Enticing inky depths to the colour, slate tannins that are fully in control, adding precision and power to the cassis fruits. As it opens, the austerity recedes and sweet blackberry and loganberry fruit appear, along with...

This is the best wine from the Becot family yet! The wine is sexy, fleshy, opulent, polished and packed with all the fresh, ripe, silky, pure red fruits you need. The crushed rock, thyme and floral accents make this even...

Incredibly perfumed aromas of roses and violets, as well as blue fruit and lavender. Full-bodied and powerful, yet so full of finesse and vibrance. The height of elegance! Such depth of chalk and dark berries. It goes on...

A prototypical Médoc wine with very good depth and beautiful harmony. I love the long, moderately dry and savory finish that pulls your hand instinctively back to the glass. A blend of 50 per cent cabernet sauvignon and...

Packed with young tannins, this wine shows the structure of the vintage as well as its fresh and perfumed fruit. The combination will develop to produce a restrained and elegant wine. Drink from 2025.

After falling into decline in the 1950s, Château Brown was revived after it was bought by businessman Bernard Barthe in 1994, to be taken over again 20 years later by the Mau family. Now led by fifth-generation...

A very impressive wine for a chateau that’s not so well known. Deep and rich with a ton of elderberry and bitter-chocolate aromas, but still dry and very straight, thanks to the beautiful, fine-grained and lively acidity...

Plum colour, with spiced damson and raspberry leaf aromatics. A good few years from being truly open and ready to drink, this is nevertheless superbly enjoyable, even if closed in. Unrolls to show waves of cocoa bean...

I am spellbound by the aromas of crushed blackberries, licorice, black tea and violets. It’s full-bodied yet so intense and linear. Powerful tannins with superb polish and focus give an amazing texture. Complex and...

This is a compact cylinder of ripe and fresh fruit with currant, fresh-herb and dry-earth character on the palate. So solid. Full-bodied yet refined and checked in every way. Well-defined, formed and perfect. Just a hint...

With 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, and 3 % Petit Verdot, the 2016 Pavillon Rouge from Chateau Margaux is deep garnet in color, with a touch of purple. It needs a fair bit of swirling to reveal notes of crushed black...

Blackberry, blueberry and floral aromas follow through to a full body, tight and chewy tannins and a flavorful finish. Drink in 2023. A château to watch in the future.

The 2016 Cheval Blanc is blended of 59.5% Merlot, 37.2% Cabernet Franc and 3.3% Cabernet Sauvignon. Deep garnet-purple in color, the nose is incredibly youthful yet not so shy as some other 2016s at this stage, giving...

The 2016 La Closerie de Fourtet is a lovely second wine from Clos Fourtet. Pliant, supple and inviting, the 2016 offers quite a bit of near and medium term appeal. Sweet dark cherry, chocolate, spice and leather mesh...

As to the reds, the 2016 Domaine de Chevalier is a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, and the balance Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc that saw an extended maceration, malo in barrel, and 18 months in just 35%...

Dense and rich second wine of Nenin with dark berries, chocolate and hazelnuts. Full body, round and chewy tannins, yet polished and finished. Needs two or three years to soften, at least. Try after 2023.

This nearly 200-acre estate lies in the south of the Margaux appellation. The wine is another great success in a series of superb years. It is rich but the structure and finely textured fruit give it style and longevity...

I obviously underrated the 2016 Château Haut-Bailly on release, and it easily tops out my scale. A hypothetical blend of the 2009 and 2010, it has the opulence and sexiness of a ripe, sunny vintage (à la 2009) paired with...

What a brilliant vintage this is - just so complete. Honestly at this level, where prices don't change that dramatically between vintages, you should go for the 2016 if you have the option. It's on a different level in...

This is so attractive. It has a very rich and ripe array of dark berries and dark chocolate with a long, succulent and smooth palate that delivers so much flavor and freshness. The palate has intensity and depth with very...

(92-93 points) Love the fruit on the center palate here with its brightness and vivid acidity. Citrus undertones and a fresh finish. Well done here, and it’s a second wine!

The 2016 has all the ingredients for the long haul. The colour is dark to the rim, the nose restrained but serious and intense, the palate structured and harmonious (despite the alcohol). There's a huge charge of very...

A red with very deep and intense fruit character, yet rich tannins to back it all up. Full-bodied, layered and powerful. The second wine of Cos d’Estournel is serious again in 2016. Try from 2025.

Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Marquis d'Alesme Becker leaps from the glass with gregarious notions of plum preserves, crème de cassis and Black Forest cake with hints of potpourri, star anise, menthol and tapenade...

This may not be the most concentrated wine from the appellation, but it’s a very appealing introduction to modern-style St.-Emilion. Plenty of mixed berries and a hint of vanilla on the medium-full body. Then the chalky...

This palate staining gem serves up its blend of crushed rocks, flowers, ripe, sweet, plums, cherries, licorice, smoke and dark cocoa with little effort. Long, concentrated, full bodied and opulent, there are layers of...

Showing beautifully each of the three times I was able to taste it, the 2016 Château Ripeau reveals a ruby/purple color as well as a forward, fleshy style in its black fruits, tobacco, earth, and underbrush-scented aromas...

A very floral and gently leafy edge with lighter red fruit, leading to a very smoothly fleshy, red-fruited palate that’s sleek, even and elegant. Drink or hold.