98 James Suckling - Jamessuckling.com

So much violet and lilac aromas to this with blackberry and blueberry character, too. Full-bodied and delivering limestone, chalk and lavender on the palate. Great structure, too. Needs four or five years to soften. Better in 2022.

97 Jane Anson - Inside Bordeaux

This was a vintage where I really began to sit up and take notice of this estate as reguarly producing something extraordinary. Takes a heartbeat to get going, but you are rewarded with sculpted blueberry and raspberry fruits, mocha and liqourice, and a delicate feeling of tiptoing across a slate-strewn palate even at this young stage of six years old. Saline and pummice stone finish, with gunsmoke and black truffle curling out of the glass. Part of the warm vintages series within this vertical. 60% new oak.

97 Jeff Leve - The Wine Cellar Insider

Lush, sexy, plush and polished, the wine has all the glycerine needed to coat the glass and your palate. There is purity in the fruits and silky tannins in the finish that make this just as exciting to feel as it does to taste. One of the best vintage produced here, this should age for at least 20-25 years or longer!

96+ Antonio Galloni - Vinous

The 2015 Pavie-Macquin is surprisingly reticent. In the early going, I thought the 2015 would be easy to approach young, but this tasting has made me re-think that. Hedonistically ripe and explosive, with tremendous fruit purity, the 2015 possesses incredible depth along with the structure to match. Readers will need to be patient.

96 James Molesworth - Wine Spectator

Ripe, pure and expressive, with a beautiful panoply of loganberry, plum and red currant preserve flavors that meld seamlessly with anise and singed apple wood details and a subtle chalky spine. A bright floral accent on the finish lifts this up a register and lets it sail on, holding that note. Best from 2020 through 2040. 4,583 cases made.

96 Lisa Perrotti-Brown - The Wine Independent

Pavie Macquin 2015 is deep garnet in color and needs some coaxing to unveil emerging scents of crushed blackberries, warm plums and black raspberries, leading to hints of rosehip tea, licorice, incense, and espresso, with a waft of fertile loam. Full-bodied, the palate is packed with lively black fruits and loads of earthy/savory accents, supported by fine-grained tannins, finishing long and minerally.

96 International Wine Report

Nicolas Thienpont is at the top of his game and has created another absolute gem in 2015. This blend of 84% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon begins with seductive aromatics of blackberries and dark cherries which are laced with spices and floral nuances all coming together beautifully. On the palate this is full, rich and opulent, with remarkable balance and poise. It continues to impress with layers of dark fruits, which are cut with lovely minerality leading up to the long finish. A stunning wine which will require a bit of bottle age, yet shows incredible promise for an extremely bright future.

91 Wine Enthusiast

"Soft and velvety in texture, this wine is full of ripe fruit. Cushioned by the texture, the tannins are dense enough to promise aging to this wine with potential. Drink from 2024. -RV"

92-94 Antonio Galloni - Vinous

The 2022 Petit Lion is rich and sumptuous, but much more than that in terms of its complexity and distinction. Dramatic and sweeping, the 2022 is immediately captivating. Black cherry, gravel, scorched earth, licorice and lavender infuse the 2022 with tons of nuance. In this tasting, the Petit Lion is absolutely compelling. There’s terrific depth and density here, likely because of the high percentage of Merlot. What a gorgeous wine it is.

93 Wine Enthusiast

A ripe, structured wine, layered with tannins while also boasting rich black fruits, this is succulent and ripe. The acidity shows well along with the black pepper aroma. Drink the wine from 2028. — Roger Voss

90+ William Kelley - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The 2022 Le Petit Lion has turned out nicely, offering up aromas of cassis and plums mingled with hints of mint, violets and cigar wrapper. Medium to full-bodied, layered and textural, it's dense and concentrated, with a bright core of fruit and a penetrating finish.

95 Erin Larkin - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The 2023 Cape Crest Sauvignon Blanc comprises 97% Sauvignon Blanc, 2% Semillon and 1% Sauvignon Gris. Aromatically, the wine leads with pressed linen and Golden Delicious apples, white pepper, shaved fennel and a profusion of preserved citrus rind. Texturally, the wine has grip and shape, and while the acidity is brisk in the mouth, it is enveloped with ripe fruit and is tense. The four clones of Sauvignon Blanc (MS, 316, 317 and 905) bring genetic diversity and fruit profile, which elevates the wine into the echelon of the great. This is a 360-degree drinking experience here, driven by phenolic drive, acid and an abundance of fruit. Excellent. Barrel ferment and lees work emphasizes all of the above. The 905 clone plays a role in the texture of the wine here. This is one of the best Cape Crest releases—and from a challenging season too. The wine goes a long way toward proving the theory that great producers prevail no matter the season, and a large part of that is the extensive work conducted in the vineyard. The years of research and development into vine and soil health, cover crops and canopy management has come home to roost in this season. 13% alcohol, sealed under screw cap.

97-100 William Kelley - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The 2022 La Conseillante is a remarkable wine that has the potential to emerge as one of the wines of the vintage. A blend of 87% Merlot and 13% Cabernet Franc, it unfurls in the glass with deep aromas of black raspberries and mulberries mingled with notions of rose petals, violets, orange zest and mint. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, it's velvety and enveloping, with a textural attack that segues into a multidimensional mid-palate that's framed by sweet, powdery tannins, concluding with a long, saline finish. Checking in at a very healthy pH of 3.65 and 14% alcohol, it is a beautifully supple, suave wine that retains all this estate's signature elegance but in a slightly deeper-pitched and broader-shouldered format than the profound 2020. Congratulations to winemaker Marielle Cazaux, consulting enologist Thomas Duclos, the Nicolas family led by Jean-Valmy, and all the team at La Conseillante who have firmly established this estate at the very top of Pomerol's qualitative hierarchy in recent vintages.

98-100 Lisa Perrotti-Brown - The Wine Independent

A blend of 87% Merlot and 13% Cabernet Franc, the 2022 La Conseillante has a pH of 3.65 and is aging in 70% new oak. The yield was 33 hl/ha. It starts off with an opaque purple color, then POW! It explodes from the glass with a spectacular nose of rose oil, star anise, garrigue, and candied violets, giving way to a powerful core of blueberry preserves, juicy black plums, and Morello cherries, plus a waft of Sichuan pepper. The medium to full-bodied palate is bright, vibrant, and impactful, delivering layer upon layer of intense flavors with a super-plush texture and fantastic tension, finishing epically long and wonderfully perfumed. A masterpiece—brava, Marielle!

97-99 Neal Martin - Vinous Media

The 2022 La Conseillante was picked at 33hL/ha between 5 and 20 September and raised in 70% new oak plus 30% in amphorae. There is 13.9% alcohol. This is quite discrete on the nose, just like L'Évangile, only really opening after several minutes. Blackberry, blueberry, hints of iris flower, perhaps more floral than L'Évangile and Cheval Blanc. The palate is medium-bodied with velvety tannins plus a fine bead of acidity. Fresh and focused, this is maybe less concentrated on the mid-palate than expected but that maintains an unerring sense of equilibrium. Tensile and very smooth with an underlying sense of strict like its aforementioned neighbors. A rough decant prizes this Pomerol open and reveals its inner core of mineralité. Anyone spending less than 15 minutes tasting this Pomerol is likely to have totally missed it. Saline both on the finish and aftertaste, Marielle Cazaux has crafted one of the most intellectual La Conseillante wines in recent years.

98+ Jeb Dunnuck - jebdunnuck.com

The 2022 Château La Conseillante is pure brilliance and is up with the crème de la crème from this estate. Gorgeous blue fruits, sweet cassis, violets, spice, incense, truffle, and blood orange all define the aromatics, and it's a sensationally pure, full-bodied, voluptuous, and perfectly balanced Conseillante that has integrated tannins, a deep, layered mid-palate, and incredible length. A blend of 87% Merlot and 13% Cabernet Franc, aged in 70% new French oak, the 2022 hit 14% alcohol with a pH of 3.65. It's just about impossible to resist even today, but it's going to take 8-10 years to hit its prime drinking plateau and should see its 30th birthday in fine form.

97 JANE ANSON - DECANTER

Deep inky colour, crushed rose petal and peony, such a beautiful wine, with waves of blueberry and cassis fruit, along with liqourice root, lemongrass, slate and saffran, and one of the clear standout successes of Pomerol. 95% 1st wine this year, with just 5% for Duo de La Conseillante. Slow progress through the palate, this has vintage character but leans into it. 70% new oak, 3.65ph. Harvest 5 to 20.

92-95 Jasper Morris, MW - Inside Burgundy

A bright vigorous purple. The nose starts very well, dark cherry and blackberry, while the fruit on the palate is in more luxurious mode, possibly the sample needs freshening. This is in morello cherry territory with quite a coating of oak. More sumptuous all round than Boudots, so depends which style you prefer. Higher alcohol, just under 14%. Drink from 2031-2037. Tasted Nov 2024.

97 James Suckling - Jamessuckling.com

A juicy and lightly austere young red with blackberry, cherry and bark character on both the nose and palate. It’s medium- to full-bodied with chewy tannins that soften at the end, but still make your mouth pucker. Give this two or three years to soften. Best after 2027.

96 Jeb Dunnuck - jebdunnuck.com

A deep red hue, the 2020 Brunello Di Montalcino Vigna Montosoli is more saturated with aromas of fresh leather, baked cherries, Amarena, mossy earth, balsamic herbs, and graphite. Full-bodied and well-balanced, with a seamless texture, plush tannins, and a velvety feel, it retains good freshness and a lot of length. It's more approachable now, and while it might not be the longest-lived of these wines, it's going to have a wide drinking window over the next 10 -15 years. I will say, while I prefer the freshness and the tension of the standard Brunello in this vintage, this has more polish and softer edges and is the more complete wine on paper.

96 Monica Larner - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The Altesino 2020 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna Montosoli has a rich and syrupy side that underlines the brightness of the fruit in this vintage. That core of dark fruit is framed by mineral notes of black slate and crushed river stone. There is a pretty mineral chalkiness on the palate that ties into the firm tannic structure of this full-bodied wine. The effect is elegant and sharply delineated. Aged in Slavonian oak casks, 12,000 bottles were made.

96 Wine Spectator

An intense red, delivering black cherry, blackberry, violet and orange peel flavors aligned with a dense profile. Though there's so much packed in, this red is virtually seamless, building effortlessly to the long, saturated finish. Menthol and mineral elements emerge as this plays out on the long, salty aftertaste. Best from 2027 through 2045. 1,000 cases made, 350 cases imported.

98 James Suckling - Jamessuckling.com

"Aromas of blackcurrants and black cherries with hints of crushed walnuts, grilled thyme, cocoa powder and graphite. It’s full-bodied with layers of ultra-fine, silky tannins that elegantly coat your palate, allowing the juicy and vibrant fruit to shine. Delicate and pristine, yet compact with lots of energy and power to uncover in the coming years. It lasts for minutes and is delicious now. The purity of fruit is really impressive. 60% cabernet sauvignon, 32% merlot, 4% cabernet franc and 4% petit verdot. 50% new oak 15% old oak and 35% concrete amphorae. Try after 2027."

97+ Jeb Dunnuck - jebdunnuck.com

The flagship from this estate, the 2020 Château Pontet-Canet is a beauty based on 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, and 4% each of Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, brought up in 50% new oak, with 35% in amphora. Deep purple-hued with a great nose of dark currants, plums, tobacco leaf, and truffly earth, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a layered, seamless mouthfeel and a great finish. The higher Merlot content here really shows in its overall sexy, supple, seamless style, and while this already offers pleasure, it's going to be one for the ages as well.

97 Georgina Hindle - Decanter

Dark chocolate, bramble tones, not overly floral or fruity with some cedar and cinnamon notes. Lovely high acidity straight away, forward, bright and energetic with lovely crunchy blue fruit on the palate but creamy textured tannins giving a round and complete mouthful. Nothing feels overdone, this is quietly seductive and confident but not at all showing off. I love the minerality and the graphite grip with plum and black cherry and tons of slate, liquorice and menthol freshness. Long finish, slowly expansive, building and growing from start to finish showing an impressive structure overall. Nicely constructed, charming still with the Pauillac touch. A great Pontet - immediately seductive and enjoyable with a long ageing potential.

97 Lisa Perrotti-Brown - The Wine Independent

Composed of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc, and 4% Petit Verdot, the 2020 Pontet-Canet is deep garnet-purple colored. It needs a lot of swirling and aeration to coax out notes of crushed blackcurrants, blueberry compote, and candied violets, leading to suggestions of allspice, fertile loam, kirsch, and dark chocolate with a touch of Indian spices. The medium-bodied palate delivers a firm backbone of grainy tannins with loads of bright, perfumed red and black fruits and seamless acidity, finishing long and fragrant. This is stunning.

97 Jane Anson - Inside Bordeaux

A powerful character to this wine, touch of oyster shell, soy, salinity, but also creamy with energy, lift and precision, and a violet character that you find increasingly in Pontet Canet. Plenty of Pauillac signature in its tannic grip and heft, with cocoa bean and slate. Deft and exceptionally successful. Harvest September 14 to September 30. No second wine, as has been true for the past half-decade at Pontet Canet. First full vintage for Mathieu Bessonnet who replaced the previous long-term director Jean-Michel Comme in 2020. 45% new oak barrels, 15% one year, 40% in amphoras.

97 Jeff Leve - The Wine Cellar Insider

With a nose that displays truffle, tobacco leaf, cedar, licorice, and black currants, the wine is soft, fresh, refined, and focuses you on its cassis, blackberry, earth, spice, and peppery herb character. There are no hard edges in the finish, just soft, vibrant currants, herbs, and spice. The wine is a blend of 58% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, 6% Petit Verdot, and 4% Cabernet Franc. 13% ABV, pH 3.8. The wine is aged in 45% new, French oak barrels and amphora. The harvest took place September 14, to September 30. Drink from 2026-2055

93 James Suckling - Jamessuckling.com

Bright purple fruit with lifted notes of bramble berries, violets and bergamot. The palate is full-bodied with chewy tannins, a lush mouthfeel, fine acidity and notes of dark plums, cocoa, sage and red peppercorns. A blend of multiple blocks made up of 98% Cabernet Sauvignon with smaill amounts of petit verdot, merlot and malbec. Drink or hold.

93 James Suckling - Jamessuckling.com

"Supervibrant and energetic for an entry-level blaufrankisch, this knocks you back in your chair in the nicest possible way. With a little aeration in the glass, Amarena-cherry, forest-berry, clove and licorice aromas unfurl. Lovely velvety tannins on the refined, medium-bodied palate. Very clean, polished finish. Drink or hold."