Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Deep garnet hue with ruby rim. The nose is of moderate intensity, still a little tight, blackberry leaf, touch of tobacco, nori seaweed and decayed leaves. It actually shuts down in the glass rather than opening up for around 20 minutes, before opening up again with baked red cherries. The signature scent of black olives is starting to develop. The palate is medium-bodied with fresh acidity with firm tannins, just a touch of astringency. An unassuming Haut-Brion brimming with vivacity and charm, more feminine than usual, but utterly delectable. (NM)

Deep garnet colored, the 2010 Malescot St. Exupery wafts gracefully out of the glass with scents of potpourri, raspberry coulis and kirsch over a cassis and warm plums core with a touch of pencil shavings. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is packed with juicy red and black fruits, sporting a firm, fine-grained texture and oodles of freshness. It has a good, long and remarkably pure finish. (LPB)

A slightly deeper colour than the Pavillon Rouge. The nose has more intensity than the Pavillon, perhaps a little pointed at present, superb delineation with notes of black cherries, blueberries, bilberry and a touch of oyster shell. The palate is full-bodied, lovely balance, bright and vivacious but like the Pavillon it has an unresolved, grainy, slightly with a touch of damp earthy and bitter chocolate on the finish. It requires another 10 years in bottle but very good potential. (NM)

A soft, sumptuous nose of black cherries, cassis, redcurrants, kirsch and a touch of hot bricks. Well-defined with a certain warmth to it. Fleshier than the previous wine with blueberry, cherry, wild strawberry with a real succulent finish. (NM)

Still a saturated ruby-black in hue, the 2010 Lynch-Bages offers up aromas of rich cassis fruit mingled with hints of pencil shavings, loamy soil and cigar wrapper. Full-bodied, deep and muscular, it's rich and layered, with a concentrated core of fruit that's framed by firm, powdery tannins and lively acids. The most brooding, backward Lynch-Bages of the decade and one of the real successes of the vintage, this is a vibrant, tightly wound wine that is still an infant at age 10.

Ex-cellar bottle tasted blind at the Lynch Bages vertical. This has a noticeably clear, deep garnet colour. The nose is very clean and correct although it lacks a little complexity and flair: straightforward black fruits, cedar and pencil shavings. The medium-bodied palate shows a little hardness at first, but softens with aeration and soon adopts a more succulent texture with ripe black cherries, Doris plum and bilberry. Certainly this is a well balanced Pauillac packed full of ripe tannins with a crisp poised finish of black plum, cedar and cassis.

Another austere, more classically-trained nose with cedar, pencil lead, blackberry, Morello and dried apricots. Great definition and complexity. A lovely palate, fleshy with fine tannins, superb balance, svelte silky finish. Utterly seductive and probably the most naturally balanced of all the wines. Incredible length and persistency. (NM)

First made in 1971, this legendary Italian wine now celebrates its 50th birthday. Happy Birthday, Tignanello! The Marchesi Antinori 2021 Tignanello (made with 79% Sangiovese, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon and 8% Cabernet Franc) pulls on all the heartstrings. To be released in May, the wine shows a quintessentially pretty taste profile with tart fruit flavors, redcurrant, tea leaf, heritage rose, crushed white pepper, licorice, nutmeg, clove and chopped mint. It opens slowly to reveal more richness and exuberance with time, becoming downright voluptuous and heady a short while later.

The 2022 La Tâche Grand Cru is the most complex and compelling wine in the range at this early stage. Wafting from the glass with aromas of sweet red berries and plums mingled with rose petals, orange zest, exotic spices, incense and wintergreen, it's full-bodied, rich and layered, with a deep and pure core of fruit, lively acids and sweet, powdery tannins, concluding with a long, gently oak-inflected finish. It was harvested the fourth through the sixth of September, just after the Grands-Échézeaux, and bottled in March 2024. (WK)