Comptoir des Millésimes presents 100 top-rated French wines of the 2018 vintage. This ranking of the best wines of the 2018 vintage is based on the scores awarded by Robert Parker Wine Advocat. in the vineyards of Bordeaux, Burgundy and the Rhône Valley. You'll find information on the different appellations and the quality of the wine produced in the 2018 vintage. We also offer you our selection, by region and appellation, of the finest successes of this astonishing vintage. If you're looking for vins de garde 2018you're sure to find what you're looking for.
THE 100 BEST FRENCH WINES OF MILLESIME 2018
TOP SAINT-ÉMILION 2018
- Ausone (98 – 100)
- Cheval Blanc (97 – 99)
- Angelus (97 – 100)
- Pavie (97 – 100)
- Belair Monange (97 – 99)
- Canon (97 – 99)
- Figeac (97 – 99)
- Le Dome (97 - 99)
- Larcis Ducasse (96 – 98)
- Pavie Decesse (96 – 98)
- Beausejour (Duffau Lagarrosse) (95 – 97)+
- Péby Faugères (95 – 97)+
- Valandraud (95 – 97)+
- Beau-Sejour Becot (95 – 97)
- Bellevue Mondotte (95 - 97)
TOP POMEROL 2018
- Petrus (98 – 100)
- Lafleur (97 – 100)
- Old Chateau Certan (97 – 100)
- Trotanoy (97 – 99)+
- The Gospel (97 – 99)
- Le Pin (97 - 99)
- La Conseillante (96 – 98)+
- Clinet Church (96 – 98)
TOP MARGAUX 2018
- Château Margaux (97 – 100)
- Rauzan-Ségla (97 – 99)+
- Palmer (97 – 99)
TOP SAINT-ESTÈPHE 2018
- Cos d'Estournel (97 – 100)
- Calon-Ségur (96 – 98)
- Montrose (96 – 98)
TOP PESSAC-LÉOGNAN 2018
- The Haut-Brion Mission (98 – 100)
- Haut-Brion (97 – 99)+
- Smith Haut Lafitte (97 – 99)+
- Haut-Bailly (96 – 98)+
- Pape Clement (96 – 98)
TOP PAUILLAC 2018
- Lafite Rothschild (98 – 100)
- Latour (98 – 100)
- Mouton Rothschild (97 – 99)+
- Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande (97 – 99)
- Pichon-Longueville Baron (97 – 99)
- Pontet-Canet (97 – 99)
- Lynch Bages (96 – 98)
> See the cellar of Pauillac 2018 <
TOP SAINT-JULIEN 2018
- Léoville Las Cases (98 – 100)
- Ducru-Beaucaillou (97 – 99)
Best Rhône Valley wines 2018
Find out more about our Chateauneuf du Pape 2018 in stock.
- Chateau de Beaucastel Chateauneuf du Pape Tribute to Jacques Perrin (98 - 100)
- Guigal Cote Rotie La Landonne (98 - 100)
- Guigal Cote Rotie La Mouline (98 - 100)
- Guigal Cote Rotie La Turque (98 - 100)
- Jean-Paul & Corinne Jamet Cote Rotie Cote Brune (98 - 100)
- Mr Chapoutier Hermitage l'Ermite (98 - 100)
- M. Chapoutier Ermitage l'Ermite Blanc (98 - 100)
- Paul Jaboulet Aine Hermitage La Chapelle (98 - 100)
- Chave Hermitage (97 - 100)
- M. Chapoutier Ermitage le Méal Blanc (97 - 99)
- René Rostaing Cote Rotie la Cote Blonde (97 - 99)
- Jean-Paul & Corinne Jamet Cote Rotie La Landonne (96 - 99)
- René Rostaing Cote Rotie Cote Brune (96 - 99)
- Chapel of St. Theodoric Chateauneuf du Pape La Guigasse (96 - 98)
- Chateau de Saint Cosme Gigondas le Poste (96 - 98)
- Domaine Grand Veneur- Alain Jaume Chateauneuf du Pape Vieilles Vignes (96 - 98)
- Domaine Saint-Prefert Chateauneuf du Pape Collection Charles Giraud (96 - 98)
- Domaine Santa Duc Chateauneuf du Pape Le Pied de Baud (96 - 98)
- Domaine Stéphane Ogier Cote Rotie La Cote Blonde (96 - 98)
- Domaine des Bosquets Chateauneuf du Pape le Castellas (96 - 98)
- Guigal Ermitage Ex Voto (96 - 98)
- Le Clos du Caillou Chateauneuf du Pape La Reserve (96 - 98)
- M. Chapoutier Ermitage de l'Orée (96 - 98)
- M. Chapoutier Ermitage le Méal (96 - 98)
- M. Chapoutier Ermitage le Pavillon (96 - 98)
- Marc Sorrel Hermitage Blanc Les Rocoules (96 - 98)
- Marc Sorrel Hermitage Le Greal (96 - 98)
- Pierre Gonon Saint Joseph Vieilles Vignes (96 - 98)
- Rene Rostaing Cote Rotie la Landonne (96 - 98)
- Benjamin and David Duclaux Cote Rotie Unnamed Cuvée (95 - 98)
- Domain Raymond Usseglio Chateauneuf du Pape la Part des Anges (95 - 98)
- Domaine du Tunnel (Stéphane Robert) Cornas Pur Noir (95 - 98)
- M. Chapoutier Cote Rotie Neve (95 - 98)
- Delas Frères Hermitage Domaine des Tourettes White 96+
- Chateau de Beaucastel Chateauneuf du Pape (95 - 97)
- Chateau de Saint Cosme Gigondas le Claux (95 - 97)
- Chave Hermitage Blanc (95 - 97)
Best Burgundy wines 2018
Find on the site our wines of Chablis 2018 , Meursault 2018 and Gevrey Chambertin 2018.
- Domaine Dugat-Py Chambertin Grand Cru (96 - 98)+
- Domaine Georges Roumier Musigny Grand Cru (96 - 98)+
- Armand Rousseau Chambertin-Clos de Bèze Grand Cru (96 - 98)
- Domaine Claude Dugat Griotte-Chambertin Grand Cru (96 - 98)
- Domaine Arnoux-Lachaux Romanée-Saint-Vivant Grand Cru 97
- Domaine Henri Boillot Montrachet Grand Cru 97
- Domaine Hubert Lamy Criots-Bâtard-Montrachet Grand Cru Haut Densité (96 - 98)
- Domaine Mugneret-Gibourg Clos Vougeot Grand Cru (96 - 98)
- Domaine Méo-Camuzet Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Au Cros-Parantoux (96 - 98)
- Domaine des Comtes Lafon Montrachet Grand Cru (96 - 98)
- Domaine du Comte Liger-Belair La Romanée Grand Cru (96 - 98)
- Armand Rousseau Chambertin Grand Cru (95 - 97)+
- Domaine Alain Hudelot-Noëllat Richebourg Grand Cru (95 - 97)+
- Domaine Cécile Tremblay Chapelle-Chambertin Grand Cru (95 - 97)+
- Domaine Dugat-Py Mazis-Chambertin Grand Cru (95 - 97)+
- Domaine Georges Roumier Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru (95 - 97)+
- Domaine Jacques-Frédéric Mugnier Musigny Grand Cru Vieilles Vignes (95 - 97)+
- Louis Jadot Musigny Grand Cru (Domaine Louis Jadot) (95 - 97)+
- Armand Rousseau Chambertin Grand Cru (95 - 97)+
- Armand Rousseau Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Clos Saint-Jacques (95 - 97)
You now know the 100 top-rated wines by Parker & the Wine Advocate for the 2018 vintage. Please check back for updates. The 2018 wine scores are not set in stone. They will be updated shortly. Keep up to date with wine news on Comptoir des Millésimes, your online wine merchant and vintage wines.
2018 WINE REVIEW
Autumn is harvest season in the northern hemisphere. Most French winegrowers are delighted with this time of year. vintage 2018We hope that this will not be a repeat of 2017, which was a very difficult year. This year 2018, in addition to winning the World Cup, France is also one of the big winners of the world harvest competition. The further north you go, the more beautiful the grapes. Volumes produced were well above those of 2017. Ideal conditions for full ripening, grapes of fantastic quality.
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BORDEAUX
The 2018 vintage is unlike any other. At the same time, every vintage is different, but this one has character and has managed to get through a very complicated start to the season for the winegrowers. For almost 6 months, Bordeaux estates endured uninterrupted downpours. While this is good news for the subsoils, which have been able to fill up with water, it's a completely different story for the health of the vines, which will have to cope with high humidity in their rows. It was at this precise moment that mildew appeared and devastated part of the vineyard. Some châteaux even lost up to half their vines.
But then, Mother Nature doing things right, everything went back to normal from mid-July onwards, with the sun making its grand return and almost never leaving the vineyard again. The vines had all the climatic conditions required to produce a super vintage. Warm days, cool nights and a reserve of water under their feet to self-manage against the hydric stress of an overly insistent sun. Both banks of the river managed the hot summer rather well, even if some of the Chateau wines did reach relatively high alcohol levels. The 2018 vintage should therefore be ranked alongside the 2005, 2009, 2010, 2015 and 2016 as one of the very good vintages of the century. With a slight preference for the Left Bank, and more specifically for the Pessac Léognan and Margaux appellations, which, unlike the wines a little further north, managed the peaks of high heat better. The Cabernet Sauvignon grapes, which love this type of weather, have reached extreme maturity, adding that little something extra to the Merlot to create some magnificent blends. As for the right bank, it's also doing very well. Whether in Pomerol or Saint-Emilion, the wines are more powerful, with more tannin than usual. That's why you'll need to be a little more patient than usual to enjoy these wines, and let the velvety, round flavors take their place in the bottle.
The same is true of the white wines. The Sauvignon grapes have reached excellent ripeness, with notes of citrus and exotic fruit, the sign of a complete vegetative cycle. The same goes for the sweet wines, which are well-balanced and full-bodied without being overly sweet. A great success here too.
If you'd like to taste a few bottles from this fine 2018 vintage, here's a small, non-exhaustive selection.
Saint-Emilion Grand Cru - Château Mangot 2018 : Château Mangot is a wonderful discovery. The Todeschini family cultivates the property's 34 hectares of vines in a traditional but exacting manner. The aim is to retain the aromatic power of Merlot while preserving tension and minerality.
Pauillac - Château Lynch Bages 2018 : We no longer present this 1855 Grand Cru Classé. Often one of the last to be harvested. The wine has retained its character of yesteryear. Character and power combine here with finesse and elegance. The hallmark of great wines.
Pessac Léognan - Château Latour Martillac 2018: A great classic of the appellation, Château Léognan delights us with its ripe Cabernet grapes, which give the wine great density. Rated 93-95/100 by Parker, this is our best value in the Pessac Léognan appellation.
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BOURGOGNE of 2018
The 2018 vintage has put a smile back on the faces of all Burgundy winegrowers. Climatologically speaking, Burgundy is in the same frame of mind as Bordeaux. A period of heavy rain will dampen the vines and encourage the development of disease. This time, however, our Burgundian friends will be lucky enough not to be overly affected by mildew or other diseases. There will be little or no hail or frost this spring, which will also be good news for our winegrowers, who won't have to battle against the cold for hours on end. Then, the fine weather will make its appearance, and as in much of France, the vines will soak up the sun to reach a very interesting alcoholic and phenolic ripeness, even rarely achieved. The 2018 vintage is considered to be one of the three finest Pinot Noir years of the millennium. When it comes to sunshine and heatwave years, the northernmost Pinot Noirs are the ones to go for. We immediately think of the Côte-de-Nuit wines, which reach fantastic ripeness. Powerful tannins and well-developed aromas herald great ageing potential for these red wines.
However, be careful when selecting these vignerons, as some of them have opted for higher yields, even if this means sacrificing quality and concentration. In Côte de Beaune, the reds are pleasant. They retain their aromatic power and greediness without excess. Here too, the choice of winemakers is important to ensure that freshness and acidity don't take over at the expense of deliciousness. The 2018 vintage was therefore a very good one, allowing the winemaker to take a breather. Not too much stress from disease, not too intense a frost and a harvest that went perfectly with quality and yield. A perfect year!
Unfortunately, when a year is great for Pinot Noir, it means that too much sun won't produce a great white vintage. Winegrowers must therefore strike a balance between fruit and freshness, without harvesting too early, at the risk of not achieving the necessary maturity. Not an easy year for whites, but one that still leaves room for some fine successes. Here too, you'll have to be selective in your choice of wine. In the Chablis region, the year was decent, and the best winemakers succeeded in producing good quality wines. The same goes for Mâconnais and Chardonnays, which are not lacking in substance or freshness. On the other hand, for the whites of the Côte de Nuit and Côte de Beaune, it looks more complicated to offer white wine lovers balanced wines. The hot weather will exacerbate the acidity deficit, resulting in heavier, more full-bodied wines. And even if winemakers decide to harvest earlier to preserve freshness in their wines, the result will be a lack of substance and fruit.
Here too we have a selection of great finds for you:
Nuits Saint Georges 1er Cru Rue de Chaux 2018 - Dominique Laurent : A long-standing partner, Dominique Laurent has taken advantage of this superb vintage to offer us a powerful, racy Nuits Saint Georges. Not to be opened before 2028 with fine meat.
Morey Saint Denis Vieille Vigne 2018 by Alain Jeanniard : A winemaker for over 20 years, Alain Jeanniard advocates viticulture that has no impact on nature, and produces healthy wines. His Pinot Noir is grown on his 7 hectares of vines and produces fine, delicate wines with a slightly animal finish.
Chambertin Grand Cru - Domaine Trapet : We're lucky enough to have a few bottles from one of the appellation's finest wine estates. The estate is rated 95-97/100 on this 2018 vintage, which you'll have to wait years to open. Power, complexity and minerality. That's what characterizes it.
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RHÔNE in 2018
Once again, the Northern and Southern segmentation of the Rhone Valley should be taken into account when buying wine for the 2018 vintage. Although the quality of white wines remains similar, with fruity, fleshy wines of great complexity, these are best enjoyed young, lacking the tension to push the ageing process. It's the red wines where the difference is most obvious. Although both are of excellent quality, the two regions did not really experience the same summer.
In the northern Rhône Valley, everything went magnificently well. The region benefited from the same weather as Bordeaux, i.e. abundant rainfall in the spring, without suffering any major attacks of mildew. Water reserves were sufficient to withstand the very hot summer weather, giving the grapes the chance to reach the ripeness they so desperately needed. As a result, very high quality Syrah grapes will return to the cellars very ripe, but without excess and above all with volume. A magnificent year for our winegrowing friends. All the red appellations are top-notch, from Côte-Rôties to Hermitage and Cornas. The wines are powerful and well-structured, made for long ageing.
Unfortunately, it's not the same story in the southern Rhône Valley. Here, the vineyards were unable to cope with the heavy downy mildew caused by heavy rains, and many owners lost almost all their grapes. Some very large estates will not be releasing a 2018 vintage. As for the other estates that will be lucky enough not to be affected by the disease, the grapes are of good quality. Admittedly, phenolic ripeness is a little lower, but the wines are aromatic, opulent and will appeal when young. As you can see, if you want Rhône wines for laying down, you'll have to go north, and if you want to enjoy wines more quickly, you'll have to go south. One thing is certain, the 2018 vintage is a very good one throughout the region, with a few twists and turns left and right.
Here too we have a selection of wines just for you.
Crozes Hermitage - Au fil du temps 2018 - Emmanuel Darnaud : It all began just 20 years ago at Crozes Hermitage, and since then the domaine has continued to grow and progress. All parcels are cultivated and vinified separately to extract the most precise expression of terroir. A superb Syrah to enjoy with duck breast or fine red meat.
Côte-Rôtie - Ampodium 2018 - Domaine Rostaing : This is an estate like no other. The distinctive feature of this estate is the search for finesse and delicacy where we're not supposed to find it. Wait a few years to taste this Côte-Rôtie and you'll understand what the word velour means.
Châteauneuf du Pape - Les Quartz 2018 - Domaine du Caillou : It's not necessarily the best-known Châteauneuf du Pape, and so much the better, as it makes more for us, even if each year the production of this powerful wine is confidential.
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AND OTHER FRENCH APPELLATIONS?
One year follows another and no two are alike. Even if it has to be said, the winegrowers of Loire for the third year running, will have complications in their vineyards.
The region has not been spared heavy rainfall, so the outbreak of mildew will have an impact on wine quality and yields. Fortunately, the summer was hot and dry, allowing the vines to catch up and produce wines of good quality.
If you're looking for powerful reds, we recommend Chinon and Bourgeuil. If you're looking for finesse, go for Saumur-Champigny.
Visit AlsaceThe 2018 vintage is of very good quality, even if you'll have to focus on white wines rather than Pinot Noir. Once again, we'll need to be vigilant in our choice of wines, as some winemakers have focused more on yield than quality.
For the Champagne 2018 was also a good year, and perhaps even an excellent one for properties that don't go looking for too much volume. Some of the Chardonnays will be fleshier, but the Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier are high-flying.