Wines

98 Points! The 2019 Brunello Di Montalcino pours a bright red color and shows more aromatic restraint than the 2021. The nose shows wild raspberries, darker berries, and dried floral tones, with a more muted, understated frame. Medium to full-bodied, it offers ripe tannins, balanced acidity, and solid length, although it feels a touch less polished than the 2021 at this stage. It should drink well over the next 12 to 15 years. Drink 2026-2041. - Audrey Frick, jebdunnuck.com

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97 Points, James Suckling's #1 Argentine Wine of the Year! So linear and driven, with so much tension and intensity. Aromas of sliced apples, lemons and stones. Medium-bodied with flavors of apples, seashells, lemons and crushed stones. It goes on and on. Matured in 30% amphorae and 70% oak. Fantastic. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

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98 Points! Incredibly perfumed with violets and white flowers, followed by raspberry, cherry and strawberry flavors. Sliced lemon rind notes with mineral and fine wet sand undertones. Medium-bodied with fine tannins that run the length of the wine and give a beautiful, rather endless finish. Planted in 1945. Only 2 hectares. Best Lunita ever. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

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95 Points! Blood orange zest, cherries, hibiscus and violets on the nose. Medium-bodied with firm, fine, crunchy tannins. Savory finish that’s salty at the end. No sulfur. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

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95 Points! This is a cooler-climate Syrah done with the light touch of a Pinot Noir master. The nose is extremely peppery, reminiscent of a tour through a Tellicherry peppercorn factory, yet with tart cranberry, rust and soil elements as well. The palate is immensely grippy with more white pepper as well as charcoal and brisk red-fruit flavors. It will also cellar very well. - Wine Enthusiast

94 Points! The 2018 Syrah Schock Family Vineyard is Gavin Chanin's first Syrah, and it is fabulous. Deep and rich, but not at all heavy, the 2018 has so much to offer. Readers will have to be patient, as the 2018 is an embryonic wine at this stage. What comes across is the wine's exceptional balance and harmony. Time will be needed for Syrah aromatics to emerge. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

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PLEASE BE AWARE, THIS IS A PRE-ARRIVAL WINE - YOU WILL NOT BE CHARGED SHIPPING FEES UNTIL THE WINE(S) ARRIVE

96 Points! The second wine of this brilliant château, the 2022 Chapelle D'Ausone checks in as 65% Cabernet Franc, 35% Merlot, and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon that was raised 20 months in barrels. Classic Cabernet Franc notes of black raspberries, currants, spring flowers, candied violets, and sappy mint herbs all shine here, and it's medium to full-bodied on the palate, with a pure, layered, seamless mouthfeel, ripe tannins, and a great finish. While it's not the best vintage for the second wines, you wouldn't know it by tasting this. - Jeb Dunnuck

96 Points! This is a blend of 60% Cabernet Franc, 35% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple colored, it leaps with expressive scents of red currant preserves, fresh blackberries, and violets, plus nuances of cedar chest and cinnamon stick. The medium to full-bodied palate is coated with rich black and red berry layers, supported by velvety tannins and bags of freshness, finishing long and spicy. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, MW

93 Points! The Chapelle d'Ausone is a powerful but also embryonic wine. Here, too, the wine's balance is impeccable. Super-ripe red cherry fruit, blood orange, spice, menthol and rose petal all meld together. Chapelle is a powerhouse second wine, if that term can even be used. The blend is 60% Cabernet Franc, 35% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

 

 

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98 Points! Always one of the top Crozes-Hermitage out there (although the case could be made that it's more Hermitage than Crozes), the 2018 Crozes-Ermitage Les Varonniers has a liqueur of rocks-like character as well as gorgeous blue fruits, violets, earth, and bouquet garni aromas and flavors. I'd unquestionably guess Hermitage in a blind lineup. This full-bodied beauty has a seamless texture, ample tannins, and a great finish. It's pure class and the finest Crozes Hermitage out there in 2018. It's a stunning value that readers should snatch up! - Jeb Dunnuck Learn More

95 Points! It's full-bodied, fairly concentrated, and generous. There’s wonderful freshness, a particularly strong mineral expression. Finishes on a touch of toasty oak. A great vintage of Les Granits. A very granitic expression from an east-facing plot in lieu-dit St-Joseph, near Mauves.- Decanter Magazine

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$289.98 at checkout, 99 Points! A blend of 95% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petit Verdot, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Pritchard Hill is another wonderfully evocative triumph from this family-owned Pitchard Hill pioneer. Deep garnet-purple colored, it storms out of the glass with profound scents of crème de cassis, blackberry preserves, licorice and mulberries, plus hints of unsmoked cigars, wild sage and tar. The medium to full-bodied palate delivers fantastic intensity and great poise, offering fine-grained, ripe tannins and bold freshness, finishing long and mineral laced. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, robertparker.com

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97 Points! A beautifully proportioned Marsannay with Grand Cru-type concentration and fineness of tannins. Very dark core, then a very long, polished finish. - JamesSuckling.com

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95 Points! Really fine bubbles. Extremely intense, showing dried apples, peaches and light apricots with brioche and pie crust. Medium-bodied with a creamy texture and a long, long finish. Very subtle. A blend of pinot noir, chardonnay and pinot meunier. 10% of the 2020 base wine fermented and aged in barrel. Dosage 8 g/L. Drink now. - JamesSuckling.com

92 Points! Hints of brioche and lemon meringue pie enrich the flavors of cassis and apricot fruit, pickled ginger, smoke and roasted hazelnut in this classy Champagne, backed by vibrant acidity. Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Pinot Meunier. Disgorged 2024. Drink now through 2030. - Wine Spectator

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99 Points!  The 2016 Chateau D’Yquem is pure magic and dessert wines don’t get much better. Offering a pale gold color as well as a blockbuster bouquet of honeyed tangerines, tart apricots, liquid rocks, white flowers, and honeysuckle, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, an opulent texture, vibrant acidity, and again, an incredible sense of minerality, despite having no shortage of sweetness or richness. The 2016 is a classic blend of 75% Sémillon and 25% Sauvignon that hit 14.2% alcohol with 135 grams of residual sugar. It’s already complex and approachable yet will keep for 3-4 decades. - Jeb Dunnuck

99 Points! A very classic Yquem. Breathtakingly wide spectrum of floral honey, exotic fruit (passion fruit, mango and pineapple), caramel and marzipan aromas. But none of this is a jot too much. In fact, the wine is extremely precise and finely nuanced. Wonderful freshness and textural complexity, in spite of the considerable concentration and extravagance. Very suave and sensual finish that goes on and on. - James Suckling

98 Points! Containing 135 grams per liter of residual sugar, the pale lemon-gold colored 2016 d'Yquem leaps from the glass with honeyed apricots, pineapple, green mango, crushed rocks, candied ginger, coriander seed and citrus peel with hints of orange blossom. The palate is very tightly wound, vibrant and refreshing with layer upon layer of minerals and spices, finishing with epic poise and persistence. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

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98 Points! Tasting the 2019, I noticed that it has a slightly paler hue compared to recent vintages (though I never read too much into the colour of young Sauternes.) For certain, it has a highly-aromatic bouquet that is beguiling in purity, enticing aromas of honeysuckle and saffron, soon joined by camomile, white flowers and orange blossom. It has wonderful delineation and gains intensity with aeration. The palate is supremely well-balanced with fine bead of acidity. Very harmonious and armed with just the right amount of viscosity, this Yquem is surprisingly understated at first but gains presence, offering irresistible flavours of layers of honey, lemongrass, lemon thyme and orange pith. Yquem is so tempting in its youth, but I feel that this vintage will repay those with the nous to cellar for at least a decade. - Neal Martin, Vinous Media

97 Points! The 2019 vintage of Château d'Yquem has the highest proportion (45%) of Sauvignon Blanc in any modern Yquem. The Sauvignon Blanc adds to the freshness, acting as a great balance to the succulent, sweet and voluptuous palate. Intense peach and apricot, combined with lemon and orange zest, make this highly appealing to drink right away - an ideal vintage with which to start Yquem’s ‘lighthouse’ project. However, it would be a shame not to give this 10+ years maturation to see how it develops. Very well, I suspect. - Decanter Magazine

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95 Points! The 2022 Châteauneuf Du Pape is some serious Provençal goodness, with just about overflowing aromas and flavors of sweet raspberries, blackberries, peppery garrigue, and Provençal spices. It has the sunny, expressive, complex style of the vintage, medium to full-bodied richness, ripe tannins, and a great finish. As with most 2022s, it has plenty of upfront charm yet solid underlying tannins as well. It reminds me slightly of the 2009 and will have two decades of longevity. - Jeb Dunnuck

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97 Points! Dense licorice and forest berry aromas mask the deep tannin structure of this Chateauneuf-du-Pape masterpiece. Full-bodied but with a lightness of touch. Then the power and stony intensity pour over you in a giant wave. The freshness is extraordinary for this hot and dry vintage. Serious tannins in the very long, compact and refined finish. From organically grown grapes. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! The estate lost some Grenache due to shatter, so the 2023 Châteauneuf Du Pape is based on 40% Mourvèdre, 30% Grenache, 10% Counoise, 10% Syrah, and the rest a mix of permitted varieties. It was all destemmed except for the Syrah and brought up in foudre. The higher Mourvèdre component gives it a more serious, focused style than most in the vintage, and it has darker blackberry fruits intermixed with roasted herbs, spring flowers, violets, and some meaty nuances on the nose. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, with a deep, pure, layered mouthfeel, it has ripe, velvety, yet building tannins and a great finish. Another beautiful vintage for this cuvée, it has the approachable style of the vintage yet brings more than enough density and concentration to evolve for 30 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

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95 Points! The 2021 Zerzilles is its usual powerful self, lying in wait like a lioness to pounce on her prey for her hungry lion cubs. It has a sudden spurt of power and energy striking through the palate. While light in body, it has innate power, masses of concentration and an electric charge of crackling acidity. This is a pup of a wine that's going to need time. - Rebecca Gibb, Vinous Media

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100 Points, Wine Spectator's #1 Wine of the Year 1993! This is one of my favorite wines ever. Full-bodied, with layers of silky fruit and masses of currant, mineral and berry character. Amazing. It's a wine with perfect structure, perfect strength. It's 1961 Latour in modern clothes. It's hard not to drink it now. '89/'90 Bordeaux non-blind horizontal. - Wine Spectator, 2005

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99-100 Points! The fantastic quality of the cabernet sauvignon really comes through here with black currant, blueberry and raspberry character. It’s full-bodied with such tightness. It’s so beautiful in the center palate. The tannins are wonderfully blended into the wine and flow across the palate. Rather leaner and racy. Ethereal. 37% of the production and 90% cabernet sauvignon, 7% merlot, 2% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot. - James Suckling, jamessuckling.com

97-100 Points!The 2019 Château Margaux is a blend of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 2% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, accounting for 37% of the crop. The alcohol came in at 13.9%, the IPT was 75, and the pH was 3.66. Deep garnet-purple in color, the nose begins with intense scents of crushed blackberries, warm cassis and plum preserves before fanning out into a whole array of floral, exotic spice and earth scents: iris, red roses, star anise, cassis, tilled soil, moss-covered bark and black truffles, with an emerging waft of crushed rocks. The medium-bodied palate quivers with energy, emitting loads of mineral sparks, featuring bold freshness and fantastically ripe, finely grained tannins to support the delicate, perfumed layers, finishing very long and wonderfully poised. The juxtaposition between the acidity and the richness in this Château Margaux is just extraordinary! - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

98 Points! This expands sideways, vertically and downwards, with a creamy mid palate and a rose petal, peony, raspberry and cassis collision on the nose. This is chewy in its tannic structure, full on and yet delicate and sappy. Fresh, elegant, perfumed and concentrated - clearly will age for decades. This is close in character to the 2009 or 2015, two exceptional vintages at Margaux and classic to the graceful yet concentrated signature of the property. 1% Petit Verdot to complete the blend, 100% new oak although barely discernible already. 37% of overall production in the 1st wine this year. - Jane Anson, Decanter

Expected ABV: Under 14%

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PLEASE BE AWARE, THIS IS A PRE-ARRIVAL WINE - YOU WILL NOT BE CHARGED SHIPPING FEES UNTIL THE WINE(S) ARRIVE

97-98 Points! Really impressive depth, concentration and perfume this year, with fine tannins. Lots of violets, red flowers, black cherries and currants. Full-bodied and seriously structured, with impeccable freshness and a very long finish. Dense and powerful for the vintage, with tension, vibrations, good concentration and a tannin framework. 93% cabernet sauvignon, 5% merlot, 1% cabernet franc and 1% petit verdot. - Zekun Shuai, James Suckling

94-96 Points! Representing 46% of the total crop (a little higher than recent yearsdue to higher yields in the best Cabernet blocks), the 2024 Château Margaux contains slightly less Merlot (5%). It has a sophisticated bouquet in the context of the growing season, with black fruit, pressed violet and hints of pencil box that almost lend a Pauillac-like allure. Very fine delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins and modest depth. This is clearly a leaner Château Margaux compared to, say, the 2020 or 2022, but it is razor-sharp with superb tension and mineralite. Unapologetically classic in style with modest length, this noble First Growth will benefit from four to five years in bottle. - Neal Martin, Vinous Media

94-96 Points! Based on 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, and the rest Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, the 2024 Château Margaux is similarly deep purple-hued, with a more inward, closed, yet impressive style. Crème de cassis, graphite, spring flowers, and subtle spicy nuances all define the aromatics. It's medium-bodied with a concentrated, ripe, layered mouthfeel, beautiful tannins, and nicely integrated background oak. It's going to need time, but this is unquestionably a beautiful, elegant Margaux. The 2024 is 12.8% alcohol with a pH of 3.62. - Jeb Dunnuck

93-95 Points! The 2024 Château Margaux has turned out beautifully, unfurling in the glass with notes of cassis, violets, cigar box and iris. Medium to full-bodied, deep and vibrant, with excellent density and concentration for the vintage, it's lively and layered, concluding with a long, penetrating finish. This is a serious, youthfully tightly wound blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc that attained 12.8% alcohol. - William Kelley, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

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