La Gaffeliere 2018 is deep garnet purple in color. The nose begins with notes of new leather, cedar chest, and smoked meats, giving way to notions of prunes and fruit cake, with a waft of dried sage. The medium to...

Exceptionally silky tannic frame, this is gourmet and mouthwatering, delivering raspberry and blackberry studded with white pepper, cedar and campfire smoke. Softly spoken and welcoming, not the most powerful 2009 but...

A classy, balanced and sumptuous du Tertre, a ton of appellation and vintage signature. Lace-like tannins, overperforms the estate at the time, showing just how much quality and value is out there for this vintage...

(96+ points) A blend of 79% Cabernet Sauvignon and 21% Merlot, the 2019 Saint-Pierre is deep garnet-purple in color. It gallops out with notes of warm cassis, plum preserves, and candied violets, leading to suggestions...

Deep garnet in color, the 2016 La Gaffeliere has a nose of stewed red plums, black cherries, and kirsch, followed by hints of aniseed, mossy tree bark, and truffles. The medium-bodied palate is elegant and refined...

This 2005 is really coming into its own, with soft, welcoming rose bud, chalk, bilberry, cocoa bean and tobacco. The tannins remain well structured, and you can see the muscles that kept this pretty closed for the first...

Such gorgeous fruit, with extremely polished tannins and a persistent finish. The new oak comes out at the finish, but it should melt together with age. A joy to taste now but better in 2016.

The 2020 Franc-Mayne has turned out beautifully, wafting from the glass with aromas of dark berries, spices and licorice, followed by a medium to full-bodied, layered and seamless palate of real class and purity. Vibrant...

In 2019, 50% less Lafite was released en-primeur, at a discount of 20% compared to 2018. Surprisingly forward and beautifully balanced, this has a glorious combination of richness, purity of fruit, pronounced lead...

2018 was especially excellent for the red wine from this estate. It’s seductive, velvety, generous and round, and it’s bursting with scents of berries, herbs and peonies. It’s also balanced, despite the high alcohol.

This is 96% Merlot and just 4% Cabernet Franc, the Moueix family never having leaned into Cabernet Franc in the way much of the right bank has. Absolutely classic Trotanoy on the nose of the 2022 vintage, all dark gravel...

Slow unrolls through the palate, this has an unmistakable grip of fresh acidities, but they are delivered with a gourmet twist, sat alongside salt-encrusted lime, sea spray, citrus, clementine, fennel, understated and...

The 2020 L'Évangile has a riper nose than the Clos l'Eglise: blackberry, wild strawberry and floral notes of rose petal and iris flower. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, well balanced and fleshy, yet there...

2010 Lalande-Borie has a feisty and animated bouquet, more red fruit than black, with attractive pencil lead scents coming through with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with gentle grip, tobacco and graphite, quite...

The 2020 Beychevelle has an open-knit, very well-defined bouquet with pure black cherries, bilberry, veins of blueberry and crushed violet. There's just a touch of new oak still waiting to be assimilated. The palate is...

The 2020 L'Hêtre has a more restrained and nuanced bouquet that unfolds in the glass, with more mineralité and terroir expression than the preceding d'Aiguilhe. The palate is medium-bodied with finely chiseled tannins and...

Among the oldest estates in St Emilion, dating back to the Middle Ages, this is pure restrained limestone, and stands as an excellent reflection of why this type of terroir worked so well in 2018. The ph for example, is...

I love the purity of the 2018 Château Grand-Puy Lacoste, a ripe, upfront, expressive beauty that has loads of currant and cassis notes as well as flowers, spicy wood, graphite, and hints of tobacco. Full-bodied, rich...

This is 100% Sauvignon Blanc in this vintage, fully barrel-fermented and barrel-aged, using 75% new oak in this case, more than double that used for Grand Village. This echoes the saline, mineral white citrus fruits seen...

(JD 95-97 points) Blue fruits, sappy herbs, flowers, and subtle graphite notes all emerge from the 2023 Château Pontet-Canet, a medium to full-bodied, concentrated Pauillac that has plenty of mid-palate flesh and...

Blackberry and black cherry compote flavors bring a restrained juiciness, while floral, singed apple wood and black tea notes fill in liberally. The finish extends nicely, with a long, underlying chalky minerality. An...

This wine is graceful and delicate, with a clarity and beauty showing aromas of mushrooms, bark, forest floor and violets. Cherries and raspberries, too. Medium-bodied with silky, ultra-fine tannins, it runs long and...

The 2020 Haut-Brion has a well-defined, quite cerebral nose—a mélange of red and black fruit, black olive, subtle estuarine scents. The oak is very well integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with a succulent, almost...

This is stylish, with perfumy black tea and smoldering charcoal aromas followed by lightly mulled plum, fig and blackberry fruit. An echo of juniper shows on the mineral-edged finish. Drink now through 2024. — JM

A classic Leoville Las Cases with blackcurrants, blackberries, stone, graphite and lavender aromas that follow through to a medium body with firm and refined tannins and a juicy finish. Plenty of subtle flavor at the end...