Critic: Matt Walls

Tasted: 16-OCT-17

Drinking Dates: 2017-2028

Score: 98

A hot vintage in the Rhone, good in the north but even better in the South, particularly in Châteauneuf. Very much plum in colour, this has aromas of spices, sweet earth and a touch of black cherry amongst the strawberry and plum fruits. It's silky on the full-bodied palate, with sweet fruit and some gentle balsamic notes. It's remarkably tannic still for its age, with good acidity, and even at nearly 20 years of age nothing is sticking out or ungainly - it displays impressive balance.

Critic: Richard Hemming MW

Tasted: 10-OCT-17

Drinking Dates: 2005-2035

Score: 18

Chocolate, hay, coffee, cooked red fruit, wonderfully nuanced and perfumed with great persistence. The tannin is just right – firm and supportive, but not too grainy. Plenty of alcohol on the finish, but it stays in harmony. Masterful. (RH)

Critic: Jeff Leve

Tasted: 23-SEP-16

Drinking Dates: -

Score: 93

Elegant in style, there is good freshness to all the sweet, ripe, kirsch, cherries and black raspberries, accompanied by spice, herbs and black pepper aromatics. Medium bodied, silky and refined, this is already fully mature. There is no reason to hold it for further aging.

Critic: Jeb Dunnuck

Tasted: 28-AUG-15

Drinking Dates: 2015-2018

Score: 92

From a vintage called a "Grenache year" by Paul-Vincent, the 1998 Chateauneuf du Pape is atypically medium-bodied and supple, with an endearing, drink-me-now feel in its sweet fruits, cedar, spice, mint and charcuterie-laced aromas and flavors. Pretty, classy and balanced, it's another wine I'd lean toward drinking soon rather than later.

Critic: James Molesworth

Tasted: 30-SEP-07

Drinking Dates: -

Score: 96

Has a mature brick hint at the rim, but this is still very youthful, with an elegant, silky core of red and black currant fruit that holds the upper hand over the garrigue, graphite and licorice notes. The long, very fine-grained finish lets an alluring incense note peek in. A beauty, this is all about finesse and should cruise in the cellar.--1998 Châteauneuf-du-Pape retrospective. Drink now through 2027. 9,915 cases made. –JM

Critic: Stephen Tanzer

Tasted: 01-JAN-01

Drinking Dates: -

Score: 90+

Deep red. Expressive, very complex aromas of plum, leather, animal fur, minerals and smoke, along with spice and kirsch notes from the mourvedre. Concentrated, smooth and penetrating, thanks to excellent acidity; fresh and youthful. Plenty of volume here, as well as the balance to reward aging (Avril believes the wine will close down for five to seven years). Strong youthfully spicy character. Finishes with fine, dusty tannins and subtle persistence. Doesn't offer the roasted aspect of the most headspinning '98s, but this is quite suave. -- Stephen Tanzer