90-92/100 Punkte Robert Parker Oct 2015
Looking at the wines, and a new release for this estate, the 2014 Châteauneuf du Pape La Belle Voyageuse is made from 90% Grenache, 4% Mourvedre, 4% Syrah and a splash of Counoise and Vaccarese that was raised mostly in stainless steel tanks, with 15% of the blend aged in barrel. Due to the forward nature of the vintage, this cuvée functions as a second wine and is made in a more forward, charming style than the more structured and serious La Reine des Bois release. Nevertheless, while a second wine for this estate, it#s still a huge success in the vintage and offers youthful, forward, and jammy notes of cassis, sappy flowers, violets and graphite to go with a mouth filling, medium to full-bodied style the palate. It has plenty of mid-palate depth, chewy tannin on the finish, and is already hard to resist. Nevertheless, I suspect it will have upwards of a decade of longevity.

92/100 Punkte Wine Spectator Sept 2016
Ripe and mouthfilling in feel, with a core of juicy raspberry pâte de fruit and plum cake flavors kept lively by anise and violet notes. Delivers energetic, brambly structure through the finish. Best from 2017 through 2024.

95/100 Punkte Falstaff, März 2018
Dunkles Rubingranat, violette Reflexe, zarte Randaufhellung. Mit feiner Kräuterwürze unterlegtes dunkles Beerenkonfit, Nuancen von Kirschen, ein Hauch von Edelholz un Tabak, mineralische Nuancen. Stoffig, gute Extraktsüße, Herzkirschentouch, gut integrierte Tannine, angenehm strukturiert, etwas Nougat im Nachhall bereits antrinkbar, mit gutem Potenzial ausgestattet.

93100 Robert Parker, October 2017
Richly concentrated and velvety in texture, the 2015 Chateauneuf du Pape La Reine des Bois is a full-bodied blend of 80% Grenache, 10% Mourvèdre, 5% Syrah and 5% split between Vaccarese and Counoise. While it's not the greatest vintage of this wine, it's still terrific, marrying plummy, black cherry fruit with a dusting of baking spices and Provençal herbs, finishing long and plush.

94/100 Punkte Wine Spectator Nov 30, 2018
Dark and winey, featuring ripe waves of warm, steeped fig, boysenberry and plum fruit rolling through, inlaid with roasted apple wood, tobacco and dark earth details. Displays heft through the finish, with a slightly toothy plum skin edge, but the density and drive is there. Best from 2020 through 2035.

90-93/100 Punkte October 2016
Leading off the Châteauneuf du Papes and made from younger vines, with the goal to drink well in its youth, the Grenache-dominated 2015 Châteauneuf du Pape La Belle Voyageuse (there's 4% each of Syrah and Mourvèdre, with a tiny splash of Counoise and Vaccarèse) sports a vibrant ruby/purple color as well as lively notes of raspberries, bouquet garni, spice box, dried soil and flowers. Medium to full-bodied, supple and elegant on the palate, it's a much more upfront, mid-weight effort compared to the more concentrated, structured Reine des Bois cuvée. It should drink nicely on release and over the following decade.

93/100 Punkte Wine Spectator Nov 30, 2018
Intense, featuring lively licorice and plum reduction notes leading the way, followed by fruitcake, raspberry pâte de fruit and sweet tobacco flavors. Shows excellent drive and focus through the finish, with a nice graphite edge. Best from 2020 through 2030.

98/100 Punkte Robert Parker Oktober 2018
The 2016 Chateauneuf du Pape La Reine des Bois is a monumental effort. Packed and dense, full-bodied and richly tannic, it's completely absorbed the 30% oak. It's 80% Grenache, older vines from the lieux-dits of La Crau and La Nerthe. Blueberries, licorice and Mexican chocolate are carried on a velvety mouthfeel through an indelibly long finish. It's a tour de force, so young, but so tempting. Tasted three times, with consistent notes.

96/100 Punkte Vinous April 2018
Deep vivid ruby. A highly perfumed bouquet displays ripe red and blue fruit preserve, incense, garrigue and cola aromas complicated by a vibrant mineral quality that gains strength as the wine opens up. Sweet, seamless and broad in the mouth, offering impressively concentrated Chambord, boysenberry, floral pastille and spicecake flavors that show superb clarity and lift. The blue fruit and floral notes power a strikingly long, spicy finish that's shaped by rounded, even tannins. This wine's marriage of heft to finesse is really impressive.

94/100 Punkte Robert Parker October 2018
Potent and intense, the 2016 Chateauneuf du Pape La Dame Voyageuse is a rich, dramatic bottling, the best I've tasted under this label. It's approachable now, but smart money is on it aging well for at least a decade. It's full-bodied and supple, with concentrated blueberry, mulberry and plum fruit, hints of licorice, cola and braised meat and just a dusting of baking spices (10% of the blend aged in oak). Tasted three times, with consistent notes.

90/100 Punkte Vinous June 2017
Brilliant orange. Aromas of tangerine, strawberry and fresh flowers show very good clarity and a subtle mineral flourish. Juicy and sharply focused on the palate, offering sappy red berry flavors that put on weight with air. Fleshy, smooth and dry, finishing with tight focus and minerally persistence.

89/100 Punkte Robert Parker August 31, 2018
The medium-pink 2017 Cotes du Rhone Rose La Dame Rousse is another top example of this cuvée. It offers raspberry, pear and melon flavors, a plump, medium-bodied mouthfeel and a long, citrusy finish. Crisp and clean, it should be consumed over the next several months.

93/100 Punkte Robert Parker October 2017
The 2015 Lirac La Reine des Bois continues this estate's mastery of the appellation, combining hints of vanilla with black cherry fruit in a full-bodied, richly textured and tannic wine. The blend is 40% Syrah, 30% Grenache and 30% Mourvèdre, with up to 15% being aged in barriques. Longtime readers will be happy to know that the 2010 (still youthful) and the 2006 (nearing maturity) are drinking well. Based on that, expect this vintage to drink well through at least 2030.

93+/100 Punkte Robert Parker, October 2018
One-third each Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah, the 2016 Lirac La Reine des Bois continues this cuvée's tradition of overdelivering. Blueberry and mulberry fruit abound, dusted with cocoa and cinnamon. Full-bodied, rich and dense, it offers considerable aging potential, should you have the fortitude to resist it. It's juicy and long on the finish, where it picks up hints of licorice and baking spices. Tasted twice, with consistent notes.

91/100 Punkte Wine Spectator Nov 30, 2018
Enticingly ripe, with dense raspberry and blackberry paste flavors forming the core while light anise, sweet spice and toast notes fill in around it. A licorice edge takes center stage through the finish. For the hedonist crowd. Drink now through.

93/100 Punkte Robert Parker October 2017
The 2016 Tavel La Reine des Bois is among those at the very top of the appellation. It's full-bodied, ripe and rich, marrying ample fruit with complex spice notes and a wonderfully silky texture.

92/100 Vinous June 2017
Limpid orange. Vibrant and expressive on the nose, displaying cherry, blood orange and floral scents and a building mineral note. Sappy red currant and bitter cherry flavors flesh out slowly with air, picking up a hint of fennel on the back half. The finish hangs on with impressive tenacity, leaving behind bitter orange pith and cherry pit notes.

93/100 Punkte Robert Parker June 2018
Bold, intense and flavorful, the 2017 Tavel La Reine des Bois continues to set the standard for the appellation. It's a rich, full-bodied rosé, with lush, mouth-filling flavors of cherries, raspberries and white chocolate, underscored by lime zest and refreshing brine notes. The price is creeping up, but it remains a benchmark in terms of quality.

93/100 Punkte Vinous August 2018
Brilliant orange-pink. Displays heady, mineral-accented raspberry, cherry and blood orange scents, with a suave floral accent that builds in the glass. Sappy and concentrated yet energetic as well, offering palate-staining red fruit, citrus zest and lavender pastille flavors and a hint of fennel. Shows real power and red fruit-driven character on the finish, which hangs on with impressive tenacity. I'd look at this rich, weighty Tavel more as a light red wine than a pink wine and serve it accordingly, with full-flavored, strongly seasoned, even earthy foods, perhaps even alongside grilled or braised red meat dishes.