Wine Over $100

Expert Reviews

99 Points Jeb Dunnuck | A real “wow” wine, the 2020 Clos L'Eglise sports deep ruby hue as well as an absolutely stunning bouquet of black cherries, red plums, damp earth, chocolate, truffle, and lead pencil. This deep, full-bodied, concentrated, beauty has that classic Pomerol opulence and richness paired with an incredible sense of elegance. The tannins are perfectly ripe as well. Give bottles just 4-5 years, and it's going to age beautifully. This is the finest wine I've tasted from the Garcin-Lévêque family, surpassing both the 2009 and 2016. Don't miss it.

96 Points Vinous Media | The 2020 Clos L'Eglise is not as showy as it was from barrel, perhaps because of its recent bottling. Bright red-toned fruit, spice, mint, blood orange and rose petal are all laced together. En primeur, Clos L'Eglise was quite powerful, but I see more finesse today. Even so, this is one of the most concentrated Clos L'Eglises ever, since surpassed by the 2022, though!

96 Points James Suckling | This has a pretty nose of chocolate, praline, blueberries, lavender and bramble berries. It’s medium-bodied with firm, compact tannins. Firm and focused with an enticing bitter chocolate character throughout. Some smoked wood. Intense and tightly wound. Opens on the palate. Try in 2027.

94 Points Decanter | Inky ruby colour, a muscular big-styled Pomerol which will win plenty of friends. Velvety tannins, great persistency, confident, contemporary and deftly walks the line between concentrated and nuanced.

93 Points Wine Advocate | Aromas of ripe plums and raspberries mingled with hints of rose petals and toasty new oak preface the 2020 Clos l'Eglise, a medium to full-bodied, velvety and enveloping wine with a broad attack that segues into a fleshy core of fruit, with powdery extract asserting itself on the youthfully chewy finish. 

Expert Reviews 

• Winemaker Description

  Mont des Oiseaux is a cuvée produced in small quantities from Clos de l'Arlot's youngest vines, an estate Monopoly. This wine reveals the elegance of a great terroir and emphasizes the delicacy of red fruit. Fresh and tangy, with good cellaring potential, this wine can also be enjoyed in the bloom of youth.

• The Terroir

  This Nuits Saint Georges 1er Cru is located inside the Clos de l'Arlot. It comes from the upper part of the Clos with a white limestone soil, and from a plot of young vines located at the bottom of the Clos on marl soil.

• Discover more

  - Ageing in barrels, with 30% of new barrels. Bottling takes place after 15-18 months of ageing.

Winemaker Description

Dense black plum and blackberry fruit, with the characteristic garrigue aroma of wild herbs. There is still a good impression of freshness on the palate and fairly grippy tannins. Well-balanced and typical of the village. The vines in this half-hectare parcel south of the village are more than 60 years of age. 

Expert Reviews 

93-95 points Jasper Morris | Bright red crimson colour with very juicy red berry fruit on the nose, this has abundant energy and makes one salivate. There is its habitual garrigue touch at the back then a second helping of sweet raspberry fruit, Impeccable structure, a really interesting complex and refreshing wine. Gourmand in the best sense. The fruit just keeps coming back behind. A stunning result from a lesser known 1er Cru. Drink from 2028-2036. (2021). 

93 points Wine Spectator | Wild cherry, currant, sandalwood, smoke and earth notes are defined by lively acidity and refined tannins in this intense red. Accents of smoke and roasted game bird add to the complexity, while the texture is silky and the aftertaste long. Wait a decade at least on this. Best from 2027 through 2040. (2021). 

91-93 points Burghound | A perfumed, spicy and restrained nose requires aggressive swirling to coax the aromas of pretty essence of red cherry and crushed fennel to reveal themselves. The delicious, refined and vibrant middleweight flavors flash a subtle bead of minerality on the focused, balanced and sneaky long finish. This is a Roncière of punch and finesse. *Burghound Outstanding! (2021). 

90-92 points Vinous | The 2021 Nuits Saint-Georges Roncière 1er Cru has an open bouquet with red berry fruit, cedar and light graphite aromas. Fine definition. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grain tannins, quite sapid in the mouth with a pleasant strictness allied with tension on the finish. Give this 3-4 years in bottle. (NM) Inner quote mark (1/2023). (2021). 

Expert Review

97 Points Jeb Dunnuck | The 2020 Cornas Chaillot comes from a mix of lieux-dits (it's mostly Chaillot) as well as some younger vines. It's an incredible wine in its own right and certainly doesn't give much in terms quality to its big brother. Awesome aromatics of crème de cassis, violets, crushed stone, and bouquet garni-like notes all define the aromatics, and it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a deep, concentrated mid-palate, and ultra-fine tannins. It's a touch more finesse-driven and elegant compared to the Reynard and should round into form with just 5-7 years of bottle age. This is legit awesome Cornas that will have 20-25 years of ultimate longevity. (2020). 

Expert Review

98 Points Jeb Dunnuck | The 2020 Cornas Reynard will most likely merit a perfect rating in a decade, and it's a legendary Cornas in the making. Saturated purple-hued, with incredible aromatics of cassis, liquid violets, new leather, and bloody, iron, meaty nuances, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, building tannins, and flawless overall balance. It has an inward, massive, backward style (it reminds me slightly of the 2010) and tastes like the blood of Cornas. It will need 7-8 years (a decade will be better) to hit the early stages of its prime drinking wine and will absolutely blow you away over the following two decades. (2020). 

92 Points Wine Enthusiast | Hints of crushed mineral and fresh herb persist from nose to finish in this intriguingly earthy yet elegant dry wine. The palate is vibrantly citrusy, offering shards of lemon and lime accented by dried-orange peel and spice. Medium bodied but silky in texture, it's freshened by pert lime acidity.

Winemaker Description

The storied Domain La Romanée-Conti has a history dating back to 1760 when Prince Louis-Francois de Bourbon-Conti first bought the piece of land. It has since been passed between a succession of owners, coming to rest as the biodynamic home to this Romanée-Conti Grand Cru. Grown without pesticides, this silky-smooth pinot noir reveals a bouquet of dark wild berries, cassis, rose petals, blood orange, exotic spices and liquorice. 

95 Points James Suckling | This remarkable Saar Kabinett is very crystalline. Stacks of delicate white tree fruit and white flower aromas. Very straight and bright on the light-bodied palate which flashes like the blade of a sabre in the sun. Fantastic precision and subtly salty at the very long and pristine finish. Great aging potential. Drink or hold. (2022). 

93 Points Vinous | The 2022 Riesling Scharzhofberger Kabinett has a very open but tender nose: ripe greengage is bright and edged with a whisper of chervil. The sweetness on the palate kicks in first, but lightness takes over with serene lemon freshness and fine, almost earthy stone. Ripe greengage, delineated by lemon, soaks up that initial sugar and presents it as juicy, ripe fruit. Finesse runs through this, dancing on light Kabinett feet. The finish is merely off-dry. (Off-dry) Drink: 2023-2050. (Oct 2023)"

92 Points Mosel Fine Wines | The 2022er Scharzhofberger Riesling Kabinett is a barely fruity-styled wine. It is quite herbal and smoky at first and needs a few minutes in the glass to reveal fresh scents of white flowers, minty herbs, bergamot, vineyard peach, and lime zest. The wine is superbly playful and light-weighted on the finely creamy and delicately refined palate. The finish is very delicate and juicy. 2032-2047. 

Expert Reviews

94 Points Vinous | The 2020 Nebbiolo d'Alba Arione is bright, focused and tightly wound. There is a feeling of classic austerity (in a good way) that really drive the balance here. Bright red toned fruit, blood orange, chalk, mint, dried herbs and white pepper all race across the palate. This is Barolo in all but name. Time in the glass brings out the wine's inner sweetness and perfume. What a knock out. The Nebbiolo d'Alba is made from a small piece of Arione that lists just outside the Barolo production zone. Drink 2027-2040. (2020). 

93 Points James Suckling  | Juicy and sweet fruit with some flowers and peaches to plums and cherries. Medium body. Bright and flavorful. Yet refined. Drink now. (2020). 

Jeb Dunnuck 91-93 Points | The first vintage of the 2020 Nebbiolo D'Alba one was produced in 2019 and comes from a single vineyard of Anione outside the delimited region. Another barrel sample, the 2020 is fresh with wild strawberry and a gentle, red-fruited tone. Vibrant through the palate, with wild red berries, pomegranate, orange peel, and red flowers, this elegant and approachable wine delivers fine tannins, a long mineral/stony texture, and a tinge of iron-rich minerals on the finish. (2020). 

Winemaker Description

The palate is medium-bodied with crunchy cranberry and strawberry, bright and taut with a transparent finish. Warning - you will be totally smitten.

Expert Review

93 Points Wine Advocate | The 2020 Meursault Village has turned out beautifully in bottle, unwinding in the glass with scents of crisp Anjou pear, lemon zest, freshly baked bread, blanched almonds, pastry cream and apple blossom. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and layered, its textural attack segues into a fleshy, precise mid-palate that's animated by racy acids, concluding with a long, mouthwatering finish. It's another terrific rendition of this benchmark cuvée.

Winemaker Description

Opaque, a dark core with a lighter deep red concession on rim. An eruption of fruits. At once lively and expressive, conceding Grange personality yet still not revealing all .... Dark coffee grind, malt and tapenade merge with black earths, almost verging on peat. Mandated V.A and formic notes propel a slurry of dark-skinned berried fruits, flirting with dark liquorice and soy. Oak completely hidden, long since absorbed. Now, back to the glass for a second sniff! Initially the ‘enlivened’ dark fruits of a Christmas pudding or boiled fruitcake mix demand attention. But there’s much more to complement these fruits – impressions of ironstone, graphite, iodine, black ink, and a black pudding viscosity. Formidable, meshed tannins – texturally honeycombed, without the honey! Oak has entwined itself invisible. Yes, every barrel still new, and completion of fermentation off skins in barrel still Grange modus operandi. Integrated, measured ... and clearly more than one sip required to gain an authentic ‘first-impression’. Certainly a wine of its vintage. A Grange of 2015. 

Expert Reviews

100 Point James Suckling | Much anticipated vintage for Grange and it is a powerhouse of concentration and complexity. Aromas of orange and lemon peel to start, then graphite, blackberries, plum paste, black cherries, boundless sweet oak spice, fresh cedar, tar, mahogany, roasted coffee and chocolate - the list goes on. Such complexity. Classic Grange, offering such deep, dark intensity. The palate has immense richness and depth with a super succulent and very long, fleshy, deeply weighted array of dense, velvet-wrapped tannins that run so long. The fruit flavors sit in the blackberry, blood-plum and blueberry zone with succulent, long and assertive structure, carrying through in an utterly seamless mode. The finish is tightly wrenched, in spectacularly powerful style, locking this wine in for a very long haul. Best from 2030.

98 Points Jeb Dunnuck | The flagship 2015 Grange is a monster of wine and one of those rare wines that blends power and elegance perfectly. Revealing a saturated purple color, it’s seemingly more forward and seductive than past great vintages, which I suspect is due to the incredible purity of fruit as well as the wine’s flawless balance than any change in winemaking or stylistic shifts. I also think the acidity is healthy, and the 2015 tips the scales at 14.5% alcohol, which is certainly in the sweet spot, if not tame, for beautifully ripe Syrah these days. A blend of 98% Shiraz and 2% Cabernet Sauvignon that spent 20 months in new American oak hogsheads, it offers an extraordinary perfume of sweet crème de cassis, lead pencil shavings, camphor, Asian spices, licorice, and wildflowers. This is followed by a full-bodied, powerful yet incredibly seamless and elegant Shiraz that has no hard edges, a big, dense mid-palate, ripe tannins, and a great finish. Coming close to rivaling the 1986, which has always been a benchmark vintage of Grange for me, the 2015 offers a more polished, elegant, approachable style. Vintage comparisons aside, this is a legendary example of Grange in the making. The savvy wine lovers out there will give this 7-8 years of bottle age (I’ll probably be out of bottles by then) and enjoy over the following 2-3 decades.

98+ Points Robert Parker | The nose of the 2015 Grange features the wine's characteristic lifted aromas, joined by pronounced American oak influence and bold blackberry fruit, plus hints of red meat, raspberries, asphalt and vanilla. It's dense and concentrated on the palate, full-bodied yet balanced and firm, with a rich, velvety texture and long, plush finish. Don't expect great complexity at this stage—it's much too young to show much more than the primary fruit and oak elements—but this is a Grange that should easily go three or four decades.

97 Points Wine Spectator | Distinctive and powerful, yet still elegant, showing restraint despite the dense and generous flavors. Precise notes of dark chocolate, maraschino cherry, mahogany and toasted coconut complement the core of wild blackberry and blueberry fruit. The tannins are smooth and polished, delivering some tug on the finish, which persists as subtle hints of dried lavender and white pepper linger. Drink now through 2040.

97 Points Wine Enthusiast | This vintage of the famed wine is perhaps its most approachable to date. The nose is open and expressive, with waves of aromas ranging from licorice, currant and plum to baking spice, furniture polish, freshly picked olive, mushroom and vanilla. The mouthfeel is satiny in texture, awash with fruit and spices of all shapes and sizes, all wound by fine tannins. Drink through 2040.

Burghound | A perfumed and exuberantly spicy nose offers up a blend of both red and dark cherry along with floral nuances. The wonderfully sleek, refined and punchy medium weight flavors possess a gorgeous texture thanks to the very fine-grained tannins supported the firm, youthfully austere and mineral-driven finish. This is textbook Fuées. Outstanding.

Expert Review

Expert Review

Winemaker Description

Tollot-Beaut’s Les Vercots 1er Cru is rustic and robust with aromas and flavors of red cherries, spice, and earth with substantial weight and ripe tannins. It is aged for 18 months in 50% new Burgundian pièce.

Red Burgundy might be the world’s most flexible food wine. The wine’s high acidity, medium body, medium alcohol, and low tannins make it very food-friendly. Red Burgundy, with its earthy and sometimes gamey character, is a classic partner to roasted game birds, grilled duck breast, and dishes that feature mushrooms, black truffles, or are rich in umami. Winemaker Description. 

Expert Review

92 Points Jasper Morris | 11 barrels for one hectare equates to about 25 hl/ha. Because Vercots has a heavy soil they put some extra fine pinot clones in this vineyard, which has paid off in the quality of the fruit. Slightly paler in colour but with some finesse. A savoury sandalwood touch to the oak this time, but the vineyard tannins are not fierce. Made with an agreeably light touch. Drink from 2025-2030.

Winemaker Description

Les Grèves is voluptuous and structured with aromas and flavors of bright red fruit and mineral notes. The flavor is intense and powerful but is delivered on the palate with finesse. Aging in 30% new Burgundian pièce brings notes of vanilla and spice. The vines were planted between 1969 and 1987.

Red Burgundy might be the world’s most flexible food wine. The wine’s high acidity, medium body, medium alcohol, and low tannins make it very food-friendly. Red Burgundy, with its earthy and sometimes gamey character, is a classic partner to roasted game birds, grilled duck breast, and dishes that feature mushrooms, black truffles, or are rich in umami. 

Expert Reviews

93 Points Vinous | The 2021 Beaune Les Grèves 1er Cru, picked on the first day of picking, has slightly darker fruit than the Clos du Roi, but there is still a sense of delineation and transparency that makes it very alluring. The palate is medium-bodied with dark cherries, bergamot and bay leaf. It's nicely structured with a bit of sinew on the finish. This is very promising. (2021). 

92 Points Jasper Morris | Slightly paler in colour, mid crimson. A more reticent bouquet with some substance behind, one suspects. Good intensity here, all in fresh red fruit, acidity adds to the energy and there is enough fruit concentration to sit well with the oak. Agreeably persistent. Drink from 2025-2030. (2021). 

Expert Reviews

Vinous 91-93 Points | The 2021 Beaune Clos de Roi 1er Cru, the first cuvée to be picked on 16 September, has a very endearing bouquet made of pure, quite floral, red fruit that conveys real buoyancy. Frame by fine tannins, the palate is harmonious and pure with a piquant finish. This is suave, elegant and a great success in a difficult vintage.

Burhound 90 Points | A slightly riper though still agreeably fresh nose combine notes of red and dark raspberry with more evident earth nuances. Here too the mouthfeel of the medium-bodied flavors is generous to the point of being seductive, which contrasts with the ever-so-mildly tangy finish. I suspect that the tangy quality will be less obvious when the wine is decanted as the gas is accentuating it.

Winemaker Description

Cathiard is a tiny domain - there never is very much wine. You enter a spick and span white stucco suburban home in the center of the small village of Vosne Romanee. There is a walled vineyard outside the front door. Go down the staircase and you are in a minuscule cuverie and barrel room.

Sebastien Cathiard has been slowly assuming control of this top estate in Vosne-Romanée from his father Sylvain. He is now fully in charge, but the wines have been so good for so long that he wisely has changed very little. They continue to farm meticulously, de-stem and rigorously sort all the fruit prior to fermentation. The only thing he has changed is the gradual reduction of new oak, seeking a bit more purity of terroir expression.

Expert Review

"An ultra-fresh and very bright nose freely offers up its array of red berries, plum and even more floral wisps. There is again a lovely textured to the beautifully delineated and stony middleweight flavors that conclude in a youthfully austere, linear and chiseled finale. This is also really quite good and worth considering."
Allen Meadows-Burghound

Winemaker Description

2019 embodies classic Hillside Select richness, vibrancy, and balance. The aromas push out of the glass, offering black cherry, cedar, cassis, and juicy red summer berries with lifted floral tones. Even at this youthful age, the complexity of the vintage is striking, merging dark fruit with tobacco, espresso, black olive, red plum, and black tea. The expansive mid-palate is complemented by ripe integrated tannins that add depth and structure, culminating in a long, profound finish.

Expert Reviews

98+ Points Jeb Dunnuck | The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is another magical vintage for this cuvée. All Cabernet Sauvignon from hillside vineyards on the eastern side of Stags Leap, it offers a vivid purple hue as well as extraordinary notes of cassis, black raspberries, violets, camphor, and spring flowers, with perfectly integrated background oak. Full-bodied but not massive, it’s flawlessly balanced on the palate and has ultra-fine tannins, a seamless, elegant mouthfeel, and a great, great finish. It’s another 30- to 40-year wine from this incredible team that readers will absolutely love. (2019).

98+ Points Robert Parker | Sourced from specific blocks of estate-grown fruit, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is another highly successful vintage. All Cabernet Sauvignon aged 32 months in 100% new French oak, it boasts intense aromas of pencil shavings, dark loam, cassis and plum on the nose, while the palate is full-bodied, super-ripe, rich, dense and concentrated—a truly impressive California vin de garde. Tannic but ripe, it finishes long and firm on the finish, adding a hint of mocha. To be released in September 2023, it's a strong showing and hopefully an indication that quality will remain high under the new ownership. (2019).

98 Points James Suckling | A beautiful nose of pitted cherries, redcurrants, fresh herbs and violets. Full-bodied with fine, structured tannins. More gravelly, mineral and dark than the nose lets on. Savory almost. Terrific depth and concentration that keeps the palate flavorful through the generous finish. Chocolate, sage, rosemary, bark and moss. Layered. Superb wine. Needs time to come together. Best after 2024 and onward. (2019).

98 Points Vinous | The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Hillside Select is one of the most elegant wines I have tasted at Shafer. Effusive aromatics and silky tannins are immediately captivating. Crushed red/purplish berry fruit, mint, spice, lavender and licorice are all finely knit. We will see, but the 2019 may very well represent a new direction for Hillside Select, one of Napa Valley's most iconic Cabernets. (2019).

97 Points Wine Enthusiast | This broad, rich and mouthfilling wine is Shafer’s most elite and collectible. Aged for 32 months in all-new French oak barrels, it boasts extra-ripe blackberries and blueberries, accents of mint, cedar and graphite, and a big structure of polished tannins. (2019).

94 Points Wine Spectator| A ripe, exuberant style, with generous plum cake, blackberry compote and açaí berry notes mixed with melted black licorice and a nicely polished, singed mesquite–accented finish. Hard to resist now (if you like the power style), but also has the energy to take some cellaring. (2019).

Winemaker Description

Dark fruit notes of blueberry and plum on the nose with hints of dried oregano. On the palate, this Cabernet segues from dark fruit notes to savory undertones, while showing off a silky texture. Full-bodied and dense in structure, the wine’s long finish is driven by firm tannins plus hints of cocoa and vanilla. 

Winemaker Description

The 2020 Barbaresco shows notes of strawberry, red fruit, and cherry. The palate shows great integration of the tannins, more rounded than in 2019 yet gentle and graceful. Blackberry, orange, and floral notes yield to a delicate, palate, and voluminous finish. The wines are characterized by precise and complex fruit expressions and clean and elegant aromas. They are wines that are already drinkable but will reward with time as the presence of fruit is always a guarantee of aging potential. 

Expert Reviews

96 Points Jeb Dunnuck | A pale ruby, and blended from 14 vineyard sites, the 2020 Barbaresco was tasted as a barrel sample. Spicy and pure, it is full of red berries with Asian spice and white pepper. On the palate, it is medium-bodied, with elegance and refinement throughout, approachable and fine tannins, no harsh edges, and a long-lasting floral finish. This seem to be a vintage that will drink well early but have plenty of longevity as well. (2020).

95 Points James Suckling | So many aromas of fresh rose petals as well as hibiscus tea. Medium-bodied with crunchy and flowery character with sliced strawberries and a bright finish. So appealing with lovely structure. Chewy at the end. (2020).

94 Points Robert Parker | The Gaja 2020 Barbaresco reveals a slow and steady approach with elegant Nebbiolo nuances, lots of pretty intensity and bright primary fruit all the way to the far end of the mouthfeel. The bouquet has hints of toasted cumin, spice and cured leather. There's special depth to the mouthfeel that is pushed forward by freshness, integrated tannins and savory earthy end notes. (2020). 

94 Points Wine Enthusiast | Blended across 14 vineyards, this wine shows the class, beauty and vitality of the noble Nebbiolo grown in the soils of Barbaresco. The wine opens with aromas of ripe cherries, warmed strawberries in sweet spices, fresh herbs and mixed flowers. The palate is lifted and vibrant with a verve that electrifies the palate as flavors of boysenberry, dried blood orange and black tea saunter about alongside well-intergrated tannins, making this wine drinkable now but ready for the cellar. (2020).

93 Points Wine Spectator | This round red is woven with cherry, raspberry, mineral, eucalyptus and hay flavors. Balanced, with a good dose of well-integrated tannins that lend support on the lively finish. (2020).

Winemaker Description

This Clos Mogador 2021 is all delicacy on the nose. The fruit is fresh, the aromatic Mediterranean herbs refined. The palate, on the other hand, is deep, with a satiny texture and a measured grip. A rarity that thrills from the start, just a prelude to the magnitude it will reach.

Expert Review

97 Points James Suckling | A beautiful, fresh red with lots of vibrancy. Mineral, flint, freshly crushed blueberries and red berries. Juicy, polished tannins with a little more crunch to the fruit this year. Has a nice firmness compared with the sweeter tannins in 2020. Really fluid, bright and vivid. Long. Drink or hold. (2021). 

Expert Reviews

95 Points James Suckling | Aromas of mint and currants with hints of fresh herbs. Then turns to plum jam. Full body, with well-integrated tannins and pretty fruit. Long and caressing. This is really outstanding. Better in 2017.

95 Points Wine Enthusiast | Giscours shows an initial character of great style and elegance. The shining fruit and concentrated tannins follow, making it both a seductive wine and one with a long-term future. Cellar Selection.

94 Points Wine Spectator | Features a lightly firm, singed alder frame around a core of dark plum, cherry and cassis bush notes. Taut tar and warm paving stone notes fill in on the finish. Shows serious, well-embedded grip, and the core of fruit is spot on. This has the range, length and cut for the cellar. Best from 2014 through 2030.

92+ Points Robert Parker | Deep garnet in color, the 2010 Giscours slips seductively out of the glass with notions of baked black cherries, mulberries and plum preserves plus hints of cassis, pencil lead and dried Provence herbs. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is toting a fair amount of oak with a sturdy frame of chewy tannins, coming through with a long, fruity finish. 

Winemaker Description

With its pedigree style, Chateau Figeac epitomises the elegance of the great wines of Bordeaux. Its unique style gradually shows through and develops over time.

This great wine displays a distinctive rich nose that has wonderful aromatic complexity. On the palate, the Cabernet Sauvignon reveals lovely floral aromas in the first year then, as the wine ages, great structure on the palate. The Cabernet Franc brings lots of freshness in the tannins, and the Merlot contributes roundness and flesh. The attack on the palate is clean, the texture is silky, and the complexity elegant.

The characteristic freshness of Figeac is underpinned by great length of flavor. With its long aging potential, the wine goes on in time to reveal hints of forest floor, leather, cigar-box and licorice – always with its hallmark elegance. Winemaker Description. 

Expert Reviews 

97 Points Decanter | This is an excellent vintage to drink now, with huge amounts of liquorice, cedar, crème caramel, bilberry and black cherry, with a fleshy texture to the fruit but just starting to show more tertiary notes of earth, crushed stone and soft mint on the finish. Feels like the pefect Right Bank take on a Left Bank, generous and open but with a steely core and tannins that remain sure to take this wine forward over many decades to come. This was Thierry Manoncourt's last full vintage, as he died in 2010 (his first had been 1947). Drinking Window 2021 - 2048.

97 Points James Suckling | Even in this super-ripe vintage Figeac retains its usual red bell pepper aroma (from the cabernet sauvignon grape) and that adds a light touch to the opulent fruit cake and spice character. The full fine tannins beautifully support the rich palate and make the finish very long and plush. A great 2009! Drink or hold.

96 Points Wine Spectator | Distinctive, with atypical (for St.-Emilion) force and drive to the black currant, roasted cedar and maduro tobacco flavors, which are supported by a dense, loam-tinged structure. Terrific roasted espresso, ganache and fig paste notes wait in reserve. Very muscular, but with the cut for balance. Best from 2017 through 2035.

95  Points Jeb Dunnuck | The 2009 Château Figeac is the normal blend of close to equal parts Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Cabernet Sauvignon. It’s a beautiful wine that has classic Figeac style, yet is more reserved and backward than most in the vintage. Forest floor, truffle, blackcurrants, cigar ash and green tobacco notes all emerge from this full-bodied, ripe, yet pure, elegant Saint-Emilion that has good acidity and plenty of length. The tannins are ripe, yet firm, it’s nicely balanced, and it blossoms with time in the glass. Nevertheless, it needs another 4-5 years of cellaring to hit prime time, and it should keep for 2-3 decades.

94 Points Robert Parker | The medium garnet colored 2009 Figeac features a very pretty perfume, lilacs and cinnamon stick over a core of red and black currant preserves plus hints of dried herbs and sweaty saddles. Medium to full-bodied, the palate delivers bags of savory fruit layers with plenty of floral sparks, framed by rounded tannins, finishing on a earthy note.

Expert Reviews

Critic Notes

Neal Martin writes:  The 2021 Morey-Saint-Denis Village is quite backward on the nose, blackberry and bilberry at the moment, a distinct marine element surface with time. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit tinged with orange rind and brown spices. Fine structure towards the finish although here, I would just like a little more finesse to develop.  - Drinking 2024 to 2032.  - Vinous

William Kelley writes:  The 2021 Morey-Saint-Denis Village is a blend of En Sevrey and Clos Solon. Delivering aromas of smoky red berries, raw cocoa and forest floor, it's medium-bodied, supple and perfumed, with melting tannins and a charming middle-weight style.  - Robert Parker Wine Advocate

Allen Meadows writes:  Here too there is enough reduction to suppress the underlying fruit. The palate impression though of the more substantial flavors is vibrant and well-detailed, particularly on the lengthier and better-balanced finale. This could use more depth but that should reasonably occur with time.  - Burghound

Expert Reviews

Vinous Media 94-95 Points | Saturated magenta. Expansive aromas of black and blue fruits, licorice, olive and black pepper show fine clarity and building florality. Smoky and energetic in the mouth, offering juicy blackberry, cherry and baking spice flavors that slowly deepen through the back half. Becomes sweeter on the long, focused finish, which features grippy tannins and lingering floral and exotic spice notes.

Expert Review

Vinous Media - 95-97 points | Inky violet. Intense aromas of cherry, blackberry, olive, exotic spices and pipe tobacco are complemented by a smoky mineral nuance and a hint of bacon fat. Chewy and subtly sweet, offering concentrated, smoke-laced kirsch, dark berry preserve, espresso and licorice flavors and a spicy jolt of black pepper. Finishes impressively long and spicy, with chewy tannins and a building floral note.