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...

A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Petit Verdot and 15% Cabernet Franc, the Tenuta degli Dei 2022 Cavalli is a rich and pleasurable expression with velvety intensity and plenty of black fruit. This richly textured...

A seductive mix of powerful, opulent blackberry and raspberry fruits cut through with vibrant juice, flint, crushed rocks, chocolate and liquorice. The texture is lucious on the opening, but as you sit with it, the...

The wine's richness is concentrated into dark black fruits and spicy wood polish. It is a dark wine, ripe with berry flavors and concentration, Drink from 2026. ROGER VOSS

This takes a graceful tack, offering supple, cedar-lined notes of gently mulled red currant and black cherry fruit that glide through the tobacco-, mint-, licorice- and sandalwood-accented finish. Offering charm rather...

The 2021 Chianti Classico Riserva is entirely Sangiovese from Radda and was raised for two years in oak casks. It opens to a polished yet pure profile with aromas of lavender, grenadine, sweet sage, and fresh leather. It...

Spellbinding aromas of rose petals, strawberries, citrus and bark, with hints of lemongrass. Medium-bodied, tight and structured, this offers a captivating combination of linear intensity and calmness, so classy and...

(96-98 points) Deep purple-hued, the 2025 Château Pontet-Canet showed beautifully both times I tasted it, with incredibly classic Pontet-Canet notes of cassis, violets, iris, and gravelly earth and graphite. Based on 56%...

98+ The 2023 Pinot Noir DuMOL Estate Vineyard is a real head-turner, just as it was in barrel. Dark, sumptuous fruit, leather, incense, tobacco, dried herbs and graphite open first, buffered by brisk acids and beams of...

This delivers a pure and steady beam of cassis and plum puree carried by gentle underlying succulence. Flashes of hibiscus and iris filter through the fruit, adding to the overall elegant feel. Drink now through 2034...

(96-98 points) Checking in as 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot that's resting in 90% new French oak, the 2025 Château Lafite Rothschild sports a classic, deep ruby hue as well as a complex and...

The 2021 Opus One is composed of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot, and 0.5% each of Merlot and Malbec. It was bottled in July 2023. Deep garnet-purple in color, it comes barreling out of the...

The black olives and dark fruit come through on the nose with violets and wet earth. Full and very chunky and powerful. Yet it’s lively and vivid with excellent energy. Fantastic. Pure merlot. Leave it until 2030.

The 2012 Sena is the product of a warm year combined with the peak of the overripe, oaky approach in style. A blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Carmenere, 12% Merlot, 7% Malbec and 6% Petit Verdot aged for 22 months in...

A ripe and rich nose of cherries, baked plums, warm spices and hints of prunes. Full-bodied with plush tannins. Lush and opulent with a rich core of baked berries and a flavorful finish. Attractive now, but better after 2025.

Rich and supple, evoking cherry, blackberry, graphite and tobacco aromas and flavors. The dense, dusty tannins emerge as this builds to the long, lively finish, where a light astringency lingers. A bit rustic. Best from...

The 2021 Le Petit Clos is composed of 68% Carménère, 16% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Franc, aged in 50% new oak. It features black and red fruit with a distinct floral bouquet, contrasting with the more...

Composed of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Carmenere, the 2016 Brane-Cantenac is deep garnet-purple colored. It is a little broody, with notes of tar and rubber giving way to a core of creme...

Glass-staining ruby. Hugely perfumed, mineral-accented black and blue fruit preserves, floral oil, olive paste, pipe tobacco and exotic spice aromas show superb clarity and pick up a hint of smokiness with air. Juicy and...

This pure Merlot, unusual for Saint-Émilion, is powerful and one with great elegance and style. It has structure and a spicy aroma that shows the wine's richness. On the slopes of Saint-Emilion, this 26-acre estate makes...

95+Minty herbs come together with hints of mocha, then dried violets, stone dust and finally wild blueberries as the kaleidoscopic 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon Patrimony reaches up from the glass. Cool and collected, this is a...

The 1998 Clos L'Eglise is deep garnet in color with a touch of brick. It charges out of the gate with bold scents of redcurrant jelly, stewed plums, and dried mulberries with hints of cigar box, sauteed herbs, and smoked...

Enticing red fruit flavors of cherry, strawberry and rose are the highlights of this taut red, shaded by iron, mint and tobacco notes, with terrific harmony and a lingering, chalky finish. Everything is in the right...

Aromas of wild herbs, walnuts, sweet tobacco and a gentle earthy note. Medium- to full-bodied with delineated dark fruit and integrated tannins. Elegant and precise, offering wonderful depth. Approachable now, but its...

Powerful yet silky and elegant, this wine offers so much to admire. Intense notes of both black and buttery green olive, tobacco leaf, cardamom syrup, blackberry, huckleberry, cassis and morello cherries in syrup lie at...

Mint, orange and medicinal herb aromas and flavors define this succulent red, with accents of red berry fruit and earth lurking in the background. Starts out fluid but tightens up, with a broad swath of tannins gripping...

(94-97 points) As to the Grand Vin, red, blue, and black fruits, intermixed with spring flowers, iris, graphite, and sappy tobacco, all define the 2025 Château Giscours, giving it a beautiful Cabernet-driven style. Based...

(97-99 points) Cassis, currants, smoky tobacco, chocolate, and graphite all define the 2025 Château Cos D'Estournel, a powerful, ripe, concentrated beauty based on 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot, and 1% Petit Verdot...

(97-99 points) Deep purple-hued, the 2025 Château Mouton Rothschild is based on 98% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Merlot that's resting in 100% new barrels. A blockbuster nose of crème de cassis, smoky tobacco, chocolate, and...

(97-99 points) Since 2020, this estate has been fashioning absolutely brilliant releases, and the pure, graceful 2025 Château Troplong Mondot does everything right. Black raspberry, crushed stone, spicy graphite, and...