88-91 WS The 87/10/3 Semillon, Sauvignon Blanc and Muscadelle blend is plump and open-knit with green plum, nectarine and coconut notes with a round, easy feel through the plantain-tinged finish. - James Molesworth, Wine...
97 RP / 96 WS / 18.5 JR Space limitations preclude including tasting notes. 2003 is a rich, sweet vintage of powerful, full-bodied wines that possess huge levels of glycerin, alcohol, and residual sugar. - Robert...
92 WA / 90+ VM / 90 WS / 16.5 JR Tasted single blind against its peers. This has a very floral, exuberant bouquet with white peach and grapefruit soaring from the glass. It is very pure and vivacious. The palate is...
97 WE / 96 JS / 95 WA / 95 DE / 94+ VM This firm wine shows the tannic side of the vintage. Those tannins are dusty, enriched with black-currant fruits and a dense backdrop. The wine is concentrated and elegant, very...
94 JS / 93 JD / 92 VM / 91 DE / 90 WS / 90 WA So pretty on the nose with iodine, dark berries, flowers and rose petals. Full body and integrated tannins within a beautiful texture. Intense finish. Focused. Second wine of...
95 WA / 95 JD / 95 JS / 93 VM / 93 DE Made up of 75% Merlot, 18% Cabernet Franc and 7% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2016 La Gravette de Certan has a deep garnet-purple color and features lovely redcurrants, black raspberries and...
100 DE / 98 RP / 98 JS / 96 VM As ever when tasting the two together, the striking thing is the difference in character rather than quality between 2009 and 2010. This is tighter, more structured in its concentration, more...
60% Merlot / 20% Cabernet Sauvignon / 20% Cabernet FrancClay and limestone soils covered with stony gravel. The second wine of Château Carignan is ripe and fruity. It has red fruits and layers of tannin and...
91 DE The estate had just been bought the year before by the Freys, taking over from René Chayou, owner of Ayala Champagne - although Caroline Frey arrived a few years later. Significantly higher Merlot than in...
99 JS / 97 AG / 96 JD / 95 WS / 95 WA / 95 DE / 96-98 GV #81 James Suckling's Top 100 Wines of 2018 The aromas to this are phenomenal with oyster shell, blackberries, iodine and black truffles. Full-bodied,...
94 RP / 93 WS / 92 VM Readers looking for a modern day version of Latour's magnificent 1962 or 1971 should check out the sensational 1999 Latour. It is a big, concentrated offering, exhibiting a dense ruby/purple color, and...
99 JS / 98 WA / 97 JD / 96 VM / 95 WS / 94-96 GV #46 James Suckling's Top 100 Wines of 2018 A very intense yet playfully ripe and balanced expression of dark plums, dark stones and blackberries. Then wait for the dark,...
92 WS / 91 RP / 91 WA / 91 VM Very concentrated, with a dark gold color and dried pineapple, mango, honey, caramel and butterscotch. Full-bodied, with a long finish. Very, very thick and sweet. A bit monolithic on the...
96 WA / 96 JS / 94 WS / 93 VM / 17.5 JR One of the stars of the vintage, the 2011 Vieux Château Certan was brilliant from barrel (I vividly remember tasting it as a student), and it is beginning to show all of that...