Wines

94 Points! Like the 2019 vintage also reviewed here, the Sassotondo 2017 Maremma Toscana Ciliegiolo San Lorenzo boasts dark color saturation and concentrated fruit, but in the case of this wine, you get softer, more open-knit tannins. Ciliegiolo can famously live up to the hot vintages, especially when the variety is planted in cooler volcanic soils like the kind found in this vineyard cru. The slightly evolved bouquet shows cherry liqueur, almond paste, blue flower and crushed stone. There is a lively, almost nervous quality of the fruit that keeps things edgy and fresh. The mid-weight finish is silky and long. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

96 Points! This is extremely perfumed, with violets, lavender, forest fruit and beeswax. Medium- to full-bodied with creamy, round tannins. It’s delicious already with a lovely balance, showing dark fruit, meat and chocolate with a hint of smoke. Straight and driven, it has a long finish for the vintage. 63% cabernet sauvignon, 33% merlot, 3% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot. From organically grown grapes. Drinkable now, but even better in a year or two. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! The 2021 Smith Haut Lafitte, a blend of 63% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot reveals a deep, complex bouquet of dark berries, spices, licorice, pencil lead and flowers intertwined with hints of menthol. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and seamless, it's suave and concentrated, with velvety, elegant tannins and a refined, penetrating finish. - William, Kelley, robertparker.com

100 Points! Looking at the Grand Vin, the 2022 Château Smith Haut Lafitte checks in as a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot that was raised in 60% new French oak. Reminding me of a more elegant version of the 2010, it has a dense purple hue to go with a rich, powerful, full-bodied, sensationally complex nose of cassis and darker berries interwoven with woodsmoke, scorched earth, chocolate, and chalky minerality. Concentrated, deep, and layered on the palate with ripe, velvety tannins, it's a sensational, absolutely heavenly effort that will keep for 40-50 years. Along with the 2009, 2010, and 2020, this is one of the greatest wines to ever come from this address. Don't miss it. - Jeb Dunnuck

100 Points! Deep and evocative, this bursts with blackcurrants, milk chocolate and floral perfume. Instantly captivating, the palate is silky yet structured, with tannins seamlessly supporting vibrant red and black berries. Broad and powerful, yet it glides, showcasing Cabernet’s structure, Merlot’s generosity and cool spiced fruit. A mineral core adds complexity, with flint-like nuances. A masterclass in power and balance – and unmistakably Smith. 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot. Organic. - Georgina Hindle, Decanter.com

98 Points! The vivid fruit character here is so impressive for this hot and dry vintage. It's medium- to full-bodied, showing gorgeous crushed grapes and dark berries. With density, clarity and beauty, it really speaks of great cabernet sauvignon. The tannins are integrated and go long, taking you deep and complete on the palate. 64% cabernet sauvignon, 32% merlot, 3% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot. Seems almost drinkable now but needs at least five years of bottle age. - JamesSuckling.com

97+ Points! The 2022 Smith Haut Latte is silky, elegant and nuanced. It's all there. A wine of precision and class, the 2022 is so impressive. Rened, supple tannins wrap around a core of blue/purplish fruit, lavender, espresso and mocha. I nd the 2022 a bit buttoned up today, but that is probably a very good thing for its long-term prospects. I look forward to seeing it age. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

94 Points! A rich and round style, this red boasts plum, cherry and black currant flavors, with accents of earth, iron and menthol. Well put-together, even if the tannins are dense and assertive on the finish. Delivers earth and spice notes that linger. Best from 2025 through 2045. - Wine Spectator

92 Points! A fragrant red with notes of dried raspberries, strawberries, earth and dried flowers. Medium body with silky tannins and fresh acidity. Crunchy, with plenty of redcurrants in the finish. Not quite complex, but tasty, laid-back and easy to drink. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold. - Eric Guido, Vinous

93 Points! The 2020 Esprit is a blend of Mataro, Grenache and Cinsault. This has earthy mulberries strung up on a rachis of spicy tannin: fine-boned and tuned into the higher spice flow. It is pure, as all the Spinifex wines are. - Erin Larkin, robertparker.com

93 Points! The 2021 Syrah is gently meaty on the nose, but very fresh, though. Forty percent of the fruit underwent carbonic maceration, which has imbued the wine with life, energy and a bit of a party. There's a pleasurable fatty sweetness here; it extends the wine out in the mouth and through the finish. It's very good. This is vibrant and bright, but it's slinky too. Gee, it's good. The tannins that shape the wine make it savory, but the core of fruit is pure. - Erin Larkin, robertparker.com

New blood at the former Cascina Ballarin in Barolo, biodynamic vineyards and thrilling, elegant wines!

95 Points! The 2021 Syrah Estate has a medium ruby color and smoky, flinty tones that give way to cranberries, blackberries, juniper, resinous herbs and cured meats. The medium-bodied palate is chalky and very fresh with a core of savory fruit, generous meaty and flinty nuances and a long, savory finish. - Erin Brooks, robertparker.com

The best version of this iconic Zinfandel in forever. When Storybook gets it right they're hard to beat, and in 2021 they got it waaay right.

8 months oak aging with partial malolactic fermentation; minimum 40 months of ageing in bottles and minimum 3 months after disgorgement, no fining and light filtration, disgorgement with dosage liqueur vinified in barrels. Dosage 2g/L; disgorgement November 2022

55% Chardonnay, 25% Pinot Meunier and 20% Pinot Noir from vineyards situated in the villages of Moussy, Pierry and Chavot-Courcourt.

94 Points! Showing apricots, peaches and sage, this is layered and savory. On the palate, it’s vibrant and refined with silky texture, crisp acidity and a long finish. From organically and biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Drink now. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! The 2021 Pinot Meunier, fermented and matured without new wood, is nuanced and very easy to drink. It has intense aromas of cranberry sauce, red cherries and blackberries, plus nuances of wild fennel, amaro, underbrush and floral perfume. The medium-bodied palate has precise, tea-textured tannins, seamless freshness and a long, spicy finish. "This is a climate-change superstar," notes winemaker Jason Lett. The variety "has extremely wooly buds, which protects them," he continues. "The white fuzz on its leaves reflects the sun—it's an adaptation, like plants in the desert that are often fuzzy." - Erin Brooks, robertparker.com

98 Points! A fine-tuned, silky, refined and well-crafted Cornas from younger (under 40-year-old) vines and whole-cluster vinification. It expresses aromas of damson plums, dark cherries, warm spices and some wild herbs. It's medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins. Such delicacy to the dense core, with a silky, caressing feel and incredible purity, vitality and transparency. Very long, vibrant finish. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! With an enticing and subtle nose of lemon blossom, this is a dangerously fresh and delicate riesling Kabinett for a region often considered unsuitable for the production of this light-bodied style. Wonderful elegance and wet-stone minerality at the long, barely off-dry finish. From organically grown grapes. Vegan. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! The 2018 Ghemme Dei Manzoni is powerful and quite brooding in bearing. Macerated cherry, spice, orange peel, leather, tobacco, incense and dried flowers all meld together. In the glass, the 2018 is wonderfully exotic and complete, with tons of nuance and persistence that just builds over time. It's a reference point wine for the appellation done in a strapping, old school style that is all about structure, tannin and size. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

92+ Points! From Buntsandstein and Muschelkalk soils, the 2018 Bollenberg Riesling Neuberg starts with a pretty open, rather low-sulfured (15 milligrams per liter of free SO2), pure and elegant bouquet. Lean, saline and pure on the palate, this is an elegant, fresh and energetic dry Riesling from the eastern part of the Bollenberg. The finish is intense and complex yet also underlines the youth of the 2018. 12.5% stated alcohol. Tasted at the domaine. - Stephan Reinhardt, robertparker.com

An important new source! The fermentation of this classically styled white, Aubépine, takes place in old oak barrels with the total lees from the press—no débourbage (wherein the lees are settled before the wine is racked off them). There are no finings and filtrations, nor additions of sulfites—though, as already mentioned, necessary exceptions can be made. Fermentations can last months or more than a year before dry. Aubépine is a specific site of old vines closer to the Cher than the Loire.