Château Cos-d'Estournel St.-Estèphe 2002 95-100
Exceptional. Intense aromas of crushed berries, with wet earth and licorice. Full-bodied, with super fine tannins and a medium finish. This is impressive, firm and powerful. The team of Cos worked hard on this, and it shows. -- J.S.
Château Haut-Brion Pessac-Léognan 2002 95-100
Wow. Super aromas, with blackberries, minerals, currants and licorice. Full-bodied, with an amazing core of fruit and fine tannins. Very long. Exceptional wine. -- J.S.
Château Lafite Rothschild Pauillac 2002 95-100
Crushed berries and intensity to this, with grapey, toasted oak and cedar notes. Big and concentrated, with chewy and firm tannins. Very long. Very tight, though, and just beginning to show its true nature. -- J.S.
Château Léoville Las Cases St.-Julien 2002 95-100
Subtle aromas of blackberries, currants and minerals, with hints of violets. Full-bodied, with a massive core of fruit and firm and rich tannins. Very muscular. Las Cases does it again. -- J.S.
Château Mouton-Rothschild Pauillac 2002 95-100
Black color, with intense aromas of lead pencil, currants and eucalyptus. Full-bodied, with chewy yet refined tannins and a long finish. Very impressive. Could be one of the best Moutons since 195-100. -- J.S.
Château Le Pin Pomerol 2002 95-100
Loads of potential here. This is incredibly fresh and fruity, with fine tannins and a lovely berry, tobacco character. It reminds me of a top vintage of Burgundy's La Tâche with its luxuriously silky texture and bright and succulent fruit. Hard not to drink the barrel sample. -- J.S.
Potentially Outstanding Wines
L'Absolut de Quinault St.-Emilion 2002 92-94
Supergood. Full-bodied, with lots of velvety tannins and a long and pretty finish. Impressive fruit and finesse. This is a new tiny-production, handmade wine that was fermented in 225-liter barrels. From Château Quinault. -- J.S.
Château Ausone St.-Emilion 2002 92-94
Very inky, with lots of berry, raspberry and licorice character. Full-bodied, with fine tannins and a long finish. A solid wine with great texture. Ausone does no wrong. Almost 95-100. -- J.S.
Château Calon-Ségur St.-Estèphe 2002 92-94
Fabulous aromas of crushed berries, with cassis and blueberries and hints of spice. Full-bodied and very rich, with a wonderful tannin structure. Long and exotic. -- J.S.
Château Cheval-Blanc St.-Emilion 2002 92-94
This shows a solid core of fruit, with berry, cherry and currants. Full-bodied, with fine tannins and a long finish. Solid wine. Very well done. -- J.S.
Le Dôme St.-Emilion 2002 92-94
Wonderful mineral, blackberry and chocolate aromas follow through to a full-bodied palate, with big, silky tannins. Very long and powerful. This is a new small-production wine, about 900 cases made, from the hillsides of St.-Emilion near Château Angelus. Lots of potential. -- J.S.
Château L'à‰glise Clinet Pomerol 2002 92-94
Very clean and refined, with mineral, raspberry and berry character. Medium-bodied, with fine tannins and a long, flavorful finish. Denis Durantou is one of the most talented winemakers in Bordeaux, which he proves with his 2002. Almost 95-100. -- J.S.
Château Latour Pauillac 2002 92-94
Extremely aromatic, with crushed berry, currants and lead pencil. Full-bodied, with good tannins and a long-lasting finish. Racy and austere, but very good. Almost 95-100. -- J.S.
Château Lynch-Bages Pauillac 2002 92-94
Fantastic aromas of ripe currants, spices, cedar and incense. Full-bodied, with soft and velvety tannins and a long, currant and mineral finish. Serious for the vintage. Better than 2001. -- J.S.
Château Margaux Margaux 2002 92-94
Lovely mineral, berry, cherry and currant aromas. Very perfumed. Full-bodied, with very fine tannins and a seductive finish. Very refined indeed. Almost 95-100. -- J.S.
Château La Mission-Haut-Brion Pessac-Léognan 2002 92-94
Lots of blackberries, tobacco and minerals. Fragrant wine. Full-bodied, with very fine tannins and berry and mineral character. Long finish. Almost 95-100. Château La Mission-Haut-Brion pulls out the stops in a less than perfect year. -- J.S.
Château Palmer Margaux 2002 92-94
Full-bodied, with big, yet silky tannins. Very long and fresh. Super nose of Petit Verdot, with blackberries and pepper. It's only 8 percent PV, but it was perfectly ripe this year. Almost 95-100. -- J.S.
Château Pavie St.-Emilion 2002 92-94
Superclean and focused, with lovely fruit and a medium body. Firm tannins and a racy finish. Great effort was made here, and the wine is harmonious and well-made. Just at 92 for me. -- J.S.
Château Pichon-Longueville-Baron Pauillac 2002 92-94
Good mineral, berry and tobacco character, with a hint of cedar. Full-bodied, with a solid core of fruit, velvety tannins and a long finish. Very well done. Clearly better than the 2001. One of the best from Pauillac this year. -- J.S.
Château Pichon-Longueville-Lalande Pauillac 2002 92-94
The nose on this is gorgeous. I like just smelling it. Cassis, with minerals and hints of ripe blackberries. Full-bodied, with plenty of fine tannins and a long, fresh finish. Very beautiful indeed. Very elegant. Showing a lot of the Cabernet Franc character. -- J.S.
Château Pontet-Canet Pauillac 2002 92-94
Super aromas of currants, berries and minerals, with hints of flowers. Full-bodied, with a lovely core of fine tannins and a medium to long finish. Very fine indeed. Alfred Tesseron is making excellent wine close to every year now. -- J.S.
Château de Valandraud St.-Emilion 2002 92-94
This has a solid core of fruit, with a very tannic structure. Blockbuster. Full-bodied, and chewy. A bit austere, but very impressive. Right at 92 for me. Wait and see if it is really great, but I am impressed. Jean-Luc Thunevin put a lot of sweat into his wine. -- J.S.