The limited production 2009 Haut-Brisson Reserve ratchets up everything from the color (inky purple) to the aromatics flavor profile and long full-bodied finish. This is a brilliant St.-Emilion that tastes like it came...

A consistently perfect wine every time I've had it, the 2009 Château Pontet-Canet is the greatest wine from this address to date as well as one of the greatest Pauillacs out there. Still youthfully ruby/purple and with a...

A smoking good Pessac-Léognan, the 2009 Château Larrivet Haut-Brion takes about an hour of air to show at its best and offers a classic Graves bouquet of meaty black fruits, green tobacco, barbecue smoke, and cedar. It...

This is what the Medoc is all about. The freshness and delicacy of this wine in combination with its serious concentration and firm core are totally stunning. Time has already worked its magic and this is already...

(92-94 points) Barrel sample. Big, ripe, juicy wine, the tannins very solid and dark. It has layers of new wood, power and considerable density. ROGER VOSS

Power and enveloping aromatics from the first moment, this is bursting with pleasure, and so signature Margaux. Impossible not to love the depth and the spice that comes through from the first moment, with spirals of...

This really sneaks up on you with laserlike focus to the blanched macadamia nut honeysuckle white peach and creamed yellow apple fruit flavors. Very sleek and restrained with a long stone-framed finish that's as pure as...

Still young, this is evolving at a glacial pace, yet there is no denying the greatness in this bottle. Deep in color, the wine pops with notes of licorice, black plum liqueur, dark cherries, chocolate, espresso, truffle...

Tasted at the Union de Grand Cru in London. The Desmirail -09 has a lovely, very pure Margaux bouquet with touches of crushed violet and pure black cherry mixing with blackberry and wild hedgerow. Natural and composed...

This is very tight and rich with dried apple, mango and papaya, yet it's bright and floral. Full body, dense fruit and a long, powerful finish. Really open already but complex and beautiful with a richness and intensity...

Dark and structured this is a firm wine. It has a smoky wood character powerful tannins over intensely ripe fruit. Acidity and sweetness balance to give a dense wine powered with richness and destined to age for many years.

A blend of 70% Merlot and the rest equal parts Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon the wine has an opaque purple color and a sweet nose of vanillin roasted coffee beans chocolate and kirsch liqueur intermixed with...

A solid red, with raspberry and currant aromas and flavors. Full body, with solid tannins. Polished texture. Well crafted. Try after 2018.

Generous, juicy, a vintage that I am starting to often prefer - at least right now - to the 2010, but it is not quite pipping it for me at Grand Puy Lacoste. You'd be hard-pressed to argue with this wine though, it is...

Deep garnet-colored with a touch of brick, the 2009 Gruaud Larose comes galloping out with ready-to-go scents of stewed black plums, blackcurrant jelly, and rose oil followed by suggestions of sandalwood, cast-iron pan...

One of a series of single-vineyard wines, this 100% Chardonnay comes from the Côte des Blancs. The strong minerality of the Champagne is richly balanced by the concentrated citrus and toast flavors. Acidity has been...

(91-93 points)Barrel sample. Rich and smooth, with tannins that are ripe, some spice and also intense acidity. The blackcurrant character is dominant. ROGER VOSS

(WS 97-100 points) The nose on this already suggests a deep and contemplative wine with blackberry dried flowers and sweet berries. Evolves to black olive and hints of asphalt. Full-bodied with supersilky tannins and...

Deep and dark with a ton of smoke and earth, the cassis fruit very much in the background, this is a concentrated and complex wine. Powerful yet racy palate with an elegant mineral finish. Drink or hold.

The 2009 Cristal is a wine of pure and total sensuality. There are no hard edges or angular contours. Instead, the solar energy of the year is front and center. Even with all that intensity, the 2009 is impeccably...

Powerful, rich, tannins that are chewy and physical in the mouth. Liquourice bud, turmeric root, cloves, rose stems, with tight blackcurrant and softer blackberry fruits. The muscular structure of the appellation and the...

We had this out of magnum with my niece and her boyfriend, in their late 20s, who enjoy wine but are not regular drinkers of it, and it blew them away. One of them said, 'this is the best wine I have ever had,' which is...