Tasted blind at the 10-Year On Tasting in Sauternes. The 2005 Château de Fargues has a rich and intense bouquet with layers of honey, dried peach, beeswax and acacia that soar from the glass. The palate is powerful and authoritative: intense botrytis-rich honeyed fruit with compelling mineralité underneath. It fans out in glorious fashion – a stunning de Fargues that is now beginning to show its talents. As I remarked a couple of years ago, just afford it a couple more years so that it can fully absorb the vestiges of oak. Drink 2018-2045. 95 pts Neal Martin, Wine Advocate (219), June 2015

94/100 Neal Martin "The 2014 Pape Clement has quite a potent bouquet with lavish red cherry, kirsch, iodine and pastille-like scents, the oak probably needing another couple of years to fully integrate. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannin, a fine line of acidity, quite refined and focused with appreciable tension towards the finish that comes laden with succulent, tobacco-infused blackberry fruit. This is a sumptuous and yet refined Pape-Clement that demonstrated the most matière or substance out of all the Pessac-Léognan 2014s that I tasted, except for the Haut-Brion. It is certainly a wine destined for a long future."

Grand Puy Casse is a classic Pauillac and this 2nd wine is very fine. Classic creme de cassis notes intermixed with liquorice, a bit of toast in an elegant frame. From vineyards bordering the premier cru sites of Mouton Rothschild, Lafite-Rothschild and Château Pontet-Canet, fruit from 20 year old vines grown on gravel soil is hand-harvested and carefully selected. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks before part of the wine undergoes malolactic conversion in new barrels. The fermented wine is aged in French oak barrels, of which around 30-40% are new each year.

Blended of 90% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon and 2% Cabernet Franc aged in French oak, 85% new, the deep garnet-purple colored 2015 Troplong Mondot is redolent of warm plums, blackberry tart and blueberry pie with suggestions of underbrush, bay leaves, cedar chest and lavender plus a waft of baking spices. Full-bodied and full-throttle in the mouth, the palate is decadently packed with a solid core of black and blue fruit layers, supported with firm, grainy tannins and finishing with loads of spicy layers. This pedal-to-the-metal beauty is the ultimate indulgence for the hedonists!

This well-made, complete St.-Julien possesses a dense purple color as well as surprisingly soft tannins for this wine which tends to be jacked up with a lot of structure, masculinity and muscle in most vintages. The 2012 offers attractive cedary, black currant fruit and vanilla notes, and a medium-bodied, denser mid-palate than many of its peers’. The tannins are noticeable in the finish, so give this wine 4-5 years of cellaring and drink it over the following two decades as it will be one of the longer lived wines of the vintage. 92 points, Robert Parker

Deep crimson. Pure dark fruit, elegantly inviting. Smells as if there is some Cab Franc even though there isn’t; that fine leafiness. Lovely depth of fruit, fully ripe but elegant and refined not bumptious or overripe. Pure fruit, cedary complexity and flowing tannins.

This 2nd wine from Clerc Milon, Pastourelle, is absolutely delicious! Clerc Milon 5th GCC, was purchased and subsequently renovated by Ch. Mouton Rothschild in 1970. Its wines benefited from the directorship of Jean Emmanuel Danjoy, who came from 9 years at Opus One in 2009. Pastorelle has been made since 2009 from younger vines. Deep ruby with succulent and spicy aromas of black currant, black cherry and cedar. Deep flavoursGreat depth of flavour and well balanced, coming out its shell after 6 years.

Great vintage and a really good small Barsac property that is next door neighbours with Ch Doisy Daene, the excellent Grand Cru.

70% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Franc. Attractive, complex fruit nose. Black fruits and some toasty oak, cocoa. Ripe and juicy flashy, plump, well built but not OTT.

Ch Coutet is a wonderful dessert wine producer, where the sweetness and acidity are in perfect balance, allowing the wine to age as well as offer instnat pleasure. A very classy wine to complete the perfect dinner.

CWM Ranking: First Class 89% Sauvignon blanc, 11% Sémillon. Ripe, attractive stone fruit aromas at first. Subtle citrus additions. Concentrated palate. Textural, but not intrusive oak. Lovely length. Juicy finish. Slightly spicy, mineral. Almost Pouilly-Fumé like. Very good.

90-92/100 Wine Advocate "Dominique and Florence Decoster, owners of Fleur Cardinale, acquired this 4.5-hectare vineyard in Saint-Étienne-de-Lisse adjacent to their own in April 2012. Not surprisingly, the soils are quite similar, composed of clay and limestone. The average age of the vines was 37 years in 2018. Yields were 40 hectoliters per hectare. Aging is projected to run for 12-14 months in 100% new French oak barrels. The blend is 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Franc, and the wine has 14.5% alcohol. From the Thibaud lieu-dit, the 2018 Croix Cardinale is deep garnet-purple colored and sings of crushed red and black cherries, wild blueberries and fragrant earth with wafts of garrigue and lavender. Medium to full-bodied, soft, lively and juicy in the mouth, it delivers great purity and poise."

Floral, supple, elegant. Lovely ripe fruit, blackcurrant with coconut-y oak. Well formed, ripe tannin. Slightly coffee / toffee finish. Surprising.

The 2016 Domaine de Chevalier is a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 5% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple colored, it rocks up with expressive warm plums, blueberry compote and cassis scents with suggestions of sandalwood, baking spices and potpourri. Medium-bodied and delicately styled yet with a rock-solid frame of grainy tannins, it sports restrained earth-laced fruit and a long finish.

RS 140 g/l, TA 4.0 g/l. Pale gold. Quite mineral/oily on the nose, some very ripe fruit underneath. Honey and lemon on the palate. Rich apricot fruit, very tangy and full. Touch of barley sugar on the finish. Warm and full and luscious so much so that the freshness is not so obvious.

16.5 points CWM and Julia Harding jancisrobinson.com "Mid cherry red. Lovely cherry fragrance too. Cool and silky. Relatively lightweight but fine and gentle on the palate. Pretty and elegant. The producer was worried that this was a lighter-tasting sample than the rest and the second bottle was indeed firmer and richer. Bravo"

Big, rich and velvety like a decent Margaux should be with a modern glossy feel on the palate. Designed for earlier drinking as a second wine, with extended barrel ageing. Delicious fruit, ample weight and body, ripe tannins.

2nd wine of Chateau Fonplegade. A lovely aromatic wine with mint lift and oak weight. Plenty to love here, rounded and rich but needs to to harmonise.

This 20ha estate has been owned since 1994 by Florence and Daniel Cathiard, who also own Château Smith Haut Lafitte and are making some of the most exciting, perfectly honed wines in Bordeaux. Their top wines ell north of £80 a bottle so this wine appears relatively good value, particulalry since it came out top at a recent Decanter tasting of Red Graves from 2016. Bravo. Planted to 70% Cabernet Sauvignon and 30% Merlot, on mostly gravel soils with some clay. Grapes are handpicked and sorted twice, whole-berry fermented in large oak vats before ageing 14 months in 25% new French oak barrels. This is intense, fruity and a real joy to drink now or keep for another 10 years.

This Claret is fresh and balanced. The blend is Merlot-based and the wine is aged in French oak barrels for 12 months, giving a nice aroma of spice and wood smoke. The palate is fleshy with a hint of plum, the tannins fine and firm, leading to a generous finish. Drink now to 2036

Mid ruby, garnet rim, ripe and juicy, sweet fruit, lovely and a bargain for real Pauillac.

Very dense red, quite intense concentration of Cabernet fruit, lots of extraction but elegance as well, a fine wine that needs time.

85% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc. Attractive, complex fruit nose. Black fruits and some toasty oak, cocoa. Ripe and juicy flashy, plump, well built but not OTT.

Starred First CWM Rating "Great structure. Grippy ripe tannins and juicy acidity. Ripe fruit throughout and excellent freshness"

A Starred First from our buying team "Deep colour. Peppery spice on the nose. Charming blackcurrant fruit on the palate, with a creamy texture, and fresh acidity. Very good tannic hold. Slightly toasty, smoky note, but pure fruit that wears it well. Slightly blue. Medium plus acidity, but glamorous, and good length"

The Fiefs de Lagrange 2014 has a light, slightly tinny bouquet with bright red cherries and a touch of blueberry fruit. The palate is medium-bodied with light tannin, pretty and rather earthy red berry fruit with a tart, peppery finish. This is easy-drinking but well made Saint Julien