Wine Enthusiast Magazine / Best-Of-Year 2009 / Top 100 Wines of 2009

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Top 100 Wines of 2009

Each year, the editors of Wine Enthusiast compile the list of their favorite wines of the year. While most featured have received high scores from our critics, many go far beyond the numbers assigned to them, either for their extraordinary quality-to-price value, their immediate drinkability, or their uniqueness. All are diverse and offer a window into the terroir from which they were made. And perhaps most importantly, all are available in the U.S. market.

We also strive to consider newsworthiness or excitement factor, and whether a wine represents notable trends in the wine market. This year's Number One wine is a prime example: Pinot Noir being the buzz wine of the past few years, Cambria combines high quality with a reasonable price and is made in sufficient quantities as to be generally available.

Within the limits of what we tasted over the past year, we've tried to include wines that not only represent many different regions and grape varieties, but also vary in style. You'll find wines from all the major wine-producing countries across the full spectrum of grape varieties in sparkling and still, table, dessert and fortified wines. One of the things we value most in the wine world is diversity, and this is one way of applauding it.

See our top 100 wines of 2009.