Italy

94 Points! Made with Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, the Tenuta San Guido 2022 Guidalberto gives you a good taste of the same DNA that brings us one of Italy's greatest wines, Sassicaia, but it's offered in a more immediate style here (thanks to the addition of the Merlot). This warm vintage opens to medium-dark concentration and very plump aromas that take you immediately to blackberry and blackcurrant sitting out in the sun at your local farmers market. The wine shows a soft and gentle side with a pretty level of elegance transmitted through the fruit freshness and the light oak spice that is discernible here but delivered with grace. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

94 Points! Lots of mint with sage and fresh rosemary to the currant and orange character on the nose, as well as some ripe raspberries. The palate is very refined with creamy and crunchy tannins that run the length of the wine. It shows a crunchy and energetic personality. Give it a year or two to come together, but it’s showing brightness for the vintage. Drink after 2027. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! This is a beautiful, fresh 2017 Brunello with fine tannins and a medium body of cherry, bark, cedar and pine-needle flavors. It’s long and polished with ultra-fine tannins and fresh acidity. Nicely done for the vintage. Drink or hold. - James Suckling

93 Points! Tenute Silvio Nardi is an estate worth visiting. It occupies one of the most extreme locations in the appellation, tucked away into the hills north of the town in a wild no-man's-land of its own. Once you get there, there is a cozy, warm feeling, with vineyards carved out of the surrounding Mediterranean shrub oaks and forests. If you taste forest floor, button mushroom and wild flowers in the 2017 Brunello di Montalcino, you could easily imagine this magical place. This is a silky, mid-weight Brunello with a cool-climate character (which is preserved despite the hot vintage). - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

95 Points! Displays beautiful aromas of ripe fruit, with currant, plum and blackberry. Complex and full-bodied, with soft, polished tannins and a long, long finish. This shows a deft hand in the winemaking. - Wine Spectator

95 Points! Still very young. Shows complex aromas of ripe fruit, blackberries, plums and currants. Polished, with soft tannins, a full body and a very long finish. - James Suckling, 2013

94 Points! The 2005 Ornellaia opens with striking, compelling aromatics that draw the taster in. Still deep, rich and intense throughout, the 2005 has held up beautifully. Sweet herbs, tobacco, spices, sage and plums add shades of dimension to a core of super-ripe, exotic fruit that is one of the vestiges of a late-ripening vintage in which the fruit was allowed to hang until the very end. The 2005 remains an infant. It should drink well for another 15+ years. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous, 2015

95 Points! The 2022 Eneo is superb. Rich and expansive on the palate, the 2022 offers up an exotic mélange of black cherry, plum, leather, licorice, incense and espresso. There’s gorgeous mid-palate depth and plenty of textural richness, but in the more restrained style that informs these wines today. The long, silky finish is pure class. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

92 Points! In the Fonterenza style, the 2020 Rosso di Montalcino lifts from the glass with a wild bouquet as sour cherry and orange mingle with sweet herbs and exotic spices. This is full of energy yet soft and pliant. Vibrant acidity carries licorice-tinged red fruits. It tapers off long and structured, leaving the mouth watering and aching under its youthful structure. Patience will be required. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media

92 Points! Darkly alluring, almost smokey in nature, the 2019 Rosso Granomelo tempts the senses with a complex blend of black currants, exotic spice, air-dried meats and crushed rocks. This seems to hover across the palate, lifted and finessed, with rose-tinged red berries that slowly take on a more savory profile as saline-mineral tones form toward the close. The 2019 lingers with impressive length and is potent, blending wild herbs with black fruits and blood orange hints that slowly fade to leave behind a fine web of tannin. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media

92 Points! Aromas of cherries, dried herbs, strawberry bush, wet stones and subtle spices with some dusty mineral notes. Silky and textured on the medium-bodied palate, it’s deliciously fruity and smooth, with a lingering finish. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

91 Points! The organic Brancaia 2023 Chianti Classico shows lovely primary intensity with dark cherry and blackcurrant. Barbara Widmer and her team strive for freshness and an easy-drinking experience with this charming wine. Maintaining fruit freshness and elegance is a main goal of this estate, but it also strives to push beyond the classic parameters of Chianti Classico in terms of complexity and depth. I love the brightness of the primary fruit in this wine. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

94 Points! The Mascarello family has recently doubled its vineyard holdings in Perno, Monforte d'Alba. We will see that new fruit on line in 2027. The Giuseppe Mascarello 2020 Barolo Perno Vigna Santo Stefano reveals a delicate and soft entry with generous fruit, sweet cherry and mild tannins. The wine offers a combination of mature fruit tones and spiciness that comes from higher elevations at 300 meters above sea level, where nighttime temperatures are cooler. The wine excels in length and silkiness. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

94 Points! Complex nose of watermelon, cocoa, strawberry, peony and kiwi peel, the palate zesty with rustic yet malleable tannins. A magnetic sip. Grapes from young vineyards in Barolo, the must fermented in stainless steel with three to four days of post-fermentation maceration. After malolactic fermentation in wood, the wine matures for 12 months in second-fill barriques previously used for the Bussiador Chardonnay. - Decanter Magazine

95 Points! The Poderi Aldo Conterno 2020 Barolo Bussia is a fine and silky wine with the elegant power that is characteristics of this special cru. The wine shows bright fruit flavors with cherry and blackcurrant followed by earthy iris root and licorice. There is a hint of perfume or church incense. That pretty intensity follows through to the palate with balanced freshness and lasting medium-plus richness. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

94 Points! The nose is attractive, with watermelon, leafy lightness, fresh violets and strawberry fruit. The palate is savory and graceful, with a full body, velvety tannins soaked in peach fruit, juicy acidity and a polished aftertaste. A bracing Barolo with at least 10 years of cellaring potential, yet enjoyable now. - JamesSuckling.com

92 Points! The 2019 Sangiovese Romagna Superiore Thea opens slowly in the glass with an understated mix of sage and dusty dried roses, giving way to nuances of strawberry and mint. This is silky and elegant in feel with mineral-tinged tart wild berries carried by zesty acids, as pretty inner violet tones form toward the close. A coating of fine tannins lingers through the lightly structured finale, but they are sweet and round as vivid raspberry and blood orange notes slowly fade. The Thea is a single-vineyard Sangiovese refined in tonneaux for nine months, 40% new. The 2019 is very attractive, but give it another year or two of cellaring for the best results. (Drink between 2024-2028) - Eric Guido, Vinous

95+ Points! Fruit selection for this wine casts a wider net in the celebrated Vorbeg vineyard that also fuels the exceptional Rarity bottling. This 52-hectare site has incredibly steep (70%) inclines at 450 to 650 meters above sea level with south and southwestern exposures. The 2022 Alto Adige Terlano Pinot Bianco Riserva Vorberg is a creamy, mid-weight expression from a warm and dry vintage. The wine offers pretty aromatic highlights of melon, Golden Delicious apple, pie crust and crushed oystershell. This is a beautiful and more accessible taste of the best of Alto Adige. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

94 Points! Fairly neutral with vibrant apricot fruit, aromatic herbs and a touch of almonds. Tight and tense acidity on the medium-bodied palate, tingling and electric. The citrusy finish is long and salty. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! Cloves, dark fruit, leather and savory complexity. Youthful, velvety tannins with crisp acidity, a full body and a spicy finish full of blond tobacco and coffee grounds. Drinkable after a year or two, but best from 2031. - JamesSuckling.com

94 Points! Made with Cabernet Sauvignon, the Mazzei 2021 Philip is soft and richly textured with all sorts of blackberry and black fruit aromas packed inside. These come through with special intensity in this balanced vintage. The wine style is contemporary and easily accessible for an international palate. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

94 Points! The 2020 Uvaggio is a fabulous introduction to this range. Pliant, layered, and wonderfully silky, the 2020 is all charm. Soft contours wrap around red/purplish fruit, dried herbs, rose petals, blood orange, mint and white pepper. This is an especially generous style, but it all works so well. Bright mineral notes extend the effortless, vibrant finish. Dollops of Vespolina and Croatina play off Nebbiolo so well, - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

94 Points! The 2021 Poggio de Colli, 100% Cabernet Franc, is stunning. It’s peppery and floral throughout, with masses of crushed strawberry and raspberry spiced up by tangerine zest. This impresses further with its wiry textures offset by tantalizing acidity. A core of tart wild berry fruit cascades across the palate, underscored by saline minerals and hints of citrus. Fine-grained tannins emerge through the finish as the 2021 tapers off spicy yet fresh, leaving the mouth watering despite its structure and intensity. This is a ripe vintage for Poggio de Colli, yet it is still a glorious Cabernet Franc that will pay dividends in the cellar. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media

94 Points! Expressive and expansive nose of fresh plums, cherries, cloves, nutmeg, flowers and sandalwood. It’s so transparent and vibrant, with a medium to full body and fine, tight tannins. Gorgeous fruit. From organically grown grapes. Try from 2024. - JamesSuckling.com

93 Points! The San Polo 2018 Brunello di Montalcino Podernovi shows a very earthy side that evokes savory spice, smoke and gamey aromas. The core of this organic wine is colored by black fruit and baked plum, but the wine is primarily driven by the aromas it has picked up during oak and bottle aging. This adds a medium-heavy constitution and a good amount of warm-vintage fruit weight for a Sangiovese. The wine also has an accessible character that makes it best to drink over the next 10 years. The fruit represents a selection from over two hectares. - Monica Larner robertparker.com

97 Points! A recurrent question with amply aged Italian classic reds like Barolo and Brunello di Montalcino is whether or not the extra ageing stipulations in place for the Riserva categories are truly necessary; it can often seem as if younger versions have the edge on older, 'grander' wines, since they show brighter fruit structures. This 2019 Riserva illustrates the benefits of extra age. It's pale, now, with some gentle bricking at the meniscus; the aromas are refined and harmonious, packed not just with red fruits but with autumnal warmth and oak-copse charm, as if the wine was evoking the landscape in which it came into being. On the tongue, it's still quite grandly structured and clearly has further development ahead; look behind those succulent if ample tannins, though, and you'll find beautifully articulated fruit supported by deft redcurrant acidity. Grand Barolo from this outstanding vintage. - Decanter World Wine Awards

93 Points! In the bottle with the red wax capsule, the Fratelli Serio & Battista Borgogno 2019 Barolo Riserva Cannubi shows a hint of tertiary definition with faded fruit, autumnal leaf and black tea. The wine is finely knit in terms of mouthfeel, and you get a slightly textured effect with granular tannins. Fruit is selected from one part, the Vigna Battista, of the three parcels farmed in Cannubi, with southern exposures on sand, silt and clay. That limestone sand is what adds the special finesse to Cannubi fruit, typically, although climate change has complicated things. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

92 Points! His 2021 Barolo sees fruit from vineyards in La Morra, Verduno and Serralunga d'Alba. There is a pretty chalky quality to the wine that you perceive across the senses, especially the bouquet. To that, I would add cocktail cherry and cassis. I am reminded of the Jolly Rancher candies we had as kids. The wine is informal, bright and accessible. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

A blend of 90% Sangiovese with 10% Canaiolo, Ciliegiolo, and Colorino, Piemaggio’s flagship Chianti Classico ferments spontaneously in stainless steel during a 3 ½ week maceration, and spends two years aging in a combination of concrete tanks and previously used wooden casks—mainly 25-hectoliter Slavonian oak, with some 500-liter French oak employed as well. Utterly textbook in character, it combines earth, bright fruit, and tangy acidity, with notable yet unforced concentration; it is a wine of balance and egoless drinkability.