Let's not pretend there's a romantic backstory here. Instead let’s celebrate the arrival of a genuinely delicious and easy-drinking Malbec that still sells for a song. Ripe and juicy, this delivers dark, rich, fruit... Read More
Lower ABV I’m skeptical of super-high-altitude California Pinot with 45% whole clusters, 10 months in barrel, only 336 case production and just 12.7% alcohol. This one is convincing, though, in its ripeness, flavor intensity... Read More
Year-in, year-out, Crognolo is one of the best values in very high-end tasting “super-Tuscan” reds. It’s a blend of 90%+ Sangiovese and the rest Merlot that always delivers rich red fruit and a fine, if firm,... Read More
Dandelion winemaker Elena Brooks was walked into the winery after receiving yet another award, she found a crisis going on. She kicked off one high-heel a stuffed her foot into a work boot, but didn’t get the other heel... Read More
Agiorgitiko translates as “St George’s Grape,” probably for a chapel in Nemea in the Peloponnese. It’s the region’s best grape and gives wines ranging from light and fruity to dark and dusky, but... Read More
A terrific value in Russian River Chardonnay picked fresh and ripe and aged 10 months in French oak (25% new). Welcoming aromas of golden apple, stone fruit and buttered popcorn pull you into a wine that has plenty of California... Read More
From vines in the heart of the valley, this delivers the distinctive combination of rich and ripe dark fruit and mouthwatering freshness that makes Russian River Valley Pinot so famous. Fresh raspberry and earth aromas give way... Read More
Organic/Bio So a top Gigondas estate makes 100% Syrah from vines in St Joseph - what would you expect? Probably to taste the unique character of Northern Rhone Syrah - black fruit, smoke, cracked pepper, roasted meat - in a slightly... Read More
Organic/Bio A powerful, rich, and complex single-vineyard Grüner that delivers oodles of white pepper, pear and ripe apple aromas and flavors with a hint of butter and a salty, mineral, peppery bite on the long, palate-coating,... Read More
Five straight vintages, five straight 93 point ratings (4 from Wine Enthusiast, one from Suckling), and this 2021 will join the parade soon. Once again it lines up nicely against the “big names” of Kamptal like Pichler,... Read More
Given their fame for white and sparkling wines, it's easy to overlook the Steininger's lead red - this Zweigelt. But that would be a mistake, because the wine is crazy delicious and shows just how complex and fascinating... Read More
Organic/Bio This wine is amazing, even better than the gushing reviews. Depth, richness, brightness, complexity, grip, finish: it's the whole package now - 2033+.... Read More
Lower ABV Actually a single vineyard wine from the site not far off the Danube River called Frauenweingarten in the Wachau. But it was resting in Tank #26 the first time importer Klaus Wittauer tasted it years ago. “I want... Read More
Organic/Bio Marc de Grazia says Bocca d'Orzo, like San Lorenzo next door, has always been esteemed as one of the most important Contradas of Etna. But only by old-timers, as the entire vineyard was covered by a lava flow in... Read More
Organic/Bio Just as in the rest of Europe, when phylloxera came to Sicily in the early 20th Century it devastated most of the region's vineyards. But two small plots of Nerello Mascalese on Mount Etna's steep slopes survived,... Read More
Organic/Bio Marc de Grazia has designed San Lorenzo one of his three Grande Terroir Ellittico wines, so designated because of their very rare and pure volcanic sand soils from the Ellittico eruptions dating from 15,000 to 60,000... Read More
The Vinous 92 point write up catures this perfectly, The 2021 Pinot Noir Estate is gorgeous. A wine of depth and substance, the Estate is also wonderfully complex right out of the gate. Dried cherry, rose petal, mint, cedar and... Read More
The most delicious California Syrah I’ve tried in years is a blend of 86% Syrah and 14% Viognier from one of the coldest vineyards in California, co-fermented and with most of the Syrah left on the stems. The Syrah aromas... Read More
Grenache that bursts into your party, slaps you on the back and asks, “What’s on the barbie, mate?” A big wine from 70-90 year-old vines with whole bunches tossed into the fermenter and the young wine aged 10... Read More
The best Quality-Price-Ratio (QPR) California Pinot Noir we’ve tasted in years! It’s from one of the Central Coast’s very first Pinot Noir vineyards, Mission Ranch in the Salinas Valley planted in 1961. Fifty-five... Read More
This has been one of the finest values in top-notch Barossa Shiraz for 20+ years now, always reflecting the character of its place and vintage plus the essence of current Barossa style. Which, today, is more focused and fresh... Read More
From what we’re calling the great tangle of vines in Spain’s Aragon region, this is why Garnacha is Spain’s great red grape: it’s able to deliver delicious and satisfying wine both grand and everyday from... Read More
Since 2012, winemaker Laura Carter and her husband Brendon have been up to something wild and fascinating in Australia’s Adelaide Hills. They’ve led the charge for less port-like ripeness, restrained/no oak, native... Read More
Organic/Bio This old Roman grape is making a comeback in Campania, with wines like this showing why. From a high, cold, vineyard it wraps brisk flavors of dried fig, tart apricot and Clemintine in a blanketing, rich, texture enlivened... Read More
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