Shows good varietal character, with saturated blackberry, violet, ink and smoked bacon aromas and flavors. Well-structured yet harmonious and really sings on the lingering aftertaste. Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Franc...

The wine's richness is concentrated into dark black fruits and spicy wood polish. It is a dark wine, ripe with berry flavors and concentration, Drink from 2026. ROGER VOSS

Bright, fresh and focused, with red berries, blackberries, spices, crushed stones and an earthy undertone on the nose. The palate is mid-weighted with fine-boned tannins and a juicy yet dry finish. Drink or hold.

Red and black cherry and raspberry preserve notes are nicely coiled together, with subtle dark tea, wood spice and floral elements forming a pretty backdrop for the finish. Drink now through 2029. Tasted twice, with...

An improved version of the 2016 (as well as the 2010), the 2020 Château Bélair-Monange is deep purple-hued with an utterly sensational perfume of crème de cassis, smoky tobacco, crushed stone, and sappy flowers, with an...

This pure Merlot, unusual for Saint-Émilion, is powerful and one with great elegance and style. It has structure and a spicy aroma that shows the wine's richness. On the slopes of Saint-Emilion, this 26-acre estate makes...

The black olives and dark fruit come through on the nose with violets and wet earth. Full and very chunky and powerful. Yet it’s lively and vivid with excellent energy. Fantastic. Pure merlot. Leave it until 2030.

The 2015 Talbot has an exuberant nose with black cherry, bilberry, wild mint and brown spice aromas. This has fine delineation and well-integrated oak. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy red fruit mixed with game and...

The 2012 Sena is the product of a warm year combined with the peak of the overripe, oaky approach in style. A blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Carmenere, 12% Merlot, 7% Malbec and 6% Petit Verdot aged for 22 months in...

A blend from vineyards throughout the region, this is classical in its structure, concentrated in the low yields of 2019. The dry season and summer heat may be present in the wine’s potent tannins, serving to complete the...

A ripe and rich nose of cherries, baked plums, warm spices and hints of prunes. Full-bodied with plush tannins. Lush and opulent with a rich core of baked berries and a flavorful finish. Attractive now, but better after 2025.

This focused, light-to-medium bodied red offers a medley of steeped black cherry, tangy blackberry and apricot notes flanked with tea, cedar and anise elements. A vivid hint of rosewater defines the long finish. Drink now...

(94+ points) The 2023 Pinot Noir Zéphirine unfolds dramatically in the glass; flint, pipe tobacco, damp earth and mushroom give way to pure blackberry and black cherry as it opens. The full-bodied palate is powerfully...

The only one of the Dominus wines to show more than a hint of wood, the 2023 Dominus matured in 40% new French oak, leaving it marked by caramel and cedar overtones. Yet that oak aging is balanced by plenty of black...

A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Petit Verdot and 15% Cabernet Franc, the Tenuta degli Dei 2022 Cavalli is a rich and pleasurable expression with velvety intensity and plenty of black fruit. This richly textured...

Cherry, raspberry, leather, earth and tobacco flavors converge in this broad, savory red. Tightens up, with the sinewy tannins leaving their mark on the finish. The fruit returns, so give this a little time. Sangiovese...

(96-98 points) Deep purple-hued, the 2025 Château Pontet-Canet showed beautifully both times I tasted it, with incredibly classic Pontet-Canet notes of cassis, violets, iris, and gravelly earth and graphite. Based on 56%...

(96-98 points) Checking in as 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot that's resting in 90% new French oak, the 2025 Château Lafite Rothschild sports a classic, deep ruby hue as well as a complex and...

This is deep and winey, with cassis, plum paste and linzer torte notes leading the way. Structured but succulent, offering singed apple wood, bay and cast iron accents that support the fruit through the long and focused...

A supple, flavorful, sleek and densely fruity wine on a full body. The tannins seem to build on the palate, giving a little textural grip to raspberry and red and black cherry flavors and attractive oak spices like...

Also from Rio Sordo, the 2020 Barbaresco Rio Sordo displays a sllightly deeper ruby color and has a sunnier feel, although it remains red-fruited and bright, with notes of ripe raspberries, candied roses, tea leaf...

The 2021 Chianti Classico Riserva is entirely Sangiovese from Radda and was raised for two years in oak casks. It opens to a polished yet pure profile with aromas of lavender, grenadine, sweet sage, and fresh leather. It...

Mint, orange and medicinal herb aromas and flavors define this succulent red, with accents of red berry fruit and earth lurking in the background. Starts out fluid but tightens up, with a broad swath of tannins gripping...

The nose presents aromas of bing cherries, strawberries, wild fennel and wild mint above a foundation of damp earth. Raspberries join more cherries and strawberries on a juicy, warm palate, but chalky, chewy tannins...

Ripe and rich, this red delivers plum, black cherry and iron flavors. There are dense tannins for a Barbera, leaving a mix of fruit and earth on the fresh finish. Drink now through 2030. 1,150 cases made, 270 cases imported.

Herbal in cedar, this medium-bodied wine is simply layered, with a thickness of tannin and oak, its mouthfeel substantial yet smooth. Black fruit speaks loudest—a mix of black cherry, blueberry and blackberry jam. —...

Syrah and Petit Verdot shape the 2022 Romitorio, a dark, polished Toscana Rosso with generous aromas of lavender, blackberry, fresh plum, olive, and crushed herbs. The palate is full-bodied and supple, with silky tannins...

The nose of this old vine Zin brings concentrated cherry, raspberry liqueur, and cinnamon aromas, while the palate brings plush tannin, supple acidity, and flavors of roasted cherries, berry compote, plum, and licorice...

Situated at the borders of the appellation Saint-Estèphe but within the appellation Médoc, the 2022 Larrivaux reveals a somber, dark bouquet of spices and dark berries mingled with elegant toasty notes. Medium to...