2020 Wine

Master of Wine Andreas Kubach and his partners tend their 300 small parcels of old-vine Tempranillo in the Basque highlands of Rioja Alavesa with a simple goal: to capture the character of the region, villages in the region, and... Read More

The 3rd wine of this 2nd growth estate comes from younger vines and is mainly Merlot with just a touch of new French oak. Lovely aromas of red fruit and spice with a silky mid-palate and velvet finish that sustains nicely. Ready... Read More

You may not think of Bordeaux as a perfect casual cookout red. But you should! This 50/50 Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot blend with 50% new oak has the ripe fruit and spice for easy drinking and some smoky grip that loves anything... Read More

Always solid, in 2020 Grand Puy Ducasse “pulls its socks up” with “a wonderful effort” says Vinous. A blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon and 45% Merlot done in mostly new oak, it’s open now and will... Read More

You know, for a Saint Emilion Grand Cru, we can't find out a darn thing about this estate or wine. Fortunately, we know it tastes great (because we tried it). Nicely rich and plummy red and black berry fruit forms the wine's... Read More

Organic/Bio A lovely Margaux showing the commune's classic perfume - fruit, violets, roses, spice - with a sense of lusciousness and richness that is tempting already. Wine Spectator’s review of this vintage really hits... Read More

Fronsac on the Right Bank shares soil type with St Estephe on the Left Bank and displays some of the same power and grip as well. In a warm, rich, vintage, here that structure is matched with terrific dark fruit. As Suckling says... Read More

Organic/Bio Since its debut in the 2003 vintage, Ciacci’s Brunello “Normale” has established itself as one of Montalcino’s greatest values – and finest wines! The fruit for this bottling comes from... Read More

Organic/Bio Always one of Brunello's best, in 2020 this is especially exciting right now and for years to come. The Suckling 98 point review has it right: Intense, vibrant aromas of strawberries and raspberries, together with... Read More

A long-time Rioja classic, the Cune Crianza adds a lovely depth of ripe fruit to Rioja’s classic notes of tobacco, herb, and spice. Lovely with lamb or even solo. As James Suckling says in the 90 point review, A fruity and... Read More

Tuscany’s Sangiovese grape gives a different wine in Brunello than in Chianti to the north: darker, fleshier, richer, more perfumed and, often, needing many more years to really be delicious. At Donna Olga, winegrower Olga... Read More

Organic/Bio At the very top of San Lorenzo, at 750 meters elevation, almost too high to be “Etna Rosso,” Russo farms a 0.7HA plot of vines planted in the early 1940s. Originally they were trained on traditional albarello... Read More

Organic/Bio Way back in Dom Perignon’s times, the hills from Bouzy to Ambonnay were rated among Champagne’s best for deep red wine and both were among the last to move to sparkling wine production as their main activity.... Read More

This is captivating, celebratory sparkling from an artisan winery of California’s Russian River Valley. James Suckling describes it well in their 94-point rave: “This blanc de noir bubbly is not a rosé but shows... Read More

Two brothers make a range of bold, rich and powerful Tinto de Toro - a clone of Tempranillo - on family lands along the Duero River. This is their younger, more open, version and it's delicious. Suckling.com describes it well... Read More

If there were still any question as to whether Merlot deserves to be cool again, let this wine answer with a resounding YES! While Merlot’s reputation took a hit after the release of the 2004 film Sideways, cool-climate... Read More

Margerum's Uber Syrah - a co-ferment from all the best vineyards Doug works with acrosss the Central Coast. As each parcel of fruit arrives at the winery, approximately 10% of each pick and each clone is separated and added... Read More

Lower ABV Julienas is the northernmost Beaujolais Cru with high, steep, vineyards and a tendency to deliver bright red fruit and firm tannins. All that was here to start, and now a bit of bottle age has let notes of forest floor,... Read More

Lower ABV Yes, Buzet is an obscure appellation and it takes a pretty dedicated importer to even visit this hidden region southwest of Cahors, much less find a really good wine there. Mary Taylor has done both! This is a crunchy,... Read More

Organic/Bio Essentially the winery's Brunello Riserva, this is powerful and intense but unwinds beautifully. As Vinous says in the 96 point review, The classy 2020 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna Schiena d'Asino is coy and... Read More

Fully mature Pinot Noir that's ready to drink now! Otu is a sustainably-farmed, female-led New Zealand winery that specializes in elegant, mineral-tinged, coastal breeze-influenced wines. Wine Specator describes this vintage... Read More

The village of Sermiers is best known for its Meunier because much of the vineyard area has more clay than Chardonnay or Pinot Noir prefer. This is from a single parcel of Meunier vines planted in 1967 and 1977, so it shows a... Read More

This big, dark, extracted Brunello that's still showing a bit of spice from it's 24 months in small, mostly new, French oak. And you should probably wait a year or two before digging in...but, wow! Is it ever impressive... Read More

Lower ABV Going back in time a little bit here with a late release of the 2020 edition of this fun and easy New Zealand Pinot Noir. The time in bottle has let the texture soften and plum/raspberry fruit come forward nicely. Hints... Read More