Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2018 in bottle: the top 50 wines

Really lifted, aromatic, lung-filling aromas, strongly led by Mourvèdre. Heavy, heady blooms along with strawberry and earth. This has a full-bodied, fat and broad palate,...

Grown on varied lieux-dits around the appellation on a mix of soils, this was fermented in concrete then aged for 24 months in foudre. All...

I love the nose, there's a dusting of cocoa and a touch of kirsch to the aromas from the oak – all very well balanced...

Darkly coloured, this has an elegant, harmonious, vinous aromatic display of liquorice, lilies and blood. Full-bodied, but reined in, without too much fat on the...

Darkly coloured for the vintage. An appealing, gently resinous herbal note to the aromatics, likely from the judicious use of stems, as well as a...

Darkly coloured, deeply fruited - a promising start. Dense, concentrated and fairly tannic but with good freshness and great vibrancy of fruit. This has all...

A little indistinct on the nose for now, plum and strawberry, a wisp of smoke. More depth and concentration on the palate, good intensity and...

This is one of the best wines of the vintage. It has a vinous finesse to the aromatics, full-bodied, very smooth and generous. It very...

Grown on galets roulés and sand in lieux-dits Les Cassanets and La Crau (nord). Good depth of colour. A fairly straightforward but fresh nose, vibrant...

A little more intense and taut than the Montplaisir, more deeply vinous and tannic. More tannins and more alcohol give a slightly less elegant impression...

A fairly pale colour. Fresh, elegant, cherry-scented start, a little orange zest and raspberry. Generous in glycerol, quite jellied on the palate. The acidity helps...

Like his other cuvées, this has quite a pale, cherry-tinged colour with strawberry and a touch of sweetly earthy beetroot on the nose and sweet...

Introspective for now on the nose; blackberries, liquorice and sage, but promising on the palate – good sense of intensity and freshness. Very well balanced,...

Cinnamon, red cherry and black cherry - a fresh and attractive nose with a touch of almond. Soft and silky on the palate, but neat...

Even paler than Les Safres this year, surprisingly. Distinctly spicy, with pine and pepper stemmy aromas, lifted violets and pink peppercorns. Not terribly textured however,...

Sparky aromatics on the nose, this is immediately interesting. Very full-bodied with plenty of fat. Intense, fresh and driving on the palate, almost biting from...

This is classic, very vinous for the vintage, with a sparky freshness to the aromatics. Plump on the palate with soft, yielding tannins, no hard...

Some high-toned elements to the fruit, lavender and stewed plums. Very smooth and gentle on the palate, full-bodied with fine tannins. This has a good...

A very stylish Châteauneuf - pure, almost aerial black cherry fruit with raspberry and raspberry leaf. A smooth and silky style with a lovely finesse...

Bonfire ash and oregano, dusty blackberry and plum fruit. This is broad on the tongue, plenty of fat with acidity that is good and balanced....

Dark and brooding aromatics, star anise and clove. This has a full-bodied, generous and muscular palate. The alcohol is high, but so is everything else...

A soft and yielding style of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, relatively medium-bodied with no excess alcohol, body or alcohol. The herbal stemmy element is well integrated now. On...

Blackberry, blueberry, damson; complexity of fruit and some higher-toned floral hints like violets. Very smooth, like a calm pond, serine. Great tannic finesse, but they'll...

A savoury, dark, brooding style that's introspective for now. Tannic, but with good energy and tension. Tannins are pretty brusque, but should soften in time....

Slightly smoky, with some woody herbs running through the fresh berry fruit. Full-bodied, mouthfilling, sumptuous, opulent and rich fruit with a savoury edge. Very ripe...

Medium to full-bodied, it has concentrated dark fruit, blackcurrant and blackberry, a good sense of lift and enough freshness at its core. Plentiful ripe tannins,...

Measured, not overly fat or alcoholic for the vintage with a dry, elegant, gathered finish. This is a stylish, balanced, harmonious style of Châteauneuf -...

This is interesting and different. Sage, raspberry, redcurrant and marjoram – heavy stem influence. Only medium-bodied, a very reserved, diminutive style with fresh granular tannins....