Subscriber bonus episode

Summary

A privileged tasting of 100-point wines gets us thinking about scores, so-called perfection in wine, the risks of premature evaluation and how points for wine…somehow miss the point.

First up – the wines: Cristal 2008, Pichon Lalande 2016, Ornellaia 2013, Diamond Creek Volcanic Hill 2013 and Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial Blanco 1986.

We report on these and other stellar bottles, all of them recipients of a ‘perfect’ 100-point score.

But here’s the thing.

What does ‘100 points’ mean these days?

How valid are such scores, which seem to be everywhere in wine, as endless tasting notes and numbers are churned out on a seemingly constant basis?

What are the pros and cons?

Is it time for a reset, starting with the 100-point system itself?!

In this discursive episode, we subject not only these supposedly spectacular wines but also scores (and ourselves) to unflinching assessment.

Peter gets hot under the collar about Bordeaux En Primeur; Susie has to intervene. 

We weigh up scores in a public and personal context.

But, lest you fear this is all a bit po-faced, we also touch on the magic of discovery, not entirely serious ‘anti-scoring’ wine rating scales and the importance of wines that make you smile…as indeed some of these bottles definitely did.

Links

• Shortly before we published this episode, Jancis Robinson explored the issue of scores in her Financial Times column (republished on her website). Her piece focuses more on the technical reasons why the same wine might taste different, and thus receive varying scores. But there’s definite overlap with this episode. Do check her article out, it’s free to read on her website: When the Same Wine Tastes Different

Wines

These are the wines featured in this episode, following a stellar ‘100-point’ tasting by UK importers and distributors Maisons Marques et Domaines on 10th March 2026.

• Roederer Estate, L’Ermitage 2019, 12.9%
• Champagne Louis Roederer, Cristal Brut 2008, 12%
• Domaine Faiveley, Mazis Chambertin Grand Cru 2022, 13.5%
• Château Pichon-Longueville, Comtesse de Lalande 2022, 13.65%
• Château Pichon-Longueville, Comtesse de Lalande 2016, 13.32%
• Luce della Vite, Brunello di Montalcino 2010, 15%
• Ornellaia, ‘L’Eleganza’, Bolgheri Superiore 2013, 14.5%
• Delas Frères, Hermitage Les Bessards 2009, 14%
• Diamond Creek Estate, Volcanic Hill 2013, 14.5%
• Marqués de Murrieta, Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial 2012, 14%
• Marqués de Murrieta, Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial Blanco 1986, 13.5%

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