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Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Lagrange sashays out of the glass with notions of candied violets, cassis, underbrush and warm black plums with waves of Black Forest cake, cedar chest and yeast extract scents. Medium to full-bodied, the bags of perfumed black fruits are solidly structured with super ripe, grainy tannins, finishing long and layered.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95 RPThe acidities are more vibrant up in St-Julien than in the lower stretches of the Médoc. An excellent Lagrange, this is every bit as good as it was en primeur, with a similar fruit quality doing a lovely vertical trick through the mid-palate where you can feel each individual element’s weight, but cushioned on a bed of air. Ruby in colour with some violet around the edges, this wine is well made and built to last. Chewy tannins and black fruits make this fairly Pauillac in style. At 50% of total production in 2016, this represents the highest proportion of grand vin for years following replantings back in the 1980s. Drinking Window 2024 - 2040.Decanter | 95 DECThe best wine from this château in many years! A huge, dramatic, blackcurrant and wild-blackberry nose and the first impression on the palate is every bit as intense. Nice acidity lifts this massive structure and keeps the imposing finish so fresh. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 95 JSThe 2016 Lagrange has a boisterous, almost gregarious bouquet featuring layers of blackberry, boysenberry, violets and cassis scents that storm from the glass. Fortunately, it retains very good precision and delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins and a fine bead of acidity. Fresh in the mouth, leading to a minerally finish; a pinch of cracked black pepper lingers on the aftertaste. Superb. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting.Vinous Media | 94 VMA textbook St.-Julien, with a fleshy yet focused beam of plum, blueberry and cassis flavors striding through, while warmed anise, sweet tobacco and iron notes play backup through the finish. Mouthwatering grip will allow this to cellar nicely. Best from 2024 through 2038. 20,833 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WSThe Grand Vin 2016 Château Lagrange checks in 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot brought up in equal parts new and used barrels. It shows the fresher, elegant style of the vintage and offers beautiful black cherry and cassis fruits intermixed with tobacco leaf, damp earth, and cedar. Medium to full-bodied, beautifully pure, seamless, and layered, it has a vibrant, tight texture, terrific tannin quality, and a great finish. It’s a quintessential expression of this vintage. Give bottles 4-5 years and enjoy over the following two to three decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 94 JDSurprisingly light for the vintage, this is an attractive, black-currant-flavored wine. It is open, with tannins integrate easily into the fruitiness. All this suggests the wine will age relatively quickly, so drink from 2024.Wine Enthusiast | 91 WE

Coming from one of the coolest terroirs in Saint-Emilion, the 2016 Château Troplong Mondot is a blend of 89% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 2% Cabernet Franc brought up in 77% new French oak. This deep purple-hued effort offers a smorgasbord of powerful blue and black fruits, smoked earth, truffle, chocolate, and licorice. Full-bodied, deep, and opulent on the palate, it’s a truly great wine as well as one of the superstars in 2016. It should drink well for upwards of three decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDLove the aromas of redcurrants and cherries with flowers. Full body and tight, finely chewy tannins that impress. Linear and focused young red. Try from 2021.James Suckling | 96 JSThe 2016 Troplong Mondot is fabulous. Powerful, dense and explosive, the 2016 has a lot to say. Super-ripe dark cherry, raspberry jam, chocolate, spice and new oak give the wine much of its lush, exotic feel. The château has moved in a totally different stylistic direction since this wine was made, but there is no denying the 2016 is striking. Tasted two times.Antonio Galloni | 96 AGThis is stunning. Troplong never has trouble conjuring up wonderfully rich fruit, but here it is plump and dense without being pumped up. The tannins are chewy rather than chalky, but the elegance of the vintage is unmistakable, and the rich chocolate flavours are dusted with mint. There is a very pretty salinity on the finish that lasts for minutes. I had a fascinating visit here at the start of the week, and retasted several times as this is a wine that I sometimes have trouble understanding. My main takeout is that the majority of the richness here is found naturally in the terroir - limestone on the plateau but with cool clay over the top, which explains why they are such late harvesters. But there are always winemaking and viticultural choices coming into play in any wine, and here there are adjustments being made to bring out a more finely wrought version of what is always a high impact and successful wine. Yields are higher this year, up at 48hl/ha, which helps, as does the style of the vintage and quieter extraction in the cellar, but Troplong remains true to itself. 90% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc. Drinking Window 2027 - 2050.Decanter | 95 DECAged in 77% new and 23% one-year-old French oak barrels and composed of 89% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc, the 2016 Troplong Mondot has a deep garnet-purple color and comes bursting out of the glass with bold preserved plums, Black Forest cake and Indian spices scents plus suggestions of espresso, black olives, cigar box and tilled soil. Full-bodied, rich, plushly textured and oh-so-decadent, it packs in the spiced black fruit layers and finishes with fantastic persistence.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95+ RPRipe and focused, with a pure, unadulterated beam of raspberry and cherry preserve flavors that is both wide and deep, gilded prettily with a lilting violet note and infused with subtle chalky minerality through the finish. Beautiful. Best from 2023 through 2038.Wine Spectator | 95 WSThis wine has power and a rich character that almost overwhelms. Intense tannins along with dark-chocolate flavors and huge concentration give a massive wine that shows some of the alcohol in its edge of pepper. The wine will calm and soften although it will always remain huge.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WE

At five years old, the tannins are still young and holding on tight, but the blackberry and cassis fruits have both juice and depth. This is a vintage where the phenolics are high, and there is an inky depth overall. Mint and cedar smoke on the finish, with clear energy underpinning the palate. This was the first certified organic vintage. Last tasted in 2018, just after bottling, and it is still a few years away from being ready to drink, but showing excellent development. Took the audience award in the masterclass, along with the 2000.Decanter | 95 DECThis is wonderful and perhaps the best La Lagune since 1982. Full body, yet the texture is amazing giving it a plush, silky texture that makes it formed and beautiful. Thick and melting in the mouth. Lots of forest floor, tar and black currant character. Very persistent finish. Energy. From organically grown grapes.James Suckling | 94-95 JSOne of the big estates in the southern Médoc, this property has produced a rich, balanced wine packed with black-currant fruits and fine, elegant tannins. Drink from 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WEThe 2016 la Lagune has a medium garnet-purple color and nose of intense cassis, warm cherries, redcurrants and spice box with earth and bay leaves in the undercurrent. The medium-bodied, earth-laced palate is plush and lively, finishing long.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RPThis is a great vintage for this terrific Haut-Médoc estate, and the 2016 Château La Lagune is well worth a case purchase. Complex notes of dark fruits, cedar, cigar tobacco, and hints of saddle leather all flow to a medium to full-bodied, perfectly balanced 2016 that has sweet tannins and a great finish. It will keep for 25-30 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 92 JDThe 2016 La Lagune has a very well-defined bouquet featuring perfumed rose petal scents flanking the cranberry and raspberry fruit; the oak here is nicely integrated. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins and slightly tarry in style, displaying fine precision toward a finish that feels just a little dry. This is another 2016 of which I have encountered better examples in the past. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting.Vinous Media | 91 VM

This is a really driven d’Armailhac showing blackcurrants and fruit tea with hints of bark on the nose and palate. Full-bodied, very firm and structured with a long and powerful finish. Direct and linear. Try after 2023.James Suckling | 95 JSA thrilling bottle of wine that readers should snatch up is the 2016 Château d’Armailhac. This deeply colored, medium to full-bodied, powerful Armailhac gives up a lovely perfume of blackberry and plums fruits, violets, graphite, cedar pencil, and earthy, herbal nuances. Classic, ripe, layered, and just a beautiful Pauillac any way you look at it, it has plenty of upfront sex appeal but is going to keep for 20-25 years as well. Bravo! The 2016 is a blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 28% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot.Jeb Dunnuck | 94 JDDeep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 D’Armailhac opens with gregarious crème de cassis, blackberry pie and mulberries scents with hints of chocolate box, roses and charcoal with a waft of dried sage. Medium-bodied, the palate has a rock-solid frame of firm, grainy tannins and wonderful freshness, finishing long and earthy.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RPThe 2016 d’Armailhac, which was bottled in May 2018, has an elegant bouquet that unfolds in the glass, offering blackberries, briar and a touch of cedar and mint. The palate is medium-bodied with dense tannin, grippy in the mouth, and quite voluminous, with perhaps more density on the solid, almost broad-shouldered finish compared to the Clerc-Milon. This fulfills all my expectations from my barrel tasting and is quite simply one of the best d’Armailhac wines ever made.Vinous Media | 93 VMThis juicy red sports dark plum, fig and boysenberry fruit backed by an equally strong wave of bramble and sweet tobacco notes. The cast-iron spine pins down the finish, so give this a little time to integrate fully. Best from 2023 through 2038.Wine Spectator | 93 WSThere’s fairly high acidity on the attack here, and yet it’s well balanced by a body that’s richer and deeper than in many years of Armailhac. You can definitely feel the texture and the powerful depth of brambly fruit, and there are also some of the signature lilting floral notes, given extra charge through graphite, liquorice, cassis, and that pulsating acidity. Great quality. 2% Petit Verdot completes the blend. Drinking Window 2024 - 2038.Decanter | 93 DECThis is a ripe wine, full of black fruits with attractive tannins. It has depth but the wine is more about fruitiness and relatively quick development. Drink this already delicious, lightly spicy wine from 2022.Wine Enthusiast | 90 WE

Tasted on four separate occasions, the 2016 Château Clinet is another brilliant wine from this estate. Showing slightly more freshness and purity than the 2015, its saturated purple color is followed by a thrilling array of crème de cassis, graphite, ground herbs, and a terrific sense of minerality. Deep, full-bodied, with building tannins, and a magical sense of purity and elegance paired with real density and depth, it needs short term cellaring and will keep for three decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDThe 2016 Clinet is composed of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. It was aged using the Oxoline system, in 70% new and 30% one-year-old barrels for 16 months. It has a deep garnet-purple color with cedar and smoked meats on the nose giving way to black and red plums and earthy notions with wafts of cassis and pencil shavings. The palate is medium to full-bodied, elegant, polished and vivacious with loads of red and black fruit layers and an earthy finish. Around 4,416 cases produced.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RPThis is a wine that makes you want to slow down, take your time and let those flavours envelop you. It’s a little subdued right now, but the texture pulls you in and holds on tight. There is Cabernet in the DNA here and you feel it: a touch of austerity in the first breath, then an intense punch of dark, tight cassis fruits with a liquorice and dark chocolate finish. It’s taken on more flesh on the bones during ageing, with the aromatics blossoming through the glass and revealing floral, violet-stained edging and a silky smooth tannic frame. Drinking Window 2024 - 2040.Decanter | 97 DECBeautiful blue fruit and earth with hints of black truffle, this has a violet and fragrant edge, too. Really complex, youthful impression here. The palate has mouthwatering fruit flavor and terrific sense of fresh energy and cut on the finish. A blend of 90 per cent merlot and ten per cent cabernet sauvignon. Try from 2024.James Suckling | 95 JSThe 2016 Clinet has a gorgeous bouquet of copious red berry fruit mixed with truffle and undergrowth scents, all fresh and vibrant. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins and, like the L’Evangile that preceded it at this blind tasting, displays noticeable acidity. However, it is more knitted together than that wine, and it fans out wonderfully on a long, spicy, quite firm finish that prompted me to score lower than I might have done, because it remains a very fine Pomerol in the making. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.Vinous Media | 94+ VMWarm and fleshy in feel, showing dark plum, boysenberry and blackberry sauce flavors infused with mulling spice and black tea notes. Singed alder and tobacco hints flicker on the finish, adding texture. This delivers an encore of fruit detail on the finish too, with some sneaky length. Seductive. Best from 2021 through 2034. 4,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

The 2016 Domaine de Chevalier is a thrilling wine. Dense and beautifully layered, the 2016 is also quite a bit richer than it usually is. Cabernet Sauvignon aromatics and structure pulse through the wine. The red-toned fruit is incredibly primary at this stage. Readers should be prepared to cellar the 2016 for at least a handful of years. It has been nothing short of magnificent on the three occasions I have tasted it so far.Antonio Galloni | 97 AGAs to the reds, the 2016 Domaine de Chevalier is a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, and the balance Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc that saw an extended maceration, malo in barrel, and 18 months in just 35% new French oak. This deep purple-hued beauty boasts a powerful bouquet of tobacco smoke, damp earth, gravelly, rocky minerality, wood smoke, and loads of dark fruits. Full-bodied, deep, concentrated yet incredibly elegant and seamless on the palate, it’s a legendary Chevalier in the making. While I rated this as high as 99 points on one of the four separate occasions I was able to taste it, I’m being conservative with the score. it has some upfront charm but needs 4-5 years of cellaring and will keep for 3-4 decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDAromas of blackberries, red and dark plums, cedar and gravel, as well as red flowers and brown-leaf tea. It offers a very sleek and powerful array of ripe dark fruit and a very plush, focused and elegant bed of fresh, fine and powerful tannins. Plenty of aging potential, this is still quite tight. A blend of 55 per cent cabernet sauvignon, 35 per cent merlot, five per cent cabernet franc and five per cent petit verdot. Try from 2024.James Suckling | 97 JSThe core of fruit flavor here is sappy and dense, with lots of kirsch, raspberry pâte de fruit and plum reduction notes, yet this stays fresh and racy overall, with a bright iron spine, flashes of tea and tobacco and a long finish that shows a wonderful infusion of alder and tobacco flavors. Offers a lovely combination of prodigious fruit details, with a tug of earth. Best from 2024 through 2038. 12,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThis elegant wine wears its firm tannic structure lightly. It is densely textured, just starting on its road to maturity. Black-plum and berry fruits give the wine its weight as much as the tannins. It will age well over many years. Drink from 2026.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WEThis is so young right now, which seems crazy to say for a white wine, I know. But at two years old it has hardly begun to gather us to its side, let alone reveal its secrets. This will clearly have plenty to show in a few years’ time - white peach and pear flavours, and a gorgeous texture of slate caught against saline minerality. This is going to age, and then some. It has closed down since 2016 En primeur. Drinking Window 2020 - 2032.Decanter | 95 DECThe 2016 Domaine de Chevalier is a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 5% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple colored, it rocks up with expressive warm plums, blueberry compote and cassis scents with suggestions of sandalwood, baking spices and potpourri. Medium-bodied and delicately styled yet with a rock-solid frame of grainy tannins, it sports restrained earth-laced fruit and a long finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94+ RP

The 2016 Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion checks in as a Merlot-heavy blend, 57.5% Merlot and 42.5% Cabernet Sauvignon. About as pure and seamless (yet sexy) as they come in the vintage, it offers awesome notes of dried flowers, sweet currants, cedarwood, forest floor, and exotic spices. With a flawless texture, medium to full body, and ultra-fine tannins, this beauty builds incrementally on the palate with terrific mid-palate depth and a stunning finish. It’s sexier and more charming compared to the more backward Haut Brion, yet I suspect it will age just as long.Jeb Dunnuck Wine Spectator Wine Enthusiast | 98 JDThe 2016 La Mission Haut-Brion is a blend of 57.5% Merlot and 42.5% Cabernet Sauvignon. Deep garnet-purple in color, it is just a little muted to begin, soon unfurling to reveal slowly growing scents of crushed blackcurrants, black cherries, dark chocolate and candied violets with nuances of crushed rocks, tobacco leaf, forest floor and fragrant earth plus a hint of bergamot. Medium-bodied and exquisitely elegant, the palate offers perfectly ripe, fine-grained tannins and tons of freshness with layer upon layer of perfumed fruit and a very long, ferrous-laced finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98+ RPThis is a wonderful wine, it’s absolutely precise, finely wrought and gorgeously balanced between richness and elegance, with notes of damson, black cherry, slate and rosemary. Silky soft tannins highlight the concentration of the fruit and the grilled oak notes that are La Mission’s signature, with a fresh core that stretches out the palate. A low pH gives tension through the palate, and is highly seductive. No Cabernet Franc this year. Drinking Window 2026 - 2044.Decanter | 98 DECThis is super vivid, offering cassis, blackberry, raspberry and blueberry compote flavors that bristle with energy while a mouthwatering frame of anise and apple wood adds electric energy. This is borderline rambunctious but it’s bridled well enough and when the fruit and wood sides mesh fully, this will be a rock star. Best from 2025 through 2040. 7,300 cases made. — JMWine Spectator | 97 WSRegal wine, showing alluringly ripe and dark plums, that carries a wealth of complexity in its DNA - fine spices, leaves, graphite, violets and more. The palate has very precise drive and super focused style and delivers authoritative tannins that are arranged in linear fashion. Power with elegance. Try from 2024.James Suckling | 97 JSThe 2016 La Mission Haut-Brion is flat out gorgeous. Today, La Mission is incredibly primary, with stunning purity in its red/purplish berry fruit. Readers will have to cellar the 2016 for the better part of a decade at a minimum before the telltale aromatics of this fabled château start to blossom in bottle. I adore the 2016 for its gracious personality, fine tannin and remarkable freshness, not to mention that it is absolutely delicious and the kind of wine that is so suggestive of a very bright future.Antonio Galloni | 97+ AGAs so often with this estate, this is a generous, opulent wine. This year a strong tannic element gives the wine a good structure. Smoky, textured and powerful, it needs many years to mature. Do not drink this wine before 2026.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WE

I continue to love the 2016 Rauzan-Ségla, a thrillingly complete, flawlessly balanced, and borderline perfect Margaux that should be snatched up by readers. Notes of cassis, graphite, tobacco leaf, and earth all give way to a full-bodied effort that has building tannins, no hard edges, and a level of purity and elegance that’s just about off the charts. Given its purity and balance, it’s accessible today, but it will be best with 4-5 years of bottle age and keep for 3-4 decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDThe aromas of blackcurrants, sweet tobacco and sandalwood are tantalizing. Then it turns to subtle, dried fruit. Full-bodied with dense and powerful tannins, yet ending with finesse and vertical nature. Very deep. Power with finesse. Try after 2025.James Suckling | 98 JSThe 2016 Rauzan-Segla has a deep garnet color. Black cherry compote, baked blackberries, and freshly crushed blackcurrants all jump from the glass, followed by hints of rose oil, cardamom, and cedar chest, plus a waft of spice box. Medium-bodied, the palate is super-intense, featuring tight-knit black fruits and floral layers, framed by fine-grained tannins and bold freshness, finishing with impressive length.The Wine Independent | 98 TWIDeep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Rauzan-Ségla drifts effortlessly from the glass with fragrant rose hip tea, candied violets and chocolate box scents over a core of fresh blackcurrants and black cherry compote plus wafts of tobacco and dusty soil. Medium to full-bodied, it delivers a great mid-palate of softly textured black and blue fruits with loads of floral nuances and a refreshing lift on the finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RPDark tannins work with the sophisticated structure of this wine. The very fine tannins are an important element of the wine, giving shape to the ripe black fruits and acidity. This wine, rich and structured, is set for a long development. Drink from 2026.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEThe 2016 Rauzan-Ségla has an elegant bouquet that needs some coaxing from the glass, eventually revealing red berry fruit, rose petal, chai tea and light bergamot aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with very supple tannins that lend a silky-smooth texture. This has a fine line of acidity and impressive harmony on the finish. Wonderful. Tasted blind at the Southwold tasting.Vinous Media | 96 VMThe reputation of Rauzan-Ségla is well earned here in a wine of supreme elegance, with pristine and vivid red and black fruit and cigar box aromatics. Its Cabernet-driven nature reflects purity and focus that leaves you with the impression of silky elegance, freshness and density. Very long finish. Give it a few more years for more complexity. A grand vin de Margaux!Decanter | 96 DECThis has a lovely core of creamy anise-infused plum, blackberry and boysenberry flavors that showcase themselves a bit more vividly than many Margaux peers in this vintage do, with substantial but velvety grip and lots of extra violet, graphite and black tea notes adding to the long flow of a finish. Really beautiful feel. Best from 2023 through 2038. 10,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

Technical Director Thomas Duroux and his team made one of the most brilliant wines of the 2016 vintage. Palmer is simply exceptional. Rich and dramatically sweeping in the glass, the 2016 is breathtaking. All the elements simply fall into place in a wine of mesmerizing beauty. The counterpoint of dark, sumptuous fruit and floral notes makes for an utterly compelling Palmer that will take its place among the estate’s finest vintages. Dark cherry, lavender, spice and mocha are some of the many notes that build into a deep, substantial finish that is truly unforgettable. In a word: magnificent!Antonio Galloni | 100 AGThe finest vintage I’ve ever tasted from this estate, surpassing the 2009 and 2010, the 2016 Château Palmer is a blend of 47% each of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, with the balance Petit Verdot, all of which was brought up in 65% new French oak. This magical effort reveals a saturated purple color as well as a huge nose of crème de cassis, graphite, crushed rocks, and spring flowers, and it develops beautifully with time in the glass. Full-bodied, deep, incredibly concentrated and powerful, it nevertheless just glides over the palate with flawless purity and balance, present, ripe tannins, and a finish that just won’t quit. This is Bordeaux at its most regal and classic. It will be drinkable with just 4-5 years of bottle age and keep for half a century.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDPowerful tannins and hugely rich fruit balance together in this superb wine. The velvet texture belies the power behind the concentrated, ripe black-fruit flavor, with vibrant acidity giving ample lift. The wine’s structure will ensure aging for many years. Drink from 2024. Wine Enthusiast | 100 WEThe 2016 Palmer is a blend of 47% Merlot, 47% Cabernet Sauvignon and 6% Petit Verdot. Opaque garnet-purple colored, it slowly glides out of the glass with compelling notes of blueberry compote, warm cassis and kirsch with emerging hints of violets, cigar box, black tea, sandalwood and Sichuan pepper. Medium to full-bodied, wonderfully rich, concentrated and packed with latent energy, the palate literally grows in the mouth, revealing layer upon layer of black, blue and red fruits and tons of floral sparks, framed by super ripe, incredibly fine-grained tannins and finishing with epic length. It’s a wine that makes you wanna drape yourself languidly over a chaise lounge, glass of Palmer in hand, sighing with deep satisfaction, “This is so wonderfully Palmer.”Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98+ RPAs is always the case with Palmer, the richness, depth and silkiness is just so impressive. Sophisticated and well constructed, with a vertical lift-off, there’s a creamy richness on the palate which supports pencil-lead, liquorice, damson, black cherry and slate. I love the smoky cocoa bean finish. Like the Alter Ego, it’s a different style this year but no less impressive, displaying width, heft and incredible persistency. It’s a wine that’s going to age far into the future and is extremely easy to recommend. The highest ever proportion of grand vin was produced in 2016.Drinking Window 2025 - 2042.Decanter | 98 DECSuch attractive fruit and alluring ripeness that it draws you in from the get-go. The discreet power here is delivered with a very astute touch. Assorted dark-berry aromas, as well as red plums, abound on the nose. The richness and depth in the mouth is stunning. The tannins are super polished and layered and they draw pristine dark fruit flavors deep into the finish in effortless mode. This is a star of the vintage. A blend of 47 per cent merlot, 47 per cent cabernet sauvignon and six per cent petit verdot. Try from 2024.James Suckling | 98 JSThis is a very solid rendering, with a core of steeped blackberry, black currant and fig fruit flavors that are juicy and well-defined. The back end picks up lots of graphite, tobacco, anise and violet notes while maintaining focus and energy. Shows latent depth as the fruit echoes steadily. Best from 2023 through 2038.Wine Spectator | 94 WS

Incredibly deep and complex nose with a slew of black fruit, plus savory and bitter-chocolate notes woven subtly into the extraordinary tapestry of aromas. Titanic concentration, but it still remains so incredibly fresh and poised. Such a pure finish that goes on and on and on. Drinkable now, but best from 2024. Château Quintus vertical tasting. SP.James Suckling | 99 JSThe 2016 Figeac is simply extraordinary. A wine of pure energy and vitality, the 2016 pulses with a real sense of drive. Lavender, mint, crème de cassis and cedar start to develop in the glass, but what is most remarkable about the 2016 is its total sense of harmony. There is natural tension, a sort of push and pull, between the wine’s intense fruit and structural underpinnings that makes the 2016 a marvel to taste and contemplate. It was positively stunning in two separate tastings. Technical Director Frédéric Faye and his team made an epic Figeac in 2016.Antonio Galloni | 98+ AGAnother brilliant wine from the genius of Frédéric Faye, the 2016 Château Figeac checks in as 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc that spent 19 months in new French oak. Roughly 75% of the production made it into the grand vin. This deeply colored beauty is a legendary wine in the making and offers ultra-pure aromas and flavors of crème de cassis, smoke tobacco, dried herbs, chocolate, truffle, and graphite. Showing more violets notes with time in the glass, it builds incrementally on the palate, with flawless balance as well as incredible elegance, no hard edges, and a finish that won’t quit. Readers will have a blast comparing the 2016 and 2015 vintages over the coming 3-4 decades and this estate is firing on all cylinders. This will most likely merit a triple-digit rating in 7-8 years and keep for 4 decades or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 98+ JDA testament to the work being undertaken at Figeac in recent years, this has depth and intensity while retaining the smile of the fruit. Richness combines with gorgeous length and intensity, every bit as impressive as it was during en primeur. Touches of violet and a silky texture precede hugely precise slate walls that pull the fruit into place through the palate. It takes its time in the glass to fully open, only slowly revealing the black olives, pungent white pepper and rosemary aromatics. Bottled in late July. 100% new oak. Drinking Window 2024 - 2045.Decanter | 98 DECThis aromatic wine is magnificent in its balance and richness. With its high proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon (38%), it is so typical of this estate. The tannins are velvety while packing a firm punch. Dark and concentrated, it is a great wine for long-term aging.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WEThe 2016 Figeac is comprised of 38% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot and 26% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple colored, the nose is a little broody and reticent at this very youthful stage, slowly unfolding to reveal profound plum preserves, crème de cassis, black raspberries and star anise with hints of moss-covered bark, truffles and tilled loam plus a waft of red currants and raspberry leaves sparks. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is practically quivering with energy, offering glimpses at tightly wound black fruit and mineral/ferrous layers, framed by very firm, ripe tannins and wonderful tension, finishing long with the spices coming through. This will need a good 7-8 years to come round and then should cellar for 40+ years. Very serious, beautifully poised and sophisticated personality this vintage.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97+ RPA gutsy, fully endowed wine, brimming with dark currant, warm fig and steeped blackberry notes, as well as waves of smoldering tobacco and warm gravel. Features a serious bass line, but everything works together, while flecks of savory and iron dart in and out. Best from 2025 through 2040. 8,333 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WS

This is very fleshy and deep with so much texture and richness. It’s full-bodied yet fresh. The tobacco, white truffle, licorice and dark fruit are so impressive. It’s so exuberant and wild. It just goes on for ever. Spellbinding. Very muscular and powerful. Agile and energetic. Please give this time. Needs eight to ten years. Try from 2029.James Suckling | 100 JSOpaque purple-black colored, the 2016 Petrus slips effortlessly out of the glass with sanguine, seductive notes of kirsch, warm black plums, blueberry compote, red roses, Ceylon tea, violets, dark chocolate-covered cherries, licorice and cinnamon stick with wafts of iron ore, pencil lead, unsmoked cigars and crushed rocks. Full-bodied, profound and absolutely edifying on the palate, the densely packed, beautifully perfumed red and blue fruit layers possess a charge like defibrillators stimulating your heart to beat faster, each delivering achingly subtle floral and spice sparks, perfectly framed by very firm, very grainy tannins and bold freshness, finishing with incredible length and taking you to depths that extend to a provocative ferrous undercurrent. Stunning.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 100 RPOne of the top wines in the vintage is unquestionably the 2016 Chateau Petrus, which is, as always, all Merlot aged in just over half new French oak. It's more reserved and subtle compared to the 2015, yet it’s unquestionably in the same ballpark, offering a deep ruby/purple color as well as a classy bouquet of crème de cassis, black cherries, graphite, smoke tobacco, spring flowers, and subtle spicy oak. This is a wine that builds with time in the glass and delivers a full-bodied, multi-dimensional texture, present, ripe tannins, perfect balance, and a finish that won't quit. It’s haute couture at its finest, and as I wrote multiple times in my notes, simply pure class. Hide bottles for at least 7-8 years (10-15 would be even better) and it will keep for half a century.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDThe 2016 Pétrus is magnificent. There is a sense of total completeness in the 2016 that is hard to capture with words. A regal wine of total presence, the 2016 simply has it all. Beautifully layered in the glass, with stunning aromatics and endless, layered fruit, the 2016 is utterly captivating. Once again I am struck by the wine's purity and total class. Technical Director Olivier Berrout and his team turned out a magnificent Pétrus in 2016. Total time in barrel was 19 months, with 50% new oak.Vinous Media | 99 VMThe nose jumps right out, then the palate starts tunneling down through an array of dark fruit and cut herb expressions, before slowly flattening out on the mid-palate then rising vertically on the finish. An architectural expression of the vintage, ripe and precise but with great freshness. Harvest here took place between 28th September and 11th October, and the challenges of the vintage meant they had to be precise and rigorous at every moment, never letting down their guard. No green harvesting. 40hl/ha yield, 55% new oak. Lots of anthocyanins. This is soft and caressing and majors in those deceptively soft tannins that slowly but surely build up to remind you that this wine has no intention of going away for many, many years.Decanter | 98 DECThis is a silky-smooth wine. However, that silkiness masks the generous, ripe tannins and juicy black fruits. It has great structure, full of serious firmness. Give it time and this wine will explode in a series of wonderful fruits, while keeping the classic Bordeaux structure. Drink from 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WEThere are both lush and structured elements working here, with velvety cassis, raspberry puree and plum compote notes intertwined with tobacco, alder and cocoa accents. This pulls together steadily through the finish, showing superb focus and a tight-grained feel, while fresh acidity imparts rippling energy. The raspberry note hangs longest through the finish. Best from 2022 through 2038.Wine Spectator | 96 WS

Stunning concentration of perfectly ripe blackcurrants here with a delicate whiff of vanilla oak and extremely fine tannins that are almost perfectly integrated on the seductive and delicate palate, right through the almost literally breathtaking, super-long and very polished finish. Try from 2022.James Suckling | 98 JSTasted on two separate occasions, the 2016 Château Pape Clément never failed to impress, offering a huge, powerful, full-bodied personality as well as beautiful notes of cassis, graphite, high-class cigar tobacco, asphalt, and graphite. About as sexy as it gets in the vintage, with silky tannins and loads of fruit, it’s perfectly balanced and has a great finish. The 2016 is a blend of 60% Merlot, 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the balance Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, all raised in 60% new barrels.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDThe 60ha of vineyards are situated on an ancient alluvial terrace topped by a thin layer of more recent Garonne gravel. The winery’s 28 wooden fermentation vats correspond to individual parcels, and the grand vin red (in 2016, equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot) is aged for 18 months in 70% new oak barrels. Andy Howard MW: Intriguing wine with an extra layer of aromatics. Floral, leafy, a touch herbal. Great purity allied with fresh acidity and integrated oak. A very fine Pessac. Robert Mathias: A brooding nose, coffee, cedar and dried tobacco. Broad structure with black cherry fruit. Tannins very fine, some warmth on the finish. Tim Triptree MW: Hedonistic aromatics of ripe black cherry, plum and blackberry, complex notes of smoke and cedar, leather, dried meats, tobacco and cinnamon spice. Opulent, ripe, great balance and length. Harmonious, ageworthy Pessac. (Drink between 2022-2040)Decanter | 96 DECBlended of 60% Merlot, 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc, the 2016 Pape Clement has a deep garnet-purple color and quite a serious, earthy nose with truffles, tilled soil, underbrush and smoked meats over a cassis, baked plums and redcurrants core plus a touch of lavender. Medium to full-bodied, firm and grainy, the palate is built like a brick house, supporting muscular black fruit and earthy notions and finishing very long and mineral laced.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPThe 2016 Pape Clément is fabulous. Racy and sumptuous in the glass, the 2016 captures the style that now characterizes Bernard Magrez’s wines from his estate in Pessac. Specifically, the 2016 is wonderfully deep in the glass, and yet retains terrific freshness as well. A rush of dark cherry, plum, smoke, scorched earth, grilled herb, leather and menthol builds as the 2016 shows off its compelling, inviting personality. I would prefer to give the 2016 at least a few years in bottle to allow its full breadth of aromatics to develop. Even so, there is so much to like. Pliant, supple and super-expressive, Pape Clément is gorgeous in 2016. Tasted two time Antonio Galloni | 96 AGThis takes a slightly different tack than many of its Pessac colleagues, relying less on bramble and tar and more on alluring toast, with mocha, anise, wood spice and black tea notes draped liberally over the core of sappy kirsch and cherry preserve flavors. Plush and suave through the finish, though this needs a bit of time for the wood elements to be fully integrated with the fruit. For fans of the flashier, cashmere-textured style. Best from 2023 through 2037. 12,500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThis rich, warm wine offers tannins cushioned within layers of black fruits. It is dense with structure and fruit while also having the freshness and acidity typical of this vintage. The wine will age for several years, becoming richer and more opulent. Drink from 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WE

Rock ’em, sock ’em St.-Julien, with mouthcoating ganache and tar notes backed by commensurate cassis, blueberry paste and blackberry reduction flavors. The long finish rumbles through, with buried brambly grip providing the support for the dense fruit and toast to meld. Best from 2025 through 2040. 29,833 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WSThe 2016 Talbot is aromatically quite expressive, but less available on the palate, where it is quite closed down. Time in the glass brings out a host of sweet tobacco, smoke, leather, cedar, mint, licorice and red-toned fruit. In two tastings, Talbot gave the impression it is going to need at least a few years to fully come into its own. Even so there is plenty to look forward to once the tannins start to melt away a bit. Consultants Stéphane Derenoncourt and Julien Lavenu have done quite a bit to raise the bar here, but I get a sense more is possible. Tasted two times.Antonio Galloni | 94 AGThis is already a beautiful St.-Julien that’s ripe and elegant with not a jot too much oak or tannin, but a very fresh and lively finish that keeps on going. However, there are some serious reserves in this wine that need time to be released. Already very harmonious, but better from 2021.James Suckling | 94 JSBrought up in 50% new oak, the 2016 Château Talbot is a winner and certainly over-delivers. Powerful notes of crème de cassis, tobacco leaf, lead pencil, and leafy herbs all give way to a silky, seamless Saint-Julien that has remarkable purity of fruit and building, fine tannins. It’s the texture as well as the purity that set this apart, and readers looking for a great value should purchase a case of this beauty.Jeb Dunnuck | 93 JDThere’s a strong team in place at Talbot, with Jean-Michel Laporte (formerly of La Conseillante) as technical director and Stéphane Derenoncourt as consultant. This has a perfumed elegance on the nose, with spicy blackcurrant aromas. Suave and very concentrated, it shows ample ripe tannins and a discreet oaky structure. Its length should guarantee a good future too. Drinking Window 2022 - 2036.Decanter | 93 DECThe smooth texture of this wine is deceptive. Behind its ripe black fruits and acidity, the wine has a strong sense of structure to give shape and potential to the freshness and fruit. The wine will age, not perhaps for the really long term but certainly it is worth waiting until 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WEThe 2016 Talbot is medium garnet-purple colored and opens with pretty floral notes of roses and lavender with a core of cassis, blackberry preserves and kirsch plus wafts of cigar box and spearmint. Medium-bodied with a lovely intensity of black and red fruit flavors, it has a ripe, grainy texture and compelling freshness, finishing savory.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RP

Spectacular aromas of crushed berries, such as blueberries and raspberries. Fresh flowers with hints of sandalwood. Exotic. Saturated palate of so much fruit, yet remains agile and energetic. Great length and texture. Fills your mouth. This needs time, but a classic. Twin brother of the perfect 2015.James Suckling | 100 JSThe 2016 Pavie a blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc. Very deep purple-black in color, it needs a little coaxing to begin, slowly unfurling to reveal a fragrant perfume of violets, chocolate-covered cherries, crushed blueberries and eucalyptus over a core of preserved plums, kirsch, black raspberries and crème de cassis plus hints of licorice and chargrilled meat. Full-bodied and built like a brick house, it has a solid foundation of firm, super ripe, grainy tannins and seamless freshness interknit with the black fruit preserves and minerally layers, finishing very long and very decadent. Superb!Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 100 RPTurning the dial up considerably, the 2016 Château Pavie leaps out of the glass with a thrilling bouquet of crème de cassis, toasty oak, graphite, white truffle, crayons, and flowers. A blend of 60% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Franc, and 18% Cabernet Sauvignon brought up in 85% new French oak (the new oak has been dialed back in recent vintages), this full-bodied Pavie is made in a more elegant, seamless style compared to prior great vintages, yet it still has brilliant depth of fruit and concentration, ripe, present tannins, a seamless texture, and an awesome finish.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDThe 2016 Pavie is simply magnificent. Gracious, perfumed and exquisitely beautiful, the 2016 has it all. I can’t remember seeing a Pavie with this much translucent energy and nuance. Black cherry, plum, lavender, spice and menthol all infuse this explosive, young wine with tremendous character. In the glass, the 2016 is vivid, aromatically deep and full of saline-infused energy. It is without question one of the wines of the vintage. As it turns out Gerard Perse also opened the 2008. Although the two vintages (2016 and 2008) in question are quite different in style and quality, the trajectory Pavie has taken in recent years is evident. The 2016 is a thrilling wine. That’s all there is to it. The blend is 60% Merlot, 22% Cabernet Franc and 18% Cabernet Sauvignon. Tasted two times.Antonio Galloni | 98+ AGThis is a rather showy—and captivating—display of fruit, with waves of lush cassis, raspberry and plum reduction flavors flowing through with authority and grace while a swath of chalky minerality stays deeply buried throughout. Toasty, glistening with vanilla and apple wood notes, but the fruit has the oak bridle easily in hand. One of the Right Bank showstoppers of the vintage. Best from 2024 through 2040. 6,667 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WSThis release underlines this estate’s change in style towards more elegant wines. While concentrated, the wine has stylish layers of black-plum fruit, beautiful acidity and freshness. Black-chocolate flavors are fully integrated into the rich tannins. This will develop into a great wine. Drink from 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WEThe nose is unsurprisingly reticent, with smoky black fruits lurking. Very rich and dense, but the 22% Cabernet Franc seems to have given greater lift and intensity than usual. Fresher than 2015, but shows similar concentration, with precision, drive and length. (Drink between 2022-2040)Decanter | 93 DEC

A voluptuous wine, this is rich and fruity yet properly balanced by a magnificent structure. Pure, crisp and packed with a black currant flavor, this will be a remarkable wine as it develops. Still young, it needs many years to develop. Don’t think about drinking before 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 100 WEThe 2016 Pontet-Canet is absolutely breathtaking. Powerful, ample and racy in the glass, the 2016 is one of the most exquisitely well-balanced young Pontet-Canets I can remember tasting. Savory, high-toned aromatics and brisk mineral notes lend energy and delineation as this vivid wonderfully alive wine opens up in the glass. The flavors are dark and incisive, but it is the wine’s total sense of harmony that is most compelling. All of the elements are simply in the right place. The 2016 is tremendous. It’s as simple as that. As is often the case, Pontet-Canet is one of the most singular wines in Bordeaux. Alfred Tesseron could have chosen to play things safe when he took over the management of the estate in the mid-1990s. Instead, he chose a very different path. No proprietor in Bordeaux has taken more risks over the last two decades than Alfred Tesseron. A commitment to biodynamic farming, sustainability across the entire estate more broadly, and the adoption of new concepts for Bordeaux, such as aging a portion of the wine in terra cotta, set Pontet-Canet apart from other properties in Pauillac and the Left Bank. Not surprisingly, the wine is also starkly different from the wines of neighboring estates.Antonio Galloni | 99 AGDeep garnet-purple in color, the 2016 Pontet-Canet hits the ground running with a hedonic nose of Black Forest cake, crème de cassis and blueberry pie plus suggestions of candied violets, hoisin, chocolate mint, charcuteries and forest floor with a waft of star anise. Full-bodied, rich, profoundly layered and powerfully fruited, the palate is built like a brick house, with very firm, super ripe, grainy tannins and harmonious freshness, finishing with incredible length and depth. Still incredibly primary and yet already strutting so many layers, I wouldn’t be at all surprised if this warrants the three-digit score in a few years’ time.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98+ RPReminding me of the 2010 and, I suspect, a wine that will merit a triple-digit rating in a decade or so (I tasted this on multiple occasions and thought it was perfect on one of them), the 2016 Château Pontet-Canet comes from 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and the balance Petit Verdot that spent 16 months in 50% new French oak, 35% in concrete amphora, and the rest in second fill oak. Thrilling notes of pure crème de cassis, lead pencil shavings, crushed mint, graphite, and crushed rock notes all emerge from this deep, powerful, yet elegant Pauillac. The style of this wine has become more and more finesse-driven and pure, yet it hasn’t lost a beat on concentration or length. This singular, beautiful Pontet-Canet needs 7-8 years of cellaring (it has some accessibility today given its purity and balance) and will keep for 4-5 decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 98+ JDThe 2016 is a vintage that shows off the best of Pontet, and is similar in feel to their 2010. Gorgeously rich right from the first nose, it opens stunningly in the glass, showing waves of tight black fruits, touches of redcurrant, liquorice and aniseed, fine tannins and mouthwatering salinity. It manages to remain balanced without losing the punch and concentration of Pauillac, rising up through the palate. It’s hard not to fall in love with this wine, and it will clearly age with grace and ease. Bottled in July 2018. Drinking Window 2026 - 2042.Decanter | 98 DECThe aromas of ripe blackcurrants, iodine, sweet tobacco and fresh flowers are spellbinding. Full-bodied with mouth-expanding, massive and natural tannins. Impressive fruit with hints of prunes. The finish is long and powerful. Needs six to seven years to soften and come together. Try from 2025.James Suckling | 97 JSThis is sappy and rich in feel, with waves of red and black currant preserves, raspberry and bitter plum coulis. The long finish drips with sweet tobacco and anise notes, while a brambly layer courses underneath. The vivacious finish kicks into second gear as the fruit and grip come together. Best from 2023 through 2038.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

Readers looking for the next superstar in Bordeaux need to jump on the bandwagon of Les Carmes Haut-Brion, who have produced one of the wines of the vintage in 2016. The 2016 Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion checks in as a blend of 41% Cabernet Franc, 39% Merlot, and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon that hit 13.8% natural alcohol and spent 22 months in 65% new French oak. Its deep purple color is followed by a complex bouquet of high-class smoke tobacco, decaying flowers, charcoal, gravelly minerality and loads of sweet black and blue fruit. Possessing full-bodied richness, flawless integration of its acidity, fruit, and ultra-fine tannins, and a blockbuster finish, this is another 2016 that possess both power and elegance. Do your best to hide bottles for 5-7 years and it will keep for 3-4 decades. Don’t miss it. Tasted twice.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDThe 2016 Les Carmes Haut-Brion is very clearly one of the wines of the vintage. Breathtaking in its beauty, the 2016 soars from the glass with stunning aromatic and flavor intensity. Red cherry jam, wild flowers, mint, blood orange and sage are some of many notes that develop. In the glass, the 2016 is a vivid, statuesque, exotic wine that takes over all the senses as it delivers tons of pure pleasure. Readers should plan on cellaring the 2016 for at least a few years, but that will be virtually impossible. The 2016 is a towering masterpiece from Les Carmes Haut-Brion and Technical Director Guillaume Pouthier. Tasted three times.Antonio Galloni | 98 AGTerrific ripeness, depth and complexity on offer here. This has a very attractive array of bright, ripe blueberries and cassis with some leafy and earthy notes. The palate has a quite deep, long and vibrant array of perfectly ripe dark plums and blueberries. So good. Best vintage this decade. Try from 2023.James Suckling | 97 JSThis offers alluring waves of ganache-tinged plum sauce, blackberry reduction and steeped açaí fruit flavors, while tobacco and singed mesquite notes hang in the background. Shows a lovely bramble echo through the finish, with the fruit easily keeping pace. This has range, distinctive mouthfeel and serious length. There’s a new player officially in the Pessac game... Best from 2023 through 2038. 3,333 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSWith 51% whole-bunch fermentation for the Cabernet Franc and Merlot, this is the highest proportion in this wine. This is just gorgeous, with a beautiful sweetness on the attack from ripe fruit and a touch of smoked caramel. It really rises through the palate, gripped by liquorice, hazelnut, dark chocolate and black cherry fruits that ripple through the palate. I loved this wine En primeur and it is absolutely living up to its billing. It has an IPT of 90, but the tannins are full of life, yielding in just the right places while still confident and keeping everything in line.Great persistency too. 3.49pH. 80% new oak, 10% Stockinger and 10% amphoras. Drinking Window 2026 - 2042.Decanter | 96 DECThe 2016 Les Carmes Haut-Brion is a blend of 41% Cabernet Franc, 39% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon aged in 65% new and 35% one-year-old oak for 22 months. This vintage represents one of the largest percentages of Cabernet Franc for this wine. Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, it gives notes of kirsch, black raspberries and black plums with touches of cassis, violets, chocolate box and pencil shavings. The palate is medium-bodied, firm, grainy and lively with loads of layers and a long, well-poised finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95+ RP

The 2016 Vieux Château Certan is blended of 85% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon. Deep garnet-purple in color, it leaps from the glass with pristine, vivid notions of candied violets, chocolate-covered cherries, blackberry compote and mulberries with fragrant touches of raspberry leaves, crushed rocks, licorice, cumin seed and yeast extract plus a waft of red roses. Medium to full-bodied and beautifully elegant, the palate builds from a quiet intensity to an incredibly well-sustained aria of crunchy red and black cherries notes plus tons of floral undertones, framed by exquisitely soft yet firm tannins and seamless freshness, finishing very long with lingering mineral and floral sparks. How does this 2016 compare to the also amazing 2015 vintage? Stylistically they are very different, as my notes on each should convey, but beyond this I am struck by the incredible harmony and seamlessness of the 2016 along with its amazing depth and energy this year. Bravo!Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 100 RPJust as good, yet in a different style, the 2016 Vieux Château Certan shows cooler notes of crème de cassis, tobacco leaf, underbrush, graphite, violets, and crushed rocks. Deep, incredibly full-bodied and powerful, yet like the 2015, weightless and sensationally textured, it glides over the palate with no sensation of weight or heaviness. Expansive, deep, beautifully concentrated, and flawlessly constructed, it builds incrementally on the palate and has a finish that lasts for over a minute. It’s another legendary wine from this estate to enjoy over the coming 30-40 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDThe 2016 Vieux Château Certan has a perfumed, floral bouquet of red fruit infused with violet and incense; hints of iodine and seaweed emerge with time. This is certainly very complex, bordering on profound. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins and layers of red fruit laced with cedar and desiccated orange peel, leading to a persistent and utterly spellbinding finish. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting.Vinous Media | 99 VMThe ripeness in this wine is incredibly balanced and perfect with plum and orange-peel character, buttressed by the ripe seeds of the grapes that give a hazelnut and coffee undertone. Turns to violets. Full body with firm and very sexy tannins that are perfectly balanced and polished. Some chocolate and dried black tea-leaf character in the aftertaste. Wonderful finish. Needs five to six years to soften, but already a joy to experience. Try after 2025.James Suckling | 99 JS(Vieux Château Certan, Pomerol, Bordeaux, France, Red) Poised between velvet tannins, supple juice and powerfully concentrated fruits; a punch of liquorice and chocolate and damson. Clear evidence of ageing ability, and a slow stretch out of flavours and aromatics in the glass, with just the slightest trace of hot spice on the finish. It’s official, 2016 is a powerhouse. 70% new oak. (Drink between 2024-2045)Decanter | 98 DECThis big, rich wine has perfumed Cabernet Franc flavors to give shape to the dominant Merlot. It is a well-structured wine, elegant and with juicy acidity. It displays power and concentration along with restraint and style. Drink this wine from 2024.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WEA horse of a different color among its peers in this vintage, featuring an extremely vivid core of pastis-soaked plum, cassis and blackberry fruit streaming forth. Muscular yet imbued with racy cut, the finish ripples along the edges, with sweet tobacco, warm gravel and ganache notes. A violet hint glistens here and there for added effect. Power and vivacity make a thrilling combo. Best from 2023 through 2040. 3,750 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WS

Very deep purple-black colored, the 2016 Léoville Las Cases (composed of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot and 11% Cabernet Franc) is quite closed to begin, yet with patient coaxing it unfurls beautifully to reveal suggestions of ripe blackcurrants, black raspberries, warm redcurrants and wild blueberries, followed by touches of unsmoked cigars, tilled red soil, cast iron pan, fallen leaves and lavender plus wonderfully fragrant wafts of lilacs and baking spices. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is packed with tightly knit, very subtle layers of minerals, floral notions and black and red berries, all framed by exquisitely ripe, silt-like tannins and fantastic freshness, finishing with epic length and depth. Simply captivating even in its youth, give it at least a decade in the cellar and then enjoy it over the next 50+ years.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 100 RPThe 2016 Léoville Las Cases is the finest vintage I’ve ever tasted from this estate; in fact, in this reviewer’s opinion, this magical, perfect wine couldn’t be better. Made from 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc aged 22 months in 90% new oak, it reveals a deep, saturated purple color as well as a thrilling bouquet of crème de cassis, iris flowers, graphite, crushed rocks, and freshly sharpened lead pencils. A perfect example of the old saying “an iron fist in a velvet glove,” it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a deep, layered, stacked mid-palate, flawless integration of its acidity and tannins, and a monster finish. The balance and purity here are off the charts. Hide bottles for a decade or so and enjoy over the following half a century.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDVery complex and alluringly spicy aromas that bubble in and out of the nose, together with fresh tobacco, raspberries and iodine, moving into blackcurrants, blackberries and a gently gravely, stony edge. The palate has incredible polish that is a foil for the intense power and concentration of this wine. The texture is flawless, building smoothly with fine-grained and focused tannins that sustain a long, fresh finish. The new 1986, which was a legend. This is probably better. A blend of 75 per cent cabernet sauvignon, 14 per cent merlot and 11 per cent cabernet franc. Try from 2024.James Suckling | 100 JS(Léoville Las-cases Léoville Las Cases Red) The 2016 Léoville Las Cases is a majestic, seamless, opulent wine. Yes, I am talking about Las Cases, traditionally one of the Left Bank’s most austere, forbiddingly tannic wines. Sumptuous and full-bodied, the 2016 takes over all the senses, with seemingly endless layers of inky, purplish fruit. Mint, lavender and white flowers are some of the many notes that emerge from the exotic, arrestingly beautiful bouquet as the 2016 makes its case for consideration as one of the wines of the vintage. The 2016 got an extra three months in barrel and was therefore bottled on the later side, but that does not appear to have done anything to close the wine down. The 2016 was magnificent on both occasions I tasted it. Put simply, the 2016 Las Cases is a total stunner. Don’t miss it! (Drink between 2026-2066)Antonio Galloni | 98 AGThis is really dense, yet remarkably polished and poised, delivering wave after wave of blueberry, açaí berry, raspberry and blackberry puree notes, all while warm tar and sweet tobacco details cruise underneath. There’s a long, smoldering cast iron note through the finish that adds both austerity and authority in a truly unique manner. Best from 2025 through 2045. 13,333 cases made. — JMWine Spectator | 98 WSDominated by the great Cabernet Sauvignon vines of the clos of Léoville las Cases, this wine is superbly rich and smoky while being stylish. Its power comes from the complexity, ripe fruits and dense tannins.This wine has enormous potential. Drink from 2025. Wine Enthusiast | 97 WE

Coming from the genius winemaking talent of Nicolas Glumineau, the 2016 Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande matches the 1982 and is a perfect, legendary wine in the making. A blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 21% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc brought up in 60% new oak, it’s not the most powerful Left Bank but offers perfect balance and thrilling intensity as well as heavenly aromatics of crème de cassis, leafy herbs, jammy blackberries, tobacco leaf, and freshly sharpened lead pencils as well as more violets and minerality with time in the glass. Possessing a deep, full-bodied, singular character, the purity of fruit that’s the hallmark of the vintage, building tannins, and a sense of class and elegance that’s hard to describe, it’s a 50-year-wine. While this cuvée has included a fair chunk of Merlot in the past that gave it more upfront appeal, it’s important for readers to know it’s much more Cabernet Sauvignon-dominated today, and while it is slightly more approachable than some of its neighbors, it shuts down rather quickly with time in the glass. (I followed this wine for multiple days.) I suspect a solid decade of cellaring is warranted.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDOne of the greatest wines that this estate has produced in the modern era, the 2016 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is a brilliant classic that no Bordeaux lover is going to want to do without. Mingling aromas of cassis and plums with notions of licorice, sweet tobacco leaf, rich soil tones, licorice, cigar smoke and violets, it’s full-bodied, seamless and complete, with huge concentration, bright acids and a long, penetrating finish. Standing out for its unerring precision, impeccable balance and ineffable sense of completeness, it should prove almost immortal.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 100 RPThe 2016 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is every bit as regal as it has always been. Towering and spectacularly rich in the glass, the 2016 captures every ounce of potential is showed from barrel. The 2016 is a vivid, dramatically sweeping wine that will leave readers weak at the knees. Beams of tannin give the 2016 soaring intensity that is matched by a host of aromas and flavors that open up in the glass. Blackberry jam, graphite, spice, menthol, licorice, pencil shavings and spice are all finely sketched in a bold, savory Pauillac that hits all the right notes. The 2016 Pichon Comtesse has been riveting on each of the four occasions I have tasted it from barrel thus far, making it easily one of the wines of the vintage. Nicolas Glumineu and his team turned out an epic Pichon Comtesse in 2016. Don’t miss it!Vinous Media | 100 VMGlorious aromas of blackcurrants, blackberries and flowers, from violets to roses. Iron and rust undertones. Full-bodied, dense and very layered with loads of richness. It goes on for minutes. Reminds me of the 1986. Best in decades? Take a first look at it in 2025.James Suckling | 98 JSChampagne house Louis Roederer owns Pichon Lalande and, under winemaker Nicolas Glumineau, quality has been restored to the glory-years of the 80s and early 90s. Less weighty, but more focussed, than neighbour Pichon Baron, the 2016 has an exotic nose with violets, star-anise and lead-pencil notes, whilst the intense, blackcurrant fruit dominated palate has concentration, fine-grained tannins and graphite notes on the lingering finish. Very fine. (Drink between 2024-2050)Decanter | 97 DECSaturated with dark currant, fig and blackberry compote flavors, this has a fleshy, nearly glycerin feel at first before stretching out to reveal singed cedar, tobacco leaf, dark earth and cassis bush flavors. A terrific tug of cast iron emerges at the very end. Deliciously juicy dark fruit keeps rolling throughout. Best from 2025 through 2040. 12,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WSThis wine is full of freshness and life as well as serious tannins and structure. The two sides complement each other to give a wine that has power as well as delicious black fruits and acidity. With the tannins it will age well. Drink this balanced wine from 2025.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WE