1 | Wine | Saint Emilion, $20 to $50, 91 to 95

"A tasty, opulent 2005 from proprietress Helene Garcin, this sexy wine exhibits a dense ruby/purple color followed by a sweet bouquet of licorice, black cherries, blackberries, oak, and licorice. Medium to full-bodied, opulent, fleshy, and disarming, it will drink well in 2-3 years, and should age for 12-15." -Robert Parker

"Full-bodied in texture, it offers up loads of blueberry, blackberry and raspberry fruit intermixed with some cedar, vanilla and a touch of spring flowers. Impressively built, with good acidity and light tannin, this is a superb example of wine that reaches its prime in 3 or 4 years and lasts two decades. It’s right up there with their brilliant 2005." -Robert Parker

"Much like the 2010, this blend of 70% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 10% Cabernet Franc, with a little Malbec thrown in, exhibits a dark plum color and notes of raspberries, roasted herbs, incense, wet rocks and herbs. It is a medium-bodied, very evolved, elegant wine to drink over the next 8-9 years." Reviewed by Robert Parker.

"a stunningly concentrated wine with notes of crushed rock, blue and dark red/black fruits, some camphor, incense and, for lack of a better description, a smell of acacia flowers. A sexy, opulent and full-bodied wine that seems to have more in common with the 2009s than most 2010s, this wine can be drunk out of the gate, but will certainly hit its stride in 3-4 years and last for up to 15." -Robert Parker

"Very fresh, showing enticing plum, currant and boysenberry fruit, with lots of mouthwatering minerality and a long, spice-filled finish. Dense but pure. A suave wine in the making."

"This is nicely aromatic, with aromas of warm blueberry coulis and blackberry preserves stepping out ahead of chocolate, roasted alder, tobacco and charcoal notes. Offers lots of grippy structure with a briary edge, but stays juicy, compact and focused, so should cellar well."

"Concentrated black fruits intermixed with spring flowers, some high class, subtle toasty oak, graphite and a touch of blackberry and cassis all jump from the glass of this dense, full-bodied, formidably endowed, massive wine. It needs a good 5-7 years of cellaring. This could turn out to be one of the longest-lived wines ever made at Fonplegade, lasting 25-30 or more years." -Robert Parker

"The 2009 Fombrauge has the potential to be the finest wine ever made at this property. Michel Rolland is the consulting oenologist in the vineyard, which sits in the southern sector of St.-Emilion known as St.-Christophe des Bardes. It was picked very late in 2009, and the result is a powerhouse wine with an inky blue/purple color and the smell of pen ink, acacia flowers, blueberries, black raspberries and cassis. The wine hit 15% natural alcohol, which gives it lots of glycerin as well as a full-bodied intensity, while the low yields of 27 hectoliters per hectare have provided a striking level of concentration and length. This is very serious wine from an estate that is on the upswing. It should benefit from 3-5 years of cellaring and keep for two decades." Reviewed by Robert Parker.

"A fleshy, inviting style, with lots of crushed fig and steeped blackberry fruit woven with warmed cocoa and pain d'épices, all backed by a distinctly racy graphite note. Stays fleshy through the finish without being heavy."

"If you want to impress a friend with a pure, hedonistic St.-Emilion that also offers an intellectual challenge, the 2012 Croix de Labrie, a St.-Emilion fruit bomb, is the wine for you. Unfortunately, the 250-case production means this cuvee is limited in availability. Aromas of incense, Christmas fruitcake, Asian plum sauce, blackberries, licorice and truffles soar from the glass of this dense plum/purple-colored wine. Opulent, voluptuously textured and medium to full-bodied with no hard edges to be found, it will drink well for a decade after bottling." -Robert Paker