(JA 98-100 points) High Cabernet, and the grape is dominant not just in blend but character, totally delicious, with tension, flesh, and confidence, building layers of black fruits, graphite, cocoa bean, espresso...

(TWI 98-100 points) A blend of 60% Cabernet Franc and 40% Merlot, the 2023 Ausone has a pH of 3.63 and a deep garnet-purple color. It is very mute and reticent to show its personality to start, needing a lot of shaking...

(JS 97-98 points) A linear wine with fine tannins, red and black currants and minerals. Medium body. Salty, with tight fruit concentration and a pretty finish. Beautifully structured. 3.4 pH and 14% alcohol. 80% merlot...

(96-98 points) The intensity, length, and purity are impossible to ignore this year. The wine offers strong floral characteristics coupled with sweet, ripe, red cherries, licorice, black raspberries, and a hint of cocoa...

(JS 96-97 points) This well-defined and sophisticated wine shows a gorgeous center-palate of near perfectly ripe fruit. Lots of dark berries and minerals with some pine, while the texture is full and compact with layers...

(JD 93-96 points) From a château that seems to have hit another gear over the past five to seven years, the 2023 Château Beychevelle is based on 54% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 6% Petit Verdot, pulled from 60% of...

(JS 95-96 points) This has so much lead pencil, stone and blackcurrant character, as well as blackberry. It’s medium-bodied with a solid core of fruit and a polished finish. Very classy and structured.

(JD 95-97 points) Readers looking for one of the hidden gems in the vintage should jump on the 2023 Château Brane-Cantenac, an incredibly impressive Margaux that does everything right. Cassis, graphite, violets, lead...

(JD 95-98 points) The 2023 Château Calon Ségur is absolutely brilliant and clearly in the top handful of wines in the vintage. Based on 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc, and 1% Petit Verdot, it has...

(TWI 98-100 points) A blend of 71% Merlot and 29% Cabernet Franc, the 2023 Canon has a pH of 3.42 and it will age in barriques for 16-18 months, of which 50% are new. It is deep garnet-purple in color and sails out of...

(TWI 95-97 points) Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2023 Canon la Gaffeliere pops from the glass with exuberant notes of fresh black and red currants, kirsch, and wild blueberries followed by hints of pencil shavings...

(JS 95-96 points) A savory and juicy Carruades with softness and notes of ripe berry, cedar and dried tobacco. Like Lafite from the 1980s but more precise. Round and pretty. It really grows on the finish with such...

(JS 96-97 points) What strikes you about this wine is the center-palate and the purity of cool fruit notes, such as brambleberry and orange peel. Medium body. Whole and layered with ultra-fine tannins leading to a silky...

(JD 96-100 points) The 2023 Château Margaux is clearly one of the greats in the vintage, and it actually reminds me a touch of the 1996, if not better. Revealing a deep purple hue, it has an incredible bouquet of cassis...

(JS 96-97 points) Very Chateau Margaux, with perfumed violets, currants and other berries, as well as oranges. Medium body with fine, caressing tannins that are tight and vivid. Racy and refined. Brightness and beauty to...

(JS 95-96 points) This is dense and velvety with a creamy texture. Blackberry, blueberry and stone aromas and flavors. Layered. Very primary and focused. 53% cabernet sauvignon, 43% merlot and 4% petit verdot.

(VN 98-100 points) A breathtaking wine, the 2023 Palmer is sensational. Inky, rich and explosive, the 2023 is a real head-turner. Readers will find an extroverted, dense Palmer that is immediately captivating. Here, too...