Search results for: 'hints aged'

97 Points! Subtle and attractive aromas of blackcurrants and flowers with hints of spices. Black truffles as well. Medium to full body, with fine tannins that are nicely integrated and racy. Succulent at the end. Umami, too. Drinkable but better after 2027. - James Suckling, jamessuckling.com

94 Points! Vibrant plum colour with violet edging, glass staining and gorgeous. A serious Pavillon Rouge, as is typical of the vintage, with fleshy raspberry and bilberry fruits, espresso and cocoa bean, precise and clean-cut, taking serious aim at the tannic frame. This is even more concentrated than 2016 in terms of the analysis, and the intensity of the fruit character suggests long ageing ahead of it. The estate saw 80mm of rain on August 13 but apart from that there was almost no rain for six weeks. 36hl/h yield (compared to 55hl/h in 2016, explaining the extra concentration here), 55% new oak for ageing. - Jane Anson

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

94-96 Points! It features stunning aromas of licorice, blueberries and blackberries. Full-bodied, creamy and lush on the palate, it finishes long and silky, with hints of black olive lending a welcome savory edge.- Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

93 Points! The 2022 Cairanne L'Estevenas offers red and black fruits, spring flowers, game, mint, and rose petals in a Côte-Rôtie look-alike. Medium-bodied, focused, and elegant, with beautiful tannins, this 50/50 blend of Grenache and Syrah includes 30% whole clusters and was aged 18 months in concrete, bottled without filtration. Drink bottles over the coming 7-10 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

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97-98 Points! This is always an idiosyncratic wine. This year it’s stunning, with a unique floral aspect and excellent depth of pure blue fruit, mulberries, dried herbs and white pepper. So juicy and mouthwatering on the palate, with a medium to full body and fine tannins. There is a crystalized mouthfeel, but the tannins are fresh and well knit. This is already delicious, which indicates its superb balance. 48% cabernet franc, 29% cabernet sauvignon and 23% merlot. - Zekun Shuai, James Suckling

95-97 Points! Seamless and silky in the glass, with superb balance, the 2024 Les Carmes Haut-Brion is one of the wines of the vintage. All the elements are so well balanced, always a sign of a superior vintage at this address. Floral notes, spice, leather and mocha run through a core of layered, beautifully persistent dark red fruit. Harvest took place between September 17 and 25, during one of the rare windows with little rain. As always, Les Carmes is done with a high percentage of stems (52%), specifically 100% for the Cabernet Franc, 50% for the Merlot and 20% for the Cabernet Sauvignon. Aging 70% new oak barrels,19% 18HL foudre and 11% amphora. New oak is already very nicely integrated, another sign of a superb vintage. The 2024 is a brilliant effort by the team led by Technical Director Olivier Pouthier. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

94-97 Points! The 2024 Château Carmes Haut-Brion comes from 7.8 hectares of vines in the heart of Pessac and is 48% Cabernet Franc, 29% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the balance 23% Merlot that was vinified with 52% whole clusters and will spend two years in 70% new barrels as well as smaller portions in vats and amphora. It's one of the darker-hued wines in the vintage and has a terrific nose of ripe black fruits, smoky earth, violets, crushed stone, and hints of lead pencil. It's medium to full-bodied, has ultra-fine tannins, a layered, seamless mouthfeel, and a great finish. I think it's clearly one of the top wines in the vintage. - Jeb Dunnuck

95 Points! Slight hints of wax, earth and lemon show on the still-shy nose. The palate is equally reticent, tightly coiled but speaking of concentrated citrus freshness that verges into zestiness. The bone-dry nature makes it hard to sense ripe citrus slumbering at the core but the fruit will reveal itself with bottle age. Concentration, purity and power promise a future firework, discernible now in the tangerine zestiness on the finish. - Wine Enthusiast

95 Points! The 2017 Syrah Rockpile Vineyard is another huge success in the vintage. From a great site in the Rockpile AVA of Sonoma County, its deep purple color is followed by a great bouquet of blueberries, iron, crushed rocks, ground pepper, and hints of smoked game. Structured and tannic on the palate, it reminds me of a young Cornas and needs 4-5 years of bottle age. It’s seriously impressive, though, and should have 15 years of overall longevity. - Jeb Dunnuck

95 Points! Mostly Merlot (there's roughly 20% Cabernet Franc), the 2019 Château Valandraud Virginie De Valandraud from the Thunevin team reveals a deep purple hue to go with a brilliant nose of spiced currants, black cherries, new saddle leather, Provençal herbs, and subtle floral nuances. It's rich, medium to full-bodied, and flawlessly balanced on the palate, with gorgeous tannins and a great finish. It's the finest vintage for this cuvée I've tasted, surpassing the 2015, 2016, and 2018. It's going to drink brilliantly for 20 years or more. - Jeb Dunnuck

94 Points! The 2019 Virginie de Valandraud is wonderfully deep and super-expressive. Red plum, raspberry jam, espresso, crushed rocks, rose petal, lavender and tobacco build into the richly textured, resonant finish. This explosive, flavorful Saint-Émilion has a ton to offer. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

94 Points! Blackberry, chocolate and hazelnut character on the nose, following through nicely to a medium body with integrated tannins and a fresh finish. Tight at the end, suggesting more to come with bottle age. Hints of mushrooms and earth. Second wine of Valandraud. Hint of wood at the end that will dissipate with age. Drink after 2024. - JamesSuckling.com

93-95 Points! The 2020 Volnay 1er Cru Les Santenots-du-Milieu is excellent, wafting from the glass with a deep bouquet of wild berries, plums and cassis mingled with hints of spices, grilled meats and rose petals. Medium to full-bodied, layered and concentrated, it's deep and tightly wound, with powdery structuring tannins and lively acids. This is a serious Santenots that will require some bottle age, and it's among the best that I can remember tasting chez Lafon over the last decade. - William Kelley, robertparker.com

95+ Points! The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon The Boss Block 8 comes from a site close to Futo and Harlan, in Oakville, and it’s another inky hued, concentrated, powerful, age-worthy wine from this team. Giving up plenty of red and black fruits as well as violets, minty herbs, and hints of eucalyptus, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a balanced, concentrated, structured mouthfeel, fine tannins, and good acidity. Everything points to a seriously good bottle of wine. Give it 4-5 years as well. - Jeb Dunnuck

96 Points! This is a vibrant ruby colour, with floral aromatics that are even more evident on the nose here than with the second wine, Blason. This is not always the case during En Primeur tastings, when it's the second wines that tend to be a little more open, but it's a feature of the 2018 vintage. This is a brilliant Issan with richness and poise joined by a delicate acidity that pulls the fruit along. The tannins are deceptive, as they are supple and appealing, but the density and power builds over the palate and clearly indicates long ageing. A wine that feels like it's rooted in its appellation. 50% new oak. 40hl/ha yield, with 53% of production going into this wine, higher than in both 2017 and 2016. - Decanter

96 Points! Aromas of blackberry, plum, cocoa, iodine, clove and graphite. It’s medium-to full-bodied with firm, silky tannins. Tightly wound and mineral at the moment, with dusty gravel and graphite notes, yet with focus and precision. Such balance and harmony for the vintage. Try from 2025. - James Suckling, jamessuckling.com

95 Points! Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2020 Berliquet, a blend of 69% Merlot and 31% Cabernet Franc, needs a fair bit of coaxing to bring out notes of blueberry preserves, black cherry compote, and blackberry pie, followed by hints of chocolate mint and lavender. The generous, full-bodied palate is jam-packed with ripe, seductive black and blue fruit preserves flavors, framed by velvety tannins and just enough freshness, finishing long with a spicy kick. This estate, recently acquired by Chanel, is already starting to show its true potential, and what a beauty! - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, The Wine Independent

95 Points! The cool climate of the vineyard really shines bright in the light-bodied, nuanced 2023 Chardonnay Escolle Vineyard, which offers lengthy, crisp, and subtle characteristics of gravel, green apple, and a hint of citrus and spice. Structured to age another 10 years, it captures the power and intensity of the appellation from a perspective of equal finesse. - Virginie Boone, jebdunnuck.com

95 Points! Aromas of limes, white nuts, green apples, savory seaweed and seashells. So delicious, with a creamy, nutty touch and a savory, lightly saline finish. Nori at the end. Really long and intellectual. Viura aged in Sherry butts. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

93+ Points! The 2021 Monopole Clásico Reserva comes from a cooler year with a long cycle and was produced with grapes that were picked on October 7 and 8, fermented in stainless steel, then matured in oak barrels and Sherry casks of different sizes—300, 400 and 500 liters—where it matured for eight months and managed to grow a veil of flor yeasts in the butts filled with the wine. Still pale and young but with incipient complexity, it has a very spicy nose with notes of esparto grass, hints of pollen and cereals. It's fresh and comes in at 13.38% alcohol, with a pH of 3.26 and 5.61 grams of acidity, meaning balance and freshness. It has depth, complexity and character, with more freshness and acidity and some grip, showing more of the character of the vintage. It's very tasty and ends with a very pleasant bitter twist in the finish. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

94+ Points! The 2021 Léoville Barton has turned out beautifully in bottle, wafting from the glass with notes of cassis and plums mingled with subtle hints of pencil shavings, menthol and spices. Medium to full-bodied, deep and impressively concentrated, it's layered and refined, built around lively acids and a chassis of sweet, powdery tannin that will reward some bottle age with greater plenitude. It's a real success. - William Kelley, Wine Advocate

95 Points! This wine has aromas of blackberries, graphite, tar, bramble berries and blackcurrants. Grape skin as well. Medium- to full-bodied, with very integrated, ever-so-refined tannins that fan across the palate and show definition and tension. It's supple, savory and svelte, long and vivid at the end. A little shy but will deliver more excellence in three or four years. Better after 2027. -JamesSuckling.com

97 Points! Very complex with red currants, iodine and iron. Medium-bodied, with a dense yet energetic palate and a long and racy finish showing chalk and gunpowder. Flinty. 52% merlot, 30% cabernet franc and 18% cabernet sauvignon. Tight at the end, suggesting at least four to five years of cellaring. Drink after 2029. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! As to the Grand Vin, the saturated ruby/purple-hued 2021 Château Pavie defies the vintage with its ripe, powerful aromatics of cassis, toasted spice, chalky minerality, graphite, and hints of truffly earth. A rich, medium to full-bodied, concentrated, incredibly textured 2021, it has velvety tannins, no hard edges, and a gorgeous finish. It's a testament to the talent and work of this incredible team and is up with the crème de la crème of the vintage. The 2021 is based on 52% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc, and 18% Cabernet Sauvignon, brought up in a mix of new and used barrels, hitting 14.14% alcohol and a pH of 3.67. It’s going to age for 20-25 years if well stored. - Jeb Dunnuck

98 Points! The 2020 Cheval des Andes was harvested from the last of February for the first time ever. It was Gabillet's second vintage at Cheval des Andes, and that year, he had to start without waiting for Pierre Olivier Clouet and Pierre Lurton from Cheval Blanc; when they arrived, they had finished picking the Malbec, which surprisingly was fresher in Las Compuertas (because of the higher percentage of clay?) than in Altamira (where the vines suffered more stress), saving the freshness. They now harvest using cold trucks (for the first time), and they also started earlier in the morning (six in the morning, impossible earlier in Mendoza...), which he reckons was very good for the precision of the wine. They used 40% 225-liter barrels, 40% 400-liter oak barrels and 20% 2,500-liter foudres, half of them new and with an élevage of 15 months on average, depending on the lots and varieties from 12 to 18 months. The final blend was 49% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Malbec and 2% Petit Verdot, which makes a comeback as it was not used since 2016. The key was to finish the fermentation of the Petit Verdot without skins, and that way, they have been able to use it in the blends of 2021, 2022 and 2023 in small but increasing percentages. This is slightly riper than 2019, with a little more alcohol (14.5%) and with very good structural tannins but saving the freshness, and it has the spicy side from the Petit Verdot (Gabillet talks about white pepper). The wine has the ultra sleek and polished texture and the elegance and the balance that is the signature here; the wine is very clean and precise. I see very good regularity across the three vintages I tasted next to each other—this 2020 and the 2018 and 2019. Overall, this is a triumph over the adverse conditions of the vintage. They produced their usual 100,000 bottles (since 2018), as they are renewing their vineyards and want to keep the volume stable. They produce this volume from the 36 productive hectares they have in Las Compuertas and Altamira. There are some more changes: in 2020, they went for a lighter bottle, weighing 100 grams less than the one they used in 2018 and 2019, but close to 300 grams less than the bottle from before. It's also a slimmer bottle, always thinking about the environment. They are very focused on agroecology, accelerating the regenerative viticulture and using cover crops; they have planted 1,900 trees in the last three years, creating small clusters of biodiversity for birds. They have transplanted some centenary olive trees and keep their sheep and lamas on the property. Very green-minded. - Luis Gutiérrez, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

95 Points! Tasted with Lisa and Philip Togni in their winery atop Spring Mountain in February of 2024. The Tanbark Hill was bottled in June of 2023. 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, aged up to 20 months. The tannins are quite assertive at this young stage, in classic Spring Mountain Togni fashion, with a fine granularity about them. The wine feels quite complete, teeming with pure dark berry fruits and very fresh. Deeply mineral-tinged dark berries and black currants are framed by a wine with noticeable coiled-up energy and tension. It’s mostly mouthfeel at this stage and will soften with a few more years. - Jonathan Cristaldi, Decanter Magazine

93 Points! The medium to full-bodied 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Tanbark Hill Vineyard delivers complex notes of mountain fruit, with hints of sage and bay leaf accenting cassis, blueberries and raspberries. In the mouth, it's firmly buttressed by grainy tannins, with terrific acids that linger on the finish in mouthwatering fashion. This, Togni's "early-drinking" wine, should age two decades with ease. -  Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

93 Points! The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Tanbark Hill Vineyard is one of the most potent vintages of this wine I can remember tasting. Dense and textured, the 2021 shows ample dark fruit and complex earthy/savory undertones that add balance. The 2021 benefits from the addition of some excess fruit that would have been used in the main label but that, for practical purposes, ended up in the tanks for the Tanbark Hill. Readers will find a wine of breadth, power and character. In this vintage, the Tanbark Hill gives a very good idea of the quality and style of the Grand Vin. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous

96 Points! Savory berries, plums, iron, minerals, tobacco, ink and blood oranges. Very bright, juicy and structured, with sensational balance, aged savoriness and brightness that are typical of Tondonia reds. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! The 2012 Viña Tondonia Reserva comes from a very dry year, with 25% less rain than the average (at the time), resulting in lower yields of very healthy grapes that delivered wines with nice balance between alcohol and polyphenols, making it very apt for the aging in barrel. It had a slightly longer élevage in barrel, six years. The wine is aromatic with a developed profile, spicy and tertiary (forest floor, a touch of brick dust and iodine), complex and nuanced. The palate is full and round, with polished tannins and a long, dry finish. It has a textbook Tondonia nose and profile. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

95 Points! Viña Tondonia can seem austere in its (comparative) youth, especially when compared with sweeter Bosconia, but this is a wine that will reward patience. Picked earlier to assuage the effect of a warmer site, this blend of Tempranillo, 20% Garnacha and 5% each of Graciano and Mazuelo is structured and focused, with redcurrant, forest floor and green herb notes. Give it time. 2025-32. - Tim Atkins, MW

95 Points! The 2012 Viña Tondonia is a blend of Tempranillo, Garnacha, Mazuelo and Graciano, cultivated on the meander of the Ebro River in Rioja Alta. This garnet wine reveals aromas of ash and plum marmalade, with a faintly herbal core and hints of oaky cedar. Dry and lean, the fairly chalky texture lingers long, concluding with a compact, flavorful and lasting finish. The 2012 is a beautiful old-school Rioja. - Joaquin Hidalgo, Vinous

95 Points! From 97% Tempranillo, the rest Merlot and Albillo Mayor, the 2021 Reserva spent 28 months in French oak barrel and has quite a bit of toastiness on the palate. The tannins are smoothened and round, with a hint of chalkiness and grip. From a sizable percentage of old-vine grapes, it has an ethereal freshness and full-bodied layers of dark berry, leather, anise, and dried herb. It should offer 15-20 years more of aging. - Virginie Boone, jebdunnuck.com

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