Red

95 points Vinous
The 2010 Langoa-Barton has a very pure and quite intense bouquet with black cherries, blueberry and star anis aromas that are typically Langoa. The palate is medium-bodied with saturated tannins, impressive body and grip with a liquorice-tinged, saline finish that maybe just lacks a little flesh and needs more on the aftertaste. Tasted from an ex-chateau bottle at the BI Wines & Spirits 10-Year On tasting.

94 points Decanter
Lighter framed than Leoville, and while this is delicious, it is not quite at the level of its sibling. Not that anyone is going to complain, and this will be ready to crack out sooner. Opens up to show bramble berry fruits with confident tannins that provide a frame that is going to hold on tight for a good decade at least. Plenty of St-Julien character. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042.

94 points Wine Spectator
Tightly focused, with a beam of cassis and blackberry fruit framed by integrated espresso and charcoal notes. The ample structure drives the polished finish, allowing extra notes of plum sauce, pastis and blueberry coulis to stride through. Shows serious grip at the very end. Best from 2016 through 2035.

96 points James Suckling
This is extremely linear and refined with a super-fine line of tannins running through the center of the wine. It?????s full-bodied, yet tight and sophisticated, with a long, long finish. Plenty of blackcurrant, dark chocolate, walnut and cedar in the aftertaste. Try after 2025.

95 points Jeb Dunnuck
Tasted on multiple occasions, the 2020 Château Lascombes is clearly another brilliant wine from this château that readers will love. Sporting a deep purple hue as well as a classic bouquet of cassis, dried flowers, freshly sharpened pencils, and obvious minerality, it hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, has a layered, elegant mouthfeel, lots of building tannins, and a great finish. It’s going to need 4-6 years at a minimum but is some serious Margaux brilliance that will have 30 years of longevity.

95 points James Suckling
Aromas of crushed blackcurrants and cherries with dried Provence herbs, lavender, raw walnuts and spiced cedar. Graphite, too. Full and muscular with a broad-shouldered, velvety tannin structure that goes on for minutes. Textured and chalky with a lingering finish. Very polished. 55% cabernet sauvignon, 40% merlot and 5% petit verdot.

100 points James Suckling
Latour has made truly great wines in the past two decades?and this is one of the best. It has fabulous aromas of black truffles, currants, raspberry and dried flowers. Mind-blowing on the palate, it????s an emotional and soulful red.(4/2014)

99 points Decanter
Dense and complex, this shows layers of dark fruit with aromas of plum, fig and blackcurrant overlaid with spice, leather and earth. It is not as expressive as the 2001 vintage now, but it is more substantial, almost massive. (CC) (2/2022)

99 points Vinous
The 2000 Latour is very deep in color. The nose is backward and demands coaxing from the glass, eventually revealing intense black fruit, cedar, graphite and very subtle Japanese nori aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with an arching structure that grips the mouth. The tannins are a little bolder than the 2001. This unfolds swirl by swirl, with hints of licorice emerging with time, and fanning out audaciously on the finish. (NM) (9/2021)

99 points Wine Spectator
The fruit here is still very much in the primary phase, with a decidedly racy feel to the raspberry coulis, cassis and blackberry reduction notes that are streaked with violet, iron and graphite flavors. The superlong finish alternates between a tug of sweet earth and a velvety feel, as the fruit and grip are still melding together, but there's so much vivacity here, there's no concern with waiting it out. The wait may be a while though. Rather stunning that this can separate itself so clearly from the rest of 2000's high-class field. (JM) (6/2016)

98 points Wine Enthusiast
This is such an expressive wine, with elegance a major factor in its character. It is certainly huge, rich and dense. But there is much more to it. You can peel layers of fruit and tannins away, and still never get to the end of the wine????s complexity. At every stage of its life, it will reveal a new character, but for now it is dominated by powerful tannins and huge, black, fruit. (RV) (6/2003)

97 points Wine Advocate
2000 saw a warm, dry July and August with a small amount of rain from mid-September onward. Composed of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot, the 2000 Latour has a deep garnet color and is showing a good amount of evolution, sporting mature notes of fried exotic spices, hoisin, unsmoked cigars and fruitcake with hints of incense, potpourri, cast iron pan and charcuterie. Medium-bodied, soft, plush and savory in the mouth, it has a long, mineral-tinged finish. 14,000 cases were made this year, representing 48% of production. (LPB) (2/2019)

93 points Vinous
The 2005 Leoville Barton has a delightful bouquet with more red fruit than the Langoa, wild strawberry, redcurrant, light cedar and wild mint. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins and modest depth, quite fresh with a slightly rustic finish. It becomes a little medicinal with time. The 2005 is cut from a different cloth to contemporary Leoville Barton but it is still worth seeking out. Tasted at the chateau. - By Neal Martin on June 2025. Drinking Window 2025-2045

96 points Vinous
The 2005 Leoville-Barton is clearly one of the wines of the vintage. Powerful and strapping in the glass, the 2005 is a big, big wine. Huge swaths of tannin wrap around a core of inky black fruit, new leather, spice, gravel, mocha and licorice. The wine's sheer density is impressive, but its balance is even more compelling. I might be temped to give this another few years in the cellar. Readers lucky enough to own it will find a thrilling, potent Saint-Julien that overdelivers big time. I loved it. - By Antonio Galloni on April 2021

The 2009 is one of the greatest Leoville Las Cases I have ever tasted, which is saying something given the many compelling wines that have been made at this estate. A final blend of 76% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, and 9% Cabernet Franc has resulted in a wine that appears to be a hypothetical blend of the 1982, 1986, and 1996. Its 13.8% alcohol is perhaps the only thing that sets it apart from those vintages, which had nearly a full percentage point less. The high alcohol is barely noticeable in this 2009, which boasts an inky/purple color, monumental concentration, and great clarity and purity of creme de cassis, black cherry, spice box, graphite, and wet rock characteristics. Extremely full-bodied with a boatload of sweet tannin nearly concealed by the wine-s power, glycerin, and awesome fruit concentration, this intense effort never tastes heavy or tiring. This remarkable St.-Julien should be accessible in 3-4 years, and will evolve for 40-50. (Tasted once.) - WA96-100

As one would expect, this is a powerful, concentrated wine with 13.7% natural alcohol (compared to 2005's 13.2%). The pH is quite normal at 3.56, and its relatively high total acidity gives it a classic, fresh, yet backward style. Given how long vintages such as 1982, 1986, and I suspect, 2000 are taking to reach maturity, prospective purchasers of this wine should easily invest in a decade of cellaring, although I suspect it will be closer to 15 or more years before it reveals secondary nuances. A good 40- to 50-year wine, it is a dense purple, full-bodied style of Las Cases, with classic sweet kirsch, graphite and black currant fruit as well as hints of new saddle leather and subtle oak. Backward, layered and multi-dimensional, the wine is stunningly rich, but brooding. Forget it at least until 2020 or later. -WS 95-98

98+ points Vinous
The 2020 L??oville Las Cases has developed into a powerhouse. Then again, that is Las Cases. En primeur, I thought the 2020 was a bit shy, but its true personality has to emerge. Blackberry jam, gravel, spice, menthol, licorice, espresso and plum all saturate the palate. Vivid and explosive, the 2020 is dizzyingly rich, with plenty of Las Cases tannins that will require patience. I am not sure when the 2020 will be ready to drink, but it won't be anytime soon. Las Cases is one of the wines of the vintage in 2020, that much is pretty clear.(AG)

97+ points Wine Advocate
The 2020 L??oville Las Cases is a classic in the making, unwinding in the glass with aromas of cherries, cassis, loamy soil, violets and dark chocolate framed by a discreet touch of new oak. Full-bodied, broad and layered, it's rich and concentrated, with a deep core of fruit framed by sweet, powdery tannins and lively acids. Concluding with a long, resonant finish, it's built for the cellar. (WK)

100 points Jeb Dunnuck
Reminding me of the 2018 (as well as the 2009), if not slightly more concentrated, the 2022 Château Léoville Poyferré is one of the most opulent and flamboyant wines out of the Médoc in 2022, and it has incredible intensity while staying light on its feet and graceful. Its dense, glass-staining purple hue is followed by a sensational perfume of crème de cassis, graphite, darker chocolate, scorched earth, and flowers. Full-bodied on the palate, it brings extravagant levels of fruit as well as a seamless mouthfeel, beautifully integrated oak, tannins, and acidity, no hard edges, and a gorgeous finish. It shines even today, yet it has beautiful underlying structure and will evolve gracefully over the coming 30+ years. The 2022 is based on 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, and 4% each of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, aged 18-20 months in 80% new oak.

99 points James Suckling
A mind-blowing Leoville Poyferre, probably one of the best for a long time. Huge depth and structure, showing a deep matrix of fruit full of fresh blackberries and a dash of ink and lead pencil. Such verticality on the full-bodied palate with beautiful balance and a clear finish that goes on and on for more than a minute. Great potential ahead. This was tasted at the UCGB tasting and was one of the best wines of the day. Drink after 2028. It should improve in the next 10 to 15 years.

James Suckling, 97pts. - "This is more exotic and monstrous than the 2000. It is like a muscle builder, with lots of round and rich tannins and a core of dark fruits like black cherries and blueberries. Still very young, but structured and in need of five more years." (5/2012)

Jeb Dunnuck, 96pts. - "The 2003 Chateau Leoville Las Cases comes from what is still the hottest vintage on record for Bordeaux. (Others that are close are 2006, 2011, 2018, and 2019.) A blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, and 13% Cabernet Franc that hit 13.5% alcohol and a pH of 3.62 (IPT was 75), its deep ruby/plum color is followed by a terrific, almost Pauillac-like bouquet of ripe blackcurrants, freshly sharpened pencils, chocolate, violets, and a touch of chalky minerality. It builds beautifully with time in the glass and is full-bodied on the palate, offering ripe tannins, a round, expansive mouthfeel, plenty of mid-palate depth, and a great finish. Hats off to the team at Las Cases for such a gorgeous wine from a challenging vintage!" (3/2021)

99 points Vinous
The 2019 Lynch Bages is every bit as magnificent from bottle as it was from barrel, if not moreso. What a wine! Towering and vertical in its bearing, the 2019 is a total stunner. There is plenty of Lynch Bages charm, but what distinguishes the 2019 most is its spine of tannin and energy. Time in the glass brings out sweet red cherry, plum, blood orange and pomegranate and mint. The 2019 is a great, great, great Lynch Bages. It reminds me of the epic 1989, but with the youthful grip of this vintage. A towering Pauillac, the 2019 Lynch Bages will make a great addition to any cellar. (Antonio Galloni)

99 points Jeb Dunnuck
The 2022 Château Lynch-Bages is based on 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Merlot, and 3% each of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Its inky purple hue is followed by a sensational Pauillac that has a blockbuster (and classic Lynch-Bages) style in its darker currants, smoke tobacco, lead pencil, and crushed stone-driven aromatics. These carry to a full-bodied, powerful, massively concentrated 2022 that has a dense, layered mid-palate, velvety tannins, flawless balance, and a rare mix of power and elegance. This is a château that’s clearly firing on all cylinders, and this magical beauty will need a decade (or more) to hit the early stages of its prime drinking window. Don't miss it!

98 points James Suckling
#94 in Top 100 World Wines, 2025. A terrific Lynch from a hot vintage with blackcurrants, mint, dried lavender, graphite and thyme on the nose and palate. Medium- to full-bodied, it shows fantastic tannins with a lovely texture that reminds me of cashmere, becoming slightly chewy in the finish. Give this four to five years of bottle age. Try after 2028.

This is the Chateau that is owned by the Néel-Chombart family. This is the family that owns and operates Chateau Lamothe. Manos is situated very close to Lamothe in the commune of Haux.

Manos is almost 100% Semillon sourced from very old vines (70 years of age). The grapes are 70-80% effected by botrytis. Aged in a combination of tank and barrel, this wine offers an insane value for sweet Bordeaux!

Absolutely compelling in two tastings of this vintage, the 2000 Margaux is composed of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot. The extraordinary seductiveness, complex aromatics, and purity it exhibits lead me to believe it has reached its window of full maturity. Medium-bodied, with layers of concentration, stunning blue, red, and black fruits intermixed with spring flowers, a subtle dosage of new oak, and a distinctive personality that is elegant while at the same time powerful and substantial, this is a multi-dimensional wine that was extremely approachable and drinkable in both tastings I had of it. The color remains a healthy, even opaque bluish/purple, but there is no reason to hesitate to drink it. It should evolve for another 30-40 years, so there is no hurry either. 100 points - Robert Parker

Paul Pontallier was rattling off some interesting statistics about Chateau Margaux. The 2000 (a great, great wine) was 13.1% natural alcohol, the 2005 13.1%, the 2009 13.2%, and the 2010, the highest ever measured, 13.5%. That is still nearly one degree less than the Pauillac first-growth of Chateau Latour at 14.4%. This blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc (representing only 38% of the total production) has the classic, quintessential Margaux character of spring flowers, almost cool-climate precision, medium body, and a seamless integration of tannin, wood and alcohol. The blue and black fruit characteristics are present, and the wine restrained. The most measured and polished of all the first growths I tasted, it is also less concentrated than any of the other first growths, but the elegance is classic. The harvest finished on October 15, which was not their latest by any means. This is one of the few first growths of 2010 where the tannins are remarkably delicate and sweet, and the softness of this wine will provide magical drinking at a relatively early age, yet its balance and concentration will carry it for 20 or more years. -WS 96-98

Organic

This is the most important wine of the estate, a serious red vinified to reflect its capacity to age. The grapes are harvested at a point of slight surmaturit?? which captures the profound scents and flavors of the surrounding hillside garrigue. The cuvaison continues for at least a month; then, the wine is racked into tank for aging. The wine is bottled twenty to twenty-four months after harvest. As the wine ages in bottle, it develops enticing notes of juniper, rosemary and thyme as well as the savory flavors of wild berries and a hint of the "animal" all in all, one of the more compelling values in all of France.

100 points Vinous
The 2019 Montrose is very clearly one of the wines of the vintage. Rich, inky and towering in concentration, the 2019 possesses off the charts intensity and tons of structure to back it up. Succulent black cherry, plum, tobacco, gravel and licorice infuse the 2019 with striking depth. The 2019 is not quite as opulent as some recent vintages, and that's a good thing. Readers will find a regal wine that marries elegance with power. Unforgettable. Antonio Galloni (1/2022)

100 points Wine Enthusiast
The wine has a massive structure, great concentration. It now really shows the results of the massive investment of the owners, the telecom magnate Bouygues family. The powerful tannins mask the impressive black fruits and the wine’s rich berry flavors. This magnificent wine will develop slowly over many years. Drink from 2027. *Cellar Selection* (8/2022)

99 points Decanter
A generous and abundant nose full of fruit and aromatic intensity followed by a gorgeous mouthfeel showcasing fruit density and concentration wrapped up in soft, velvety-smooth tannins. Just so much depth but also refinement here, it feels well made with just the right amount of fruit, toasty spice, tannins, freshness and acidity. The overall structure is gently framing all the elements - big and bold but quietly confident. The tannin impact is also enjoyable giving a feeling of approachability despite the long life ahead. Just superb - one of the best in 2019. (1/2022)

100 points Wine Advocate
Surpassing the 2019 and rivaling the 2016 as this estate's finest vintage of the last few decades, the 2020 Montrose is a monument in the making. Wafting from the glass with aromas of violets, dark berries, licorice, loamy soil, black truffle and subtle spices, it's full-bodied, deep and layered, with a seamless, elegantly muscular profile, terrific purity and energy, beautifully powdery tannins and a long, resonant finish. It checks in at 13.7% alcohol, the same as the superb 2009, but it is even deeper, more vibrant and more complex than the 2009. This will be worth a special effort to seek out and only confirms Montrose's status as one of the contemporary Medoc's leading estates and a de facto first growth.

99 points Vinous
The 2020 Montrose was bottled in July 2022. The alcohol is 13.4%, a whole degree less than the previous year but with the same concentration (IPT is 80). It has a fabulous bouquet that delivers on all that promise from when I finally tasted the wine around a year earlier from barrel, a cornucopia of blackberry, bilberry, crushed stone, Indian ink and loamy/undergrowth scents. Very mercurial in the glass, it seems to shapeshift with every minute. The palate is medium-bodied with such a precise entry. This is far more detailed than either the 2019 or 2018, a symmetrical Montrose with unerring detail and mineralite, its silky texture belying the power underneath. This is unequivocally a brilliant wine and a benchmark in recent years. Contender for wine of the vintage. Neal Martin (2/2023)

This is the most backward and unevolved of all the Left Bank (Medoc) first-growths. In 10-20 years, the 2009 Mouton Rothschild should rank alongside the greatest vintages of the last three decades (1986 and 1982). Yields were a small 30 hectoliters per hectare, the final blend is 88% Cabernet Sauvignon and 12% Merlot, and the finished alcohol is 13.2% (not particularly high in this vintage). The pH is 3.81, and the index of tannins, the highest ever measured, a whopping 20% higher than the next highest vintage. The tannins, while present, are silky and well-integrated, one of the hallmarks of the 2009 vintage. An inky/purple color is accompanied by classic aromas of creme de cassis, violets, and hints of graphite and background oak. The overwhelming impression is one of layer upon layer of fruit, full-bodied opulence, and good structure. It tastes as if it were 2-3 months old rather than a post-malolactic, fully assembled barrel sample ... it?????s that young, but so incredibly promising. A 50- to 100-year wine? Probably. (Tasted once.) - WA96-98+

The 2010 Mouton possesses the highest level of Cabernet Sauvignon (94%) of any wine this estate has produced. Combined with 6% Merlot, the wine achieved 13.9% natural alcohol. Under director Philippe Dalhuin, the harvest was accomplished between September 28 and October 13, and only 49% of the crop made it into this powerful effort. Reminiscent of the 1986, it is a 50-60 year wine that is not meant for consumers looking for near-term gratification. This backward, tannic, full-bodied, exceptionally promising 2010 reveals enormous weight along with extravagant levels of precise, fresh boysenberry and creme de cassis fruit. The abundant minerality is due no doubt to the fresh acidity. In need of at least 15 years of cellaring, it will undoubtedly remain an infant at age 25 (as does the 1986). -WS 97-100

92 points Jeb Dunnuck
A blend of 54% Merlot, 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, the 2020 Château Ormes De Pez offers up a great perfume of red and black currants, sweet tobacco, sandalwood, and spice. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, with ripe tannins and good overall balance, it's another terrific 2020 that offers pleasure even today yet will evolve for 15+ years if well stored.

92 points Wine Spectator
Fresh and direct, with lilac and savory notes running with a core of damson plum and red cherry coulis. Reveals a piercing iron note on the sneaky long finish. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2024 through 2034.

Organic / Biodynamic

99 points Jeb Dunnuck
#26 in Top 100, 2022. Pure class, the 2019 Chateau Pichon-Longueville Comtesse De Lalande is another brilliant wine from director Nicolas Glumineau that checks in at the top of the vintage. A blend of 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, and 6% Cabernet Franc that was harvested from mid-September through October 8th. Brought up in roughly 60% new French oak, it hit 14.1% natural alcohol with a pH of 3.7. More elegant and poised from bottle than barrel, it offers a brilliant perfume of creme de cassis, lead pencil shavings, tobacco leaf, damp earth, and graphite. Deep, full-bodied, and pure perfection on the palate, it has this incredible marriage of Latour-like stature and regalness buffered by wonderful, sexy, seamless fruit, which no doubt comes from the higher Merlot content and makes Comtesse de Lalande so singular and unique. It builds slowly with time in the glass and has remarkable purity of fruit, ultra-fine tannins, perfect balance, and a finish that just begs you to pour another glass. It has a seductive, seamless profile that offers pleasure even today (although it needs lots of air to show at its best) yet needs 7-8 years of bottle age to hit the early stages of its prime drink window and will evolve for another 40-50 years if stored properly.

98 points Wine Advocate
One of the wines of the vintage, the 2019 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande soars from the glass with complex aromas of wild berries, tobacco leaf, loamy soil, burning embers and hints of violets and rose petals. Full-bodied, deep and complete, it?????s velvety and seamless, with a broad attack and a multidimensional core of lively, succulent fruit. Concluding with a long, expansive finish, it?????s a remarkable young Pauillac that will offer many years of thrilling drinking. Congratulations to Nicolas Glumineau and his team, who are ushering in a new golden age at an address where standards were always very high.

98 points Vinous
One of the most elegant Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande I can remember tasting. The 2019 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is very clearly one of the wines of the year. Statuesque in its bearing, the 2019 possesses tremendous depth and intensity right out of the gate. Dark fruit, gravel, smoke, licorice and incense draw the taster in. The 2019 is like a great book. You don't want to put it down. Each taste reveals a new layer, a new shade of nuance. The 2019 is quite simply one of the most elegant renditions I have tasted recently. That said, it is also incredibly austere and in need of cellaring. Don't miss it. Tasted three times.

Organic / Biodynamic

96-98 points
The 2020 Pichon-Lalande has a backward nose similar to that of its neighbor Pichon-Baron, and so I decanted the bottle for 45 minutes. It then revealed gorgeous scents of blackberry, wild hedgerow, seaweed (Japanese nori) and wild mint. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit and gentle but insistent grip. Very intense but not ripe; there is a coolness about this Pauillac that I like, while the finish is very classically styled and leaves behind a persistent, slightly briny aftertaste. This is a magnificent, cerebral Pichon-Lalande that will deserve serious aging and the patience of anyone still waiting for The Cure's new album. Tasted three times, including directly from the chateau. Neal Martin

97 points Wine Spectator
A wow wine. This is packed with cassis, loganberry and mulberry flavors that hint at the vintage's warmth, but this stays poised and fresh, with a sleek structure built on graphite and iron. Offers violet and lilac lift in the background and a groundswell of sweet tobacco, savory and singed cedar details that emerge through the finish, all with a fine-grained and rather luxurious feel. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2030.

95-97 points Wine Advocate
Deep purple-black in color, the 2020 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande begins on a single, well-defined, wonderfully pure note of ripe blackcurrants, opening out to a melody of redcurrant jelly, kirsch, ripe blackberries and tar, with emerging suggestions of dark chocolate, cardamom, ground cloves and violets, with a waft of black truffles. Medium-bodied, tightly wound and with loads of fantastically nuanced black fruit layers, it has a rock-solid frame of finely grained tannins and bags of freshness, finishing long and mineral laced. The blend this year is 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc.

Organic / Biodynamic

99-100 points James Suckling
What a finish on this Pontet-Canet. So much energy and brightness. It's full-bodied yet so tight and focused with superb fruit and transparency. It is racy and fine with super fine texture. It's like crushed cabernet sauvignon with cassis, tobacco and cigar box. Licorice and spices. Freshness of the seed. 57% cabernet sauvignon, 35% merlot, 4% cabernet franc, and 4% petit verdot.

97-99+ points Jeb Dunnuck
The 2022 Château Pontet-Canet is brilliant and should easily be up with the crème de la crème from the Médoc. Based on 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, and 4% each of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, it was vinified mostly in concrete (there's a small part in wood), and the aging is in 50% new French oak, 35% in amphora, and the rest in once-used barrels. It has an incredibly pure bouquet of cassis, graphite, lead pencil, and scorched earth. This carries to a full-bodied Pauillac with a deep, layered mid-palate, building tannins, and a great finish. It has the purity, richness, and structure that makes this vintage so compelling and is going to be drinkable with just 4-6 years of bottle age but have an incredibly long life.

95-97 points Vinous
The 2022 Pontet-Canet is a surprising wine. Usually much more opulent, especially in warm, dry years, the 2022 comes across as restrained and understated. It is a wine of linear intensity rather than size, marked by notable freshness and a feeling of tension and precision I don’t recall seeing in the past. Clean mineral notes extend the finish effortlessly. I very much admire the precision and vibrancy here. Unforgettable.

Organic

97-99 points Jeb Dunnuck
This château has been firing on all cylinders of late, no doubt due to the talents of technical director Nicolas Audebert, and a wine that's going to flirt with perfection is their 2022 Château Rauzan-Ségla. Powerful notes of black cherries, currants, smoked tobacco, chocolate, and leafy herbs all define the aromatics, and it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a deep, layered, concentrated texture, ripe yet building tannins, and a great finish. This is a legit great wine that's going to rival the 2010, 2015, 2016, 2018, and 2020.

97-98 points James Suckling
The freshness and clarity of the fruit is really something with black currants and cherries. Brilliant. Full-bodied, layered and round with polished tannins. I like the intensity and focus with such precision and gorgeousness. Is this the 2016 plus more?

97 points Decanter
Gorgeously fragranced on the nose with perfumed black fruits and pink flowers - smells very Margaux. Clean and crisp, a beautiful precision from the start with ripe and rich fruit but cool fresh acidity and sleek, fine tannins. A little shy, still compact and tightly knitted, but lovely detail, so well worked, almost delicate but there's still quite fleshy, plush fruit. Excellent concentration but delivered with an easy sleight of hand, expanding with time in the glass. Glamorous, scented, inviting, deep and seductive. A brilliant and totally moreish wine. Yield of 30hl/ha. 3.7pH. 17% press wine. Harvest 2-28 September. Ageing in French oak for 14-16 months, 15% new. In organic conversion. Tasted twice.

91 Points Wine Enthusiast
The home chateau of the group of properties owned by the Guyon family, this estate has produced a solid very ageworthy wine. It has dark tannins and rich juicy black fruits. With its structure and bright berry and plum flavors, it will not be ready to drink before 2020.

91 Points James Suckling
The savory and earthy notes give this a lot of personality.

89 points Vinous
The 2014 Chateau Rollan de By is a gorgeous Cru Bourgeois. Dark blue and purplish fruit, tobacco, lavender and menthol meld into a core of dark fruit. Exuberant, racy and super-expressive, the 2014 is one of the under-the-radar gems of the vintage. Drink it over the next decade. Alain Raynaud is the consulting winemaker. Drinking window: 2017-2026

 Now here is a gem of a wine for you Bordeaux enthusiasts, Chateau Rollan de By Cru Bourgeois Medoc 2014. This Cru Bourgeois will appeal to Bordeaux lovers with a die-hard traditionalist palate. This has all the leather, tobacco leaf, cedar and forest floor you crave and has ten years of bottle age! It is drinking in a sweet spot right now displaying evolved fruit notes, not the youthful vibrancy you would experience with a new vintage like 2021. Oh, not to mention the going price for the 2021 vintage is $45-$50!

Chateau Rollan de By has 45 hectares planted to 70% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc and 10% Petit Verdot. They have a terroir of clay and gravel soils. The vines at Chateau Rollan de By are old, with an average age of 35 years. The wine is aged in a combination of 90% new, French oak barrels and 10% new, American oak barrels for an average of 12 months.

Organic

96 points James Suckling
Attractive aromas of blackberries, plum skins, cloves, cardamom, dark chocolate, cedar and graphite. Some wet stones, too. Full-bodied, opulent and broad-shouldered. Structured and refined. It has a deep core of ripe black fruit covered with layers of plush and velvety tannins that linger for a long time on the palate. Really long and even.

96 points Jeb Dunnuck
I continue to absolutely love what this estate puts in the bottle, and it remains an incredible value given its quality. The 2020 Château Saint-Pierre (Saint-Julien) reveals a deeper ruby/purple hue to go with gorgeous aromatics of blackcurrants, smoked tobacco, gravelly earth, and chocolate. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it shows the more elegant, pure, precision style of the vintage, has perfectly integrated background oak, ripe tannins, and a great finish. This brilliant Saint Julien will benefit from 4–6 years of bottle age and have 30+years of overall longevity. Bravo.

93 points Vinous
The 2020 Sociando Mallet has retained its impressive aromatics from its showing in barrel with beautifully defined blackberry and raspberry fruit, pressed violet and light cedar aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with firm backbone, a little powdery in texture, fine backbone with ample freshness and tension towards its graphite-infused finish. Bravo!

"A powerful, rich wine as good as many cru classes. Inky color and intense vanilla, violet and cassis aromas; full-bodied, with great balance, full but integrated tannins and a long finish." 94pts WS

#4 on The Wine Spectator's Top 100 Wines of 2022

95 points Wine Spectator
Well-built and rather refined for the vintage, with a deep well of red and black currant paste and plum reduction flavors supported by a deeply inlaid iron note, all of which run the length of the wine. Offers subtle savory, tobacco and singed cedar notes that add range, with a savory echo that leaves a mouthwatering feel in the end. Built to cellar. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Best from 2025 through 2040.

Pre-Arrival - Wine arrives in January 2026.

#13 on The Wine Spectator's Top 100 Wines of 2025

96 points Wine Spectator
This delivers an energetic tumble of blackberry, boysenberry and black currant paste flavors injected with bramble and apple wood and supported by a licorice snap accent. The strapping finish is laced with violet and iris notes, while a cast iron edge lends bass. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Best from 2027 through 2045.

96 points James Suckling
The aromas of blackcurrants and dried flowers with fresh herbs like basil and rosemary are extremely attractive. Medium- to full-bodied, this has firm and velvety tannins with a tension and focus that I have not seen for a while. Long and chewy finish. Solid. Drink after 2028 and beyond.

Organic

Domaine de Boissan, located in Sablet, dates back to the 18th century; today it is in the capable hands of Christian and Cathy Bonfils, who are fifth-generation growers originally from Burgundy. Their Cuvee Prince d'Orange from 35-year-old vines; aged in oak for 6-8 months, it has hints of hazelnut and pepper on the nose and a palate that is rich and complex with a touch of blackcurrant on the finish.

Danielle Meunier of Château Haut Segottes is the winemaker. Chateau Haut-Segottes second wine provides a supple, beguiling counterpoint to the flagship cuvée’s muscular classicism. Comprised entirely of Merlot—partly from a one-hectare plot in the dark-sand soils of Corbin, and partly from a hectare in Fortin—Clos Petit-Corbin displays the sheer elegance the variety can achieve in this appellation. Florent and Danielle employ no new wood here, and a small portion of the wine remains in tank during the élévage, thereby further emphasizing its purity and drinkability. What strikes the drinker about this wine is its sense of grace: this is not Merlot forced into some caricature of voluptuousness or gym-pumped into an awkward imitation of Cabernet; rather, it revels comfortably in its lip-smacking red-fruited prettiness. It’s the kind of wine that can only be produced here, and only by growers who are able to fully trust noble Merlot to be its truest self.

Chambertin-Clos-de-Beze is a Grand Cru vineyard and corresponding appellation of the Cote de Nuits. It forms half of a vineyard that is regarded not only as the most prestigious in Gevrey-Chambertin, but arguably the whole of Burgundy. The soils of the Chambertin-Clos-de-Beze vineyard are well drained and stony, with a thin layer of pebble-strewn, chalky topsoil over a deep, rocky base. The percentage of clay in the soil reduces higher up the site, giving way to drier, looser limestone.

Alain was born in 1950 to Yvon Burguet, a tacheron for Domaine Tortochot who also worked his own vines in Gevrey. fter military service, Alain returned to Gevrey and decided to start his own domaine, working exclusively with rented vines until 1974 when the opportunity arose to buy his first 2.10 ha of vines in the village. He bottled his own production from the start, and began to earn a reputation for himself, which was boosted around 1982 when Becky picked up Alain?€?s wines. She brought Jean Troigros to taste, who was utterly impressed with the Gevrey Vieilles Vignes and promptly added them to his restaurant?€?s list. Alain continued to expand his domaine, acquiring 1er Cru Les Champeaux in 1985, inheriting some of his father?€?s 3.5 hectares in 1991, while still working rented vineyards. Well before the more global movement toward sustainability and almost 20 years before Ecocert was created to certify organic agriculture, Alain insisted on organic methods.

Aromas of cherry, strawberry and a hint of toffee are present on the nose. In the mouth, the wine has a delicate floral and berry palate which is nuanced by supple oak and vanilla characteristics.

After strict pruning and a mid-season green harvest to control yields, the grapes are hand-picked in small boxes with hand-sorting at the vineyard and the winery to ensure only the finest grapes. Prefermentation cold maceration is followed by alcoholic fermentation at 82°F, with malolactic fermentation in barrels for 21 to 28 days. Aged 50% in three year old French oak barrels and 50% in steel tanks for 10–12 months.

With 18 wonderfully diverse appellations across the region, 12 of which are Premier and Grand crus, Bertagna is among the top ranking Domaines in Burgundy. A desire for perfection and emphasis on quality, coupled with significant investments in technology and vineyard management, result in some of the region’s most compelling wines.

Organic

93 points Jeb Dunnuck
Not yet bottled, the 2022 Châteauneuf Du Pape is liquid Provence in a bottle, offering a massive nose of mulled red and black cherries, peppery garrigue, leather, and smoked meat-like aromas and flavors. With medium to full-bodied richness on the palate, it has solid overall balance, a meaty, mouth-filling texture, and enough tannins to warrant short-term cellaring. The blend is 70% Grenache, 10% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre, and the rest a mix of varieties, and this cuvée will spend two years in foudre before bottling.

Organic

Located high in the Pyrenees mountains, 900-1400 feet above sea level. 42% Grenache, 31% Syrah, 16% Carignan, 8% Liedoner Pellut, 3% Maccabeu. A lightly extracted, bright, chillable red. A mountain wine displaying the prettiest fruit. 11.5% abv

Organic / Biodynamic

Can be a bit reductive when first opened. Cool and elegant aromas of lemon rind, white orchard fruit and petrol lead to moderately dense and nicely rich middleweight flavors that display good length on the balanced finale that is supported by citrus-tinged acidity.

Organic / Natural

This is PJ Wine's 2024 Wine Of The Year!
Now with a new sale price!

Organically farmed Syrah from the lieu-dit "Les Picheres", less than 2km from the vines of Domaine Alain Graillot in Crozes Hermitage. Vinified with thirty percent whole cluster, semi carbonic maceration, and aged in old neutral barrels from Domaine de la Romanee-Conti.

The bouquet is enchanting, a dazzling display of white flowers, bramble fruit, and a slight note of baking spice. The fruit is lush and plush and feels incredible on the palate (semi-carbonic maceration at play). The finish is silky smooth showing great balance and drinkability. Equis is a joyful, playful wine that doesn't take itself too seriously and yet presents enough layers to keep the most classic plates engaged. This is a crowd pleaser for sure!

Maxime Graillot, the son of iconic Crozes-Hermitage producer Alain Grailliot.
100% Syrah
40+ year old vines
From the lieu-dit ?????Les Picheres?????, less than 2km from the vines of Domaine Alain Graillot
Rocky gravel terroir
30% whole cluster
Indigenous yeast
Aged in older barrels

Organic

91 points James Suckling
Strawberries, oranges and nutmeg on the nose, followed by a fresh, fruity and medium-bodied palate. Lots of juicy fruit. Drink now or hold.

Domaine des Marrans is located in Fleurie, in the heart of the northernmost section of Beaujolais. Founded in 1970, the current proprietor is the young and talented Mathieu Mélinand, who joined the family domaine in 2008. With old vines and crystalline granite sites, Mathieu is growing some of the most pristine Gamay we know. The vines are pruned in the traditional Gobelet vinetraining method and the harvest is done only by hand, using small crates to minimize oxidation. In the cellar, vinification is old school, with semi-carbonic maceration using whole clusters, minimal intervention, and only indigenous yeasts used. The wines are then aged in large older barrels for 10 months before bottling. This lineup is remarkably pure and fresh for 2015, with a grain and spice to the old vine Gamay that underlines how Mathieu nailed the harvest date for this vintage. These wines display their terroir with clear definition and racy floral deliciousness.

From four hectares across three plots in Les Marans, Les Ballis, and La Côte. Soil is granite, manganese, and sand. Vines average 40 years-old. Whole cluster fermentation in concrete vats, aged 70% in vat and 30% in used oak barrels.

This deep and rich Hermitage, from a family run operation, displays smoked cherry and berry plus dark roasted coffee, iron and red meat on the nose.? On the palate the wine is exceptionally chewy, with cassis, orange rind, and chocolate notes backed by bacon, iron and smoke tones. Excellent acidity and density make this is well-structured Hermitage worthy of additional aging to fully reveal itself.? Decant for at least an hour to serve now. - PJ

92+ points Wine Advocate
The 2022 Moulin-à-Vent Vieilles Vignes, vinified with 80% whole clusters, is packed with notes of juicy plums, dark cherries, mandarin oil, vine smoke and sweet spices. Medium to full-bodied, the wine intermingles savory flavors with a velvety concentration of fruit, supported by ripe acids and chalky tannins that daintily impart a youthful grip without any asperity, culminating in a sapid, textural finish. This is a wine to lay down for a few years.

92-94 points Burghound
This is the first wine to exhibit any appreciable reduction and it's enough to overshadow the underlying fruit at present. More interesting are the intense and super-sleek broad-shouldered flavors that exhibit excellent precision on the powerful tautly muscular and strikingly long finale. This is very impressive but also a wine that is very much constituted for the long haul. Patience advised. (Drink starting 2035)