of tobacco, bergamot, and singed sandalwood weave around. A bolt of iron...

What a wine - such class from the excellent 2016 vintage. A touch of meatiness to the nose with bacon, green peppers and black pepper. So expansive in the mouth while at the same time seeming a little closed or perhaps on...

This is beautifully rendered, with a core of focused red currant, plum and raspberry coulis flavors that stretches out nicely while flecks of tobacco, bergamot, and singed sandalwood weave around. A bolt of iron...

(95+ points) The 2016 Almaviva was showing really well, quite subtle and austere, less showy than the 2017 and 2018 vintages. It has less alcohol than either of the following two vintages, and it's perhaps a slightly...

Showing a serious depth of color, the wine offers a wealth of dark fruits on the nose. From there you find spice box, leafy tobacco, cigar box, cherry pipe tobacco and sweet coffee bean aromas. On the palate, which is...

Vivid ruby. Highly perfumed red and blue fruit and floral pastille aromas are sharpened by white pepper and smoky mineral nuances. Juicy and energetic in the mouth, offering intense boysenberry and raspberry preserve...

The 2016 Volnay Carelle Sous La Chapelle 1er Cru is noticeably deeper in colour than its peers. The nose has plenty of quite lush red berry fruit, but it misses the clarity of other Volnays included in this tasting. The...

A warm wine rich in tannins and with succulent berry fruits, this is both powerful and elegant. Its density doesn't detract from the fruitiness that shines out of the wine and balances with the structured aging potential...