Type of Wines

wines

The wine hits all cylinders in 2010. The average alcohol for the bottled wine is 14%. It has a gorgeously sweet nose of creme de cassis, spring flowers, subtle barbecue smoke and charcoal followed by full body, beautiful intensity, great purity, stature and length. The influence of any oak is minimal, despite the fact that 90% new French oak was used. Needless to say, this is an example of modern-styled winemaking at its finest, and arguments that such wines will not age well, do not represent their terroir , and are soul-less, are totally groundless. Give it five or so years of cellaring and drink it over the following 25-30 years. This is one of the great Margaux wines of the vintage.Probably the greatest Lascombes made to date, the 2010 is a blend of 55% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Petit Verdot. The production from this huge estate totals nearly 400,000 bottles.Robert Parker | 96 RPLascombes in 2010 has exuberance and precision and confidence, and a sense of fun. At the 10 year mark the power of the tannins is clear and evident. It’s a big, concentrated, exuberant wine but it has delicacy and construction and persistency. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042Decanter | 94 DECPinpoint but rich fruit in the form of blackcurrants, licorice, fresh herbs, blackberry leaf and cedar. Full body, structured tannins, vibrant acidity and a long finish. Wonderful combination of freshness and fruit. Delicious now but this will hold for many more years.James Suckling | 94 JSWood-driven tannins dominate at this stage, creating a wine that is structured and dense. The tannins are layered with the weight of the black currant and plum fruits. Lascombes is still finding its style, but is definitely on the upward slope.Wine Enthusiast | 92 WEDark and nicely toasty, with ample espresso and ganache up front, followed by steeped fig, blackberry and black currant fruit that rumbles through the finish. Features ample tarry grip, but eschews minerality and finesse for a direct and toast-driven approach. Best from 2014 through 2026. 25,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 91 WS

Dense purple, with classic notes of cedar and lead pencil shavings as well as gobs of back currants and licorice, the wine has a full-bodied mouthfeel with fabulous precision and density. It also possesses a long, silky finish with moderately high tannins, but they are ripe and well-integrated. The wood is clearly pushed to the background in this dense, full-bodied Pauillac, which should drink beautifully for 30+ years.If you can’t afford Lafite-Rothschild (few can)or even their second wine, Carruades de Lafite, you still have Duhart Milon, which has become a profound wine over the last 5-7 years due to the extensive amount of attention and investment the Rothschilds have pumped into this estate. This blend of 73% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Merlot is fabulous, a dead ringer for Lafite in a great vintage. (It is probably better than many of the Lafites of the 1960s and 1970s, and even some of the vintages in the 1980s).Robert Parker | 96 RPGravel over limestone, similar to Château Lafite Rothschild and under the same ownership. Cooler northern exposure of the terroir requires more time to ripen, but that was no problem in 2010. This has ripe fruit with graphite and wet stone. It may not be as dense as Clerc Milon, but the expression of finesse and refinement is unmistakable. Long, subtle finish. Pleasing, high-toned fruit perfectly matches grilled lamb chops with roast potatoes. Drinking Window 2021 - 2045.Decanter | 95 DECLike a lot of 2010s, the 2010 Duhart-Milon-Rothschild is tight and backward, yet has serious potential. Sporting a deep ruby/purple color and classic notes of currants, lead pencil shavings, cedarwood and saddle leather, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a tight, firm focused texture and beautiful concentration. Its tannins are present, yet ripe and integrated, and it has the purity and freshness that’s the hallmark of this great, great vintage. Give bottles another 2-3 years and it should keep for two to three decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 94+ JDThe 2010 Duhart-Milon has a backward nose that is going through a dumb phase. There is plenty of fruit here but it is “locked down” at the moment. The palate is very well defined with crisp acidity, fine-boned tannins and superb balanced. It is not a deep or grippy Pauillac, but it feels...streamlined, athletic and wonderfully poised on the graphite infused finish. Excellent. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 93 VMA wine with an intense sous bois, fresh tobacco and dried flower character on the nose and palate. Full body, with ultra-fine tannins and an attractive finish. It’s structured yet polished with a beauty and stature. Try in 2015.James Suckling | 93 JSJuicy black currant fruit mingles with bright acidity and dark-chocolate tannins. This often overlooked château, with the same production team as Lafite-Rothschild, has an intense and concentrated 2010, balanced superbly between firmness and fruitiness.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WEWell-polished, with sleek edges to the fleshy plum, cassis and blackberry fruit, while the finish is embedded with black licorice and violet notes. Approachable now, but the stuffing is there to cellar this for a bit. Drink now through 2025.Wine Spectator | 91 WS(Château Duhart-Milon) While both the Carruades and Lafite steer clear of any signs of overripeness in this vintage, the same cannot be said for the 2010 Château Duhart-Milon, which, while not overtly overripe, does show a rather forceful personality that is rather out of character. The bouquet is deep, very ripe and quite powerful, as it offers up scents of cassis, dark berries, cigar ash, gravelly soil tones, tobacco leaf and new oak. On the palate the wine is full, broad-shouldered and really a bit four-square at the present time, with a rock solid core, plenty of firm, well-integrated tannins and a very good grip on the long and palate-staining finish. This will need some extended cellaring to soften, but it is hard to imagine that it will ever develop the customary charm of this property. This is another 2010 where the ripeness of the vintage has seemingly robbed this wine of a bit of focus and detail, and it is an open question if those qualities can be revived with extended cellaring. (Drink between 2022-2050)John Gilman | 88-90+ JG

(Château Canon, St-Émilion, Bordeaux, France, Red) Vivid, crystal-clear fruit aromas, juicy black cherry, ripe plum and succulent blackberry, combining with artisanal dark chocolate, violet and fresh tobacco leaf, making this wine incredibly complex and still very youthful. Its layered and finely textured palate almost hides powerful density, with freshness to balance opulence, leading to a long finish. Serve with beef Wellington. Or cellar for 10 years for more tertiary flavours. (Drink between 2022-2065)Decanter | 98 DECDeep garnet colored, the 2010 Canon features wonderfully expressive notes of dried mulberries, stewed plums and baked black cherries with hints of mocha, bay leaves and fallen leaves. Full-bodied, opulent and super spicy, it has a plush texture with a racy line supporting the hedonic fruit, finishing with jaw-dropping persistence.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RPWonderful nose with strawberries, cherry blossom, and vanilla. The red opens up with blueberries, milk chocolate and sweet licorice. Full and juicy on palate with pure dark fruit and velvety tannins. So nicely layered texture and long in the finish with red fruit and crushed chalk. The texture is superb. Drink from 2018.James Suckling | 96 JSPowerful, complex and ripe, this is a magnificent and concentrated wine. Juicy blackberry fruits, tight acidity and finely integrated tannins give a smooth, rich texture. This beautiful wine has long-term aging potential.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEShows the velvety, more hedonistic style that marked the wines under the previous winemaker, with lush blackberry and boysenberry fruit inlaid with ample toast and singed spice, displaying wonderful integration. This has shed some of its flash, as the vintage is big enough to soak it up. Still has a ways to go to.—Non-blind Canon vertical (December 2016). Best from 2020 through 2030. 6,665 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS(Château Canon) The 2010 Château Canon is one of the absolute successes in the commune in this vintage. The bouquet is deep, powerful and nicely reserved, offering up scents of black cherries, dark berries, menthol, woodsmoke, tobacco ash, soil and just a touch of new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, broad-shouldered, full-bodied and impressively pure for the vintage, with a fine core, substantial, ripe tannins, low acids and excellent length and grip on the chewy finish. The blend this year is comprised of seventy-five percent merlot and twenty-five percent cabernet franc and (sadly), one-quarter of the wine’s malo was done in small barrels this year. There is no mention of the wine’s alcohol level in 2010 in the technical data that I received, but it is probably around 14.5 percent. But a noteworthy success. (Drink between 2025-2075)John Gilman | 93+ JGThe 2010 Canon is a little disappointing on the nose in the context of a strong Right Bank flight. It feels a little loose-knit, lacks the same pixelation as its peers. It almost reminds me of a mature Chambolle-Musigny! The palate is medium-bodied with a slightly minty opening. Matters improve with fine structure, gentle grip and some lovely black truffle notes towards the finish. Perhaps there are better bottles out there? Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 91 VM

One of the finest wines to come from Cantenac Brown for many years, this is powerful and dense, dominated by Cabernet Franc tannins and fruits. The structure has a smooth, polished character that locates it firmly in Margaux, giving elegance and discreet fruitiness. Age this fine wine for many years.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEThe greatest Cantenac Brown I have ever tasted, the 2010 is one for the ages. Dense purple, with an extraordinary nose of sweet forest floor, blackberry jam, pen ink and graphite, this wine soars from the glass, giving it an aromatic dimension and intensity I have never seen from this estate. The tannins are present, as they are in most Cantenac Browns, but the wine’s sweetness, broad, skyscraper-like mouthfeel, dense, purple color and spectacular length (close to a minute) make this a giant classic and a fabulous sleeper of the vintage that still remains under-priced, considering how great its potential may be. This is a wine for those with cold cellars and youthful DNA. It is going to need at least a decade of cellaring and should last for 20-40 years. A classic!Robert Parker | 94+ RPThe 2010 Cantenac Brown feels a little muted on the nose compared to its peers, but with modest aeration it develops very attractive, leafy black fruit, tertiary in style and beautifully defined. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, very well judged acidity and plenty of substance towards the finish. I love the cohesion and focus of this Margaux. I wrote to buy this after its impressive showing at Southwold in 2014 - yet another blind tasting confirms its pedigree. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 94 VMBeautiful dark inky purple with ruby highlights. The difference with 2009 is clear in terms of structure, style and knitted-down fruit. They are both brilliant, and quality-wise it’s hard to pick as they have such different personalities. Higher acidity in 2010 set against confident tannins means your mouth is watering by the mid palate and it doesn’t let up. Tons of black fruits and evident spice, slate, cigar box and liquorice bud, savoury and still zipped up. It needs a few more years in bottle before it will really start to soften. 45% of harvest in the 1st wine, 60% new oak. Drinking Window 2022 - 2038.Decanter | 94 DECA wine with firm tannins that are polished and reserved yet there’s an underlying richness of fruit. Plums, blueberries and citrus character. Some tar too. Juicy and delicious to taste. Try in 2016.James Suckling | 94 JSVery fresh, with a bold display of dark blueberry, loganberry and plum fruit aromas and flavors that push ahead, followed by singed spice, black licorice and toasty vanilla bean notes. Displays a polished feel on the finish, kept honest by a buried charcoal accent. Shows plenty of length for the cellar. Best from 2014 through 2028.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

The definition of poised and confident, this has pretty much consistently delivered since the very first taste during En Primeur. Deeply layered, textured, confident and powerful, both very Pomerol and very 2010. Coffee beans and bitter chocolate are the dominant flavours alongside cassis and blackberry autumnal berry fruits. Both gourmet and restrained. Just about ready to go but will hugely benefit from three to four hours in carafe first, and will further improve over the next few years, and indeed over the decades to come. Drinking Window 2020 - 2045Decanter | 97 DECGorgeous nose with lots of dark fruit like plum and blueberries. Crushed pepper and chalk with wild strawberries and vanilla. Dense and velvety on the palate with superbly polished tannins and great depth. It’s absolutely gorgeous now but needs at least five to six years of bottle age to really shows its great quality.James Suckling | 97 JSThe blend is largely dominated by 85% Merlot, with some Cabernet Sauvignon and a small amount of Cabernet Franc also included. Inky/purple-colored, the wine has an exceptionally full-bodied, layered, moderately tannic mouthfeel and impressive power. Loads of melted chocolate/fudge and black fruits galore along with some coffee bean, mocha, as well as some background oak are all present in this big, formidably endowed, masculine style of Pomerol that will take longer to shed its tannin than the 2009. I would give this wine 5-6 years of cellaring and drink it over the following 30+ years.The 2010 is another fabulous effort from this estate of just over 20 acres located in the sector named the same as the chateau, Clinet. Modest yields of 38 hectoliters per hectare produced a final blend that hit 14.4% natural alcohol.Robert Parker | 96+ RPThe 2010 Clinet is a baby, but man, what a wine. Checking in as mostly Merlot, with small amounts of both Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc, this deep ruby/purple-tinged beauty gives up fresh, tight aromas of blackcurrants, black cherries, damp earth and forest floor, with its background oak buffered by serious amounts of fruit. Full-bodied, concentrated and deep, yet also elegant and layered, with the freshness, purity, and structure of the vintage, it sings even today with a decant, but is best with a few more year of bottle age. It’s going to keep for 2-3 decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 96 JDThe 2010 Clinet has a crisp, precise bouquet that is tightly wound but extremely well focused. It would benefit from decanting of preferably more bottle age. The palate is medium-bodied with fine grain tannins, impressive backbone with black fruit laced with white pepper, sage and cedar towards the persistent finish. This is a serious Pomerol with huge potential. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 95+ VMThis showy, packed and well-endowed Pomerol pumps out notes of warm linzer torte, plum preserves and blackberry reduction, all supported by a broad, charcoal- and ganache-coated structure and deeply embedded acidity. Very muscular on the back end, this boasts a still-chewy feel. Among the most backward of the 2010 Pomerols, this requires significant cellaring. For those who enjoy more power than subtlety. Best from 2017 through 2035. 3,333 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WSNew wood mint aromas give this wine its great polished feel. The tannins offer a counterpoint of richness here, firm and dense. The fruit takes a while to show through, then brings the fine plum skin flavors suffusing through the wine.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WE

Loads of tension and form. It can be cellared for decades, but it’s balanced and beautiful already. Lots of blueberry, licorice and blackberry character. Try in 2018.James Suckling | 96 JSThe 2010 Lagrange was picked from 29 September to 20 October. This is even better than the 2009 on the nose with beautifully defined brambly red fruit, crushed stone, violet and iris aromas, almost pixelated in detail. The palate is medium-bodied with very fine tannins, precise and focused with a silky mouthfeel. This fans out beautifully, certainly one of the more approachable 2010s but a wine full of class and immense breeding. Outstanding - a benchmark for the estate. Tasted at the Lagrange vertical at the estate.Vinous Media | 95 VMThis again is a brilliant St-Julien - full of joy and finesse and elegance. Black fruits and smoke combine with a slate minerality - I love it.This is also one that offers good value for money and will be a perfect match for food. Can drink now, or wait, and will age. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042Decanter | 94 DECWith vineyards in the west of Saint-Julien, Lagrange produces wines that are polished and elegant. In 2010, that style has been suffused with tannins while also delivering a black currant flavor. The wine is rich and ripe, with just the right amount of tannic structure for the fruit.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WEThis property, on the western plateau of St-Julien, includes 292 acres of vines on soils that vary from coarse to fine gravels, combined with sand or clay. Suntory purchased the property in 1983 and hired Marcel Ducasse, who restored it to prominence during his 24 years at the helm. Now run by Matthieu Bordes and Keiichi Shiina, Lagrange produces sleek wines. This is not a fat St-Julien, though their 2010 is succulent, opening over the course of several days to racy, dark plum fruit and a narrow course of tannins. Still youthful, this is approachable and lovely after long hours in a decanter, and it will reward patient cellaring.Wine & Spirits | 93 W&SNotes of singed alder, graphite and charcoal wrap around the core of intense blackberry paste, warm plum sauce and currant preserves. Turns sleek and racy on the well-knit finish despite the notable grip. Best from 2015 through 2030.Wine Spectator | 92 WS(Château Lagrange) I did not have time to drop by Château Lagrange to taste the 2010 sur place, so I do not have a note this year on their fine second wine, Les Fiefs de Lagrange, but the grand vin was showing very well at the UGC event. The bouquet is deep, pure, refined and seems decidedly less ripe than several others, as it offers up a black fruity mélange of cassis, dark berries, gentle herb tones, tobacco leaf, espresso, gravel and a deft base of new wood. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and impressively seamless, with a ripe personality, lovely mid-palate depth, well-balanced tannins and very fine length and grip on the reserved and classy finish. A really lovely example of the vintage. (Drink between 2022-2075)John Gilman | 92+ JGDeep garnet in color, the 2010 Lagrange gives up notes of baked blackcurrants, stewed plums and fried herbs with nuances of crushed rocks and balsamic plus a touch of fungi. Full-bodied, the palate has a firm line of grainy tannins and fantastic freshness helping to define the black fruit and earthy flavors, finishing a little lifted.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90 RP

A very classic wine for patient connoisseurs, Sociando Mallet makes no compromises and continues to produce one of the finest wines among non-classified estates in Haut-Medoc. Dense purple to the rim, the opaque purple-colored 2010 offers up notes of graphite, blueberry and black raspberry fruit, a hint of cassis, some licorice and wet rocks. Deep, full-bodied and almost excruciatingly tannic, this full-throttle, balls-to-the-wall style of wine needs at least 8-10 years of cellaring and should keep for three decades or more.Robert Parker | 91+ RPThe 2010 Sociando Mallet has a well defined, pure bouquet with blackberry, bilberry and light estuarine scents that gently waft from the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, a fine bead of acidity and good weight. It just needs more complexity and terroir expression on the finish. Give this another two or three years. This is one wine where I have encountered better bottles. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 90+ VMLifted aromas of eucalyptus and menthol, with an initial attack of juicy dark fruit - but this drops on the mid-palate, and the tannins still feel a touch drying. Needs more time. Drinking Window 2019 - 2029.Decanter | 90 DEC

Dense ruby/purple, it tips the scales at 15% natural alcohol and was bottled unfined and unfiltered. Full-bodied in texture, it offers up loads of blueberry, blackberry and raspberry fruit intermixed with some cedar, vanilla and a touch of spring flowers. Impressively built, with good acidity and light tannin, this is a superb example of wine that reaches its prime in 3 or 4 years and lasts two decades. It’s right up there with their brilliant 2005.From an estate owned by Dominique and Florence Decoster, this wine has been a real treasure to follow over the last decade. Another over-achieving, brilliant effort from the Decosters, the 2010 from their 45-acre vineyard is a blend of 70% Merlot and the rest equal parts Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon.Robert Parker | 95 RPThis for me has a better balance than the 2009, same alcohol but here it is effortlessly eaten up by the rich dark fruits, with cassis, blueberry, bilberry and blackberry all apparent, with texture and juice. It’s gourmet, with a black chocolate, slightly bitter edge, even with traces of menthol as the Cabernets take the lead here. Small yield at 36hl/ha. Harvest October 18 right through to November 5, which sounds extreme but bear in mind this is the cooler section of the plateau back towards the border with Castillon and these soils take longer to fully ripen their grapes. Drinking Window 2019 - 2044.Decanter | 94 DECBlack ruby. Superripe, sexy aromas of blackberry pastille and blueberry. Creamy-sweet-verging-on-confectionery, but with harmonious acidity giving shape and energy to the wine's superconcentrated dark fruit and floral flavors. Best today on the broad, energetic finish, which features substantial ripe, fine-grained tannins and slowly mounting floral persistence. A knockout.Vinous Media | 94 VMWow. This shows an impressive richness on the nose of cappuccino, ripe berries and dried flowers. Full body with velvety tannins and a fine finish. Rich and delicious. Harmonious and luscious. So delicious now but better in 2017.James Suckling | 93 JSThis is rich and very plush, but really pure as well, with gorgeous macerated cherry, cassis and blackberry preserves flavors gliding along, carried by remarkably polished tannins. Flecks of bergamot, blood orange and apple wood fill in on the finish, with a fine minerality buried as well. This should be lovely after some cellaring. Best from 2015 through 2030. 6,083 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

The 2010 Branaire-Ducru has a lovely mélange of red and black fruit, hints of dried blood and autumn leaves suggesting that this is moving into its secondary phase. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, a fine bead of acidity, good body and a fresh marine-tinged finish that is an absolute joy. There is an abiding symmetry about this wine and it is in for the long-haul. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 95 VMA vintage that just no question suits the soils of St-Julien. This is yet again showcasing the best of this property, with well placed juicy tannins and overall clear balance. Elegant and concentrated without straying into overpowering. Black fruits, stones, earth and spice. Will age for decades but it so drinkable already. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042.Decanter | 95 DECThis rich, full wine shows the chateau to be at the top of its form. It’s finely balanced, pushing both its fruit and acidity, with the tannins taking the supporting role. With its power leashed, this shows the stylish side of Saint-Julien, although it will certainly age for many years.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEThis wine is more backward than I would have normally expected, but nevertheless, it is very impressive. The 2010 Branaire-Ducru displays an inky bluish purple color and loads of mulberry, raspberry, black currant, graphite and floral notes in its intense aromatics. Medium to full-bodied , with sensational ripeness, purity, texture and length, the tannins are slightly more prominent than I remember from barrel, but they are sweet and ripe (as opposed to astringent and bitter). This beautiful wine needs 4-6 years of cellaring and should keep 25-30 years.Producer Patrick Maroteaux continues to fine-tune and turn out a succession of brilliant wines from this chateau, which sits across the famous Medoc Route du Vin from Beychevelle.Robert Parker | 94 RPVery polished and stylish, with a velvety feel to the layers of crushed plum, currant and blackberry, while bittersweet cocoa and black licorice glide in on the gorgeous, black tea-infused finish. Features a lovely allure rather than raw power, making this possibly the prettiest St.-Julien of the vintage. There’s plenty in the tank for cellaring as well. Best from 2014 through 2030. 15,000 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WSA layered young red with lots of black olives and berries on the nose. Full body, with velvety and chewy tannins. It all comes together at the end with a lovely sweet fruit. Try after 2017.James Suckling | 94 JS(Château Branaire-Ducru) The 2010 Branaire-Ducru has turned out very well indeed in this vintage, but this is an estate that has often done quite well in riper years like 1982 and 1989. The nose is deep, impressively pure and sappy, as it offers up scents of blackberries, black cherries, cigar smoke, soil, espresso and toasty new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, tight and ripely tannic, with a fine core of fruit, very good balance and a long, poised and reserved finish. This will need the better part of a decade to soften and start to drink well (in notable contrast to ripe vintages such as 1989, where Branaire-Ducru was irresistible out of the blocks), but this should be a very good example of 2010, once it has had sufficient time in the cellar. (Drink between 2020-2060).John Gilman | 91+ JG

Firm tannins still at 10 years very much showing their quality and flexibility. This is brilliant, cassis, bilberry, touches of hawthorn and liquorice. An estate that struggled for consistency at times during the 10 years before this, but it had started to settle into far more regular success at this point, and here it is at the top of its game. Drinking Window 2020 - 2042.Decanter | 95 DECBeautiful aromas of blackberries, currants and flowers. Very aromatic. Full body, with ultra-fine tannins and gorgeous fruit. It’s polished and very refined. One of the best Beychevelles in years. Try in 2018.James Suckling | 95 JSShowing better from bottle than it did from barrel, where it was also impressive, but not quite at this level, the 2010 Beychevelle displays sweet black currant, black cherry, foresty notes, medium to full-bodied texture with impressive purity and moderately high tannins (although they’ve softened considerably during the wine’s upbringing in barrel). Layered and rich for a Beychevelle, this wine should easily withstand three decades of cellaring. I would give it another 3-4 years of bottle age, but this is a fabulous effort from the first chateau one sees upon entering the appellation of St.-Julien.Robert Parker | 94 RPThe 2010 Beychevelle has a dense bouquet with blackberry and wild hedgerow aromas. The oak is neatly integrated and with subtle iodine scents developing with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with fine grain tannins, a superb line of acidity, fresh and vibrant with a distinctive graphite note towards the Pauillac-like finish. I love the linearity and precision of this Saint-Julien, real class here. Tasted blind at Farr Vintners 10-Year On Bordeaux horizontal.Vinous Media | 94 VMBeychevelle’s style privileges elegance over weight, and such is the case with the 2010. It’s a pure-fruited, ripe and lightly tannic wine, emphasizing a blackberry note. This will evolve relatively quickly, reaching a peak in approximately eight years.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WEFeatures a gutsy feel, displaying dark, roasted cedar and tobacco notes framing a core of steeped fig, blackberry paste and plum skin that rumbles through the tarry finish. Shows strong grip on the back end, with the briary edge extending nicely. Best from 2016 through 2035.Wine Spectator | 93 WS(Château Beychevelle) The 2010 Beychevelle has turned out quite well, but this is one of the headier examples of the vintage on the Left Bank, as it tips the scales at 14.25 percent alcohol. Nevertheless, the wine shows quite well, as it offers up a ripe, but not overripe, aromatic mélange of sappy black cherries, cassis, cigar smoke, lovely soil tones, fresh herbs and a stylish base of new wood. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, powerful and sappy at the core, with ripe, well-integrated tannins, tangy acids and very good length and grip on the impressively focused finish. It is no small feat to maintain such fine balance at this octane level, but the team at Beychevelle has done an admirable job in 2010. I should note that I tasted this sample at the estate, as the samples at the UGC event were not on form. (Drink between 2025-2075).John Gilman | 92 JGNo written review provided. | 92 W&S

Bright, deep ruby-red. Slightly high-toned scents of raspberry, coffee, milk chocolate and rose petal, plus some Old World hints of meat and earth. Utterly fine-grained and seamless on entry, with perfectly integrated acidity and a floral element giving clarity and lift to the red fruit, spice and mineral flavors. A first sample of this wine showed some porty high tones but this one is refined and pure, rich but not a bit heavy. In fact, it’s wonderfully delineated, aromatic and fresh in the style of a top Pomerol. Finishes with firm, dusty, nicely buffered tannins, terrific thrust and sneaky rising floral perfume. This wonderfully elegant, pure, broad wine comes across as less wild than the Le Désir and La Joie bottlings. It should continue to evolve gracefully on its balance and palate-saturating breadth. Wow! Held up beautifully with aeration.Vinous Media | 97 VMThe 2010 La Muse (14.4% alcohol) is a blend of 84% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Franc and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon. One of the more soft, opulent, precocious wines I have tasted from this estate, it exhibits abundant notes of spicy oak, plum, Asian soy, new saddle leather, barrique, black cherries and black currants. Round and generous with considerable fat and succulence, it can be drunk in 2-3 years or cellared for 15-20.Robert Parker | 94 RPRipe and mature-tasting, with decadent cooking spice notes to the brooding dark currant and dried berry flavors. Green olive details show on the viscous finish. Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Drink now. 1,200 cases made.Wine Spectator | 91 WS

One the finest Clerc Milons I have ever tasted, and showing better from bottle than from barrel, this blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 36% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Franc and the rest a tiny bit of Carmenere and Petit Verdot has a complex nose of cedar wood, red and black fruits, white chocolate and creme de cassis. A very powerful wine at 14.5% natural alcohol (quite high for a Medoc), this wine has impressive purity and texture, a full-bodied mouthfeel, relatively sweet tannin, but an already endearing complexity, length and richness that are hard to ignore. This is a superb effort and one of the wines that is usually reasonably priced among the classified growths.Robert Parker | 94 RPRock-solid, with layers of baker’s chocolate and espresso lining the steeped plum and blackberry fruit flavors while intense charcoal fills in on the hefty finish. Backward now, but showing excellent intensity and dark fruit, with a tug of singed iron on the finish. Best from 2018 through 2030. Tasted twice, with consistent notes.Wine Spectator | 94 WSOpulent aromas of plum, blackberry and cassis reveal a still tannic and dense palate: needs five more years to enter a proper drinking window. Though not yet reaching the heights of later vintages (the new winery opened in 2011), 2010 is a star. Given cooler clay soils, the grapes ripen later than at Mouton Rothschild, under the same ownership, but the long hang time of 2010 ensured ripening. Aged beef sirloin in a peppercorn sauce pairs well. (Drink between 2021-2050)Decanter | 94 DECGorgeous currants and spices with licorice on the nose. Full body, with super integrated tannins and a long, long finish. The texture and beautiful fruit just wants you to drink this. Give it time but hard to wait. Try in 2016.James Suckling | 94 JSConfirming its place in the firmament of Pauillac greats, Clerc Milon’s 2010 has huge density, and is packed with dark tannins and blackberry flavor. It has a delicious freshness that cuts right through, lifting the concentration. With its tannins, this promises long-term aging.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WEThe 2010 Clerc-Milon has a superior bouquet compared to the d’Armailhac with greater precision and purity, gorgeous blackberry, raspberry and cedar, actually not a million miles away from Duhart in style. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, beautifully balanced with just a touch of bell pepper on the finish. This is just beginning to drink well. Tasted from an ex-château bottle at the BI Wines & Spirits 10-Year On tasting.Vinous Media | 92 VM

Massive, concentrated and powerful, this offers lush, heady flavors of dark plum, blackberry and cherry tart, with touches of anise. Shows plenty of grip as well, with a long, rich finish of dark chocolate, toffee and cream. Best from 2040 through 2060. 2,190 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 98 WSA powerful, spicy wine, luscious in its peppered berry fruits and sweet tannins. The structure is dramatic, offering a smooth texture as well as a drier core. With its weight, density and dark, final character, this is a wine for serious aging.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEBright, saturated dark ruby. Spectacularly multifaceted nose combines high-pitched medicinal cherry, briary black raspberry, pungent menthol, dried herbs, incense, Indian spices and a whiff of passion fruit. Boasts great creamy depth and vinosity to its black raspberry and licorice flavors, with huge sweetness buffered by spicy minerality. The note of passion fruit carries through on the palate. Really reverberates on the back end, finishing with powerful tannins and a rising whiplash of flavor. This got better and better with extended aeration, with the tannins making it obvious that it will be extremely long-lived.Vinous Media | 96+ VMVery grapy and leafy with hints of spices on the nose. Full body, medium sweet with fine, chewy tannins. Powerful, long finish with nuts and shaved chocolate. This young Fonseca has grip. 6,000 cases produced of this foot-trodden wine. Try in 2022.James Suckling | 95 JS David Guimaraens blends this wine from three vineyards, the style focused on Cima Corgo suppleness from fruit at Panascal in the Távora Valley, along with Cruziero and Santo António in the Pinhão Valley. The 2011 is hugely powerful, presenting a solid wall of schist tannins with the gentleness of perfect ripeness. The wine shows no seams, just a vast, dynamic blackness, a meaty, tarry, berry fruit drama that will play out for decades.Wine & Spirits | 95 W&SThe 2011 Late Bottled Vintage Port is an unfiltered field blend that comes with a bar top cork. It comes in at 108 grams per liter of residual sugar and was bottled in 2016, according to the label. Rather gorgeous, this fresh, tight and powerful Fonseca is perfectly focused, extracted and tightly-wound, finishing with intensity of flavor laced with some herbs and a hint of garrigue. Yet, everything is always in a very controlled fashion brilliantly supported by its structure. This is a beauty, another super 2011 LBV.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 92 RP

A big, broad, powerful style, with piecrust, roasted almond and hazelnut cream notes framing the core of apricot, creamed peach and dried mango. Picks up extra fig and pear details through the toasty finish. Needs a bit of time to finish sorting itself out. Best from 2017 through 2030. 5,415 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WSThe dried-mango and pineapple character is so delicious in this wine. It’s full-bodied and medium-sweet, with a pretty density and a fruity finish. Wonderful balance to this super Sauternes. This is a little in reserve now, with so much for the future. Try in 2017.James Suckling | 96 JSTasted blind at the Sauternes 2011 horizontal tasting. The Château Suduiraut 2011 has a muffled nose at first: dried honey and quince, wet wool and marzipan scents that gradually open up with aeration. Coming back after 10 minutes there is a heartwarming gingerbread note. The palate is viscous on the entry and full of tension. There is a keen line of acidity here, quite linear at first, but it fans out nicely toward the finish and offers notes of honey, mandarin and even a touch of rhubarb! This is a class act, a Sauternes that does not need to shout about its inherent qualities.Robert Parker Neal Martin | 93 RP-NMHeady apricot and mango nose. Concentrated and creamy, with density and weight of fruit. The oak is integrated and the wine is harmonious in a rich rather than racy style. Long. Drinking Window 2016 - 2050.Decanter | 93 DEC(Château Suduiraut (Sauternes)) The 2011 Suduiraut is one of the most delicately styled and dancing wines of the vintage in Sauternes. The deep, pure and very clean nose soars from the glass in a classically glazed mélange of bee pollen, pear, fresh pineapple, honeycomb, chalky soil tones, apple blossoms and vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, very pure and crisp, with very good mid-palate depth, fine focus and balance and a very long, light on its feet and complex finish. I really like the elegant style and shape of the 2011 Suduiraut. (Drink between 2016-2040)John Gilman | 93+ JGVery fresh and strongly fruity, with just the right amount of dry botrytis, this is already approachable. However that botrytis does promise aging, with peach and ripe orange flavors pushing forward. Drink this attractive wine from 2019.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WEThe 2011 Suduiraut, picked from 12 September to 5 October in three tries through the vineyard, has an intriguing bouquet. It does not possess the thrilling intensity of the 2014 and 2015 tasted alongside, replicating the wet wool, almost Loire-like bouquet that I picked up upon in previous encounters. The palate is well balanced with a slightly viscous texture. This is a gentle Suduiraut, missing the complexity of a top vintage but fresh and generous. It is linear in style, some might say conservative with just a touch of gingerbread on the finish. Fine. 148gm/L residual sugar, 13.5% alcohol. Tasted at the Suduiraut vertical at the château.Vinous Media | 92 VM

A style that is a complete outlier. Easy to spot for those who have tasted it. Like entering a Moroccan souk to the smell of incense, sweet dates, clove and tamarind. Sweet and supple, with pixelated tannins and a waft of gentle freshness. Not the best vintage? Drink now. Alkina Grenache Assembly tasting.James Suckling | 96 JSBright ruby-red. An exotic bouquet presents black raspberry, incense, Asian spices and blood orange. On the palate, sweet red and dark berry flavors become more tangy and spicy with air. Shows an impressive blend of depth and vivacity and finishes with outstanding focus and thrust and gentle tannic grip. Evidently this wine didn’t get the memo that 2011 couldn’t produce outstanding wines.Vinous Media | 94 VMFrom a bottle purchased in the Rhône, the 2011 Châteauneuf Du Pape Reserve is a pretty, perfumed Rayas that shows the more moderately concentrated, open, and complex style of the vintage. Translucent ruby-hued, with a great nose of sweet kirsch liqueur, white pepper, dried flowers, and Provençal herbs, it hits the palate with medium-bodied richness, a layered, silky, seductive mouthfeel, soft tannins, and outstanding length. Almost reminding me of the 2008, it’s a much lighter style of Rayas that checks in well behind the truly great vintages here, but it still brings that “je ne sais quoi” Rayas character that’s impossible to find outside of this hollowed terroir. Enjoy bottles any time over the coming decade or so.Jeb Dunnuck | 91 JD

As for the 2012 La Mission Haut Brion, this wine (41% of the total production) continues to perform as it has for nearly a century. At first-growth levels of quality, this is s stunning wine that is full-bodied and very concentrated with notes of graphite, subtle charcoal embers, crème de cassis, blackberry and underlying subtle earthiness. The wine is full and powerful, rich and concentrated. And sure enough, the alcohol level tips the scales at 15% from a blend 62% Merlot and 38% Cabernet Franc. This is a big, blockbuster La Mission Haut Brion that should age effortlessly for 30-40+ years. However, the tannins suggest that this wine should not be touched for another 5-6 years, as its one of the more backward of the 2012 Pessac-Léognans. Bravo!Robert Parker | 97 RPContinuing to show brilliantly, the 2012 Chateau La Mission Haut-Brion is a quintessential Graves, boasting a deep purple color as well as heavenly aromatics of blackcurrants, tobacco, scorched earth, graphite, and licorice. It’s a big, full-bodied beauty yet has a weightless, elegant style, building tannins, and a great finish. It needs a solid hour in a decanter if drinking today and promises to evolve beautifully for another 3-4 decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDOne of the clear wines of the vintage, the 2012 La Mission Haut-Brion shows off a vertical sense of structure along with imposing tannins and serious depth. The flavors are dark, bold and extremely vivid. Dark red cherry, smoke, grilled herbs, graphite and blackberry jam are some of the many notes that come alive on the finish. This brooding La Mission needs a few years to settle down after which it will offer spectacular drinking for several decades. In a word: magnificent!Antonio Galloni | 96 AG(Château La Mission Haut-Brion, Pessac-Léognan, Bordeaux, France, Red) Ripe roasted fruit with considerable extract and personality. Full, powerful mid-palate and length of flavour. This benefited in 2012 from the property’s early-ripening terroir. (Drink between 2022-2042)Decanter | 96 DECThis is closed up, dry and tough on the outside. But you can feel the rich weight and the dark tannins along with the powerful structure. That makes this wine both replete with a firm character and also full of generous, concentrated black fruits. It’s a powerful wine, ready for good aging; drink from 2022.Wine Enthusiast | 96 WEGorgeous aromas of stones, currants and blueberries. Very aromatic. Mesmerizing. Full body, silky tannins and a long finish. Dense and rich. Layered. Earth and bark character. Lots of structure for the vintage. Better in 2019.James Suckling | 94 JSThe rigid tar and bramble frame should eventually meld with the core of plum, blackberry and macerated black currant fruit, featuring ample energy and a graphite note through the finish. Just a little bit of patience required here. Best from 2018 through 2025. 5,176 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

A gorgeous wine from proprietor Denis Durantou, this blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc is an inky purple color, with gorgeous purity of black raspberries, blackcurrants and blackberry with a hint of truffle and spring flowers. Its is full-bodied, opulent and a tour de force in this vintage. Great presence on the palate, fabulous purity and a long finish make for a magnificent bottle of wine to drink over the next 20-some years.Robert Parker | 96 RPThe 2012 L’Eglise Clinet is a real head-turner. Explosive and rich in the glass, the 2012 boasts superb depth throughout. Sweet floral and spiced notes develop first, followed by intense red and blue-fleshed fruit. Violets, mint, sage and sweet spices add nuance as the 2012 opens up, but it is really the wine’s vertical structure that stands out above all else. I very much like the pure energy that is so central to the wine’s personality. This is a superb showing, and one of the clear highlights of the year. Readers should cellar the 2012 for at least a few years.Antonio Galloni | 95 AGThis delivers a gorgeously pure and racy core of raspberry, boysenberry and blackberry fruit, melded perfectly with singed black tea leaf, dried star anise and roasted apple wood notes. Velvety and alluring overall, but there’s a bright minerality buried on the finish. Best from 2016 through 2027. 1,417 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WSRich, ripe and dense. Expressive red berry nose with toasted oak evident. Sweet, plush mid-palate (heightened by 14.5% alcohol although that doesn’t show). Long, firm finish. A touch dry on the end. Drinking Window 2020 - 2032.Decanter | 91 DEC

There are 5,180 six-bottle cases of the 2012 Padrone. This is a fabulous wine, meant to evolve over three decades. It offers up notes of charcoal, scorched earth, blackcurrant, blackberry, chocolate and a touch of espresso. A wine of great intensity, full-bodied opulence and a multilayered mouthfeel, this is a formidably endowed, serious Cabernet Sauvignon-dominated wine from vineyards with some of the best fruit on the estate. Drink it over the next 30 years.Robert Parker | 97+ RPThe 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Padrone is dark and sumptuous from start to finish. Mocha, plums, smoke, new leather and French oak all flesh out in this brooding, intense Cabernet Sauvignon. The style is explosive and full of 2012 vintage exuberance. There is a lot to look forward to.Antonio Galloni | 90-92 AG

The 2012 Cheval Blanc boasts stunning power and a vertical, imposing sense of structure that is quite rare in this vintage. Dark and almost brooding in style, the Cheval is a rare 2012 that absolutely demands cellaring. Smoke, tobacco, incense and dark spices open up with time, but the 2012 is a reticent, tannic wine that is only showing the barest hints of its ultimate potential. This is a magnificent showing and one of the clear highlights of the year.Antonio Galloni | 97 AGA step up over the 2011, the 2012 Chateau Cheval Blanc offers a similar medium to full-bodied, elegant style yet has slightly more freshness and purity. Smoked black fruits, cassis, tobacco leaf, and sappy flower notes all emerge from this thrillingly textured, balanced, focused 2012. It opens up with time in the glass, has ripe, sweet tannins, and it’s another one of those wines that offers pleasure today yet will cruise for decades. The final blend is the usual 54% Merlot and 46% Cabernet Franc. Readers should be happy to have bottles in their cellars.Jeb Dunnuck | 96+ JD(Château Cheval Blanc, St-Émilion, Bordeaux, France, Red) A beautifully balanced claret with a fragrant silky texture, fine backbone and length on the palate, promising a long life. Not a ‘big’ wine but a delicious one with class. Made in the spanking new cellar (inaugurated June 2011). (Drink between 2022-2040)Decanter | 96 DECMedium to deep garnet colored, the 2012 Cheval Blanc reveals lovely cassis, warm black cherries and redcurrant jelly notions with underlying hints of cedar chest, garrigue, Indian spices and damp soil. Medium to full-bodied, it possesses wonderful energy and freshness on the palate with a beautifully poised ethereal nature and long mineral-tinged finish. This elegantly crafted beauty should enter its drinking window in a couple of years and cellar gracefully for another 20+ years.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95+ RPThis wine is gorgeous in all facets, offering a simultaneously loamy and creamy mouthfeel, seamless layers of red and black currant, cherry, raspberry and blackberry fruit, and a long, tobacco-fueled finish that features alluring hints of black tea and incense. The fruit and terroir shine in this broad, deep and defined style. Best from 2018 through 2030. 7,083 cases made.Wine Spectator | 95 WS(Château Cheval Blanc) The grand vin here this year is comprised of a blend of fifty-four percent merlot and forty-six percent cabernet franc and was produced from yields of thirty-one hectoliters per hectare. It is a great Cheval Blanc in the making, soaring from the glass in a classic blend of dark berries, mulberries, cigar smoke, espresso, lovely, cabernet franc-derived herb tones, menthol and a stylish base of nutty new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, pure and seamless, with a youthful personality, superb focus and balance, a fair bit of tannin and outstanding length and grip on the nascently complex and very, very promising finish. There was a pretty wide variety of samples of this wine on display at the château on the damp morning in early April when the estate was playing open house to visiting journalists (I overheard Michel Bettane comment that “every single bottle is different”), and one had to hunt around a bit to find a bottle that was not totally shut down, but the samples that were open for inspection clearly indicated that this will be a great, great vintage of Cheval Blanc. (Drink between 2025-2075).John Gilman | 95+ JGWith a wonderful 45% blending of fragrant Cabernet Franc, this is a sumptuous, perfumed wine. It’s rich with a velvet texture that hides the dark tannins while bringing out the rich plum flavors. The dense texture is balanced by some fresh acidity and a fruity aftertaste. Drink this deceptively approachable wine from 2024.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WEA ripe and fleshy St.-Emilion with an excellent interplay of forest berry fruit, bitter chocolate and a whiff of cinnamon and allspice. Lovely, creamy richness on the mid-palate, but also a hint of warmth from alcohol. The supple tannins make for a very smooth finish, but it’s not so complex there. Drink or hold. Château Quintus vertical tasting. SP.James Suckling | 93 JS

What a nose of blackberries, blackcurrants, minerals and graphite. Full-bodied and extremely fine and polished. Sexy and ethereal. Harmony. A little salty. Fabulous 2012. Pure silk. Better after 2020 but so wonderful now.James Suckling | 97 JSThis is a beautifully opulent wine, great Mouton in its richness and succulent fruits. It’s combines structure and obvious new-wood aging with hugely ripe black plum and currant flavors. While it is a pleasure to taste now, there is a great tannic structure in the background to give the sense of power and aging potential. Drink from 2024.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WETasted at the Mouton-Rothschild vertical in London, the 2012 Mouton-Rothschild clearly has the upper hand over the 2011, if not quite at the level of the 2009, 2010 and what I envisage will be the 2015. There is obviously greater fruit intensity here, as if the contrast has been dialed up a couple of notches. It is quite showy on the nose, preening in its infancy with pure black cherries, graphite and hints of cold slate-like scents, later that hint of seaweed I observed when tasted blind a few months earlier. The palate is beautifully balanced with great vim and vigor. This is a Mouton that will not be put down - vivacious, vivid and delineated with wonderful focus and crucially, impressive persistence on the finish. Do not underestimate this Mouton-Rothschild, because I can see an upswing as it matures in bottle. Tasted April 2016.Robert Parker Neal Martin | 96 RP-NMThe 2012 Mouton Rothschild comes across as quite dark and ripe in this vintage. One of the richest, most powerful 2012s readers will come across, the Mouton boasts striking aromatics and overall density. Mocha, chocolate, graphite, smoke, licorice and dark-fleshed fruits all meld together in the glass. I imagine the 2012 will need a good decade before it starts drinking well. Slightly roasted notes and copious new oak stick out today, but these wines have a way of coming together in bottle. Antonio Galloni | 95 AGWonderful expression of ’patrician’ black fruits, the expected exotic seduction of Mouton, a perfect blend of power and elegance. Drinking Window 2017 - 2035.Decanter | 95 DECThis is starting to mellow already, featuring dark fig and blackberry notes infused liberally with black tea and smoldering tobacco accents. Shows a light loamy echo through the finish, with a flash of menthol. Offers ample flesh throughout, with a slightly grainy edge to the tannins.--Non-blind Mouton-Rothschild vertical (March 2017). Best from 2020 through 2040.Wine Spectator | 94 WS(Château Mouton-Rothschild) The 2012 Château Mouton-Rothschild is a very good wine, being comprised of fully ninety percent cabernet sauvignon, eight percent merlot and two percent cabernet franc. It was raised in only seventy percent new oak this year- not a concession to the more elegant style of the 2012 vintage, but rather because the new chais includes new large wood fermentation tanks and these were also new oak this year. The wine is complex and classy on the nose, but just a touch overly slick for my pedestrian tastes, as it offers up a blend of cassis, dark berries, coffee bean, a dollop of licorice, dark soil tones and plenty of spicy, smoky new oak. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied and pure, with really lovely raw materials very much in evidence. The core is deep, the focus and balance here are very fine indeed and there are plenty of ripe, chewy tannins adding grip and potential longevity on the finish, and yet, for some reason, I am left with the impression that the whole this year is a bit less than the sum of its parts. This is a very well-made wine, but it seems to me to be a bit overly sculpted to ever really reach greatness. I miss the more effortless impression of a wine like the 1985 Mouton- which the 2012 vintage might have been able to reproduce flawlessly! (Drink between 2025-2075).John Gilman | 92 JG

A luscious red with dried berry, cherry and hints of cedar and tea. Full body, fine and velvety tannins and a long and flavorful finish. This is compacted and tight with great depth. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 95 JSThe 2012 Colore is on the market now. Production of 2013 and 2014 was skipped, and the next vintage we shall see (very soon) is 2015, which is also reviewed in this report. This vintage produced large berry sizes for Sangiovese—something Bibi Graetz is always happy to see because it is an indicator of elegance and finesse within the context of the house style. If you consider this wine, his observation makes perfect sense. This warm vintage is powerful and rich in its natural state, so any additional berry density might easily lead to overextraction and heaviness. However, the mouthfeel is objectively thinner and more compact in this vintage. Colore represents a blend of Sangiovese, Canaiolo and Colorino in equal parts. The bouquet is redolent of wild berry, dried cherry and toasted spice. This vintage offers a very attractive mineral note as well. Fruit is selected from three of Bibi Graetz’s favorite vineyards with ancient vines: Lamole (in Chianti Classico), Vincigliata and Siena. Only 5,000 bottles were made.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94 RPMuscular and concentrated, yet with a sense of elegance derived from vibrant acidity, this red displays black cherry, blackberry, leather, iron and tobacco flavors. Consistent from the start to the long finish. Sangiovese, Canaiolo and Colorino. Best from 2020 through 2028. 100 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 93 WSA tricky year with a very hot dry summer that resulted in low yields, but also marked by a wet September. The sour-cherry nose is fresh and lively. It’s medium-bodied but still quite concentrated, and while no blockbuster, it has density. It lacks some flesh and weight of fruit, resulting in a somewhat hollow mid-palate, but it’s attractive and already drinking well. Drinking Window 2021 - 2026.Decanter | 90 DEC

This has a lovely copper color with aromas of cloves, spiced apples, raspberries, gingerbread and pastries. Delicious yeasty and spicy undertones. Excellent density and focus, with fine and firm bubbles, yet it’s light on its feet and so fresh. Long, chalky and salty at the end. Chardonnay and pinot noir. 3.8g/L dosage. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 97 JSThe 2012 Brut Rosé Cuvée Elizabeth Salmon offers up hints of red berry fruit, ginger, spice, rosewater, mint and crushed flowers. There is a feeling of classic austerity that runs through the 2012. I would prefer to cellar this for at least a few years, as it is quite reticent at this stage. Chalk, mint, white pepper and bright saline accents linger on the pointed finish. Dosage is 3.8 grams per liter. Disgorged: first trimester 2023.Vinous Media | 96 VMElisabeth Salmon 2012 shows all the signs of being a true classic for Billecart-Salmon, beautifully balanced between the most alluring Pinot aromatics – black cherry juice, peach melba and fresh raspberry – and an engine of pure, persistent Chardonnay energy of bright clementine and zesty length, all lifted with subtle details of allspice, rose petal and nougat and delivered on an effortlessly silky mousse. Open for business, yet without the showiness that the wines of this vintage can sometimes display, it’s a rosé of assured refinement and quiet intensity that seems set for a long future. 55% Chardonnay from Chouilly, Avize, Cramant and Le Mesnil-sur-Oger with 45% Pinot Noir from Mareuil-sur-Aÿ and Ambonnay, with 8.3% red wine addition from Mareuil-sur-Aÿ. 2.9% fermented in barrel, and released after 115 months on lees with a dosage of 3.8g/L.Decanter | 95 DEC

This is amazing on the nose with blackberries, black truffle, dried cherries and hints of tobacco. It’s so complex on the nose that you almost don’t need to taste it. Full body, soft and velvety tannins and a persistent, fabulous finish. The mouthfeel is magic. 80% sangiovese and 20% cabernet sauvignon. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 97 JSThe 2013 Tignanello represents the beginning of a new chapter for Italy’s ultimate game-changer wine. The blend remains 80% Sangiovese with 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc but Renzo Cotarella tells me "stylistically-speaking, this is what we wanted to achieve." The winemaking formula remains the same, but one of the major differences and benefits to this wine is vineyard age. The celebrated Tignanello single vineyard is now reaching 15 years old. In other words, it is in its production prime. This is a harmonious and beautifully integrated wine that reveals black fruit and baking spice. I’m told the 2014 Tignanello will have a greater percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon and the 2015 vintage will have more Sangiovese.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPThe 2013 Tignanello is a real knock-out. Rich and intense, but also linear in style, the 2013 is endowed with superb energy from start to finish. In this vintage, the Cabernet Sauvignon and Franc character is especially evident, especially in the aromatics. Today, the 2013 is tightly wound and not ready to show all of its cards. Readers will have to be patient with the 2013, but the wine has plenty to say. Above all else, this is a remarkable level of quality for a wine with Bordeaux First Growth production (but not price) often in excess of 25,000 cases.Antonio Galloni | 95+ AGDefined by licorice and black currant aromas and flavors, this is intense and harmonious. A crisp, vibrant feel pervades as this winds down, showing excellent length and a minerally element.—Non-blind Tignanello vertical (October 2019). Best from 2023 through 2043. 2,500 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 95 WSWinemaker Renzo Cotarella declared the 2013 to be one of the most vibrant Tignanellos Antinori has ever made. It recalls 2010 but is a slightly less powerful package. The Cabernet Sauvignon is particularly evident at the moment, with well-defined nuances of blackberry bush. Notes of fresh dark earth, red cherry and minerality lurk underneath. The tannins are long and refined but not quite ready to relax their grip. Currently austere rather than generous, this needs time to knit together. Drinking Window 2021 - 2036.Decanter | 95 DECVibrant and loaded with finesse, this blend of 80% Sangiovese, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc opens with enticing scents of red woodland berry, new leather, Asian spice and a touch of menthol. The youthful palate delivers red currant, wild cherry, star anise and clove alongside a backbone of firm acidity and polished, tightly wound tannins. It will age majestically; drink 2020–2033.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WEFlavors of black currant and tobacco bring the influence of Cabernet Sauvignon (15 percent) and Cabernet Franc (5 percent) to the fore in this Sangiovese-based blend. Ample alcohol lends a Bourbon-like edge to the wine’s oak-derived accents of vanilla and coconut, but Sangiovese’s firm, raspy tannins guide the wine back toward red cherry flavors and into a long, smoky finish.Wine & Spirits | 92 W&S

The 2013 Cappella is dense, young and full of energy. Black cherry, plum, chocolate, new leather and licorice are front and center. Still young and vibrant, the 2013 is seriously impressive. It can be enjoyed now, but another few years in bottle will help soften the tannins further. What a stellar wine it is. The 2013 is a blend of 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 18% Cabernet Franc, 8% Petit Verdot and 6% Merlot. At this stage, this is the most approachable 2013 in the range.Vinous Media | 97 VMThe Cappella, which usually has at least 35-30% Cabernet Franc in it, looks absolutely fabulous now that the 2013 Cappella is finally in bottle. They only made about 206 cases of it, so it’s a small cuvée from this vineyard on the back streets of St. Helena. It displays sweet espresso notes, loads of white chocolate, blackberry, Asian spice and incense. It is full-bodied and opulent, with the tannins surprisingly silky and well-disguised, which is somewhat unusual in this vintage of extraordinary power and density. This is a 35- to 50-year wine.Robert Parker | 96 RPThis has the broad-shouldered persona of the vintage, but its muscular physique is deftly cloaked in velvety structure, with loam, warmed cassis, alder, steeped plum and sweet tobacco notes that are seamlessly layered. The long finish shows latent drive as a graphite underpinning plays its role, giving the fruit the support for a lengthy encore. There’s plenty of life ahead for this too. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Blind 2013 California Cabernet retrospective (February 2023). Drink now through 2040. 239 cases made.Wine Spectator | 96 WS