With more than 7,000 chateaux, France’s Bordeaux region is the most important wine producing region in the world. As well as being the basis for Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot-based wines everywhere, Bordeaux wines are acknowledged to be among the world’s best reds—according to experts and amateurs alike.
The wine region of Bordeaux is comprised of many smaller areas and encompasses both banks of the Gironde estuary in southwest France, as well as the land bordering the Garonne and Dordogne Rivers, which split off from the Gironde in the southern Medoc area. Generally, Bordeaux's best red wines are from seven major (and well-known) appellations: Pauillac, Saint-Estephe, Saint-Julien, and Margaux in the greater Medoc region, Graves to the south of the city of Bordeaux—in the region’s center, and Saint-Emilion and Pomerol toward the east. The large Graves region, as well as being the birthplace of claret, is home to many of the best dry whites. Premium sweet wines are made in Sauternes and Barsac, which are also within the Graves appellation but toward the south.
In understanding the multitude of Bordeaux wines, experts tend to talk about the right and left banks of the Gironde River. Generally, red wines from the river’s left bank, especially from Bordeaux’s Medoc region, are based on Cabernet Sauvignon, mixed with varying amounts of Merlot and Cabernet Franc and, occasionally, a spot of Petit Verdot and Malbec. These reds are known to be firm and dry, with a substantial tannic spine, and are frequently austere in their youth. They are also among the world’s longest-lived. The Graves’ gravel and sand soil content contribute to more texture early and roasted accents of hot stones, smoke and tobacco.
The softer Merlot grape is the foundation for right bank wines, mostly to the town of Libourne’s eastern side. These wines are fleshier in general than wines from the left bank and are more pliant. They are also accessible at an earlier age—though the best of them can improve in bottle for decades.
Wine Enthusiast, 100 points: This is a rich, perfumed wine, with dense tannins and intense layers of black plum and spice. The palate is firmly built yet broadened out by plump dark-fruit tones and honed by a solid, dry core. Drink from 2025.
jamessuckling.com, 100 points: This is extraordinary. There has never been a wine like this here since the famous 1990 or underrated 1989. Violets, flowers, stones and limestone. Oyster-shell undertones. Full-bodied, muscular and so structured. A...
jamessuckling.com, 100 points: Blue fruits, minerals, lavender and licorice aromas are wonderful. Full body and ultra-refined tannins with an integration and refinement that make the wines seamless and beautiful. The powerful tannins hide from you at...
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 100 points: Pale to medium gold colored, the 2009 d'Yquem bursts from the glass with gregarious crème caramel, allspice, dried apricots, mandarin peel and pineapple upside down cake scents plus a fragrant undercurrent of fungi...
jamessuckling.com, 100 points: That is fantastic on the nose. OMG! Exuberant aromas of lavender, tobacco, cigar box, violets and slice plums. Medium to full body. It just builds on the palate and goes on forever. Speechless. Such finesse and beauty...
Wine & Spirits, 100 points: How rare to confront a wine of this inner strength and perfect form. Grown at a 116-acre vineyard at the southern border of Pauillac, some of the vines now reaching 100 years of age on a gravel bar overlooking the...
jebdunnuck.com, 100 points: The grand vin is the 2015 Château Margaux and it’s as good a wine as I’ve ever tasted. Coming from just over one-third of the total production and a blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and the...
jamessuckling.com, 100 points: I am breathless with the dark-berry, lavender and burnt-orange aromas. Some salt. Just so formidable and deep. Stunningly sexy on the palate with a density and power, yet it leaves things so clean and bright. You want to...
Wine Enthusiast, 100 points: Powerful tannins and hugely rich fruit balance together in this superb wine. The velvet texture belies the power behind the concentrated, ripe black-fruit flavor, with vibrant acidity giving ample lift. The wine's...
TheWineCellarInsider.com, 100 points: It can be a dangerous combination for all the right reasons when you blend decadent sensuality with velvety tannins and layers of silky fruits. You cannot help but devour the wine far too quickly. Concentrated, full and...
Vinous, 100 points: The 2016 Figeac was bottled at the end of July 2018, since Frédéric Faye wanted to give the wine more time in barrel to develop more harmony. The stunning 24-carat bouquet rivets you to the spot with brilliant delineation...
TheWineCellarInsider.com, 100 points: Intense, deep aromas of earth, burning wood, truffle, hot bricks, tar, licorice, espresso, smoke and blackberry. There is an incredible sense of purity in the fruit. The wine is rich, concentrated and multifaceted. Each...
jebdunnuck.com, 100 points: The 2015 Haut Brion is a perfect wine that couldn’t be any better and is certainly at the top of this great vintage. A blend of 50% Merlot, 42% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the balance Cabernet Franc, this full-bodied...
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 100 points: Sadly, there's not a whole lot of production to this microscopic estate in Pomerol, but the name says it all. The awesome aromatics include not only raspberries, black cherries, and blackberry, but also the floral perfume...
jamessuckling.com, 100 points: This is what the Medoc is all about. The freshness and delicacy of this wine in combination with its serious concentration and firm core are totally stunning. Time has already worked its magic and this is already...
Wine Enthusiast, 100 points: Almost black in color, this stunning wine is gorgeous, rich and dense. It’s grand and powerful, with a strong sense of its own importance. The beautiful tannins and the fragrant black currant fruits are palpable. It’s a...
Vinous, 100 points: The 2016 Tertre-Rôteboeuf is flat-out stunning and also one of the wines of the vintage. Rich, deep and explosive, the 2016 possesses remarkable depth and intensity from the very first taste. The 2016 is exotic...
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 100 points: A sensational effort from proprietor Denis Durantou this 2005 is a compelling wine but purchasers should wait at least a decade to begin the magical liquid tour. One of the monumental wines of the vintage it boasts a...
Decanter, 100 points: Notes of cassis, bilberry, damson, charcoal and liquorice, with pure blackberry juice filling the crevices in between. The tannins are firm but flexible, allowing for some lightness. Hugely complex, but still hugely...
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 100 points: Deep garnet in color, the 2009 Pavie drifts effortlessly and profoundly from the glass with baked plums, spice cake, sandalwood, Black Forest cake and blueberry pie scents followed up with a fragrant undercurrent of...
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 100 points: Medium to deep garnet colored, the 2009 Petrus gives up glorious scents of preserved plums, redcurrant jelly, dried rose petals, blackberry compote and mulberries with touches of licorice, Chinese five spice and fragrant...
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 100 points: Medium to deep garnet-purple in color, the 2015 Petrus (bottled in mid-July 2017) opens in its own time to reveal crushed black cherries, warm plums, mulberries and cedar chest suggestions with touches of anise, lavender...
Wine Spectator, 100 points: Top 100: 2004, Rank: 1;Like lemon curd on the nose, turning to honey and caramel. Full-bodied and very sweet, with fantastic concentration of ripe and botrytized fruit, yet balanced and refined. Electric acidity. Lasts...
TheWineCellarInsider.com, 100 points: There are many things I love about wine tasting. One of the great pleasures is tasting wine in barrel and scoring it higher in bottle, which is a true sign of quality. That is what took place here clearly. This wine is...
Decanter, 100 points: I was excited to retaste this wine after loving it so much at en primeur, and it has more than lived up to its promise. They seem to have poured layers of muscular black fruit into the glass in a display of Pauillac...
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 99 points: Blended of 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc, the deep garnet colored 2009 Angélus sings of blackberry preserves, warm black cherries, stewed plums and dried herbs with hints of Chinese five spice, fragrant earth...
jamessuckling.com, 99 points: Incredibly perfumed aromas of roses and violets, as well as blue fruit and lavender. Full-bodied and powerful, yet so full of finesse and vibrance. The height of elegance! Such depth of chalk and dark berries. It goes on...
Wine Spectator, 99 points: A lovely, creamy, tropical style, with mango, papaya and guava notes lending a caressing feel, while singed almond and warm piecrust accents blossom through the lush finish. Just when you think that's all there is...
jamessuckling.com, 99 points: A very classic Yquem. Breathtakingly wide spectrum of floral honey, exotic fruit (passion fruit, mango and pineapple), caramel and marzipan aromas. But none of this is a jot too much. In fact, the wine is extremely...
jamessuckling.com, 97 points: Complex aromas of blackberry and whole white truffles with hints of wet earth and stones. Full body and structured with gorgeous, velvety tannins, but reserved and polished. Very long finish with fabulous fruit. Goes on...
TheWineCellarInsider.com, 99 points: With additional years of aging, this has exploded. The wine has dramatically much more weight, density, softness of tannins and length. The wine is opulent, showy, sexy and feels like crushed velvet on your palate. Layers...
jebdunnuck.com, 99 points: A legendary wine in the making from the Delon Family is the 2015 Leoville Las Cases and there are very few wines more impressive in the vintage. A blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, and the balance...
jamessuckling.com, 99 points: So ethereal and great on the nose with glorious fresh flowers, such as violets, together with black olives. Dark berries, too. But the archetypal Pomerol nose. Full-bodied yet, at the same time, so refined and structured...
Decanter, 99 points: Deep bright ruby, superconcentrated and extremely vertical, this Mouton is only starting to open up after which it will plateau for another fifty years or so of outstanding drinking. Cassis, cedar, graphite aromas and...
jebdunnuck.com, 99 points: The crème de la crème from the northern Médoc is the 2015 Mouton Rothschild and this incredible wine flirts with perfection. Made from 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot, and 3% Petit Verdot, this inky purple-colored...
jamessuckling.com, 99 points: The clarity to this wine is impressive. Wealth of dark-plum and black-fruit essence not to mention orange citrus. Everything is dialed up to the limit here but then dialed in on the palate. Such impressive depth and...
jamessuckling.com, 99 points: A very intense yet playfully ripe and balanced expression of dark plums, dark stones and blackberries. Then wait for the dark, leafy notes of dark tea and charcoal as well as deeply integrated wood aromas of violets and...
jamessuckling.com, 99 points: The currants and blackberries on the nose are very impressive with wet-earth and lavender undertones. Full body and super-integrated tannins that melt into the wine. The quality of the tannins is incredible with fantastic...
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 99 points: Inky, bluish/black/purple, with notes of spring flowers, licorice, camphor, graphite, and a boatload of blueberry, black raspberry and blackberry fruit, this is a powerful, full-bodied Troplong Mondot. All the building...
jamessuckling.com, 99 points: Subtle and complex aromas of dried flowers, berries, blackberries and black olives. Minerals, limestone and rust to boot. Full-bodied, layered and tannic, yet the phenolic structure is all about strength with finesse. It...
jamessuckling.com, 98 points: Wild aromas of mint, spearmint, cool chalk and dark fruits. Full-bodied, tight, linear and incredibly long with a evening-stone, blueberry, cherry and mineral undertone. Crisp and extremely persistent. Iodine and oyster...
Wine Spectator, 98 points: (WS 95-98 points) Shows stunning depth and drive, with a deep well of blackberry and plum sauce and a lush structure. Superlong, with spice and anise echoing on. A tremendous young wine in the making. Tasted non-blind. ...
Wine Enthusiast, 98 points: (WE96-98 points) Impressively balanced, with the fruit rich, intense with a golden glow. The acidity is as important as the freshness, giving a delicious lift to the core of dry, concentrated botrytis. Obviously a great...
Wine Enthusiast, 98 points: (WE96-98 points) The beautifully aromatic, honeyed scent leads into flavors of bitter orange and honey, along with extreme freshness. Notes of white peach and Rocha pear give richness to a wine that is not huge, but...
jamessuckling.com, 98 points: Mind-bending aromas of red licorice, spices, bark and dark fruits. Yet reserved and balanced. The palate is phenomenal with compact fruit and polished tannins. It goes on for minutes. 62% merlot and 28% cabernet franc...
Wine Enthusiast, 95 points: A solidly structured wine, it is both elegant and intensely powerful. It is disclosing its fruitiness slowly, at the moment dense and concentrated. A restrained edge provides complexity and balance. It will need aging, so...
Wine Enthusiast, 97 points: This is a rich, complex wine, full of dry botrytis that is surrounded by ripe honey. Spice, white peach and green plum jelly give complexity and variety. The acidity at the end is beautiful. The wine is already enticing...
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 98 points: The wine has an opaque blue/black color and abundant notes of forest floor, spring flowers, black raspberry and blueberry liqueur in the aromatics along with hints of espresso and white chocolate. The wine is dense, full...
jebdunnuck.com, 98 points: An absolute blockbuster is the 2015 Clos Fourtet, which is a blend of 88% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc. It offers a huge nose of black and blue fruits, loads of incense, violets, chocolate, and...
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, 98 points: The 2009 is one of the sexiest wines in Pomerol in this vintage offering up notes of melted caramel sweet mocha blackberry and black cherry fruit with hints of loamy soil and unsmoked cigar tobacco as well as a touch of...
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