Wines

96 Points! The 2021 Barbaresco Ovello Vigna Loreto is powerful and explosive in the glass. A rush of wild red cherry, spice, kirsch, menthol, rose petals and incense races across the palate. Deep, savory and intensely mineral, the 2021 is magnificent. Readers will find a wine of stature and pure breeding. Superb. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

97 Points! A sophisticated and complex red with blackberries, blueberries, sea shells, terra cotta, crushed stone and sea salt. Medium-bodied, savory and juicy on the palate with a creamy yet firm texture. Opens and softens in the end. - JamesSuckling.com 

96+ Points! From silty soils at the estate Jardín Altamira site, the 2021 Malbec Appellation Altamira is another benchmark example of Altamira's distinctiveness. A broad, expansive and expressive bouquet of crystal-clear purple flower aromas bounds from the glass, supported by a rich yet measured bed of black and purple fruits. The palate is both wide and broad, with a laser-focused, tensile core, releasing into a finish that is equally high and refreshing yet deep and grounded. This is all about flowers and textural breadth, sitting lower in the mouth with a pronounced horizontal richness, juxtaposing the equally fantastic Appellation Gualtallary bottling, which exudes a more vertical, stony profile with a distinctly herbal bouquet. Even while attempting to correct for vintage variation, I find the Altamira wine a touch more complete and three-dimensional, but it really is splitting a hair. - Matthew Luczy, robertparker.com

96 Points! Rich and dense aromatics, lovely black cherry and dried flowers, the Cabernet Franc bringing all the aromas. Supple and smooth, so alive in the mouth yet this has density and depth, something to chew on. It’s not plush, but there’s texture from start to finish, with delicacy and finesse to the expression. A highly drinkable Angélus that has really benefited from dialling back on the power. Great freshness and precision, while feeling as if it will age well. Impressively keeps the structure and density but with energy. - Decanter Magazine

95 Points! This is so delicious, with lovely focused cherries, flowers, dried sandalwood and some Indian spices. Medium-bodied with fine tannins and just a touch of wood to the pure fruit and a subtle and refined finish. 40% merlot and 60% cabernet franc, the most cab franc in a long time. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! On the nose, this refined and silky wine shows violets, raspberries, blackcurrants and crushed stone. Medium-bodied, with cocoa and sandalwood. The center palate is deep and flavorful, solid fruit and a wonderful texture going long and horizontal. It makes you smile. Drinkable now but better in a year or two. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! Perfumed nose, full of pot pourri, scented flowers, dried raspberries and cherries. Really quite evocative, maybe in a vertical you'd pick this out from the nose but it smells wonderful and rich with cool blueberries. Round and charming, this is gorgeously soft, tannins are so inviting, caressing the mouth, not deep at all, this is delicate and primed to float across the tongue, registering the flavours but no heaviness. Almost ethereal in its performance. Really very delicious, full of flavour and character. Gorgeous styling and only got better after half an hour in the glass. Succulent, mineral, graphite, limestone touches on the finish remind you where you are. - Decanter Magazine

97 Points! Packed with cherry, raspberry and pomegranate flavors, this red is also succulent and verging on racy in profile, with a deep vein of mineral and peppery spice notes that intensify on the extended finish. Shows superb balance and grace, with the best yet to come. - Wine Spectator

96+ Points! The Barone Ricasoli 2021 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Gaiole Colledilà opens to dark fruit, but perhaps more significantly, you get a slate-like mineral note that adds focus. That mineral note appears in all these beautiful Gran Selezione wines from vintner Francesco Ricasoli, but in the case of this bottle, it adds a dark or slightly brooding personality. The finish is absolutely savory and salty. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

96 Points! Harvested from just the home block with a small addition of wine from Leongatha, this spent 14 months in 40% new barrels. There is a breezy freshness to the red fruit on the nose alongside swirling, darker fruits of the forest which emerge, perfumed with iron-oxide and petrichor. The palate is concentrated, brimming with juicy fruit and a kind of urgency. There is a lick of liquorice bitterness and tannins that show density and finesse towards the finish. Fine acidity makes this precise and totally mouthwatering. In a league of its own in the Bass Phillip stable: self-assured and exquisitely balanced. This will benefit from bottle age. - Anne Krehbiel, MW, Decanter Magazine

96 Points! I love the bright nose of lime zest and ripe star fruit. Very focused, medium-bodied palate, but with a silky texture, this is a serious and sophisticated chardonnay. Plenty of stony minerality, plus nutty and licorice character at the very long, cool finish. Minimal sulphites added. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

99 Points! Given its consistently outstanding quality, it’s easy to forget that the average age of Porseleinberg's 14 hectares of vineyards is only seven years' old. Showing what Callie Louw calls a "little more crunch" in 2021, this is a Syrah with time on its side. Wild herb aromas of sage, oregano and rosemary introduce you to a palate that's dense yet refined, with lots of whole bunch spice and structure, negligible oak influence, detailed, layered tannins, some underlying grip and layers of dark berry fruit. One of the world's great reds from a very special site. - Tim Atkin, MW

97 Points! The 2021 Porseleinberg is whole bunch fermented and aged for 12 months in foudres. I gave my glass plenty of aeration. Chatting with winemaker Callie Louw, this wine can be closed, this being the first time I had tasted it at the remote Swartland estate. It has a compelling bouquet with fabulous delineation, a mélange of, say, one-third red and two-thirds black fruit, hints of iron filings and reflecting its soils, slate-like scents. Obstinately backward, after 10 minutes, it positively blossoms in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied, with filigree tannins framing the mineral-rich black fruit. Plenty of extract is interwoven, but perhaps unlike the vintages of old, Louw's winemaking sense means that it's not immediately tangible. A discrete build in the mouth reveals hidden layers as it sashays towards its crunchy finish and then delivers a dash of cracked black pepper on the aftertaste. Outstanding…but what else do we expect? - Neal Martin, Vinous

97 Points! What an intense nose of charcuterie, grilled herbs, iron, black berry fruit and cracked pepper. Flavor explosion on the palate, too, with a full body, yet so much freshness with an underlying iron and peppercorn character. Firm, yet fine tannins. Even better from 2025. - JamesSuckling.com

97 Points! Lots of crunchy red cherries and blue plums followed by violets, fresh sage and Christmas spices with baking spice and coconuts. Medium- to full-bodied with superb fine-grained racy tannins and beautifully refreshing acidity that gives an edge to it. Gorgeous finesse and elegance with harmony and precision. Delightful, too. Already drinkable but give this a few more years to come around. Try after 2026 and it should be beautiful for a long time. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! The 2021 Canon opens in the glass with a pure bouquet of raspberries, cherries and plums mingled with pretty top notes of iris, licorice, mint and sweet spices. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, it's fleshy and sensual, with a deep and seamless core of fruit framed by ultra-refined tannins, a bright spine of acidity and a long, mineral finish. With an impressively low finished pH of 3.37, it was taken out of barrel a month earlier than usual and saw no fining—as has been the case since 2010. - William Kelley, Wine Advocate

96 Points! Gorgeous fragrance, pretty and pure. Juicy and clean, this has such a lovely energy and focus to it – lifted, bright but not searing, juicy but not too acidic, weighty but still streamlined and direct. I love the fine tannins, still with some tension, and a soft, sality liquorice outline. Feels elegant and finessed, polished and stylish with lift and movement. - Decanter Magazine

96 Points! Exuding black currant, blackberry, violet, licorice and iron flavors, this pure red is racy and well-delineated. Harmonious and persistent, offering a long aftertaste that picks up a salty taste along with the fruit, this is simply radiant. Caberlot.- Wine Spectator

96 Points! The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Catena Alta, sourced from Agrelo in Luján de Cuyo, also includes 7% Cabernet Franc. Aged for up to 18 months in French oak barrels, both new and used, this garnet wine with a purple sheen reveals balsamic and spicy notes intertwined with a black fruit core. Further hints of blueberry and currants layer atop a subtle oak backdrop. Dry and plush on the palate, the juicy and supple texture lingers with a fragrant and enduring flavor—a rich yet nuanced continental Cabernet. - Joaquin Hidalgo, Vinous Media

96 Points! A light golden hue, the 2021 Chardonnay Beyond The Threshold is layered with honeyed citrus and delicate smoke and flush with floral perfume that expands in the glass. This has another gear on the palate, with more fresh acidity and notes of candied lime, green apple, and warming spices that last on the finish. It’s very attractive and will be great over the next 10 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

96 Points! The 2021 Beyond the Threshold Chardonnay comes from a single block in Sanchez Vineyard in Petaluma Gap. It slowly unfurls to reveal notes of pear tart, butterscotch, lemon curd, and grapefruit giving way to wafts of allspice and toasted almonds. The full-bodied palate is rich and opulent with a creamy texture and wonderful tension, finishing long and spicy. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, TWI

94-96 Points! Tremblay's 2021 Echézeaux du Dessus Grand Cru is a hauntingly floral, ethereal wine, wafting from the glass with scents of sweet plums and berries mingled with exotic spices, orange zest and vine smoke. Full-bodied, broad and enveloping, it's deep and seamless, with a cool core of fruit, melting tannins and a long, floral finish. - William Kelley, robertparker.com

96 Points! A deep, quite herbal expression, with liquorice and crushed blueberries to the cassis fruit. Full-bodied, powerfully fruited, dense and deep. Really mouthcoating, intense fruit. The tannins are ripe, fine and plentiful, all saturated in blackberry juice on a long finish. Certainly one of the more successful Châteauneufs this year. Will age well. A Mourvèdre-led expression of Beaucastel - it contains more than usual, at least 35% and probably more. Grenache and Cinsault fermented in cement, Syrah and Mourvèdre fermented in foudre. - Decanter Magazine

94 Points! Toasty, meaty and inviting, this fresh red shows an understated, savory side, with notes of singed spices, mesquite, wet earth and fresh tobacco leaf flanking a silky range of plum and warm cherry compote flavors. Channels its terroir, with a round feel held in check by refined tannins. The finish is lined with cool minerality and heavy iron. Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Counoise, Vaccarèse, Terret Blanc, Muscardin, Clairette, Picpoul de Pinet, Bourboulenc, Picardan and Roussanne. - Wine Spectator

96 Points! A deep, quite herbal expression, with liquorice and crushed blueberries to the cassis fruit. Full-bodied, powerfully fruited, dense and deep. Really mouthcoating, intense fruit. The tannins are ripe, fine and plentiful, all saturated in blackberry juice on a long finish. Certainly one of the more successful Châteauneufs this year. Will age well. A Mourvèdre-led expression of Beaucastel - it contains more than usual, at least 35% and probably more. Grenache and Cinsault fermented in cement, Syrah and Mourvèdre fermented in foudre. - Decanter Magazine

94 Points! Toasty, meaty and inviting, this fresh red shows an understated, savory side, with notes of singed spices, mesquite, wet earth and fresh tobacco leaf flanking a silky range of plum and warm cherry compote flavors. Channels its terroir, with a round feel held in check by refined tannins. The finish is lined with cool minerality and heavy iron. Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Counoise, Vaccarèse, Terret Blanc, Muscardin, Clairette, Picpoul de Pinet, Bourboulenc, Picardan and Roussanne. - Wine Spectator

98 Points! The aromas of currants and flowers with hints of stones and sandalwood are enticing. Medium- to full-bodied, with an impressive structure of polished yet intense and focused tannins that run the length of the wine. Both the acidity and tannins play off each other, giving a punchy character. A classic Cheval. Only 13.3% alcohol. 52% cabernet franc, 43% merlot and 5% cabernet sauvignon. For a decade or so, this wine never had so much cabernet franc. Needs four or five years to soften. Drink after 2029. - JamesSuckling.com

97 Points! The 2021 Cheval Blanc has turned out beautifully in bottle, and director Pierre-Olivier Clouet even considers it to be superior to the 2020, a preference that I share. Wafting from the glass with aromas of mulberries and cherries mingled with incense, iris and rose petals, framed by a deft touch of new oak, it's medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, with a velvety attack that segues into a rich, concentrated mid-palate framed by sweet, powdery tannins and concluding with a long, penetrating, rose-inflected finish. - William Kelley, Wine Advocate

100 Points! Extremely aromatic with red currants, blackcurrants, spices, iodine, paprika and subtle hints of white pepper. Fresh flowers, fresh sage, lavender and some pine needles and sandalwood. Medium-bodied with perfectly integrated tannins that go on for minutes with refined and harmonious fruit that integrates beautifully into the wine, giving it a weightless structure that shows class and verve. Endless balance and length. It’s so balanced that you could drink it now but it will age for decades. A blend of 75% carmenere, 18% cabernet sauvignon and 7% merlot. Best after 2028. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! Aromatically complex and intriguing, this offers a spiced plum pastry note that melds with petrichor, pine, dried violet and cocoa powder elements. The palate is round and richly textured, with Szechuan peppercorn accents to the concentrated black cherry, plum and cassis center. Everything comes together harmoniously on the finish and lingers, with present but integrated tannins. A stunner that should develop nicely in the cellar. Carmenère, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2040. - Wine Spectator

96 Points! Plenty of red fruit character here, plus notes of wet earth, blood orange and violets. Excellent concentration for 2022 with beautifully integrated fine tannins, the fresh acidity helping to drive the long, delicately earthy finish. Drinkable now, but best from 2025. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! This stands out for its structure, subtle power, balance and finesse. Perfumed and softly sweet on the nose, ripe and concentrated, glorious and inviting. Creamy and chalky at the same time, lovely texture and density with bright and concentrated strawberry and red cherry fruit. Crisp, sweet, salty and sour, a lovely combination of flavours and textures with great drive and an undercurrent of minerality and salty wet stone finish – real St-Estèphe signature. - Decanter Magazine

95 Points! Floral aromas with violets, lavender and currants. Lead pencil, too. Medium-bodied, with fine tannins that caress and please. Elegant and sophisticated. Linear line of tannins running through this. Needs two or three years to soften. Hold for now. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! The 2021 Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru is less brooding than is often the case, no doubt thanks to the vintage. Wafting from the glass with notes of sweet red berries, wild plums, rose petals, cinnamon and potpourri, it's full-bodied, rich and layered, with a beautifully seamless, suave profile that means it's far from forbidding, even right out of the gates. Patience, however, will of course be rewarded. - William Kelley, robertparker.com