Bordeaux Wines

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Lovely deep red pink rim to the glass. Such freshness and floral lift on the nose, smells lively and welcoming with a cool blue fruit touch to the aromas alongside faint hints of liquorice. Amazing texture and mouthfeel - filling with a good density of chalky and textured tannins underpinning creamy red fruits with a juicy acidity that is so succulent and mouthwatering. Just giving everything - abundant, generous lively fruit, creamy velvet-textured tannins, bright acidity and gorgeous Cabernet aspects. Round and complete, excellent winemaking on show. Drinking Window: 2023 - 2037.Decanter | 96 DECThe 2019 Lagrange has turned out beautifully in bottle, wafting from the glass with aromas of cherries, blackberries and cassis mingled with hints of loamy soil, pencil shavings and bay leaf. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and enveloping, with an ample core of lively fruit, powdery tannins and succulent acids, it’s suave and seamless, concluding with a long, expansive finish. The result of an extremely rigorous selection, and incorporating fully 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, this is the finest wine this château has produced in the modern era. Remarkably, it was released at the same price en primeur as the 2005!Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95 RPWhile I don’t think the 2019 Château Lagrange matches the 2018, it’s not far off, with a more elegant yet still concentrated style. Beautiful crème de cassis, spicy oak, tobacco, chocolate, and new saddle leather notes all emerge on the nose, and it stays tight, compact, and focused on the palate, with plenty of firm tannins. It opens up beautifully with time in the glass but merits 4-6 years of bottle age, and it should evolve for 20-25 years or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 95 JDA deep, fleshy Saint-Julien, the 2019 Lagrange builds beautifully with time in the glass. Sweet red/purplish berry fruit, rose petal, sage, mint, lavender and cinnamon are finely delineated, and yet this mid-weight Saint-Julien impresses with its super finessed personality. The 2019 is so inviting. It is an especially fine Lagrange. Tasted two times.Antonio Galloni | 94 AGAromas of blackcurrants, sandalwood and rose petals. Medium-to full-bodied with linear tannins that are racy and refined, yet forceful. Fine tannins at the end. Best after 2024.James Suckling | 94 JSThis full-bodied wine is open in style, with lashings of rich black fruits alongside dense tannins. This is a wine for some long-term aging.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WEJuicy and flush, with steeped red and black currant and plum fruit flavors, this has a generous edge from start to finish. Features notes of tobacco, singed cedar, warm earth and iron throughout, with a seductive hint of incense curling around the tail end of the finish. This has a generosity that makes it approachable, but there’s no rush at all to drink this one. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Best from 2023 through 2036. 16,000 cases made, 700 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

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.James Suckling | 96 JSThis classed growth estate is entering an era of consistency. This vintage has the balance between fruit and wood that was missing in the past. It has vivid black fruits that are cut with acidity and tannins, all set to propel the wine to a long-term future.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEThe 2019 Lascombes is a huge wine packed with black cherry, chocolate, new leather, spice and licorice. Creamy, rich and expansive, Lascombes is endowed with notable power and sheer breadth. As always, Lascombes is a heady Margaux that pushes the edges, but I find all the elements very well-balanced.Antonio Galloni | 94 AGRipe, heady bramble fruit, plum and fig aromas. Excellent intensity of succulent juice and ripe fruit, there’s definitely a coffee/roasted element on the palate alongside liquorice and slate, all combining to give a real spicy but cleaning palate. The core of concentrated blackcurrant and black cherry fruit definitely takes the background while the other elements show their stuff. Tannins are pronounced but round and softly chewy, they frame the fruit well and give a menthol slightly spicy ending. Really good quality and enjoyment here. A powerful wine showing restraint and refinement. One for long ageing. Tasted twice. Drinking Window: 2024 - 2033.Decanter | 94 DECThe 2019 Château Lascombes showed well, with outstanding notes of cassis fruits as well as cedarwood and tobacco, and it displays more dark, earthy nuances with time in the glass. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it has terrific balance, building tannins, and the vintage’s pure, fresh, and focused style front and center. Hide bottles for 4-6 years and enjoy them over the following two decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 93+ JDOffering up a rich bouquet of blackberries, cassis, burning embers and sweet spices, the 2019 Lascombes is full-bodied, lavish and textural, with a voluminous core of fruit, lively acids and plenty of ripe, powdery tannin that asserts itself on the youthfully firm finish. This is a powerful, muscular style of Margaux that remains nicely balanced in its register.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92+ RPRichly fruity and very forward, with plum sauce, Black Forest cake and black currant pâte de fruit notes flanked by violet and alder accents through the finish. This will have fans for sure; drink in the near term. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2030.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

Really clear aromas of blackcurrants and blackberries with dried flowers and sandalwood. It’s full-to medium-bodied, yet with very tight, refined tannins that run the length of the finish. Second wine of Lagrange. Very well done. Best after 2024.James Suckling | 92 JSThe 2019 Les Fiefs de Lagrange is a soft, supple easygoing wine to drink now and over the next few years. Sweet red cherry, red fruit flowers, mint, blood orange, spice and rose petal perk up the finish. Readers will find a charming Saint-Julien that captures the personality of the year in spades.Antonio Galloni | 91 AGBlackcurrant florality on the nose. Great sweetness and juice with creamy edges, too, and again the aromatics come out. Soft, playful, nice depth, unshowy but nicely balanced and well presented. It’s for easy drinking. Gentle and comforting. Drink now. Drinking Window 2022 - 2030.Decanter | 90 DECThe second wine of Château Lagrange, the 2019 Les Fiefs De Lagrange is a charming, delicious wine in the making and has plenty of classic Saint-Julien purity and elegance as well as notes of cassis, violets, damp earth, and cedarwood. It’s medium-bodied, nicely balanced, and already hard to resist. It’s going to drink nicely for a solid decade.Jeb Dunnuck | 89-91 JD

As to the Grand Vin 2019 Château Pape Clement, it reveals a dense purple hue to go with stunning aromatics of crème de cassis, graphite, lead pencils shavings, scorched earth, and tobacco. Beautifully balanced, with flawless tannins, this full-bodied Pessac has that rare mix of elegance and power, a great mid-palate, and again, perfect balance. It’s one of the gems of the vintage and has some accessibility today given its purity and balance, yet deserves 4-5 years of bottle age and will cruise for 20-25 years or more in cold cellars. The blend is equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, brought up in two-thirds new French oak.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDThe 2019 Pape Clément is just as impressive as it was en primeur. It shows all of the textural richness that is so typical of Bernard Magrez’s wines, but with an extra kick of freshness that provides energy as well as a sense of proportion. A wine of stature, the 2019 is so classy. Succulent black cherry, plum, mocha, new leather and licorice are all beautifully delineated. But more than anything else, I find the wine’s energy really impressive. This is a fabulous vintage for Pape Clément. Tasted two times.Antonio Galloni | 97 AGCrushed-stone and berry aromas with some blackberry and black-tea character. Just a touch of smokiness. Sweet fruit, too. This is so refined, subtle, and beautiful for Pape with full body, ultra-fine tannins and a succulent finish. The center-palate is dense and complete. Goes on for minutes. So subtle and refined, focused and classy. Try after 2026.James Suckling | 97 JSDensity in all aspects here, quite a rich, broad and bold style but with precision, clarity and definition. It’s big shouldered with plenty of heft and ripe fruit but well presented with great acidity that keeps the freshness from start to finish and this has a nice cooling minty aspect towards the finish. Tannins are firm, and still very present, needing to soften a little over time but this definitely has the weight, structure and fruit purity to have a long life ahead. (Drink between 2027-2042)Decanter | 95 DECCreated by the 14th-century Pope, Clement V, this estate is now owned by Bernard Magrez. This latest release shows the quality of the property, a wine that is set for long aging. Ripe black fruits are matched by the wine’s structure and density. Drink from 2026.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEThe 2019 Pape Clément has turned out well in bottle, delivering a rich bouquet of cherries, blackcurrants, plum liqueur and blackberries mingled with notions of burning embers, licorice and a nicely integrated framing of new oak. Full-bodied, deep and concentrated, it’s a layered, fleshy wine, with a deep core of ripe but lively fruit, plenty of powdery tannin and a long, expansive, discreetly heady finish. This is a powerful, dramatic Pessac with a transatlantic accent and will drink well with only a few years’ bottle age.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94 RPQuite rich, with an exotic hint to the boysenberry, plum and mulberry fruit flavors, which are carried by a velvety structure. Features a very stylish backdrop of apple wood, anise and fruitcake notes that adds more bling. This doesn’t have the drive for serious cellaring, but it’s still pretty gorgeous. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2023 through 2035. 16,650 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WS

Very attractive chocolate, red-chili and cedar aromas and flavors. Lavender, too. Medium body with firm, polished tannins and a caressing finish. Pretty texture to this. It will be ready sooner than some. Try after 2024.James Suckling | 93 JSA fleshy, dramatic rendition of this Moulis benchmark, the 2019 Poujeaux unwinds in the glass with a deep bouquet of blackberries and plums mingled with subtle hints of cigar wrapper, loamy soil and violets. Medium to full-bodied, velvety and layered, it’s deep and seamless, with succulent acids, powdery tannins and a long, expansive finish. This has turned out brilliantly and numbers among the real sleepers of the vintage.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RPThe 2019 Poujeaux exudes terrific energy and tension from start to finish. Dried cherry, tobacco, mint, chocolate, dried flowers, mint, cedar and tobacco are all beautifully delineated. The aromatics are quite expressive today. There’s a ton to enjoy here. Give the 2019 a few years in bottle first, though. Tasted two times.Antonio Galloni | 92 AGBright nose, strawberries, red cherries and touches of dark chocolate with soft perfume aromas. Nice plump fruit here with a milky chalky edge to the tannins that are quite mouth coating right now. It has good drive and underlying acidity giving lift and you can feel the powerful and well-handled fruit underneath. Black cherries, fig and some pune and dark chocolate notes. A deeper, headier style that will be great in a few years. Drinking Window 2025 - 2036.Decanter | 92 DECThe 2019 Château Poujeaux showed beautifully, with classic Médoc notes of red and black currants, sweet tobacco, spice, and some floral and cedar nuances. With medium-bodied richness, supple tannins, and a great mid-palate, this thoroughly satisfying, impeccably made 2019 will keep for 10-15 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 91 JDDelivers black currant and cherry flavors laced with warm stone, tobacco and savory notes. Offers good range and character, ending with a tug of earth. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2028. 23,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

The fortified chateau dating to the 12th century is now the home of the Bethmann family. This latest release indicates the high quality the estate now produces. Rich in tannins and with a dense structure, the wine is full of juicy acidity. The texture and dry core promise aging. Drink from 2026.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WETobacco, blackcurrant and crushed stone. Ash, too. Full-bodied with very polished and juicy tannins that are firm, yet polished and long. Wonderful finish. Give it three or four years to come together. Try after 2025.James Suckling | 94 JSExpressive nose of bright red cherries and strawberries. Good juiciness here, this has life for sure but the fruit is still a little in high definition right now and edged with spicy oak elements that are quite dominant. Definitely lots going on and this has power, precision, good fruit and acidity but needs more time to soften and integrate. A peppery, quite savoury finish. Drinking Window: 2024 - 2039Decanter | 93 DECThe 2019 Olivier is a powerful, brooding wine. Dark cherry, tobacco, iron, game, menthol and dried herbs lend quite a bit of complexity and nuance to this hearty, earthy Pessac-Léognan. From bottle, the 2019 comes across as a bit burly, while the fruit is not quite as forward as it was en primeur.Antonio Galloni | 91 AGBlackcurrants, darker cherries, earth, and spicy oak notes all emerge from the 2019 Château Olivier, a young, unevolved, promising 2019 with medium to full body, ripe, nicely polished tannins, the vintage’s elegant style, and a great finish. Give it 2-4 years and enjoy over the following 10-15.Jeb Dunnuck | 91 JDAromas of red berries and plums, framed by hints of burning embers and a deft framing of new oak, introduce the 2019 Olivier, a medium to full-bodied, supple and charming wine that’s elegantly fleshy, with an ample core of fruit, powdery tannins and lively acids, concluding with a discreetly heady finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90 RP

This is so aromatic with blackcurrants, black berries and raspberries. Pure fruit, together with coffee and nutmeg. Really fresh and clean with bright spices. Full-bodied, yet reserved and tight with fantastic structure. So long. This is a great Cos for the cellar. A real benchmark for the true character. Needs at least five or six years to open and come around. Try after 2029.James Suckling | 99 JSThe 2019 Cos d’Estournel is a deep, powerful wine. That has been true on both times I have tasted it recently. Readers will have to be patient. Those who can afford it will be rewarded with a towering, statuesque Saint-Estèphe. With a bit of air the fruit starts to emerge, but this is a very reticent Cos that does not show the opulence that it often does in its youth. Gravel, smoke, incense, tobacco and dried flowers gradually unfurl over time, hinting at a very bright future. The 2019 is impressive. That’s all there is to it. Tasted two times.Antonio Galloni | 98 AGVivid red-purple rim to the glass; blue fruits, plums and black cherries presented with pleasant floral aspects alongside a wonderful freshly brewed coffee aroma, soft and delicate but just noticeable. This is absolutely delicious, round and plump on the palate but not heavy, well defined with a fruit precision marrying blackcurrants and cherries with some cocoa and liquorice nuance. The velvety texture and overall clarity stands out, driven and precise with layers of pretty chewy, perfumed fruit underpinned by generous acidity. Sophisticated and enjoyable. Wonderful styling at Cos in 2019. Drinking Window: 2028 - 2045Decanter | 98 DECThe 2019 Cos d’Estournel has turned out brilliantly, exhibiting aromas of minty cassis, sweet wild berries and wild plums mingled with hints of spices, loamy soil and potpourri. Full-bodied, broad and enveloping, it’s polished and seamless, its ample chassis of fine, velvety tannin entirely concealed in its deep core of succulent, crunchy fruit. Beautifully integrated at this early stage, the last decade has witnessed a number of changes at this address, including a trend toward less aggressively late picking, cooler fermentations and élevage with fewer rackings and more moderate percentages of less heavily toasted new oak: in 2019, the results speak for themselves.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97+ RPThe beautiful perfume of this stylish wine are the first impression. They set the scene for the wonderful black currant fruits and dark tannins that meld together on the palate. Made with 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, this structured wine shows long-term aging potential.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEDark and winey, featuring black currant, fig and blackberry preserve flavors laced with a smoldering hint of cast iron, plus notes of anise, apple wood, sweet bay leaf and warm earth. The finish offers a long sanguine thread that stitches it all up. Gorgeous. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2024 through 2040. 15,000 cases made, 3,000 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe Grand Vin 2019 Château Cos D’Estournel checks in as 65% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Merlot coming from 43 hectoliters per hectare and hitting a healthy 14% alcohol. Brought up in just 55% new French oak, it’s a pretty, elegant, seamless Saint-Estèphe that has plenty of redcurrant and cassis-like fruit as well as lead pencil, graphite, and chalky minerality. Medium to full-bodied, it has supple, fine tannins, wonderful purity, and a classy, regal profile that will be loved by staunch traditionalists out there. Exceedingly elegant and finesse-driven, with a touch of Château Lafite-like character, I compared this wine to a more elegant version of the 2016 from barrel, but now from bottle, I think 2014 is a better comparison in its weight, balance, and just overall style. It has a silky, charming style that already offers pleasure but won’t hit maturity for a good 7-8 years and will have 25+ years of prime drinking.Jeb Dunnuck | 96 JD

A pretty nose of blueberries, cherries, dried leaves, truffles and baking spices. Medium-bodied with fine tannins. Velvety, with rich cherry notes and a fleshy, polished and flavorful finish. Drink from 2024.James Suckling | 93 JS92–94. Barrel Sample. While this wine is powerful and structured, it still manages to tick the boxes of stylish Margaux. The ripe black currant jelly fruits are balanced by the wine’s impressive acidity and structure. This is a fine wine for long-term aging.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WENow owned by the team at Labegorce and Marquis d’Alesme, and it’s an enjoyable vintage with evident juice and grip running through the palate. Always a good value Margaux, which opens to show creamy blackberry texture and traces of violet florality. (Drink between 2023-2038)Decanter | 91 DECThe 2019 La Tour de Mons is a very pretty, floral Margaux to drink now and over the next few years. Crushed flowers, spice, cedar, tobacco and blood orange all grace this understated, classy Margaux.Antonio Galloni | 90 AGThe 2019 Château La Tour De Mons is solid, with medium-bodied aromas and flavors of savory red fruits, leather, dried herbs, and chalky minerality. Balanced, with building tannins and outstanding length, it’s going to drink well for 15 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 90 JD

Plenty of blackberry, currant and floral aromas. Some mint as well, following through to a full-bodied palate with layers of ultra-fine tannins and wonderful length. This is sophisticated and beautifully crafted with style and personality, displaying its terroir. Extremely well done. Drink after 2025.James Suckling | 96 JSFrom one of the Barton family’s estates, this wine is solid in black fruits flavors and spice from wood aging. It has a fine, perfumed character, rich in fruit but also lifted by lively acidity. The wine’s ripeness will sustain it well as it ages.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEA timely classic for patient readers with cold cellars, the 2019 Langoa Barton is performing beautifully in bottle, unwinding in the glass with a rich bouquet of cassis, plums, cigar wrapper, pencil shavings and loamy soil. Medium to full-bodied, deep and elegantly muscular, its concentrated core of fruit is framed by lively acids and ripe, powdery tannins that assert themselves on the youthfully firm finish. Forget it for a decade and reap the rewards for the following four.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94+ RPA soft, seamless, beautifully textured Saint-Julien, especially in the vintage, the 2019 Château Langoa Barton gives up lots of red and black currant fruits as well as textbook damp earth, leafy herbs, chocolate, and spring flowers. It’s complex, medium to full-bodied, has beautiful tannins, and no hard edges. Drink this beauty any time over the coming 20-25 years. The blend is 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc.Jeb Dunnuck | 94 JDQuite strongly perfumed on the nose here, full, heady, more pronounced than some of the others with a richness and intensity to the nose. High toned straight away, a combination of quite ripe acidity, almost brusque on the palate with a creaminess to the tannins. Doesn’t feel totally harmonious right now but there is great density of fruit, good acidity, brightness and soft tannins with a liquorice kick at the end, cooling and fresh. Lots going on here, just needs to come together. (Drink between 2025-2040)Decanter | 94 DECThe 2019 Langoa-Barton is every bit as delicious as it was from barrel. The purity of the flavors is just striking. Inky red fruit, blood orange, spice, mint and pomegranate are pushed forward. This is an especially succulent, richly textured Langoa, and that’s not a bad thing for a wine that in some vintages is a bit light.Antonio Galloni | 93 AGRipe and juicy, with a youthfully compact core of steeped plum, blueberry and black currant fruit. The finish is scored by violet and singed apple wood notes, with a tug of tar peeking in as well. Offers ample fruit and inner freshness, so this should open up soon enough. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2025 through 2038. 7,950 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

So much sweet tobacco, stone, brambleberry and currant on the nose. The palate is full and compact with very polished tannins, yet they are solid and sturdy and run the length and width of the wine. Energetic acidity. Very structured and powerful, yet agile and impressive. Historic feel. From biodynamically grown grapes. This needs at least six years of bottle age to soften. Try after 2027.James Suckling | 99 JSThe 2019 Palmer is a truly special wine, but it is also going to need a number of years to be at its finest. Dense and plush, with explosive energy, the 2019 possesses tremendous richness in its dark fruit. As always, the blend features a high percentage of Merlot (43%) which works so well in complementing the savoriness of the Cabernet. Thomas Duroux and his team fashioned another absolutely compelling Palmer in 2019.Antonio Galloni | 98 AGThe 2019 Château Palmer is even richer, with a stacked, full-bodied, concentrated profile as well as beautiful notes of ripe black cherries, blackcurrants, lead pencil, tobacco leaf, and chocolate. I love its mid-palate, it has building, ripe, yet substantial tannins, tons of fat and glycerin, and a gorgeous finish. I don’t think it will ultimately match the 2009, 2016, or 2018, but it’s nevertheless a brilliant wine as well as one of the stars of the show from Margaux. It will benefit from 7-8 years of bottle age (it already offers pleasure) and have 30-40 years of overall longevity.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDA serious and darkly fruited wine with notes of milk chocolate, violets and black cherries supported by fine-grained and velvety tannins that really coat the mouth, carefully constructed with acidity underneath that gives brightness and lift. The emphasis here is really the concentration and density of flavours with layers of black chocolate, black cherries, cocoa powder and cooling minerality but each with purity and definition. Excellently framed and well packaged with energy and verve. So many elements going on: a great Palmer. (Drink between 2029-2050)Decanter | 97 DECThe 2019 Palmer is a rich, dramatic wine that soars from the glass with aromas of cherries, blackberries and berry fruit liqueur mingled with notions of violets, rose petals and sweet spices. Full-bodied, layered and seamless, it’s powerful and immensely concentrated, with an enveloping core of lively fruit that largely conceals the wine’s ripe, powdery structuring tannins. Concluding with a long, penetrating finish, it’s a brilliant rendition of the contemporary Palmer style from Thomas Duroux and his team.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RPShows the powerful fruit of the vintage, with waves of dark plum, warmed cassis and cherry compote flavors driving through, inlaid with a graphite edge and backed by an iron note on the finish. Features good underlying energy and everything is knit tightly, without the toothy grain typical of the vintage. Very solid. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Best from 2024 through 2038. Wine Spectator | 94 WS

This is a very classically structured Bordeaux with blackcurrant, walnut, cedar and hints of toasted oak. It’s reserved now, but shows very serious, polished tannins. Persistent and powerful with fantastic length. Very precise. Try after 2025.James Suckling | 96 JSThe 2019 Phélan Ségur has a very impressive nose of ample blackberry and boysenberry fruit, plus touches of graphite, sous-bois and light minty aromas. The palate is medium-bodied, harmonious and poised, with substantial tannins and very good weight. There is a sense of completeness to this Saint-Estèphe that urges you back for another sip. The best Phélan-Ségur in a long time.Vinous Media | 95 VMThe 2019 Château Phelan Segur from Véronique Dausse is another brilliant Saint-Estèphe in the vintage, and this estate plays in the top handful of Saint-Estèphes out there. Offering lots of darker currants, spiced plums, Iron, tobacco, and damp earth on the nose, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a concentrated, tannic, yet balanced mouthfeel, and a great finish. It needs to be forgotten for a good 5-7 years and will be a brilliant wine over the following two decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 95 JDIs this the most over-performing estate in the Médoc? Director Véronique Dausse would surely riposte that it’s simply performing at the level to which its well-situated vineyards and detail-oriented team entitle it; but in any case, the 2019 Phélan Ségur is a brilliant wine. Offering up aromas of cassis, sweet wild berries, rose petals, violets, licorice and spices, it’s medium to full-bodied, layered and concentrated, with tangy acids, powdery tannins and a long, penetrating finish. This is another 2019 that en primeur purchasers can feel very pleased with.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94+ RPSolid, featuring a good punch of dark blackberry and black currant preserve flavors, with bay leaf, charcoal and warm paving stone notes that keep it very grounded through the finish. Shows ample structure for the cellar, too. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2024 through 2038.Wine Spectator | 94 WSSerious and seductive on the nose, full of ripe black fruits and faint florality. A sophisticated style, clearly powerful and concentrated with a core of succulent blackcurrant and black cherry fruit but delivered with poise and refinement. Round, generous and juicy with lashings of slate, liquorice and menthol freshness with tannins that are both abundant and well integrated, cushioning the fruit and driving it through to a long finish. Excellent clarity and confidence here. A top buy. Drinking Window: 2024 - 2034Decanter | 94 DECNow cured of its tendency to use too much wood, this estate is producing some finely structured wines. This vintage continues in that tradition, a wine that is packed with serious, concentrated fruits that are highlighted by bright acidity. There is great potential for aging here.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WE

The 2019 Echo De Lynch-Bages is the second wine of Château Lynch-Bages and it’s beautifully done, with a more floral, perfumed, pretty style compared to the Grand Vin, yet it still brings plenty of structure. Red and black currants, sappy flowers, tobacco leaf, and gravelly earth all define the bouquet, and it’s medium-bodied, has integrated acidity, gorgeous tannins, and a great finish. It’s beautifully balanced and already accessible, yet will nevertheless benefit from 4-5 years of bottle age.Jeb Dunnuck | 93 JDThe second wine of Lynch-Bages shows all the power of this estate. The difference lies in the tannins and the ripe flavors of the wine. It has power without the tannins that demand long-term aging. Drink from 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WELifted floral aromas, smells pretty and inviting, with a sweet note to the black fruit. Tannins are a little present, they’re not dry or austere, more on the smooth and chalky side but are just covering the fruit right now, although the blackcurrant and plum notes come back through. Chewy, ripe, fresh. This is lovely if just a bit shy at the moment. Drinking Window: 2023 - 2030Decanter | 91 DECThe 2019 Echo de Lynch-Bages, matured in one-year-old barrels for 12 months, has a crisp blackberry, briar and cedar bouquet with touches of mint, quite vibrant and lively. The medium-bodied palate offers succulent tannins and mulberry and black plum flavors intermingling with black truffle and white pepper. Maybe just a little abrupt on the finish at the moment, but that will fill out in time.Vinous Media | 90 VMJuicy, featuring racy-edged plum and black currant fruit flavors that show nice purity, with lively anise and apple wood accents filtering in through the finish, where a subtle note of charcoal chimes. Modest in scale but nicely done. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2023 through 2032.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

The flagship 2019 Château Léoville Poyferré is based on 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, and the balance Petit Verdot. It’s one of the bigger, richer wines in the vintage and has a gorgeous, thrilling, full-bodied style as well as notes of crème de cassis, tobacco leaf, violets, and chocolate. While many estates seem to be playing it safe and focusing on so-called elegance and balance, I love that Poyferré continues to make a ripe, sexy, beautifully textured wine that always offers more opulence and sexiness than most in the vintage. Ranking with the crème de la crème of the vintage, this gorgeous Poyferré can be enjoyed any time over the coming 40-50 years. Bravo!Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDThe 2019 Léoville-Poyferré is creamy, racy and voluptuous to the core. Bright red cherry/plum fruit, blood orange, mint, spice and menthol fill out the layers with effortless grace. In some tastings, the 2019 has come across as quite powerful, while in other moments it shows greater finesse. Either way, the 2019 is positively stunning. I very much admire its energy and persistence. Tasted three times.Antonio Galloni | 97 AGSo aromatic with real complexity of notes on the nose, perfume and black fruits. Quite tannic on the palate, broad-shouldered with a core of liquorice-edged black fruit, dark chocolate and slate giving it quite a serious, gourmet and savoury feel right now. Lovely poise though, with mouthwatering freshness. Feels well made with energy and elegance. A standout wine with plenty on offer. Drinking Window: 2027 - 2045Decanter | 97 DECThe 2019 Léoville Poyferré is showing very well in bottle, wafting from the glass with aromas of crème de cassis and wild berries mingled with notions of licorice, loamy soil, cigar wrapper and smoke. Full-bodied, velvety and polished, it’s broad and enveloping, with an ample core of fruit, ripe tannins and succulent acids, concluding with a long, precise finish. Invariably the most sumptuous of the three Léovilles, featuring some 35% Merlot, the 2019 is a terrific effort that will offer a wide drinking window.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPThrows off gorgeous warmed plum, blueberry reduction and açaí berry compote aromas and flavors, laced with ganache and sweet tobacco from start to finish. Delivers ample structure in the guise of a cold cast iron note buried underneath the showy fruit, with a flash of violet for treble in the background. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2025 through 2040. 15,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSBlackcurrant, wet-earth with fresh black-mushroom aromas. Some chocolate, too. Full-bodied with layers of beautiful, ripe fruit and creamy tannins. It’s chewy and focused. Impressive balance. Try after 2025.James Suckling | 95 JS

The 2019 Léoville Las Cases is a brilliant young wine that will delight Bordeaux purists. Unwinding in the glass with scents of cassis, dark berries, cigar wrapper and pencil shavings, it’s full-bodied, layered and tightly wound, with a deep core of fruit, lively acids and an abundance of rich, powdery tannins. Concentrated and serious, much like its immediate neighbor Château Latour, it is likely to emerge as one of the vintage’s longest lived—and greatest—wines.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98 RPRemarkably sleek and pure, considering the generally burly and obvious tannic profile of the vintage. Delivers a pure and unadulterated beam of cassis and plum reduction flavors inlaid seamlessly with a glistening iron girder that seems to have no end point through the finish, where violet, anise and black tea notes shimmer. Reserved overall, with a beautiful austerity, this is an example of how great terroir always shines through—even in extreme years. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2030 through 2050.Wine Spectator | 98 WSWet stone, smoke and floral aspects to the aromatic profile - seriously inviting. Density and power here, but cooling and all in balance, full of blackcurrant and black cherries with obvious minerality. It gives such plushness in terms of roundness and grip of tannins, but also layers of perfumed fruit, ripe fruit and cooling slate and liquorice elements. A distinguished wine with a seamless tannic structure and excellent length. Lots of life here and also a real, almost sweet acidity that gives life and lift. Lots going on now but designed for long and steady ageing. Drinking Window: 2029 - 2050Decanter | 98 DECCurrants and blackberries with crushed stones, bark and some conifer and pine cone. Perfumed. Discreet. Medium-to full-bodied with an integrated tannin structure that’s full of fine tannins that are weightless and seamless, building on the palate and coming out at the end. Needs five or six years to open. Texture of heavy silk. 79% cabernet sauvignon, 11% merlot and 10% cabernet franc. Try after 2027.James Suckling | 98 JSThis is an immense wine. Made from 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, it shows great structure, richness and aging potential. The tannins are ripe, showing the gentlest of extraction and are what is going to drive this wine for many years.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WEMore backward, deep, and layered, the Grand Vin 2019 Château Léoville Las Cases is 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc that saw 90% new French oak. Just awesome aromatics of pure crème de cassis, graphite, tobacco leaf, burning embers, and gravelly earth all soar from the glass. This is followed by a quintessential Léoville Las Cases that’s medium to full-bodied, pure, concentrated, and regal on the palate, with beautiful tannins. The purity of fruit is spot on, it’s flawlessly balanced, and it’s going to age for decades. While it offers pleasure today, I’d wager it will take 10-15 years to hit maturity and will be a 50+ year wine.Jeb Dunnuck | 97+ JDJust as it was from barrel, the 2019 Léoville Las-Cases is a wine of pure and total sophistication. There is not the size of some recent vintages, but instead that heft is replaced by cool refinement. The expression of fruit leans into the redder end of the spectrum as opposed to the typically darker Las-Cases profile. Hints of cedar, tobacco, mint and blood orange linger. I can’t wait to see how it ages.Antonio Galloni | 96+ AG

Famed for its white wine, this estate has produced another impressive vintage. It has great poise between lusciousness and a tight mineral texture, giving balance and longevity. Nutmeg flavors come from the wood aging. It should cellar well.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WEPineapple and mango on the nose, delicious and expressive exotic fruit aromas. Good impact on the palate, a nice mix of lemon and creamy patisserie elements. Good balance and harmony, not a showstopper or trying to deliver too much but this has such a great weight and drive on the palate with crisp apple, honeyed lemon and touches of orange too. Energy and acidity. Yummy. Drinking Window: 2024 - 2044Decanter | 94 DECSliced apples, lemons, crushed stones and jasmine on the nose. It’s medium-bodied, crisp and focused. Very pretty and elegant with a mineral, sleek and structured palate. Drink now or hold.James Suckling | 94 JSThe 2019 Chateau De Fieuzal Blanc is a solid effort, offering lots of white peach, honeyed orange, and floral notes in a rounded, medium-bodied, fleshy, and impressively textured style. This concentrated, balanced, rich yet still fresh white is going to keep for 7-8 years or so, possibly longer.Jeb Dunnuck | 93 JDA terrific effort, the 2019 de Fieuzal Blanc offers up inviting aromas of nectarine, confit citrus fruit, white flowers and subtle hints of pastry cream. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and seamless, with an enveloping core of fruit, lively acids and a saline finish, it’s a charming, beautifully balanced wine that punches well above its weight.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RPThe 2019 Fieuzal Blanc is perfumed and light on its feet. Orchard fruit, dried flowers, mint and light tropical accents give this understated, tasty white plenty of appeal.Antonio Galloni | 88-90 AG

So aromatic with banana-cream pie, smoke and lemon curd. Always subtle and complex. Full-bodied and very tight, offering a crushed-stone and cooked-apple finish with an intense dried-lemon undertone. 60% sauvignon blanc and 40% semillon. Drink after 2024, but already gorgeous.James Suckling | 94 JSThe 2019 Domaine de la Solitude Blanc offers a striking interplay of tension and power. Bright citrus, white flower and mineral nuances appear first, followed by hints of almond, crushed flowers and mint that add shades of complexity. It is one of the more vibrant 2019s I tasted. As such, I expect it will need at least a few years in bottle to be at its best.Antonio Galloni | 93-95 AGThe 2019 Domaine De La Solitude (Pessac-Léognan) Blanc has a clean, classy nose of tart pineapple, honeyed guava, and sappy flowers to go with a medium to full-bodied, rich, fleshy, impressively textured style on the palate. Coming from the team at Domaine de Chevalier, it has nicely integrated acidity, plenty of mid-palate depth, and a great finish. It’s already drinking nicely yet should evolve for a solid decade.Jeb Dunnuck | 93 JDFresh nose filled with lemongrass, elderflower, peach and lychee giving that exotic yet floral tone to the nose. Generous on the palate with lots going on - definite spice from the wood with toast, vanilla and cinnamon alongside peach, apricot and pear. Such clarity to the palate, fruit feels precise and well worked - excellent quality here. Needs more time to fully settle and expand so buy and hold on to. Drinking Window: 2023 - 2033Decanter | 92 DECFrom the estate owned by the religious community of the Holy Family, this white wine is produced by the team of Domaine de Chevalier. The wine is rich with a dense texture and already balanced. A tangy edge from Sauvignon Blanc gives the wine a mineral edge and tight aftertaste. It should be drunk from 2023. Wine Enthusiast | 92 WEThe 2019 Blanc features bright, fresh citrus notes of grapefruit and yuzu over a core of warm peaches and poached pears with pepper and spice sparks. Medium-bodied, the palate bursts with juicy stone fruit and zesty flavors, framed by crisp acidity and a silken texture, finishing with a white pepper kick.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90-92 RPDelivers a lemony zip that pierces a core of white peach, jicama and fleur de sel flavors, ending with lively energy and a lingering savory echo. Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc. Drink now through 2024. 1,500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

The Grand Vin 2019 Château Rauzan-Ségla is beautiful, and it seems this estate can do no wrong since 2015. A more elegant, ethereal, complex Margaux, it has a perfumed and complex style in its red, blue, and black fruits as well as notes of white flowers, chalky minerality, and exotic spices. Haute couture at its finest and seamless, medium to full-bodied, perfectly balanced, and just stunning any way you look at it, it already offers pleasure today yet will easily have 30 years of prime drinking.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDThe 2019 Rauzan-Ségla has turned out brilliantly, unwinding in the glass with fragrant aromas of cassis, blackberries, violets, rose petals and sweet soil tones. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and concentrated, it’s deep and layered, with beautifully refined tannins, lively acids and a long, perfumed finish. This is a sensual, elegant Rauzan-Ségla from Nicolas Audebert and his team.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPMineral edged nose full of violet floral notes and blackcurrants, such delicacy. Gorgeous mouthfeel, the texture standing out straight away - filling, rich and round, dense and juicy - really delivering a punch of ripe, cherry fruit, covering the cheeks in chewy but crushed velvet like tannins. Creamy notes come through and then the spice, liquorice menthol flavours arrive and dominate giving a cool, fresh, rippling minerality towards the finish. Power and precision. Really a wine of two halves, the first juicy and alive the second half deep, dark and seductive. Excellent character, still restrained not showing everything but offering a glimmer of glamour that will shine through more over time. 100% biodynamic from 2020, should be certified by 2024.Decanter | 96 DECSubtle and complex aromas of sweet berries, rose stems and lavender with some sandalwood. Medium-to full-bodied with beautiful depth of fruit, creamy tannins and lots of chocolate and berry character. Yet, it’s tight at the end, showing beautiful depth and length. So structured. Try after 2027.James Suckling | 96 JSThe 2019 Rauzan-Ségla is surly and backward on the nose despite aeration. Gravelly black fruit, sous-bois and touches of seaweed emerge with time in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins, fleshy and smooth, a dash of white pepper and cedar towards the shelled finish. This is one bottle that desperately needs more aeration to show its capabilities - one for long-term cellaring. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.Vinous Media | 93+ VMOffers a very elegant core of red and black currant and damson plum fruit that glides through with silky structure for support, while light mulling spice and incense notes infuse the finish. A rather understated style, but sneaky long and very refined. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. Drink now through 2034.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

Blackberries, cherries, sesame and salted-chocolate notes. Peach stones, too. It’s medium-bodied with silky, creamy tannins. So juicy and pure. 88% cabernet sauvignon, 10% merlot and 2% cabernet franc. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Delicious now.James Suckling | 93 JSThe 2019 Les Plantes is the new, young-vines wine from Durfort-Vivens. It offers notable depth to match its creamy, succulent personality. Drink this over the next few years, while the dark red fruit remains vibrant. There’s so much character here.Vinous Media | 91 VMVery bright and bursting through on the nose which shows a soft perfume and red summer fruit aromas. Wow - juicy, bright and energetic. Not massive in structure, but clear summer berry fruit, lift and verve. Measured extraction achieves soft tannins, fruit pulp and bright juice. Lively and easy to drink. From young vines and 2019 is the first vintage.Decanter | 90 DEC

Plenty of berries, walnuts and light dried tobacco and herbs. Medium body, lightly chewy tannins and a flavorful finish.James Suckling | 91-92 JSDeep garnet-purple colored, the 2019 Marjosse has a come-hither nose of kirsch, stewed black cherries and warm plums with hints of spice cake, wilted roses, oolong tea and Sichuan pepper. The medium-bodied palate is plushy textured with bags of scrumptious black and red fruits and a lively backbone, finishing fragrant.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90-92 RPA meaty tone here too with lots of fresh, ripe cherry aromas. . 88% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc. Dangerously soft and smooth on the palate, silky tannins with a lovely immediate deep flavour on the palate. This is more subtle, less immediately juicy but has real charm and good depth. You feel the flavours linger on the tongue with a perfumed, floral aspect to them. This is delicate but driving with good presence and still superb freshness. An elegance to it as well. Lovely. Good mouthwatering acidity, still on the light side, well balanced and enjoyable.Decanter | 90 DECI expressed reservations towards Pierre Lurton’s 2019 Marjosse in my en primeur report earlier this year and as a result, a second sample was shipped to me. This was so much better. The aromatics are far more controlled and focused with the same black cherries and boysenberry without the shroud of alcohol. The palate is opulent and generous, but much more detailed compared to the first sample and demonstrating much more purity on the finish. This is much more in line with my expectations and I am happy to upgrade my score.Vinous Media | 89-91 VM

The 2019 S De Suduiraut is straight-up brilliant and unquestionably ranks with the top whites in the vintage. Bright pineapple, honeysuckle, toasted spice, and chalky mineral notes all define the bouquet, and it hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, vibrant, integrated acidity, and a great finish. Clean, pure, flawlessly balanced, and just a classy effort, it can be enjoyed any time over the coming 10-12 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 95 JDAlluring, with a lemon, peach and gooseberry core, infused with tarragon and verbena notes, framed with a stylish shortbread accent. Sémillon and Sauvignon Blanc. Drink now through 2023. 333 cases made. Wine Spectator | 92 WSPineapple, lemon, chopped apple, smoked almond and some caramel on the nose. It’s medium-to full-bodied with fresh acidity and a rich, nutty and flavorful palate. Excellent length. Sauvignon blanc and semillon. Drink now.James Suckling | 92 JSComposed of 67% Semillon and 33% Sauvignon Blanc harvested from the 5th to the 10th of September, the 2019 S de Suduiraut Blanc is aging for nine months in French oak barrels, 12% new. The alcohol came in at 13.1%. The nose starts off a little shy before taking off with notes of freshly squeezed lemons, key lime pie and yuzu zest plus touches of marzipan and honeysuckle. The medium-bodied palate has a lovely suggestion of creaminess to the texture, helping to support the racy citrus flavors, finishing with an invigorating lift.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 91-93 RPThe 2019 S de Suduiraut Vielles Vignes is rich and ample in feel, with all of the natural richness of the old vines on display. White flowers, coconut, passion fruit, mint and dried flowers offer a striking interplay of tropical and savory notes. The 2019 is beautifully done.Antonio Galloni | 91-93 AGGorgeous, nuanced and expressive nose, showing honey and sweet lemon curd. Mouth-watering juiciness, red apple, pear and some gooseberry, a little less zesty and exotic. I like the immediate flavours of tangerine juice and orange. Quite bright, then settles before the wood comes in, overpowering the ending for now. Spicy and structured. Drinking Window 2023 - 2026.Decanter | 90 DEC

This has chocolate, cedar and walnuts as well as some currant aromas and flavors. Medium-bodied with some lovely fruit and juiciness. 55.8% cabernet sauvignon, 38.8% merlot and 5.4% petit verdot. Attractive now but another year or two will make it even better.James Suckling | 94 JSThe 2019 Pauillac is a serious wine. Dark cherry, plum, gravel, incense, licorice and pomegranate are all dialed up in this wonderfully deep, fleshy Pauillac. Deep and resonant, with fine balance, the 2019 captures all the natural radiance of the year. This is really quite stellar and delicious. A recent bottle of the 2009 reminded me how pleasurable the Latour Pauillac can be.Vinous Media | 93 VMA rocking little Pauillac, the 2019 Le Pauillac De Château Latour has ripe, upfront aromatics of red and black currants, smoke tobacco, and spicy wood that carry to a medium-bodied, supple, layered, nicely balanced wine that has enough tannins to evolve for 20 years or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 92 JDThe 2019 Le Pauillac de Château Latour is another impressive rendition of this bottling from Latour. Offering up notes of sweet berry fruit, plums, spices and pencil shavings, it’s medium to full-bodied, rich and fleshy, with a ripe core of fruit, lively acids and powdery tannins. This year, it includes some declassified lots from Les Forts de Latour. I’m sure it will show even better when it’s released in a few years.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90+ RPEvident ripeness to the fruits here, giving pretty high open berry aromatics even at this early stage. This is a frank and gourmet style of Pauillac de Latour and will be an early-to-medium term drinker with excellent potential for getting a taste of one of the few unquestionably good quality 3rd wines of Bordeaux. The hot summer meant there were patches of water stress on the sandier soils outside of the main L’Enclos de Latour, leading to more 3rd wine than usual, and it accounts for 25% of production in 2019, from unusually high yields of 44.7hl/ha. 72IPT.Decanter | 90 DEC

Much more Semillon-based compared to its stablemate, the Haut-Brion Blanc, the 2019 Château La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc is 70% Semillon and 30% Sauvignon Blanc. It’s a much more subdued, classic Semillon, offering ripe peach, honeyed lime, sappy herbs, and chalky mineral nuances that show even more on the palate. Rich, layered, and medium to full-bodied, it’s another blockbuster of a white from this estate that has everything you could want from a Bordeaux Blanc. It opens up beautifully with time in the glass, is flawlessly balanced, and just a thrill a second. It should evolve for 20-30 years as well.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDGreen apple, lime, aniseed and stone. Some green mango, too. Full-to medium-bodied with a compact palate of beautiful fruit and refined phenolics that last for minutes. Creamy finish. Tight at the end. Needs four or five years to open. Best after 2026.James Suckling | 98 JSThe 2019 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, 69.9% Semillon and 30.1% Sauvignon Blanc, is locked tight on the nose to begin, eventually offering glimpses at lime leaves and sea spray with wafts of white pepper and dill seed. Medium-bodied, the palate has plenty of tension and mineral layers, finishing savory.The Wine Independent | 97 TWIThe La Mission Haut-Brion 2019 Blanc is composed of 69.9% Semillon and 30.1% Sauvignon Blanc, harvested from the 30th of August until the 10th of September. The estimated label alcohol degree is 14%. Notions of freshly squeezed limes, grapefruit juice and white peaches come wafting out of the glass followed by suggestions of yuzu zest, coriander seed, underripe pineapple, wet pebbles and green mango with a touch of fennel. The medium to full-bodied palate offers layer upon layer of citrus fruits and mineral accents wrapped in a beautiful satiny texture and featuring seamless freshness, finishing long and chalky.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94-96 RPThe 2019 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc has quite an intense nose with apple blossom, flint and slice Williams pear scents that develop with aeration. The palate is well-balanced with fine acidity, quite steely with a gooseberry and spicy finish that is driven by the Sauvignon Blanc. It’s backward and close but the breeding is there. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting.Vinous Media | 94+ VMExtroverted, with an energetic display of white peach, Key lime, verbena, oyster shell and quinine notes that are well-defined as they extend through a lengthy finish. Features real tension and drive too, which most whites in this vintage lack. Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon. Best from 2023 through 2033.Wine Spectator | 94 WSWet wool, something a little bit waxy to the nose with touches of lemon curd - very welcoming. Lovely mouthfeel here, enveloping, rich and concentrated but also fresh and vibrant. Nuance and structure with a spicy almost bitter orange tone to this. A great balance of bright lemon citrus fruits - juicy and lively then with a creminess that comes in and calms everything down. I love the interplay between the richness and fat from the Semillon and precise intensity of the acidity from the Sauvignon. 69.9% Semillon and 30.1% Sauvignon Blanc.Decanter | 94 DEC

Aromas of grilled pineapple, clove, lemon peel, lime pith and green mango. White pepper, crushed stones and some cedar, too. It’s medium-to full-bodied with bright acidity. Layered and very long. Serious white. Needs time to open and show more Exceptional form here. Drink from 2023.James Suckling | 97 JSApple, elderflower, white peach and apricot. Smooth and bright, this has finesse and class with real linearity and direction. I like the texture and mouthfeel - big enough to be quite a structured and round wine but with lightness and freshness too. This has real focus, perhaps not so layered and expressive at this point, but such an excellent drive of lemon and lime fruit and some bitter grapefruit edges too, that give spice and definition. Confident and poised. Great winemaking.Decanter | 95 DECThis wine is ripe with layers of intense white fruits and a structure that will let it age. The balance between fruit and wood aging is just right, giving a spicy edge and delicious acidity. Drink from 2024.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEA blend of 76.1% Sauvignon Blanc and 23.9% Semillon, the 2019 Malartic Lagraviere Blanc needs a fair bit of swirling to unlock notes of lemongrass, grapefruit, and sea spray with hints of orange blossom and coriander seed. The medium-bodied palate is seriously tightly wound, with taut citrus and chalky layers and a crisp backbone, finishing with great length.The Wine Independent | 95 TWIThe 2019 Malartic-Lagravière Blanc is a super distinctive white that deftly balances fruit richness with energy, all in the weightless, transparent style that is such a signature here. Orchard fruit, flowers, mint and white pepper pulse with notable energy. The 2019 Blanc is absolutely gorgeous and well worth seeking out. I loved it.Vinous Media | 94 VMThe 2019 Château Malartic-Lagravière Blanc is rock-solid, with lots of honeyed grapefruit, pineapple, and lime aromatics as well as a medium-bodied, vibrant, incredibly pure, precise, and elegant style on the palate. This is age-worthy Bordeaux Blanc. Give bottles 2-3 years and it should keep for over a decade.Jeb Dunnuck | 94 JD

Intense aromas of blackcurrants, cedar and ripe tobacco with hints of violets, following through to a full-bodied palate with extremely refined tannins that are well-integrated into the wine and are long and subtle at the finish. Such precision and harmony with structure. From biodynamically grown grapes. Best after 2023.James Suckling | 96 JSGorgeous rich dark purple in the glass. Quite jammy and concentrated on the nose, heady and perfumed with a lovely delicate florality to it too. Great freshness on the palate, juicy but a dark blackcurrant and cherry fruit juice. Beautifully balanced with integrated tannins and oak. Well defined fruit, generous and quite abundant against softly grippy, velvety tannins that just give support to the overall frame. It’s serious but with a lightness of touch and playfulness - energetic and lively but still with depth. A great Alter Ego and confident winemaking on show.Decanter | 95 DECThe second wine of Château Palmer, the 2019 Alter Ego De Palmer is rock-solid and reveals a dense purple hue as well as deep, rich, concentrated aromas and flavors of ripe black cherries, blackcurrants, tobacco, graphite, and chocolate. It might be the richest, most concentrated second wine out here, and truthfully, it tastes like a Grand Vin. Medium to full-bodied, layered, and textured, it has ripe tannins, a fleshy, mouth-filling texture, and a great finish. It’s beautifully done.Jeb Dunnuck | 94 JDFinely perfumed, the wine has ripe tannins and well-crafted textures. The wine’s black fruits are forward, showing complex structures and the promise of fine aging. This second wine of Château Palmer will age well. Drink from 2026. Organic and biodynamic. Wine Enthusiast | 94 WEThe 2019 Alter Ego from Palmer is deep garnet-purple in color. It has a profound nose of crème de cassis, plum preserves, tar, and star anise, followed by hints of wild sage, cedar chest, and graphite. The medium-bodied palate reveals finely grained tannins and compelling freshness to match the intense, nuanced fruit layers, finishing long and vibrant.The Wine Independent | 94 TWIThe 2019 Alter Ego is a huge, dense wine. Ripe, exotic and packed to the core, Alter Ego makes a convincing first impression. Time in the glass brings out floral accents and redder tonalities of fruit. Partial aging in foudres has introduced and element of rigor and tension here that is so alluring in the way it complements the natural richness these wines always show.Vinous Media | 93 VMAromas of sweet cherries, raspberries, berry fruit liqueur, licorice and spices introduce the 2019 Alter Ego de Palmer, a medium to full-bodied, fleshy and enveloping wine with lively acids, melting tannins and a lavish core of ripe, creamy fruit. It’s more immediate than the more muscular, powerful grand vin.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 91 RPCaressing, offering plum and cherry sauce flavors, hints of ganache and tobacco, with a sanguine hint on the fresh humus-tinged finish. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2030.Wine Spectator | 90 WS

Based on 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 45% Merlot, and 4% Petit Verdot, the Grand Vin 2020 Château Beychevelle is a stunner that does everything right, offering a monster bouquet of black and blue fruits as well as candied violets, incense, flowers, and toasty oak. A ripe, full-bodied, incredibly sexy wine in every sense, it has a great mid-palate, ripe, velvety tannins, no hard edges, and a great finish. It’s one of the more up-front, exotic wines in the vintage and should be accessible with just short-term cellaring.Jeb Dunnuck | 95-97 JDThe wine’s structure and serious tannins are, happily, balanced by the rich generosity of the fruit flavors. Together, the two elements of this very fine wine will allow it to develop with weight and concentration.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEDeep purple-black colored, the 2020 Beychevelle offers up vibrant notes of black raspberries, fresh black cherries and cassis, plus hints of wild sage, chocolate mint, rose hip tea and fallen leaves, with an exotic hint of Indian spices. The medium to full-bodied palate offers layers of crunchy black fruits with a firm, grainy texture and just enough freshness, finishing long and perfumed.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94-96 RPThe 2020 Beychevelle opens with the most exotic bouquet imaginable. Wild flowers of all sorts, spice, lavender and inky dark fruit all saturate the palate. As always, Beychevelle is an overt, flamboyant wine, but all of the elements are so well out together. The 2020 is sexy, alluring and impossible to resist. Time in the glass brings out redder tonalities of fruit along with sweet floral notes that add striking inner perfume. Even as a barrel sample, I am so tempted to just drink it.Vinous Media | 94-96 VMSmoke, grilled almond on the nose, even a touch of rubber from an edge of reduction. This has depth to black chocolate and bilberry fruit, it is well balanced and seductive. Enjoyable, it’s pretty broad shouldered but it sits well within the successful run of vintages at Beychevelle. A yield of 47hl/ha. 18 months ageing. 55% first wine. Drinking Window 2029 - 2044.Decanter | 94 DECSweet-berry and tobacco character with blackberries and violets. It’s full-bodied with firm, polished tannins and a fresh finish. Very fine at the end.James Suckling | 94-95 JS