Editor’s note: Wine Spectator senior editor James Molesworth is in Bordeaux to taste the 2018 vintage from barrel to determine the quality and character of the young wines, in order to inform wine lovers who may be considering buying them en primeur, or futures. New notes will be posted regularly throughout the tastings.

While spending a few weeks in the region, Molesworth visits numerous châteaus, interviews many vintners and evaluates hundreds of wines. These visits are crucial to understanding the character and quality of the vintage. However, all official wine ratings come from our own independent blind tastings. Châteaus that decline to submit samples to these blind tastings are not reviewed for this report. This list contains his scores and tasting notes for 16 Bordeaux barrel samples from Sauternes and Barsac.

As these are unfinished wines, they are scored in 4-point ranges (e.g., 93–96 points) to indicate that the ratings are still preliminary. When the wines are released in bottle, they will be reviewed with their peers in blind tastings and given a final score.

Top 2018 Bordeaux Sweet Whites

CHÂTEAU DE FARGUES Sauternes 2018 Score: 93-96
This has a bit more than most of the pack in 2018, with layers of warmed coconut, mango, peach, apricot and macadamia nut flavors, all framed by a lightly singed almond note.—James Molesworth

CHÂTEAU DOISY DAËNE Barsac L’Extravagant 2018 Score: 91-94
Spicy, featuring tangerine and clementine notes layered with almond and ginger cream flavors. Shows a bit more zing than most of its peers in this generally forward and direct vintage. —J.M.

CHÂTEAU FILHOT Sauternes 2018 Score: 91-94
Intense, featuring peach, apricot and ginger notes that are brightly defined, with a relatively racy aspect through the orange blossom-tinted finish.—J.M.

CHÂTEAU SUDUIRAUT Sauternes 2018 Score: 91-94
This has a fairly concentrated core of dried apricot, peach and mango flavors wrapped with almond and ginger cream notes. Ample marzipan detail coats the long finish. —J.M.

CHÂTEAU BASTOR-LAMONTAGNE Sauternes 2018 Score: 90-93
Bright, fresher in feel than most, but also a bit lighter overall, with friendly apricot, peach and tangerine flavors, backed by an acacia note on the finish.—J.M.

CHÂTEAU COUTET Barsac 2018 Score: 90-93
Lush, creamy and overt, with almond, ginger cream and maple notes draped over a dried apricot core. Displays good oomph but needs to stretch out a bit.—J.M.

CHÂTEAU DE MYRAT Barsac 2018 Score: 90-93
This delivers a pretty, intense ball of almond cream, ginger and apricot flavors, with a tarte Tatin finish.—J.M.

CHÂTEAU RAYMOND-LAFON Sauternes 2018 Score: 90-93
A flash of green tea adds range to the mix of apricot, glazed peach and pie crust flavors here. Shows a bit more detail than most.—J.M.

CHÂTEAU LA TOUR BLANCHE Sauternes 2018 Score: 90-93
Direct, offering ginger and almond cream notes mixed with dried apricot and peach flavors.—J.M.

CHÂTEAU CANTEGRIL Barsac 2018 Score: 89-92
A juicy, compact wine, with a ball of almond, ginger and tangerine notes in the middle. Reveals a flash of honey on the finish.—J.M.

CLOS HAUT-PEYRAGUEY Sauternes 2018 Score: 89-92
Very direct, featuring creamed peach and glazed apricot flavors layered with a warm marzipan note. Rather unctuous too.—J.M.

CHÂTEAU DOISY DAËNE Barsac 2018 Score: 89-92
Direct, featuring glazed peach and pear flavors draped with a heather honey note. —J.M.

CHÂTEAU DOISY-VÉDRINES Barsac 2018 Score: 89-92
Languid in feel, with almond and peach notes framed by a broad pie crust note.—J.M.

CHÂTEAU LAFAURIE-PEYRAGUEY Sauternes 2018 Score: 89-92
Almond, honeysuckle, tangerine and peach flavors mix together in this white, with a rounded, maple-tinged finish.—J.M.

CHÂTEAU DE RAYNE VIGNEAU Sauternes 2018 Score: 89-92
Open-knit in feel, with a direct core of tangerine, apricot and almond cream flavors. A light spice accent emerges on the rounded finish.—J.M.

CHÂTEAU SIGALAS RABAUD Sauternes 2018 Score: 89-92
This is lively, with peach, acacia and heather notes that stay relatively fresh through the finish. —J.M.

Tasting Highlights’ wine reviews are fresh out of the tasting room, offering a sneak peek of our editors’ most recent scores and notes to WineSpectator.com members.

Blending grapes can provide winemakers with a broader palette of flavors and textures than single-variety bottlings. This week we’ve selected seven red blends from across California that show how diverse this category can be.

Some of these blends are “traditional,” such as Scalon’s Priority Red, a Bordeaux-style blend that’s roughly equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Co-owners Jesus Espinoza and Cruz Calderon met while they were working at Caldwell, in the Coombsville AVA. They struck up a friendship and decided to launch Scalon, tapping veteran winemaker Julien Fayard to make the wine.

Vintners may also blend grapes from multiple vineyards to achieve complexity in their wines. Ridge‘s Zinfandel-dominated Three Valleys is a lively example, combining grapes from 10 different vineyards. Petite Sirah was added for color and structure, while Carignane and Grenache lend vibrancy and fruit to the wine.

Foxen looked to France’s Southern Rhône for inspiration, blending Grenache, Syrah and Mourvèdre from the Los Olivos District, a subappellation of the Santa Ynez Valley. Kendall-Jackson took a different approach with its Vintner’s Reserve, a perky kitchen-sink blend that combines Syrah, Zinfandel and Cabernet with other varieties.

FOXEN Cuvée Jeanne Marie Williamson-Doré Vineyard Los Olivos District 2016 Score: 92 | $48
Refined and expressive, with floral raspberry, smoky butter and orange zest flavors that build tension toward polished tannins. Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah. 318 cases made.—Tim Fish

SCALON Priority Red Napa Valley 2016 Score: 92 | $50
This shows a range of smoldering sage, tobacco and fresh humus notes, inlaid into a core of steeped black currant and blackberry fruit. Sports some slightly chewy grip through the finish, though this retains polish as well, imparting balance. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Cabernet Franc. 325 cases made.—James Molesworth

RIDGE Three Valleys Sonoma County 2017 Score: 91 | $30
Lively and well-built, with expressive cherry, roasted dill and white pepper flavors that glide toward refined tannins. Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Carignane and Grenache. 15,750 cases made.—T.F.

BELLA GRACE Montagñaro Amador County 2016 Score: 89 | $25
Briary and vibrant, with easygoing red plum, sweet anise and smoked pepper flavors that finish with zesty tannins. Zinfandel and Barbera. 440 cases made.—T.F.

ANCIENT PEAKS Renegade Santa Margarita Ranch 2016 Score: 88 | $26
A potent blend that retains a sense of polish and zest, with lively blackberry, licorice and cracked pepper flavors. Syrah, Zinfandel, Malbec, Petit Verdot and Petite Sirah. 12,204 cases made.—T.F.

CHRONIC CELLARS Purple Paradise Paso Robles 2017 Score: 88 | $15
Plump and zesty, with fruit-forward cherry jam, pepper and anise flavors. Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Syrah and Grenache. 25,478 cases made.—T.F.

KENDALL-JACKSON Vintner’s Reserve Red California 2015 Score: 88 | $17
A perky red blend, this contains a bit of everything but somehow still works, offering zesty cherry, cracked pepper and toasty herb flavors, with just enough structure to keep this sailing. Syrah, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sangiovese. 20,419 cases made.—T.F.