A dark, winey style, with lots of fig, plum and blackberry paste flavors layered together, with sweet tobacco, licorice snap and warm earth accents filling in. Packed but defined, with a graphite spine through the finish...

(90-92 points) In addition to their brilliant Chateauneuf du Papes, this estate makes two terrific Rasteau. Their 2018 Rasteau offers a medium to full-bodied, fruit-forward, balanced style as well as the more blue fruit...

The 2018 Côte Rôtie Les Triotes offers another level of richness, giving up lots of black and red fruits intermixed with plenty of peppery spice, plum sauce, and candied violets. With loads of charm, medium to full body...

The tiny production 2018 Châteauneuf du Pape Sanctus Sanctorum comes from a single parcel in the famed La Crau lieu-dit and is brought up in demi-muids. Released only in magnum, it’s consistently been one of the most...

I was also able to taste the 2018s from bottle. Starting with the 2018 Cornas Renaissance, it has plenty of meaty, gamey nuances as well as ample red and black fruits, full body, ripe, supple tannins, and classic Cornas...

(98 - 100 points) As usual, Chapoutier's 2018 Ermitage l'Ermite is a standout among standouts. Crushed stone, blueberries, even a touch of herb feature on the nose, while the full-bodied palate is cool and crunchy but...

The wine of the vintage. Compelling in every sense of the word, the wine is incredibly dark in color. The aromatics kick off with an amazing display of spices, herbs, wet earth, leaf, pepper, grilled meat, black...

(95-97 points) A classic wine from this terroir, the 2018 Côte Rôtie La Landonne has a powerful, smoky, minerality style as well as rocking cassis and black raspberry fruit, full body, the plush, sexy, opulence of the...

Boasting classic Les Bessards notes of sun-warmed cassis and crushed stone, the 2018 Hermitage Les Bessards has turned out to be a magnificent wine—a close rival to the potentially perfect 2015. Full-bodied and velvety...

(91-93+ points)A step up, with more depth and density, the 2018 Rasteau Les Argiles Bleues is a blend of 80% Grenache and 20% Syrah that was brought up in foudre. Incredibly pure notes of cassis, black raspberries, new...

A great success in any vintage, but a marvel in a difficult year, this superb wine offers a deep, dark, red hue. The perfume, with its blend of flowers, licorice, garrigue, spices, cherries and plums is gorgeous. Richly...

Including slightly more Mourvèdre and from a cooler, higher elevation terroir, the 2018 Châteauneuf Du Pape Les Hauts-Lieux has more cassis, game, peppery herbs, and olive notes, as well as the classic violets and black...

True to form, the 2018 Châteauneuf Du Pape Les Trois Sources is a softer, more elegant wine than the Les Hauts-Lieux and offers a gorgeous perfume of black cherries, black licorice, tapenade, violets, herbes de Provence...

Deep and dark, which is hard to find this year, the fruit combines black cherries, plums, kirsch and black raspberries with a blast of spice. Rich, but not out of balance, the wine sits perfectly on the corner of full and...

All of the classic Cote-Rotie aromas (leather, smoked bacon, spices and black cherry) pour from the glass of this rich and fleshy wine. Very silky texture, in spite of the generous, fine tannins, which build beautifully...

Absolute perfection in dry white wine, the 2018 Hermitage Ex Voto Blanc comes from two parcels on Hermitage (Les Murets and L'Ermite) and, I believe, spent 30 months or more in new French oak. This heavenly effort offers...

Last of the 2018s, the 2018 Hermitage Ex Voto shows a riper, more sunny profile and has a killer nose of ripe blackberries, cassis, spice, game, woodsmoke, and bacon fat. The tannins from Hermitage always have a different...

Inky ruby color. Expressive kirsch, cassis and candied violet scents, along with hints of vanilla, espresso and olive paste. Juicy and broad on the palate, offering appealingly sweet, deeply concentrated black and blue...

(94 - 97 points) Tasted from a new barrel, the 2018 Cote Rotie Rose Pourpre features mocha and plum notes. It's full-bodied, rich and velvety, with that weight offset by cool menthol notes, and the lengthy finish even...

(92-95 points) I tasted from two barrels seemingly destined for the 2018 Saint Joseph les Pierres. One was full-bodied, plush and long, with notes of mocha and black cherries, while the other showed explosive red fruit...