The 2022 from Alexander van Beek and the team at Giscours is a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 3% each Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. I find a real sense of fragrant harmony but also bright energy here...

A good touch of ripe white fruits gives this wine, with its quince and pear aromas, a rounded character. Its red-apple flavors are cut with citrus, and perfumed from the Sauvignon Gris in the blend. Drink the wine now. —...

Almost opaque in color, the wine kicks off with smoky blackberries, wet earth, underbrush, licorice, black cherry, and currants. Full-bodied, rich, and intense, the wine is incredibly concentrated. Think of placing a...

The 2016 Champagne Cristal is chalky and pristine, with a crystalline nature and notes of white peach, fresh citrus blossoms, and bright salinity. Tasted for the first time last year, it captures a precise and focused...

A thread of minerally smoke, oyster shell and saline drives this refreshing Champagne, underscoring flavors of poached apricot, tangy blackberry, lemon curd and gingerbread as they ride the refined mousse. Pinot Noir...

An assemblage of 45% Grenache, 45% Mourvèdre and 10% Syrah, the 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes follows the domaine's formula of maturing the Grenache in concrete tanks, while the Mourvèdre and Syrah go into...

Elegant, sweet, juicy, and fresh, there is a purity to the sweet kirsch that defines the wine. The finish focuses on its mineral characteristics that accompany the raspberries, kirsch, and cherries. This is a knockout...

The 2020 Le Pauillac de Chateau Latour is a blend of 53% Merlot, 43% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 4% Petit Verdot. Deep garnet-purple colored, it springs from the glass with vivacious notes of stewed blackberries, raspberry...

The same blend as the Blanc but including 5% red wine from their La Côte aux Enfants parcel, the 2015 Champagne La Grande Année Brut Rosé is a lovely wine on the nose, and I think I might like it more than the Blanc in...

Made from 88% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc, the 2019 d'Aiguilhe is medium to deep garnet-purple colored. It needs a little swirling to reveal notes of crushed black cherries, black raspberries, and violets, plus wafts of...

The 2022 Morgon Côte du Py has another very attractive bouquet with just a touch more fruit intensity than the Côte du Py, wonderful mineralité and tension. Very composed. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, a...

Composed of 79% Merlot and 21% Cabernet Franc, the 2017 Plince is medium to deep garnet-purple in color and rolls effortlessly out of the glass with scents of blackberry pie, plum preserves and kirsch plus suggestions of...

A blend of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Petit Verdot, the 2019 d’Armailhac has a deep garnet color, with a touch of purple. It gallops out with open-knit, flamboyant scents of black...

A fresh, pure and vibrant style, with abundant flavors of just-ripe plum and smoked cherry, bolstered by snappy, pepper-edged acidity and highlighted by beautiful violet notes. Shows a supple palate, with savory acidity...

Looking better than it did from tank, Cristina's 2020 Chateauneuf du Pape is ripe and rounded, with ample amounts of black cherries and plums, an exception to the overall red-fruited nature of the vintage. Full-bodied...

A bird of a different feather, this marries a polished feel with the nervy, underlying zip of sel gris and quinine notes, while its core of green almond, star fruit and white peach opens slowly. Shows subtle accents of...

(95+ points) One of the greatest hits from Rare Champagne, the 2012 Rare Millésime is produced from fruit harvested between September 10 and 26. Disgorged in November 2023 with a dosage of eight grams per liter, it is a...

A blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2021 Pape Clement has a medium to deep garnet-purple color. It tumbles out of the glass with notions of plum preserves and Morello cherries, giving way to hints of...

The 2020 Marquis de Terme has a much more classical, sophisticated bouquet compared to the Marquis d'Alesme. The palate is medium-bodied, fresh and delineated with plush black fruit and a healthy dash of white pepper...

(92 + points) La Lagune 2019 is deep garnet-purple in color. Notes of warm cassis, blackberry preserves, and fruitcake waft from the glass, leading to hints of cloves, dried herbs, and pencil lead. The medium-bodied...

A mentholated top note is present on the notably spicy aromas of poached plum, black raspberry and warm earth. Once again, the palate impression of the medium weight flavors is supple and pliant yet there is good...

A plush Champagne, with focus to its flavors of white cherry, blood orange pith, salted Marcona almond and pastry cream. Chiseled acidity drives the spice- and mineral-laced finish. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot...

Smoky sweet spice with juicy, ripe red berries on the nose. The core of liquorice and star anise is supported by plump, fleshy vibrant loganberry and raspberry fruit. Fresh, chewy fig on the finish. Youthful and classy...

The blend is 71% Merlot, 23% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc, at the upper end of the usual range of percentages for the Merlot, and the élevage was in one-third new oak for twelve months, the...