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Inky ruby. Smoke- and mineral-tinged aromas of ripe red and dark berries, pipe tobacco, olive paste, incense and vanilla, with a suave floral note building in the glass. Youthfully chewy and expansive on the palate, offering intense black raspberry, bitter cherry, licorice, cola, candied violet and allspice flavors that tighten up and become sweeter on the back half. Finishes sappy and extremely long, with resonating florality and mounting tannins that add shape and a firm closing grip.Vinous Media | 98 VMOffers up gorgeous fruit, with creamed açaí and blueberry mixed with warmed cassis and a flash of dark plum, which holds center stage while licorice snap, violet, apple wood and sweet bay leaf accents fill in the background. Shows terrific grip through the finish, setting this up for a long life. Best from 2025 through 2040. 10 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 97 WSA rich, more broad, opulent wine, the 2019 Ermitage Les Greffieux has lots of darker berry and cassis-like fruit as well as textbook Northern Rhône Syrah notes of pepper, bouquet garni, leather, and woodsmoke. I love its depth and richness on the palate, and it’s full-bodied and has beautiful balance, supple tannins, and a great finish. It already offers pleasure and will continue doing so for another 20-25 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDThe creamy, almost lush 2019 Ermitage les Greffieux boasts knockout aromas of violets, crème de cassis and red raspberries. Full-bodied, yet fine and silky in feel, it’s a terrific example of this terroir, showing its hallmark accessibility and tremendous balance and elegance on the long finish.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPA distinct smoky vein running through this year. Powerful, very ripe, muscular but juicy with great freshness and power. The alcohol is slightly raised, but it’s such a big, impressive wine with very ripe, massy tannins. Drinking Window: 2028 - 2036Decanter | 96 DECIncredibly dense nose of elderberries with some raw meat and smoke. At least as massively structured as it is concentrated, this is almost too much to take at this early stage in its development, but the tannins are already beautifully integrated and all it needs is a couple of years in bottle to calm down a little. Very firm, stony finish that has so much energy. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Best after 2024.James Suckling | 96 JS

The aromas to this are really amazing, with a potpourri of spices and dried flowers, as well as redcurrants, sweet plums and even some peaches. Full-bodied with layers of ripe fruit and ultra-fine tannins that spread across the palate in an encompassing yet always elegant and pure way. It’s succulent and unadulterated. Like crushed, perfectly ripened grapes. The length is rather endless. The tannins build. Fabulous young red. 35% in amphora and the rest in 50% new oak and 15% one-year oak. 65% cabernet sauvignon and 30% merlot, the rest cabernet franc and petit verdot. From biodynamically grown grapes. Try after 2028, but an absolute joy to taste now.James Suckling | 99 JSSuch gorgeous aromatics of freshly picked violets, cherries and bramble fruits - pretty and quite delicate. The texture is smooth and succulent, mouth coating but full of soft tannins which have the most delicious black cherry, blackcurrant flesh and liquorice tinge to them - so satisfying. Extremely well balanced and well integrated, this has restrained power, it’s not rich or particularly round but straight, direct and layered rather than wide. Really long finish with great freshness and touches of cool blueberries. This is just such a great wine, everything you want and you know there’s power there promising a long life. Great winemaking on show. 35% aged in concrete, 50% new oak, 15% in barrels of one year, for 16-18 months. This year there’s a new label, the drawing of the house has remained but the font is more elegant and modern. A blend of 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 5% Petit Verdot. (Drink between 2027-2047)Decanter | 98 DEC97–99. Barrel Sample. This is a luscious, sumptuous wine, with layers of black fruits and wonderfully cushioned tannins. The structure of the wine is initially masked by the great fruits, but then finds balance from a dry edge of spice, smokiness and lifted acidity. It’s another great vintage from this biodynamic estate. Wine Enthusiast | 98 WEThe 2019 Pontet-Canet was so effusive and generous en primeur. Today, though, it is quite reticent. That won’t be an issue for those who can be patient, but patience indeed will be the key here. Dark red fleshed fruit, tobacco, cedar, spice, kirsch, mint and blood orange gradually open with a bit of coaxing. Imposing tannins wrap it all together. The 2019 is a drop-dead gorgeous beauty, but it needs time.Antonio Galloni | 96 AGVery lush out of the gate, with waves of gently mulled plum, blackberry and black currant fruit that roll through slowly, lined with alder, sweet tobacco, worn cedar and singed savory notes. Delivers a late tug of iron that’s well-buried on a finish marked by lingering perfume, resulting in an end impression of a rich wine that’s very light on its feet. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2023 through 2036.Wine Spectator | 94 WSThe 2019 Pontet-Canet offers up an expressive bouquet of plummy fruit, kirsch, dried herbs and peonies. On the palate, it’s full-bodied, ample and seamless, with melting tannins, succulent acids, and a long, liqueured finish. Tasted twice, it’s a wine I find somewhat perplexing: in a blind tasting, I might be more inclined to place it in Gigondas than Pauillac. I’m far from dogmatic when it comes to what the French call "typicité," and stylistic diversity surely enriches every appellation; but by the same token, I’m not convinced that this is the most compelling aesthetic that a Cabernet-based blend from this part of Bordeaux can realize. Checking in at 13.7% alcohol, some 35% of the production was matured in amphorae, which no doubt contributes to the wine’s idiosyncratic identity.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RPThe 2019 Château Pontet Canet checks in as a blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot that was brought up in a mix of barrels and concrete tanks. It shows the new style of the estate with a more savory, exotic, medium to full-bodied style that’s a dramatically different beast than the benchmark 2009 and 2010 vintages, which to my mind, are the greatest vintages from this estate to date. The 2019 has a ruby/plum color as well as a perfumed nose of redcurrant and mulberry fruits as well as notes of brambly herbs, woodsmoke, peony, leather, and cedar pencil. It’s aromatic and complex, although certainly not classic Pauillac, and on the palate, it’s medium to full-bodied, with firm, savory, yet quality tannins, good balance, and outstanding length. It warrants 7-8 years of bottle age and will evolve for 30+ years. While the style of the estate has been gradually shifting with the winemaking moving to hand destemming and aging in concrete and amphora, this is the first time where the winemaking seems to dominate the wine, and the quality is unquestionably not at the same level.Jeb Dunnuck | 92 JD

The 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Réserve Auguste Favier is based on 85% Grenache and 15% Cinsault, all from the Les Serres lieu-dit, and was brought up all in demi-muids. Black raspberries, spring flowers, pepper, and loamy earth and mineral nuances all make an appearance here, and this flawlessly balanced, medium to full-bodied Châteauneuf du Pape has incredible finesse and elegance while still bringing beautiful richness and length. It’s not the biggest, richest wine in the vintage, but it shines for its complexity and seamlessness. It’s pure class.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDOpaque garnet. Expressive cherry, black raspberry and incense aromas are complemented by building floral and exotic spice nuances. Sappy, seamless and penetrating in the mouth, offering appealingly sweet red and dark berry liqueur and candied lavender flavors that deepen as the wine open up. Shows resonating red fruit character on the wonderfully persistent, floral-driven finish, which is framed by polished, interwoven tannins.Vinous Media | 96 VMMatured in demi-muids, the 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape Reserve Auguste Favier is 85% Grenache and 15% Cinsault. Offering up a panoply of floral, spice and herb shadings, it backs those with scents of raspberries and black cherries and just subtle notes of toast and pencil shavings. Full-bodied on the palate, it’s also silky in feel, with a long, mouthwatering finish and just a touch of friendly warmth. Tasted twice (once blind), with consistent notes.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95 RPThis has a seriously endowed and remarkably pure core of cassis and cherry purée, underscored by light leather, red licorice and violet notes that emerge steadily as they move through the silky finish. Power and grace. Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault and Mourvèdre. Best from 2023 through 2036. 7,920 cases made, 660 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 95 WSDeep and concentrated, flowing, but with a good sense of fruit freshness and liveliness on the palate. A big wine, that, like many of us, put on a bit of weight over lockdown! Grown on galets roulés on lieu-dit Les Serres, fermented in concrete, aged in demi-muid. Drinking Window 2021 - 2026.Decanter | 92 DEC

A return to form in my eyes for Calon Ségur after the atypical 2018, rippling with elegance, balance and savoury blue fruits of Cabernet, with rose and peony flowers. Concentrated, chiselled and juicy, this has clear personality and equals the great, classically balanced vintages of Calon like 2016. A yield of 33hl/ha, 3.85pH, 100% new oak. Vincent Millet is now overall director as well as technical director, since the departure of Laurent Dufau in 2020. Drinking Window 2029 - 2048.Decanter | 98 DECThe 2020 Calon-Ségur is a blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. It is aging in 100% new French oak barrels for an anticipated 18 to 20 months. The alcohol is 13.8%. Displaying a deep purple-black color, it straight away springs up with bright scents of freshly picked black raspberries, kirsch and blackberries, needing considerable swirling to reveal a vast array of nuances—rose oil, cardamom, iron ore, graphite, lavender and aniseed. The medium-bodied palate has a solid structure of firm, ripe, grainy tannins and plenty of freshness supporting the tightly wound red and black fruit layers, accented by lots of mineral and floral sparks, finishing with impressive length and depth. Beautiful, beautiful wine!Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95-97+ RPThe flagship 2020 Château Calon Ségur is also brilliant and certainly brings up the intensity, depth, and richness, although it’s nowhere near the exotic, almost over-the-top style of the 2018. Gorgeous crème de cassis, tobacco, roasted coffee beans, lead pencil, and sappy herbs all define this beauty, which is full-bodied, beautifully balanced, and has incredible purity of fruit. It might have some up-front appeal as well, yet smart money will hide bottles for at least 7-8 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 95-97 JDTobacco and tea aromas with currants and wet earth. Full-bodied and chewy with blackcurrant flavor. Tannins build on the finish with lots of structure and intensity. Quite muscular.James Suckling | 95-96 JSThe powerful tannins of this wine cannot mask the beautiful fruits and acidity. Rather the tannins enhance them, giving structure to the wine’s fine blackberry fruitiness that leaves a refreshing character at the end. With this structure the wine will take its time and will need to age for many years.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WEThe 2020 Calon Ségur is a dark, brooding wine that is going to need a number of years to become approachable. Black fruit, gravel, smoke, chocolate, leather and licorice give the 2020 its distinctly virile feel. In two separate tastings, the 2020 has come across as quite potent and forbidding. This sample is more convincing than a sample I tasted this past spring, but I still don’t see Calon-Segur as having reached the level that has become customary over the last few vintages.Vinous Media | 91-93 VM

Proprietor Paul-Vincent Avril expects to bottle 100,000 bottles of something approximating this "final blend," tasted out of foudre. A blend of 55% Grenache, 35% Mourvèdre and 10% Syrah and other permitted varieties, the 2020 Chateauneuf du Pape looked exceptional on this day, offering up scents of framboise and kirsch alongside dried flowers and Asian spices. Full-bodied yet weightless, silky and long, this is special stuff, complex and balanced.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96-98 RPA very Clos des Papes vintage,’ says Vincent Avril, and I know what he means - a vintage that naturally delivers the kind of fresh, elegant wines that this estate is famous for. A tasting of several foudres point to a wine with natural, easy balance. The Mourvèdre is excellent here this year, and adds great depth to the fresh and delightful Grenache that has notes of black tea, black cherry and iron. Elegant and very fine. (Drink between 2023-2042)Decanter | 98 DECBeguiling, with a plume of black tea and incense leading off, followed by black cherry reduction, cassis, melted black licorice, warm earth, singed tobacco and garrigue accents. Offers breadth and depth with a seamless feel, capped by a subtle mineral edge that lingers lengthily amid the beautiful fruit. Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre. Best from 2024 through 2040. 8,000 cases made, 800 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 97 WSLooking at the reds, the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape is a silky, elegant wine that shows the vintage to a T. I was able to taste through all the foudres of the cuvée as well as one that’s a final blend, with all showing beautiful red and black fruits, peppery garrigue, and floral nuances. The purity of fruit is remarkable, and this will be a medium to full-bodied, finesse-driven, yet still concentrated vintage for this cuvée that readers will love.Jeb Dunnuck | 94-96 JD

The 2020 Clos L’Eglise is outrageously vivid and hauntingly beautiful. Inky red fruit, wild flowers, mint and rose petal come alive in the glass, all framed by powerful yet well-balanced tannins. Although the 2020 is a young, structured wine, its balance is absolutely impeccable. I can’t wait to taste it from bottle. It is a super showing from Hélène Garcin and Patrice Lévêque.Vinous Media | 95-97 VMBased on 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc raised in 70% new French oak, the 2020 Château Clos L’Eglise is a beauty that’s going to match the magical 2009 and 2016. Dense purple-hued, with stunning notes of black cherries, cassis, graphite, licorice, and crushed stone, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, classic Pomerol elegance and purity, and a great finish. This is a magical, concentrated, blockbuster of a wine that somehow stays and delicate and ethereal as they come. Don’t miss it!Jeb Dunnuck | 95-97+ JDA Pomerol with gorgeous crushed-berry, walnut, hazelnut and chocolate character, as well as a full body with ultra fine tannins that frame the wine beautifully. Extremely long finish. Three super wines in a row since 2018.James Suckling | 96-97 JSVery deep purple-black colored, the 2020 Clos l’Eglise leaps from the glass with vivacious notes of crushed black cherries, redcurrant jelly and ripe, juicy blackberries, leading to an undercurrent of camphor, graphite and cedar chest, plus a touch of crushed rocks. The medium to full-bodied palate is bursting with ripe black fruits, supported by rounded, approachable tannins and seamless freshness, finishing on a persistent mineral note.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93-95 RPInky ruby colour, a muscular big-styled Pomerol which will win plenty of friends. Velvety tannins, great persistency, confident, contemporary and deftly walks the line between concentrated and nuanced. Drinking Window 2028 - 2040.Decanter | 94 DEC

I was absolutely blown away by the 2020 Hermitage Domaine Des Tourettes Blanc, a rich, powerful expression of Marsanne (there’s 10% Roussanne as well) from the L’Ermite, le Sabot, and La Tourette lieux-dits, brought up in a mix of new and used barrels. Revealing a vivid gold hue, it just about jumps out of the glass with its exotic nose of honeyed quince, acacia flowers, buttered pears, chalky minerality, spice, and licorice. The purity is off the charts, and it has full-bodied richness, a deep, plush, opulent mouthfeel, perfect balance, and a great, great finish. It’s the finest vintage of this cuvée to date, and readers who love the richer, powerful style of Hermitage should do their best to snatch bottles up. I suspect the acidity is moderate, but it holds onto a riveting sense of freshness and has this liqueur of rock-like sensation on the finish, and it will stand toe to toe with anything out there. I would enjoy bottles over the coming 4-6 years or so and then, at that point, do my best to hold off until 2032 or after. Predicting drink windows for great Hermitage Blanc can be tricky, but this is worth buying multiple bottles and drinking in its youth, then taking a chance with a few in the cellar. There are roughly 400 cases made in each vintage.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDVery striking nose of toasted almonds and pistachio nuts that’s still full of youthful energy, even if the stone-fruit character (mostly mirabelle) is discreet. So much underplayed power and beautiful candied-orange character on the ample yet precisely delineated palate. Then comes the stony finish that doesn’t want to stop. 100% from the marsanne grape. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 96 JSThis is a very pure and restrained version, featuring white peach, yellow apple, quinine, honeysuckle and verbena notes stretching out together through a finish that sports a light kiss of brioche at the very end. Approachable now, with charm and elegance. Marsanne and Roussanne. Drink now through 2030. 475 cases made, 16 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 94 WSA bit lighter, fresher and easier to drink in the short term than the massive 2019, the 2020 Hermitage Domaine des Tourettes Blanc should still prove capable of lasting 20 years in a cool cellar. It’s medium to full-bodied, full of notes of ripe melon and pear, with a long, citrusy and briny finish that shows a less pronounced bitterness than the previous vintage. Tasted twice (once blind), with consistent notes.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RPThe Maison Delas Frères’ 2020 Hermitage Blanc “Domaine des Tourettes” is a ripe wine in the style of this vintage, coming in at 14.5 percent octane. The white grapes for this bottling grow in the lieux à dits of l’Ermite, le Sabot and la Tourette on the hill of Hermitage. The cépages is ninety percent marsanne and ten percent roussanne, with the wine barrel-fermented and aged for nine months in cask prior to bottling, with the casks a combination of new, one or two years of age. The wine offers up a deep and complex nose of white peach, fresh pineapple, almond, a beautifully complex base of soil tones, acacia blossoms and vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, focused and complex, with a great core of fruit, good framing acids, fine mineral drive and grip and a long, well-balanced and impressively precise finish that carries its alcohol beautifully and only shows a whisper of backend heat. This is a lovely bottle of Hermitage Blanc in the making. (Drink between 2026 - 2050)John Gilman | 93 JG

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

I was blown away by the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Cuvee Chaupin, a 100% Grenache release that comes almost exclusively from the Chaupin lieu-dit in the northern part of the appellation. It’s never as inky-hued or powerful as the Vieilles Vignes but always screams Grenache with its sexy, ripe, seamless, and remarkably elegant style. The 2020 offers a translucent ruby/purple hue as well as incredible aromatics of blackberries, black raspberries, peppery garrigue, herbes de Provence, and flowers, and it opens up nicely with time in the glass. Full-bodied and concentrated on the palate, it has silky tannins, no hard edges, and a great finish. I finished my note with "a Grenache lover’s dream." This is up with the finest vintages produced and will evolve for 15+ years.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDFull-bodied, generous in fruit and glycerol. The tannins and acidity seem to meld together into a single vertebral column. The alcohol is present, lending sweetness rather than heat. Remarkably elegant for a wine of these dimensions, with great, rising, upright flavours and structure. This is a very special wine with a long finish. Parcels of Grenache planted on lieux-dits Chapouin, La Janasse and La Crau, the oldest planted in 1912. Drinking Window: 2026 - 2038Decanter | 98 DECAll Grenache, with about 20% to 30% whole bunches, the 2020 Chateauneuf du Pape Chaupin is slightly herbal and stemmy on the nose, but those elements are balanced by wonderful black cherry and blackberry fruit. Full-bodied, concentrated yet silky, with a long, briny finish, this is another strong 2020 from the Sabon family.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93-95 RPRipe but very focused, with a streamlined feel to the mix of raspberry, red currant and bitter cherry fruit flavors. Reveals a racy apple wood note coursing underneath, while licorice, black tea and graphite fill in through the finish. Best from 2023 through 2038. 1,500 cases made, 504 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 94 WS

The 2020 Chambertin from Trapet is sublime. It owns 1.85ha over three parcels in a variety of soils and 15% of the vines are trained high on stakes (’en echalas’). This diversity gives a complex fruit expression, from plum and black cherry to pomegranate and red currant, shot through with floral notes, spice and mineral. However, it is also a wine of power and depth, with the tannin and extract to live 80 years or more. One certainty: Trapet has mastered the art of Chambertin. Drinking Window: 2022 - 2035Decanter | 99 DEC(Chambertin- Domaine Trapet Père et Fils) The Trapet family’s 2020 Chambertin is a great young wine. The bouquet delivers beautiful precision and purity in its constellation of black cherries, sweet dark berries, cassis, black minerality, cigar wrapper, grilled meats, just a touch of mustard seed, cedar and a smoky topnote. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and utterly complete, with a rock solid core, superb soil signature, ripe, firm tannins and a long, vibrant and complex finish. Great juice in the making, but this will need plenty of cellaring time to unfurl. (Drink between 2037-2100)John Gilman | 98 JGThe king of the cellar is the 2020 Chambertin Grand Cru, a magical wine in the making that unwinds in the glass with aromas of cherries, blackberries, rich soil tones, espresso roast, rose petals, licorice, oyster sauce and dark chocolate. Full-bodied, layered and multidimensional, it’s seamless and complete, with huge concentration, lively acids and rich, velvety tannins, concluding with a long, resonant finish. Well-connected and well-heeled readers will derive immense pleasure in comparing the 2020 with the 2019 and 2018 renditions several decades from now.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96-98 RPThe 2020 Chambertin Grand Cru was picked on 7 September and a small plot around five days later. It has a beautiful, quite ethereal bouquet with a complex mélange of red and black fruit, the 80-90% whole bunch completely assimilated with wonderful delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, harmonious and smooth, immense depth and elegance as it fans out towards the finish with perfect sapidity. Sublime.Vinous Media | 95-97 VMAn even more restrained nose timidly expresses slightly riper aromas of plum, dark currant, rose petal and plenty of sauvage character. There is both excellent volume and mid-palate density to the bigger-bodied to the sappy and intensely mineral-driven flavors that are blessed with a taut muscularity on the moderately austere, serious and very firmly structured finale. This is expressly built-to-age and a wine that is definitely going to need at least a decade before could be reasonably approached.Burghound | 93-95 BH

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

Detailed and delicate, this has a seductive charm to it, slowly displaying scented blueberries and raspberries, before layers of salty minerality, liquorice, and cooling blue fruits come into play as well as tobacco and liquorice adding a savoury touch. It’s not immediately upfront - more calm and collected, slowly growing in stature and presence. Tannins are fine but mouthcoating, giving the structure, this isn’t a light wine, but it’s supremely elegant and excellently textured. Impressive complexity and drama here, still very serious but it’s sublime too. A luminous wine I’d love to own.Decanter | 98 DECA lovely softness and texture to this wine with a medium to full body, plenty of fruit and fine velvety tannins. It’s lovely to taste now and will age beautifully. Really seductive. Hard not to drink now but one for the cellar. Best to try after 2025.James Suckling | 96 JSThe 2020 Gruaud-Larose is a powerful, dense wine. Super-ripe dark cherry, kirsch, menthol, licorice, rose petal and espresso infuse the palate with tons of intensity. Unctuous and flamboyant, the 2020 also offers a good bit of energy to keep things in balance. The 2020 is very much an extrovert, a gorgeous extrovert at that. Sweet floral and spice accents, along with a kick of sweet French oak, linger.Vinous Media | 95 VMRock-solid, with a core of dark plum, boysenberry and blackberry compote flavors held together with cedar, savory, tobacco and monkeyd apple wood notes that add texture and energy through the finish. Built for the cellar. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2030 through 2040. 9,250 boxes made.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

This has incredible power and drive with blackberry, black olive and graphite. It’s full-bodied, yet dynamic and agile, with so much polished and muscular tannin. Yet, it remains in harmony and balance. So much character. The head of the chateau calls it diabolical beauty. 25% less production than the 2019. 52% cabernet sauvignon, 42% merlot, 3% cabernet franc and 3% petit verdot.James Suckling | 99-100 JSA blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot, the 2020 Haut-Bailly was harvested from the 9th to 25th of September. It has an alcohol of 14.3%. Deep purple-black in color, it prances out of the glass with naturally beautiful notions of fresh black cherries, violets, mulberries and boysenberries, giving way to hints of redcurrant jelly, star anise, tilled soil and menthol. The medium to full-bodied palate is delicately crafted with velvety/grainy tannins and fantastic freshness framing the perfumed red and black berry layers, finishing on a lingering fragrant-earth note.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | (96-98)+RPA legendary Haut-Bailly in the making, the 2020 sports a dense purple color to go with powerful notes of blackcurrants, black cherries, scorched earth, and graphite. Reminding me of the 2010, it takes plenty of air to show at its best yet is full-bodied, has a seamless texture, massive of ultra-fine tannins, and a blockbuster of a finish. It’s one of the most structured, powerful Haut-Bailly I’ve ever tasted, yet it still has the classic elegance, nuance, and length of this terrific terroir. It will need 5-7 years (or more) of bottle age but will have 50 years of overall longevity. The 2020 is 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Merlot, and 3% each of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.Jeb Dunnuck | (96-98)+ JDDeep, rich and explosive, the 2020 Haut-Bailly is magnificent from the very first taste. Dark fruit, chocolate, licorice and spice give the 2020 a level of unctuousness that is absolutely thrilling. Readers should be patient, as the 2020 is going to need time to come around. Yields are down 25% from 2019, and that richness comes through loud and clear.Vinous Media | 95-97 VM(Château Haut-Bailly, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux, France, Red) Rich in texture and colour, this has clear layers and complexity, a wine that you want to take your time with, slow down and enjoy. One that will take its time to age also. This has a precision and a clarity to the aromatics, and a gentle buzz of minerality that gives a physical reaction in the mouth. Less exuberant than the 2018 or 2019, making this a vintage that suits the style of Haut-Bailly. A slight austerity to the tannins on the finish gives a blueberry redcurrant edge. 3% Petit Verdot completes the blend (now around eight years old), usually co-fermented with the Cabernet Sauvignon (sometimes with Cabernet Franc). IPT similar to 2016, 2010, 2005, but with a softness that comes from extremely ripe tannins. Strong potential for upscoring when it bottle. (Drink between 2030-2050)Decanter | 96 DEC

The 2020 L’Eglise Clinet is a blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc. The Merlot was picked between the 11th and the 14th of September, and the Cabernet Franc was picked on the 16th of September. It has an alcohol of 14.4% and is aging in French oak barrels, 80% new. Displaying and opaque purple-black color, it needs a bit of swirling to reveal a fascinating array of earthy notes—black truffles, charcoal, mossy tree bark and fallen leaves—over a profound core of preserved plums, blackberry preserves and violets, with a waft of tapenade. The medium to full-bodied palate has exquisitely ripe tannins and bold freshness supporting the seductively ripe, black fruit layers, finishing on a lingering fragrant earth note.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97-99 RPWonderfully bright, floral aromas with so much violet character. Such purity and focus. Ethereal on the nose already. Full-bodied, but very polished and deep with finesse and beauty. Incredible structure that fills the mouth.James Suckling | 98-99 JSThe 2020 L’Eglise-Clinet is a towering wine. I am not sure what else to say. After having tasted hundreds of 2020s, L’Eglise-Clinet very clearly claims a stake for itself among the wines of the vintage. L’Eglise-Clinet can be a brute in its youth, but the 2020 is all finesse. Sweet red/purplish fruit, rose petal, blood orange and pomegranate are some of the nuances that emerge over time. Perhaps keeping the temperatures a bit cooler in fermentation explains the extraordinary finesse here. The 2020 simply can’t be denied.Vinous Media | 96-98 VMAlways up with the crème de la crème of the vintage, the 2020 Château L’Eglise Clinet is no exception. It boasts a rich, powerful, opulent style that packs loads of ripe black cherries as well as notes of chocolate, earth, tobacco, and graphite. Possessing the pure, elegant, more focused style of the vintage, it still has plenty of mid-palate depth, gorgeous tannins, and one heck of a great finish. This beauty is a thrill a minute and will not hit maturity for another 7-8 years, but it will be a 20-year wine.Jeb Dunnuck | 96-98 JD(Château L’Eglise-Clinet, Pomerol, Bordeaux, France, Red) Noémie Durantou has taken over from her late father Denis with this vintage, and has produced a L’Eglise Clinet that is dark ruby in colour, and needs time in the glass as it is built and muscular. You need a little patience for the cassis, bilberry and raspberry fruits to arrange, enjoy instead the silky, velvety texture that stops the tannins being too restrictive and allows the palate to slowly expand. Not as expressive as in some vintages, but still exudes quiet confidence. A yield of 42hl/ha. Harvest from September 8. (Drink between 2029-2050)Decanter | 96 DEC

Purple berry and blackberry aromas with cracked black pepper, violets and lavender. It’s full-bodied and layered and broadens in the mouth. Gorgeous, ripe tannins. Long and thought-provoking. A milestone for the vineyard.James Suckling | 99-100 JSOne of my favorite wines in the vintage is the 2020 Château La Fleur-Petrus, which reminds me slightly of the 2016, even though the growing season was quite different. A blend of mostly Merlot with small amounts of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, its dense purple color is followed by a heavenly, ethereal Pomerol offering a powerful, almost Petrus-like sense of stature and density that carries incredible cassis and currant fruits as well as notes of graphite, crushed stone, chocolate, and violets. Flawlessly balanced on the palate, with a dense, layered mid-palate and building, perfect tannins, I just hope it shows this well from bottle! It should, at a minimum, match – and probably surpass – the 2009, 2016, and 2018.Jeb Dunnuck | 97-100 JDThe tannins clamp in on the opening beats of the wine and then spend the rest of the palate gently relaxing to let the juice out from the tight black fruits. The frame is both tactile and fresh, a brilliant La Fleur Petrus full of character and spice, bedded down but with a sense of energy and uplift. Black chocolate shavings shot through with eucalyptus, sage, rosemary, spices and cigar box - all of which really extend through the finish. Harvest September 10 to 20. A yield of around 42hl/ha. Deep gravels over clay. Drinking Window 2028 - 2045.Decanter | 97 DECVery deep purple-black colored, the 2020 la Fleur-Petrus leaps from the glass with bold expressions of baked black plums, molten licorice, Indian spices and blackberry preserves, plus hints of charcuterie, black olives and crushed rocks with a touch of unsmoked cigars. The full-bodied palate delivers compelling tension to the rich, hedonic black fruits, framed by firm, grainy tannins, finishing very long and tantalizingly savory.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95-97 RPThe 2020 La Fleur-Pétrus is wonderfully elegant and polished. Fine tannins give the 2020 its sophisticated feel. Succulent red cherry, cedar, tobacco, smoke and dried herbs all build. A whole range of floral, savory and mineral notes infuse the finish with tons of character. Medium in body and persistent, with real linear energy, the 2020 is all class. La Fleur-Pétrus is, above all else, a wine of understatement and elegance. The 2020 is especially fine.Antonio Galloni | 94-96 AGThe cool clay of this vineyard shows well in the freshness of this impressive wine. It gives the structure that will allow it to age. With richness assured through the tannins, the wine has great promise.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WE

This is incredibly classic in style with so much currant, lead pencil, crushed stone and sweet tobacco. It’s full-bodied with minerally, stoney and powerful tannins. It goes on and one. Real Las Cases here. Solid as a rock. Progresses to violet, graphite and licorice at the end.James Suckling | 98-99 JSThe 2020 Léoville Las Cases is a blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc and 8% Merlot, aging in 80% new French oak barriques, weighing in with an alcohol of 13.68%, a pH of 3.8 and an IPT (tannins index) of 79. The Cabernet Sauvignon was harvested from the 21st to the 27th of September, the Merlot from the 12th to the 15th of September and the Cabernet Franc on the 18th and 19th of September. With an opaque purple-black color, it slowly unfurls to reveal beguiling notes of fresh blackcurrants, Morello cherries, candied violets and dark chocolate, giving way to an undercurrent of crushed rocks, unsmoked cigars, clove oil and fragrant earth. The medium-bodied palate is a powerhouse of energy, delivering tightly wound red and black fruits, mineral and floral layers, supported by fantastic tension and incredibly ripe, silt-like tannins. The finish has jaw-dropping fragrance and depth.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96-98 RPThe 2020 Léoville Las Cases has developed into a powerhouse. Then again, that is Las Cases. En primeur, I thought the 2020 was a bit shy, but its true personality has to emerge. Blackberry jam, gravel, spice, menthol, licorice, espresso and plum all saturate the palate. Vivid and explosive, the 2020 is dizzyingly rich, with plenty of Las Cases tannins that will require patience. I am not sure when the 2020 will be ready to drink, but it won’t be anytime soon. Las Cases is one of the wines of the vintage in 2020, that much is pretty clear.Vinous Media | 98+ VMThe flagship 2020 Château Léoville Las Cases checks in as 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc, and 8% Merlot, raised in 80% new French oak. Hitting 13.68% in alcohol with a Ph of 3.8 and an IPT of 79, it shows the dense, concentrated, focused style of the vintage and it’s going to be one of the longer-lived wines of the vintage. Deep purple-hued, with an incredible sense of minerality in its blackcurrant and black cherry fruits, it’s full-bodied, has a rich, layered mid-palate, lots of tannins, and a great finish. It’s a beautiful wine and holds onto the more inward, concentrated style of the vintage while still showing serious depth of fruit. It’s going to take a decade (or more) of bottle age to get anywhere close to the early stages of maturity but will keep for 30-40 years.Jeb Dunnuck | 95-97+ JDPerfumed touches on the nose, quite high toned, blackcurrant but almost liqueur with rose petal and candy floss nuances. On the point of ripeness, still tense, not hugely expansive in the mouth or particularly weighty but juicy with a really confident energy to it - vibrant and compelling. Tannins are perfectly integrated, so fine, this has a silky overall texture with a hint of grip coming towards the mid palate. Driven and straight, not deviating from the core. Almost unfriendly, but you know this has been well made - it’s sleek, with sinewy muscles, just caged right now needing time to come around. I love the precision to the elements, there’s such a sharp attention to detail with a liquorice, slate and pencil lead tang. The flavours need coaxing a little; this is a sleeping beauty waiting to awaken, but when it does it will be delicious because of the precision. A wonderful wine that makes you really think about how it’s going to evolve.Decanter | 97 DECThe wine’s richness comes both from the dark tannins and the pure, classic black currant flavors. Acidity, yes, but surrounded by dense fruits and tannins that give the wine considerable structure and the potential to age for many years. An impressive wine.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WESleek and slightly austere in feel, with a cold cast iron note framing a core of tightly compressed cassis, plum and blackberry fruit flavors. Shows subtle flashes of tobacco and smoldering charcoal, as the finish lingers with verve. A stoic red. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. Best from 2030 through 2045.Wine Spectator | 96 WS

One of the gems in the vintage is the 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Barbe Rac, a 100% Grenache that was destemmed and brought up all in concrete tanks. Darker berries, ground pepper, graphite, and savory garrigue are just some of its nuances, and this beauty is full-bodied, has a layered, seamless mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and an awesome finish. It’s a brilliant bottle of wine that readers will love. It deserves 3-4 years of bottle age and will shine over the following two decades. Bravo.Jeb Dunnuck | 98+ JDA seductive 100% grenache with cherries, mixed berries, licorice and sweet spices on the nose. Full body with creamy tannins. Round and velvety with a caressing touch of strawberries and raspberries at the center. It has volume and texture with a succulent and precise long finish. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 94 JSThere’s an appealing high-toned spice over the very ripe blackberry fruit here, like star anise. Very rounded and generous, but with some good intensity and freshness at its core. Concentrated and ripe but with good acidity. The alcohol is warming on the finish, but it’s not overly unbalanced. A fruity and immediate style of Barbe Rac.Decanter | 93 DEC

The 2020 Palmer, which was matured in 65% new oak, possesses one of the most perfumed bouquets of the vintage with entrancing, seductive scents of black cherries, wild strawberry, iodine and crushed violets, all beautifully delineated (as per usual). The palate is medium-bodied with fine but quite firm tannins, lending this Palmer more backbone than presupposed. Blackberry, graphite and touches of liquorice develop with aeration that build towards an assertive, pencil box-tinged finish that nods towards Pauillac. This is a Palmer destined for long-term ageing, so readers should have a cool damp cellar handy. It is a serious Palmer, very different from the previous two vintages, not a mix of the two, but content in just being itself. 14.1% alcohol.Vinous Media | 96-98 VMThis wine’s floral perfume is matched by generous tannins that surprise by their strength. The fruit flavors offer a mix of black and red berries. They are finely structured and concentrated, balanced by tightly woven acidity. Made from organic and biodynamic grapes.Wine Enthusiast | 98 WEVivid colours, and the aromatics grab hold straight away. This is intense and concentrated, elegant, balanced and classical, all about the texture which is velvety and seductive with softly-grained tannins. Moves oh so slowly through the palate with dozens of layers to get hold of. The overall feel is precise, slow and seductive, with appellation and estate signature at every turn. Sappy, hawthorn freshness, rosemary, redcurrant, tobacco, cigar box and dark chocolate shavings on the finish. 3.77pH, 78IPT, 55% of overall production, with 13% press wine. Drinking Window 2028 - 2044.Decanter | 97 DEC

An estate that has been on fire of late, the 2020 Château Pichon-Longueville Comtesse De Lalande is another brilliant wine in a succession of brilliant wines. Revealing a dense purple hue as well as full-bodied aromas and flavors of blac currants, scorched earth, tobacco leaf, and violets, it hits the palate with an expansive, rich, yet pure, precise texture that carries fabulous tannins, perfect balance, and a stacked mid-palate. Based on 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, and 6% Cabernet Franc, it’s an incredible wine that’s going to flirt with perfection and is unquestionably one of the finest, if not the finest, Left Banks in the vintage. Bravo. Tasted twice.Jeb Dunnuck | 98-100 JDThis is extremely structured, but with a level of polish and refinement that highlights the excellence of the terroir. Very long and expansive on the palate, showing class and beauty. Powerful, yet comes across refined and curated at the end. Lovely texture.James Suckling | 97-98 JSDeep purple-black in color, the 2020 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande begins on a single, well-defined, wonderfully pure note of ripe blackcurrants, opening out to a melody of redcurrant jelly, kirsch, ripe blackberries and tar, with emerging suggestions of dark chocolate, cardamom, ground cloves and violets, with a waft of black truffles. Medium-bodied, tightly wound and with loads of fantastically nuanced black fruit layers, it has a rock-solid frame of finely grained tannins and bags of freshness, finishing long and mineral laced. The blend this year is 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95-97 RPThe 2020 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is holding so much in reserve. Tightly wound and not fully expressive, the 2020 is going to need at least a few years to come out of its shell. Bright acids and persistent tannins give the 2020 a super classic, mid-weight feel. I very much like the wine’s persistence. Readers will have to be patient with the 2020. The exuberance of some recent vintages is not present today. The blend is 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 6% Cabernet Franc, which means a touch more Cabernet Sauvignon than in recent years, and quite a bit more than in the past. Harvest ran from September 7 to October 1, which is about ten days earlier than normal. In the cellar, Estate Manager Nicolas Glumineau opted for light extractions, with minimal pumpovers of just one volume of wine per day, at no more than 25 degrees Celsius. Time on the skins was 21 days, pretty much the norm these days. Tasted two times. (Drink between 2032-2060)Antonio Galloni | 95-97 AGSofter and silkier than many Pauillacs in the vintage, this is a clear success. Hugely silky and seductive, with grip, power and finesse. One of the best of the appellation, with finessed tobacco, heather and plump blueberry and cassis fruit, expertly managing the low 30hl/ha yield. 60% new oak. Tasted twice. (Drink between 2030-2048)Decanter | 96 DEC

Winemaker Jean-Luc Thunevin has hit a home run in the vintage, and his 2020 Château Valandraud is unquestionably up with the crème de la crème out there. Made in a ripe, sexy, plush style, it brings an incredible amount of ripe black fruit, chocolate, vanilla, espresso, and leafy herb-like aromas and flavors. This carries to a full-bodied, powerful Saint-Emilion that somehow stays weightless and graceful on the palate, with moderate acidity, ripe tannins, and a great, great finish.Jeb Dunnuck | 97-99 JDWow. This is really super polished with incredible length and intensity, offering blackberries and hazelnuts. Superb richness that is reserved and poised. Great length. Full-bodied, extremely long and exciting.James Suckling | 97-98 JSOpaque purple-black colored, the 2020 Valandraud bursts with scents of crushed black plums, boysenberries and blackberry preserves, followed by hints of dusty soil, garrigue and clove oil. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers a lot of energetic, crunchy black fruits with a lively backbone and beautifully ripe, rounded tannins, finishing long and fragrant.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95-97 RPThe 2020 Valandraud is impressive. Inky, deep and exquisitely layered, it possesses tremendous richness in every dimension. crème de cassis, chocolate, licorice, new leather, spice and lavender build as the 2020 gains volume in the glass. Silky and plush, with magnificent balance, this is shaping up to be one of the wines of the year. A magnificent effort from Muriel Andraud and Jean-Luc Thunevin. Superb. Tasted two times.Vinous Media | 95-97 VMThis wine from the premier classé estate is seriously structured, dense and firm. At the same time the beautiful black currant fruits, acidity and fine perfumed character balance its richness. It is an impressive, memorable wine that will develop well over many years.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WE(Château Valandraud, St-Émilion, Bordeaux, France, Red) This is excellent, broad-shouldered with ample depth to the brambled fruits, liquorice, cigar box spice, with a gorgeously saline finish. Chalky, grippy tannins keep tugging you back into the body of the wine. The tannic grip is helped by a linen rather than silk texture that stops things being overly smooth and instead adds depth and interest to the powerfully knitted body, as do white flowers on the aromatics as it opens. Good stuff. 100% new oak for 24 months. A yield of 49hl/ha. Thunevin has sold a 50% stake in Valandraud to the Lefevre family at Sansonnet (also the new owners of Villemaurine, so a busy year for them). (Drink between 2029-2046)Decanter | 96 DEC

The 2020 Château Valandraud Blanc is both deeper and richer, with a more concentrated, medium to full-bodied style as well as incredible aromatics of ripe melon, white fits, lemon, minty herbs, and chalky minerality. With integrated acidity, an almost red wine-like structured mouthfeel, and a great finish, this easily belongs up with the greatest whites in the vintage. It will evolve for two decades if you’re so inclined.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDThe 2020 Valandraud Blanc opens with the most gorgeous perfume of orange blossoms, honeycomb and allspice, leading to a core of pink grapefruit, lemon tart and lime cordial, with a waft of aniseed. The medium to full-bodied palate bursts with layer upon layer of tropical and citrus fruits, supported by a crisp backbone and satiny texture, finishing with epic length and perfume. Stunning.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93-95 RPThe 2020 Valandraud Blanc, centered upon 60% Sauvignon Gris, an underrated variety, has a nicely focused bouquet with apple blossom, lemon verbena, chamomile and light pear aromas. The 80% new oak is neatly enmeshed. The palate is well balanced with a fine thread of acidity, quite complex with a modicum of spice and stem ginger. There is something different about this white Bordeaux emanating from the grape varieties, a wine with character and sufficient salinity to tempt you back for another sip. Just 3,000 bottles made.Vinous Media | 94 VMHerbal lemon, caramelised patisserie, baked lemon tart with some apple flecks. Round, unctuous, strong and bold, but clean and clear with a honeyed, caramel pastry tang on the palate balanced by a shot of zesty lemon, lime, orange and peach - the citrus fruits holding the backbone with high acidity and freshness. Richly layered and powerful but also friendly, generous and lively. It’s serious but with elements of fun!Decanter | 94 DECDense, complex white with sliced fennel, grapefruit, clove, burnt vanilla pod, green pineapple and herbs on the nose. Medium- to full-bodied, textured and phenolic, with slightly bitter herbal and spice character. Better after 2023.James Suckling | 94 JSJuicy and fresh, with lots of deliciously bouncy gooseberry gelée and lemon peel flavors streaking through. Laced with quinine and fleur de sel notes on the finish. Sauvignon Gris, Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon. Drink now through 2024. 350 cases made.Wine Spectator | 92 WSThis is a powerfully rich wine, with ripe citrus and yellow fruit flavors. Acidity is balanced by the dense texture and spicy undercurrent. Drink from 2024.Wine Enthusiast | 90 WE

The 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape Deus Ex Machina is a strong candidate to be wine of the vintage. A blend of 60% Grenache and 40% Mourvèdre, it combines scents of black truffles and black cherries with hints of cedar and vanilla (the Mourvèdre is aged in new oak, the Grenache in concrete). It’s full-bodied and concentrated, supple and almost creamy in feel, then long and velvety on the finish. Bravo.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98 RPPossibly the wine of the vintage (at least at this early stage), the 2021 Châteauneuf Du Pape Deus-Ex Machina is a 60/40 split of Grenache and Mourvedre, with the Grenache brought up in foudre and the Mourvedre in demi-muids. Its vivid ruby/purple hue is followed by rock star notes of kirsch, blackberries, cured meats, woodsmoke, and dried flowers. Rich, full-bodied, and concentrated, it’s an incredible effort in this challenging vintage.Jeb Dunnuck | 94-96+ JD

The flagship release, the 2021 Châteauneuf Du Pape Boisrenard Blanc is based on 42% Clairette, 32% Roussanne, 11% Bourboulenc, 10% Grenache Blanc, and a small mix of other varieties. Slightly deeper gold-hued compared to the classic cuvée, it offers textbook notes of sauteed peach, honeyed citrus, flower oil, and hints of green almonds. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated, and beautifully balanced, it has good acidity and a great finish. It brings more richness and opulence than the base cuvée, but it remains to be seen which of these releases will be the longest lived. Both are brilliant wines.Jeb Dunnuck | 95 JD

Deliciously balanced, this Champagne is impressive. The iconic wine is in its 171st blend, meaning it combines vintages for the best result for each bottling, not a specific vintage. The 171st essence is dry, while also having fine textured fruit. This is a magnificent wine and worth aging for another year. Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEA vivid Champagne, with chiseled acidity and a fine, vivacious mousse creating a buoyant frame for layered flavors of crushed black raspberry, grilled nuts, pink grapefruit sorbet and coffee liqueur, plus fragrant accents of ground ginger and anise, graphite and lime blossoms. Long and expressive on the finish, crackling with a lingering fleur de sel note. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Meunier. Disgorged winter 2022 to 2021. Drink now through 2033.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe Krug Grande Cuvée “171ème Édition” is from the base year of 2015. The final cépages is forty-five percent pinot noir, thirty-seven percent chardonnay and eighteen percent pinot meunier. It includes fully forty-two percent reserve wines in this iteration, with the wines stretching all the way back to the 2000 vintage. It was disgorged in the first months of 2022 after six years aging sur latte. The wine is supremely elegant on both the nose and palate, with the bouquet wafting from the glass in a beautifully complex blend of apple, pear, fresh apricot, brioche, a complex blend of chalky soil tones, gently musky floral tones, almond, a lovely touch of buttery oak and incipient notes of caraway seed in the upper register. On the palate the wine is pure, precise and full-bodied, with superb depth of fruit, lovely soil undertow, very refined mousse, great balance, snappy acids and a very, very long, complex and utterly seamless finish. Though this is still most emphatically still a young wine, its impeccable balance makes it all too easy to drink today! I would try to leave it alone in the cellar for five to ten years and really let it hit its apogee, but it is not going to be an easy wine with which to exercise self-restraint! (Drink between 2023 - 2085)John Gilman | 96+ JGThe NV Grande Cuvée 171ème Edition is a delightful blend of 45% Pinot Noir, 37% Chardonnay and 18% Pinot Meunier and boasts an attractive and captivating aroma of dried fruits, pastry, lemon oil, marzipan, spring flowers and ginger, with hints of almond and vanilla notes that become more pronounced over time. This medium to full-bodied wine is precise and well-structured, with a fleshy core of fruit and a sapid, incisive finish. Crafted around the 2015 vintage, the blend comprises 131 reserve wines from as far back as 2000 (42% of the total blend) and is expected to age beautifully over the next decade.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94 RPSpanning from 1998 through the 2015 vintage, the NV Champagne Grande Cuvée 171 is lush with a kaleidoscope of aromas including orange marmalade, toasted brioche, almond, and ripe peaches. Full-bodied and rounded, it has a hint of warmth on the finish, but it’s highly attractive, balanced, and long, with outstanding depth and richness. This fantastic expression of the Grand Cuvée is gorgeous right out of the gate and will be a great addition for collectors to enjoy over the coming two decades. Drink 2023-2043.Jeb Dunnuck | 94 JDKrug’s Grand Cuvee 171ème Edition is a 45% Pinot Noir, 37% Chardonnay and 18% Pinot Meunier barrel fermented assemblage of 131 wines from 12 years. The youngest and predominant base wine was from 2015, and the oldest reserve wines from 2000. This 171eme Edition reveals an aromatically complex nose of warm citrus, poached Anjou pear, dried apricots, lemon balm and toast. Medium to full-bodied, the palate balances a beautifully energetic acid frame alongside rich flavors of Meyer lemon, apple crumble and honeycomb with a kiss of vanilla before finishing long, generous and refreshing. According to the Krug iD122014 the bottle tasted was disgorged in the spring of 2020 and released a year later in 2021.The Wine Independent | 94+ TWI

Aromas of bread dough and watermelon with peaches on the nose. Some dried fruits. Full-bodied with phenolic tannins, like a fine pinot noir. The finish is very Burgundian with rose hip tea and dried lemons and kumquats. Crunchy. Delicious finish. Drink now or hold.James Suckling | 98 JSThe NV Rosé 27ème Edition, much like the Grande Cuvée 171ème Edition, was created based on the 2015 vintage and is complemented with 38 reserve wines sourced from nine different years (which makes up 55% of the blend). The youngest reserve wine dates back to 2015, while the oldest goes all the way back to 2005. Additionally, the blend includes 10% Pinot Noir, sourced from Aÿ and Mareuil-sur-Aÿ. This delightful rosé boasts a stunning, fresh bouquet of peony, blueberry, grapefruit, blood orange, warm biscuits and spring flowers. It has a medium to full-bodied texture and is both tense and crystalline, with a delicate yet concentrated structure and a salty, lingering and mouthwatering finish. I find the mid-palate particularly fascinating, as it is both fleshy and delicate. This lively and pure Champagne rosé from Krug is made up of 57% Pinot Noir, 23% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RPA graceful Champagne, deftly integrating a firm spine of mouthwatering acidity with a finely detailed texture and an expansive range of flavors, including chopped almond, black cherry and apricot fruit, pink grapefruit peel and accents of sea salt, ground ginger and white peppercorn that crackle on the palate. Shows lovely precision and expression, with a long, racy finish. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier. Disgorged winter 2021 to 2022. Drink now through 2030.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe Krug Rosé “27ème Édition” is crafted this year from a cépages of fifty-seven percent pinot noir, twenty-three percent chardonnay and twenty percent pinot meunier. It is from the base year of 2015 and includes reserve wines in it all the way back to 2005, with fully fifty-five percent of the cuvée being comprised of reserve wines in this iteration. Ten percent of the pinot noir in the blend is still red wine from vineyards in Mareuil-sur-Aÿ and Aÿ. The wine offers up beautiful depth in its complex and very precise bouquet of blood orange, rhubarb, a touch of cherry skin, a beautifully refined base of chalky soil, delicate spice tones, wheat toast, dried rose petals and a delicate topnote of caraway seed. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied, focused and gently vinous, with superb depth at the core, refined mousse and a very long, complex and seamlessly balanced finish. The high percentage of reserve wines in the 27ème Édition gives it already a beautiful, gentle of patina of older Champagne that makes it a gorgeous drink right out of the blocks! A stunning wine. (Drink between 2023 - 2060)John Gilman | 96 JGKrug Rose 27eme Edition is an alluring assemblage rosé of 38 different wines composed of 45% from the 2015 vintage and 55% from reserve wines, the oldest of which is 2005. Pale coral with glints of gold, it is a 57% Pinot Noir, 23% Chardonnay and 20% Pinot Meunier blend of which between 8-11% is still red wine from Ay and Marieul. Expressive notes of morello cherry, pomegranate, ripe Meyer lemon, anise, toast, and smoke lead into a medium to full-bodied palate enlivened by racy, mineral-tinged acidity along with savory red fruit, citrus peel, and toast notes. It finishes wonderfully vibrant, elegant and long. According to the Krug iD122001 the bottle tasted was disgorged in the first quarter of 2022.John Gilman | 96+ JGAs rosé Champagne goes, this wine presents a unique level of complexity. It is rich, while also intensely fresh. Textured and full of ripe fruits, the wine is beautifully structured. It is ready to drink. Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEThe NV Rosé 27ème Édition is an elegant, gracious Champagne. Crushed red berry fruit, rose petals and spice are nicely layered in this soft, open-knit Rosé from Krug. There are no hard edges, quite an achievement for the challenging 2015 harvest. The 27ème Édition is an especially approachable young release. The blend is 57% Pinot Noir, 23% Chardonnay and 20% Meunier, based on 2015 with reserve wines back to 2005. Of note is the relatively high percentage of Pinot Noir in this edition. Disgorged: Winter 2021-2022. Krug ID: 122001.Vinous Media | 93 VM