Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Made in the very best vintages, Pol Roger's white-golden colored 2006 Cuvée Sir Winston Churchill offers a very clear, precise, ripe and complex bouquet with fruity and refreshingly chalky, nutty and brioche notes. Full-bodied and complex on the palate, the 2006 is supple, round and rich but also fine, elegant, fresh and well structured. It has a harmonious yet tight, persistent and very promising finish that puts this silky textured, Pinot-dominated cuvée (the exact blend is a closely guarded family secret) on the border of fatty richness.

The 2018 Meursault 1er Cru Sous le Dos d'Ane offers up aromas of pear, citrus oil, elderflowers and wheat toast. On the palate, it's medium to full-bodied, with a more textural and enveloping profile than the Clavoillon, underpinned by lively acids and concluding with a delicately saline finish

Deep garnet in color with a touch of purple, the 2007 Proprietary Red Wine flaunts wonderfully expressive, vibrant blackberries and black cherries scents to begin, giving way to black raspberries and redcurrants with touches of Indian spices, potpourri, chargrill, sage, espresso, unsmoked cigars and tilled soil plus a waft of cloves. Medium to full-bodied, the elegantly styled palate offers tantalizing restraint with a firm frame of very fine, pixelated tannins and compelling freshness, finishing very long with an invigorating lift.

Notable for being a very hot Bordeaux vintage, 1989 is also the year that the vines were hit by a violent hailstorm in July, which damaged the western half of the vineyard. Since the berries were still quite small and hard at that stage, the impact was minimized to about 20% crop loss overall. Thereafter, the vines soldiered on to produce a stunningly concentrated crop this year. 

The 1988 Chateau d'Yquem has long been an insider's favorite over the 1989 and 1990, although at the end of the day, all three form a brilliant triumvirate at the end of the decade. Tasted from a half bottle, it shone with a slightly burnished amber hue. The bouquet is just as I have encountered with previous bottles with scents of marmalade, mandarin, burnt honey and citrus fruit, perhaps a little waxier and resinous than I recall. The palate is medium-bodied with impressive weight, viscous as you would expect, though not as flamboyant as the 1989 or as unctuous as the 1990.

The 2018 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos Saint-Jean Rouge wafts from the glass with aromas of cherries, berries, dried flowers and sweet soil tones. Medium to full-bodied, rich but lively, its concentrated core of fruit is framed by powdery tannins. This cuvée hails from very old vines and was vinified with 50% whole clusters. (WK)

The 2018 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos Saint-Jean unfurls to reveal hints of citrus oil and crisp green apple, complemented by notions of almond paste and spring flowers. Medium to full-bodied, chalky and layered, this is a mineral, succulent Clos Saint-Jean that should show well young. (WK)

The 2018 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru La Grand Montagne is also extremely promising, revealing a bouquet of fresh pear and citrus oil, framed by a delicate hint of almond paste. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and layered, this is rich and textural, with a deep core of lively fruit and a long, chalky finish. (WK)

The 2018 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru Clos Saint-Jean unfurls to reveal hints of citrus oil and crisp green apple, complemented by notions of almond paste and spring flowers. Medium to full-bodied, chalky and layered, this is a mineral, succulent Clos Saint-Jean that should show well young. (WK)

The 2018 Chassagne-Montrachet 1er Cru La Grand Montagne is also extremely promising, revealing a bouquet of fresh pear and citrus oil, framed by a delicate hint of almond paste. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and layered, this is rich and textural, with a deep core of lively fruit and a long, chalky finish. (WK)