I have very mixed feelings about 2012 (one good race, one average race, one dull race and one that shouldn’t have happened). So far, it feels worse than 2011, which didn’t particularly grab me with excitement either.
So it’s the best season since 2011, to answer the title question.
Currently, I’d rank the seasons I’ve seen as: 2009, 1999, 1998, 2003, 1996, 2008, 2010, 2006, 2001, 2005, 2000, 2007, 2011, 1997, 2002, 1995, 2004, 1994, 2012 (so far). I haven’t put 1993 on there because judging a season on a third of one race is difficult.