Medium to deep garnet-brick in color, the 2014 Fonplegade waltzes out with showy notes of kirsch, blackberry preserves, and rosebud tea with hints of leather sofa and star anise. The medium-bodied palate is plush and...

The 2014 Faugeres still has bundles of red plum and juniper berry on the nose, if anything even more generous than when I tasted it a few months ago. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, superb structure and well...

The 2014 Plince opens in the glass with a seductive medley of concentrated red and blue fruit. This yields to undertones of dry violets, cedar and sweet tobacco before concluding with mineral and dry earth notes...

The 2014 Château de Fieuzal has a high-toned nose with a little more VA than its peers. It's lush and gains harmony with time in the glass, dried black cherries mixed with raisin and fig. The palate is medium-bodied with...

Highly charged and fully aromatic on the nose. Bright and fresh, a lovely hit of acidity which gives the blueberries and black cherries lift with clear graphite and a wet stone minerality, licks of liquorice around the...

The 2014 Branaire-Ducru has a "quieter" bouquet than its peers, a little muted at first, though well-defined with mainly black tertiary fruit laced with tobacco. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins. It's a...

The 2014 Grand Mayne is medium to deep garnet-brick in color. Fragrant notes of sandalwood and Chinese five spice leap from the glass, with underlying hints of fruitcake and plum pudding. The medium-bodied palate is...

The 2014 Poesia feels more Merlot-driven on the nose compared to the 2013. There is more red fruit here with crushed strawberry, bing cherry, blueberry and violet aromas. This coalesces in the glass, becoming more and...

Ripe and racy, with a lovely core of cassis, plum and blackberry confiture notes, laced with graphite details. Vivid from start to finish, delivering a sense of polish that makes it approachable already, though there's no...

Darker cherries, tobacco, and white truffle notes define the 2014 Château Bellevue. Medium-bodied and nicely balanced on the palate, it has a pure, layered, elegant mouthfeel and solid depth. This ripe, textured, and...

The 2014 Branaire-Ducru has a "quieter" bouquet than its peers, a little muted at first, though well-defined with mainly black tertiary fruit laced with tobacco. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins. It's a...

The 2014 L’If has a dense, sultry nose at first, touches of salted liquorice infusing the black, almost tarry fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with sweet but firm tannin, a core of ripe, almost sorbet-fresh fruit...

Quite vivid aromatics on the nose, deep and heady, blue fruit, peppercorns, liquorice and cocoa powder. Fruity and really quite dense in terms of chewiness and flavour. Stands out in the line up for being forward, lifted...

The 2014 Clinet is rich and round but slightly more refined than the 2012, which is arguably its qualitative peer. Lots of black cherry fruit but with that beautiful elegant Pomerol charm. Plush and plump and will age...

Young and structured, with fine tannins are are fully in control, this remains pretty serious in its construction as it ticks on towards the 10 year mark. Black cherry and damson fruit, orange zest, pomegranate, slate...

This has lively pepper and bay streaks, along with a sanguine twinge, amid the core of cherry and red currant fruit. A bright iron note shows on the finish. Has length, refinement and purity. Best from 2018 through 2024...

Szechuan peppercorns on the nose, something quite spiced, maybe woody, with fragrant blackcurrants too. Sleek and streamlined, tangy and vibrant but with some tension that shuts down some of the fruity enjoyment. I like...

Medium to deep garnet-brick in color, the 2014 d'Armailhac rolls out with evocative notes of cassis, plum preserves, and menthol opening out to nuances of rosebud tea, underbrush, and crushed rocks. The medium-bodied...

The 2014 Faugeres still has bundles of red plum and juniper berry on the nose, if anything even more generous than when I tasted it a few months ago. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannin, superb structure and well...

Intensely aromatic nose, floral and lifted but deep and dark too. Ripe and fully flavoured, if not weighty and plush. This has concentration and a feeling of power and kick underneath the bright red cherry fruit and salty...

Up to a full quarter of Cabernet Franc in this vintage, which may have helped bring the alcohol degree down a little. Gorgeous balance, juicy and rich, with blackberry and black cherry. It has plenty of St-Émilion...

Deep plum colour, plenty of enticing fruit on the nose, this is really the point at which you start to see quality taking a step up in this vertical. Dark chocolate shavings, a touch of burnt oak, with plump and textured...

Fragrant and deeply herbal, a mixture of fresh and savoury. Clean and clear, immediately quite zingy with acidity to the fore and while this doesn't get any weightier, and is definitely not plush, it continues the same...

The 2014 L'Eglise-Clinet has a lovely nose that is superior to other Pomerols in this flight. It's fresher with more vigor and scents of wild strawberry, cranberry, licorice and cedar. It gains delineation in the glass...

A decade in the bottle has added to the wine's character and complexity. Initially, you notice the nose with its truffle, hickory, cigar box, black currants, and lead pencil form the perfume. The palate follows through...

Good, firm fruits are well placed, with notes of cedar, liquorice and cassis – this really is an enjoyable Talbot that offers the promise of a long life. There's enjoyable grip and tenacity through the palate, with spicy...