(92–94 points) Barrel sample. A solid effort, this is a wine with great fruit and firm structure to support it. Ripe and full in the mouth, it's a firm and complex wine with a delicious juicy aftertaste. ROGER VOSS

This second wine of Château Montrose is ripe and structured. In 2012, it formed 29% of total production at Montrose. It opens with severe tannins that transform into ripe blackberry as the wine opens out. Solidly...

Juicy, with still-youthful plum, cherry and blackberry compote flavors, flanked by hints of ganache, licorice and bramble, which keep the finish lively. Drink now through 2023. 80,000 cases made. — JM

This is a fantastic and refined Blanc de Blancs. So layered and complex, with lemon curd, chalk, hazelnuts, pastries, baked apples and almond croissants. Structured and tightly wound, with almost imperceptible bubbles...

A very pretty wine for the year, the 2012 d'Armailhac is plush, open and seductive. Dark red cherry, tobacco, wild herbs, smoke, leather and game are all pushed forward in a pliant, supple Pauillac that is already quite...

Aromas and flavors of tar, berries and dark chocolate. Full body, relatively firm tannins and a finish that fills the palate. Well done. Second wine of Lynch-Bages.

Medium to deep garnet colored, the 2012 Canon is a little closed to begin, soon opening to deliver baked plums, dried mulberries, and mince pie scents with touches of sauteed herbs, tobacco, and tar. Medium to...

Such purity of fruit to this wine with plum, currant and berry character. Solid core of fruit and fine tannins. Full and balanced. Very successful for the vintage. Better in 2017.

A great second wine for drinking now, this has lashings of damson fruit to back up the acidity. The tannins are not as intense as they would be in a great vintage but it's good quality, with polish and real appeal.

(93–95 points) 93–95. Barrel sample. This firm, dry wine is solidly rich and full in the mouth. With fine acidity and black currant fruit that show through the tannins, it is a wine with considerable potential. ROGER VOSS

Dark and winey, with a grippy, brambly frame and a solid core of raspberry, black currant and boysenberry fruit. The backdrop reveals lots of anise, bay and black tea notes. Still backward, with an ironclad finish, this...

Milk chocolate, butterscotch and black cherry dominate the nose on this deep-violet-colored wine. Rich flavors of black plum, black cherry, chocolate-covered espresso bean and lavender are nestled into a framework of...

(91-93 points) Jadot's 2012 Beaune Theurons is quite a bit firmer and more structured than the Greves. Iron, red fruit, minerals, chalk and smoke are some of the many notes that open up in the glass. The 2012 is going to...

Coming from Verzy and made from equal parts Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, the 2012 Champagne Montagne Grand Cru pours a medium straw hue with a hint of copper and takes things up a notch with its aromas of framboise...

The 2012 Cabernet Sauvignon Aida Estate (850 cases), is sensational and about as profound as Napa Cabernet can be. A wine of great intensity, inky purple color, notes of penny, graphite, blackberry and cassis, with a...

The smallest of the Perse estates, this tiny property situated on pure limestone produces a wine made from a blend of 90% Merlot and the rest equal parts Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. One of the superstars of...

The 2012 Canon-la-Gaffeliere is an elegant, floral, and spice-driven Saint-Emilion offering full-bodied richness, fine, silky tannin and impeccable balance. It’s one of the more classic, elegant 2012s that’s going to...

Pure perfection in Syrah, the 2012 Ermitage Le Pavillon comes from the pure granite soils of the Les Bessards lieu-dit and was brought up in around 30-35% new demi-muids. This blockbuster yet magical wine offers...

The 2012 Grand Village, from the Guinaudeau family of Château Lafleur fame, is really lovely this year and one of the great bargains to be found in the vintage. As readers may recall, this is in reality a Lalande de...

(96-97 points) Over the past few months, the wine has added structure and fleshed out following the initial April tastings. Pure sensations of wild, ripe and overripe cherries, boysenberry, plum, espresso and stone. Full...

(91+) When the rains were forecast to arrive on September 22nd, the team at Lafleur decided to pick all of the merlot vines destined for the grand vin on the single day of September 21st, but, there was not sufficient...

(WE93-95 points) An exemplary wine, this is powerful, rich and full of ripe red fruits. The palate is dark, but brightened by acidity, red fruits and a beautiful line of freshness.

94+ This is a beautiful, dense, meaty, purple-colored wine, with loads of earth, iron, blackberry and cassis fruit. It is full-bodied, rich and opulent with great length, terrific purity and surprisingly sweeter tannin...

Graceful, nuanced, totally moriesh. Hugely successful at the 10 year mark, this is rippled with raspberry, white pepper, smoked earth, blond tobacco, cold ash, blueberry and star anise. One of my stars of the lineup...

The wine is beautifully balanced, poised between ripe yellow fruits and a tight, taut acidity and minerality. It shows roundness initially, then offers a long-term prospect of intense fruit and a strong structure. Drink...

This structured wine with big, bold red fruits offers ripe acidity, a dense texture and considerable concentration. It also has the hallmark freshness of the vintage that balances the strong aging potential. Drink from 2022.