Best Rich Red Wine 2016

Bold and powerful, these reds are loaded with flavour, emphatic tannins, and rich body. Best in a big-bowled glass with robust food: stir-fried beef or steak tartare.

CATEGORY WINNER: Wynns Black Label Cabernet Sauvignon 2012Australia$24.49 +502039Our Best of Show is the 57th edition of an Australian classic. Signature cassis, a hint of mint fragrance, and savoury dark fruit flavours glide over smooth and seamless tannins. Well-etched acidity and Coonawarra’s dusty mineral stamp shows on the long, firm finish. Full-bodied and elegant, with claret-like refreshment, this is the kind of wine to buy by the case and tuck away for a decade.Painted Rock Syrah 2013Canada$34.69 +130989Cool-climate B.C. syrah with black fruit, cracked pepper, and lithe tanninsC.C. Jentsch Syrah 2013Canada$29.90 +524868This champion was the best syrah in the recent Judgment of BCMusella Valpolicella Superiore Ripasso 2012Italy$28.99 +806224Think of this tip-top quality valpolicella as baby amaronePoplar Grove Cabernet Franc 2012Canada$34.90One of Canada’s most celebrated wines from elite Poplar GroveHeartland Spice Trader Shiraz Cabernet Sauvignon 2013Australia$17.49 +685735Cab-shiraz blend from superstar winemaker Ben GlaetzerKWV Roodeberg 2012South Africa$12.29 +7187Seven-grape Cape classic that’s been around since 1949 at an astonishing priceGiusti Umberto I 2008Italy$181.70 +47605Impressive vin de garde from a Canadian-owned Venetian estateHoward Park Leston Cabernet Sauvignon 2012Australia$35.99 +172148Margaret River is the region for structured, ageable cabernet sauvignonRobert Mondavi Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2013USA$35.99 +255513Blue-blooded cabernet sauvignon hits all the brain’s pleasure centresWolf Blass Gold Label Cabernet Sauvignon 2013Australia$24.49 +120840Inky, earthy, curranty, minty beauty from the Gold Label programPoplar Grove The Legacy 2011Canada$49.90 +611137Potent and polished four-grape blend from the Naramata BenchGlen Carlou Grand Classique 2011South Africa$19.99 +153882Elegant, classified growth wine from PaarlColomé Estate Malbec 2012Argentina$26.99 +956896From the world’s highest-altitude vineyards, this is very special malbecLangmeil Barossa Valley Floor Shiraz 2013Australia$29.49 +564450High-impact shiraz from one of the custodians of Barossa’s old-vine heritageGabbiano Chianti Classico Riserva DOCG 2011Italy$24.99 +25163Benchmark Chianti shows consistent quality vintage after vintageCa’Rugate Amarone della Valpolicella 2009Italy$62.99 +278291Superb velvety amarone with molten dark fruit—a fireside wineTinhorn Creek Oldfield Series Merlot 2012Canada$27.49 +153213Dark chocolate, fruitcake, and toasty oak combine to great effectRuffino Modus 2012Italy$30.49 +614354Modern, well-priced Tuscan wine blends sangiovese, merlot, and cabEmiliana Coyam 2012Chile$27.49 +845321Hoard a case of this biodynamic, globally-admired Chilean red blend<< BACK TO CATEGORIES