Search results for: 'bordeaux 2018'

96 Points! Intense aromas of black cherries, lavender and spice, such as nutmeg. Some sandalwood and bark, too. Full-bodied with a solid core of fruit and tannins for the vintage. Rather chewy, suggesting that additional bottle age is needed. Try after 2026. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! Depths of dark, balsamic-tinged black cherry, plum sauce and autumnal spice make the 2018 Brunello di Montalcino impossible to ignore. This is velvety to the core, nearly opulent in feel, with a dense wave of ripe red fruits complemented by nuances of sweet lavender and tobacco. It leaves the palate clenched with fine tannins and primary concentration, creating a classic sensation that transcends the vintage. Nearly a minute goes by, and hints of cocoa and sweet herbs continue to resonate. Wow! Production at the Pertimali estate was down by 20% due to the spring frost, and the decision was made to place all of the juice usually intended for the Riserva into the straight Brunello, the result being one of the top wines of the vintage. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media

95 Points! Spicy and creamy shiraz-based blend with velvety tannins framing a silky core of dark fruit, licorice, cloves, grilled herbs and spices. Five spice and smoked paprika coming through. Full-bodied yet elegant. 65% shiraz, 23% cabernet sauvignon, 9% cabernet franc and 3% merlot. Drink or hold. Screw cap. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! Beautiful, attractive cabernet characters with cigars, tobacco leaf, currants, savory tapenade and sweet roasted chili peppers. Cocoa powder and star anise, too. Intense, but remaining fluid with a bright, red-fruited center palate followed by a lengthy, layered finish, full of Spanish chocolate and cigar box characters. Lasting almost a minute. 2% merlot and 1% cabernet franc in the blend. 10% new French oak 300 liter barrels. Drink now or hold. Screw cap. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! This has an intense nose of ripe blackberries, cooked cherries, walnuts, mocha, tobacco, tar and grilled herbs. It’s medium-to full-bodied with a beautifully round, creamy yet firm tannin frame. Lots of ripe and plush dark fruit and spice. Drink from 2023. - JamesSuckling.com

93 Points! Supple and jammy, with rich and multilayered berry cobbler and toasty spice flavors that expand and flesh out on the zesty finish. Drink now through 2029. - Wine Spectator

This is another stellar set of Champagne from Christophe Baron. The 2018s are simply lights out. Readers will note the addition of a new wine in this range, the Closeaux, which rounds out the collection of four pure Meunier Champagnes, all bottled in magnum only. Mignon and his cousins practice a decidedly Burgundian approach to winemaking. The wines are fermented in 600L Taransaud demi-muids (25% new), with heavy lees stirring, an approach Baron favors for building the wines, especially on the mid-palate and that allows for bottling with no dosage. As for 2018, Baron calls it a typical modern vintage for Champagne marked by climate change. “You better get used to it, because this is the future!” he told me emphatically. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

This is another stellar set of Champagne from Christophe Baron. The 2018s are simply lights out. Readers will note the addition of a new wine in this range, the Closeaux, which rounds out the collection of four pure Meunier Champagnes, all bottled in magnum only. Mignon and his cousins practice a decidedly Burgundian approach to winemaking. The wines are fermented in 600L Taransaud demi-muids (25% new), with heavy lees stirring, an approach Baron favors for building the wines, especially on the mid-palate and that allows for bottling with no dosage. As for 2018, Baron calls it a typical modern vintage for Champagne marked by climate change. “You better get used to it, because this is the future!” he told me emphatically. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

This is another stellar set of Champagne from Christophe Baron. The 2018s are simply lights out. Readers will note the addition of a new wine in this range, the Closeaux, which rounds out the collection of four pure Meunier Champagnes, all bottled in magnum only. Mignon and his cousins practice a decidedly Burgundian approach to winemaking. The wines are fermented in 600L Taransaud demi-muids (25% new), with heavy lees stirring, an approach Baron favors for building the wines, especially on the mid-palate and that allows for bottling with no dosage. As for 2018, Baron calls it a typical modern vintage for Champagne marked by climate change. “You better get used to it, because this is the future!” he told me emphatically. - Antoni Galloni, Vinous Media

95 Points, Wine Spectator's #1 Wine of the Year! Rose, strawberry and cherry aromas and flavors are the main themes in this red, along with wild herb, mineral and cut hay accents. Racy and full of energy, with a long, saturated finish. - Wine Spectator

93 Points! Opening to a medium-dark garnet color, the 2018 Brunello di Montalcino offers direct and thick lines with ripe cherry, blackcurrant, leather and tilled earth. The wine is structured and firm at the back thanks to the quality of the tannins, and it offers generous fruit texture and concentration. This is a textbook Brunello from a warm vintage. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

93 Points! Sour cherries, orange zest, bark and tobacco leaves on the nose. Some olives and walnut husk. Savory and sleek with a medium body, tight-grained tannins and a chewy finish. Lovely pure sangiovese character. Better from 2024. - JamesSuckling.com

Just a fabulous Nuits that is drinking fabulously now. Chauevente's wines are always very forward for the area and this wine is no exception...delicious!

94 Points! The 2018 L'Etoile Savagnin matured in un-topped-up barrels for some three years. It was a very warm vintage with low yields and concentrated wines (14.5% alcohol) pungent and persistent. This matured in an aboveground and slightly warmer cellar and was not matured in foudre (only in barrels), because they had a lot of Chardonnay; so that might be the reason why there's a more pungent smokiness. 3,078 bottles were filled in April 2023. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

94 Points! The 2018 Cabernet Franc Family, aged in 25% new oak (Vicard and Mercurey cooperages) for 18 months, easily possesses the finest nose of the three Cabernet Francs that I tasted from Raats, with soaring red berry fruit laced with bell pepper, powdered dark chocolate and gravel. The fresh, vibrant palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins, fine acidity and a very precise and sustained finish. This is an outstanding Cabernet Franc. - Neal Martin, Vinous Media

94 Points! The 2018 Grand Cru Hengst Riesling blends all the six parcels that were picked between September 28 and October 9 and vinified them in cask until the bottling in early July 2019. The wine is very intense, fresh and pure on the complex, lemony and still phenolic nose. Full-bodied, rich and very elegant on the palate, this is a lush but refined and sustainably saline Hengst with grapefruit bitterness and a long and promising finish. This is a powerful and age-worthy Riesling of great complexity even if not generosity in terms of perfect ripeness. 13.3% stated alcohol. Natural cork. Tasted at the domaine in May 2022. - Stephan Reinhardt, robertparker.com