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I’m not sure the 2020 Côte Rôtie La Mouline will match the 2019, but it’s still early to be making any final conclusions, as these wines have an uncanny ability to gain in richness and depth over their élevage. Cassis, violets, spring flowers, and scorched earth define the bouquet, and it’s more reserved, focused, and elegant on the palate. This full-bodied, concentrated, pure, beautifully balanced effort is loaded with potential.Jeb Dunnuck | 96-98 JDDominated by dark notes of espresso, black olive and pumpernickel, the 2020 Cote Rotie La Mouline was missing the vineyard’s normally expressive floral aromas on this occasion. Full-bodied and rich, it’s an atypically muscular and closed vintage of La Mouline right now. It will be interesting to see how it evolves over the next few years of élevage.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93-95 RPSticky damson and plum fruit, just a little touch of prune in the mix. Medium-bodied with fresh, fine tannins; quite an ethereal style of La Mouline, with floral hints and plentiful spicy oak among the roses. A compact style of wine for the vintage that suits what this vineyard delivers - good expression of terroir. I would drink this young, though it will no doubt age fairly well. From lieu-dit Côte Blonde and at the beginning of its 40 months in new French oak barriques.Decanter | 95 DEC

The 2020 Côte Rôtie La Turque reminds me of the 2018 with its pure, seamless, full-bodied, and elegant profile. Blueberries, smoked meat, scorched earth, graphite, and black cherry notes all show on the nose, and it’s full-bodied, has a concentrated, powerful mouthfeel, fine tannins, and a seriously good finish.Jeb Dunnuck | 97-99 JDNotes of espresso and barrel char ride above notes of purple raspberries in the 2020 Cote Rotie La Turque. It’s full-bodied, with ample concentration and length, but it seems to lack a bit of depth compared to other recent vintages. Let’s see what next year brings.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94-96This feels like a classic, with the weight and tannins necessary to help this age, but it’s not as massive as some recent vintages. Star anise, cinnamon and nutmeg - very much about the spice this year - this is bold and sweetly fruited, with juicy, pliable tannins and a long finish. Vines are on the Côte Brune, planted by Marcel Guigal in 1980 (first vintage 1985) after being abandoned since 1935. La Turque is a central part of Côte Brune, less than 1ha. This is only at the beginning of its 40 months in new French oak barriques.Decanter | 96 DEC

Attractive aromas of raspberries and cherries with savory herbs, orange peel and forest wood undertones. Juicy and savory with medium body and crunchy tannins and a velvety mouthfeel. Attractive and lightly chewy at the end. Better from 2025.James Suckling | 93 JSHailing from the Bric Micca cru in Neive, the elegant, structured Poderi Einaudi 2020 Barbaresco has alluring aromas of eucalyptus, ground clove and violet. On the full-bodied palate, taut, refined tannins support juicy red cherry, blood orange, star anise and blood orange. Drink 2025–2035. Abv: 14.5% Kerin O’Keefe | 93 KO

Aromas of tangerine zest and blackcurrants, with the perfume of fresh flowers. Full-bodied with a dusty texture to the tannins. Gorgeous. Nuanced and pure. Cabernet sauvignon with a touch of cabernet franc and petit verdot. Needs three or four years to open.James Suckling | 98 JSAnother incredibly successful 2020, the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon offers a big, rich, powerful profile offering ample chocolaty dark fruits, some tobacco, eucalyptus, and mint herb nuances, an expansive, layered texture, and building yet polished and ripe tannins. It’s a beautiful wine that should age gracefully for 15-20 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 94 JDThe 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon is a seriously beautiful wine. It offers notable depth and texture at the outset. Black cherry, plum, chocolate, leather and licorice are all amplified. Slightly angular contours linger on the finish, but that is just the personality of the year. This is a very good wine for the vintage. Time in the glass amplifies the intense, bruising tannins. Let’s see where this goes.Vinous Media | 91 VM

Violets and lavender with dark fruit and hints of dark chocolate. Sophisticated nose. Medium-bodied with fine tannin structure that gives this finesse and beauty. It’s very long and goes on for minutes. Precision. 68% sangiovese with the rest in cabernet franc and cabernet sauvignon. Drinkable but better in three or four years.James Suckling | 97 JSThe 2020 Tignanello is so primary, so intensely fruit-driven, that it almost tastes like a barrel sample. A burst of red Sangiovese fruit opens first, followed by hints of blood orange, cinnamon, spice, dried flowers and mocha develop later. Time in the glass brings out striking dimensions. In 2020, Tignanello is wonderfully sleek and racy, with fine tannins that lie below a core of bright, sculpted fruit. The balance here is just sublime. I can’t wait to revisit the 2020 with age. "We are gradually increasing the Cabernet Franc in Tignanello to balance the greater richness that today’s warmer seasons are giving to our Sangioveses," Antinori CEO Renzo Cotarella told me.Vinous Media | 96 VMNewly on the market now, the 2020 Tignanello shows a gorgeous bouquet with an upfront and accessible personality. Right off the bat, you get dark cherry, dried raspberry, spice, toasted almond and citrusy blood orange. The blend is normally 75% to 80% Sangiovese with 7% Cabernet Franc. The grape in between, making up 13% to 18%, is Cabernet Sauvignon. This vintage is very pretty and won’t require a long wait. The tannins are sweet and silky. “Tignanello proves itself as a great vineyard site in both the challenging and the classic years,” says Managing Director Renzo Cotarella. Annual production falls between 300,000-350,000 bottles.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95 RPClearly not the greatest of Tignanellos, but still a fine wine in its own right. One of the founding super Tuscans, this rendition features chunky, grapy, flowery aromas backed by blackberry and black cherry flavors. It’s plump, maybe a bit heavy and oaky, but still worthy of its reputation. Wine Enthusiast | 90 WE

A blend of 45% Syrah, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Petit Verdot, the 2020 Estate Cuvée is another outstanding wine from L’Aventure in the challenging 2020 vintage, offering singular concentration and elegance. Deep ruby-purple, it has a pure core of cassis and slowly unfolding accents of licorice, cured meats, tobacco leaves, cedar and truffle. Full-bodied, juicy and alluring, it floods the mouth with layers of blue fruit, floral perfume and spice. It is supported by powdery tannins and boasts a tremendously long, detailed finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 99 RPA beguiling blend of dusty violets, crushed stone, musky black currants and grilled herbs makes the 2020 Estate Cuvée impossible to ignore. Racy yet supple, this soothes with its ripe red and black fruits while also exciting the palate through a core of zesty acidity. A staining of minerality lingers as the 2020 finishes with epic length and potency. Grippy tannins tug at the perimeters of the palate, leaving nuances of black licorice and clove to resonate. This radiant beauty has a very bright future. It’s a blend of 45% Syrah, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Petit Verdot.Vinous Media | 97 VMDark chocolate, a bit animalistic, so brooding and dark. Sumptuous texture, rich and deep yet vibrant too, this is plush and opulent but there is refinement here, you can feel the sculpting of the fruit and the tannins, there is nuance and detail to the different aspects. It’s still quite massy and bold, it’s a big style, lots going on with plenty of power and punch but a deliciously bright and lifted understone with acidity to keep it from being too heavy. Strawberry touches, blackberries, cinnamon, pepper, toast, tobacco and cocoa, all melding together with a lingering piquancy that lasts and lasts. A classic and memorable wine. Ageing 15 months in French oak (80% new, 20% one year old).Decanter | 97 DECThe 2020 Estate Cuvee is the flagship and checks in as 45% Syrah, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 15% Petit Verdot. It has a big, black-fruited bouquet with lots of graphite, smoky oak, chocolate, and chalky minerality. This carries to a full-bodied wine revealing the more savory tannins of the vintage, plenty of mid-palate flesh, sweet tannins, and a great finish. It picks up a beautiful sense of salinity with time in the glass and is unquestionably one of the top wines in this vintage.Jeb Dunnuck | 96+ JDReally impressive depth here. Violets, blueberries, blackberries, graphite, ink and chalk to the nose. Rich, voluptuous and flavorful with firm, but silky tannins. Concentrated, restrainedly plush and muscular with a lingering finish that goes on and on. 45% syrah, 40% cabernet sauvignon and 15% petit verdot.James Suckling | 96 JS

Bright and lively on the palate, such beautifully expressed raspberry and red cherry fruit flavours alongside high-shining acidity that is so clean and precise. A supremely joyful expression with hints of caramelised strawberries and fresh mint. So sharp but so well defined with a clarity to the palate that is gorgeous. Really delivers a sophisticated, charming, characterful wine that is balanced, easy to enjoy with plenty of life. A more structured and perhaps harder to understand wine than Testamatta this year, but both have their own lovely personalities. This is so complete and abundant, muscular but controlled and full of complexity and detail - there’s weight and density without heaviness. A sensational wine. Ageing 12 months in 500l French oak barrels.Decanter | 98 DECThe subtlety and perfumed nature of this wine is enchanting, offering flowers, orange peel and cherries. Wonderful ripe strawberries, too. Full-bodied, but not over the top, with tannins that are polished and run the length of the wine. It’s tight, but gives you every indication of a terrific wine. You want to drink it now, and you probably should do, because it’s so alluring. Yet it will age beautifully as well. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 98 JSThe Bibi Graetz 2020 Colore is a pure expression of Sangiovese all sourced from old vines that are carefully selected in various parts of Tuscany. Much of the fruit comes from a high elevation and cool site in Lamole, or from 70-year-old vines in Bagno a Ripoli or Vincigliata near Fiesole. A small percentage of old vines in Olmo is also used. Bibi has a preference for old vines, and you can taste the lovely depth and complexity that comes through in the Colore. Compared to his other wine Testamatta, this wine has seen fewer stylistic changes over the years, and the goal has always been elegance and finesse. Colore boasts a pretty luminous quality with dark fruit aromas and wild berry. There are hints of licorice and mint as well. Mineral flavors and bright acidity are what set Colore apart.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPThe 2020 Bibi Graetz Colore has beautiful, appetising aromas of savory wild herbs, wild-flowers and Mediterranean shrub with a light peppery note and on standing there is an aroma of strawberries warmed in the sun. The palate is round and soft, then mouth-wateringly fresh, then it finishes with savory, salty tannins. What I love is that the flavours are clearly delineated and remind me of Sangiovese and the Tuscan landscape with bitter cherry, light sea salt, iron tonic and wild herb notes. The flavors are quite fragile but persistent, the texture is fine and silky and there is a lot of savory, mineral tension in this wine.The Wine Independent | 96 TWIThe 2020 Colore is spiced and pure, with vibrant ripe cherry, cinnamon, and cedar. There is elegance and ripeness within its medium frame, revealing notes of wild raspberry, dried herbs, and orange zest. There is another level of refinement from the Testamatta that will continue to improve over the coming 15-20 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 95 JDThe 2020 Colore is pleasantly unexpected and is a total feminine beauty. When I anticipate power, it delivers grace with a stunning bouquet of freshly cut roses, blood orange, wild strawberries and sweet smoke. It’s deeply textural, yet not heavy, feeling like crushed velvet gently draped across the palate, leaving mineral-tinged blackberries and currants in its wake. This finishes on a note of elegance with fine-grained tannins without slowing its momentum as spice notes slowly fade. The Colore is all old-vine (70 years or older) Sangiovese from vineyards Lamole, Vincigliata, Olmo and Siena.Vinous Media | 94 VMCherries, strawberries, raspberries, seaweed and soy sauce mingle with the scent of freshly paved road, gun flint and pencil on the nose of this wine. It offers a very cherry palate, with wet stone, white pepper, rose petal and chocolate-covered orange slice. A bright and lively wine, it balances structure with playfulness, and delivers fruit that is mouthfilling without turning velvety.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WEThis red reveals a mix of earth, cherry and wild herb flavors that ride a bright, fleshy profile. Features a juicy midpalate, with vibrant structure and well-integrated tannins. The finish firms up, where cherry and spice notes linger. Sangiovese. Best from 2024 through 2035. 200 cases made.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

Aromas of blackcurrants, black cherries, hints of graphite, wet earth, and lavender. Sandalwood. Full-bodied with an impressive and refined structure that runs deep and vertical in the wine. Chewy. Hints of chocolate and hazelnut at the end. Needs five or six years to soften.James Suckling | 98 JSAn excellent wine, even if not a great Dominus, the 2020 Dominus delivers waves of dark fruit—think predominantly cassis. A blend of 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc, it’s full-bodied and richly textured, perhaps a bit warm and open-knit because of the summer’s heat, but with a long, velvety finish attractively tinged with mocha and dark chocolate.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95 RPThis throws off dense kirsch and linzer torte aromas and flavors, along with a mix of smoldering tobacco, leather, warm paving stone and licorice root hints that provide a brooding edge on the back end. Surprisingly backward for the vintage and impressively done. Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2026 through 2040. 1,600 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

Picked 28th August. Excellent pure purple and fresh pinot on the nose, with a delicious juicy red fruit on the palate, with a beautifully suave finish and just a touch of acidity to complete it. 13.8% but not exaggerated. Good length too.Jasper Morris | 89-91 JMDiscreet but perceptible nuances of wood and menthol are present on the ripe and fresh red and dark raspberry, pepper and newly turned earth. The is fine mid-palate density to the utterly delicious middle weight flavors that possess much better than average depth and persistence for such a young Chassagne red. One to strongly consider as this is very good.Burghound | 90 BH

Subtle and beautiful on the nose with currants, flowers and light sage aromas that follow through to a full body with ultra-fine tannins and a long and flavorful finish. Extremely polished and poised. Classy. Best after 2028.James Suckling | 98 JSThe 2020 Solaia is an infant. I expected a more exuberant wine, but the 2020 is built along more classic lines. Black cherry, plum, gravel, incense, smoke, pencil shavings and spice all open effortlessly. As always, Solaia is a Cabernet Sauvignon-based wine, but it is a Cabernet that is distinctly Italian, with plenty of Tuscan acid and structure driving through the mid-palate and into the finish. The 2020 is a terrific example of the recent stylistic shift at Antinori. In the past, richness and opulence were qualities of a vintage that would have been amplified in the vineyard and cellar. Today, the aim is to capture a more balanced expression of these kinds of vintages, and that very much comes through.Vinous Media | 97 VMBaked black fruit, ripe, fragrant and intense on the nose. Bright and sour fruit on the palate, quite a sharp initial tang from the high acidity before rich, sunny, ripe strawberries and raspberries come into play with liquorice, toast and cedar aspects giving the spiced element to the expression and graphite offering minerality. This is a powerful wine no doubt, bordering on too hedonistic at times - a result of the hot and dry summer, it’s sensual, rich and flashy but the sense of control and layers of juicy freshness help balance the opulence with refinement. Clearly confident and charismatic, fans of this style will delight with Solaia in 2020. Made by Renzo Cotarella, Stefano Caraneto and Pietro Dogliani.Decanter | 97 DECThe 2020 Solaia is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese, and Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple in color, it needs a little coaxing to bring out notes of warm cassis, black cherry compote, and black raspberries, followed by hints of cedar chest, unsmoked cigars, violets, and cardamom. The full-bodied palate is densely laden with rich, bold black fruits, supported by a firm backbone of ripe, grainy tannins and jaw-dropping tension, finishing long and lifted.The Wine Independent | 97 TWIInky dark in appearance, the 2020 Solaia is mostly Cabernet Sauvignon with smaller percentages of Cabernet Franc and Sangiovese. This vintage unfolds to exuberant richness and thick layers of blackberry and plum. The tannins are sweet and expertly crafted, adding both depth and fruit weight. The 2020 vintage is quite bold, and it plays its best cards in terms of texture and mouthfeel. It’s a bigger, more accessible wine compared to the last two vintages on the market. Spice, toasted coffee bean and more dark fruit color this full-bodied Tuscan red.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RP

The 2020 Cheval des Andes was harvested from the last of February for the first time ever. It was Gabillet’s second vintage at Cheval des Andes, and that year, he had to start without waiting for Pierre Olivier Clouet and Pierre Lurton from Cheval Blanc; when they arrived, they had finished picking the Malbec, which surprisingly was fresher in Las Compuertas (because of the higher percentage of clay?) than in Altamira (where the vines suffered more stress), saving the freshness. They now harvest using cold trucks (for the first time), and they also started earlier in the morning (six in the morning, impossible earlier in Mendoza...), which he reckons was very good for the precision of the wine. They used 40% 225-liter barrels, 40% 400-liter oak barrels and 20% 2,500-liter foudres, half of them new and with an élevage of 15 months on average, depending on the lots and varieties from 12 to 18 months. The final blend was 49% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Malbec and 2% Petit Verdot, which makes a comeback as it was not used since 2016. The key was to finish the fermentation of the Petit Verdot without skins, and that way, they have been able to use it in the blends of 2021, 2022 and 2023 in small but increasing percentages. This is slightly riper than 2019, with a little more alcohol (14.5%) and with very good structural tannins but saving the freshness, and it has the spicy side from the Petit Verdot (Gabillet talks about white pepper). The wine has the ultra sleek and polished texture and the elegance and the balance that is the signature here; the wine is very clean and precise. I see very good regularity across the three vintages I tasted next to each other—this 2020 and the 2018 and 2019. Overall, this is a triumph over the adverse conditions of the vintage. They produced their usual 100,000 bottles (since 2018), as they are renewing their vineyards and want to keep the volume stable. They produce this volume from the 36 productive hectares they have in Las Compuertas and Altamira.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98 RPRipe, baked dark cherries with spices and some violets. Hints of graphite, cocoa powder, incense and black pepper. Dried rose petals. A slightly fuller Cheval des Andes with tense, silky tannins and a lingering, generous finish. Ripe, but still has lots of restraint and precision. 49% malbec, 49% cabernet sauvignon with a 2% petit verdot. 24% of the malbec comes from Altamira and all the rest of the fruit come from Las Compuertas. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 97 JSThe 2020 Cheval des Andes is a blend of 49% Cabernet Sauvignon, 49% Malbec and 2% Petit Verdot from Paraje Altamira in the Uco Valley and Las Compuertas in Luján de Cuyo. Aged in French oak barrels, it’s purple in the glass with a garnet sheen. The nose reveals a well-judged approach to the warmth of 2020, featuring ripe plum, redcurrant, mint and hints of white pepper over a bed of bay leaf and cedar. It’s dry and velvety on the palate, with rich, polished tannins that deliver a juicy, balanced mouthfeel. The balsamic notes and rich palate reflect the year’s character, while the finish is dynamic and long-lasting.Vinous Media | 96 VMThis almost half-half Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec with 2% Petit Verdot is rich and full in the mouth. Tannins are massy and filling, this has power and dominance with concentrated blackcurrant, plum and black cherry fruit. Highly spiced and sunkissed, this is intense and quite a force on the palate with liquorice, black pepper and tobacco tones and a flinty mineral aspect on the finish. The alcohol sticks out a touch, just lingering with heat at the end, but it has freshness and matches the altogether hefty frame and power from start to finish. Certainly a punchy and confident wine that’s out to shine. 3.83pH. Ageing 22 months, 40% in 225l Bordeaux barrels, 405 in 400l barrels, 20% in 2,500l foudres (50% new). Winemaker Gérald Gabillet.Decanter | 95 DEC

The 2020 Barbaresco boasts an ample set of aromas with wild cherry, blue flower, sweet spice and crushed limestone. As always, the wine paints an exciting and authentic portrait of Nebbiolo, albeit with a little more richness and texture in this vintage. This is especially true in terms of the palate, where the wine offers mid-weight intensity with melting tannins. This ambitious release of 300,000 bottles is slated to hit the market in fall 2023.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95 RPJust off the bottling line, I was the first in the world to taste the 2020 Barbaresco from bottle with Aldo Vacca. It pours a jewel ruby, which Aldo thought was probably pre-bottle shock. A pretty wine with aromas of ripe raspberry (almost liqueur), sweet licorice, and fresh violets, it is medium to full-bodied, with pure, ripe fruit of red cherry, blood orange, dusty earth, and pressed flowers. This is a lovely wine out of the gates, and it will be interesting to see how it settles. Drink 2024-2040.Jeb Dunnuck | 93-94 JDStill vinous, with youthful strawberry notes, rosebud, violet, liquorice and a whiff of cinnamon. Savoury and floral on the palate which is dominated by firm, crisp, long acidity and velvety ripe tannins of an amazing quality; perhaps just a bit stern on the aftertaste. Amazing Barbaresco. Here we have the cooperative of Barbaresco and one known as producing some of the best-priced quality wines in all of Langhe. This will not be released before October 2023.Decanter | 94 DECThis is aromatic and attractive with notes of dried cherries, hibiscus, cocoa and bark, following through a medium body with polished and refined tannins with velvety texture, and a linear finish. Fresh and floral at the end with a bright red fruit backbone. Drink from 2025.James Suckling | 92 JS

Very attractive nose with ripe blackcurrants, spiced chocolate, grilled thyme, hazelnuts and bacon. Notes of tobacco and cedar, too. Full-bodied, so refined and polished with layers of finely chiselled tannins spread evenly across the wine and beautifully integrated. Blooming fruit with spicy herbs, peppermint and violets. Very long and persistent with a steady, mineral sensation in the finish. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 98 JSWhile there are subtle secondary notes present, this remains largely primary and still quite fresh with mostly red berry fruit that is cut with nuances of earth, roasted cherry and stone hints. There is moderate austerity to the relatively precise and energetic medium-bodied flavors that are presently somewhat lean and while not hard, it’s clear that this is not yet ready for prime time drinking. Save for one recent bottle that was hard to the point of being unpleasant, I have had consistent notes.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPThe 2020 Biserno is one of the best wines I can remember tasting here. Rich yet vibrant, the 2020 presents a much more restrained style than was once the norm. There is still plenty of intensity, but energy and vibrancy have replaced volume as signatures. Espresso, menthol, licorice, cloves and leather are some of the many notes that build in this powerful, elegant Maremma red. Gorgeous Franc aromatics open the finish effortlessly.Vinous Media | 96 VMSmells wild - herbal and gorgeously floral on the nose with ripe black, bramble fruit aromas. Round and supple, fully flavoured and textured with just fleshy tannins that also have a cool, mineral chalky edge giving some minerality to the palate and freshness offsetting the ripe, sweet black and blue fruit. I like the lingering powdery element and this has a certain sharp, sophistication - cool blue fruits, cola, vanilla, cedar and toast. I’d be hard pushed to put it in Tuscany though, it does smell and taste more like old-school Bordeaux or Californian wine. Massy, heavy, pushed with both oak and extraction. It has purity, but lacks the Tuscan charm that these wines can offer. Quality is there and this is enjoyable. 6% Petit Verdot completes the blend. Director Niccolo Marzichi Lenzi, winemaker Helena Lindberg.Decanter | 94 DECA powerful red, with a saline element underlining the black currant, blackberry, plum, leather, iron, herb and tobacco aromas and flavors. Reveals muscular tannins that shore up the finish, which has a lingering mix of fruit, herbs and spices. Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Best from 2026 through 2040. 25,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

Pouring an opaque red, the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Au Paradis is lush and refined with aromas of cassis, espresso, violets, and sweet tobacco. Full-bodied, this refined profile continues on the palate, with a ripe, velvety texture, fine tannins, and notes of black cherry liqueur and mocha, as well as floral oils that last long on the palate without feeling heavy. Drink 2025-2045.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDBlended with 3% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Franc, the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Au Paradis comes from a vineyard in Oakville near Dalla Valle, around 500-600 feet in elevation. It has a deep ruby-purple color and opens slowly to warm black plums, graphite and grilled peppers with wafts of cedar, chocolate and soy. The full-bodied palate offers plenty of freshness to support its concentrated, ripe fruit. It boasts generous, powdery tannins, alluring floral tones and a long, layered finish. Ripe yet balanced, it’s approachable right now. 1,401 cases were made, and it will be released in July of 2023.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPThis is a very refined and polished red, with redcurrant and spice, as well as black-pepper and flint undertones. It’s medium-bodied with refined tannins and a fresh, silky finish. All about finesse and polish. Drinkable now, but better after 2024.James Suckling | 95 JSThe 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Au Paradis is a powerful wine, its mid-weight structure notwithstanding. There’s good depth to the ripe dark plum, blackberry and chocolate flavors. The aromatics aren’t quite as focused as they usually are, but all things considered, this is a very good wine in a highly challenging year. About 40% of the wines were discarded, including much of the Franc, which is quite low in this vintage.Vinous Media | 92 VMForward, with a wave of crushed blueberry, açaí and blackberry fruit flavors that dominate the character, while touches of loam, licorice root and tobacco fill in on the broad, slightly grainy finish. Best from 2024 through 2034. 1,401 cases made.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

The EABA is more Syrah-dominated and checks in as 65% Syrah, 22% Mourvèdre, 10% Grenache, and the rest Viognier that saw plenty of stems and close to two years in 50% new French oak. Its inky purple hue is followed by a sensational bouquet of bloody blue fruits, black raspberries, iron, ground pepper, baking spices, and who knows what else. Incredibly complex and nuanced (yet intense) aromatically, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a deep, layered, concentrated mouthfeel, and a finish that won’t quit. It’s certainly one of the biggest, richest wines in the lineup, yet like all of Jim’s wines, it remains light on its feet, has brilliant purity of fruit, and is as drinkable as could be.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDThe 2020 EABA ("end all be all"), still in barrel, is a blend of 65% Syrah, 22% Mourvèdre, 10% Grenache and 3% Viognier. Made using 70% whole clusters, it comes from several vineyards in Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties, including Bien Nacido, White Hawk, Larner, Slide Hill and Alta Mesa. It will mature for around 22 months in 50% new and 50% used French barriques. Opaque ruby-purple in color, the 2020 EABA has gorgeous scents of blackberry and blueberry jam, dried herbs, lavender, coffee, licorice and loamy earth. The full-bodied palate is powerful yet light on its feet, its youthfully concentrated fruits unfolding as the wine glides through the mouth. It has abundant, finely grained tannins, integrated acidity and loads of spicy and floral accents across the long finish. Tasted May 25, 2022, it will be bottled in mid-August 2022. Around 750 cases and a few magnums will be made. It will be packaged and sold as a three-bottle set ($330), and each magnum will be sold in a box set with the 2020 Andremily Grenache.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96-98 RPThe 2020 EABA is a dense, super-ripe wine that very much shows all the radiant intensity of the year. Super-ripe black cherry, plum, chocolate, new oak and lavender are dialed up to the maximum. This is a classic Andremily wine built on textural opulence and intensity. The 2020 has developed beautifully since I tased it from barrel.Vinous Media | 94 VM

Orange-cranberry and black cherry aromas are joined by a heady combination of worn saddle leather, wet cobblestones and tobacco. Can a wine smell "rugged?" Flavors of blueberries, orange zest cocoa nibs glide across a silky texture lit by electrifying acidity and plush tannins.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEA perfumed blend of vivid black raspberry, lavender, sage and crushed rocks makes the 2020 God Only Knows impossible to ignore. This is pure elegance, supremely silky and refined, with subtle red and blue fruits that ride a core of tantalizing acidity as violet inner florals evolve toward the close. This finishes lifted and floral, with a subtle coating of sweet tannins that gently tug at the cheeks as confectionery spices slowly fade. While I would prefer a bit more length, that’s splitting hairs, as the 2020 God Only Knows is simply spellbinding.Vinous Media | 96 VMSeductive and mysterious nose of potpourri, nori, wild strawberries, boysenberries, miso and white pepper. It’s medium- to full-bodied with such delicious wild fruit and umami spice, tied back with tight-knit tannins. Beckoning and restrained all at once. Mostly grenache. From biodynamically grown grapes. Drink from 2024.James Suckling | 96 JSAs always, the 2020 Grenache God Only Knows is almost all Grenache brought up in barrels, mostly used. It reveals a translucent ruby hue as well as a complex bouquet of ripe strawberries, framboise, cold fireplace, wood smoke, and shiitake mushrooms. This carries to a medium-bodied Grenache with a focused, elegant texture, present yet fine-grained tannins, and outstanding length on the finish. I don’t think this matches the recent series of the 2016 to the 2019, but it’s a complex, layered, nuanced Grenache that will keep for 10-12 years, probably longer.Jeb Dunnuck | 92 JD

Coming from higher density plantings just beside the estate, the 2020 Syrah Armada Vineyard is one of the standouts in the vintage and has a beautiful core of fruit as well as mid-palate density. Ripe black cherries, blackberries, ground pepper, iodine, rose petals, and crushed stone define the aromatics, and it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a broad, layered mouthfeel, gorgeous tannins, and a great, great finish. This unquestionably competes with the top wines in the vintage. Give bottles 2-4 years in the cellar and enjoy through 2040.Jeb Dunnuuck | 98 JDPerhaps the most put-together and complete wine of the range this year, the 2020 Syrah Armada Vineyard has classic notes of potpourri, savory herbs, black olive, hints of green and black peppercorns and dusty cherry blossoms that sway with a delightful mineral essence. Medium to full-bodied, the wine is balanced on the palate, with a fine mineral tension, precision, focus and a lingering, food-friendly, savory finish with a tight tannic edge. The wine rested for 21 months in about 20% new French oak. 7,656 bottle produced. Bravo!Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPThe 2020 Syrah Armada Vineyard is darkly floral. Dusty violet and lavender tones give way to musky black currants and blood orange aromas. Soft and enveloping, this possesses racy acidity that enlivens its tart wild berry fruits, taking on an almost-crunchy sensation toward the close, as nuances of sour citrus add contrast. This finishes with incredible energy and length, leaving a subtle balsamic twang yet remaining remarkably fresh. Impressive, to say the least, the 2020 Armada will win many hearts. This is about 80% whole-cluster fermentation and 10% new oak. This really sneaks up on the taster, and the nose prepares you for a bruiser, but the palate melts your heart.Vinous Media | 96 VMBlackcurrants, black cherries, cloves, tobacco, charcoal and smoked meat on the nose. It’s full-bodied with fine-grained yet firm, broad and mouth-coating tannins. Dark and inky. Tight and tense at the end. From biodynamically grown grapes. Try in 2025.James Suckling | 95 JSThe Armada sails on an ocean of blackcap raspberry and smoked brisket flavors, withadditional support provided by Earl Grey tea, shortbread and spearmint. Aromatic tradewinds are filled with black cherries and lavender. Soft acidity and velvety tannins make for a smooth voyage. Wine Enthusiast | 95 WE

The darkly alluring 2020 Cabernet Franc Poggio de’ Colli takes its time in the glass, slowly awakening with a dusty mix of red currants, pepper-tinged rose, exotic curries and the slightest touch of animal musk that adds gravitas. This is velvety smooth yet finessed. It’s cool-toned in feel with a potent wave of tart raspberry fruits that saturates the palate with savory spice and mineral tones. It leaves a coating of fine tannins and a staining of berry concentration through the finale, tapering off sapid and long, yet perfectly balanced. What a radiant vintage for the Poggio de’ Colli, Piaggia’s varietal Cabernet Franc. Revisit it in five years to see some real sparks fly.Vinous Media | 97 VMAromas of blackcurrants and fresh tarragon follow through to a medium to full body, with firm tannins and a tangy finish. Better in a couple of years. Try after 2025.James Suckling | 92 JS

The flagship from this great estate is the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Boisrenard, which is based on 80% Grenache and small doses of 17 other varieties. This deeply hued beauty offers a stunning bouquet of blackberries, scorched earth, licorice, ground pepper, and sappy garrigue. I always find a Burgundian-like texture on this wine, and the 2020 is no exception – this is one to put into a blind tasting of Grand Cru Red Burgundies and shock your friends. Medium to full-bodied, ultra-pure, with grippy, sappy tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish, it’s pure class all the way. It’s going to need at least 4-6 years of bottle age, but this is a wine you don’t want to miss, and one of the finest wines I’ve tasted from this estate.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDFull and generous on the palate, no lack of fruit or depth here. Powerful and plentiful fine tannins and a great, rising sense of energy and freshness. Impressive, with real finesse and precision - no excess weight, but great surging intensity and freshness. Contains at least 1% of all the 18 possible varieties of Châteauneuf-du-Pape. Grapes are grown across a variety of soil types in the lieux-dits Beau Renard, Cabrières and Coteau de l’Ange, vinified mostly in tronconic wooden vats, then aged in oak barrels of various sizes and ages, including 5% new oak. Drinking Window: 2023 - 2037Decanter | 96 DEC

The Ornellaia 2020 Bolgheri Rosso Le Serre Nuove dell’Ornellaia (a proprietary blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot) is a generous and darkly toned red blend that has the extra fruit fiber, sweetness and generous plumpness of a warm vintage. The fullness of the fruit is on full display, but in a very relaxed and natural manner. The wine never feels like too much. The tannins are yielding and velvety, and this purebred Tuscan red wraps thickly over the palate. It’s poised for near- and medium-term drinking.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RPProduced from 44% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, the 2020 Le Serra Nuove Dell’Ornellaia is expressive with floral notes as well as dried lavender, sage, and black cherry. The oak (30% of which was new) is present but not out of balance and will benefit from another 6-12 months in bottle to integrate. The palate is full bodied, with fine tannins and refreshing acidity. It is long on the palate and cleans up with a soft texture, and there is ripe fruit through the mid-palate. This wine offers tremendous value packed in dollar-for-dollar. Drink 2024-2034.Jeb Dunnuck | 93+ JDThis muscular red is saturated with cherry, plum, vanilla and earth flavors. As solid and sinewy as the tannic structure is, the fruit matches it step by step on the long finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2025 through 2043. 3,000 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

Like many of Te Mata’s 2020 reds, this young pup needs a little time to open if drinking now. Once it does, there’re elegant aromas of cherry and blueberry fruit, violets and roses, ground black pepper, cloves and a slight meatiness in a well-tucked bed of mocha oak. Tangy red fruit on the silky palate is tightly wound by fine tannins and lifted by a crunch of acidity. A unique Pinot that bears the Te Mata stamp of place, polish, freshness and structure. Drink now with rare duck or better yet or until around 2030. Wine Enthusiast | 92 WE

The 2020 Barbera d’Alba Superiore Gepin is deep, flavorful with tons of character. It emerges from the Cottà cru, where the wines are naturally rich and creamy. Black cherry, plum, chocolate, leather and incense all open nicely. A year of aging in cask adds structure. What I like most about the 2020 is the combination of fruit intensity and depth, but in the restrained, classic style that is the norm here these days.Vinous Media | 94 VM

Now the flagship of this estate, the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape is 75% Grenache and the rest Cinsault, Mourvedre, and a little Syrah. Sporting a deep ruby/purple hue, it offers a beautiful array of black raspberry and darker cherry fruit as well as lots of graphite, chalky minerality, Provençal garrigue, and spice. Beautiful on the palate as well, this medium to full-bodied effort has a layered, multi-dimensional mouthfeel, rock-solid underlying structure and concentration, building tannins, and a gorgeous finish. It needs to be forgotten for 2-4 years (although it certainly offers incredible pleasure even today) and will keep for two decades. Tasted twice.Jeb Dunnuck | 98+ JDIsabel Ferrando informed me during my visit that she planned to eliminate the Reserve Auguste Favier and Collection Charles Giraud bottlings, folding those lots and the "tradition" Saint-Prefert Châteauneuf into a single, combined wine under the Famille Isabel Ferrando label. The resulting blend she showed as the 2020 Famille Isabel Ferrando Chateauneuf du Pape is a fine effort, with layers of cola-like spice and hints of garrigue layered against a lush backdrop of cherries and raspberries. Medium to full-bodied and almost creamy in texture, it finishes long, silky and mouthwatering.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93-95 RPThis cuvée replaces the three historical red cuvées of the domaine (Classique, Auguste Favier and Charles Giraud). Quite introverted for now, seems to have everything required but needs time to knit together. Freshness, energy, fine and plentiful tannins with good acidity. While the alcohol is warming it is balanced. Could be very good in time, hard to judge now, but early signs are good and I’d like to see this again in bottle. From the galets roulés of lieu-dit Les Serres, fermented in concrete and then aged in concrete, old oak and amphora. Drinking Window: 2025 - 2036Decanter | 95 DECApproachable out of the gate, with gorgeous red fruit, wild strawberry, licorice root, dusty earth and lavender flavors joined by floral highlights. Beautifully textured and silky on the palate, with mineral intensity building on the palate, imparting nice persistence and length. A polished yet honest, characteristic wine. Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah and Mourvèdre. Drink now through 2032. 3,300 cases made, 1,007 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 94 WS

The house red 2020 Tinto showed superbly. It’s a blend of Tempranillo from the Obarenes Mountains (Sajazarra and Fonzaleche) with 20% Garnacha from Cárdenas on clay and some 5% white that has 14.2% alcohol but feels perfectly balanced and integrated. It has a serious, harmonious nose with complexity and depth but also youth. It has a soft and juicy texture with focused and clean flavors, finishing with an almost salty twist. Super tasty and easy to drink! Great value too. It matured in a mixture of 1,000- and 3,000-liter oak foudres and 225- and 500-liter barrels. 22,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in February 2022.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93+ RP