Prestige Arrivals: June 10

WS 90, JS 90-91
Cellaring potential: 2021-2035

‘’A strapping young red, full of black cherry and blackberry fruit, iron and earth flavors. Shows plenty of grip to the dense tannins and a flourish of new oak on the spicy finish.’’
www.winespectator.com

WA 95, WS 95, V 97
Cellaring potential: 2025-2040

‘’The 2018 Ornellaia is an introvert at this stage. Medium in body, with terrific persistence and impeccable balance, the 2018 is not in any mood to show all its cards today. Hints of red berry fruit, mocha, spice, licorice and dried flowers emerge with a bit of coaxing. I won’t be surprised to see it put on weight with more time in bottle. There is certainly plenty to look forward to. Readers should expect a silky, aromatic Ornellaia in line with vintages such as 2004 that are more about finesse than raw power. This is the first time in which Merlot drives the blend in Ornellaia.’’
www.vinous.com

WA 93
Cellaring potential: 2014-2027

 
           
‘’The purple-colored 2007 Mas La Plana displays notes of smoky oak, spice box, violets, black currant, and blackberry in its inviting bouquet. It opens in the glass to reveal a smooth texture, elegant personality, and enough structure to evolve for 2-3 years. Nicely proportioned and with excellent volume...’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 94
Cellaring potential: 2021-2033

 
‘’The latest release of Selosse's NV Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru Initial was disgorged in fall 2019, and it's a blend of the 2013, 2012 and 2011 vintages. Like its V.O. counterpart based on the same vintages, it's a bit tighter knit out of the gates than last year's release, unwinding in the glass with a classy bouquet of citrus zest, crisp yellow apple, English walnuts, candied peel and subtle hints of fino sherry. Medium to full-bodied, fleshy and beautifully defined, the Initial is rounder and more demonstrative than the tensile, incisive V.O., but it will really begin to blossom with a year on cork. Sapid and penetrating, it's another brilliant Champagne from Selosse.’’
www.robertparker.com  

WA 96
Cellaring potential: 2021-2040

‘’Disgorged in early 2020, the new release of Selosse's NV Blanc de Blancs Grand Cru V. O. (Version Originale) is especially good, wafting from the glass with notes of honey, toasted walnuts, yellow orchard fruit, white flowers, orange oil and beeswax. Medium to full-bodied, layered and concentrated, it's racy and incisive, with a pretty pinpoint mousse and a long, penetrating finish. As readers will remember, this cuvée is a blend of three vintages (2014, 2013 and 2012) from the higher-altitude, chalkier parts of Avize, Cramant and Oger, where yields are naturally around a third lower than in the parcels that produce Initial.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 95
Cellaring potential: 2019-2033

 ‘’From a bottle disgorged in December 2018, Selosse's NV Brut Rosé is based on his V.O. blend, with the addition of Pinot Noir from his friend Francis Egly. Bursting with scents of dried fruits, white cherries, beeswax and spices, the wine is full-bodied, broad and fleshy, with Pinot Noir phenolics only amplifying the chalky, mineral signature that defines the V.O.—making for a remarkably vinous, gastronomic Champagne.’’ 
www.robertparker.com

V 96
Cellaring potential: 2020-2030

 
‘’The NV (2010) Extra-Brut Substance is fabulous. Anselme and Guillaume Selosse craft a Champagne that is at once opulent and vibrant in Substance, which is made from a solera-style blend that goes back to 1986. That blend of vintages over time yields a Champagne with unreal textural and flavor complexity. There's just no other wine in Champagne like it. A hint of reduction adds character to the rich, honeyed Chardonnay fruit in a Substance that hits all the right notes.’’
www.vinous.com

WA 100
Cellaring potential: 2022-2045

‘’The 2008 Extra-Brut Millésime is soon due for release, and I'm a little afraid to fan the flames of what is sure to be insatiable demand with a laudatory review. But such reservations notwithstanding, I'm obliged to report that the wine meets and indeed surpasses the lofty expectations that Selosse's admirers will have surely have formed for it. Disgorged in January 2020, this bottle soared from the glass with scents of citrus oil, buttery pastry, candied peel, crisp orchard fruit, toasted pecans, iodine and smoke. Full-bodied, deep and concentrated, it's immensely layered and intensely vinous, with a tightly wound core, racy acids and a long, pungently saline finish. "If the 2009 is a Catholic," observes Selosse, "the 2008 is a Protestant"—though a Protestant, I'm tempted to add, who is evidently not entirely immune to the pleasures of the flesh.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 96
Cellaring potential: 2020-2035

‘’Disgorged in July 2017, Guillaume Selosse's NV Extra-Brut Largillier derives from grapes cultivated by Jérôme Coessens in the village of Ville-sur-Arce in the Côte des Bar, and it's a blend of the 2012 and 2013 vintages, the base wines having seen at least 36 months' élevage in barrel on their lees. Wafting from the glass with a deep and complex bouquet of ripe peach, walnuts, pears and mirabelle plum, complemented by hints of almond paste and curry, it's full-bodied, rich and multidimensional, with a layered and textural palate that's underpinned by racy acids, concluding with a saline finish. Intense and flavorful, this is a concentrated, characterful wine that I enjoyed immensely.’’
www.robertparker.com

V 96, RVF 96
Cellaring potential: 2024-2038

‘’One of the standouts in this range, the 2018 Riesling Clos Windsbuhl is incredibly vivid in the glass. Time in the glass brings out myriad layers of flavor and dimension. Orange confit, crushed rocks, mint and more exotic notes all meld together in an airy, weightless wine that has so much to offer. The 2018 is at once intense but also carries itself with a real sense of grace.’’ www.vinous.com

WA (89-92)

‘’Tempier's 2018 Bandol Rose marks another successful vintage for this consistent standout. It's light to medium-bodied, not overly ripe or rich, but all about balance and refreshment. Tangerine and melon aromas and flavors hit all the right notes, lingering on the already elegant finish.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA (89-92)

 
‘’Tempier's 2018 Bandol Rose marks another successful vintage for this consistent standout. It's light to medium-bodied, not overly ripe or rich, but all about balance and refreshment. Tangerine and melon aromas and flavors hit all the right notes, lingering on the already elegant finish.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 95
Cellaring potential: 2020-2028

‘’They have used only barrels, and in 2018 40% of the oak was new, but in the future there will be a 1,000-liter oak foudre for this. The élevage is longer—17 to 18 months—and the wine develops more. The barrels are never topped up, so it's a little more oxidative. And in this vintage, there is some creaminess (perhaps the high percentage of new oak), with a showier profile, peachy juiciness, more volume and a spicy twist a little à la Jura, but more Meursault than Puligny. It's more expressive, rounder and juicier, less radical than some of the earlier years, spicy and with notes of fennel.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 96
Cellaring potential: 2020-2026

 
‘’The wine comes through as elegant and refined, with some peachy notes combined with the varietal, herbal and mineral notes. The palate is sleek, with extra freshness in this 2018, with a saline and faintly bitter finish. This is plain delicious.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 97
Cellaring potential: 2020-2030

‘’In 2018, it has a slightly lighter color and is a little more ethereal and elegant than other vintages, with less alcohol and terrific balance. This is perfumed and elegant, a little fuller than La Penitencia, with a very faint creamy touch, perhaps from being aged in the smaller barrels. It has to be one of the finest vintages of El Pecado.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 98
Cellaring potential: 2020-2029

 
‘’This has an explosive nose that is floral and exotic, with a wild herbal touch, juicy, a little rustic, very faithful to the origin. It has some citrus notes of freshness, and the palate is intense, high-pitched, electric, pungent and very long and mineral. It has moderate alcohol and very fine tannins, energy and light—it's simply superb.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 94+
Cellaring potential: 2022-2039

 
‘’Unfurling in the glass with a youthfully reserved nose of raspberries, wild plums, spices, white tea and rose petals, the 2019 Morgon Côte du Py Javernières is medium to full-bodied, deep and layered, with real concentration, lively acids and powdery structuring tannins. Still quite tightly wound after its recent bottling—a matter of weeks before I tasted it—this will, as ever, merit several years in the cellar. At maturity, I suspect the 2019 will be more dynamic than the 2018 rendition, and it will delight admirers of serious cru Beaujolais.’’
www.robertparker.com

RVF 93, JS 95

‘’Very complex nose of flowers, herbal liqueur, fresh walnuts and wet earth. Cool, sleek and graceful, in spite of the considerable structure, the bright acidity lifting all of this and making it feel much lighter than the actual 13.5% alcohol. Long, filigree, mineral finish. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.’’
www.jamessuckling.com

WA 96+
Cellaring potential: 2019-2029

 
‘’The top wine of the estate, the 2013 Côtes du Roussillon Villages La Petite Sibérie is a Grenache dominated cuvee that incorporates 5% each of Syrah and Mourvèdre. Still firm and even a touch backward, it offers serious notes of black raspberries, toasted spice and hoisin sauce, with serious chalky minerality on the finish. Big, rich and structured on the palate, it's a concentrated, structured 2013 that needs to be forgotten for 2-3 years, and enjoyed over the following decade. It’s worth noting that this cuvee is brought up all in new oak, and it’s absorbed every trace.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 97
Cellaring potential: 2020-2035

 
‘’The 2017 Chateauneuf du Pape La Combe des Fous is full-bodied, rich and velvety, yet it also possesses more freshness and concentrated berry fruit than the Vieilles Vignes bottling. An absolute beauty of a beast, it delivers ripe raspberries and cherries, a gentle dusting of Asian spice and a long, long finish.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 98
Cellaring potential: 2020-2035

‘’With its more discreet oak and layers of complexity, the 2017 Chateauneuf du Pape Deus Ex Machina is my favorite release here this year. Layers of dried spices accent raspberries and cherries in this full-bodied, rich and velvety wine. It's more complex and complete than either the Combe des Fous or the Sancto Santorum, longer on the finish and supremely elegant.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 95, WS 96
Cellaring potential: 2022-2038

 
 ‘’A very refined, silky style, with subtle bitter cherry, damson plum and raspberry coulis notes racing through, flanked by garrigue and sandalwood notes and ending with graceful rooibos tea and mineral threads. This offers understated luxury. Grenache, Syrah, Cinsault and Mourvèdre.’’
www.winespectator.com

WA 94-96
Cellaring potential: 2011-2041

‘’The 2010 Rayas Chateauneuf du Pape Blanc may be the greatest white Rayas made since the 1990. Aromas of fig, honeysuckle, mango and citrus oil soar from the glass of this 2010. With huge body, excellent acidity and a flowery personality, I had a hard time spitting out this stunningly pure offering as it was the last wine tasted that day. It should keep for 20-30+ years. Sadly, the production of this beauty is approximately 400 cases, so availability is limited.’’
www.robertparker.com

WA 91-93, V 92
Cellaring potential: 2011-2031

‘’The different cuvees that will go into the 2010 Fonsalette Cotes du Rhone, which is dominated by Grenache, but includes considerable Cinsault, suggest the final wine should possess a deep ruby color along with a lovely nose of spring flowers, kirsch, licorice, earth, pepper and spice. Full-bodied with supple tannins, this charming 2010 should drink well for 20 years.’’ 
www.robertparker.com

WA 92+, V 91-94

‘’Component #1, "from clay and galets. Deep, inky cherry and creme de framboise scents. Chewy dark fruit preserve flavors, with suave tannic grip and excellent persistence. Component #2: Inky purple color. Powerful dark fruit aromas, with a strong olive undertone. Spicy cherry and plum flavors are framed by solid tannins, turning sweeter and more red-fruity on the finish. In final form this should be a knockout.’’
www.vinous.com

WA 94-97, V 96+

‘’Vivid ruby. An explosively perfumed bouquet displays red and dark berry preserves, potpourri, licorice and smoky minerals. Broad and fleshy, offering deeply concentrated black raspberry and bitter cherry flavors and a strong note of floral pastilles. Chewy tannins give grip to a powerful, alluringly sweet, endless finish. Shows as much density as I can recall from a young Rayas and is clearly built for the long haul.’’
www.vinous.com

WA 95, V 97

‘’Bright ruby. Red berry, cherry and Asian spice aromas are lifted by sexy notes of rose petal and blood orange. Impressively pure and perfumed, with remarkable precision and cut to its concentrated but lively flavors of cherry and black raspberry. The weightless, mineral-driven character of this wine is something else. In a distinctly delicate, feminine style, with superb finishing cut and energy.’’
www.vinous.com