£100-500 per bottle

The 2020 Château Figeac is one of the wines of the vintage. Incredibly refined and almost haunting in its aromatics, this is so mineral, focussed, and utterly beguiling. The finish lasts an age: this is one of the longest, purest, most complex wines we've tried this year. You have to have it.

Tasted April 2023. Incredible and ethereal in style, with subtle floral, bramble notes on the nose, cedar and spice on the palate. Light graphite around pure black fruit. There's a velvety texture and very fine, ripe tannins. Richer chocolate texture towards the long, refined finish. 13.65% alcohol.

Le Gréal is a unique and special blend, and the signature wine of the Sorrel domaine. 90% is drawn from the lauded Le Méal parcel, at 10% from Les Gréffieux, on the Hermitage hillside. There is a small amount of Marsanne co-planted amongst the Syrah that makes it into the blend, adding freshness and mollifying the tannins. These Sorrel vines date back to 1928 and produce exquisite concentration. This is an astonishing wine, and consistently one of the hottest tickets in the Northern Rhône. It is fragrant, concentrated, powerful and poised. It demands cellaring, and will reward many times over for those who can wait.

Lovely intensity and power. There's so much depth and concentration here, spanning floral notes to deep dark fruits, bound up with lovely tension and elegance. This is beautiful. The finish is nicely balanced with a cool, saline finish and more spice and flowers. Quite brilliant.

Le Gréal is a unique wine, and one that has built up a loyal following for its decadent, statuesque style. 2021 is a departure from the norm. Unlike all previous vintages back to 2009 that have been made from 100% whole bunch fruit, this is 90% destemmed. It feels less massive than previous years, more juicy, bright, and balanced, though it has an echo of the wine’s signature spicy notes thanks to the 10% whole bunch Guillaume has kept in the blend. It harks back to a style Guillaume says was last found in the 1990s. It may be unlike the wines we’ve come to love from this domaine, but actually, is a delicious iteration in its own right. In spite of its slighter style, it should age fantastically. One thing that remains constant is the fruit’s origin: 90% is drawn from the lauded Le Méal parcel, at 10% from Les Gréffieux, on the Hermitage hillside, from vines dating back to the 1920s. A small amount of co-planted Marsanne amongst the Syrah adds freshness and mollifies the tannins.

The 2018 Cupano Brunello di Montalcino is a stunning wine from this corner of Tuscany. Notes of blood orange, of morello cherries, and of spice all swirl from the glass. The nose entices you in, while the palate dazzles with its balance and purity. There’s that core of fresh fruit, while there’s also incredible complexity brought by a savoury minerality and sweet spice from the 5% new oak. This is a really beautiful iteration of the vintage, showing elegance and refinement, but with no loss of concentration.

The celebrated release from Bollinger of the much admired 2012 vintage. This is truly great Champagne.

The 2019 Troplong-Mondot is a simply brilliant wine. On the nose there's pure, focused fruit, as well as plenty of fragrant floral notes, and lots of spice. The palate is silky and suave, with so much latent energy. This will need time, but will be astonishing.

From one of the most famous sites in Neive, this shows the classic character of the commune. Very delicate and fragrant, this shows the classic tar and roses that we love in so much great Nebbiolo. Very pretty, and alpine tinged.

Tasted April 2023. 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot. 15% abv. 100% new barrels. Tightly-wound at this early stage with bright red fruit as well as concentrated blackcurrant. St-Estephe's characteristically austere tannins are there, creating a rich, serious feel on the palate.

Spottswoode is an historic Napa property, that is steadfast in its approach stylistically. Here the team craft consistently fine, elegant, savoury Cabernet from its unique spot in St Helena year after year. At the same time, they are bang up to date with their practices in the vineyard, looking holistically at their sustainability measures, planting cover crops, encouraging native flora and fauna, and farming biodynamically. In 2020 they've created a full-bodied, ripe and rich wine with their trademark finesse and supple velvet tannins. One of the true winners of the 2020 vintage in Napa.

2019 has brought a more 'classic' expression of Grange, with dense black cherry and blackberry, and notes of tar, coffee, coconut and licorice. It's unsurprisingly tightly wound now, with lots of tannin, toasty oak, and a ripe, juicy core. This vintage is 97% Shiraz and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon.

Scharzhofberger is one of the most highly sought after sites in Germany and the world. A steep, high altitude site that overlooks the estate, the spätlese displays a generosity of rip stone fruits and spice as well as steely and crushed stone notes. The acidity is lively and provides great structure.

65 year old vines here give incredible depth of flavour, as well as a beautifully balanced thread of acidity. Long and textured.

The prestige cuvée from one of the Southern Rhône's greatest estates.

The 2020 Léoville Las Cases is a blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc and 8% Merlot, ageing in 80% new French oak barriques. We haven't yet had the chance to taste it, but given the considerable critical acclaim, we can't wait to do so.

The 2019 from the much-loved Spottswoode estate is gorgeous, with fragrant bramble and black cherry with sweet spice, earthy notes and cedar. It's marries the generosity and warmth that comes naturally to Napa Cabernet with Spottswoode's textbook grace and charm. It's a medium-weight, elegant Napa Cabernet, harking back decades. These age beautifully, but the supple tannins, balance and refreshing style you'd be forgiven for failing to resist now.

The 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Bin 707 is a blend from the varied solis of Coonawarra, Barossa Valley, McLaren Vale and Padthaway and is matured for 16 months in new American oak hogsheads. Coonawarra is becoming more and more of the signature here, giving lots of fresh cassis and refreshing herbal character. It's built to age, with a firm, muscular structure but a lot of complex flavour to match, and it should soften into a brilliant 707 with time in bottle.

Wonderfully fresh and vibrant, particularly for a 2017, this has notes of cinnamon and freshly cut flowers swirling from the glass. A finessed and classy Barbaresco, that's surprisingly ready to go.

A tiny production wine from Luca, that’s got lots of Tortonian soil character. Lots of silky tannins, citrus fruit, and a lovely sense of purity. Rare but beautiful.

Querciabella’s Super Tuscan, the 2017 Camartina is 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Sangiovese. The trick here is the estate’s high-altitude vineyards, bringing freshness and poise alongside astonishing depth of flavour and complexity. One of Italy’s greatest wines, this shouldn’t be missed.

"This very young Sorì Tildìn takes time to open, and it remains on the nervous side even after it has been given ample time in the glass. The best course of action is to wait until the 10-year mark before opening this bottle. It needs that extra time to soften and flesh out.” 95 points, Monica Larner, The Wine Advocate

Philipponnat hold back a proportion of each vintage from their outstanding single vineyard Clos des Goisses, and age it sur lattes in their cellars. For those who love the complexity and vinous power of old Champagnes, there is nothing better.

This comes from old vines planted in the historic vineyard. It is undeniably powerful, and would benefit from a few years in the cellar.

50-year-old Syrah vines grow in the high terraces of shingle and clay on the Hermitage hillside. This is rounded, with a voluminous texture and superb notes of dark fruits, black cherry, smoked meat, leather and a hint of dried rose petal. There is impressive complexity, with layers that build and build.

Tasted April 2023. 2022 feels like the culmination of what the new team at Troplong, led by Aymeric de Gironde, have been working towards. The inate power of the vintage has been tamed by their methods throughout the growing season, and the result is a spectacular representation of Troplong Mondot. Juicy fruit, but not extreme or overly ripe. Rich, but impeccably balanced. There are fresh herbal flavours, lifted violet notes and salinity on the finish. There is plenty of tannin but the texture is silky, and slightly powdery. Brilliant.

A brilliant vintage for Haut Bailly, made in their beautiful state of the art cellar. There’s so much aromatic complexity with tons of floral notes and fragrant berry fruit. The blackberry, currant and raspberry carries onto the palate with incense, violet, pepper, woody herbs and mineral tones. Smooth as silk on the palate with just a little minerally grip on the finish. Powerful and concentrated but in a lithe, vibrant, refreshing frame.

Château Palmer created this blend as a homage to the days when Bordeaux proprietors would often blend in Syrah to add heft to their Cabernet. Syrah lends the wine a smooth, broad texture, precise tannins, velvety mouthfeel and notes of black truffle. This 10th vintage is characterized by an unprecedented high proportion of Petit Verdot (44%) in the blend and no Merlot.

This is a very pure Belair-Monange, and the best we can remember tasting. The palate has a lovely savoury edge to it, with amazing purity of fruit and excellent persistence. The texture coats the mouth, and the building flavours seem to last an age. Chapeau Christian, Edouard and all the team.

The 2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Bin 707 is a blend from Coonawarra, Barossa Valley and Wrattonbully and is matured for 16 months in new American oak hogsheads. Coonawarra is becoming more and more of the signature here, giving lots of fresh cassis and refreshing herbal character. It's built to age, with a firm structure but a lot of complex flavour to match, and it should soften into a brilliant 707 given the long, cool, even growing season in 2021.

RunRig is made from six parcels, with some from Lyndoch and some from Ebeneezer sub-regions. This is full of powerful and impressive lifted black fruits of blackberry, plum and cherry with underlying dark chocolate complex undertones and spice. There's a creaminess on the palate, with vanilla, cola and mocha, an d great depth of flavour and balance to the fruit. The tannins are powerful, layered and integrating well. An impressive RunRig.

Braune Kupp is a warmer site compared to Egon’s Scharzhofberger and the wine is riper and richer in profile. The wine is so concentrated and complex with a mix of fresh and dried fruits with spice and beeswax notes.

Coming from a 65 year old parcel, on the all-granite soils of lieu-dit Les Bessards, Le Pavillon displays cassis, blackberry and cracked black pepper notes. On the palate, the tannins are fine and swept along with fresh acidity, underpinned with a lovely, smokiness. This is a captivating Hermitage.

This is a hugely powerful and impressive Châteauneuf. Old vines (100 years+), low yields, slightly cooler north-facing terraces, and Jaun-Paul's magic touch make for an exquisite wine.