FRENCH WINE

WINE ENTHUSIAST 97 POINTS - "This wine is dense, mingling spicy nutmeg along with superb ripe honey and marmalade flavors. With its balanced acidity and opulence, it is going to be a great wine."

JEB DUNNUCK 97 POINTS - "One of the top sweet wines in this report is the 2016 Château Coutet, which has the vintage’s plush, opulent style as well as thrilling purity and good acids. Pineapple, white flowers, sugared peach, and honeyed notes all emerge from this full-bodied, layered, balanced Barsac that’s already impossible to resist yet will evolve gracefully 2+ decades."

JAMES SUCKLING 95 POINTS - "The vibrant, tropical fruit-coulis character The vibrant, tropical fruit-coulis character draws you into this concentrated and elegant Barsac. Then the crisp acidity and a wave of lemon and mineral character comes through, driving the finish out in the direction of the horizon. Drink or hold."

WINE ADVOCATE 94 POINTS - "Pale lemon colored, the 2016 Coutet reveals gorgeous quince paste, candied ginger and key lime pie scents with touches of lemon marmalade and peach compote. Full-bodied, rich and seriously seductive, it has a lively line cutting through the sweet, dense layers and epically long finish."

WINE SPECTATOR 93 POINTS - "Unctuous in feel, with marzipan, candied orange peel and praline notes leading the way for a juicy display of mango, peach and papaya flavors. The rich finish has a nice toasty hint. Best from 2023 through 2038."

WINE ENTHUSIAST 92 - 94 POINTS - "This 100% Sauvignon Blanc offering is the second white by Smith Haut Lafitte. With excellent acidity and a fine herbal character, expect a wine that is tight, crisp and deliciously fresh."

JAMES SUCKLING 92 POINTS - "Delicious aromas and flavors of white peaches and light hay. Full body, bright acidity and tangy, sliced-lemon and green-apple character. Hints of candied fruit. Real sauvignon blanc character. Light, herbal undertones. Drink now."

WINE SPECTATOR 92 POINTS - "Nice purity, with lemon peel, white peach and verbena notes backed by a hint of shortbread that blossoms on the finish, giving this a flattering edge."

WINE ADVOCATE 92 POINTS - "The Les Hauts de Smith 2016 Blanc is pure Sauvignon Blanc matured in around 50% new oak. It has a pleasant bouquet with yellow flower aromas complementing the citrus fruit, though it takes a little more encouragement than the Le Petit Haut Lafitte, which has the benefit of the Sémillon. The palate is well balanced with some lovely tropical tones on the entry, dried pineapple, paw paw and then later a touch of lemongrass. I appreciate the way this finishes... with a bit of gusto! I always love this white Pessac-Léognan and this 2016 might be as good as the 2015 last year. This comes recommended."

JEB DUNNUCK 98 POINTS - "Among the whites of the vintage, the 2016 Château Pape Clément Blanc is one of the most concentrated, deep, and full-bodied whites out there, offering up a red wine-like structure to go with beautiful notes of white grapefruit, Meyer lemon, crushed rocks, and exotic flowers. A blend of 50% Sauvignon Blanc, 36% Sémillon, 9% Sauvignon Gris, and 5% Muscadelle, all from deep gravelly soils and brought up in 55% new French oak, this incredibly textured, pure, balanced white needs 3-4 years of bottle age and will keep for two decades or more."

JAMES SUCKLING 95 POINTS - "High-end Pessac-Léognan can sometimes be too imposing to drink when it is young. But here, there’s such freshness to the melon, pear and white-peach aromas with hints of candied lemon and vanilla, that you can’t resist. Concentrated, but with a sleek silhouette, this moves extremely gracefully across the palate. The super-elegant finish has vibrancy that suggests very long aging potential."

WINE ADVOCATE 95 POINTS - "The Pape Clement 2016 Blanc is a blend of 50% Sauvignon Blanc, 36% Sémillon, 9% Sauvignon Gris and 5% Muscadelle. It leaps from the glass with gregarious scents of ripe peaches, fresh grapefruit and key lime pie plus touches of cedar, honeysuckle and toast. Medium-bodied, the palate offers fantastic precision and depth, with layers of citrus and stone fruit flavors supported by a racy line of freshness, finishing very long."