World Wine – “The 2012 La Dominique has a powerful bouquet that compromises some of its potential delineation. It feels a little monotone compared to the 2011, although there is ample blackberry and strawberry fruit mixed with leather and espresso. The palate is sweet on the entry, quite candied in style with fleshy red berry fruit tinged with marmalade and spice, although it does not quite have the cohesion on the finish as the previous vintage. Granted, it is much better than it showed in barrel, I still think the 2011 has the upper hand. Tasted at the vertical tasting at La Dominique.” 90 points - Neal Martin, vinous.com

James Suckling – Attractive ripe dark berries and some darker chocolate, no to mention sweet earth and violets. The palate has impressive density and depth, not to mention great length and weight. Mulberry and dark-cherry flavors hold fresh. Best from 2022.

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate – “This is a gorgeous, hedonistic, yet complex La Dominique with an inky purple color, oodles of blue, red and black fruits, sweet tannin, a generous, opulent, full-bodied mouthfeel, and a long finish. This 2012 is sensational and further evidence of the rebound of La Dominique after a few years of mediocrity. It is a sleeper of the vintage to be drunk over the next 15 years.” 93 points - Robert M. Parker, Jr., robertparker.com

World Wine – 96

Wine Spectator – Fabulous aromas of licorice, flowers and blackcurrants follow through to a full body with wonderful silky and caressing tannins and a long, flavorful finish. It’s complex and exceptional. Better in 2018 but so enjoyable to taste and drink now.

James Suckling – Fabulous aromas of licorice, flowers and blackcurrants follow through to a full body with wonderful silky and caressing tannins and a long, flavorful finish. It’s complex and exceptional. Better in 2018 but so enjoyable to taste and drink now.

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate – It is not unusual that the 2009 La Lagune is a spectacular effort given the fact that this estate has been making terrific wines over the last decade or more. It boasts a dense purple color as well as a beautiful perfume of blueberries, mulberries, cassis, white chocolate and subtle toasty oak. Notes of Chinese black tea, cedarwood and forest floor also make an appearance in the singular aromatic and flavor profiles. This sumptuous, full-bodied La Lagune possesses low acidity, abundant but ripe, sweet tannin and a long, 45-second finish. Give this beauty 5-7 years of bottle age and drink it over the following three decades.

Wine Spectator – This pumps ripe raspberry, plum and blackberry pâte de fruit flavors through, with anise, fruitcake and Christmas pudding notes adding range and detail along the way. Flash of bay on the finish. A not-shy wine. Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre and Cinsault. Best from 2022 through 2032.

Wine Enthusiast – Ripe, luminous wild strawberries and black cherry flavors explode from nose to finish in this hedonistic, intensely fruity blend of Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre and Cinsault. It's gorgeously primary in youth with a zesty mineral undertone, but is concentrated enough to improve, gaining earthier complexities through 2030 and likely further.

James Suckling – A very vibrant array of ripe raspberry, red-plum and berry-pastry aromas with mulberries, too. Very fresh. There’s a very rich and ripe, dark-fruit core here with a wealth of super plush and languid tannins that are dense yet soft. This is a hallmark of the vintage. A blend of 45% grenache, 30% syrah, 15% mourvedre and ten additional varieties. Drink over the next decade and more.

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate – The 2017 Chateauneuf du Pape features gentle herb shadings, ripe stone fruit and berry flavors, and a long, clean finish. It's full-bodied but somewhat delicate and silky in feel. I'd opt for drinking this blend of 35% Syrah, 30% Grenache, 30% Mourvèdre and 5% Cinsault over the next 7-8 years.

Wine Spectator – A ripe, lush style, with warm and inviting plum, fig and boysenberry confiture notes gliding through. Offers a beautiful polished feel, with suave anise and black tea flavors filling in on the finish while the fruit just sails through. Relies primarily on fruit, and you can't blame it for that. Drink now through 2030.

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate – La Nerthe's 2015 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee des Cadettes is a blend of approximately one-third each Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre. Eighty percent of the wine spent a year in new oak barrels, but much of that has been absorbed into the wine, and I see that my notes don't make reference to overt oak descriptors. Scents of raspberry and spice lead the way, followed by a firm, full-bodied palate. The tannins are present from front to back, but they're ripe and silky, lingering elegantly on the finish.

James Suckling – This has a wealth of brambly and spicy berry fruits with a succulent, plush and flavorsome palate delivering red plums and cherries amid smooth tannins. Try from 2022.