Top-scoring wines of 2022: 100-point wines

One of two Allegrini wines making their debut on the Place de Bordeaux this year. From an 8ha vineyard at 415m. Richly scented on the nose with a beautiful nuance to the dark fruits, floral scents and sweet spices, all melding together. The texture is so appealing, rich yet smooth and silky, dominating the palate with the flavours of stewed blackcurrants, coffee beans, orange rind, slightly bitter medicinal herbs, juicy balsamic peppery fruit and a beguiling saltiness. It's enveloping in the best way, but still juicy and lively, really leaves a lingering impression on the palate, an absolute lifeforce. Tannins are on the chewy and grippy side, coating the mouth and tongue but the presentation of the flavours is so precise and detailed. This is amazingly good with excellent freshness throughout. 5% Oseleta completes the blend. Ageing 48 months in French oak barriques, 6 months in Slavonian oak. First vintage was 2011 with no 2014 made.

Deep layers of gravelly, alluvial loam soils in the 36.4ha Beckstoffer To Kalon vineyard play a critical factor in the low pH levels from Cabernet grapes harvested here, says winemaker Jean Hoefliger. Utterly expressive black cherry and blackberry fruit finds nuanced tobacco and cedar, alongside dried rose petal aromas.A pillar of restraint, this is an elegant side of Beckstoffer To Kalon, with pure and vivid red- and black-toned fruit, ultra fine-grained cedar-rich tannins framed by a lively acidity. Brightens tremendously over several hours, revealing classic graphite, blackberry and black cherry notes layered with baking spices and crushed stones.

Superb nose mingling leather, ripe fruit, herbs, spices, menthol, and a hint of graphite and flowers. The velvety yet sharply defined mouthfeel is juicy and fresh. Aeration gives a Burgundian resonance to this emotionally thrilling wine still in fine form that deserves to be sipped like a fine liqueur.

A strong nose full of iodine, blood - so Lafleur in the aromatics - earthy, salted caramel, salted chocolate and red fruit. An animal savouriness to the palate, tannins are firm and filling great giving structure. There is some juiciness with lots of coffee, truffle, leather, cedar, tobacco and hints of ash. Exuberant still, quite charged, open and generous with baked and dried cherry and plum fruit. Characterful and nuanced, this is a big wine that has lost some of its easy fruity appeal and has become really quite savoury. I had very high hopes for this wine having never tasted it before, and having read some excellent comments from those who have, but this bottle lacked a touch more finesse and overall star quality that I was expecting.

Just over a third of the harvest made it into the grand vin to give a wine of startling concentration and purity, with lovely, forward cassis fruit and a hint of spice on the attack. The texture is fresh but not overly tannic, and there is a surprisingly sweet, silky feel cloaking the powerful extract. Best to wait another decade before trying this, but it will last a half-century beyond that. Moderate temperatures followed a flowering disrupted slightly by cool weather and rain. The summer was dry and sunny, if somewhat cool. The Merlot was picked beginning on the 20th of September and the Cabernet 4th of October. The final blend is just over 90% Cabernet Sauvignon with most of the balance being Merlot.

Although picked on the same day, the reserved Romanée-Conti is evolving differently than the explosive La Tâche. Tasted out of barrel, the wine was perfection itself, forward and lush, with aromas ranging from high-toned red fruit to plums and figs, shaded by menthol, mineral, and earth notes. None of that has disappeared, but the ensemble is less forward than it was from barrel, and the wine seems to be going quiet, although on the palate, the enormous extract, density, and well-managed tannins are all still in evidence. It will undoubtedly be worth the wait.

This is an intense, concentrated, delicious wine. The colour is concentrated, and the nose has much more primary fruit than the 1979, with notes of fresh blackberry, although there are also notes of prune and raisin. There are also developed notes of smoke, earth and leather, but they do not dominate the wine. There is still surprising density, length and, yes, tannin. The wine opened incredibly with time in the glass. At more than 50 years of age, there is amazing potential for further cellaring. Superb.

To attempt to describe the aroma, star anise and sandalwood would be suitable descriptors - but this is so pure and harmonious that this really smells of nothing other than itself. Perfectly weighted, perfectly balanced, with the most incredibly elegant tannins. This wine gave me goosebumps to taste, it’s hauntingly beautiful, the soul of Côte-Rôtie in a glass. It has everything you could hope for in a Côte-Rôtie, it’s pure perfection. It's rare for young wines to deliver such emotion.

A new addition to the Place de Bordeaux this year - the eponymous project of husband and wife duo; viticulturist Annie Favia and winemaker Andy Erickson. A beautifully scented nose full of rose and violet touches, the Cabernet Franc nuances leap from the glass - fresh and minty, full of herbal sun-kissed ripe fruit but pristinely delivered. Smooth and driving on the palate, crunchy, crisp flavours give a real bite to the palate - red berries, blackcurrants and raisins, all nicely integrated and balanced. This doesn't feel super worked and polished, instead it gives crystalline iron-minerality, lifted acidity and fragrance throughout - real signatures of the terroir and the minimal interventionist winemaking style - the grapes speak more than the winemaking. I just love the sense of wildness, a smoked touch with blue fruits, Asian spices and slightly angular tannins but with ripe fruit giving the body and cool acidity giving the freshness. A stunning wine and welcome addition to the Place. Ageing in French oak barrels (50% new).

Mocha notes on the nose, coffee, cola, vanilla, cinnamon and pink flowers. Fresh with a tannic hold, ample, massy and fleshy but with such clear definition - tannins are mouthfilling but detailed and nuanced so you feel the precision going on as well as the flavours themselves. Feels extremely well worked, all in its place. I love the chewiness, the concentrated ripeness and overall 'in your face' expression because you feel the detail behind it as well as the nuance ranging from primary blueberry, cherry and blackcurrant fruit to more tertiary elements of tobacco, coffee beans, leather, sweet exotic spices and peppery tones. It's lifted and sophisticated, powerful but poised. What a wine! Amazing potential here. It gives you the chills tasting a wine like this. From vines at 450m on schist-based Galestro soils.

Tasted with winemaker Cory Empting and director of winegrowing Bob Levy at Harlan Estate. Fresh and approachable, with the elegance and structural integrity to last four or five decades, possibly longer. On the nose, beautiful upfront savouriness reveals cassis notes, cigar box and black olive followed by ripe, fresh black and blue fruit. Mesmerizing depth of flavours, with beautiful creamy black and red berries and a deep vein of earthy minerality. Tannins are angular with impressive grip, while acids are firm and refreshing. The finish is offers nuanced black currants, dark chocolate, enticing tobacco and cedar.

A meaty, savoury, spiced nose, something so welcoming about it, warm and friendly with a touch of perfume, dark chocolate, cinnamon and pink peppercorn to the blackcurrant, damsons and plums. Rich, ample and generous, yet delivered with such supple and velvety-soft tannins. This has an elegance to it, a cool sophistication in terms of the profile - neat and tidy, quite linear right now, brimming with energy, not yet fully expansive or loose, but quietly controlled and calm. It's confident though with invigorating acidity and I love the focus, detail and the purity of fruit. Sweet red fruits - strawberries, raspberries and red cherries with a slight balsamic, pomegranate edge that is so delicious. Juicy, crunchy, succulent and ripe but with an effortless edge to it. Supremely drinkable and likeable - what a gorgeous wine! A quality vintage and excellent winemaking skill on show. Ageing 18 months in French oak.

<p>From the Beckstoffer To Kalon vineyard, blocks C, D and E. Each block is fermented separately in a mix of oak, stainless steel and concrete before blending and maturation. Compact and tight aromas of rich black fruits, savoury herbs, olive tapenade and rich cedar spice. A ripe, vibrant palate leads the delineated layers of ripe blackberry, blueberry, mint, chocolate and brown baking spices. A rich tapestry of tannins are bolstered by firm acids. Plenty of power with a building energy.</p>

The term 'vecchie viti' is not officially recognised by the law but is displayed on some labels to indicate the use of old vines - here in Pajé, the average age of the vines is 80 to 90 years old. This Barbaresco shows impressive fruit concentration. The nose is savoury, with rhubarb, liquorice and cinnamon, accompanied by subtle blood orange and wild strawberry. Parma violet, cinnamon and some bloody notes introduce extremely fresh red currants. Velvety and ripe, the tannins are as much extracted as they are soaked with blood orange flavour, integrated with lifted acidity and leading to a vibrant briny finish.

The black label ('etichetta nera') from Pira is a Barolo Riserva, and this 2006 is the latest release. Muscular and reductive at first, it is focused on mineral tones of savoury rhubarb, clay and pot-pourri allied to cinnamon, wild strawberry and blood orange flavours. The structure is firm, with silky tannins of the greatest refinement melded with crisp acidity and impressive concentration. A high-flying vintage and an outstanding Barolo chiselled to perfection.

Power and intensity balanced by so much freshness, tension and energy – quite remarkable. Aromas lead with beautifully delineated black and blue fruits, pops of red berries, coupled with fresh violets and rose petals, black liquorice and sagebrush. Broad and mouthfilling with a lovely mid-palate density and ultra-fine-grained tannins that are rounded, long, and focused. Perfectly complete with a long finish punctuated by chaparral, dried herbs and spearmint. Shows the trademark freshness and depth that Screaming Eagle wines offer year after year.

Owner Stefano Frascolla describes 2019 as 'a dream vintage' and describes how the vines 'underwent all the stages of their phenolic development at the optimum times.' For me, the 2019 Redigaffi is a wine of sublime harmony and balance and it reminds me very much of the 2016. It is absolutely brimming with ripe black cherry, cream and blackcurrant flavours encased in compact, super-fine tannins that are firm yet so elegant and refined. Energetic and vivacious in character, it is still not completely formed but has all the ingredients for a great future.

The 2016 Redigaffi is a wine of exquisite harmony and balance. It is still a wine I love. For Frascolla, '2016 was very, very good and one of the greatest vintages in the last 10 years.' Summer was sunny but temperate and ripening was long and slow, lasting until the first week of September. The wine has very vibrant, clearly delineated aromas of smoke, spice, tar and ripe blackcurrant, with fragrant and delicate yet precise scents of violet and wild flowers. There's a lovely, vivid freshness on the finish and the tannins are seamlessly integrated into the wine - perfectly extracted and perfectly ripe. It flows beautifully across the palate and it still feels so young.

Fresh, enticing aromas of sappy red and black fruits, leather, sandalwood, cassis, violets and sweet cedar. Gorgeous on entry, brimming with elegance in its finely delineated fruit notes that lead with blackberry, and black cherry morphing into tangy red fruit and currants. Featherweight fine-grained tannins are almost powdery; a wealth of savoury mineral character floods the mid-palate like liquified granite. And it keeps giving, revealing wild herbs, sagebrush, bittersweet chocolate and brown spices. One of the more elegant 2019 Napa Cabs in this concentrated, dark-fruited vintage, with beautiful structure and a freshness that remains present in every single sip.

Harvested quite early on 15th September, Christian Seely describes this as ‘one of the greatest Nacionals we have ever produced’. Still closed in on the nose but with an intense vinous purity and definition that would be hard to match. Beautifully defined and wonderfully fresh, wild berry with great poise and finesse, tight-knit tannins rising in the mouth, structured, massively powerful on the finish yet so very elegant too. Perfect Port!