The new Robert Parker Wine Advocate Issue 233 is here, and it’s a monster Halloween Issue, with over 3,700 wine reviews spanning 11 countries. Headlining  is the much-anticipated 2017 Napa Valley report, with whopping 915 wines reviewed, many of which are outstanding. (Read: 100-pointers!) This report also includes a very brief—and very early—look at the 2017 vintage in Napa Valley as well as a short Post Script with a first-hand perspective on the wildfires that ripped through Napa and Sonoma County in mid-October, just as this issue went to press. Spoiler alert: It’s NOT all doom and gloom.

Not to be overshadowed by California, this Issue also features over 1,000 wines from France’s Southern Rhône. Mostly focusing on Châteauneuf-du-Pape, the title of this report sums the wines up nicely: Elegance (2015) and Power (2016). Never apt to sugar-coat things, this Issue really does have something for everyone. So, go ahead and dive in. Treat yourself! Over-indulge in all this Issue has to offer: a couple hundred new releases from Chianti Classico here, some Finger Lakes Rieslings there, plus a handful of Portugal’s New Releases & Second Looks squeezed in between the new Sake report and California’s Central Coast - Part Two, which serves as a nice segue into a small Retrospective of Brunello di Montalcino’s Il Poggione. And we haven’t even mentioned the Affordable Treasures of the 2015 Cru Bourgeois or the Up-And-Coming Producers in Württemberg! And that’s just to name a few—there’s so much more. 

Here’s the full list of all you have to look forward to in latest Issue: 

Australia: Penfolds New Releases - 2014, 2015 & 2016

Australia: Victoria and Tasmania  

Austria: Fine Wines From Austria’s Far East - Carnuntum

China: From Mountain to Sea

France, Bordeaux: Affordable Treasure - 2015 Cru Bourgeois 

France, Bordeaux: Olivier Dauga Reds

France, Burgundy: 2014 In Bottle - Part Two  

France, Southern Rhône: Châteauneuf du Pape - Elegance (2015) and Power (2016)  

Germany, Rheinhessen: The 2016 Vintage  

Germany: Beyond the Standards - Up and Coming Producers in Württemberg  

Germany: Pinot Noir (Spätburgunder) Part One – The Grosses Gewächs 2012-2015 

Greece: Alpha Estate's New Releases, Including Sauvignon Blanc and a Couple of Oldies 

Israel & Lebanon: New Releases

Italy, Tuscany: A Retrospective of Montalcino’s Il Poggione

Italy, Tuscany: Chianti Classico New Releases & Introducing the Comune

Italy, Tuscany: New Releases from Bolgheri 

Italy, Tuscany: New Releases from Carmignano