Collector Wines

wines

Made with old vines that average 55 years-old, this fragrant, single vineyard Brunello boasts aromas of violet, menthol, wild berry and culinary spice. Loaded with class, finesse and structure, the delicious, full-bodied palate features ripe Marasca cherry, raspberry compote, blood orange, licorice and a hint of coffee alongside polished, velvety tannins. A salty mineral note lingers on the finish. It’s well balanced, with bright acidity. Event though it’s already enjoyable thanks to the refined tannins, it will also age for decades. Drink 2024 –2046. Kerin O’Keefe | 98 KOMade with vines that average 55 years old, this fragrant, single-vineyard Brunello boasts aromas of violet, menthol, wild berry and spice. Loaded with class and finesse, the delicious, full-bodied palate features Marasca cherry, raspberry compote, blood orange, licorice and a hint of coffee alongside polished, velvety tannins. A salty mineral note lingers on the finish. Drink 2024–2046.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WESmokey and intense, with crushed ashen stones, savory herbs, ground ginger and dried black cherries forming its dramatic bouquet, the 2016 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna del Suolo blossoms in the glass. This is velvety and texturally deep, with brisk acidity motivating its tart wild berry fruits as orange traces add lovely contrast. Its minerality comes through in the finish, long and intense, with hints of cacao and tangerine resonating over a coating of fine-grained tannins. The 2016 is shedding its baby fat and slowly coming into its own.Vinous Media | 97 VMDried cherries, oyster mushrooms, black olives and citrus oil. It’s full-bodied with sleek, ultra fine tannins and a lifted finish. Layers of sour-cherry, bark and umami notes. Burgundian sensibility with purity and intensity. Wait a few years for this to open up. Drink after 2023.James Suckling | 97 JSThis special single-vineyard wine comes from a 3.5-hectare site with vines 50- or 60-something years old. The Argiano 2016 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna del Suolo (with only 5,000 bottles produced) opens to warm earthy notes that evoke the name of the wine: "vineyard of the soil." The fruit comes through in a second wave with dried raspberry, cassis and dried cherry. But that theme of earthiness permeates the entire experience and is evoked in the powdery dryness of the tannins too. These traits are characteristic of cement fermentation, which this wine does complete, but also of the calcareous marl soils of the site. This is an elegant wine that most certainly needs extra bottle time to gain in depth and volume. A special collaboration with tonnellerie Taransaud was started to create the custom 10-hectoliter oval casks used to age this 5,000-bottle production.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RPThe 2016 Vigna del Suolo Brunello opens with luxurious and complex aromas of incense, pure black cherry fruit, fresh Mediterranean herbs, and sweet tobacco. The palate is inviting, with velvety tannins, fresh black plum, tea leaf, and baked earth. Vigna del Suolo is sourced from 55-year-old vines at an altitude of 280-310 meters above sea level and aged for 30 months in specially selected barrels. This polished but pure expression of Sangiovese is inviting and approachable. Drink or cellar for the next 15 or more years. Drink 2022-2036.Jeb Dunnuck | 96 JDAromas of wild rosemary and pine lead off in this racy red, which is permeated by flavors of cherry, raspberry and mineral. Vibrant and balanced, with the resonant tannins leaving a chalky feel on the finish. Shows fine intensity and length. Best from 2024 through 2047. 415 cases made, 100 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 95 WSArgiano’s oldest site, Vigna del Suolo boasts 65-year-old vines of very rare Sangiovese clones. Recent soil mapping with Chilean specialist Pedro Parra has also revealed significant limestone underpinnings in the vineyard. The 2016 sports a smoky, earthy, dusty nose punctuated by dried fennel. Ripe, chalky tannins are currently front and centre, needing time to cede, while sun-soaked berries underneath speak unabashedly of its southern origins. There is much lurking in this textured, packed Brunello, including orange, mint and a twist of salty sea air.Decanter | 95 DEC

Here too there is just enough wood in evidence to mention on the gorgeously spiced and intricately layered aromas of essence of red currant, floral, plum, earth and a whisper of the sauvage. Once again the mouthfeel of the notably more imposingly-scaled flavors is sleek with excellent minerality that really comes up on the super-saline finish that goes on and on. But what I really admire about the ’16 Bèze is the texture because it’s at once muscular yet highly seductive and refined. This is a very, very powerful wine that is seriously impressive in every respect. In a word, brilliant.Burghound | 98 BHThe 2016 Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru is showing brilliantly from bottle, unwinding with aeration to reveal a deep and brooding bouquet of plums, cassis and cherries mingled with notions of grilled meats, ceps, peonies and iodine. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied, textural and enveloping, with a muscular chassis of ripe tannin that’s cloaked in a core of vibrant and concentrated fruit, concluding with a long and thrillingly carnal finish. It will be fascinating to compare this with the qualitatively similar but stylistically very different 2015 vintage when both wines have 20 years on the clock.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RPThis is lush and harmonious, featuring kirsch, macerated cherry, blackberry, violet and spice flavors. A fruity style, with lively acidity and a heady finish. Impressive, yet approachable at this stage, with a solid grip of tannins emerging at the end. Best from 2021 through 2038. 67 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 97 WSThe 2016 Clos de Bèze is another brilliant wine in the Rousseau cellars this year, and without any frost damage, the wine is able to deliver just a touch more precision and mineral drive than the Chambertin and deserves the moniker of best in cellar this year. The stunning bouquet soars from the glass in a vibrant blend of red plums, cherries, a touch of blood orange, stunningly complex minerality, woodsmoke, gamebird, beautiful spice tones and vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, pure and ripely tannic, with a stunning core, magical transparency and a very long, ripely tannic and tangy finish. (Drink between 2028 - 2075)John Gilman | 97+ JGThe 2016 Chambertin Clos-de-Bèze Grand Cru is a little subdued on the nose with delineated red cherry, crushed strawberry and crushed stone aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with crisp tannin, fresh and mineral-driven, almost Ruchottes-like in style with just a small attenuation towards the finish. Very fine, if not quite delivering the substance you might have expected. Tasted blind at the 2016 Burgfest tasting.Vinous Media | 95 VMThe Clos de Bèze was very expressive when I tasted it, bursting with almost erotically sweet aromas of black cherry, liquorice, grilled meat, nori, dried cep and musk. On the palate the wine is very full-bodied, with a sweet core of fruit, an ample and deceptively firm chassis of tannins, and a long, intense and energetic finish. This is a very powerful wine which is hard to resist. In contrast, the Chambertin is the more poised and refined wine, unerringly precise in the face of the Clos de Bèze’s voluptuousness.Decanter | 95 DECServed after the Chambertin this year. A full crop unaffected by the frost. Full bright purple, less crimson than Chambertin. The nose has a toasty reduction. There is the expected intensity of fruit of but it is in a slightly undigested form at the moment, and the acidity is a little more prominent. This may show better a little further down the road. Tasted: October 2017.Jasper Morris | 95-97 JM

Aromas of rose, red berry and eucalyptus mingle with whiffs of exotic spice on the gorgeous, fragrant red. Loaded with finesse and tension, the elegant, structured palate delivers crushed raspberry, white pepper and star anise set against fresh acidity and taut, lithe tannins. It's already compelling, but hold for even more complexity. Drink 2022–2036.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WEThis is all about finesse with power. Such great length here with ever so refined tannins and precise strawberry, cedar, dried-rose and mineral character. Medium body. Fresh and vivid finish. Hard not to drink now, but wait until at least 2021.James Suckling | 96 JSI tasted this wine over two sittings, one at the winery and one at my home office a few weeks later. Although I can't claim any extraordinary differences between the two sessions, I noticed a few minimal shifts that are essential to understanding the wine's future aging ability. The 2016 Barbaresco starts off slow at first, showing a small margin of aromatic evolution in the glass. But come back two hours later, and you can almost hear the soft sounds of the symphony playing just below the surface. The 2016 vintage is characterized by the solid intensity and firmness of its aromas, which transcend fruit and veer toward balsamic herb, licorice, tar and smoke instead. The tannins offer a moment of sweetness and softness, before you are aware of their undeniable firmness. In all, there is a certain glossiness or satiny quality to the mouthfeel that underlines the wine's carefully crafted integration. I would describe this as a classic and also a somewhat austere Barbaresco that fully deserves extra cellar time to stretch those tight muscles and grow in volume. This wine will award those who wait.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPGaja's 2016 Barbaresco is positively stellar. A wine of poise and grace, the 2016 has so much to offer. Expressive spice and floral notes open up first, but what really stands out is the wine's nuance and delineation. There is a sense of translucency to the 2016 that is impossible to miss. Sweet red cherry, mint, cinnamon and rose petal develop in the glass, adding further shades of nuance. Quite simply, the 2016 is one of the very finest Gaja Barbarescos in recent memory. This is such a gorgeous wine. Don't miss it.Vinous Media | 96 VMThe Gaja family calls 2016 one of the best vintages they have ever experienced, with a long, slow ripening period without heat stress or disease pressure. That balance comes through in this suave, elegant Barbaresco. It smells of soft rose petals and tastes of juicy cherries and spiced raspberries, the flavors gliding along smooth, ripe tannins. With air, the wine picks up energy and depth, moving into a long, vibrant finish.Wine & Spirits | 96 W&SThis gorgeous red evokes rose, strawberry, raspberry and cherry fruit, shaded by tobacco, tar and wild thyme notes. Pure, sleek and intense, with a firm base of tannins and vibrant acidity for support. This should evolve beautifully. Be patient. Best from 2022 through 2043. 1,800 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe 2016 Barbaresco showed beautifully, with a classical yet seductive and sweetly fruited style that's going to evolve gracefully. Medium ruby-hued, with a core of sweet red fruits balanced by classic dried flowers, licorice, asphalt, and medicinal herbs, it hits the palate with medium-bodied richness that carries impress sweet fruit as well as building tannins. Barbaresco doesn't get more classic, and while it has a sunny, sweetly fruited style, it also has ample underlying tannins and structure, so give bottles 4-5 years. It should deliver the goods for two decades or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 94 JDThe nose is poised, displaying very ripe raspberry and black berry aromas. The attack has intensity, partly thanks to its pungent acidity, but there's no rawness and the tannins are ripe. This is taut and structured and needs time. While concentrated, it's not excessively so, and the wine retains its delicacy through the very long finish. Drinking Window 2020 - 2040.Decanter | 93 DEC

Deep, glistening violet color. Highly perfumed aromas of fresh black/blue fruits, exotic spices, peony, vanilla and incense are complemented by a smoky mineral nuance. Juicy and expansive in the mouth, displaying alluringly sweet, mineral-tinged blueberry, cherry preserve and floral pastille flavors along with hints of licorice and cola. The floral and spice notes repeat emphatically on an extremely long, penetrating finish that features mounting tannins and a resonating mineral flourish.Vinous Media | 98 VMProbably one of my favorite wines in the world is the La Mouline Côte Rôtie from the Guigal family. Coming from old vines and a warmer, steep, terraced parcel not far from the estate, it also includes a big chunk of Viognier and spent 4 years in new French oak. The 2016 Côte Rôtie La Mouline shows the more classic, elegant style of the vintage perfectly, offering a kaleidoscope feel in its classic jammy black raspberry fruits and notes of spice box, acacia flowers, bacon fat, and smoked game-like aromas and flavors. Possessing incredible elegance, full-bodied richness, silky tannins, and a layered, multi-dimensional texture, this heavenly Syrah can be enjoyed any time over the coming 25-30 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDLike the La Turque, the 2016 Cote Rotie La Mouline is about as approachable a young La La as you’re likely to find. Floral notes include hints of violet and hibiscus set against a backdrop of blackberries and cassis. Medium to full-bodied, it’s richly concentrated and textured, leaving behind a velvety, tannic feel on the long finish, accompanied by hints of cedary spice, mocha and salted licorice. It’s another beauty that should drink well for at least two decades.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RP(E Guigal, La Mouline, Syrah / Shiraz, Côte-Rôtie, Rhône, France, Red) Here the blackberry fruit is more to the fore compared to La Mouline 2017, the higher-toned aromatics and cedar notes are more in the background. This has a fluid, harmonious, light-touch - very well balanced. Perhaps not as concentrated as the 2017, but I love its easy balance. Particularly elegant and approachable with a little dark chocolate note to the cedar and floral display. (Drink between 2021-2040)Decanter | 97 DECSuave in feel, this lovely, beguiling wine offers perfumed black tea and incense notes swirling around a core of steeped cherry and plum fruit, all inlaid with notes of anise and juniper. The finish knits everything together nicely, with a mouthwatering mineral hint echoing. Best from 2022 through 2038. 125 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

The 2016 Champagne Cristal is transparent and complex, with lovely aromas of fresh flowers. Medium-bodied and chiseled, with great texture, well-defined saltiness, and delicate notes of shortbread, it’s a shimmering and electric wine with fantastic detail. It has a concentrated, chalky profile and is flush with crushed stones. It will demand some patience, but this is a fantastic wine in this vintage for Cristal. Bravo.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDThis has wonderfully pure fruit aromas, such as peaches, Asian pears and golden apples, alongside lemon curd, gingerbread, chalk and jasmine. Rock salt and oyster shells follow on the palate, which is so seamless that you scarcely notice the super-fine bubbles. It’s concentrated yet gentle at the same time, with impressive resolution and integration of all components. Salty and creamy at the very-long finish. Fantastic! 58% pinot noir and 42% chardonnay. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 98 JSThis iconic Champagne, first made in the 19th century for the Tsar of Russia, shows its typical stunning balance and poise between richness and concentration. It has a pure white fruit and honeysuckle aroma and tight, tangy fresh fruit flavors. Just ready to drink, the wine will age well, for at least 20 years. Organic.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WECristal 2016 represents a return to purity and classicism for this cuvée, even seen through the lens of 2016’s ripe, generous nature. It is discreet in youth, cloaking its ripeness in long, chalky, stony energy. Gentle mandarin, pale apricot and raspberry fruit sit under slowly maturing notions of floral honey and tight, smoky charm. An airy, flowing delicacy and persistence lifts this above some other expressions of this year. It’s a hugely promising Cristal, likely to stand as tall as the sought-after 2012 and 2013 releases.Decanter | 97 DECThe finest rendition since 2013, the 2016 Cristal has turned out beautifully. A vintage that Lecaillon describes as “difficult in the vineyards but beautiful in the cellar,” it had suffered slightly in reputation due to the gloomy mood during the challenging growing season, but the results are indeed impressive. The fifth edition produced entirely from organically farmed and certified fruit, and heavily based on Pinot Noir, the 2016 represents the contemporary quality of Cristal, combining the concentration of 2002 with the precision and cut of 2013. Disgorged in July 2024 with a dosage of seven grams per liter, it opens in the glass to reveal a bouquet of lemon zest, white flowers and peeled almond, framed by youthful reduction. On the palate, it is bright and electric, with a pure core of fruit, pinpoint mousse and a textural attack, concluding with a long, saline finish. Drink it alongside the 2015, and it will illuminate its clarity and integration.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RPThe 2016 Cristal is bright, aromatic and nicely lifted. Citrus peel white flowers, mint and a touch of chamomile all grace this understated, wonderfully refined edition of Cristal. Light on its feet and super-refined, the 2016 is exquisite in its understated beauty. I can’t wait to see how the 2016 ages and won’t be surprised it gains a bit of weight in bottle, as Cristal so often does. The blend is 58% Pinot Noir and 42% Chardonnay, so a touch more Chardonnay than the norm. Of the 45 parcels that make up the Cristal domaine, just 32 were used for the blend. Verzy and Verzenay dominate the Pinots, then Aÿ. Avize takes the lead in the Chardonnays, followed by Mesnil and Cramant. Dosage is 7 grams per liter.Vinous Media | 96 VMThis leads with pronounced minerality on the nose, but then a bright burst of tangerine, blood orange and Meyer lemon flavors on the palate hold sway, joined by rich hints of crème de cassis, toast point, pastry cream and crystallized honey. Showing beautiful integration and a refined, lacy mousse, this is compact and statuesque, with a sense of restraint and the hint of more to come, while at the same time offering lovely expression in the glass today. Fresh and focused on the persistent finish. Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Drink now through 2044. 8,300 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 96 WS

Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Château Margaux (blended of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot) sashays out of the glass with glamorous red currants, candied violets, kirsch and crushed blackcurrants scents followed by notions of tilled black soil, forest floor, cast iron pan and cigar box with subtle wafts of lavender and oolong tea. Medium-bodied, mineral laced accents hover over the palate with an ethereal sensation of weightlessness, yet it is super intense with layers of red and black flavors supported by a firm texture of silt-fine tannins, finishing wonderfully fragrant and incredibly long.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 99 RPIt’s very friendly and warm on the nose showing flowers, such as roses, and red fruit. But then on the palate, it lets you know how serious it is. Full-bodied, yet reserved, extremely tight and well-formed with super polished tannins that go on for minutes. A solid and typical Margaux with all the personality and beauty in strength. Try after 2027.James Suckling | 99 JSWith a rare 94% Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend, this wine is packed both with black-currant flavors and impressive tannins and acidity. It moves Château Margaux into a new dimension with its dense, dry core of tannins that will power the wine into a seriously long-term future. Drink from 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 99 WEThe 2016 Château Margaux has an intense bouquet of blackberry, briar, crushed stone and subtle cedar aromas that enrapture the senses; hints of pencil box and sous-bois emerge with time. The harmonious palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins and a fine bead of acidity, and a touch of bitterness lends tension on the finish. Impressive – very impressive. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting.Vinous Media | 98 VMRefined and typically elegant, 2016 Margaux adds great depth, structure and concentration to the mix. This is a wine to drink in 30-40 years! Only 28% of the production made it into the grand vin and in 2016 much of the Merlot was left out of the final bland. The result is an intense, mineral, black fruit-driven wine with pronounced floral and leafy hints, smooth, ripe tannins and layers of subtle oak. Drinking Window 2026 - 2060Decanter | 98 DECBeautifully rendered, with a lush and seamless flow of cassis, steeped cherry, warmed raspberry and gently mulled blackberry fruit flavors gliding through. Light lilac, savory, mesquite and mineral accents underline the finish, adding additional texture and length. Deep and long, with sublime definition and gorgeous fruit. Best from 2024 through 2040. 10,833 cases made. — JMWine Spectator | 97 WSThe grand vin 2016 Château Margaux is a beauty and tastes like the essence of Margaux. Thrilling notes of blueberries, cassis, crushed violets, flowery incense, and spice notes all give way to a full-bodied 2016 that strikes an incredible balance between richness and elegance. A blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Cabernet Franc, 2% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot brought up in new barrels, it’s more focused and elegant than the 2015, yet I suspect it’s just as concentrated, and readers are going have a blast comparing these two magical vintages over the coming 4-5 decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 97+ JD

Moving to the grand vin, the 2016 Proprietary Red is 80% Cabernet Sauvignon with the balance Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petit Verdot. Tasting like a mix of the 2013 and 2014 with its incredible elegance and power, it reveals a deep purple hue as well as extraordinary notes of crème de cassis, crushed violets, lead pencil, and unsmoked tobacco. Ethereally textured, seamless, and full-bodied, it builds incrementally on the palate and is a monster of a wine that somehow stays light, graceful and elegant. It should hit maturity after a decade of cellaring and be a 40- to 50-year wine.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDThe 2016 Sloan is dazzling. Soft and unctuous with no hard edges, the 2016 Sloan is just as impressive from bottle as it was from barrel. Sweet red plum, blood orange, spice, menthol and licorice are all melded together in a gorgeous, racy Cabernet Sauvignon that hits all the right notes. Unlike most top 2016s, Sloan can be enjoyed with minimal cellaring, although its true potential will only be unlocked with at least a few years in bottle. Spice, star anise, pomegranate and sweet red cherry overtones add an exotic flair.Vinous Media | 97 VMThis is a barrel sample blended of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot, to be bottled the first week of February 2019. Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Proprietary Red opens with fragrant notions of candied violets, chocolate box and baking spices with a core of blackcurrant cordial, preserved plums and blackberry compote with touches of garrigue and menthol. Full-bodied, rich and packed with black fruits sparked by tons of cinnamon and cloves accents, it has a firm, velvety-textured frame and great freshness, finishing with epic persistence.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97-100 RPEnormously deep nose with an entire spectrum of black and blue fruit, plus notes of second-flush Darjeeling and mint. Widescreen Napa cabernet with a pronounced licorice note that’s not in the nose. Beautifully integrated, powdery tannins that almost perfectly support the lavish body. Long, plush and graceful finish. You could drink it on release, but this has great aging potential.James Suckling | 97-98 JS

The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon 29 Estate (20 months in 80% new barrels) is seamless and elegant, with perfect balance and overall harmony. Classic notes of crème de cassis, green tobacco, graphite, and lead pencil all flow to an utterly seamless, silky 2016 that does everything right. It’s not a blockbuster, but it’s one of the purest, most seamless, and complete wines in this report. Given its balance and purity, it’s already hard to resist, yet it will benefit from 4-5 years of bottle age and is going to keep for 30-40 years. It’s a monumental wine.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDThe deep purple-black colored 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon 29 Estate opens with provocative notions of crème de cassis, baked blueberries and black cherry compote with suggestions of star anise, tilled soil, tobacco leaf and espresso plus a waft of lavender. Full-bodied and packed with black and blue fruits plus loads of earthy accents, it has a very firm, grainy frame and lively, long finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98 RPThe 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon 29 Estate is voluptuous and racy in the glass, with an extra kick of flamboyant attitude that distinguishes it from the Aida. Super-ripe dark cherry, plum, chocolate, cedar and menthol crescendo into a huge finish. All of the personality of this St. Helena site comes through in a dramatic, opulent Cabernet that will be impossible to resist young.Vinous Media | 95 VMBriary plum and mulberry aromas here with hints of tar, leading to a wealth of smooth, succulent and plush tannins that carry a bold, sweet plum finish. Drink now.James Suckling | 91 JS