Domaine Roux Pere & Fils Vougeot Premier Cru les Petits Vougeots 2006: Certainly a rather pale hue in the glass. Smoky beetroot on the nose, sweet, giving the suggestion of fullness, with a perfumed bite to it. Lean at first on the palate, then with a rather slick feel through the midpdlate, showing a little density and grip as the wine rests in the mouth. Rather a low-key presence overall, a slight sourness to the fruit, supple but with not a lot of appealing or defining features. A touch more to it in the finish but overall lacks definition and balance. 14/20 (£32.12 exc. VAT)

Domane JM Boillot Beaune Premier Cru Les Epenottes 2008: An attractively fresh red hue with appropriate concentration. The nose has a very smoky character, the fruit profile moving into a darker part of the spectrum, alongside notes of mushroom and slightly stewed, slightly chocolatey red fruits. A nice substance on entry, with a chalky-stony Beaune character, but with some weight coming behind it as well. Good sappy finish. There are certainly some attractive points here. This has some potential. 15.5/20 (£21.27 exc. VAT)

Domaine Nicolas Rossignol Savigny-les-Beaune Premier Cru Les Lavières 2006: Rather a pale cherry hue here, and the nose is disadvantaged by a rather rubbery, feral-foxy streak. The character on the palate is very much the same, and alongside this there is a rather lean substance which does build a little through the middle of the wine, where there is clearly more to it. Nevertheless still find this wine to ultimately fall short. 13/20 (£17.67 exc. VAT)

Domaine de Montille Beaune Premier Cru Les Sizies 2007: A fairly pale hue here. Rather a stony, restrained, red-fruit character on the nose here, clean but not exactly brimming with expressive richness. Nevertheless it does have an appealingly clean and direct character, with nice cherry fruit. It is fresh and supple although the body of the wine isn't quite matched by its fruit and character at first. This is rectified somewhat in the middle but as the fruit comes to the fore so the acid and crunch of the wine shows more too, so it never really seems to develop a harmonious balance. This does have freshness though, so perhaps there is room for development here. 14+/20 (price n/a)

Château Tour de Ségur (Lussac-St-Emilion) 2006: A fresh if rather faded hue here, dusty with a pink rim. It has a rather perfumed nose, with an overt, violetty Cabernet Franc character, no surprise on reviewing the assemblage of course as this variety is present in a significant concentration. There is a little sweet, toffee-edged matring fruit behind it. A nice gentle start to the palate, rather dry and a touch austere, without the flesh necessary to stand up to the rather upright acid backbone. This isn't going to get much better from here, if at all. 13.5/20 (£9.19 exc. VAT)

Château Sénéjac (Haut-Médoc) 2006: An attractive hue here, showing some maturity but there is also a little appropriate density at its core. The nose is attractive, as the maturing fruit is complemented by a layer of black tea leaves and olives. Sadly the palate doesn't quite live up to this early promise, although there are some good points here. It is holding up nicely, showing fresh acidity and a fair substance. Spicy and peppery rather than overtly tannic, but there is still a little grip to it especially in the finish. Attractive and worth it if the price is right. 14.5/20 (£12.94 ex VAT)

Château Lanessan (Haut-Médoc) 2004: A nice colour here, showing some classic claretty maturity but there is still plenty of life in it yet I think. The nose has a touch of perfume but still a rather dense and solid character, A supple style on the palate, the tannins well resolved, the texture of the wine around those structural elements that persist a rather soft and gentle one, although there is still a little bite and grip to this in the background. Attractive. 14.5/20 (£13.77 exc. VAT)

Château Batailley (Pauillac) 2004: A good colour here, although showing a rather dusty hint of maturity. An appealing nose, perfumed and full of attractive and defining elements including graphite and pencil shavings. Certainly defined and attractive. The palate starts off rather dry and reserved, with a soft and open layer of maturing dusty fruit sitting above - and fairly detached from - the structural elements underneath. Between them there lies a void, a little hollow note at its core. There are certainly positive notes here but I think at this stage there was still room for improvement at Batailley - and it does show. 14.5/20 (£21.68 exc. VAT)

Château St Cosme Gigondas 2009: A very primary seam of fruit on the nose here, showing sweetness but also dark concentration, the fruit plainly Grenache. Rather composed on the palate, showing better savoury substance and defintion than I perhaps expected, with a good balance of dry but ripe tannic structure, savoury-sappy fruit and a fresh crunch of acidity. Certainly an attractive and nicely composed wine, balanced and yet underpinned by a fine tannic structure which only shows itself as it grips down on the finish. Lovely potential here. 18/20 (£17.10 exc. VAT)

Azienda Agricola Montevetrano 'Montevetrano' IGT Colli di Salerno 2005: Slightly darker hue than the clarets tasted alongside, although still with a sense of maturity. The nose has a sweet and smoky maturity, showing some interesting non-fruit complexities, particularly black tea with a sweet, lifted, floral edge. Having said that I can't get past the fact that there is a little vegetal seam running in the background as well. The palate has an attractve presence in the mouth, quite elegant and composed although also with quite a lot of substance to it. In fact it shows quite a bit of grip through the middle. It is ripe but composed, and shows a good layer of lightly chewy tannins in the finish. Good, despite that slightly unusual background character on the nose. 15/20 (£35.02 exc. VAT)

Castello Banfi Excelsius IGT Toscana 2007: A nice depth of colour. Rather a brawny, pastille-like character on the nose, sweet and intense but there is substance behind it as well. Nevertheless it has an attractive character on the palate, where the fruit comes across as much more savoury and spicy-grippy than the nose suggested. It has a substantial presence, with piles of brawny grip through the middle, but with a good balance of this element with the acids and rather elegant if also youthful texture. Good and grippy on the finish. Some attractive points here. 16/20 (£23.36 exc. VAT)

Bodega Catena Zapata Malbec (Mendoza) 2008: Fermented in steel, then about 14 months in oak. Very sweet and expressive fruit on the nose, suggestive of crushed berry fruit with a velvety surface but with plenty of fresh, crystalline elements beneath. Rather an appealing palate, ripe but sensitively composed, not over the top in terms of texture, sweet and perfumed fruit but with a gentle attack, backed up by ripe tannins and gentle acidity. Nice savoury elements coming in as well. Very nicely done. 15.5/20 (£10.15 exc. VAT)

Bodega Catena Zapata Alta Malbec (Mendoza) 2007: Fermented part in barrique, part in steel, then about 18 months in barrique. Certainly a more glossy and dense hue here, although still with a very bright tone to it. Dense berry fruits on the surface of the nose. There is a richness behind it, a little tinge of dark chocolate which may be oak-related, but it doesn't domainte or distract. In the mouth a very elegant and poised wine, quite detached and aloof but not austere, grippy with a firm core of straight tannins carrying along a very elegant and slightly velvety layer of fruit. This has style and appeal. 17/20 (price n/a)

Bodega Catena Zapata Nicasia Vineyard Malbec (Mendoza) 2007: Fermented and raised in barriques for about 24 months. A single vineyard wine. A fine and very pure expression of fruit on the nose, creamy but with a lovely definition. On the palate it shows a remarkable feshness, quite a velvety style of fruit but underpinned and lifted by a bright and stony character. Lovely ripe tannins, quite svelte in their character, and which sit very well with the fine acids and fruit. At the finish, more grip apparent. A very appealing wine with lots of elegant substance here. 17.5/20 (£29.45 exc. VAT)

Valdivieso Caballo Loco Number 12 (Lontué) NV: This has a very typical young Chilean nose, showing very sweet and fruit-focused aromas, very reminiscent of blackcurrant pastilles over any other character. Behind it though, a soft creaminess which does something to soften the impact, but otherwise this is fruit, fruit, fruit all the way. Moderate substance on the palate, the wine showing a rather lean entry of fruits but building in character through the middle, gaining in texture and also developing a firm tannic substance. There is a savoury twist to it but otherwise the fruit character matches that presented aromatically. The finish has appeal, with its almost juicy detachment, but overall not what I expected from older versions of this wine (I remember when Number 1 was released). Is it the wine, or do I just look for different things these days? 14-15/20 (£18.60 exc. VAT)