obacco leaf, flowers, currants, spice, smoke and a hint of mint unleaded the perfume. Medium/bodied, fresh, bright, crisp, and just a touch dusty on the end, the finish delivered its energetic red berries with a...

The 2008 Cristal is just fabulous. Chiseled and nuanced to the core, the 2008 possesses dazzling intensity from start to finish. Crushed rocks, lemon peel, graphite, mint, lime, chalk and white flowers all race across the...

Extremely Cabernet dominant, with savoury black fruit and a ton of Pauillac character. A fairly reserved, finely-boned Lafite, with menthol and tobacco leaf. Subdued right now but in it for the long haul. The vintage with...

Earthy, truffle, smoke, licorice and tobacco accompany the red fruits. On the palate, the wine continues with its earth theme. There is concentration, but the tannins are strict creating some austerity in the wine. More...

96+ On opening, it shows a strict, minerally face - a good reminder of just how long-lived this wine will be. Given an hour in the glass, it begins to unfold, revealing real complexity and depth. The fruit leans towards...

93+ I really love the style and shape of the 2008 vintage in Champagne and Maison Roederer’s Rosé Millésime is an outstanding example of this lovely year. The bouquet is more refined and filigreed than its 2009...

The 2008 Château Smith-Haut-Lafitte is still going strong and is a classic wine from this reference point estate in the Graves region. A blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and the rest Petit...

2008 Figeac is a sweet and creamy encounter with lots of red berries, raspberries and a candy-like sweetness to it. It is a very charming wine that is just lacking a little stamina and backbone to be really great...

Earthy tannins that are a little austere, this is classic Pauillac but is softened and beginning to show hints of tertiary, soy, olive and sweet strawberry notes. If you are going to drink now, give it a good 2 or 3 hours...

Fresh, chewy, savory-styled Pomerol with chocolate, herbs, and peppery spices that ride along with all the layers of ripe, round, dark plums and black cherries and a touch of salt in the chewy finish. This is a bit on the...

Earthy, truffle, smoke, licorice and tobacco accompany the red fruits. On the palate, the wine continues with its earth theme. There is concentration, but the tannins are strict creating some austerity in the wine. More...

The 2008 Clos Mogador has a very fine bouquet of blackberry blueberry and violet with great delineation and poise. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly grainy coarse tannins that neatly juxtapose the core of sweet...

Pale garnet in color. Cranberry and red fruit aromas on the nose along with hints of maturity in the subtle balsamic and dried leaf notes. Still young, tight, and even austere on the palate with energizing tension and a...

Only the fourth-ever release of this cuvée, the 2008 Champagne Celebris Rosé pours an orange/salmon color and is outstanding on opening, with a perfume of fresh rose petals, honeycomb, and cherry blossoms. Long on the...

The cool but dry winter was followed by rains in April and May that replenished the water reserves in the soil. A warm, dry summer produced a harmonious vintage starting at the end of August in Douro Superior. It has a...

Starting to show just a hint of lightening in the color, the wine is medium bodied, fresh, soft and offers its red fruit and licorice with ease. Classic in style, with a reserved character, you can drink this now, or age...

The 2008 Clos Martinet like the Martinet Bru is a bit more forward and graceful than its 2007 sibling. Nevertheless it contains enough structure and balance to drink well for another 15 years. Mas Martinet is owned by...

(95+ points) Roumier’s 2008 Ruchottes-Chambertin is drop-dead gorgeous. Layers of dark fruit, violets, pepper and flowers meld together in this multi-dimensional, beautifully textured wine. Despite its weightless...

Classic ruby. An intensely sauvage, cool and relatively airy red currant suffused nose that is also distinctly mineral-inflected leads to solidly structured and overtly muscular flavors that finish with some dryness...

One of only three estates (and two owners, as the Bartons had owned both this and Langoa Barton for three decades by 1855) to be part of the same family now as at the time of the ranking, this is an essential estate to...

The second wine of Château Pichon-Longueville is soft, perfumed and delicious. It's a wine with plenty of juicy fruit, though at this stage the wood is too dominant. The finish shows a hint of spice. ROGER VOSS

The 2008 Pavie is deep garnet with a touch of brick. It is a tad shy to begin, needing a bit of shaking to wake up an impressive perfume of black cherry compote, plum preserves, and wild blueberries followed by hints of...