Ninety points is the threshold most readers of the critics use. Each wine shows the scores we hold from the critics we follow: The Wine Advocate, Wine Spectator, Wine Enthusiast, Decanter, James Suckling, Jasper Morris for Burgundy, Tim Atkin, Andreas Larsson, Jeannie Cho Lee, Gilbert & Gaillard and the Guía Peñín for Spain. As soon as one of those scores reaches 90, or the low end of Jasper Morris's range does, the wine appears here. We do not average the scores and we do not choose: one score of 90 or more is enough.

A score is one taster's view of one bottle on one day. It tells you that someone whose job is tasting found the wine worth noting; it does not tell you whether you will prefer it to a wine scored 88. We show it because it is useful information, in the same way we show the vintage or the appellation, and we keep the critic's name next to it so that you know whose palate it is. Wines from the regions the critics cover most, Burgundy, Champagne and Bordeaux, tend to be the most represented.

For a tighter net, the Top Rated 95+ page applies the same test at 95 points. To look at the wines by place instead of by score, see the Burgundy, Champagne or Bordeaux pages.

The wines above are the current selection. See also the great vintages or the new arrivals.