En Primeur 2024

The wines with tasting notes

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[Add to shopping basket] Aile d'Argent Dry Whites £651 6x75cl 89-91 - - 94 91-93 -
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The 2024 Aile d'Argent is very fine. Silky, aromatic and brisk, the 2024 is impeccably done. White pepper, chalk, slate, mint, lemon peel and marzipan are some of the many notes that take shape in the glass. Attractive tropical overtones from the Sauvignon Gris add lift. There's a bit more lees-stirring than in most years, and also a bit of malolactic fermentation, both of which work so well within the wine's framework.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2030

Beautiful aromatics, this is a gorgeous wine, with white peach, pear, lemon peel, capsicum, sage spices, gunsmoke, apple orchard. Extremely elegant and finessed, builds through the palate, a slow slow build that layers on grated ginger, lemongrass, white pepper, cold ash, gunsmoke... sublte layers that set it apart. Harvest 9 to 20 September. 3.05 pH. 45% new oak. Just 6.5% malolactic only on Sauvignon Blanc, with more lees stirring than in a normal year.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2025-2038

A little more strict than other Left Bank whites, the 2024 Aile d'Argent has a bright nose with lime flower, Conference pear and light peach skin scents. The palate is well balanced with a citrus-infused entry, a keen line of acidity and a dab of ginger on the finish.

Score: 89 - 91 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2025-2035

[Add to shopping basket] Angelus St Emilion £1,074 6x75cl 91-93 - 90-93 94 93-95 -
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The 2024 Angelus is very fine. It is the first vintage I have tasted that captures the newer approach at Angelus, one where the wines are not as extracted as in the past. Black cherry, plum, spice, new leather and menthol fill out the layers effortlessly. Here, too, the wine shows superb balance and real textural presence. The blend is 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc, with the Merlot being raised in 80% new oak and 20% once-filled barrels, and the Cabernet Franc in equal parts foudres and new smaller French oak barrels. The 2024 is mid-weight, classy and polished.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2054

A blend of 60% Merlot and 40% Cabernet Franc, cropped at a very honorable 40 hectoliters per hectare, the 2024 Angélus has turned out well, offering up aromas of dark berries, minty plums and violet, framed by a deft touch of toasty oak. Medium-bodied, ample and suave, it's polished and textural, with sweet but present tannins and creditable persistence on the finish.

Score: 90 - 93 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Vivid plum colour, cedar and gunsmoke on the opening, skilfully and carefully put together, slim through the palate, but this is very clearly finessed, sleek, with quiet confidence, and pumice stone texture, cherry pit, squid ink, damson, rosebud, Cabernet Franc dominant in terms of its floral aromatics. 39hl/h yield, 40th anniversary vintage of Hubert de Böuard. This will for sure be ready to drink earlier than many vintages of Angélus, but it is well structured and will age for many years to come. No chaptilisation.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2046

The Merlot for the 2024 Angélus was picked from September 11 to September 28 and the Cabernet Franc from September 29 to October 3. The Merlot aged in new oak, with some aged in white barrels. Half of the Cabernet Franc aged in foudres and the rest in new oak and one-year-old barrels. This has an intriguing bouquet that deserves a little more reflection than some of its peers. A touch of fish scales commingles with black olive tapenade alongside dark berry fruit in what you might describe as a "cool" nose. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins. The 2024 is certainly a more linear Angélus, saline with a liberal sprinkling of black pepper. It gains modest depth on the graphite-tinged and Cabernet-driven finish, which is drier than previous vintages (as expected in this vintage). There is fine salinity with a shorter aftertaste than you would find in a warm vintage. This is well-crafted and just needs more flesh on the slender finish. Maybe that will develop during its élevage? It will be an enjoyable Angélus rather than a profound one destined for long-term aging.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Armailhac Pauillac £166 6x75cl 90-92 - 87-89 92 90-92 -
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The 2024 d'Armailhac is a very beautiful wine. Dark, layered and intensely aromatic, the 2024 is so expressive. The percentage of Cabernet Franc from 60+ year-old vines is high in this vintage, and that very much comes through in the wine's perfume and saline intensity. All the elements are so well integrated. Dark red-toned fruit, blood orange, spice, cedar and new leather explode on the finish. Tasted two times.

Score: 90 - 92 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2044

Offering up pretty notes of sweet wild berries, rose petals and burning embers, the 2024 d'Armailhac is medium-bodied, bright and precise, with a sweet core of fruit but a somewhat strict, angular profile. If it rounds out with élevage, it will merit a better rating.

Score: 87 - 89 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Lovely deep plum colour, this has some chalky tannins, good depths of cassis and greengage fruits, with the real floral edge of Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon, that savoury, precise, elegant side, enjoyble with salinity and lift on the finish, Here the longer stretch of drought than normal of rainfall from end of June to mid September. Harvest began September 25 though to October 8, 3.69 pH. 50% new oak.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Château d'Armailhac was picked from September 25 to October 8. It has a slightly distant nose at first that demands coaxing from the glass. This is not its usual outgoing self, though that said, it is well-defined with black fruit and light damp loam scents. The palate is medium-bodied with quite a peppery entry. This lingers nicely in the mouth with fine grip and a pleasant roundness that emerges toward the graphite-tinged finish. Give it two or three years in bottle.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2027-2047

72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot and 14% Cabernet Franc. Cask sample. Lively and fresh on the nose. Bright and digeste. A little light on the mid palate but has structure and form. (JL) 12.9%

Score: 16 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2030 – 2040

[Add to shopping basket] Ausone St Emilion £1,842 6x75cl 93-95 - - 96 93-96 -
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The 2024 Ausone is pure sensuality. Intensely perfumed, pliant and silky on the palate, Ausone is haunting in its beauty. All the elements are so well balanced. Black cherry, lavender, mocha, espresso and exotic spice overtones all take shape in the glass. A wine of understated depth, the 2024 is impressive. Even in the early going, the 100% new oak is not at all evident, suggesting a wine with superior balance. The blend is 65% Cabernet Franc and 35% Merlot.

Score: 93 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

Deep ruby in colour, this delivers texture and flavoursome sappy fruits, clear winemaking skill that maintains estate signature. You feel the tightrope walk of minerality and fruit, and as in 2021 Ausone is at the very top of what was possible in the vintage. Cassis bud, peony, violet, cloves, jasmine flowers, chamomile, subtle complexity and layers that expand and build through the palate. The successful construction of this wine highlights what was so challeging to fully achieve with so many others in the vintage. Harvest 30 September 5 October, Philippe Baillarguet cellar master. 100% new oak.

Score: 96 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2046

The 2024 Ausone was picked between September 30 and October 5. It aged for 20 months in new French oak from 5 cooperages with malo in barrel as usual. There is slightly less Merlot in the blend due to mildew and coulure during the season. It has a very pure nose with black cherry, wild strawberry and a touch of cracked black pepper in the background. It just misses some of the profound complexity that a top Ausone can deliver. The palate is lovely, though, one of the most velvety 2024s that I tasted out of barrel. This is very harmonious with a focused and sustained finish. Whilst it doesn't quite have the horsepower or sheer ambition of a top-drawer Ausone, this is a success for the vintage simply because it is endowed with greater substance and persistence. There's presence here.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Batailley Pauillac £150 6x75cl 91-93 - - 93 91-93 -
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The 2024 Batailley is a wild, exotic wine. Kirsch, menthol, blood orange and white truffle race across the palate, framed with a kiss of French oak that works well in this style. Floral notes resonant on the juicy finish. This approachable, open-knit Pauillac is a delight.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2044

Fragrant, floral, precise, with graphite and crayon character that is immediately apparent on the nose. Captures the appellation and estate signature, with classicism and balance, depth through the mid palate and slim, savoury blue and black fruits. Well constructed, and no question that this can age - easy to project forward to think that in a decade this will be in full Batailley swing. 57% new oak for ageing, Casteja family estate.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 Batailley was picked from September 2—considerably earlier than other estates—until October 5. This was raised in 57% new oak barrels. It has an open-knit bouquet with blackberry, briar, mocha and graphite scents that emerge with time. This is finely delineated while keeping the typical Batailley style. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit, fine tannins and touches of pencil lead and black pepper leading to the cohesive, lightly grippy finish. The nicely composed 2024 should give 20 years of drinking pleasure.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2049

81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot. Cask sample. Dark fruit and spice. Bright and firm in texture. Tannins present and integrated. Classic in style. Has the potential for ageing. (JL) 13%

Score: 16.5 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2032 – 2045

[Add to shopping basket] Beausejour Becot St Emilion £225 6x75cl - - 95 92 95-97 -
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The 2024 Beau-Séjour Bécot is deep, vivid and wonderfully alive. Dynamic and explosive, with striking inner perfume, Beau-Séjour Bécot is hauntingly beautiful. Blue/purplish fruit, lavender, menthol, licorice and rose petal soar out of the glass. Silky, refined tannins add to the wine's finesse. The increase of Cabernet Franc in the blend has added aromatic depth and textural elegance. There's a feeling of transparency here that is impossible to miss. Beau-Séjour Bécot has grown into one of the most distinctive wines in Bordeaux. Simply put, the 2024 is magnificent. That's all there is to it. Élevage is 55% in new oak, 15% in once-used barrels and the rest in 20HL casks. Tasted two times.

Score: 95 - 97 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

A blend of 78% Merlot and 22% Cabernet Franc, the 2024 Beau-Séjour Bécot was picked in late September. Clusters were open rather than compact, lessening botrytis pressure, making it easier to wait to attain full maturity. Offering up aromas of dark berries, violets, rose petals and spices, it's medium to full-bodied, polished and layered, with beautifully refined tannin, integrated acidity and a long, aromatic finish. Once again, this impeccably managed estate has delivered a terrific performance in challenging conditions.

Score: 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Ruby red colour, vivid reflections, chewy character not just to the tannins but to the fruit, this is on the cool and slim side of the vintage, rose buds, peonies, but with real finesse and character, and excellent texture that keeps focus and interest through the palate, 90-100m on the plâteau, with underground limestone cellars down to 11m. Thomas Duclos consultant. Harvest 25 September to 4 October, latest harvest for Merlot in past 40 years, finishing up this grape on October 3. 3.4 pH 32 hl/ha. Cabernet Franc has been slowly increasing in the vineyard and in the blend of the 1st wine.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

[Add to shopping basket] Beychevelle St Julien £346 6x75cl 91-93 - - 92 95-97 -
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The 2024 Beychevelle might very well be the wine of the vintage in Saint-Julien. It is certainly among the very best I tasted on the Left Bank. Plush, inky and beautifully layered in the glass, the 2024 is so silky and inviting. Blue/purplish fruit, lavender, mocha and spice are some of the many notes that stain the palate. The sustained, resonant finish is a thing of beauty. Tasted two times.

Score: 95 - 97 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2054

Deep ruby cherry colour, this opens with bright plum and blackberry fruits, laced with cloves, white pepper, apple blossom. St Julien signature but the acidity accentuates the tannic grip at this point. Grands Millésimes De France, 41hl/ha yield.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Beychevelle was picked from September 24 until October 9 and will mature in 70% new oak. This has a nicely composed, warm and sensual bouquet with plush blackberry, cassis and touches of violet. The 42% Merlot is very expressive. The palate is medium-bodied with, again, quite luxuriant tannins that lend this Beychevelle more comeliness than you would anticipate given the growing season. Perhaps it just misses a little sustain on the finish, but otherwise, this is a fine Saint-Julien. 13.3% alcohol.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Blanc de Lynch Bages Dry Whites £250 6x75cl 89 - - 94 93 -
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Just bottled, the 2024 Blanc de Lynch Bages is a gorgeous, refreshing dry white to drink now and over the next handful of years. Lemon peel, white pepper, mint and chalky undertones are beautifully delineated. There's a bit more Muscadelle in this year's blend, but that is not especially apparent. Instead, Sauvignon Blanc drives the feel here.

Score: 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2025-2030

Offers tension and grip, a slow unroll, reserved at first but as it opens you get luscious white peach and pear fruits, along with elderflower and apple blossom florals. Great stuff from this lovely structure-driven white wine. 50% new oak. 3.12 pH.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2025-2034

The 2024 Blanc de Lynch-Bages, aged in 50% new oak and bottled in March, has an appealing nose with well-defined scents of fresh gooseberry, kiwi fruit and nettle. The palate is fresh and vibrant with crisp acidity, lime and lemon peel, quite "zingy" towards the finish. Enjoy this over the next five or six years.

Score: 89 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2025-2030

[Add to shopping basket] Branaire Ducru St Julien £159 6x75cl 90-92 - 90-92 91 92-94 -
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The 2024 Branaire-Ducru is a super-classic Branaire. Medium in body and gracious, the 2024 is defined by its lifted aromatics and silky, polished tannins. The proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon is especially high in 2024, a sign that the fruit harvested on the later side benefited from better conditions, namely a lack of rain. The 2024 possesses lovely purity and exquisite balance. Floral top notes and a burst of red-toned fruit reappear on the finish to round things out in style. It will be especially fine if élevage softens the contours. This is a fine effort from proprietor Francois-Xavier Maroteau and longtime winemaker Jean-Dominique Videau. Tasted two times.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2049

The 2024 Branaire-Ducru offers up a pretty and precise bouquet of cassis, violets and pencil shavings. Medium-bodied, supple and suave, with polished tannins and tangy acids, it's a fine-boned, delicate wine from Branaire that was harvested between 20 September and 9 October. It's a blend of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot that attained 12.8% alcohol, and it's being raised in a touch less new oak than usual.

Score: 90 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Lovely bright plum colour, slim blue and black fruits, coffee bean and cedar oak notes, carefully constructed with balance, a little short on the finish compared to the excellent recent vintages at Branaire. 55% new oak. 41.5 hl/ha, this is the first vintage with the new cellars, François-Xavier Maroteaux owner and new president of the Union de Grands Crus de Bordeaux.

Score: 91 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Branaire Ducru was cropped at a respectable 41.5 hl/ha between September 20 and October 9. It has a delightful bouquet with pure blackberry, blueberry and light violet scents percolating through with time. There's just a touch of iodine in the background. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins, pretty black fruit laced with cassis and touches of white pepper. There is an elegant framework on the finish so that this Saint-Julien slips down the throat with ease, as I am sure it will once in bottle. Whilst this does not reach the heights of the 2022, this is destined to be a very delicious Branaire Ducru.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2048

[Add to shopping basket] Brane Cantenac Margaux £213 6x75cl 91-93 - 89-91 95 93-95 -
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The 2024 Brane-Cantenac is shaping up to be a gem. Blood orange, crushed flowers, spice, mint and chalk confer notable brightness. The 2024 is marked by a strong red-fruit character, bright acids and mid-weight structure, all of which make for a super-classic, if somewhat nervy, Brane-Cantenac. There's quite a bit of potential here. Tasted two times.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2049

A blend of 77% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot and 1% Cabernet Franc, the 2024 Brane-Cantenac exhibits aromas of sweet berries, vanilla pod and toasty new oak, followed by a medium-bodied, fleshy and youthfully tannic palate that's lent a creamy, lactic quality by its malolactic fermentation in new barrels.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Tons of energy, stone fruits, cherry pits, damson, a lovely feeling of fruit that has plenty of life ahead it, fresh and juicy with sapidity. not trying too hard just full of pleasure. Edge of grilled campfire, graphite, generosity, easily one of the wines of the vintage. 11.3% press wine, 3.53pH, 46.6hl/ha yield. Harvest 17 September to 8 October, 80% new oak for ageing.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2045

The 2024 Brane-Cantenac was picked between September 17 and October 8. No Petit Verdot or Carménère were included in the blend this year. It was cropped at 46.6 hl/ha and matured in 80% new oak. This has a refined bouquet, understated at first, opening with black fruit, graphite and deft touches of wild mint. The palate is medium-bodied with sapid black fruit on the entry. With fine grip and very fresh, this is a Brane-Cantenac leaning more toward Pauillac in style as it is sometimes wont to do. Lightly peppery on the finish, this is an elegant Margaux that should be broached before its 2020 or 2022 counterparts.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Calon Segur St Estephe £360 6x75cl 91-93 - 93-95 92 93-95 -
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The 2024 Calon Ségur is shaping up very nicely. Dark and ample, with terrific balance, the 2024 is another strong wine from the team led by Technical Director Vincent Millet. Readers will find a Calon Ségur of inner strength, its deceptively mid-weight structure notwithstanding. The 2024 is a wine of restraint and class more than power, never a bad thing at this property. The 100% new oak is very nicely balanced, even in the early going. This has great potential.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Calon-Ségur is a terrific effort. A blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon (picked late, between October 2 and October 9), 9% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, it unwinds in the glass with notes of plums, cassis and iris mingled with hints of burning embers and incense. Medium to full-bodied, supple and layered, it's suave and seamless, with good depth at the core, powdery tannins and beautifully integrated acids. At pH 3.50 and 13.1% alcohol, it's also one of the most classically proportioned vintages this estate has produced over the last decade.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Beautiful red ruby expression. A slimmer more finessed expression of Calon than in recent years, that gives it less estate signature than some, but this has beautiful cassis bud, rose petals, peony, iris, cocoa bean and graphite. Subtle but with real charm. 3.60 pH. 45 hl/ha. 100% new oak. Vincent Millet director, Harvest 23 September to 9 October.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 Calon Ségur was picked from September 23 until October 9 at 45 hl/ha with no breaks between those dates. It then matured in 100% new oak, as usual, for 20 months. This has a well-defined bouquet, with more prominent wood than previous recent vintages, which consequently obscures the property's DNA. The palate is medium-bodied with sapid black fruit tinged with black olive. It's quite lively, with a liberal sprinkling of white pepper and thyme. I admire the freshness of this Saint-Estèphe and there is decent length on the finish. This is not a top-ranking Calon-Ségur, but it should still provide up to 20 years of drinking pleasure.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2048

72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc. 34 hl/ha. First vintage certified organic. Cask sample. Dark fruit with a minty freshness. Cassis on the palate. Moderate concentration but tannins fine and long. No sharp edges. Corresponds to the vintage. (JL) 13%

Score: 16.5 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2030-2040

[Add to shopping basket] Canon St Emilion £426 6x75cl 91-93 - 93-95 95 95-97 -
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The 2024 Canon is superb. One of the standouts of the vintage, the 2024 possesses striking mid-palate depth to match its vertical personality. Chalk, white pepper, mint, lavender, rose petal, slate and blue/purplish fruit all stain the palate. There's gorgeous depth and density here, and yet the 2024 remains a super-classic wine from the property. This is a real stunner. That's all there is to it. Tasted four times.

Score: 95 - 97 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2059

The 2024 Canon is shaping up brilliantly, wafting from the glass with aromas of sweet cherries, blackberries and raspberries mingled with notions of rose petals and spices. Medium to full-bodied, rich and fleshy, with tangy acids (the pH is a very low 3.35) and ultrarefined tannins, it concludes with a long, mineral finish. A blend of 78% Merlot and 22% Cabernet Franc, it's the estate's first year of organic certification.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

This is a gorgeous Canon, with the austerity of limestone on full display, as you would expect in this vintage, but a creamy edge comes in through the mid palate. Clear precision, flesh pared from flesh, peony, peach pit, cherry stone, damson, blueberry, graphite, crayon, pumice, lemongrass, gunsmoke, this has tons of layers and waves of complexity, classical and balanced. 44hl/ha yield, organic certified. 3.35 pH. 49% new oak. Harvest 19 September to 9 October.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Canon was picked from September 19 to October 9, a harvest that I witnessed firsthand while joining the pickers on one afternoon. It aged in 49% new oak and 6% casks for between 16 and 18 months. The bouquet is well defined with pure black cherry, raspberry and a subtle marine influence that develops in the glass, though I find the Troplong Mondot tasted alongside has more amplitude. The palate is medium-bodied and pliant with fine tannins and finesse. One bottle at the château had more weight on the finish than others that feel attenuated and missing a bit of substance.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Cantemerle Haut Medoc £97 6x75cl 90-92 - 88-90 92 88-91 -
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The 2024 Cantemerle is bold and expressive in the glass. Dried herbs, incense, tobacco, mocha, plum and leather build nicely in a mid-weight Haut-Médoc with plenty of layers and fine overall persistence. There's a good bit of potential here.

Score: 88 - 91 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2034

Aromas of sweet blackberries, minty cassis and pencil shavings introduce the 2024 Cantemerle, a medium-bodied, bright and lively wine built around sweet, youthfully chewy tannins. It's a solid effort for this large southern Médoc classified growth.

Score: 88 - 90 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Great quality, sappy, fragrant, savoury Cabernet Sauvignon aromatics. On the palate things open to show squid ink, juice, raspberry puree, liquorice root, really enjoyable, good texture. 48hl/h yield, 35% new oak, Laure Canu director, SMA Group owners. New winery to be ready for the 2025 harvest.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Cantemerle has a nicely composed bouquet with blackberry, sous-bois and subtle cedar scents percolating through with time. The palate is fresh and vibrant with saturated tannins, a keen line of acidity, well-integrated new oak and a very well-proportioned finish. This exceeds my expectations and is a great success in the context of the vintage. It could end up at the top of my banded score.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2040

[Add to shopping basket] Capbern St Estephe £87 6x75cl 90-92 - 90-92 91 90-92 -
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The 2024 Capbern is a very pretty, delicate Saint-Estèphe. Cabernet Sauvignon takes the leading role in this elegant, nuanced wine. Crushed flowers, spice, new leather, cedar, licorice and incense are all delineated in the glass. Vibrant floral notes reappear on the long, persistent finish.

Score: 90 - 92 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2036

A blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Merlot, the 2024 Capbern is a polished classic, offering up notions of cassis, lilac, licorice and pencil shavings, followed by a medium-bodied, supple and polished palate with good underlying cut and grip. It checks in at 12.9% alcohol.

Score: 90 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Enticing aromatics on this wine, soft waves of rose petals, blackberry fruit, crayon and pencil lead, with measured oak use. Acidity puts the tannins into a little overly-focused position on the finish, and the austerity that needs to be softened over ageing. Fairly old school, with charm. 3.60 pH. 45 hl/ha. 60% new oak.

Score: 91 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2028-2028

The 2024 Capbern aged in 60% new French oak for 18 months and contains a little more Cabernet than usual. It has a fresh bouquet with blackberry, cranberry, incense and pencil shaving aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with strict tannins. This is armed with satisfying freshness, brightness and hints of allspice and cumin in the background. This is cohesive on the modest, sapid finish. Although this is not the best Capbern that I have encountered in recent years, it is certainly a decent wine for the vintage.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2039

70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot. 45 hl/ha. Cask sample. Red- and dark-berry fruit. Tannins firm but not hard. Slightly lean in the middle and finishes a little dry but fresh and ‘classic’ in style. (JL) 12.9%

Score: 16 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2030-2040

[Add to shopping basket] Carmes Haut Brion Pessac-Leognan £354 6x75cl 94-96 - 93-96 94 95-97 -
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Seamless and silky in the glass, with superb balance, the 2024 Les Carmes Haut-Brion is one of the wines of the vintage. All the elements are so well balanced, always a sign of a superior vintage at this address. Floral notes, spice, leather and mocha run through a core of layered, beautifully persistent dark red fruit. Harvest took place between September 17 and 25, during one of the rare windows with little rain. As always, Les Carmes is done with a high percentage of stems (52%), specifically 100% for the Cabernet Franc, 50% for the Merlot and 20% for the Cabernet Sauvignon. Aging is 70% new oak barrels, 19% 18HL foudre and 11% amphora. New oak is already very nicely integrated, another sign of a superb vintage. The 2024 is a brilliant effort by the team led by Technical Director Olivier Pouthier.

Score: 95 - 97 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

One of the most impressive wines of the vintage, the 2024 Les Carmes Haut-Brion is a striking effort that sets itself apart with seamless integration, even at this early stage, and a strong sense of identity. Poised, precise and unmistakably singular, it opens in the glass with a perfumed bouquet of iris, violet, dark berries, cherries, vine smoke and gentian. Medium to full-bodied, supple and notably fleshy for the vintage, it’s layered and textural, with a sappy, enveloping core of pure, vibrant fruit framed by finely grained, velvety tannins, culminating in a long, precise and gently stemmy finish. This is one of the rare wines of the vintage where sappiness is expressed with such finesse and charm, thanks in no small part to meticulous vineyard work and severe sorting in the winery. The blend is composed of 48% Cabernet Franc, 29% Cabernet Sauvignon and 23% Merlot, and it's maturing in a combination of 70% new oak, 19% foudres and 11% amphorae.

Score: 93 - 96 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2026 - 2044

Inky depths to the colour, touch of reduction on the opening as is often the case with En Primeur Carmes, this delivers energy, density, clarity. Austerity on the finish, but plenty of interest, savoury and muscular juicy black fruits, expect a wine that is built around about texture, architecture and savour, which is not something that I have found in many bottles in the vintage. 90% new oak, split between barrels and casks, 11% amphoras. Harvest 17 to 27 September. 3.61 pH, clay and limestone, 60 years old average vine age. 46hl/H yield in vineyard, 41hl/h after picking selection, then 24hl/h after cellar selection. All press used, no chaptilisation.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Les Carmes Haut-Brion contains more Cabernet Franc at 48% of the blend. Picked between September 17 and 27 using 52% whole bunch, this is aged in 70% new barrels, 19% new foudres and 11% amphora. This has impressive fruit concentration on the nose with redcurrant and blackberry fruit, hints of cassis and a dab of dark chocolate. Fine delineation. After time, there is something that nods to the Northern Rhône without losing typicité. The palate is medium-bodied and fresh with fine tannins, a subtle pepperiness imparted by the whole bunches and a tingle of pain d'épices towards the finish. Very harmonious and very delicious, this should provide 20 to 25 years of drinking pleasure. 13.2% abv.

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2031-2060

[Add to shopping basket] Carruades de Lafite (2nd wine of Ch Lafite) Pauillac £714 6x75cl 90-92 - 89-91 92 91-93 -
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The 2024 Carruades de Lafite is plush, sensual and inviting right out of the gate. Soft contours wrap around a core of plum, black cherry, gravel, incense, licorice and baking spice. This is a rare Carruades that is Merlot-driven. It's a balance that works quite well. This showy, inviting Carruades is quite the charmer

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2044

The 2024 Carruades de Lafite is a blend of 47% Merlot, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet France and 2% Petit Verdot. Unwinding in the glass to reveal aromas of dark berries, plums, lilac and tobacco leaf, it's medium-bodied, lively and open-knit, with a moderately persistent finish.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Gorgeous deep plum colour, very juicy, extremely well handled, savoury and mouthwatering, cassis bud, roses, crayon, shorter on the finish than a typical Carruades, but this has plenty of subtle pleasure and will be ready to drink sooner than usual. Harvest 23 September to 7 October, 32hl/h yield, 47% of the harvest is in this wine, 12% press.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Carruades de Lafite has more Merlot than Cabernet Sauvignon for the first time in many vintages (47% and 45% respectively). It has fine purity on the nose, black cherries mixed with cassis and pencil box aromas. Impressive delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with a fresh and focused entry. The 2024 is very well balanced with gentle grip, plenty of tension and a hint of black truffle on the finish. This is a commendable Deuxième Vin.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2047

45% Cabernet Sauvignon, 47% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot. 32 hl/ha. First vintage certified organic. Cask sample. Flattering fruit on the palate, the Merlot adding a little more weight. Acidity present all the same so there is freshness. Firm structure, the tannins punchy. Will benefit from élevage. (JL) 12.6%

Score: 16 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2030-2040

[Add to shopping basket] Chapelle de la Mission (2nd wine of Mission Haut Brion) Pessac-Leognan £240 6x75cl 88-90 - 89-91 90 90-92 -
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The 2024 La Chapelle de La Mission Haut Brion is soft, open-knit and juicy, all qualities that will make it a fine choice for drinking on release. Unusually, Cabernet Sauvignon takes the lead in 2024. It's a style that works quite well. Macerated cherry, plum, spice, new leather and tobacco all build nicely in the glass.

Score: 90 - 92 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2036

A blend of 56.3% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29.2% Merlot and 14.5% Cabernet Franc, the 2024 La Chapelle de la Mission Haut-Brion is fresh and perfumed, offering up aromas of peonies, dark berries and green bell pepper. Moderately weighted and sappy, it's layered and youthfully introverted, underpinned by somewhat brittle tannins and concluding with a fresh, elegant finish.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2027 - 2034

High aromatics on the nose, and lovely vibrant fruit, ripe apples, cranberry, raspberry fruits, fresh acidities but crunchy and full of flavour. Austerity on the finish, but this is full of sappy charm, 26hl/h yield, 4.9% press, 31% new oak

Score: 90 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 La Chapelle de la Mission Haut-Brion has a reserved bouquet of tertiary black fruit with touches of smoke and cigar box. The palate is medium-bodied and quite sapid in the mouth with grainy tannins and a seaweed note on the aftertaste. The 2024 is a little taut at the moment, but if it gains a little flesh it should turn out fine.

Score: 88 - 90 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2036

[Add to shopping basket] Cheval Blanc St Emilion £1,650 6x75cl 93-95 - 94-96 94 92-94 -
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The 2024 Cheval Blanc is a blend taken from 37 of the 45 parcels on the property. Dried flowers, mocha, rose petal and blood orange open nicely in the bouquet, leading to an understated mid-palate and a subtly persistent finish. Understated and nuanced, the 2024 offers lovely forward fruit in a soft, accessible style with no hard edges or awkward contours. All the elements are nicely put together, and yet there is no denying the fact that the 2024 is very light. Élevage will be everything here.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2054

A blend of 48% Cabernet Franc, 48% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2024 Château Cheval Blanc is one of the stars of the vintage. Unwinding in the glass with notes of minty berries and plums mingled with violets, cigar wrapper and rose petals, it's medium-bodied, suave and complete, with a cool, layered core of fruit, beautifully integrated tannins and a long, aromatic finish. Pierre-Olivier Clouet and his team conducted an aggressive green harvest and also, exceptionally, used densimetric sorting to mitigate heterogenous maturity between and within bunches (a consequence of a protracted flowering), accepting losses to rot in pursuit of full maturity. Yields were 39 hectoliters per hectare at harvest, but some 34% of that was eliminated between sorting and press wine (which is never retained at Cheval Blanc). Of what fermented, however, 70% ended up in the grand vin.

Score: 94 - 96 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Lilac, peony flowers, same family of aromatics as the Petit Cheval, same feeling of finesse and precision, but here everything has been taken up a notch, more density, more slate and pumice stone texture. Expect subtle complexity, a wine that steals up on you, impresses in its precision and clarity. July and August just 20mm of rain each month, well below 30 year average, 140mm rain in September, highest since 2006, harvest September 18 to October 3, 3.62ph (3.9ph in 2022), 37 plots out of the 56 in the vineyard are in here. 100% new oak for ageing. Looking forward to seeing after ageing, it has all the elements and bones in place for a totally delicious Cheval.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2050

The 2024 Cheval Blanc was picked from September 18 until October 3 and aged entirely in new oak with a little dabbling in concrete tanks and amphorae. The purity on the nose is the first facet that you notice with perfumed black cherry, blackcurrant, wild strawberry and touches of potpourri and crushed stone. There is certainly some mineralité here. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly brittle tannins. Very well balanced, this is clearly a Cheval Blanc built in a more elegant, sapid, linear style with a residual pepperiness that lingers in the mouth. It will need just 2 or 3 years in bottle and should drink well for 20 to 25 years. The 2024 is charming and refined.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Clarence Haut Brion (2nd wine of Haut Brion) Pessac-Leognan £510 6x75cl 89-91 - 90-92 92 91-93 -
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The 2024 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion is a very beautiful second wine. Dark and pliant, with terrific nuance, the 2024 is a delight. Cabernet Franc is quite high in this vintage. It’s a style that works so well. All the elements are impeccably balanced. Time in the glass brings out notable aromatic presence and body.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2036

Fresh and perfumed with elegant notes of dark berries, spices, licorice and lead pencil, the 2024 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion possesses a medium-bodied, firm and slightly introverted palate with firm tannins and a long, mulberries-inflected finish. The blend—45.7% Merlot, 32.3% Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Cabernet Franc—features one of the highest proportions of Cabernet Franc since 2006.

Score: 90 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2027 - 2040

Clearer levels of intensity and concentration than Chapelle from the same stable, evn a touch of fennel and liquorice, a welcome gourmet character in this lean-styled vintage, plenty of spice and savoury black fruits, with salinity on the finish. Quite a different expression than recent vintages with lower alcohol and slim frame, but this delivers estate signature. 6.3% press, 31% new oak., harvest September 17 to October 4, 26hl/h yield.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Le Clarence de Haut-Brion has a tad more cohesion and nuance compared to the La Chapelle de la Mission at the moment, with bright blackberry and bilberry scents laced with oyster shells. The palate is medium-bodied with fine, supple tannins, satisfying fluidity and a minerally finish. This will do nicely.

Score: 89 - 91 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2042

[Add to shopping basket] Clarte de Haut Brion Dry Whites £360 6x75cl 86-88 - 90-92 92 91-93 -
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The 2024 La Clarté de Haut Brion is terrific. It offers terrific depth, character and personality. Lemon confit, white pepper, slate, chalk and mint build nicely, but I am most struck by the wine's textural depth and overall presence. This is an especially fine Clarté.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2031

A delicate smoky reduction followed by aromas of pear, spring blossoms and flowers introduces the 2024 La Clarté de Haut-Brion, a medium to full-bodied, sappy and layered wine with a fleshy palate due to its proportion of Sémillon, with a lively, saline texture. This is a blend of 64.5% Sémillon and 35.5% Sauvignon Blanc.

Score: 90 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2027 - 2039

Majority of Sémillon across the whole range this year. 42% new oak. Always one of the great value wines of Bordeaux, which might sound ridiculous but the sheer quality is incredibly consistent. Vibrant, structured, pure, touch of stone fruits, dominant apricot pit, juicy and joyful. Lovely quality. Harvest September 2 to 10, 3.22ph, 38hl/h yield.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2025-2030

The 2024 La Clarté de Haut-Brion has a malic nose with apple blossom and kiwi fruit scents emanating from the Sauvignon Blanc. The palate is fresh on the entry with crisp acidity. This is a simple Deuxième Vin Blanc that pulls up short on the finish. Early drinking.

Score: 86 - 88 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2031

[Add to shopping basket] Clerc Milon Pauillac £274 6x75cl 91-93 - 89-91 94 91-93 -
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The 2024 Clerc Milon is packed with blue/purplish fruit, lavender, sage, dried flowers and mocha. Juicy and forward, Clerc Milon has a lot to recommend it. Time in the glass brings out gorgeous Cabernet Sauvignon savoriness to complement the wine's mid-weight structure. Lovely. Tasted two times.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2039

Notes of sweet cassis, pencil shavings and creamy new oak introduce the 2024 Clerc Milon, a medium-bodied, taut and lively wine built around chalky tannins.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Excellent quality, well defined, you see the grip of the terroir here, and the floral edge of Cabernet and Carmanère, with its spicy side, and beautiful lift. Clearly needs time to full open, this has the cassis, cigar box and leather feel of a great old school Pauillac. Lovely. Harvest 24 September to 6 October. 3.72 pH. 55% new oak.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2045

The 2024 Clerc Milon was picked from September 24 to October 6 and raised in 55% new oak with just a little more Cabernet than previous years. It has a fragrant bouquet with blackberry, briar and light iodine scents that unfold nicely in the glass, though it's not as vigorous as the top vintages. The palate is medium-bodied with finely cut tannins. It has moderate weight and density, with a pleasing sweetness of fruit that comes through on the finish. This Clerc Milon has an appealing sense of composure and it should age well in bottle.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2055

6% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc, 1% Carmenère and 1% Petit Verdot. Cask sample. Reticent nose. Firm, dry extract with quite a bit of extraction. Chewy and firm on the finish. Lacks a little juice. Not quite together yet. (JL) 13%

Score: 15.5 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2030-2042

[Add to shopping basket] Clinet Pomerol £264 6x75cl 91-93 - 89-91 92 92-94 -
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The 2024 Clinet is a dark, stylish wine. Black cherry, lavender, spice, licorice and blue-toned fruit are beautifully delineated. Dark and vibrant in the glass, with terrific depth, Clinet is super-expressive in 2024. Ronan Laborde bled the musts to bring the wine into the rich, textured style he seeks here. Clinet is a rare Pomerol that is 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon, with the Cabernet very much in evidence.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Clinet, incorporating a significant percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon, is one of the denser, more muscular wines of the vintage, offering up aromas of blackberries, vanilla pod and creamy oak. Medium to full-bodied, deep and extracted, it's tannic and lactic, with a chewy, Bourbon-inflected finish.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Rich sweet damson and raspberry fruit, vanilla bean, caramel, the gourmet side of Pomerol is checking in, which we have missed in many, the tannins are sleek and well extracted, no dilution through the palate, good job. No need to wait too long - a good introduction to this property. 35hl/ha yield. Ronan Laborde owner. Tasted twice.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Clinet was picked from September 23 to October 4 at 38 hl/ha and matured in 60% new oak. The bouquet opens with red and black fruit, pencil shavings from the Cabernet and light tertiary scents in the background. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins. The oak is neatly integrated and benefits from slightly less new wood, which allows the terroir to show through. Cohesive toward the finish with decent length, this is a thoughtfully produced Clinet that will age well in bottle.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Clos du Marquis St Julien £186 6x75cl 90-92 - 90-92 91 90-92 -
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The 2024 Clos du Marquis is a very pretty, aromatic Saint-Julien. Crushed flowers, mint, lavender, white pepper and slate give the 2024 an attractive upper register to match its mid-weight, nervy personality. There is a bit of dryness on the finish that hopefully will be resolved with élevage.

Score: 90 - 92 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2036

A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Franc that attained 12.9% alcohol, the 2024 Clos du Marquis unwinds in the glass with notes of cassis, iris and pencil shavings, followed by a medium-bodied, taut and incisive palate with good depth and persistence. It's a serious wine, but it will require patience.

Score: 90 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Bright vivid plum character, sappy and juicy, the austerity is pretty high with cloves and smoky black tea, elderflower, cherry pit. Needs time in bottle to really open up, but this is good quality, and has plenty of St Julien character. 32hl/ha yield. 50% new oak, with some larger oak casks. 3.62 pH, 32 hl/ha. 7.6% press wine. Harvest 25 September to 10 October.

Score: 91 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Clos du Marquis was cropped at 32 hl/ha between September and 25 October 10. It matured in 50% new oak barrels for 16 months. This has an expressive bouquet with blackberry, blueberry and light violet scents that lend it Margaux-like allure. The palate is medium-bodied with a citric entry thanks to the acidity, edgy tannins and more black fruit laced with cedar and graphite toward the finish. Give this three or four years in bottle. This is slightly leaner, but it maintains focus.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2042

[Add to shopping basket] Clos Fourtet St Emilion £306 6x75cl 92-94 - - 92 93-95 -
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The 2024 Clos Fourtet is a gorgeous, elegant wine. Medium in body, with terrific persistence and notable purity, Clos Fourtet impresses with its balance more than anything else. Dark blue fruits, lavender, spice, menthol, licorice and dried herbs open first, all framed by bright chalky notes that lend freshness. In 2024, Clos Fourtet is built more on persistence than overt textural richness, as has been the case in some recent vintages. Tasted two times.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

Slow to unfurl, because this is a strong limestone identity which needs time to soften in the glass, but there are stunning gunsmoke, elderflower and white blossom aromatics, along with pumice stone and chalk tannins. Extremely clear limestone fingerprint, cruchy fruits, quite a physical reaction to the wine, good precision and clarity, 30hl/h yield. Harvest 25 September to 11 October, 40% new oak. 3.43pH. A more reserved Clos Fourtet compared to the last few vintages, needs time, potential upscore in bottle.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Clos Fourtet was picked between September 25 to October 11 at 30 hl/ha. It matured in 40% new oak for a planned 14 to 18 months. This is clearly a level-up from Le Closerie with pure, well-defined and focused blueberry, raspberry, and blood orange scents. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins. This is quite linear, keeping with the style of the vintage, so this doesn't have a peacock's tail like the 2022. Yet this feels tensile and the limestone terroir shapes the mineral-driven finish. This is a well-crafted and delicious Clos Fourtet, a success given the challenges of the vintage.

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2046

[Add to shopping basket] Clos Haut Peyraguey Sauternes/Barsac £155 12x37.5cl 91-93 - - 94 94-96 -
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The 2024 Clos Haut-Peyraguey is the result of three picks from September 19 to October 16, with most of the fruit coming from the middle pick. Readers will find a heady, dense Sauternes with a distinctly structural, almost tannic feel. The 130 grams of residual sugar are very nicely integrated into the wine's frame. Apricot, chamomile, spice, pineapple, passion fruit and a kiss of French oak linger on the imposing finish. Superb. Tasted three times.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2044

Sharp and focused, this has plenty of grip and lift, orange zest and powerful saffron spice, superb quality, these are lovely wines. 14 hl/ha, 90% in oak of which 1/3 is new.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2038

The 2024 Clos Haut-Peyraguey has a well-defined nose that lacks the complexity of some of its peers. Wild honey, quince and light almond scents unfold in the glass. The palate is fresh and clinical on the entry, with apricot mixed with notes of tangerine, although I would like to see more nuance on the slightly short yet refreshing finish.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2046

[Add to shopping basket] Conseillante Pomerol £707 6x75cl 92-94 - 94-96 94 95-98 -
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The 2024 La Conseillante is shaping up to be one of the wines of the vintage. Vertical and explosive, with spectacular depth, the 2024 is an eye-opening wine, with regard to both the potential of the property and the vintage. In 2024, La Conseillante separates itself from the pack by a wide margin. It may ultimately not merit the very highest of scores, but it will almost certainly come close. Dark blue fruit, violet, spice, new leather, menthol and licorice stain the palate all the way through the creamy finish. Conseillante is a very serious wine. Technical Director Marielle Cazaux made all the right choices in a very challenging year in which yields were reduced by 50% in the field and then through strict selection in the cellar. Tasted two times.

Score: 95 - 98 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 La Conseillante is one of the wines of the vintage this year, wafting from the glass with aromas of raspberries and violets mingled with hints of pipe tobacco, vine smoke and spices. Medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, with beautifully refined, integrated tannins, impressive intensity of flavor and a long, penetrating finish, this suave, sensual Pomerol represents the quintessential Conseillante. It's a blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc that produced 22 hectoliters per hectare after extensive sorting.

Score: 94 - 96 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Dark cherry in colour, vivid, the fruits have beautiful clarity on the aromatics and the opening notes, and density through the palate. Velvety texture with lift, cocoa bean, espresso, damson, excellent quality. Michel Rolland consultant., 100% new oak, 85% of production in La Conseillante. One of the success stories in Pomerol. Harvest 20 September to 4 October, 30hl/ha when it came in from the vineyard, 22hl/h after density sorting. 3.57ph,

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2050

The 2024 La Conseillante was picked over six days at 22 hl/ha between September 20 and October 4. This has a clean and focused bouquet, with quite pure scents of blackberry, boysenberry and light blueberry. This is clearly without the flamboyance of a warming vintage, yet with ample freshness and delineation. The palate is medium-bodied and balanced, with slightly grainy yet fine tannins. This is a La Conseillante that wisely stays within its means. Quite strict on the finish, it's a nimble Pomerol that will drink earlier than say, the 2020, 2022 or 2023.

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2048

[Add to shopping basket] Cos d'Estournel St Estephe £510 6x75cl 93-95 - 93-95 94 95-98 -
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The 2024 Cos d'Estournel could very well be one of the wines of the vintage. Bright and vibrant in the glass, with tons of energy, the 2024 impresses with its vertical structure, depth and overall balance. Blue/purplish fruit, spice, new leather, lavender and mocha are beautifully delineated throughout. The 2024 is super-classic. The modest 12.8% alcohol is notable, especially because that also means there is less extraction of wood. Cos is one of my early favorites in 2024.

Score: 95 - 98 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Cos d'Estournel is shaping up beautifully. Offering up aromas of sweet cassis, plums, pencil shavings and iris, it's medium to full-bodied, supple and suave, reflecting this estate's pivot to a more harmonious, less aggressively extracted style. With a layered, seamless core of fruit framed by plenty of sweet, powdery tannin, it's a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot, 1.5% Cabernet Franc and 0.5% Petit Verdot that checks in at 12.7% alcohol. Cos is an early-ripening terroir, and that clearly played to the relative strengths of the vintage. Harvest here began with the estate's old-vine Merlot on gravel on September 23, concluding with the last Cabernet Sauvignon on October 7.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Highly textural, with layers and depth, this shows savoury and slim black fruits, real finesse, beautifully precise and grippy texture, cocoa bean, espresso, lovely quality. This feels genuinely old school in the best sense of the word. Harvest 23 September to 7 October. 3.52 pH. 20% new oak, 46% 1st wine.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 Cos d'Estournel was picked from September 23 to October 7 and matured in 50% new oak. This has an atypically powerful bouquet, revealing black fruit laced with graphite and gravelly scents. The palate has a Pauillac-like entry that's fresh but certainly intense. There's plenty of grip in this Cos d'Estournel that's a little sweeter and reassuringly persistent on the finish compared to its peers. It does not deliver the mineralité of a top-flight Cos d'Estournel, though there's certainly much more fruit intensity than you would expect given the growing season. I observed more classicism during my second record, which suggests that the depth of fruit may become more prominent during barrel maturation. Readers should note it displayed more depth and precision on my second visit on the final day in Bordeaux.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2065

60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot, 1.5% Cabernet Franc, 0.5% Petit Verdot. Cask sample. Purple-black hue. Reserved nose but good concentration. Tight and firm on the palate with layered extract. Mid-palate presence and a certain power but tough and chewy on the finish and just a little austere for now. (JL) 12.8%

Score: 16.5 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2032-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Cos d'Estournel Blanc Dry Whites £642 6x75cl 92-94 - - 95 93-95 -
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The 2024 Cos d'Estournel Blanc is one of the best editions of this wine I can remember tasting. Rich and ample, the 2024 possesses notable textural richness but also a good bit of moderating vibrancy. The balance here is simply superb. Lemon confit, almond, white flowers and chalk build into the layered, resonant finish.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2034

Brooding and shy, the 2024 Cos d'Estournel Blanc reveals aromas of citrus and lime, followed by a moderately weighted, incisive and lively palate with tangy acid s and a short finish. I'll reserve judgment until after bottling. (YC) Not scored

Score: - William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Restrained right now, just getting revved up, delivering pear, saffron, elderflower, white tea and liquorice root. Limestone soils in northern Médoc, field grafted from Cabernet Sauvignon in 2021. This needs carafing, and should take a few years before really opening up, but has a ton of texture, confidence and character. 3.04 pH. Harvest 17 to 27 September. 8% new oak.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2036

The 2024 Cos d'Estournel Blanc has more delineation and tension than the Pagodes on the nose. It's more citrus-driven with touches of yuzu and lime. The palate is fresh and bright on the entry, with a keen line of acidity and an intense lemon peel- and orange zest-tinged finish. This is a very fine Cos d'Estournel Blanc that will be difficult to resist in its youth.

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2027-2042

[Add to shopping basket] Coutet Sauternes/Barsac £166 12x37.5cl 94-96 - - 97 94-96 -
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The 2024 Coutet is a dense, voluptuous Sauternes. Orange peel, apricot jam, passion fruit, pineapple and white flowers convey tons of exoticism. Ample and resonant on the palate, with superb depth, Coutet is outstanding in 2024.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2028-2044

Delivers texture and flesh, love the aromatics that are sweet without being heavy, this has restraint and carefully-measured fleshy fruits, nectarine, pineapple, white peaches, lime zest, gunsmoke, perfectly-judged acidities. One of the wines of the vintage, great stuff from Philippe and Aline Baly.

Score: 97 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2038

The 2024 Coutet was picked over six tries although the final ones were not used with 134 g/L residual sugar this year. It has quite an intense bouquet with beautifully defined lemon thyme and light peach aromas. The palate is well balanced with a vivacious opening, lively apricot and quince notes and concentration effortlessly offset by the silver thread of acidity. Composed and persistent on the finish, this is a superb Coutet.

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Dame de Montrose (2nd wine of Montrose) St Estephe £144 6x75cl 88-90 - 90-92 92 90-92 -
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The 2024 La Dame de Montrose is a very elegant, sexy wine. Lifted aromatics, bright red-toned fruit and silky tannins speak to finesse. All the elements are so well balanced. A burst of red cherry, mocha and crushed flowers extends the soft, supple finish. The 2024 is being raised in approximately 63% used oak, 20% foudre, 15% new oak and 2% amphora. It's an incredibly charming wine that should drink well on release.

Score: 90 - 92 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2034

If the grand vin is built for the ages, the 2024 La Dame de Montrose plays a different hand, emphasizing suavity and charm. Offering up notes of blackcurrants, raspberries, violets and licorice, it's medium to full-bodied, ample and suave, with supple tannins, lively acids and a seamless, complete profile. It's a blend of 73% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc that sees a more reductive élevage than the grand vin.

Score: 90 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

This has dark fruit character, leafy but nuanced and sculpted, lovely savoury mouthwatering quality on the finish, At Montrose they did some leaf removal even in early June at fruit set, and left grass throughout the vineyard all the way through the season to increase competition, and did some tidying up at the very beginning of veraison to remove any that were clearly a little behind schedule - so basically just had to be extremely reactive at all times. The yield was 38hl/h after farming entirely organically. Harvest 23 September to 8 October. 20% large oak casks, 15% new oak.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 La Dame de Montrose—raised in 15% new oak, 20% foudres and 2% amphora—has a straightforward, relatively light bouquet with blackberry, hints of black olive and light gravelly scents. The palate is medium-bodied with sharp acidity on the entry, balanced but just a little austere towards the second half. It needs to muster more fruité on the finish, but at least displays freshness and classicism.

Score: 88 - 90 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2037

[Add to shopping basket] Doisy Daene Sauternes/Barsac £177 12x37.5cl - - - - - -
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[Add to shopping basket] Doisy Daene Sauternes/Barsac £177 6x75cl 94-96 - - 95 92-95 -
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The 2024 Doisy-Daëne is redolent of apricot, tangerine oil, baked apple tart, pineapple and spice. Bold and luscious in feel, Doisy-Daëne is quite overt in 2024. It offers ample body to match its abundant curves and sexy, flamboyant profile. Tasted two times.

Score: 92 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2044

Bright, vivid, beautiful depth, lime zest, saffron, juicy and luscious, this majors on orange peel, pineapple and mango, mouthwatering finish, exceptional quality. Olivier And Eric Casteja. 9 hl/ha yield, Barsac location.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2038

The 2024 Doisy-Daëne is a little more backward on the nose than expected, with finely delineated peach skin, beeswax and wild honey scents emerging with time. The palate is well balanced with a very peachy opening, then apricot and quince join the chorus line. As usual, the acidic thread keeps this Barsac on its toes and there is real intensity and sustain on the finish that leaves you wanting more. Bravo.

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Doisy Vedrines Sauternes/Barsac £147 12x37.5cl - - - - - -
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[Add to shopping basket] Doisy Vedrines Sauternes/Barsac £147 6x75cl 91-93 - - - 92-94 -
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The 2024 Doisy-Védrines is a potent, surprisingly tightly wound Barsac that is going to need at least several years to come together. That won't be an issue, as Doisy-Védrines ages spectacularly well. Today, though, it is far less charming and seductive than it is most years. Bright floral and tropical notes open with some coaxing, but this is a wine for readers who can wait.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2054

The 2024 Doisy-Védrines does not possess the same level of complexity as the Doisy-Daëne on the nose, although it is clean and fresh with wild honey, peach skin and saffron scents. I would like to see more vigor. The palate is balanced and quite linear, with a touch of peach mixed with apricot and pear. It's less unctuous than historical vintages, though vibrant from start to finish. This is an early drinking but still very appealing Barsac.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2027-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Domaine de Chevalier Blanc Dry Whites £417 6x75cl 94-96 - 92-94 94 95-97 -
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The 2024 Domaine de Chevalier Blanc has it all. Powerful yet elegant, deep yet light on its feet, the 2024 is a wine of contrasts and harmony that will thrill readers for many years to come. Nothing in particular stands out, rather it is the wine's balance that carries the day. Chamomile, crushed flowers, chalk and a hint of new oak run through a core of citrus-tinged fruit. The long, sustained finish is remarkable. Superb. Tasted two times.

Score: 95 - 97 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2054

A blend of 70% Sauvignon Blanc and 30% Sémillon, the 2024 Domaine de Chevalier Blanc reveals aromas of crisp stone fruit, confit citrus and flowers. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated and layered, it's sappy and bright with a gently oaky frame and a long, ethereal finish.

Score: 92 - 94 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2026 - 2044

Full of character, intense, grippy, green apple, white pear, white peach, unripe mango, sage and saffron and just so juicy on the finish. Great potential, clear ageing ability, fragrant and confident. Harvest 4 to 19 September. 33% new oak.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2025-2038

The 2024 Domaine de Chevalier Blanc was cropped between September 4 and 16 at 48 hl/ha, with just a tad more Sauvignon in the blend this year. There is impressive intensity on the nose with scents of apple blossom, orange cordial and hints of yellow flowers. It unfolds wonderfully in the glass. The palate is well balanced with a winsome, slightly resinous texture, notes of ginger-infused orange pith and wild peach flavours. Very harmonious and tensile on the finish, this is gearing up to be a superb Domaine de Chevalier Blanc that could well end up at the upper end of my banded score.

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Domaine de Chevalier Rouge Pessac-Leognan £192 6x75cl 91-93 - 90-92 - 92-94 -
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The 2024 Domaine de Chevalier is soft, fruity and relatively simple, given its typical personality. Plum, black cherry, licorice, chocolate and sweet oak are pushed forward in this open-knit, easygoing Pessac-Léognan. There may be more here than meets the eye. We will see. Today, the 2024 is on the light side. Tasted two times.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2049

A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 5% Cabernet Franc, the 2024 Domaine de Chevalier reveals a spicy, brooding bouquet of oak, dark berries and gentian. Medium to full-bodied, juicy and round, it's firm and has an assertive tannic frame, concluding with a somewhat chewy finish. Despite a respectable yield and a clear stylistic shift toward less oak influence, the estate’s sandy terroirs struggled to achieve full ripeness in this delicate vintage.

Score: 90 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2026 - 2034

The 2024 Domaine de Chevalier was cropped at 48 hl/ha between September 20 and October 8. This is almost Burgundian in style, with a fragrant bouquet revealing pure blueberry and blackcurrant aromas alongside crushed violet and iris flower scents emerging with aeration. It is very comely and alluring. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins. It's very harmonious and already in this prenatal stage, seductive. With finely chiseled tannins and more mineralité compared to the L'Esprit, this seems to glide on the finish. Just a lovely Pessac-Léognan for the vintage, though this year it must accept the silver medal as Olivier Bernard's white takes the gold.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2031-2048

[Add to shopping basket] Ducru Beaucaillou St Julien £525 6x75cl 92-94 - 91-93 95 94-96 -
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The 2024 Ducru-Beaucaillou is a sleek, elegant wine. Silky tannins give the 2024 its distinctly mid-weight, lithe personality. Readers will find a gracious Ducru built more on persistence and nervy tension than size or opulence. Blue/black fruits, lavender, cloves, menthol and chocolate open over time. It will be fascinating to see how this ages.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Ducru-Beaucaillou is showing well at this stage, unfurling in the glass with a perfumed bouquet of dark berries, flowers, gentian and fresh licorice, interwoven with delicate spicy nuances. Medium to full-bodied, layered, and seamless, it is lively and refined, with somewhat firm tannins leading to a gently grippy finish. This was harvested between September 30 and October 15. YC

Score: 91 - 93 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

A gorgeously vivid, lifted nose, with floral aromatics, dark berry and cassis fruits, fleshy but understated, elegant and finessed, squid ink, sandalwood, incense, maintains estate signature and is full of pleasure, 100% new oak for ageing, 3.8 pH. Harvest 23 September to 7 October.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2048

The 2024 Ducru-Beaucaillou matured entirely in new oak, as usual. The 100% new wood slightly impedes on the aromatics at the moment, masking some of the attractive blackberry and cassis scents tucked underneath. The palate is medium-bodied and, again, the oak is very vocal at the moment. Quite marine-influenced on the finish, this Ducru-Beaucaillou has impressive sapidity, although the key question is how that wood will assimilate in bottle. Only time will tell.

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Duhart Milon Pauillac £276 6x75cl 90-92 - 90-93 92 91-93 -
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The 2024 Duhart-Milon opens with strong Cabernet Sauvignon inflections. Blue-toned fruit, lavender, spice and dried herbs open first, all framed by brisk acids and supporting tannins that lend shape. The 2024 includes 14% press wines, about the norm here. This is a very promising Duhart.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2042

A blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Merlot, the 2024 Duhart-Milon was cropped at 32 hectoliters per hectare, and it was here that the Lafite team concluded the harvest. Offering up aromas of cassis and red berries mingled with hints of violets, pen ink, licorice and toasty oak, it's medium to full-bodied, supple and fleshy, with a round, integrated, charming profile, concluding with a moderately persistent finish.

Score: 90 - 93 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Shows density and balance, with leafy but fragrant aromatics that unfurl slowly, and bright acidity that is not overpowering to the blueberry and blackcurrant fruits. The skill of the Lafite team is clear here, and this is a classically balanced Duhart that will age well. Harvest September 25 to October 4, 32hl/h yield, above the Pauillac average. Moulin de Duhart is not being sold En Primeur.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Duhart-Milon was picked between September 24 and October 8 and matured in 50% new oak. The aromatics take their time to coalesce. It's a little herbaceous at first although that ebbs away to reveal quite pure blackcurrant, raspberry and Morello scents. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, a mixture of red and black fruit and a dab of licorice toward the finish that just tapers slightly. Overall, this is a decent Pauillac in an old-school style that I approve of.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2047

78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot. 32 hl/ha. First vintage certified organic. Cask sample. Aromatic and fresh with red-berry aromas but a little lean, the acidity present. Light but fine tannins. A little strict on the finish and unusually forward. (JL) 12.5%

Score: 16 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2029-2038

[Add to shopping basket] Durfort Vivens Margaux £198 6x75cl - - 89-91 93 92-94 -
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The 2024 Durfort-Vivens is laced with dark blue/purplish fruit, lavender, licorice, spice and mocha. It offers gorgeous texture and fine balance. The pliant, creamy mid-palate is especially appealing. The 2024 is naturally still coming together, but it is a striking, beautifully rendered wine.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

A blend of 94.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot and a touch of Cabernet Franc, the 2024 Durfort Vivens exhibits aromas of cassis, dark berries, violet and spices. Medium to full-bodied, dense and structured, it's framed by a good chassis of tannins, with a lively mid-palate that segues into a somewhat austere, firm finish. Despite this compact aftertaste, this is a strong effort in the context of the vintage.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Lovely deep plum colour, this is very high Cabernet Sauvignon but this is an estate where they often goes high, (2021 vintage was even higher than this at 97%). Savoury, slim, floral, precise and vivid, salinity, grip, lovely sense of lift and grip. 3.75 pH. Harvest 23 September to 8 October. 37 hl/ha. 70% new oak, 30% in amphora.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Eglise Clinet Pomerol £1,062 6x75cl 94-96 - 90-92 97 95-97 -
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The 2024 L'Eglise-Clinet is brilliant and intensely aromatic in its first impression. Vibrant red-toned fruit, blood orange, cinnamon, cedar and rose petal soar from the glass. Readers will find a vertical, explosive L'Eglise-Clinet that impresses with its poise and balance. The 2024 deftly marries finesse and power to a degree I have seldom seen here in the past. Superb.

Score: 95 - 97 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 L'Eglise Clinet reveals a dark, brooding, gently reductive bouquet of incense, dark berries, smoke and oak mingled with floral accents of iris. Medium-bodied, layered and firm, it's built around tangy acids, with a lively mid-palate framed by powdery tannins that assert themselves on the spicy, youthfully chewy finish. This blend of 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc will mature in 85% new oak. YC

Score: 90 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Elegant, slow unrolling of black fruit flavours, beautiful precision, get a lot of fennel here, even a touch of marzipan, coffee grounds, savoury and juicy, black fruits, cassis and blueberry, violets, powdery rose petals. This is just exceptional within the vintage, such a deeply felt and deeply chiselled wine, and I can unhesitatingly recommend. No chaptilisation, 3.59ph, 85% new oak. Harvest September 21 to 28, 45hl/h yield. Clearly will age with elegance and finesse. Red wine of the vintage for me.

Score: 97 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2046

The 2024 L'Eglise-Clinet was picked on September 21, 23 and 24 apropos the Merlot and September 23, 24 and 28 for the Cabernet Franc, which constitutes 10% of the blend. It matured in 85% new oak (90% Darnajou and 10% Taransaud). This takes time to unfurl generous black cherry, mint and cassis aromas that blossom in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with chiseled tannins that frame the mineral-driven black fruit. It's not the most powerful L'Eglise-Clinet I have ever tasted at this stage, but you have to admire the manner in which this just builds toward the finish whilst retaining poise and tension. The 2024 is a wonderful Pomerol that will age effortlessly in bottle.

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2060

[Add to shopping basket] Evangile Pomerol £570 6x75cl 93-95 - 92-94 93 91-93 -
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The 2024 L'Évangile offers good up-front intensity but then loses some of its depth on the mid-palate and finish. Black fruit, espresso, licorice, cloves and mocha confer an impression of gravitas. Élevage is 50% new oak, 25% foudre, 8% amphora and the rest in once-used barrels. Something about the oak profile does not feel optimal, as if the oak is mismatched to the wine. Élevage will be critical here, as the 2024 is quite forbidding at this stage. Even so, this is strong showing in a challenging year for a vineyard with relatively young vines that was largely replanted between 2002 and 2010.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2049

The 2024 L'Evangile has turned out beautifully, reflecting this estate's recent evolution (refining barrel choices and integrating foudre into the cellar) and its comparatively young vineyard's propensity to perform well in years with minimal hydric stress. Offering up aromas of cassis and blackberries mingled with notions of violets and black tea, it's medium to full-bodied, lively and layered, with a velvety attack, good depth at the core and a persistent finish. This blend of 80% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Franc and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon attained 13.5% alcohol.

Score: 92 - 94 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Savoury plum, soft tannins, a touch of chalk, graphite, lovely fragrant florals, and extremely finessed. A wine that will age with grace. In the cellar, this was one of their longest macerations on record, up to 28 days, carefully measured, Harvest 18 September to 2 October, 22hl/h yield. Zero press wine, 45% new oak for ageing, plus 25% in large oak casks, 7% amphora. Juliette Couderc winermaker. Blason de l’Evangile is not being sold En Primeur.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 L'Évangile was picked from September 18 to October 2. This has a "cool"; bouquet with blackberry and bilberry scents and a little marine influence with a hint of oyster shell. The palate is medium-bodied with expressive Cabernet that imparts subtle graphite and tobacco notes. Again, this is fresh, quite structured, not long and perhaps a little tannic on the finish, but it will flesh out during its élevage in 50% new oak.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Fieuzal Rouge Pessac-Leognan £120 6x75cl - - 91-93 92 89-91 -
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The 2024 de Fieuzal is a powerful, brooding wine. Dried herbs, tobacco, scorched earth and leather all take shape in the glass. This offers lovely mid-palate creaminess and fine depth. A classy Pessac-Léognan, Fieuzal is very nicely rendered. Floral top notes linger effortlessly on the close.

Score: 89 - 91 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2034

More austere and less luminous than recent vintages—a clear reflection of the vintage—the 2024 de Fieuzal is showing remarkably well within its context. Evoking dark berries, cassis, flowers and lead pencil, it's medium to full-bodied, sappy and layered with a delicate, precise mid-palate framed by velvety tannins and concluding with a delicate, saline finish. This blend of 45% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 15% Petit Verdot has clearly benefited from Stephen Carrier’s patient “wait-for-maturity” approach.

Score: 91 - 93 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2027 - 2040

Medium intensity cherry red, slate and crayon texture, well handled, austere, but structured, you can see the slow build of muscles through the palate, and the deepening black fruit character. Softly spoken compared to many vintages of this excellent wine, but there are layers here, good complexity, and skilful construction.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2027-2036

[Add to shopping basket] Figeac St Emilion £564 6x75cl 93-95 - 93-95 95 93-96 -
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Silky and aromatic, with velvety tannins, the 2024 Figeac is sublime. Floral and savory aromatics meld into a core of blue/purplish fruit, spice, licorice, lavender and menthol. All the elements are so well balanced. The blend is 39% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot and 28% Cabernet Franc, with 8% press wines. Not surprisingly, the 2024 is a very Cabernet-driven Figeac. Production is 60,000 bottles, or 50% of normal, because of low yields and further selection in the cellar. Tasted two times.

Score: 93 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Figeac is a lovely classic, wafting from the glass with aromas of blackcurrants, minty berries, licorice and pencil shavings, deftly framed by new oak. Medium to full-bodied, layered and velvety, with good depth at the core, powdery tannins and a suave, seamless profile, it's a blend of 33% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Franc and 39% Cabernet Sauvignon that attained 12.7% alcohol. Figeac was one of those estates that took the risk of waiting to harvest, rejecting just over 20% of the crop in the sorting process to produce a compelling wine despite the challenging conditions.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Vivid plum and ruby colour, clear ripe raspberry and damson fruits, sappy quality, fine tannins. The Cabernet Franc slowly unfurls its floral waves, violets and iris, with white flowers, savoury black fruits, good energy and length. Figeac has shown over and over again that it can deliver wines that succeed and delight in many different kinds of vintage conditions, and it is an estate to have confidence in. 31hl/ha yield, 100% new oak, 8% press, 3.66pH. 31hl/ha yield. They deleafed on both sides for the first time since technical director Romain Jean-Pierre arrived 13 years ago. Harvest September 20 to October 5.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2046

The 2024 Figeac was picked September 20 to October 5 at 31 hl/ha after sorting, as the natural yield was 36 hl/ha. The château sacrificed 21% of the crop (which I witnessed first-hand when I called in during harvest and toured the reception) and it matured entirely in new oak with 8% vin de presse. That wood is neatly assimilated on the nose with blackberry, raspberry and light pine resin scents, all fashioned with wonderful delineation. Later, a hint of wilted rose petal emerges from the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins and a keen line of acidity. This is very elegant and classical Figeac in style. There is a little more linearity, but this feels quite effortless overall. Its buvabilité is perhaps higher than other vintages, even if the likes of the 2020 or 2022 might have longer legs. This becomes spicier with aeration, which seems to prolong the finish, especially on my second visit toward the end of my tastings.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2033-2060

[Add to shopping basket] Giscours Margaux £213 6x75cl 91-93 - 93-95 94 93-95 -
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The 2024 Giscours is impressive. Elegant and sleek, with fine balance, Giscours is all class. The bouquet alone is so enticing. Small red berry fruit, spice, tobacco, mint and cedar are all finely sketched in a mid-weight, nervy Giscours that is quite showy right out of the gate. There is a bit of edginess in the tannins, but that's not anything that can't be addressed with élevage. A closing burst of aromatics leaves a long-lasting impression. Tasted three times.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2044

The 2024 Giscours has turned out very well indeed. Offering up incipiently complex aromas of dark berries and cherries mingled with orange zest, licorice, violets and burning embers, it's medium to full-bodied, with good density and richness, with a layered, rather muscular palate and a long, expansive finish. The 2024 is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot. The estate retained cover crops to amplify the dry conditions in July and August, accelerating ripening, and once again picked by vine age within blocks, bringing in the younger-vine fruit earlier before it could rot. Merlot came in between 19 and 28 September, and the Cabernet Sauvignon was picked very late, between 1 and 11 October.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Plush, impressive colour, with medium to full intensity inky plum. Good quality, feels like a true En Primeur sample with its fragrance, austerity, well built tannins, impressive, sappy, savoury and understated black fruits. Will take its time to show the fragrant heart of Margaux, but it's in there. Alex Van der Beek director. Famille Albada Jelgersma. 35 hl/ha yield.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 Giscours was picked from September 19 to October 11 and matured in 50% new oak. It has a forward and generous bouquet with ripe red cherry, kirsch and cassis scents, with a touch of pencil shavings in the background. The palate is medium-bodied with firm and grainy tannins that frame mainly black fruit. Overall, this is a Giscours cut in a classical style, although the finish needs to cohere and muster more precision during its barrel maturation. An enjoyable Giscours for sure, even if it does not reach the heights of recent vintages. This was tasted three times.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Gloria St Julien £120 6x75cl 90-92 - 88-90 93 89-91 -
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The 2024 Gloria is soft, fruity and very easy to like. Sweet red cherry/plum fruit, rose petal, lavender and mocha are nicely pushed forward. Gloria is very nicely balanced. It's a real charmer in 2024.

Score: 89 - 91 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2034

Aromas of blackberries, cassis and toasty oak introduce the 2024 Gloria, a medium-bodied, lively wine built around youthfully chalky tannins.

Score: 88 - 90 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Medium to full intensity deep plum colour, lovely spice, textured graphite, pumice, powerful and sculpted bright fruits, this is thoroughly enjoyable, a real success in a vintage.Triaud family owners, 34 hl/ha yield.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Gloria has a light nose with blackberry, leather and loamy aromas that require a bit of coaxing from the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with rigid tannins, moderate depth, gentle grip and a slightly blocky finish. It's not close to the peaks that Gloria can achieve (and there have been several in recent years), but this is a swarthy Saint-Julien that should mellow with bottle age.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Grand Puy Lacoste Pauillac £213 6x75cl 91-93 - 89-91 93 91-93 -
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Plump and juicy, the 2024 Grand-Puy-Lacoste is pure charm. This is an especially soft, fruity Grand-Puy-Lacoste with good aromatic presence and fine freshness, if not quite the depth or complexity of the very best years. Floral overtones lift the finish effortlessly. This is a delicate, understated Pauillac that will drink well with minimal cellaring. The balance between the 13% alcohol and 70% new oak is sublime. I won't be surprised if the 2024 turns out to be even better from bottle, especially if it gains a bit of mid-palate pliancy in barrel.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2054

A blend of 78% Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Merlot, maturing in 70% new barriques, the 2024 Grand-Puy-Lacoste offers up notes of blackcurrants, pencil shavings, iris and oak, followed by a medium-bodied, pretty palate built around a delicate core of fruit and lively acids, its powdery structuring tannins asserting themselves with gentle grip on the finish.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Medium to full intensity inky plum colour, cold campfire and grilled cedar on the opening with vibrant plum fruits alongside, good quality, on the fresh side, but savoury and sappy with plenty of lift. 70% new oak for 17 months ageing.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 Grand-Puy-Lacoste has a light bouquet for this estate, primarily revealing fresh black fruit laced with tobacco and light smoky scents. It is simple but exhibits impressive delineation. You get the feeling that the aromatics are holding something back. The palate is medium-bodied and classic Pauillac in style with all that graphite-tinged black fruit and edgy tannins. This is not a complex Grand-Puy-Lacoste per se, but I admire its balance, charm and gentle grip on the finish. This is classy in an unpretentious way.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2048

78% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Merlot. 38 hl/ha. Cask sample. Fresh fruit and floral notes. Fine tannins but the oak not fully integrated yet. Powdery note on the finish. Should improve. (JL) 13.2%

Score: 16 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2032-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Gruaud Larose St Julien £258 6x75cl 91-93 - 92-94 93 92-94 -
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The 2024 Gruaud Larose is very fine. Dark and ample, with gorgeous presence, the 2024 has so much to offer. Dark blue/purplish fruit, new leather, gravel, spice, lavender and dried herbs build effortlessly. Readers will find a Saint-Julien endowed with notable textural depth. The finish is perhaps just a touch narrow, but élevage may very well help with that.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Gruaud Larose shows excellent potential, bursting with notes of cassis, pencil shavings, iris and violets. Medium to full-bodied, suave and seamless, it's ample and pure, with a precise, refined pro-life and good persistence on the finish. A blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc, it is the fruit of a growing season defined by fully 30 organic phytosanitary treatments and a harvest that concluded on October 8. It checks in at 12.4% alcohol and pH 3.77 (for Gruaud, a rather low number).

Score: 92 - 94 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Gorgeous dark ruby colour with vivid reflections, slow and steady reveal of grilled earth, savoury rose bud, peony, black tea and floral Cabernet finesse. This is a little softer than the recent exceptional vintages of Gruaud, but the fragrant aromatics have a ton of charm, and this shows skilful construction. Harvest 27 September to 8 October, 3.55pH, 31hl/h yield, slap bang on the appellation average, organic certified. 40% of production in this 1st wine. 95% new oak for ageing.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2040

The 2024 Gruaud Larose, picked between September 27 and October 8, matured in 95% new oak. This has an impressive bouquet for the vintage with pure blackberry, bilberry, cedar and light pressed flower scents. This leans a little toward Margaux in style. The palate is medium-bodied, fresh and quite saline, with sappy black fruit laced with notes of black olive tapenade. Not a persistent Gruaud Larose insofar as there is no peacock's tail on the finish, yet it has a statesman-like classicism that you could not find 10 or 15 years ago.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Guillot Clauzel Pomerol £249 6x75cl - - - - 92-94 -
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The 2024 Guillot-Clauzel is very pretty, supple wine. Dark red fruit, blood orange, spice, cedar, menthol, licorice and mocha are nicely pushed forward. Soft, silky tannins wrap it all together in style. Guillot-Clauzel impresses with its gracious personality and impeccable balance. I imagine it will drink well right out of the gate. It's all charm here.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2039

[Add to shopping basket] Guiraud Sauternes/Barsac £240 12x37.5cl 94-96 - - 94 94-96 -
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The 2024 Guiraud is a bold, luscious Sauternes. Apricot jam, chamomile, passion fruit, spice and burnt sugar convey notable intensity to match the wine's creamy, ample feel. Guiraud is a rich, heady Sauternes, but all the elements are impeccably balanced.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2044

Dark burnt orange gold, spiralling white flower aromatics, this is great quality, thoroughly enjoyable, subtle spiced cumin and tumeric, sweetly succulent apricot and nectarine juice without being heavy. 12.6 hl/ha yield, Sandrine Garbay estate director.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2038

The 2024 Guiraud, now under the aegis of winemaker Sandrine Garbay, contains 124 g/L of residual sugar and was picked from September 20 with four tries through the vines. It has a very assured and detailed bouquet with wild honey, peach and light apricot scents, with a touch of vanilla pod tucked underneath. The palate is fresh and vibrant with a keen line of acidity, gaining weight as it moves toward the clementine-tinged finish. What a gorgeous Guiraud!

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Haut Bailly Pessac-Leognan £345 6x75cl 93-95 - - 93 92-94 -
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The 2024 Haut-Bailly is an elegant, classy wine. Soft, sensual contours lend notable charm. The 2024 is an especially aromatic, perfumed Haut-Bailly. Its mid-weight structure is best described as Burgundian, for lack of a better term. Silky tannins frame it all in style. Readers should expect a decidedly understated, quiet Haut-Bailly.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2054

I tasted the 2024 Haut-Bailly twice and found it hard to understand. Judgement reserved until after bottling.

Score: - William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2027 - 2040

Savoury, precise and poised, with lovely texture, softly spoken with high floral aromatics, rose petals, peony, fine tannins, drawn out character, long slow build of tension through the palate, unrolling to show white truffle and mint leaf. Tannic grip, estate signature, more softly spoken than in recent vintages, but Haut-Bailly has proved over and over again that it is capable of delivering over the long term, and that it delivers excellence even in challenging vintages - an upscore potential in bottle. Harvest 18 September to 4 October, 30hl/h yield. Gabriel Vialard technical director.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2045

The 2024 Haut-Bailly was picked from September 25 to October 4 and matured in 50% new oak, possibly with a shorter élevage. As usual, it deserves patience at this stage as it gradually opens and coheres with aeration. This has a perfumed bouquet built around redcurrant, cranberry and wild strawberry fruit. It's quite floral in style with finely delineated touches of freshly-rolled tobacco and wilted rose petal. The palate is creamy on the entry and velvety in texture, with finely chiseled, lace-like tannins. It is very well balanced with one of the few sensual vintages that you will find from this year. This will be much earlier drinking than other vintages, but that does not detract from what will be one of the most pleasurable 2024s to drink.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Haut Batailley Pauillac £193 6x75cl 90-92 - 87-89 92 93-95 -
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The 2024 Haut-Batailley races across the palate with masses of dark fruit, menthol, licorice, espresso and dried herbs. Floral overtones reappear on the finish, adding a refined touch. Powerful yet polished, the 2024 is quite impressive. This feels a bit less extracted than the first vintages under the leadership of the Cazes family, not a bad thing at all in my view. Very fine. Tasted two times.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Haut-Batailley offers up aroma of cherries, kirsch and petroleum jelly, followed by a medium-bodied, chunky and tannic palate.

Score: 87 - 89 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Deep vibrant plum purple colour, liquorice bud, cassis bud, spiced blackberry and sage, fresh with austerity but balanced by juice running through the palate, well handled. 60% new oak. 3.63 pH, harvest September 25 to October 8. 90% of the estate's 50 year old vines are in here, plus the more recent Petit Verdot plantings.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Haut Batailley was picked from September 25 to October 7 and aged in 60% new oak. This has a light bouquet with graphite-tinged black fruit, but I am seeking more vigor in this Pauillac. The palate is medium-bodied with a chewiness on the entry and decent structure, though it feels conservative and strict toward the finish. I need to be more convinced by this—perhaps it will gain a bit more substance by the time of bottling?

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2048

68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot and 6% Petit Verdot. Cask sample. Lively, berry-fruit aromas. Gentle and juicy but with a firmness of structure behind. Middling depth and weight but some potential. (JL) 13%

Score: 16.5 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2030-2042

[Add to shopping basket] Haut Brion Pessac-Leognan £1,440 6x75cl 93-95 - 93-95 94 94-96 -
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The 2024 Haut-Brion is dark and brooding in demeanor, but obviously not as tannic or forbidding as it can be in the early going. All the Haut-Brion signatures are very much present, but they're portrayed in a decidedly understated style that speaks to the personality of the year. Black fruit, scorched earth, spice, tobacco and leather build with time in the glass. The 2024 is a super-classy Haut-Brion. There's gorgeous substance here.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Haut-Brion is more perfumed than La Mission Haut-Brion, unfurling in the glass with aromas of raspberries, cassis, dark berries and spices mingled with elegantly floral touches. Medium to full-bodied, layered and sappy, it has a firm texture and powdery tannins, leading to a long, spicy and lead pencil-inflected finish. Composed of 47.2% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37.5% Merlot and 15.3% Cabernet Franc, this vintage features one of the highest proportions of Cabernet Franc in recent years—comparable to vintages such as 1993, 2004, 2010, 2011 and 2020—and should gain harmony with the élevage. In the context of the vintage, this is a notable success, owing in large part to Haut-Brion’s intramural position in Pessac, where the estate’s terroir benefits from slightly warmer average temperatures than properties located outside the city, contributing to more complete ripening of the grapes.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2028 - 2044

Medium to full intensity, takes its time to open, this is carefully built, slow and steady in its expression, textured, restrained, cocoa bean, espresso, redcurrant, orchard, sage, bilberry. Very much a classical style of Haut-Brion that will I am sure give great pleasure after a decade in bottle - not as monumental as some, but don't count this out - there are all the bones of this exceptional wine, and the tannic architecture will widen over ageing. 1.7% press, 75% new oak, 26hl/h yield, Jean-Pierre Masclef technical director and Jean-Pierre Delmas estate director.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2044

The 2024 Haut-Brion, which contains more Cabernet Franc this year from a high-performing vat, has an altogether more polished, powerful and fruit-driven bouquet than La Mission at the moment. Black and blue fruit, black olive and subtle sea spray scents emerge with time in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied, vibrant and focused, with fine tannins and an engaging underlying sapidity coming through with more weight and sustain on the finish. This is a very capable Haut-Brion that will not kowtow to the challenges of the 2024 season—rather, it seems to relish them.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Haut Brion Blanc Dry Whites £3,180 6x75cl 95-97 - 93-94 95 95-97 -
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The 2024 Haut-Brion Blanc is seamless and textured in the glass. Silky and creamy in feel, with fabulous balance, Haut-Brion Blanc is shaping up to be one of the wines of the vintage. Marzipan, chamomile, spice, lemon confit and a kiss of French oak are all beautifully woven together. The long, sustained finish is a thing of beauty.

Score: 95 - 97 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2039

A blend of 56.1% Sémillon and 43.9% Sauvignon Blanc, the 2024 Haut-Brion Blanc reveals a complex, dense bouquet of smoke, iodine, white fruits and flowers mingled with delicate notes of citrus zest. Medium to full-bodied, it has a sappy and layered palate that's perfectly integrated, with a long, saline and ethereal finish. This vintage beautifully reconciles the intrinsic power of the terroir with the slow ripening of the growing season, resulting in a wine of remarkable finesse and vibrant white-fruited energy.

Score: 93 - 94 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2027 - 2050

Palest gold in colour, beautiful quality, has intensity and grip, it hugs on to the palate, delivering white peaches, pear, apple orchard, fragrant and charming, with a sweet apricot puree and bitter fennel on the finish. Acidity and structure a little more pronounced here than on La Mission, clearly will go the distance, if a touch less charming right now. 40% new oak, harvest September 2 to 10. 3.22ph. 38hl/h yield

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2038

The 2024 Haut-Brion Blanc also has a reserved bouquet like the La Mission Blanc and demands more encouragement than usual. Eventually, there are lime, gooseberry, crushed stone and mirabelle scents that start to gain intensity after ten minutes. The palate is very well balanced with a slightly more pithy texture. It is quite peppery, with fine grip and hints of green olive toward the persistent finish. This is excellent.

Score: 95 - 97 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Issan Margaux £186 6x75cl 90-92 - 89-91 93 92-94 -
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The 2024 d'Issan is pretty closed in on itself. Issan is usually a showier wine at this stage, but the 2024 is decidedly virile, almost somber in feel. Floral, spice and earthy notes open with some coaxing, and yet the Grand Vin is only showing a fraction of what it has to offer. I do admire its strong character, however. The 2024 will be a fascinating Issan to follow.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 D'Issan wafts from the glass with attractive aromas of cassis, burning embers, pipe tobacco and violets. Medium-bodied, pillowy and lively, with a sweet core of fruit framed by powdery tannins, it's an elegant, fine-boned Margaux that will offer a broad drinking window.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Lovely deep rich if savoury and precisely-carved rube red fruits on the opening. This is a serious Issan, well structured with waves of crushed roses, rose buds, crayon and saffron. Slim and savoury with enjoyable finesse. Harvest 26 September to 8 October. 3.58 pH. 50% new oak. Éric Pellon technical director, Eric Boissenot consultant.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2045

The 2024 Château d’Issan is a classic blend picked between September 26 and October 8, matured in 50% new oak. This has a quintessential Margaux nose with crushed violet permeating the black fruit, fine delineation, focus and satisfying vigor. The palate is medium-bodied with a surprisingly sweet entry and decent grip. Blueberry infuses the mid-palate and a dash of white pepper and a little graphite emerge toward the finish. This d'Issan probably has the legs to mature in bottle for up to 20 years, though its lack of substance means that I would be more inclined to drink this in its flush of youth.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Kirwan Margaux £150 6x75cl 92-94 - - 91 89-91 -
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The 2024 Kirwan is a very pretty, aromatic Margaux. Crushed flowers, bright red-toned fruit, mint, orange peel and spice are all laced together in attractive, stylish Margaux that is all charm. Floral and citrus notes perk up the finish.

Score: 89 - 91 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2034

Love the juicy, slatey, old school charm of these opening beats, raspberry leaf, slate, cumin, white pepper, slim and savoury but with complexity and depths, can see Left Bank signature for sure, but not generous this year. Schÿler family, 27 hl/ha yield.

Score: 91 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Kirwan is quite understated and discreet on the nose, opening up with blackberry, raspberry and crushed violet scents. The oak is neatly integrated. The palate is medium-bodied, fresh and juicy, with pliant tannins, more on the mid-palate than some of its peers and a harmonious, thoroughly enjoyable finish. This is classy. Kirwan looks as if it has raised its game in recent vintages and this bodes well for the future. Bravo!

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2060

[Add to shopping basket] l'If St Emilion £395 6x75cl 90-92 - - 92 92-94 -
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The 2024 L'If is an elegant, sleek wine. Crushed flowers, tobacco, cedar, incense, dried herbs and menthol give the 2024 lovely aromatic presence. L'If is light on its feet, with a bit less overt concentration than most years, but there's more than enough persistence to compensate for that, shaping the wine in a style that favors linear energy over volume. Harvest took place between October 4-6 for the Merlots and October 8 for Franc, a much more condensed period between two rains. Aging is in French oak, 50% new. Tasted two times.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2046

Love the aromatics here, and vibrant ruby colour, this is a real success and bright spot in the vintage, one to look out for, fragrant, tomato leaf, peony, lilac, raspberry fruits, lots of energy and delicate juice, not a powerhouse but skilful and early to medium drinking. 3.37 ph. Harvest 4 to 8 October, really held on to push for maturity. 30% new oak, even after sorting they are at 39hl/h yield here on these clay-limestone soils. Touch of chaptilsation and saignée, showing that even with waiting til October to harvest these things were needed.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 L'If was picked from October 4 to 6 for the Merlot, then October 8 for the Cabernet Franc. It aged for 12 to 16 months in 50% new oak. This has a fragrant bouquet, with mainly red fruit and slate-like scents. The palate is medium-bodied and balanced, with slightly chalky tannins and a little flesh on the mid-palate. Lightly spiced on the finish, this is a comparatively straightforward L'If compared to previous vintages that will serve as a fine earlier drinking Saint-Émilion.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2038

[Add to shopping basket] La Chenade Lalande de Pomerol £72 6x75cl 88-90 - 85-87 88 90-93 -
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The 2024 La Chenade is gorgeous. Deep, pliant and textured, the 2024 has so much to offer Dark red fruit, mocha, espresso, lavender and licorice all meld together in a sumptuous, beautifully layered Lalande-de-Pomerol that hits all the right notes. Floral and citrus overtones perk up the vibrant finish.

Score: 90 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2034

A blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, the 2024 La Chenade offers up aromas of pepper, pencil shavings, dark berries and licorice. Medium-bodied, structured and firm, it's layered with a good chassis of tannins built around tangy acids, concluding with a grippy, short finish.

Score: 85 - 87 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2025 - 2030

Redcurrant, blueberry and white pepper, with gentle earthy notes. Less 'Pomerol-adjacent' than in some vintages, but this has charm, and a sense of precision and lift, 35hl/h yield after hail. No chaptilisation, harvest September 22 to 28, 57% new oak.

Score: 88 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 La Chenade was picked on September 22 and September 28 for the Merlot and Cabernet Franc, respectively. It then matured in 52% new oak. Lovely blueberry and violet scents blossom on the nose, fresh and seductive in style. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins, gentle grip, fine backbone and a subtle graphite note on the finish. This will be difficult to resist from the get-go.

Score: 88 - 90 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2027-2038

[Add to shopping basket] La Gaffeliere St Emilion £213 6x75cl 93-95 - - 93 94-96 -
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The 2024 La Gaffelière confirms its place as one of the top properties in Saint-Émilion in this challenging vintage. Bright and dynamic in the glass, with terrific persistence, the 2024 sizzles with tension. Crushed flowers, mint, lavender and crushed rocks open in the glass. The finesse of the tannins is impossible to miss. The 2024 is not a huge wine, but its finesse is evident. Blue/purplish fruit, slate and clean mineral overtones extend the long, sculpted finish. Tasted three times.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

Smoky oak impact on the opening, dense fruit to accompany, with lilac and iris, chalky palma violets, good quality and texture, cloves and cassis. Austerity comes in pretty strongly through the mid palate, this is one to look out for after ageing, and is a potential upscore in bottle. Third vintage since they stepped back from the classification. Harvest 25 September to 7 October. 50% new oak. Tasted twice.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 La Gaffelière was picked from September 24 to October 8 at 42 hl/ha, aged in 60% new oak including 10% in 500-liter casks. This has a very seductive bouquet with black cherries, boysenberry and light Indian ink scents unfolding in the glass. The palate is very well balanced with succulent tannins, impressive mid-weight density and a crisp, mineral finish. La Gaffelière has been on a run of form recently and the 2024 overcomes the challenges of the vintage with style.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2050

[Add to shopping basket] La Violette Pomerol £1,062 6x75cl 91-93 - - 93 93-95 -
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The 2024 La Violette is a sensual yet powerful Pomerol. Blue/purplish fruit, lavender, menthol, chocolate and espresso all meld together. La Violette is vinified entirely in French oak barrels. It's an approach that seems especially well-suited to this wine, as the wood amplifies flavor intensity. In recent years, La Violette has shed some of the heavy extraction that was penalizing in the past.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

This has a ton of chiselled black fruit, great depth and silkiness. Lovely texture, lots of juice, bright blue fruits, creamy as it opens, soft incense and cedar oak. Long cold soak of 8 days (not unusual here), 100% new oak. Definitely keeps the estate signature. 100% integral vinification, and all de-stemmed by hand, 1.68ha.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2028-2036

The 2024 La Violette, aged in 80% in new oak, has a gorgeous bouquet with pure black cherries and crushed violet scents—well defined while retaining that opulent style. The palate is medium-bodied with plush tannins in its signature style, not as complex as the best vintages but it maintains balance and purity to the end. Just 2,600 bottles were produced.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2042

[Add to shopping basket] Lafite Rothschild Pauillac £1,713 6x75cl 95-97 - 91-94 95 94-96 -
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The 2024 Lafite-Rothschild is a sensual, elegant wine very much in the style of the year. Plush and enveloping, with lovely forward fruit, the 2024 is very Lafite, perhaps a bit reticent, but super-expressive just the same. Black cherry, pomegranate, blood orange and a kiss of espresso all build in the glass, framed by quintessentially finessed Lafite tannins. The 2024 is sublime. I expect it will be one of the to be one of the top wines in the Médoc when all is said and done.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2064

A blend of 96% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Merlot and 1% Petit Verdot, the 2024 Lafite Rothschild offers up aromas of minty blackcurrants, violets, incense, loamy soil and cigar box, followed by a medium-bodied, pillowy and open-knit palate built around tangy acids and powdery tannins, concluding with a discreetly herbal finish. Harvest began on September 24 and concluded on October 4, delivering a Lafite in something of a throwback style, nodding to the wines made here in the 1970s.

Score: 91 - 94 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Rich texture, this stands head and shoulders above many in the vintage, with graphite, crayon, cassis bud rather than exuberant black fruits, this is precise, savoury, delineated, floral, gunsmoke, juicy, captures the effortless elegance that Lafite does so so well, and it totally delivers. Harvest 23 September to 7 October, 32hl/h yield, above the Pauillac average, 16% press wine included in the blend. Director Eric Kohler's 33rd year in Pauillac. I am giving a slightly earlier begin drinking date, but I am certain this will age exceptionally well as Lafite always does. Slightly earlier starting date for drinking than usual, eight years following harvest.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2050

According to Technical Director Eric Kohler, the 2024 Lafite-Rothschild was picked from September 23 to October 7 and underwent a short vinification—less than three weeks—plus a gentle extraction. The blend includes 16% vin de presse. It has an understated and typical Lafite nose with crushed stone infusing the black fruit, black olive tapenade and marine scents. It comes across as statesmanlike, which is just how you want your First Growth, even in a tricky vintage like this. The palate is medium-bodied with fresh saline notes on the entry. Tensile from the start, this has very impressive focus and is a tad more peppery than previous vintages. This is an assured Lafite-Rothschild with a very seaweed/Japanese wakame-tinged finish. Very promising and one of the very few "cerebral" Left Bank wines in 2024.

Score: 95 - 97 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2058

96% Cabernet Sauvignon, 3% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot. 32 hl/ha. First vintage certified organic. Cask sample. Discreet nose with a dark-fruit nuance and typical Lafite elegance. Suave attack, the tannins smooth and refined. Lots of freshness. Very digeste with innate drinkability but clearly well within itself as well. Touch of oak on the finish. Early days. (JL) 12.6%

Score: 17 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2032-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Lagrange (St Julien) St Julien £162 6x75cl 90-92 - 89-91 93 90-93 -
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The 2024 Lagrange is quite promising. Deep and vibrant in the glass, with terrific energy, Lagrange offers fine depth and plenty of harmony to match. Dark red cherry, spice, new leather, tobacco and incense resonate on the layered finish. Tasted two times.

Score: 90 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2044

Notes of minty cassis, blackberries and pencil shavings introduce the 2024 Lagrange, a medium-bodied, dense wine with a sweet core of fruit framed by somewhat firm and assertive tannins.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Classically balanced St Julien, firm cassis and white peppers, enjoyable mid palate texture, slate textured tannins add grip and tension, successful in the vintage.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2045

The 2024 Lagrange consists of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon (the second highest ever), 10% Merlot (the lowest ever) and the remainder Petit Verdot, with 11% vin de presse. Matured in 55% new oak, this has a tightly-wound bouquet that demands a little more coaxing than the Les Fiefs, though this was on a day when, for some reason, some Saint-Julien samples required it. The palate is medium-bodied and obviously driven by the dominant Cabernet, with grainy tannins and black fruit laced with graphite and cedar. Cohesive on the finish with just the right amount of sapidity, this is obviously not in the league of the benchmark 2022, but it constitutes a successful wine for the vintage.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Langoa Barton St Julien £157 6x75cl 89-91 - 92-94 93 91-93 -
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The 2024 Langoa-Barton is such a pretty wine. Floral and bright, with lovely mid-weight structure, Langoa is a total charmer. Rose petal, crushed red berry fruit, spice, orange peel and mint are beautifully lifted. Bright saline undertones extend the finish. The 2024 is a promising Langoa. Tasted two times.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2039

The 2024 Langoa Barton is showing beautifully, wafting from the glass with aromas of sweet blackberries and plums mingled with notions of licorice, pencil shavings and lilac. Medium to full-bodied, with lively acids and good depth and density, it's pure and refined. This is a blend of 52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 8% Cabernet Franc, picked between 24 September and 5 October.

Score: 92 - 94 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Floral peony and lilac aromatics on the Langoa, and the fruit character keeps things finessed and soft - think red cherry, cherry pit, tobacco, black tea, thoroughly charming, just a little short on the finished compared to the exceptional 2022 or 2023 vintages. The difference in the blends between the two Barton St Julien wines is significant this year, with just over 50% here of Cabernet Sauvignon compared to over 90% in Léoville. Harvest 24 September to 5 October. 60% new oak, 30hl/h yield.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Langoa Barton was picked from September 29 to October 5 and matured in 60% new oak. This is quite closed on the nose—indeed, General Manager Damien Barton had forewarned that for whatever reason, the samples had aromatically clammed up on a sunny day! The palate is medium-bodied with black plummy fruit, touches of graphite and cracked black pepper and nice grip on the mid-palate. The 2024 is not as complex as, say, the 2022, but it has an appealing, linear finish.

Score: 89 - 91 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Laroque St Emilion £100 6x75cl 89-91 - 83-85 93 88-90 -
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The 2024 Laroque is a sleek, polished wine made mostly from the Saint-Christophe-des-Bardes plateau in this vintage. Silky and aromatic, with mid-weight structure, the 2024 is attractive. However, the challenges of the vintage are evident in the light mid-palate and soft finish. Élevage will be critical. Tasted two times.

Score: 88 - 90 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2039

Offering up aromas of sweet berries, exotic spices, herbs and smoked meats, the 2024 Laroque is medium-bodied, with a ripe core of fruit, assertive tannins and a somewhat carnal, animal finish. Given my expectations for this estate, the 2024 left me disappointed.

Score: 83 - 85 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Deep plum colour, cold ash and fennel on the opening, savoury, well judged and well extracted, this is on the slim side, with the focus on cassis bud and rose petals. You probably have to be a bit of a limestone fanatic (as I am) to truly love this vintage of Laroque, because it is less gourmet than in vintages like 2022 and 2023, setting texture and minerality above fruit, but exceptionally well handled by estate director David Suire, and it should soften further ove ageing. Once again a value pick.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Laroque has satisfying concentration on the nose with blackberry, wild strawberry and light floral scents. It just needs a little more delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with much lighter tannins than recent vintages under winemaker David Suire. The 2024 is nicely balanced, displaying simple and noticeably tertiary red fruit and modest weight on the finish. Sure, it comes across a bit short compared to stellar wines in recent vintages; nevertheless, it should give up to a decade of drinking pleasure.

Score: 89 - 91 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2039

[Add to shopping basket] Lascombes Margaux £249 6x75cl 91-93 - 89-91 94 94-96 -
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The 2024 Lascombes represents another important step for Lascombes under its current leadership. Silky and elegant, with notable depth, the Grand Vin impresses with its textural resonance and persistence. New leather, licorice, lavender and incense weave through a core of dark-toned fruit. Lascombes is shaping up to be one of the sleepers of 2024. I can't wait to taste it from bottle. Impressive. Tasted three times.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

Aromas of cassis, lilac and nicely integrated creamy new oak introduce the 2024 Lascombes, a medium to full-bodied, dense and youthfully structured young wine underpinned by a bright spine of acidity and concluding with gently chewy tannins. This was cropped at 38 hectoliters per hectare and saw a combination of tank bleeds and reverse osmosis to amp up its concentration. Maturation is in 60% new oak, with lighter toasts than was formerly the case at this address.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

This has elegance, fine tannins, a clear expression of how Cabernet Sauvignon can perform in the vintage, rosebud, peony, slim, savoury, with fine and attractive aromatics, lovely salinity on the finish, nuanced and mouthwatering. Rises above the reputation of the vintage. Axel Heinz director. As of this vintage, only the original 1855 plots are in the wine Harvest 23 September to 9 October. 38 hl/ha yield, Julien Viaud consultant. Tasted twice. 60% new oak for ageing, 38 hl/ha, harvest 23 September to 9 October.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2045

The 2024 Lascombes was picked between September 23 and October 9 according to ripeness levels in parcels at 38 hl/ha. This vintage is aged in barrels with less heavy toasting (60% new), 80hl foudres and amphora. The wine is usually finished in the last two or three months in those foudres, though Axel Heinz said that might be omitted this year. It has an elegant and pure bouquet with bright black cherry and cassis fruit. There is remarkable underlying mineralité in this wine. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, quite crisp and linear like many other Margaux wines. Light on its feet and very fresh with impressive precision on the finish, the 2024 is a "nimble" Lascombes that you would never have seen in the 1990s or 2000s. This is a very commendable, classically-styled wine that will give pleasure after three or four years.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Le Gay Pomerol £354 6x75cl 90-92 - - 92 92-94 -
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The 2024 Le Gay is powerful, ample and quite seductive. Floral and spice notes meld into a core of dark red-toned fruit, new leather, mocha and pressed rose petal. Le Gay is vinified entirely in barrique, an approach that adds considerable textural resonance, which this vintage needed. Le Gay is a decidedly potent, dense Pomerol. It is very fine in 2024. Only about 50% of the wine from the property was bottled as Le Gay. Tasted two times.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2044

Intense peony and iris notes on the aromatics, no need to wait too long but there is Pomerol character here, cocoa bean, espresso, they are using oak but they are using it well. 16hl/h yield.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Le Gay has one of the better aromatics amongst the Pomerol wines with clean black cherry, raspberry and truffle scents, fine delineation and well-integrated oak. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins. The wood pokes through a little, so it will need a very prudent élevage lest it is rendered austere on the finish. It is actually quite difficult to predict how this Le Gay will turn out. Time will tell.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Leoville Barton St Julien £288 6x75cl 91-93 - 92-94 94 93-95 -
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The 2024 Léoville Barton is a very beautiful wine. Black cherry, plum, lavender, new leather, graphite, crushed rocks, mocha and spice all meld together. A wine of classical build, Léoville Barton is also wonderfully deep and expressive. Today, all of its energy is directed inwards, but there is a lot of wine here. I can't wait to taste this from bottle. Tasted two times.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2049

A serious wine that will delight patient purists, but which also showcases the new levels of purity and precision that this estate has been attaining since completion of the new winery, the 2024 Léoville Barton is a blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Merlot and 2% Cabernet Franc. Unwinding in the glass with notes of cassis, plums, pencil shavings and violets, it's medium to full-bodied, deep and impressively concentrated, with a taut but nicely integrated profile, concluding with a pure, penetrating finish.

Score: 92 - 94 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Stands out for the elongated and supple shape and texture of the tannins, builds complexity over the palate and this is well structured, with elegant, finessed, savoury but carefully extracted cassis and bilberry fruits, with cocoa bean and cigar. One of the wines in the vintage with definition and ageing ability, and retains clear Léoville Barton character. Harvest 24 September to 5 October. 60% new oak for ageing.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2044

The 2024 Léoville Barton was picked from September 24 to October 5 and contains just a little more Cabernet Sauvignon than previous vintages. Matured in 60% new oak, this has an open bouquet with black fruit, potpourri and light sous-bois scents—quintessentially Barton. The palate is medium-bodied, well balanced and sapid in style with slightly powdery tannins on the entry and a little sinew on the finish that should be abraded during barrel maturation. This is a finely crafted Léoville Barton that should age with grace.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2060

[Add to shopping basket] Leoville Las Cases St Julien £573 6x75cl 93-95 - 93-95 94 94-96 -
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The 2024 Léoville Las-Cases is gorgeous. All the Las-Cases signatures are present, just dialed down a touch. Blue/purplish fruit, lavender, grilled herbs, graphite and menthol are all beautifully delineated. The 2024 is distinguished by its precision and total class. Time in the glass brings out the wine's intensely floral, spice-inflected aromatics. Brisk acids and bracing mineral notes wrap it all together in style. I can't wait to taste this from bottle.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

One of the wines of the vintage, and certainly one that's likely to number among the longest-lived, is the 2024 Léoville Las Cases, a blend of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc and 5% Merlot that attained 13.1% alcohol. Unwinding in the glass with a pure, intense bouquet of cassis, violets and pencil shavings, it's medium to full-bodied, with terrific mid-palate density and concentration but also a seamless integration of tannin and acidity that's especially rare this year, concluding with a long, penetrating finish. Jean-Hubert Delon observes that the 2024 shares "the aromas and flavors of the 1986," defined by Cabernet Sauvignon ripened at the end of the growing season, though of course the 2024, lacking the huge power and structure of that vintage, is much more amiable than the 1986.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Medium to full intensity, vivid plum with vibrant violet around the rim, ink, black tea, chamomile flowers, slate, graphite, redcurrant, rose petals, cassis, bilberry, raspberry leaf, delivers the texture, tension and complexity that you expect from this level of estate in any vintage, and it is a success, reserved, slim and savoury with ageing potential. Arnaud Delon now at the estate, working alongside his father Jean-Hubert Delon. 31hl/ha yield. New cellars now in operation for the winemaking, 75% new oak. 3.60 pH. 31 hl/ha. 6.3% press wine. Harvest 30 September to 9 October.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2048

The 2024 Léoville Las Cases was picked between September 30 and October 9 at 31 hl/ha (compare that to 11 hl/ha next door at Latour!). It is aged for 18 months in 75% new oak barrels with 6.3% pressed wine. It has a backward, almost surly bouquet with introverted black fruit, cedar, touches of cumin and light sea spray scents. Superb delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with less structure than the last two vintages, yet it upholds wonderful balance with lace-like tannins. With crisp black fruit and beautifully assimilated new oak, this fans out towards the finish. It is paradoxically a more conservative Las Cases in keeping with the limitations of the growing season, but I suspect it will gain weight and sustain with time in barrel.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2031-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Leoville Poyferre St Julien £283 6x75cl 91-93 - 89-91 95 89-92 -
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The 2024 Léoville-Poyferré offers notable brightness to match its mid-weight personality. Floral and spice notes open into a core of dark red- and black-toned fruit. Medium in body, with good persistence, the 2024 is an understated Léoville-Poyferré. Today, it feels a bit compact, which also attenuates the fruit to some degree.

Score: 89 - 92 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2044

Offering up aromas of jammy berries and toasty oak, the 2024 Léoville Poyferré is a blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. Medium-bodied, dense and blocky, it's firm, tannic and chewy, with some green characteristics vying with its creamy patina of new wood. Harvest took place between 24 September and 10 October, and some lots saw some reverse osmosis.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Impressive texture, slate wrapped in silky tannins, with real depth of flavour, black cherry and damson fruit, no dip through the mid palate, and a long finish. Maintains estate signature, shows generosity and confidence, one of the wines of the vintage. Alix Combe vineyard director, Isabelle David oenologist. Harvest 24 September to 10 October. 3.71 pH. 26.42 hl/ha.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2048

The 2024 Léoville-Poyferré was picked from September 24 to October 10 at 26.42 hl/ha. There was some reverse osmosis on the Merlot and Cabernet Franc varieties. Quasi-Pauillac in style, it offers quite backward black fruit, hints of melted tar and graphite on the nose. The palate is medium-bodied and quite succulent with fleshy ripe tannins, tobacco-laced black fruit, brown spices and light undergrowth. With a fine supple landing on the finish in typical "LP" fashion, this constitutes a delicious, early-drinking Poyferré that will be more approachable than other vintages.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Les Cruzelles Lalande de Pomerol £96 6x75cl 90-92 - 85-87 91 91-94 -
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The 2024 Les Cruzelles is laced with blue/purplish fruit, cloves, licorice, menthol, incense and gravel. Ample and broad, with terrific resonance, the 2024 is super-expressive right out of the gate. There's gorgeous resonance and fine balance here.

Score: 91 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2036

The 2024 Les Cruzelles is shy and introverted, offering up aromas of pepper, oak and incense. Moderately weighted, supple and lively, it's built around tangy acids and powdery tannins.

Score: 85 - 87 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2026 - 2030

There is austerity here, as is classic in the vintage, but beautifully handled and balanced, with muscles, touch of cloves and again this white pepper character, with white plum, fine tannins, mouth-watering salinity on the finish. No chaptilisation, 57% new oak for ageing.

Score: 91 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Les Cruzelles was picked on September 20 and 22 with the Cabernet Franc picked on September 28, and matured in 57% new oak. This has more harmony and sensuality on the nose with a mixture of very pure black cherry and blueberry fruit. The palate is medium-bodied and very well balanced, with supple ripe tannins and real delineation and poise on the finish. This surpasses many Pomerols in this vintage and, given its potential price, comes highly recommended.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Lynch Bages Pauillac £360 6x75cl 91-93 - 87-89 94 93-95 -
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The 2024 Lynch-Bages is packed. Cedar, scorched earth, licorice, incense and pipe tobacco weave through a core of dark, sepia-toned fruit. I especially admire the long, polished finish and overall balance here. The 2024 is a virile Lynch Bages with a bright future. Tasted two times.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

Cropped at 30 hectoliters per hectare (the lowest yield at this address since 1991), the 2024 Lynch-Bages is a blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc. Opening in the glass with aromas of minty berries and creamy new oak, it's medium to full-bodied, dense and heavily extracted, with firm, chalky tannins that assert themselves on the mouth-puckering finish. Lynch-Bages has historically performed well in challenging vintages, but the 2024 will demand considerable patience.

Score: 87 - 89 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Ruby with violet edging, opens to show chalk and slate tannins, giving a sense of restraint and grip, this is savoury and juicy with plenty of cassis fruits, delivers Pauillac consistency in an inconsistent vintage, and also it is just rather delicious. 75% new oak. 3.67 pH,

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2045

The 2024 Lynch-Bages was cropped at just under 30 hl/ha and aged in 75% new oak for a planned 18 months. It has some initial reduction that is shaken off after several minutes. Very pure blackberry and blueberry fruit emerges with hints of melted tar and graphite, and iodine eventually lends more complexity. The palate is medium-bodied and quite focused with grippy tannins that are impressive for their fineness. The 2024 possesses palpable mineralité and a poised finish. Though this does not touch the skyscraping heights that have been achieved in recent years, it is a "capable" Lynch-Bages that might warrant two or three years in the cellar and drink well for up to 15 years or possibly longer.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2048

70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot. Cask sample. Deep crimson hue. Zesty and spicy on the nose. Generous on attack, the fruit supple and fresh. Covers the palate. Then firmness and drive on the finish. Assertive frame and structure. Definite potential. (JL) 13%

Score: 17 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2032-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Lynch Moussas Pauillac £116 6x75cl 90-92 - - 91 92-94 -
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The 2024 Lynch-Moussas is a potent, deep wine. Black cherry, lavender, clove and licorice convey an impression of somber intensity. There's gorgeous textural depth and resonance in the glass. This is a fine effort for the vintage. Classy.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2044

An estate that has been quietly improving its expression of Cabernet Sauvignon classicism over the past few years, and here you'll find sappy, bright redcurrant, blackberry and raspberry fruit, a little leafy but with good length and soft campfire smoke, and an unfussy expression of the appellation. 58% new oak for ageing.

Score: 91 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Lynch-Moussas was matured in 58% new oak. The bouquet is quite expressive with touches of violet borrowed from Margaux. The oak is nicely integrated and crisp black and blue fruit unfold in the glass. Medium-bodied with saturated tannins, this is quite a bold and comparatively precocious Pauillac with a thickly-textured finish. It will be interesting to revisit this once in bottle.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Margaux Margaux £1,620 6x75cl 94-96 - 93-95 96 93-95 -
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The 2024 Château Margaux is quite soft and delicate. It shows fine delineation in its aromatics and on the palate, but it's distinctly on the lighter side, even for Château Margaux. The mid-palate and finish are a touch compact, while there is a bit of edginess in the tannins that needs time to resolve. Bright acids and the lack of fruit pliancy expose the tannins at this stage. Élevage will be everything. Château Margaux is a bit of a question mark.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Château Margaux has turned out beautifully, unfurling in the glass with notes of cassis, violets, cigar box and iris. Medium to full-bodied, deep and vibrant, with excellent density and concentration for the vintage, it's lively and layered, concluding with a long, penetrating finish. This is a serious, youthfully tightly wound blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Merlot, 1% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc that attained 12.8% alcohol.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Such a floral wine, aromatics that really take hold and grip on through the palate, raspberry, black cherry, edges of rosebud, chalk, white tea, crayon, chalk, iris, has real precision, and a slow-burn unspooling of flavours, salted cracker salinity on the finish. 46% of the overall production is in Château Margaux, 30hl/ha yield after sorting through the year as needed. Harvest September 23 to October 8. Philippe Bascaules director, 3.62ph. Excellent quality, one of the wines of the vintage, with a slightly earlier starting date for drinking than usual, eight years following harvest.

Score: 96 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2050

Representing 46% of the total crop (a little higher than recent years due to higher yields in the best Cabernet blocks), the 2024 Château Margaux contains slightly less Merlot (5%). It has a sophisticated bouquet in the context of the growing season, with black fruit, pressed violet and hints of pencil box that almost lend a Pauillac-like allure. Very fine delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins and modest depth. This is clearly a leaner Château Margaux compared to, say, the 2020 or 2022, but it is razor-sharp with superb tension and mineralité. Unapologetically classic in style with modest length, this noble First Growth will benefit from four to five years in bottle.

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Mission Haut Brion Pessac-Leognan £870 6x75cl 93-95 - 93-95 94 93-95 -
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The 2024 La Mission Haut-Brion is such a classy wine. Strong floral and savory notes meld into a core of plum, blackberry, gravel, spice, leather, tobacco and incense. Medium in body, with no hard edges, the 2024 is a delight. It offers lovely freshness and energy throughout. There is a bit of graininess in the tannin, a reminder of the challenges of the growing season.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2039

Notes of dark berries, spices, mulberries and discreet hints of new oak preface the 2024 La Mission Haut-Brion, a medium to full-bodied, dense and attractively seamless wine for the vintage, with a textural mid-palate that's underpinned by a firm chassis of tannins, concluding with a long, broad and rather ripe finish. Slightly austere at this stage, it is likely to flesh out with élevage, developing into a structured and serious La Mission with promising aging potential. Like its sibling Haut-Brion, the estate benefited from its intramural location in Pessac, which allowed for more complete ripening in a year that posed greater challenges for some other Pessac-Léognan properties.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2027 - 2044

Medium to full intensity, vibrant plum colour, this is elegant and balanced, with the same juicy orchard apple character that you find in La Chapelle, along with cloves, incense, slate, crayon and baking spice, lots of complexity and balance. The aromatics are a little subdued right now but this has ageing ability and estate signature. 5.3 press, 75% new oak, 26hl/h yield.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 La Mission Haut-Brion has a beautifully defined bouquet with pure, mineral-led black fruit, hints of blueberry and a subtle sea spray influence. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly chalky tannins. Fresh and vibrant, this La Mission feels very cohesive and sophisticated. No, there is not the depth and persistence of a top-drawer vintage, but its noticeable complexity is a cut above.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2031-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Mission Haut Brion Blanc Dry Whites £2,580 6x75cl 96-98 - 93-95 97 94-96 -
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The 2024 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc is powerful and very deep, despite its understated personality. Orchard fruit, lemon peel, slate, mint, white pepper and chalk all grace the palate. Clean mineral notes extend the finish effortlessly. This is an especially brisk style that is so attractive.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2039

The 2024 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc reveals a gently reductive bouquet of pear, white peach, confit citrus and verbena mingled with exotic anise touches that emerge with time in the glass. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and layered, it's bright and enveloping with an elegantly phenolic mid-palate and a mouthwateringly mordant finish. This is a blend of 59% Sémillon and 41% Sauvignon Blanc.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2027 - 2044

Beautifully gripping and fragrant aromatics, sage, white apricot and peach, this is a wonderful wine, aerian, lilts upwards through the palate, has tenacity but with the gentlest of grips, white roses, apple blossom, preserved citrus, precise and pretty yet with a slow build of complexity. Clear ageing ability, one of the wines of the vintage. 40% new oak Harvest September 2 to 10. 3.25ph, 38hl/h yield.

Score: 97 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2038

The 2024 La Mission Haut-Brion Blanc, which has more Sémillon in the blend, was reticent on the nose and demanded more coaxing than usual, (reluctantly) offering scents of red apple, lime flower and crushed stone. The palate is more expressive with impressive weight and density. The 2024 is fresh and vibrant with palpable tension, revealing a tingle of lemongrass and stem ginger towards its sustained finish. When I returned to my glass after 20 minutes, the aromatics had burst open and shown their true colours, with hints of chai and popcorn and wonderful mineralité. This might turn out to be one of the best white La Missions in recent years.

Score: 96 - 98 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2060

[Add to shopping basket] Montlandrie Cotes de Castillon £84 6x75cl 89-91 - - 91 91-94 -
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The 2024 Montlandrie is a potent, deep wine with strong Cabernet character. Dried herbs, licorice, menthol, lavender and blue/purplish Merlot fruit all race across the palate before Cabernet Sauvignon tannins come alive to frame the potent, explosive finish. Superb.

Score: 91 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2039

Plum ruby colour, medium intensity, white pepper and cloves, gentle but insistent lift through the palate, very much on the textural side of the vintage, more austere than in recent years but still full of character and charm, no chaptilisation, 42% new oak, harvest September 26 to October 5, winemaker Noêmie Durantou. Tasted twice.

Score: 91 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2035

The 2024 Montlandrie was picked between September 26 and October 5 and matured in 42% new oak. This has a more low-key bouquet than the Les Cruzelles with tightly wound black plum and tertiary aromas. The palate is more expressive with smooth tannins and a keen line of acidity, though it is more linear on the finish than the aforementioned Lalande-de-Pomerol. Still, this should drink well for eight to ten years.

Score: 89 - 91 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2039

[Add to shopping basket] Montrose St Estephe £507 6x75cl 94-96 - 93-95 95 94-96 -
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The 2024 Montrose exudes Cabernet Sauvignon character in its aromatic savoriness and tannic structure. In fact, the 2024 has the most Cabernet Sauvignon ever. Tightly wound today, the 2024 impresses with its energy and focus. There's a bit less mid-palate and overall heft than most years, as well as a brighter fruit profile. Floral, spice and mineral overtones lend brightness throughout. The 2024 is a super-classic, nervy Montrose that will need a number of years to be at its most expressive. Aging is projected to be 18 months, with 60% new oak.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2064

A blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc, the 2024 Montrose is a serious, muscular effort that numbers among the wines of the vintage. Unwinding in the glass with notes of cassis, burning embers, cigar wrapper and iris, it's medium to full-bodied, dense and layered, with a lively spine of acidity, rich structuring tannins and a long, penetrating finish. With both the highest proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon recorded at Montrose and a rather low pH of 3.55, it will surely number among the longest lived 2024 Bordeaux.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Beautifully deep colour, this shows chalk, violet flowers, peony, fragrant and enticing floral profile compared to so many in the vintage, this is excellent, cocoa bean, cassis, depth, layers and concentration - one of the wines of the vintage. 15% press wine, a little more than usual. Harvest 23 September to 8 October, Pierre Grafeuille estate director.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2050

The 2024 Montrose has a little more Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend due to the yields in various parcels. It was picked between September 23 and October 7 and matured in 60% new oak. The well-defined and very able nose demonstrates classicism, fine delineation and a little more florality than the Terrasse III. The palate is medium-bodied with very finely chiselled tannins and a keen line of acidity. This symmetrical Saint-Estèphe is blessed with an elegant, sapid and reassuringly precise finish that the estate seems to have honed in the last few years. It does not have the unbridled ambition of, say, the 2020 Montrose, but it is exceptionally well crafted and will become a fine Saint-Estèphe.

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2058

80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Merlot, 3% Cabernet Franc. From parcels on terrasse 4 which historically have always been part of the estate. Cask sample. Dark fruit with a hint of spice but more reserved than Terrasse III. Quite assertive and sculptured with plenty of drive. Tannins have a certain depth and power so plenty of potential. (JL) 13%

Score: 17.5 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2032-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Mouton Rothschild Pauillac £1,521 6x75cl 94-96 - 91-93 94 93-95 -
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The 2024 Mouton Rothschild is embryonic. Dark, powerful and imposing, the 2024 is deeply intriguing, but also a wine that is going to need time to be at its best. Today, the tannins feel a bit brooding, the wine's mid-weight structure notwithstanding. The 100% new oak needs to integrate, but this is a barrel sample.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

Harvested between September 23 and October 5, the 2024 Mouton Rothschild is a blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Merlot that attained 12.9% alcohol. Offering up aromas of crème de cassis, cigar wrapper and pencil shavings, it's medium to full-bodied, dense and layered, with a muscular, monolithic style built around austere, chalky tannins. Somewhat reminiscent of the estate's 2001 vintage (which is just coming around today at age 24), this structured, youthfully angular Mouton will require patience.

Score: 91 - 93 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Savoury and juicy, this is full of crushed rose petals, generosity of spirit even if it shows the austerity of the vintage, wrapped by bitter chocolate, cloves and spiced rosemary. Slate texture, delicious and understated, with clear ageing capacity. 3.71ph,give a good eight to ten years before drinking. Harvest 23 September to 5 October. 3.71 pH. 100% new oak.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 Mouton Rothschild, which has a little more Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend, was picked between September 23 and October 5 and aged for 18 months in 100% new oak. This has an understated bouquet with blackberry, cedar and graphite scents that take their time to unfold. The nose possesses very fine delineation though the oak is a little more prominent at the moment. The palate is medium-bodied and quite linear in style with fine tannins. A less flamboyant Mouton Rothschild in keeping with the style of the vintage, the 2024 discretely gains depth towards the finish and reveals a dash of white pepper on the aftertaste. Classy, very classy.

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2031-2059

93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot – same blend as 2023. 42.5% of the production. Cask sample. Deep purple hue. Purity on the nose with notes of dark fruit and spice. Rich and full for the vintage with a fine grain of tannin. Structured and long. Good potential. (JL) 12.9%

Score: 17.5 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2032-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Palmer Margaux £950 6x75cl 94-96 - 93-95 94 94-97 -
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The 2024 Palmer is wonderfully vivid and expressive. Strong Cabernet Sauvignon inflections make a strong first impression. Blue/purplish fruit, gravel, lavender, incense, licorice and dried herbs all jump from the glass. I imagine the 2024 will drink well on release, which is uncharacteristic for young Palmer. Readers will find a gorgeous wine with tons of character and pedigree to burn. Palmer remains one of the most distinctive wines in all of Bordeaux.

Score: 94 - 97 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Palmer is shaping up beautifully and stands out as one of the wines of the vintage in the Médoc. Wafting from the glass with aromas of crème de cassis, plums, cigar wrapper and iris, it's medium to full-bodied, velvety and enveloping, with good depth at the core, sweet structuring tannins and a long, precise finish. Uniting charm with seriousness, this blend of 59% Cabernet Sauvignon and 41% Merlot is the quintessential Palmer. Yields after sorting worked out at 22 hectoliters per hectare.

Score: 93 - 95 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Medium intensity, inky colour and some delicious sappy fruits. Stretched out, sinewy, lean muscles, charcoal, slate, peony, gunsmoke, hugely engaging texture with salinity, and a mouthwatering finish. Easy to recommend, love it. Harvest 25 September to 10 October, 3.7ph, first year ageing in barrels, second in larger oak casks.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2044

The 2024 Palmer is aged in 50% new oak for the first few months before it is transferred into 3,000-liter foudres. There is quite a stylistic difference between the Palmer and the Alter Ego on the nose: this is more sensual and displays more fruit concentration. Blackberry, blueberry, slate and light graphite scents unfold in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied and less voluptuous than recent vintages with an uncommon sense of symmetry, finely chiselled tannins and impressive tension on the slightly peppery finish. Excellent.

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2058

Score: -

[Add to shopping basket] Pape Clement Pessac-Leognan £308 6x75cl 90-92 - 89-91 - 94-96 -
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The 2024 Pape Clément is unusual in that Cabernet Sauvignon drives the blend. That is evident in the wine's strong savory profile and overall structural feel. A reduction in the oak imprint emphasizes fruit and overall vibrancy. The 2024 is not as showy or easy to taste as most vintages, but the style here has also undergone a pretty radical transformation. It was vinified in oak, steel and concrete. A significant portion of the wine saw malolactic fermentation in tank rather than oak, as had been the case in the past. That adds up to a vibrant, nervy Pape Clément that represents a new era here.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

A smoky, oaky bouquet of spices, incense and dark berries prefaces the 2024 Pape Clément, a moderately weighted, supple and open-knit palate built around tangy acids and brittle tannins.

Score: 89 - 91 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2026 - 2032

The 2024 Pape Clément now only comes from the original terroir in Pessac. It underwent a rigorous sorting such that 30% was deselected and the Grand Vin comprises half of the remainder. It is aged 70% in barrel (two-thirds new), 15% in foudres and 15% in concrete and stainless-steel/sandstone vessels. It has an elegant bouquet, certainly more restrained than recent vintages with crisp black fruit and veins of blueberry and iris flower. The palate is medium-bodied and powdery in texture with sappy blackberry and bilberry fruit, but the tannins just feel a bit sharp on the finish at the moment. Tasted four or five times, the 2024 is a Pape-Clément with good intentions but doesn't deliver on its promise. The same approach in a benevolent vintage would yield a far better wine.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2048

[Add to shopping basket] Pape Clement Blanc Dry Whites £530 6x75cl 91-93 - 90-92 93 94-96 -
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The 2024 Pape Clément Blanc is stellar. Rich and deep, the 2024 stands out because of its textural density and almost phenolic feel. The 2024 is being raised in 50% oak (one-third new), 40% foudre and 10% a mix of ceramic, cement and stainless steel. Citrus confit, dried herbs, white pepper and chalk build as this imposing, structured white shows off its distinctive personality. Tasted four times.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2036

The 2024 Pape Clément Blanc emerges from the glass with aromas of pear, confit citrus, lime and herbs, followed by a moderately weighted, supple and lively palate built around tangy acids that culminate in a fresh, fruity finish.

Score: 90 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2026 - 2034

Appealingly ripe and luscious fruit, apricot, citrus blossom, slate texture, no need to wait but it will age, great length on the finish, sage and lemongrass, great quality. Harvest 4 to 19 September. 41 hl/ha. 12 months of ageing in barrels and amphoras

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2025-2030

The 2024 Pape Clément Blanc has a seductive nose with wild peach, citrus peel, tangerine and light white flower scents opening in the glass. The palate is fresh on the entry and a little pithier than its peers, suggesting more solids "in the mix." As a consequence, there is a tad more weight on the finish. Though it perhaps lacks a little complexity overall, I am intrigued to see how this will age in bottle.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2048

[Add to shopping basket] Pavie St Emilion £816 6x75cl 91-93 - - 94 92-94 -
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The 2024 Pavie is potent and explosive to the core. Blackberry, espresso, licorice, cloves and leather are dialed up to the maximum. The 2024 is an imposing, brawny Pavie that is likely to need a bit of time to be at its most expressive. Today, the 2024 is quite the bruiser, especially in terms of its tannin profile. Like so many wines in 2024, the balance here is on the razor's edge, suggesting that élevage will be critical, especially in terms of preserving the wine's fruit. Aging is 65% new oak and 35% once-used barrels, in other words, on the lower side in terms of new oak at this address. Tasted two times.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

There is no better way to discover the power of the Pavie terroir than to see how it has peformed in 2024 - a naturally cooler and slimmer vintage, and yet you still have a wine here that has depth, energy, intensity and concentration, squid ink, fennel, oyster shell salinity. The fruit is sappy, for sure a brighter and slimmer version of Pavie compared to many vintages but this is still unmistakeable estate signature. 42ha in production, now including Pavie Decesse and Bellevue Mondotte (as of 2022). 24hl/h yield, September 27 to October 9, 3.69 pH. 65% new oak, with lower toast.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2031-2046

The 2024 Pavie was cropped at 24 hl/ha from September 27 to October 9, and 65% was matured in new barrels. This has an attractive bouquet of black cherries, bilberry, cassis and light violet scents—not as complex as some vintages of Pavie but, unlike the Monbousquet or Clos des Lunelles, its oak is proportionate to its fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins to frame its layered black fruit as graphite inflections emanate from the Cabernet components. The 2024 is fresh with pleasing linearity, even if it just lacks a bit of amplitude on the finish. Give this Saint-Émilion three or four years in bottle.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2065

[Add to shopping basket] Pavie Macquin St Emilion £213 6x75cl 92-94 - - 94 94-96 -
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The 2024 Pavie Macquin is positively gorgeous. Silky, layered and voluptuous, the 2024 is so impressive right out of the gate. Plush contours wrap around a core of purplish fruit, lavender, licorice, spice, menthol and chocolate. All the signatures of this site come through loud and clear. Savory and floral notes supported by clean veins of salinity extend the persistent finish. Pavie Macquin shows what was possible in 2024. The choice to harvest everything in October (from the 3rd to the 8th) paid off big time. Aging is in French oak, with about 15% in larger 500-liter barrels, 45% new wood overall. Tasted three times.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

Up on the limestone plateau of St Emilion, the whole game in 2024 has been how to handle the austerity without rendering things too tight. Here they have got the balance right - delicate, sappy, drawn out, vivid blackberry and cassis fruits with hidden density, nothing overt but plenty of power and grip. 3.3ph, harvest 3 to 8 October. 42 hl/ha, touch of saignée. Harvesting entirely in October, from 3 to 8, Stéphane Derenoncourt consultant with Nicolas Thienpont.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 Pavie Macquin has an impressive bouquet for the vintage, quite composed and delineated with brambly red fruit, sous-bois and light rose petal scents. The palate is medium-bodied and nicely chiselled compared to its peers, with pliant tannins and a fresh, saline finish. It does not have the persistence of other vintages that fire on all cylinders, but this is a success for 2024.

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2048

[Add to shopping basket] Pavillon Blanc du Chateau Margaux Dry Whites £1,410 6x75cl 91-93 - 93-94 97 94-96 -
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The 2024 Pavillon Blanc was picked between September 2 and 8. Airy, crisp and bright, the 2024 dazzles with its mineral-drenched tension and cut. Orchard fruit, citrus peel, white pepper, mint and slate lend notable brightness. The 2024 is distinguished by a compelling interplay of vibrancy and a feeling of textural richness that is so complementary.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2039

Entirely crafted from Sauvignon Blanc, the 2024 Pavillon Blanc reveals a delicate bouquet of confit citrus, boxwood, pear and spices. Medium to full-bodied, seamless and layered, it's built around bright acids and a lively mid-palate that segues into a fresh and herb-inflected finish. This is a slightly more opulent and expressive rendition compared to the more restrained 2021 and 2017 vintages. (YC)

Score: 93 - 94 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Anis, fennel, white tea, citrus, lemon zest, kiwi, slate, a balanced and generous nose, and a ton of juicy mouthwatering waves that hit pretty much immediately, and keep on coming. 20% new oak, in 400l casks. Perhaps ready to drink a little earlier than the 2021 - this is generous and deliciously sappy and appealin. Harvest 2 to 8 September, 3.2ph. Philippe Bascaules estate director.

Score: 97 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2038

The 2024 Pavillon Blanc was picked September 2 to 8 and cropped at 30 hl/ha. A pure Sauvignon Blanc as usual, it represents 40% of the total production and has a little higher pH than in recent years at 3.2. It has a delectable bouquet of lime flower, hints of peach skin and passion fruit with lovely delineation. The palate is fresh on the entry, quite vibrant and focused with a keen line of acidity and a twist of sour lemon on the finish. This is a superb Pavillon Blanc.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2040

[Add to shopping basket] Pavillon Rouge du Chateau Margaux (2nd wine of Ch Margaux) Margaux £528 6x75cl 89-91 - 90-93 93 89-91 -
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The 2024 Pavillon Rouge is a very pretty wine that represents 28% of the château's production. Intensely floral and medium in body, the 2024 is quite gracious. Spice, crushed flowers and bright red-toned fruit are nicely delineated in a mid-weight, classy Pavillon. The blend is very much Cabernet Sauvignon-driven, as the Merlot suffered more.

Score: 89 - 91 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2039

Incorporating more Cabernet Franc (as recent plantings mature) and more Cabernet Sauvignon than usual, the 2024 Pavillon Rouge du Château Margaux unwinds in the glass with aromas of sweet cassis, red berries, vanilla pod and violets, followed by a medium to full-bodied, deep and lively palate with good density, powdery tannins and lively acids. It checks in at 12.9% alcohol.

Score: 90 - 93 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

High floral aromatics on the nose, marked by peony, white roses, lilac, chalky tannins, lovely purity of expression, complex aromatics that reflect berry fruits that are ripe without being heavy, with focus and precision. 3.62ph, 12.5% press wine, 30hl/h yield after sorting. Harvest September 23 to October 8. Less Merlot than usual both in Pavillon and in Margaux, and more Cabernet Franc (9%) in this, as a result of plantings a decade ago.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Pavillon Rouge contains less Merlot and more Cabernet Franc this year due to more plantings in the vineyard, and represents 28% of the total production. Raised in 50% new oak, it has a pretty nose with blackberry, blueberry, crushed stone and light oyster shell aromas that gain a little intensity in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with brisk tannins. This is a very linear and structured Pavillon Rouge that does not possess the flesh or sensuality of warmer vintages, as you would expect with less Merlot in the blend. Quite saline on the finish, this will require two or three years in bottle.

Score: 89 - 91 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2039

[Add to shopping basket] Petit Mouton (2nd wine of Mouton Rothschild) Pauillac £651 6x75cl 91-93 - 87-89 93 90-92 -
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The 2024 Le Petit-Mouton is a dark, brooding wine. Dark red fruit, pomegranate, gravel, incense, leather and scorched earth contribute to a feeling of somber gravitas. Low yields, as measured by bunches per shoot, come through in the wine's density and power. The 13% alcohol is super-classic. The 2024 is shaping up to be a very serious wine.

Score: 90 - 92 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2036

The 2024 Le Petit Mouton offers up aromas of crème de cassis and toasty new oak, followed by a medium to full-bodied, taut and chunky palate built around tangy acids and chalky tannins.

Score: 87 - 89 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Here you get that sexy Petit Mouton kick, defined by Cabernet, less exuberant profile than in recent years and yet great texture and lift, supple blackberry fruits, cocoa bean lacing. Very much succeeding in the vintage without compromising the heart of the estate signature. Jean-Emmanuel Danjoy director. Harvest 23 September to 5 October. 3.62 pH. 50% new oak.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2023 Le Petit-Mouton is being matured in 50% new oak for a planned 18 months. It has an attractive, understated bouquet with pencil shavings and cedar-tinged black fruit—not as complex as the 2022, but refined. Two weeks later the nose demonstrates just a soupçon more éclat [brightness]. The palate is medium-bodied and harmonious with crisp acidity on the entry, dashes of spice and black pepper on the back-palate and moderate length on the linear finish. Give this three or four years in bottle.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Petite Eglise (2nd label of Eglise Clinet) Pomerol £204 6x75cl 91-93 - 88-90 93 91-93 -
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The 2024 La Petite Eglise is really in a class by itself when it comes to the second wines of Pomerol. Dark and sumptuous in the glass, the 2024 exudes attractive inner perfume and fabulous balance. Inky dark red fruit, pomegranate lavender, spice, menthol, incense and rose petal stain the palate. This racy, striking Pomerol is lights out. I would be thrilled to own it.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2034

A blend of 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc, the 2024 La Petite Eglise offers up aromas of dark berries, spices and licorice, followed by a medium-bodied, compact palate with tangy acids and firm structuring tannins.

Score: 88 - 90 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2026 - 2032

The colour here is vibrant ruby and violet, this has so much precision and energy, sapidy, cherry pit, violets, again the textural side of the vintage is at the fore, coffee beans, espresso and black chocolate, notes that I have not written in many wines this year, No chaptilisation, 3.62ph, 70% new oak, harvest september 20 to 28. Love this, has a sense of vibration that might make this the 2nd wine of the vintage. If this comes out at a good price, run don't walk, as they say.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 La Petite Eglise was picked between September 20 and 28 and matured in 70% new oak. This was showing a bit of reduction on the nose that made it a little harder to read, but there is certainly decent fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with grainy tannins and impressive structure given the vintage and that this is a Deuxième Vin with plenty of mineral-driven black fruit on the vivacious finish. It is excellent.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2027-2040

[Add to shopping basket] Phelan Segur St Estephe £188 6x75cl 91-93 - - 92 92-94 -
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The 2024 Phélan Ségur is an absolute delight. Dark and ample, the 2024 offers up a compelling mix of black cherry, leather, game, incense, licorice, gravel and pipe tobacco. All the elements are so well balanced. The blend is 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot, in other words, a very high percentage of Cabernet. That comes through nicely in the wine's aromatic finish. Phélan Ségur is shaping up to be one of the highlights of the year. Tasted four times.

Score: 92 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2039

Austere opening, you feel the shape and length of the tannins, well placed and skilfully constructed, with slim Cabernet floral rose petals and peony notes alongside savoury bilberry fruit, touch of liquorice bud and fresh juice on this finish. Finessed, drawn out, expertly constructed. Harvest 30 September to 14 October. 30 hl/ha. 55% new oak. 3.72 pH, Veronique Dausse director. Tasted twice.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 Phélan Ségur was picked between September 30 and October 14 at 30 hl/ha, and will be matured in 55% new oak barrels. There is 12.9% alcohol (analytical). Cabernet Sauvignon clearly exerts the most influence over its understated bouquet with blackberry, cedar and light graphite scents. The nose displays fine delineation, though obviously not the intensity of, say, the 2022 vintage. The palate is medium-bodied and linear in style with lighter tannins than in recent vintages and an attractive sapid note that runs from start to finish. The strict, black-olive-tinged finale seems almost Pauillac-like. There is an appealing classicism to the 2024, and it should drink well for a couple of decades.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Pichon Baron Pauillac £489 6x75cl 92-94 - 90-93 94 94-96 -
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The 2024 Pichon Baron is a very sexy wine. Deep and layered on the palate, with fine depth, the 2024 exudes balance. Sumptuous black cherry, mocha, new leather, licorice, menthol, lavender and pine are all dialed up. There's gorgeous breadth and overall presence here. The Cabernet Sauvignon is quite high at 87%, but it is really the wine's balance that speaks loudest. Here, too, the reduction of new oak to 70% really helps the wine speak with precision.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Pichon-Longueville Baron opens in the glass with aromas of cassis, blackberries, cigar wrappers and pencil shavings. Medium to full-bodied, lively and layered, with a dense core of fruit, tangy acids and powdery tannins, this blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon and 13% Merlot is a serious young Pauillac that will demand patience.

Score: 90 - 93 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Majors on the fragrant, slim and precise side of Cabernet Sauvignon, waves of cassis bud, rose stems, tobacco leaf and a mouthwatering finish. Don't expect the intensity of 2022 or 2023 at this excellent Pauillac estate, and yet there is impact and slow build through the palate. One of the highest proportions of Cabernet Sauvignon on record, will be ready to drink within five to six years compared to the usual ten to 15. 3.71pH, 70% new oak for ageing, 52% of overall production in the first wine. Harvest 15 September to 10 October, Pierre Montegut technical director, Christian Seely CEO.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2048

The 2024 Pichon Baron was aged in 70% new oak. The nose is immediate and well-defined, with mineral-driven black fruit, a touch of pencil box and subtle estuarine scents. It is quintessential Pichon Baron. The palate is fresh and delineated on the entry, endowed with a core of sapid black olive tapenade-infused black fruit. I appreciate the energy that comes through, especially towards the second half, which maintains a sense of symmetry. It will be earlier drinking compared to the 2020 or 2022, but it is a successful Pauillac in the context of the challenging growing season, though it might require a little more time in bottle.

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2055

87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot. 52% of the production. Cask sample. Deep colour to the rim. Fine nose with dark-fruit, pencil-lead and spice notes. Well structured, the tannins firm but softened by the fruit. Powerful but has a certain charm. (JL) 12.7%

Score: 17 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2032-2048

[Add to shopping basket] Pichon Comtesse Reserve (2nd Wine Pichon Lalande) Pauillac £170 6x75cl 89-91 - 87-89 92 91-93 -
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The 2024 Réserve de la Comtesse is a very racy, sexy wine. Crushed flowers, mint, lavender, new leather, mocha and spice all grace this exquisite, wonderfully nuanced Réserve. All the elements are so well balanced. Silky tannins add to the wine's total feeling of finesse, but the aromatics are just as inviting. Tasted three times.

Score: 91 - 93 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2039

A blend of 72% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot and 4% Cabernet Franc, the 2024 Resèrve de la Comtesse offers up aromas of minty cassis, plums and licorice, followed by a medium-bodied, ample and velvety palate that emphasizes upfront charm.

Score: 87 - 89 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Unusually austere on the opening for this highly consistent wine, but things builds slowly but surely, expanding through the mid palate to show chalk, crayon, cassis and cocoa bean, grilled herbs. 48% of overall production in the Pichon Comtesse Reserve, 3.7 pH. IPT 65, 50% new oak for ageing, 15% press wine.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2028-2038

The 2024 Réserve de la Comtesse represents half the crop this year, with more Cabernet Sauvignon than ever before, partly due to the replanting program in the vineyard. This sample was aged in 100% new oak, but the final blend will be 50%. It offers raspberry and mulberry scents, with light damp undergrowth aromas percolating through, almost moss-like. Fine delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly rustic tannins on the entry and some wood tannins present, although there will be less in the final blend. Light cedar notes emerge towards the finish, moderate in length, clean and classic in style.

Score: 89 - 91 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2035

[Add to shopping basket] Pichon Lalande Pauillac £531 6x75cl 92-94 - 91-93 94 94-96 -
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The 2024 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is plush, sensual and inviting. Succulent dark-toned fruit, sweet spice, new leather, mocha, chocolate and lavender build nicely. Here, too, the tannins are so polished, so refined. The 2024 is an especially elegant Pichon-Comtesse. It’s also very clearly one of the wines of the vintage. Bravo. Tasted four times.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

The 2024 Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande offers up attractive aromas of cassis, burning embers, tobacco leaf and fresh mint, followed by a medium to full-bodied, ample and polished palate that's seamless and suave, concluding with a moderately persistent finish. A blend of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc that attained 12.7% alcohol, it's a charming effort that will offer a broad drinking window.

Score: 91 - 93 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Fragrant cassis bud, rose petals, and peony. Great definition, mouthwatering on the finish, savoury blue and black fruits, less concentration than the past few vintages, but this uses slate textured tannins, cold ash smoke and well-judged salinity to compensate and build interest and engagement. Harvest September 22 through to October 9. 66% new oak. Low yields of around 30hl/h. 16% press wine, 52% of the overall production (with the rest in Pichon Comtesse Reserve, no 3rd wine). 3.7 pH. IPT 70,

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2044

The 2024 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is clearly driven by Cabernet Sauvignon on the nose. Predominantly black fruit, freshly rolled tobacco and light cedar scents unfold in the glass, resolutely classic in style, strict yet focused and defined. The palate is medium-bodied with light tannins, evidencing the much lighter extraction exacted by Nicolas Glumineau. This results in an impressively balanced Pichon-Comtesse, lightly spiced with hints of cracked black pepper towards the finish, dare I say, cut in a "Lafite" style. Though without the ambition of the '22, this keeps within the limitations set by the growing season. I can imagine this Pauillac slipping down the throat with ease in its flush of youth.

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2048

83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Franc. Cask sample. Bright and fresh on the nose. Refined texture and tannins. Juicy fruit with adequate freshness. Firm and long on the finish. Structured, if a little light on the mid palate. (JL) 13%

Score: 16.5 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2032-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Pontet Canet Pauillac £360 6x75cl 93-95 - 94-96 94 94-96 -
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The 2024 Pontet-Canet is one of the most elegant wines I have tasted here in some time, as in a long time. Brisk acids and beams of tannin shape a mid-weight, classically built Pontet-Canet unlike any I have tasted. The 2024 is not an obvious wine, it does not have the opulence of most recent years, rather it is a wine that impresses with its energy, tension and class. Floral, spice and mineral notes stain the palate in this vibrant, beautifully sculpted Pontet-Canet. The 2024 is seriously impressive, but it is also less immediate than what was once the norm because of a shift towards a style that favors greater energy and vibrancy than in the recent past. The evolution here is going to be fascinating to follow in the coming years. Tasted three times.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2044

The 2024 Pontet-Canet underlines the fact that daring to harvest late paid dividends in this challenging vintage, wafting from the glass with aromas of cassis, black raspberries and plums mingled with accents of rose petals, licorice and exotic spices. Medium to full-bodied, deep and integrated, with mid-palate density that's all too rare this year, it's layered, suave and seamless, concluding with a long, sapid finish. Picking began on September 26 and concluded on October 11, with the heart of the estate's old-vine Cabernet Sauvignon coming in between the seventh and the ninth, well after many châteaux had finished their harvest. Greater reactivity during the season means that Pontet-Canet's vineyards are gaining in vigor, while in the winery, a lighter touch with extraction, systematic climate control and a wholesale refinement of the estate's cooperage choices have brought new harmony and sensuality to this estate's wines. That has combined with a willingness to take risks with harvest dates to deliver what is clearly one of the wines of the vintage. The blend is roughly half Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, with the balance Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc.

Score: 94 - 96 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Vibrant ruby in colour with violet edging, this is beautifully measured, with a careful release of black fruits. Puts the focus on the floral side of Cabernet Sauvignon on the aromatics, with rose petals, chamomile, fragrant tomato leaf and lilac. There is austerity on the opening, with tight architecture but as it opens juice begins to flow through the pumice and slate-textured tannins, and this delivers a finessed, slim-style of Pauillac, with plenty of ageing potential and quiet confidence. Harvest September 26 through to October 11. 3.8ph, 50% new oak, 35% concrete amphoras. One of the successes of the vintage. Tasted twice.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2032-2046

The 2024 Pontet Canet was picked between September 26 and October 11. It matured in 50% new oak, 15% used oak and 35% in concrete amphoras. It has a very pure bouquet with black cherry, wild strawberry, cassis and light violet scents vying for attention. This is not quite as complex as the '22 I tasted a few months earlier. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly grainy tannins on the entry, a keen line of acidity and veins of blue fruit commingling with black pepper and light graphite notes. Cohesive on the finish, there is an attractive linearity to this Pontet Canet, with satisfying sustain that delivers about as much precision as anyone could hope for in this vintage. Give this two or three years once in bottle, and drink over the next 15.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2049

52% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot, 4% Petit Verdot, 1% Cabernet Franc. Certified organic and biodynamic (Demeter, Biodyvin). Cask sample. Deep purple colour. Purity and depth of fruit on the nose. Cherry and fruit frais notes. Some sweetness on the palate. Firm tannins but wrapped in generous fruit. A certain power but not overcharged. (JL)

Score: 16.5 Jancis Robinson MW, JancisRobinson.com Maturity: 2030-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Quintus St Emilion £360 6x75cl 91-93 - - 92 93-95 -
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The 2024 Quintus is gracious, elegant and polished. Spice, tobacco, cedar and an exotic touch of blood orange give the 2024 lovely aromatic presence to match its mid-weight personality. There is a touch of new oak, but that should not be an issue with élevage. Here, too, the balance is very fine.

Score: 93 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2044

Tiny touch of reduction on the opening moments of this wine, then slowly uncurls, lovely rose petals, elderflower, raspbery and redcurrant, with a kiss of grilled sandalwood. You can really track the evolution of Quintus at this point, as it takes on more of the character of its location up on the limestone plateau, and this is a good quality wine. 35hl/h yield, 39% new oak. Unlike many Right Bank, this is the final blend. Mariette Veyssière technical director, working alongside Jean-Pierre Masclef.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2038

The 2024 Quintus is streets ahead of the second and third wines on the nose, with pretty black cherry and blueberry fruit, a little Margaux-like in style thanks to the violet scent. The palate is medium-bodied with sapid black fruit mixed with blood orange and crushed stone towards the finish. Touches of cracked black pepper and cumin linger on the aftertaste. Very fine.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2045

[Add to shopping basket] Rauzan Segla Margaux £283 6x75cl 91-93 - 89-92 94 95-98 -
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The 2024 Rauzan-Ségla is magnificent. One of the top wines of the Left Bank, Rauzan-Ségla possesses tremendous textural density and mind-blowing balance. Dark fruit, lavender, spice, licorice and new leather are all dialed up in a potent, layered Margaux that offers stunning harmony and incredible purity. At this stage, Rauzan-Ségla is one of the wines of the vintage in Bordeaux. Elegant yet powerful, the 2024 is simply magnificent. Tasted four times.

Score: 95 - 98 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2043-2054

A blend of 63.5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 34% Merlot, 2% Petit Verdot and 0.5% Cabernet Franc, the 2024 Rauzan-Ségla offers up aromas of minty cassis, pencil shavings and cigar wrapper, followed by a medium-bodied, soft and pillowy palate that's supple and open-knit, concluding with a melting, discreetly herbal finish.

Score: 89 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Inky colour here, one of the deepest in the appellation, lovely precision, great quality, the cool spirit of the vintage comes through in the sappy fruit, blue rather than black in character if not in colour, with black tea, espresso, chalk, lots of finesse, and still delivers flesh through the mid palate, with a touch of bitter cocoa bean on the finish. 22% press wine, 50% new oak, 3.7ph. This is the first organic certified vintage. 30hl/h yield, 55% of production in the main estate wine.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2045

The 2024 Rauzan Ségla, picked between September 23 and October 11, was aged for 18 months in 50% new oak barrels. It has a fuller bouquet than the Deuxième Vin, with pure black fruit, a hint of violet and a splash of India ink—refined rather than powerful. The palate is medium-bodied and tensile, with lighter tannins than the '20 or '22, poised and quite linear in style. A dash of black pepper and graphite emerges towards the liquorice-tinged finish. Clearly, this is a more approachable Rauzan-Ségla that should provide up to 20 years of drinking pleasure.

Score: 91 - 93 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Reynon Sauvignon Blanc £80 12x75cl 88-90 - - 89 89-91 -
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The 2024 Reynon Blanc is an absolute delight. It offers plenty of Sauvignon Blanc character in a style that emphasizes orchard fruit notes and soft contours. Pear, mint and white pepper are some of the nuances that open in the glass. This classy, polished white is seriously impressive in 2024, especially given its modest price.

Score: 89 - 91 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2031

Pale yellow-grey in colour, fairly strict in its aromatic profile, high lime zest and gooseberry, a little dilute through the mid palate, fragrant aromatics with grip, but not a ton of depth. Dubourdieu family.

Score: 89 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2025-2030

The 2024 Reynon Blanc has a crisp bouquet with orchard fruit and light chai aromas, showing fine delineation and focus. The palate is well balanced with orange rind on the entry, fresh and crisp with a simple yet focused tropical-tinged finish. Enjoy over three or four years.

Score: 88 - 90 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2027-2032

[Add to shopping basket] Saint Pierre St Julien £168 6x75cl 92-94 - - 92 91-94 -
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The 2024 Saint-Pierre (Saint-Julien) is a potent, brooding wine. Blackberry jam, graphite, lavender, cloves, licorice and menthol are amplified in a dramatic, statuesque Saint-Julien that is all intrigue. The 2024 possesses notable depth and substance, but it's an imposing wine that will require cellaring. Tasted two times.

Score: 91 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2039

This is easily one of the better St Juliens of the vintage, filled with raspberry, plum and damson fruits, beautiful white pepper and sage spice, good lift and slate texture, really enjoyable. Vanessa and Jean Triaud owners, 29 hl/ha, first year organic certified.

Score: 92 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Saint-Pierre (Saint-Julien) shows more refinement and complexity on the nose compared to its "sibling," Gloria, this year. Blackberry, crushed stone and light pressed violet aromas unfold in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with finely chiseled tannins, cohesive and poised, with a very appealing and sustained finish. This is a great success in the context of the vintage and could well present up to 20 years of drinking pleasure.

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Saintayme St Emilion £132 12x75cl 87-89 - - 89 90-92 -
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The 2024 Saintayme is quite elegant and refined. Floral overtones, bright red-toned fruit and a kick of blood orange lift this gorgeous, mid-weight Saint-Émilion. Understated and classy to the core, Saintayme is a winner in 2024.

Score: 90 - 92 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2039

Bright, chalky red fruits, nice lift and gentle grip without overdoing things, a little austere on the finish. Harvest September 23 to October 6, yields here were relatively normal at at around 40hl/h, and by the beginning of September they had deleafed on both sides to help ripening. Well handled from Noëmie Durantou.

Score: 89 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Saintayme was picked between September 24 and October 6 and was matured 30% in new oak. It has a slightly more fruit-driven nose compared to its peers, with ripe red cherries, wild strawberry and veins of cassis. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins on the entry, fresh and quite strict compared to previous vintages, with a slightly grainy finish. Give this a year once in bottle.

Score: 87 - 89 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2027-2036

[Add to shopping basket] Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc Dry Whites £643 6x75cl 94-96 - 92-94 95 95-97 -
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The 2024 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc is complex, dynamic and an absolute delight. Everything about the 2024 speaks to class. Brisk acids drive through a core of citrus fruit, almond, mint, chamomile and white pepper. More than anything else, I admire the wine's tension and energy. Clean saline notes extend the dry, bracing finish.

Score: 95 - 97 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2028-2039

Floral and complex, the 2024 Blanc from Smith Haut Lafitte offers up aromas of white peach, apricot, spices and spring blossoms. Medium-bodied, round and layered, it's sappy and seamless with an incisive mid-palate and a long, ethereal and refreshing finish. Matured in 50% new oak, this blend of 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Sémillon and 5% Sauvignon Gris represents a strong effort.

Score: 92 - 94 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2027 - 2045

A gorgeous aromatic blossom of white peaches, peach pit, sage, apple blossom, soft clove and white truffle spices, gentle lift through the palate, a wonderfully fragrant, generous but finessed Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc, with so much depth and length. 50% new oak for ageing, harvest August 29 to September 13, 3.2ph. Energy maintained through the palate, up there with one of the whites of the vintage.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2038

The 2024 Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc is a blend of 90% Sauvignon Blanc, 5% Sauvignon Gris and 5% Sémillon, matured in 50% new oak. It needed a bit of aeration in the glass, eventually revealing scents of Anjou pear, gooseberry, white flowers and light flinty aromas. The palate is well balanced with lilting nectarine, pear and stem ginger notes. Fine weight and depth, with a judicious touch of spice towards the finish. The sapidity and linearity of this impressive Smith Haut Lafitte Blanc mean it should repay cellaring.

Score: 94 - 96 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2027-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Smith Haut Lafitte Rouge Pessac-Leognan £372 6x75cl 92-94 - 90-92 94 91-94 -
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The 2024 Smith Haut Lafitte is raw and not fully formed. Today the tannins are imposing. There's good energy and depth in the glass, but the 2024 is very backward. Floral and spice notes emerge with air, but for the time being, Smith Haut Lafitte is a bit of a mystery.

Score: 91 - 94 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2044

Notes of spices, oak, dark berries and gentian preface the 2024 Smith Haut Lafitte, a medium-bodied, firm and structured wine with an assertive tannic frame that leads to a compact, gentian-inflected finish. This blend of 67% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, matured in 60% new oak, is somewhat introverted and linear, making it a chewy Smith Haut Lafitte that will need time to unwind. YC

Score: 90 - 92 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com Maturity: 2026 - 2036

Toasted cedar and sandalwood oak on the nose, the team as Smith Haut-Lafitte has done a lovely job of adding a gourmet lick of grilled blueberry and raspberry fruits to the opening moments of the wine, alongside richer damson and black cherry in the mid-palate. Great energy, lift and juice, vivid fruits, graphite, ink, chalk tannins, slimmer through the mid palate than in the bigger vintages, but everything in its place. 21hl/h yield, 60% new oak. Fabien Teitgen technical director.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Smith Haut Lafitte was picked from September 18 to October 9 and matured in 60% new oak. It has an understated bouquet that I appreciate, with scents of blackberry, raspberry, light rose petal and India ink that gradually unfurl in the glass. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, extremely well balanced and very refined, with a linear and correct finish. This is a classy Smith Haut Lafitte that will provide up to 20 years of drinking pleasure.

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Suduiraut Sauternes/Barsac £237 12x37.5cl 93-95 - - 95 94-96 -
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The 2024 Suduiraut offers up a beguiling mix of passion fruit, mango, pineapple and tangerine oil. Even with 130 grams of residual sugar, the 2024 is not an especially opulent Sauternes. I especially admire its freshness. What a beautiful and expressive wine.

Score: 94 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2054

This really is charming, full of marmalade and orange zest, saffron and lime, bitter finish in the best way, gives focus and rises up through the palate. 4.1 TA. 3.83 pH. 130 g/l. 50% new oak. Four passes through the vineyard through to 3rd week of October, with 2nd and 3rd being the heart. Pierre Montegut technical director across both Suduiraut and Pichon Baron. 11.3hl/h yield. Lovely, softly spoken, not the intensity of 2022, but just thoroughly appealing. Eric Boissenot consultant, as at Pichon and at Noval in Portugal.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2026-2038

The 2024 Suduiraut enjoyed an early development of botrytis in mid-September, so there is no passerillage. The second and third tries in mid-October formed the heart of the wine. It is very pure on the nose, less intense than the previous two vintages, offering wild honey, peach skin and light nectarine scents. The palate is well balanced with a fine thread of acidity. It is not as dense or unctuous as recent vintages, but there is wonderful tension with a pure and quite sensual finish. Excellent. 130g/l residual sugar.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2025-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Talbot St Julien £194 6x75cl 90-92 - 88-90 90 90-92 -
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The 2024 Talbot is an attractive, understated Saint-Julien. Sweet pipe tobacco, cedar, mint, mocha, dried herbs and incense lend notable aromatic presence. The 2024 is pleasant but also a bit light texturally. Let's see what happens with élevage.

Score: 90 - 92 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2049

The 2024 Talbot is a blend 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot. Offering up aromas of minty cherries, cassis, burning embers and new oak, it's medium-bodied, taut and youthfully angular.

Score: 88 - 90 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Finely constructed tannic frame, sappy, good clarity of fruit but lacking some punch. One of the highest yields of the vintage at 54hl/h, Nancy Bignon-Cordier. 60% new oak.

Score: 90 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2042

The 2024 Talbot was picked between September 18 and October 7 at a respectable 39 hl/ha for the vintage. It will be matured in 70% new oak from 12 cooperages with various toastings. The wine has a light bouquet at first that upholds the Talbot style, mainly featuring red berry fruit intermixed with mocha and light cedar scents. It shows fine delineation but is certainly not a powerful wine. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant tannins. I like the brightness and vivacity of this Saint-Julien. It's cohesive with a discrete, peppery finish that gently fans out. Worth seeking out, though it would need more grip and substance to merit a more generous score.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2029-2055

[Add to shopping basket] Troplong Mondot St Emilion £432 6x75cl 93-95 - - 95 95-97 -
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The 2024 Troplong Mondot is a total stunner. As has been the case for some years now, the Grand Vin is blended before being barreled down, which means at the time of tasting en primeur, the wine has seen less wood than the vast majority of its peers. That lends this wine a certain raw energy that is impossible to miss. The purity and intensity of the flavors are simply remarkable. Troplong Mondot is one of the standouts of 2024. Even in this vintage, Troplong Mondot possesses remarkable textural presence, but that richness is matched by notable freshness and linear drive. It was deeply impressive on the two occasions I tasted it. Élevage is planned to be 55% in new oak, 26% in 20HL barrels and 19% in once-used barrels.

Score: 95 - 97 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2026-2030

This has the Troplong terroir and intensity visually, immediately clear, with violets, squid ink, slate, roses, liquorice root. Love the chalky oyster shell salinity on the finish, delivers exceptional balance and lift, with interesting texture that is grippy with pumice stone tannins. No chaptilisation, because this is a location with natural density and you really see it here. Brilliantly silky, this has depth and yet is savoury, touch of whole cluster winemaking. 55% new oak, with 19% oak casks and the rest one year old.

Score: 95 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2031-2042

The 2024 Troplong Mondot was matured in 55% new oak, 26% in 20-hectolitre foudres and 19% in used barrels. It offers minerally, tightly wound black fruit, blueberry and light chalky scents. Very fine delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with pliant yet tensile tannins. Like the Mondot, it is peppery in style, pretty and sapid towards the finish. Not a huge amount of persistence, yet this is still a serious Saint-Émilion that could well end up at the top of my banded score.

Score: 93 - 95 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2068

[Add to shopping basket] Trotte Vieille St Emilion £252 6x75cl 92-94 - - 93 92-95 -
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The 2024 Trotte Vieille is a potent, explosive wine. An exotic mélange of black fruit, new leather, chocolate, espresso, menthol and licorice literally stains the palate. As always, Trotte Vieille is such a distinctive wine. The finish is perhaps a touch light. Then again, this is 2024. Today, Trotte Vieille comes across as raw and not totally put together, but its pedigree and potential are undeniably present.

Score: 92 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

Concentrated, medium intensity ruby red colour. On the opening this is restrained, elegant, pared back, with well delivered juice that just slowly infuses the palate with lift and sinewed salinity; This is a well balanced and confident wine, great quality. 100% new oak, 3.45ph. Tasted twice. Axel Marchal and Thomas Duclos consultants.

Score: 93 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2029-2040

The 2024 Trotte Vieille was picked from 20 September to 5 October and matured entirely in new oak, with a small proportion aged in amphora. It has a lovely bouquet with redcurrant and black plum scents that gain amplitude with aeration. Not as intense as the impressive '22, but it has plenty of charm. The palate is medium-bodied with fluid tannins that lend a silky texture. The oak is well-judged and integrated, gaining weight towards the latter half. The finish is composed with just the right amount of piquancy. This is a delightful Saint-Émilion that will provide a great deal of pleasure.

Score: 92 - 94 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2050

[Add to shopping basket] Valandraud St Emilion £453 6x75cl 90-92 - - 94 92-95 -
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The 2024 Valandraud is quite the powerhouse. Dense and explosive, Valandraud packs a huge punch. Macerations reached up to four weeks, long for the vintage, yielding an especially huge, deep Saint-Émilion. Valandraud is atypically concentrated for the year. Let's see what happens with élevage. There is a feeling of exoticism here that is so alluring. This is an especially heady, opulent wine in 2024. That was clearly the intent, and an approach that worked.

Score: 92 - 95 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

There are very few wines in this vintage where you see these grilled, smoky aromatics that are backed up by fruit, but Valandraud delivers, and here you feel that owner Jean-Luc Thunevin stepped in and said, keep going, I want a Valandraud that I recognise. There is still acidity, but it is shaped into austerity and sapidity, with slate tannins, good quality plum and damson fruits. Estate signature, with ageing ability. Harvest 26 September to 7 October, 3.5pH. 100% new oak. Jean-Philippe Fort and Alexandre Béra from Rolland Consultants. Less leaning in to the vintage than railing against it, and there is clear oak here - but it works.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2040

The 2024 Valandraud is the first vintage to include grapes from a parcel just in front of the château. Picked between 26 September and 7 October, it was matured entirely in new oak. This cuvée can handle the 100% new oak, with a floral style and more red fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black cherries and raspberry, showing a firm grip towards the finish with moderate length. It will require three or four years to cohere, but I am concerned about the oak overwhelming the fruit, hence my score.

Score: 90 - 92 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2030-2048

[Add to shopping basket] Vieux Chateau Certan Pomerol £708 6x75cl 95-97 - 91-93 94 93-96 -
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The 2024 Vieux Château Certan is a delicate, elegant wine driven by its strong floral component from the significant presence of Cabernets in the blend this year. Silky tannins add to an impression of restraint. I can't remember tasting a young VCC with this equilibrium, one that approaches a Burgundian textural feel, for lack of a better word. The 2024 opens with a bit of time in the glass, but it is a decidedly understated, calm VCC. I can't wait to see how it ages.

Score: 93 - 96 Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com Maturity: 2034-2054

A blend of 71% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc and 9% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2024 Vieux Château Certan opens in the glass with brooding aromas of dark berries, cedar, cigar wrapper, crushed mint and loamy soil. Medium to full-bodied, with good density for the vintage and sweet structuring tannins, it concludes with a sapid, slightly earthy finish. Yields after annual sorting came in at 30 hectoliters per hectare, and the wine is being matured in two-thirds new barriques.

Score: 91 - 93 William Kelley, Wine Advocate, RobertParker.com

Violet ruby with a vibrant rim, reflects the savoury vivid quality of the vintage in the wines that deliver. Clear chamomile tea, fragrant white blossom, redcurrant, blueberry, a touch of austerity and reserve compared to the past few vintages, but with purity and finesse, mouthwatering finish, 30hl/h yield, 3.7ph, harvest 20 September to 2 October. 3.70 pH, and a high Cabernet character in the final blend (despite one block less of Cabernet Franc after replanting), 66% new oak. An enjoyable wine from Alexandre Thienpont.

Score: 94 Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux Maturity: 2030-2044

The 2024 Vieux Château Certan contains a higher proportion of Cabernet this year (23% Sauvignon and Franc combined) that was picked at 30 hl/ha between September 20 to October 2. That Cabernet is articulated on the nose: graphite and light tobacco scents percolating through the mainly black fruit. This has plenty of freshness and more fruit than some other Pomerol cuvées. The palate is medium-bodied, but there is much more weight and density on the back palate than nearly all of its peers. Distinctly peppery and quite spicy in style, this is one of the few to transcend the strict limitations of the growing season. In some ways, it is an uncompromising VCC that does not have the finesse of the greatest vintages I have tasted over the years, yet there is flavour and substance packed inside this nascent wine. Deeply impressive. This is one of the very few '24s that will oblige bottle age.

Score: 95 - 97 Neal Martin, Vinous.com Maturity: 2032-2075