2018 Pavillon Blanc du Margaux, Bordeaux Blanc

This ripples with tension as the core of gooseberry, chalk, white asparagus and fleur de sel is chiseled and taut while the sides of the wine glisten with floral notes. There's a late flurry of thyme and tarragon for additional range and length, as if it needed any. About as pure and unencumbered an expression of a grape as you can get. (JM)

Easily one of the best whites that I have tried this year. It's extremely juicy, showing white pear and stone fruits on the nose, with lovely grip and a slatey texture on the palate that suggests minerality, although it doesn't quite have the mineral punch of 2017. It just gets and gets better and better in the glass - a delicious wine with the depth that you expect at this level. Harvest ran from 27 August to 31 September, yielding just 17hl/ha because of the mildew (the vines are 4km from the main estate and were worse affected). The ph is at 3.1, unchanged from last year, helped by the fact that they fraction the juice at Margaux, using just the first, freshest portion for their own wine and selling the rest in bulk. (JA)