Wine Ratings

wines

Blackberry and spice character – white pepper to be precise. Full-bodied, layered and chewy with a dusty texture and a black-olive undertone. It’s rich and chewy. Drink after 2022.James Suckling | 95 JSA blend of Petit Verdot and Merlot, the Tua Rita 2018 Lodano Rosso is another wine that I had tasted in a preview capacity at the beginning of this year. The wine is seamlessly integrated with dark fruit, blackberry and plum that is rounded off nicely by the smoke and tobacco from French oak and a smaller part of American oak. The Merlot is sourced from the estate’s celebrated old vines, and a theme of flashy or contemporary concentration and richness is found in this wine and throughout the estate portfolio. This vintage was cool and wet during the spring months but turned much warmer and drier toward the end of the growing season.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94 RPThis is one of the best expressions of Petit Verdot I have tasted in a long time. While always intriguing, the variety is often very linear and structural whereas here it has some richness, roundness and charm. It opens slowly to reveal dark fruits, gunsmoke and spice, with finely textured, silty tannins. Perhaps the old-vine Merlot helps coax this more edgy variety into showing its more sensual side. Drinking Window 2022 - 2028.Decanter | 94 DEC

The flagship 2018 Château Lagrange is a more dense, backward, serious wine, offering an unevolved yet incredibly promising bouquet of cassis, blackcurrants, scorched earth, graphite, and violets. A big, rich, full-bodied Saint-Julien, it delivers thrilling purity of fruit, plenty of background oak, ripe, silky tannins, and a great mid-palate. This is serious stuff, but it’s going to require patience. Hide bottles for 7-8 years, count yourself lucky, and enjoy over the following two decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDMedium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Lagrange explodes from the glass with bombastic notes of crème de cassis, chocolate-covered cherries and baked red and black plums with suggestions of rose oil, cedar chest, pencil lead and hoisin. Medium to full-bodied, the palate has fantastic vibrancy for the ripeness, packed with juicy black fruits and compelling tension with a finely grained texture to support, finishing on a lingering mineral note. Nicely done!Robert Parker | 95 RPThe 2018 Lagrange is charming and gracious. Sweet, lifted aromatics and mid-weight structure give the 2018 tons of immediacy. Bright red berries, blood orange, mint, spice, rose petal and cedar build with time in the glass. Polished, silky tannins grace the beautifully persistent finish. Best of all, the 2018 will be ready to go with only minimal cellaring.Antonio Galloni | 94 AGBeautiful reflections through the body of this wine, with fresh acidity, and an attractive sense of uplift through the palate, although the actual fruit is a little subdued right now, which as it opens shows damson and bilberry. There is real tannic frame, and build-up on the finish as you see just how concentrated these dark fruits are. (Drink between 2026-2044)Decanter | 94 DECThis smoky wine still shows some wood aging flavors. Structure comes from this wood aging as well as the rich blackberry-fruit tannins and concentration. The succulent Cabernet Sauvignon is ripe and full. It needs time, so drink from 2026.Wine Enthusiast | 94 WERock solid Cab here, with mouthwatering black currant and blackberry fruit flavors laced with a graphite edge and innervated with bramble, tobacco, bay and violet notes through the finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot. Best from 2023 through 2035. 20,800 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WSExtremely perfumed with currant and blackberry aromas, as well as flowers. It medium-to full-bodied with firm, creamy tannins that frame some pretty, elegant fruit for the vintage. Try after 2024.James Suckling | 93 JS

Shimmering purple. An expansive, spice-accented bouquet evokes ripe red/blue fruits, incense and potpourri. A nervy mineral element adds urgency. Juicy, focused and appealingly sweet, offering concentrated black raspberry, boysenberry and floral pastille flavors that tighten up slowly and turn spicier with aeration. Shows real heft but there’s a distinctly elegant quality to this wine as well. Finishes sappy, subtly tannic and extremely long, leaving a suave violet pastille note behind.Vinous Media | 94 VMThe 2018 Brouilly Cuvée des Fous reveals a high-toned bouquet of licorice, blackberries and spices that displays a touch of volatility this year, though I suspect it will integrate after a few more months in bottle. On the palate, the wine is full-bodied, ample and powerful, with broad shoulders and a ripe, muscular profile.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 91 RP(Brouilly “Cuvée des Fous”- Jean-Claude Lapalu) The 2018 Brouilly “Cuvée des Fous” from Jean-Claude Lapalu comes bottled in a Bordeaux-shaped bottle, which caught me a bit by surprise. The wine is nicely ripe, coming in at 13.5 percent octane, but the old vines for this bottling (averaging eighty years of age and one parcel having been planted in 1900) are in some of the warmer microclimates of Brouilly. The wine is bottled without fining, filtration or added SO2 and was raised in older casks for six months prior to bottling. The 2018 Cuvée des Fous offers up a deep, ripe and classy nose of red and black cherries, pigeon, lovely soil tones, sweet cranberries, fresh thyme and a lovely base of soil tones. On the palate the wine is bright, full-bodied and pretty structured for young Brouilly, with a fine core of fruit, some firm backend tannins and a long, soil-driven and very well-balanced finish. This will need a few years in the cellar for the backend tannins to soften up a bit, but there is good matière here and the wine should age quite well. (Drink between 2023-2035).John Gilman | 90+ JG

In 2012, Sandra Bravo settled in the high altitudes of Rioja Alavesa, where she found small parcels of old-vine garnacha that reminded her of vineyards she had worked with in Priorat. This 2018 is the first release of her Garnachas de Altura, from a collection of small parcels in Rivas de Tereso, a village of 21 people in the northern reaches of Rioja, above San Vicente de la Sonsierra. The vines average 70 years of age and grow at elevations of 2,300 feet in a mix of clay and limestone soils; Bravo has purchased some of the parcels, and farms them all, converting them to organics. She allows the wine to ferment spontaneously in old casks, then ages it in clay pots. You can taste the influence of the altitude and the limestone in the bright, zesty coolness of the fruit, in the light intensity of the strawberry flavors and crushed-black- peppercorn crunch. It’s a lithe Rioja delivering the beauty of the hills, a wine to enjoy fresh and young.Wine and Spirits | 94 W&SThere is a new 2018 La Dula Garnachas de Altura produced with grapes from high-altitude vineyards in the village of Rivas de Tereso, small plots of old vines at 650 meters in altitude. It fermented with indigenous yeasts in 300-liter amphorae at low temperature, which means a very slow fermentation. The wine has a bright ruby color that is quite attractive and a perfumed and floral nose. It’s medium-bodied and textured with very fine chalky tannins, and it has good freshness and very good balance, purity of flavors and length. It matured in foudre for eight months, but the oak is perfectly integrated and not noticeable. This is plain delicious. 3,650 bottles were filled in August 2019.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RPThere’s an apple and pear mix here that has fresh allure on the nose and delivers a zippy and attractively fresh palate that has good weight, flesh and a gently creamy, apple sorbet-like finish. Drink now.James Suckling | 93 JS

A magical wine in every sense, the 2018 Avoyelles Oakville Ranch checks in as 48% Cabernet Franc, 46% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the rest Petit Verdot. More expressive than the A. Price Vineyard (which should be expected, given the difference in the blends), is has a beautiful perfume of crème de cassis, red currants, toasted spice, graphite, and dried flowers, with a touch of tobacco and earth developing with time in the glass. Hitting the palate with full-bodied richness, it has a layered, multi-dimensional texture, incredible tannins, and a great, great finish. In the same league as the 2013, 2015, 2016, and 2017, it’s a brilliant wine to enjoy over the coming 15-20 years or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 98 JDThe 2018 Oakville Ranch Avoyelles is composed of 51% Cabernet Sauvignon, 42% Cabernet Franc and 7% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet-purple in color, it sashays out of the glass with notions of baked plums, Morello cherries, redcurrants and dried herbs plus hints of pencil lead and tobacco leaf. Full-bodied, the palate possesses tightly wound layers of bright, expressive red and black fruits, offering a firm, grainy texture and bags of freshness, finishing long and savory. 155 cases were made.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPThe 2018 Avoyelles is another impressive wine from Tony Biagi. Powerful, dense and explosive, with tons of energy, the Avoyelles possesses tremendous vibrancy. Dark fruit, mocha, leather, spice and graphite give this statuesque beauty tons of character and personality. Biagi’s Cabernet Franc/Cabernet Sauvignon-based blend from Oakville Ranch is once again stunning.Antonio Galloni | 96 AGA rich, layered red with lots of crushed berries and cherries. Opulent and lush, in Napa style. Needs time for the intense tannins to soften. Cabernet franc, cabernet sauvignon and petit verdot. Better after 2021.James Suckling | 94 JS

Sensual’ is the word Véronique Drouhin uses to describe this remarkable wine and there is certainly something fleshy, enticing and engaging about this polished, refined Grand Cru bottling. Made with 40% whole bunches and 30% new wood, it’s bright, perfumed and very silky with lacy tannins and no sign of the heat of the vintage. Decadent stuff. Drinking Window 2026 - 2035.Decanter | 96 DECThe 2018 Musigny Grand Cru is slightly lighter than the Bonnes-Mares tasted alongside and has a more detailed, precise bouquet of intense blackberry, mulberry, sous-bois and light charcoal aromas that gain power with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins and a fine bead of acidity, very sensual and seductive. The polished and lightly spiced finish is pure class. Outstanding.Vinous Media | 95-97 VM(Maison Joseph Drouhin Musigny Grand Cru Red) A highly restrained nose requires plenty of swirling to coax the super-floral and spicy aromas to reveal nuances of plum liqueur, red cherry and sandalwood. The marvelously refined middle weight flavors possess a beguiling satin-like texture yet there is no lack of punch on the wonderfully long, complex and well-balanced finish. Like the Amoureuses, this stunningly classy effort is a knockout that should also age effortlessly over the long-term. (Drink starting 2036).Burghound | 94-96 BH

A more reductive, meaty, backward effort than normal, the 2018 Saint Joseph Les Granits is all Syrah that comes from unquestionably one of the top terroirs in Saint-Joseph. It was vinified in concrete tanks and aged in a mix of barrels and demi-muids, 20% being new. It blossoms with air and reveals an almost Hermitage-like class and minerality, with killer crème de cassis and black raspberry fruits supported by loads of smoked game, saddle leather, crushed stone, barbecue smoke, garrigue, and violet-like aromas and flavors. Just incredible on the palate as well, with medium to full-bodied richness, awesome tannins, and a liquid rock-like minerality, this tour de force from Saint-Joseph ranks with the finest vintage of this cuvée ever made and matches the 2015, although it shows a very different style. It should be snatched up by readers. It will need 3-5 years of bottle age and will drink brilliantly over the following 20 years or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDA very fine-tuned wine, super sleek and refined, with cassis, plum puree and cherry coulis notes streaming through, inlaid seamlessly with a bright mineral edge and all set against a floral and red tea backdrop. The long finish ripples with subtle energy. Drink now through 2038. 57 cases imported. Wine Spectator | 95 WSCrushed stone, cracked pepper and ripe blueberries appear on the nose of the 2018 Saint-Joseph Les Granits. Black olives show up on the palate, adding a welcome savory note. Atypically full-bodied and velvety, I expect more structure to emerge with time.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93-95 RPAssertively perfumed, spice-accented dark berry liqueur, floral pastille and smoky mineral scents show fine delineation and a hint of olive. Sappy and expansive on the palate, offering plush boysenberry and black raspberry flavors that deepen and become sweeter through the midpalate. Deftly blends richness and energy and finishes impressively long and floral, with smooth tannins and an echoing mineral note.Vinous Media | 93-95 VMPretty and pure berry fruits with a little smoky backbone. A very rounded and generous style, not as straight as some vintages but good tannic precision and grip, very granitic, very fine, fibrous, muscular tannins. A little touch of bitterness on the long finish. Drinking Window 2019 - 2025.Decanter | 93 DEC

Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate offers up intense notes of crushed black currants, fresh blackberries and ripe red plums with hints of pencil lead, black raspberries, underbrush and unsmoked cigars plus a touch of tapenade. Medium to full-bodied, the palate delivers bold, crunchy black and red berry layers with a lively backbone and firm, grainy tannins, finishing long and energetic. 1,470 cases were made.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RPThe 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate is sensual and polished. Bright acids lend energy as this super-finessed Cabernet opens in the glass. Crushed red berry fruit, cedar, rose petal and mint all open with a bit of coaxing. The 2018 is going to need a number of years to be at its very best. It is elegant, nuanced and simply impeccable, but also a bit reticent at this stage. Readers who are familiar with these wines know they need time to come into their own. If that is not possible, I suggest opening it well in advance, even a day or two.Antonio Galloni | 96+ AGThis throwback starts with an expressive mix of savory, menthol and tobacco notes followed by very racy red currant, damson plum and bitter cherry fruit. Licorice root and warm earth accents fill in on the finish, with an iron note piercing through at the end. This is seriously grippy, with an old-school, rugged personality. Not for everyone, but loaded with character. Needs time in the cellar to fully round into form. Best from 2027 through 2040. 1,470 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WS

Easily the greatest example from this château that I’ve tasted, the 2018 Château Calon Ségur checks in as 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc, and the balance Petit Verdot aged 20 months in new French oak. This dense purple-hued beauty boasts a stunning nose of blackcurrants, crème de cassis, tobacco, baking spices, chocolate, and cedarwood. With full-bodied richness, a layered, multi-dimensional texture, gorgeous tannins, and one seriously long finish, it hits that palate with 15% alcohol, yet you wouldn’t know it by tasting it, and the wine is perfectly balanced, has incredible purity of fruit, and stays fresh and lively, with a clean finish. This magical Saint-Estèphe can be drunk any time over the coming 20+ years.Jeb Dunnuck | 99 JDA distinctive bouquet with notes of iodine, flowers, fresh fruit and graphite, but its floral character takes on a dominant role with airing. Gorgeously juicy mouthfeel brimming with energy lengthening a finish that consolidates its profound substance but also reveals surprising subtlety and delicacy. This 2018 is perhaps an atypical Calon Ségur in the context of recent vintages, but it joins the ranks of the great ones and should gain in elegance over time. Cellaring may be required for up to twenty-five years. (Drink between 2030-2060)Decanter | 99 DECAromas of redcurrants and plums with blueberries and black licorice, following through to a full body that’s so refined and polished, the tannins integrated wonderfully into the fruit. Fresh, linear and persistent. Real clarity and purity to this. Try after 2025.James Suckling | 97 JSThis is a dense, generous wine. Swathes of black fruits are packed with concentrated tannins. Its power is palpable, as is its luxuriously rich future. The wine will take plenty of aging, so don’t drink before 2027. .Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEThe 2018 Calon-Ségur is blended of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot (14.9% alcohol). It is anticipated to age for 20 months in barriques, 100% new. Deep garnet-purple colored, it needs just a little coaxing before it reveals seductive notes of baked cherries, warm cassis, licorice and smoked meats with nuances of hoisin, camphor, Chinese five spice and dried roses with a waft of cardamom. Full-bodied and completely packed with concentrated black fruit and spice layers, it has a firm frame of grainy tannins and a wicked backbone of freshness giving an energetic lift to the very long finish. There’s lots of brightness coming from the Cabernet Franc component in here, but it is nonetheless a decadent expression.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96-98 RPRipe, fresh and well-defined from start to finish, this lets cassis and dark plum notes race through, carried by a graphite edge and backed with dark tobacco, warm earth and chestnut accents on the finish. Has serious grip and drive. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2024 through 2038.Wine Spectator | 95 WSThe 2018 Calon-Ségur has a classic Saint-Estèphe nose. Rather obdurate at first, it takes time to coalesce, revealing black fruit, charcoal and warm gravel scents, well defined but distant and not predisposed to charm the imbiber. In a funny way, I quite like that stubbornness. The palate is well balanced with firm tannins and fine acidity. Maybe this feels a little pinched compared to recent vintages; it does not possess the amplitude of the 2016 and 2017 and it is rather serious on the brine-infused finish. This is a fine and very typical Calon-Ségur, though it is not the most finessed in recent years.Vinous Media | 92 VM

The 2018 Space & Time is another magnificent wine in this range from Aaron Pott. A blend of 60% Cabernet Franc, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Merlot from Pott’s estate vineyard on Mt. Veeder, Space and Time possesses tremendous intensity from the outset. Inky, beautifully perfumed and so expressive, the 2018 is a total knock-out. Dark berry fruit, dried herbs, mocha, lavender and spice lead into the long, vibrant finish. The 2018 is arrestingly beautiful. That’s pretty much all there is to it.Antonio Galloni | 98 AGThe 2018 Space & Time is a blend of 70% Cabernet Franc, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Merlot. Deep garnet-purple colored, it rolls out of the glass with exuberant scents of Morello cherries, redcurrant jelly and black raspberries plus suggestions of rose oil, spice cake, potpourri and a waft of tar. Full-bodied, with a rock-solid backbone of firm, grainy tannins, this has seamless freshness and a muscular core of earth-laced fruit, finishing long. Give it two to three years in the cellar and drink it over the next 25 years+. 161 cases were made.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 97 RPNicely packed with a mix of plum, boysenberry and blackberry fruit compote notes, infused with violet and anise and ending with a late wave of tobacco on the finish. Buried warm stone note lurks in the background. Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Drink now through 2030. 149 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

Harvested at a minuscule yields from a vineyard planted in 1975, then aged 17 months in one-third new French oak. With a bit of aeration the youthful, concentrated aromas open to reveal opulent plum, spice, orange zest and pine forest accents. The palate offers juicy black cherry and more plum, mulled wine spices and powdery tannins, with crushed stone minerality and elegant cedar oak tinged with dark chocolate. There’s a distinct salinity to this wine which refreshes through the long finish. | 95 DECAn elegant array of baked berries and creamy masala chai pull the nose deep into this single-vineyard bottling from the legendary appellation. Dark fruit flavors meet with lavender and peppery spice on the palate, which is wrapped in sticky tannins.Wine Enthusiast | 95 WECalera’s oldest and most established vineyard produced its darkest pinot noir in 2018: Jensen feels lean, controlled and so full of internal tension that I wrote ‘disciplined’ in my notes. Wines can’t have discipline, can they? In this case, the structure is built around clove- and olive-scented tannins, which act like girders in the wine. With air, the tannins turn lighter, toward Christmas spices, suggesting layers of complexity and depth that one tasting can’t yet plumb. For the cellar. —P.J.C. (535 cases) Wine and Spirits Mag | 93 W&SDeceptive in its mid-weight structure, the 2015 Pinot Noir Jensen Vineyard is extremely closed to a degree I don’t think I have seen before in this wine. I imagine the 100% whole clusters have something to do with the wine’s current state of reticence. Time in the glass helps to some degree, but it is clear the Jensen needs time in bottle to be at its most expressive.Antonio Galloni | 91+ AGThis ripe red is filled with exuberant spiciness to its dark berry and plum tart flavors. Shows plenty of toastiness on the finish, with notes of chocolate-covered cherry. Drink now through 2025. 570 cases made.Wine Spectator | 91 WS

The 2018 Chapelle-Chambertin Grand Cru has a very elegant bouquet that is more poised and detailed than the Charmes-Chambertin, offering black cherries, raspberry and ground gravelly scents; floral notes emerge with aeration. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, gorgeous blueberry and strawberry fruit and a silky-smooth, sensual finish that is utterly refined. Stunning.Vinous Media | 96-98 VMThe 2018 Chapelle-Chambertin Grand Cru unfurls in the glass with aromas of cherries, raspberries and rose petals, framed by a deft touch of new oak, and on the palate it’s more reserved than the Charmes at this early stage. Medium to full-bodied, deep and elegantly structural, it’s lively and nicely defined, but it will need a bit more time than the Charmes to come around. As readers will remember, Dugat’s vines in Chapelle-Chambertin are located in lieu-dit Les Gémeaux, a site that tends to produce somewhat more structured wines than adjacent lieu-dit La Chapelle.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93-95+ RP(Domaine Claude Dugat Chapelle-Chambertin Grand Cru Red) A riper and more deeply pitched nose is comprised by notes of plum, cassis, violet and discreet earth and spice nuances. The sleek and almost painfully intense big-bodied flavors possess event power and muscle while delivering excellent persistence on the minerally, crunchy and youthfully austere finish. This too is very clearly constructed for the long-term and it’s pointless to buy this without the expectation of aging it properly. (Drink starting 2036).Burghound | 92-94 BH

A full-bodied powerhouse as well as a perfect wine, the 2018 Château Montrose is a final blend of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, and 6% Cabernet Franc that was raised in 60% new French oak. Boasting a deep purple hue as well as awesome levels of crème de cassis and smoky blackberry fruits and notes of tobacco, lead pencil, scorched earth, and chocolate, it’s deep, opulent, and incredibly concentrated on the palate, with no shortage of mid-palate depth, tannins, or length. It reminds me a little of a fresher version of the 2003, although there’s more Cabernet Sauvignon in 2018 as well as less Merlot. It has that classic Montrose minerality and backward, mineral-laced style, yet I suspect this will be drinkable in just 5-6 years and should evolve into a modern-day legend from this terroir.Jeb Dunnuck | 100 JDThe 2018 Montrose is a blend of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. Very deep garnet-purple in color, it needs a good amount of air to unlock the vibrant scents of crushed blackberries, preserved plums and cassis with suggestions of star anise, cedar chest, underbrush, Indian spices and iron ore, plus an emerging waft of violets. The full-bodied palate features the most exquisitely ripe tannins, offering a rock-solid backbone with tons of freshness lifting the taut, muscular fruit, finishing long and mineral laced. Going back to this wine over a period of hours and then days further reveals a Montrose of great opulence, richness and depth. Incidentally, the IPT level this year is 82, which indicates a very high level of tannins, and yet they are so, so ripe. The alcohol is around 14.5%. But sit back, close your eyes and forget the numbers—this is pure hedonism in its youth with a fantastic 40+ years of cellaring ahead of it, during the course of which do not be at all surprised if you are blown away by a three-digit experience.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98+ RPRich and deep with beautifully nuanced dark chocolate, mocha, cocoa bean and liquorice. Just full of understated power and silky tannins. This is gorgeous and among my top wines of the Left Bank. As it opens in the glass you get sweet black cherry and cassis flesh, and a sense of lilting sappiness. Great stuff from Montrose. Drinking Window 2028 - 2045.Decanter | 98 DECPurity and beauty on the nose with blackberry, blueberry, raspberry, crushed-stone and violet character. A full-bodied red with masses of polished tannins and intense flavors of currants and blackberries. Juicy finish. Super depth to this. Goes on for minutes. Try after 2027.James Suckling | 98 JSThe 2018 Montrose is dazzling. Whereas so many 2018s are opulent and broad, Montrose is a wine of vertical explosive power. Ripe Cabernet aromatics soar out of the glass, making a strong first impression. Black cherry, leather, licorice, graphite and menthol develop later as the 2018 starts to open in the glass. The energy, vibrancy and drive here are palpable right out of the gate. Montrose is one of real stars of 2018. Don’t miss it!Antonio Galloni | 97 AGThis wine confirms the place of Montrose among the top Bordeaux estates. With its rich tannins and powerful structure, it exudes concentration and density. But the wine also shows a sense of style. Fruit purity will make it impressive and allow it to age for many years. Drink this wine from 2028.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEDark and winey, with a well-built core laden with cassis and dark plum puree while flashes of anise, lilac and charcoal fill in throughout. Finish has hints of chestnut and warm earth for a burly edge, but there’s ample fruit for balance. Plenty grippy in the end too; cellaring required. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best from 2023 through 2036. Tasted twice, with consistent notes.Wine Spectator | 95 WS

Extremely perfumed and floral with lavender, lilacs and violets to the sweet, ripe berries, such as blackberries and blackcurrants. Some slate and graphite, too. It’s full-bodied, yet ever so balanced and refined, with super fine tannins that last for minutes. Fresh herbs, such as bay leaf and lemon grass highlight the dark fruit. The quality of tannin is exquisite with wonderful polish and refinement. Lasts for minutes. So wonderful to taste now, but better after 2026.James Suckling | 99 JSPower and concentration from the start but with a lovely vein of cool blue fruits and an invigoratingly fresh core. Dark chocolate, coffee, blueberries and pomegranate combine to give a seductive nose and follow through on the palate with an immediate burst of juicy acidity and plush tannins. Layered and nuanced, the texture is striking, elegant and precise with juice that his the side of the mouth supported by oak spice that gently frames the overall feeling giving balance. Abundant in a sense but also reigned in making you want another glass straight away. 80% wild yeast fermentation for the first time as of the 2018 vintage. Drinking Window 2024 - 2040.Decanter | 98 DECVery deep garnet-purple in color, the 2018 Opus One soars out of the glass with bright, bold boysenberries, warm cassis and ripe, juicy black plums notes, plus emerging nuances of lilacs, oolong tea, cinnamon stick, tilled soil and black truffles. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is packed with tightly wound layers of crunchy black fruits, supported by firm, grainy tannins and fantastic freshness, finishing with lifted fruitiness and on a lingering mineral note.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98 RPThe 2018 Opus One is a blend of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Petit Verdot, and the rest Merlot and Cabernet Franc. This deep purple-hued effort leans to lively, fresher side of the vintage but has a brilliant, utterly classic style in its crème de cassis and blue-tinged fruit as well as notes of lead pencil, candied violets, damp earth, and chocolate-like nuances. With a Pomerol-like elegance and purity, it's medium to full-bodied and has wonderful tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish. It plays in the finesse-driven end of the spectrum yet is concentrated and seamless, with serious length. It offers pleasure today but should benefit from 4-5 years in the cellar, and my money is on it evolving for 30 years or more.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDThe 2018 Opus One is absolutely exquisite. Bright red berry fruit, crushed flowers, mint and spice are all finely cut. The 2018 impresses with its energy and focus. It's a gorgeous wine, and is also showing especially well today, with all of the potential I first saw in barrel very much on display. Bright acids linger on the persistent finish. The 2018 is supremely elegant.Antonio Galloni | 96 AGThe fruit is decidedly restrained in style, without the vivid punch typical of the vintage, but the gently mulled currant, cherry and bitter plum flavors are well-delineated and persistent, while notable savory, thyme and tobacco leaf notes play a prominent role alongside. There's a racy beam of acidity piercing through it all and a lingering iron note on the finish. An excellent example of the style. Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec. Drink now through 2036. 32,400 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WS

Well textured, velvety fruits sit on a firm and fresh palate. This is good quality, stretching out in the mouth with tannins that are fully supportive of the project, not getting in the way but cheerleading as the fruit takes its first steps. There is so much to enjoy in the smaller appellations this year. Drinking Window 2022 - 2031.Decanter | 91 DECThis grand chateau on its hillside surveys a 150-acre vineyard. The top wine from the estate, this is mainly wood aged, giving polish as well as perfumed black-currant fruitiness. With its ripe tannins, the wine will easily age. Drink from 2023.Wine Enthusiast | 91 WEDeep garnet-purple in color, the 2018 Pitray features bright, expressive wild blueberries, black raspberries and warm plums scents with hints of spice cake and potpourri. Full-bodied, the palate is laden with juicy blue and black fruits, framed by plush tannins and just enough freshness, finishing with beautiful purity.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 90-92 RPA juicy, flavorful red that is delicious now, offering plum, chocolate and berry aromas and flavors. Medium body, firm tannins and a savory finish. Nice acidity, too. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 90 JS

Cassis, crushed plum and steeped blackberry fruit is all packed into this wine, along with tar, violet and roasted apple wood notes, plus a terrific tug of warm earth. Shows lots of energy in reserve, with a tightly knit finish pulling everything together. Cellaring required. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Best from 2026 through 2040. 11,600 cases made.Wine Spectator | 97 WSThis estate has been on fire in recent vintages, and the 2018 Château Léoville Barton is up there with the best of them. Based on 82% Cabernet Sauvignon and 18% Merlot that was brought up in 60% new French oak, this classic, flawlessly balanced, straight-up awesome Saint-Julien has loads of cassis and mulberry fruits as well as notes of freshly sharpened pencils, leafy tobacco, chocolate, and earth. Rich, medium to full-bodied, and concentrated on the palate, it has building tannins and healthy acidity, yet the fruit is pure, perfectly ripe, and wonderfully integrated with all the wine’s components. As is normal with this cuvée, it closes down with extended air and is going to take a solid 8-10 years of bottle age to reach the early stages of maturity. It’s going to evolve for 30-40 years in cold cellars.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDSweet berries, blackberries, raspberries and violets follow through to a full body with extremely creamy, polished tannins that caress the palate. It’s really long and polished. Gorgeous finish. Drink after 2025.James Suckling | 97 JSIn this wine, fine and rich tannins partner with powerful black-plum and black-currant fruits. Densely textured while also having swathes of rich fruits, the wine shows both a firm side and one that offers total deliciousness. As it matures, both these aspects will come together. Drink from 2027.Wine Enthusiast | 97 WEThe 2018 Léoville-Barton is a gorgeous, exotic wine. Crème de cassis, lavender, menthol, licorice and cloves race out of the glass. The 2018 marries the natural opulence of the year with a pretty classic sense of structure, making for one of the more compelling wines of the year. I would give this a good decade in the cellar. There is much to look forward to. I especially admire the energy and poise here.Antonio Galloni | 96 AGWell-polished blackcurrant, cassis and bilberry, everything pretty silky and firm. Not fully showing its generosity at this point but no question that it is going to get there soon. Clear charcoal, graphite and woodsmoke as it opens up. A ton of life ahead, and an appealing sense of mint freshness. Lives up to its en primeur promise - this is Léoville Barton at its most confident. Drinking Window 2026 - 2040Decanter | 96 DECDeep garnet-purple in color, the 2018 Léoville Barton needs a little swirling to coax out delicate notions of fresh blackberries, mulberries and cassis, plus touches of pencil shavings, clove oil, charcoal and black truffles. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers a great intensity of earth and mineral-laced black fruit flavors, supported by firm, ripe, grainy tannins and seamless freshness, finishing on a lingering ferrous note. Give it a good 4-5 years in bottle and drink it over the next 20 years+.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 94+ RP

The 2018 Giorgio Primo represents a new level of finesse at La Massa. Powerful and dense in the glass, with tremendous structure, Giorgio Primo is a terrific example of how compelling international varieties are in Panzano’s Conca d’Oro district. Crème de cassis, spice, new leather, chocolate and sweet spice build into the textured, palate-staining finish.Antonio Galloni | 97 AGThe Fattoria La Massa 2018 Giorgio Primo is a wine of richness, volume and texture. The blend is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot, and maceration times last 26 to 28 days to add the lovely depth and creaminess you taste here. Black fruit, crushed stone, truffle essence and toasted spice emerge from the bouquet. The wine’s full-bodied structure and its freshness promise a long cellar-aging future.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96 RPGorgeous aromas of blackcurrants and blackberries with hints of crushed stones and walnuts. Full body, firm and chewy tannins with blackberries and hints of chocolate and spice. Flavorful and intense at the end. Better after 2023, but better already very pretty.James Suckling | 95 JS

Shimmering ruby. Powerful blackberry, cherry and licorice aromas are complicated by suggestions of smoky minerals and violet. Well-concentrated and broad in the mouth, offering bitter cherry and dark berry flavors enlivened by a snap of cracked pepper. Slowly building tannins frame the finish, which lingers with very good, dark-fruit-driven persistence.Vinous Media | 91 VMThe light tannins are beautifully textured and encase vivid raspberry and currant flavors matched with woodsy spice, licorice and floral details. Undertones of mineral and spice sail through the tangy finish. Drink now through 2026. 5,000 cases made, 500 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 91 WSFull blackberry fruit, generous body and lively acidity make this Moulin-à-Vent easy to enjoy, and the well drafted balance of discreet tannins and mineral acidity at the finish provides very satisfying harmony. Drink now.James Suckling | 90 JS

This bold and well-concentrated wine from an outstanding single vineyard layers ripe plum and rich black cherry on a broad, fine-grained texture. Accents of turned earth, woodsmoke and cinnamon add lift to the mix.Wine Enthusiast | 93 WE

A killer wine as well as a smoking value, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon comes all from the estate vineyard outside of St. Helena and spent 20 months in 70% new French oak. Loads of crème de cassis, blueberries, toasted spices, and flowery incense make up the bouquet, and it hits the palate with a ripe, round, sweetly fruited, perfectly balanced style that’s already impossible to resist.Jeb Dunnuck | 95 JDMade from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon was aged for 20 months in oak, 70% new. Deep garnet-purple in color, it offers up fragrant notions of minted cassis, blackberry compote and spice cake with suggestions of cardamom and chocolate box. The full-bodied palate is rich and plush, packed with spicy black fruits and finishing with great length. 950 cases were made.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RP

Pretty ripe fruit with berry, walnut and chocolate character on the nose and palate. Medium to full body, round tannins and a savory finish. Drinkable now, but better in 2022.James Suckling | 92 JS

The 2018 Vespolina is a wine of pure and total pleasure. Ripe red cherry and plum fruit literally burst out of the glass. Sweet tobacco, mint, dried herbs and cedar show the strong savory character that is such a Vespolina signature. The 2018 is endowed with a sense of exuberance that is hard to fully explain. All I can say is that this is the sort of wine that is opened at the dinner table and finished immediately. I loved it.Antonio Galloni | 92 AG

...the 2018 Côte Rôtie Chateau D’Ampuis is nevertheless a remarkable Côte Rôtie that readers will love to have in the cellar. Sporting a deep ruby/purple hue as well as awesome Côte Rôtie notes of smoked game, violets, acacia flowers, and both red and black fruits, this beauty is medium to full-bodied, has polished, seamless tannins, and a layered, perfectly balanced mouthfeel. It shows the softer style of the vintage (especially compared to the more structured, tannic 2019) and already offers pleasure, but this will easily evolve for at least two decades.Jeb Dunnuck | 97 JDGlass-staining violet color. Expansive black and blue fruit, licorice, incense and floral qualities on the powerfully scented nose. Smooth and expansive in style, offering palate-coating cherry-vanilla, cassis and blueberry flavors that take on smoky mineral, candied violet and exotic spice accents as the wine opens up. Finishes extremely long, sappy and appealingly sweet, with steadily building tannins and resonating blue fruit, spice and floral notes. Aged for 38 months in new oak barrels.Vinous Media | 96 VMThe very deep, smoky and spicy nose pulls you into this very concentrated, focused and elegant Cote-Rotie, with delicate notes of coconut and pomegranate adding to the very complex picture. Very long, polished finish with delicate sweetness and underplayed power. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 96 JSSmoky, briary and complex, the 2018 Cote Rotie Chateau d’Ampuis spent 38 months in new oak, yet it still exudes notes of blackberries and blueberries, testament to the wine’s ample concentration. It’s full-bodied and rich yet silky and long, with hints of mocha and brown sugar appearing on the finish. It’s another beautiful vintage of this cuvée, which combines fruit from seven different parcels (three on the Cote Blonde and four on the Cote Brune).Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 95+ RPThis dense, brooding red is packed with smoked meat, boysenberry, dried fig, black tea and charred cedar. Well-built and concentrated, this has formidable tannins that carry the smoky, bacony, savory finish. A complex red still approaching its prime. Drink now through 2030. 200 cases imported.Wine Spectator | 94 WS

Super balance to this intense red with exquisite spice to the mixed berries on the nose, following through to a full body with fine, well-integrated tannins, succulent fruit and a long, elegant and flavorful finish. All in place and lovely to drink now, but best from 2023.James Suckling | 94 JS

The 2018 Vino de Finca is a blend of Monastrell with 25% Garnacha from a cooler, more continental vintage. The Monastrell is from 20- to 30-year-old vines, and the 8-year-old Garnacha is from limestone-rich soils. It fermented in the underground stone pools with 25% to 30% full clusters and indigenous yeasts and matured in 5,000-liter foudres and 500-liter barrels for 12 months. As all the Garnacha plots are now in production, there has been a higher percentage of it in the blend since 2017. The selection of plots used for this wine results in something more serious, more austere and with more depth than the entry-level Casa Castillo. He doesn’t use Syrah in this blend because he thinks without Syrah it has a more Mediterranean profile, with aromatic herbs, thyme, rosemary and lavender and the slightly more rustic notes of the Monastrell. 53,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in December 2019.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 93 RP