Dr. Leimbrock Estate Riesling is made from 100 percent Riesling.
Typical Riesling, fresh and fruity, easy drinking. Grapes come from Brauneberger Juffer and Juffer-Sonnenuhr - one of the most prestigious vineyards in the Mosel winegrowing region. The vineyard faces south and provides the best conditions for growing Riesling.
Pairs well with barbecue meats, pasta dishes.
Dr. Loosen Riesling Eiswein is made from 100 percent Riesling.
This vibrant, racy dessert wine conjures flavors of densely packed pear, apple and guava, with an intense, nervy edge in the aroma. It is luscious, silky and juicy on the palate, with bright acidity giving it a crisp, dynamic finish.
El Pino Club Sea Floored Pinot Noir is made from 100 percent Pinot Noir.
Sea Floored opens with aromas of cherry cola, dried cran-raspberries, and classic Sta. Rita Hills black pepper. On the palate, deep flavors of Chambord, red pomegranate and cranberry fruit are framed by moderate tannins and food-friendly acidity, finishing with hints of tobacco and oak-roasted coffee bean.
Review:
This special bottling from the Foley family packs a lot of complexity into the nose, offering aromas of bay leaf, toasted wood, light cannabis and brisk pomegranate. The palate is firm in texture and covers a wide range of fruit, from dark berry to bright red fruit, though it may be the graphite-like minerality that sets it apart.
-Wine Enthusiast 94 Points
Elvio Cogno Pre-Phylloxera Barbera d'Alba is made from 100 percent Barbera.
Produced from one of the last archaic vines of the Langhe area, an open air museum of viticulture from a time gone by, the plants are over one hundred years old. The vines are not grafted but propagated through cuttings, thus maintaining, over the decades, the original Barbera characteristics.
The vineyard has an excellent exposure and sandy-chalky terrain, situated in Berri near La Morra, which guaranteed the vines a natural protection from Phylloxera and imparts unique and exclusive characteristics to the vines. The intriguing simplicity of the vines and their typical, traditional charm that derives from the microclimate and favorable altitude make a one of-a-kind wine.
The low production per hectare guarantees an intensely rare and rich organoleptic concentration. The wine is refined in oak casks that slowly develop the primary aromas. Pleasant and refined, complex even as a young wine but able to withstand bottle aging, it expresses its solid uniqueness even over the years.
A bright, rich ruby color with intense purplish highlights. The aroma is enveloping, aromatic and deep with noticeable spices on first impression and raspberry, strawberry and ripe cherry notes in background. Finish with pleasant harmonies of wild flowers. On the palate it is well structured, fresh and the acidity is excellently balanced, the tannins texture is embracing and flavors remind you of sour cherries, blackberries and prunes.
Review:
Planted in almost entirely sand, this own-rooted vineyard with some vines over 120 years old is a singular expression of Barbera. Elegant aromas of wild rose and fresh bay leaf mixed with cranberry, sour cherry and underbrush are just some of the notes you will discover in this complex wine. The palate is refined and well-balanced with fresh youthful red fruits, fresh flowers and fine tannins driving the wine home. Drink Now–2035.
-Wine Enthusiast 95 Points
Es Lo Que Hay Garnacha is made from 95% Garnacha, 5% Moristel, Miguel de Arco and Provechón (Bobal). 75 to 100 year old vines.
“ES LO QUE HAY - it is what it is. A common Spanish expression, but one I like to reserve for the few old high altitude Garnacha vineyards that survive in Aragon . What you taste in the bottle is a true expression of what there is in the vineyard. It´s as simple as that.”
High altitude ancient vineyards (75-100 years) at 1,000 to 1,100 meters above sea level with Pizarra slate and quartzite soils. Completely dry grown and unirrigated, this is an inhospitable continental climate with extreme changes of temperature where mountain herbs, almonds, cherry trees and Garnacha form a breathtaking patchwork. Low annual rainfall of 200-300mm and the remarkable soils produce fine and elegant Garnacha which is punctuated by intense black fruit flavors with complex mineral, smoke and garrigue notes.
Review:
"The red 2019 Es Lo Que Hay is mostly old-vine Garnacha with 5% other grapes, mostly Moristel with a little Miguel de Arco and some Provechón (Bobal), from very stony old vineyards in the village of Villarroya de la Sierra. The grapes fermented together with 20% full clusters in concrete and were destemmed after a five-day cold soak with the natural yeasts; then the wine matured mostly in concrete with some leftovers in Flextank egg for 15 months. It's ripe without excess (14.26% real alcohol), balanced by low pH and good acidity and has a powerful Mediterranean profile, round and full-bodied, with hints of dry hay and straw and a touch of dark chocolate. The 2019s are evolving nicely and should have a positive development in bottle, and this is a good example. 8,270 bottles produced. It was bottled in December 2020. - Luis Gutiérrez"
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate (November 2021), 93 pts
"The 2019 Garnacha Vinas Viejas is just about all Grenache (there are small amounts of Moristel, Miguel de Arco, and Bobal) from ancient vines that saw a touch of stems and aging in concrete tanks. This plump, medium to full-bodied, round, downright sexy beauty gives up lots of ripe red and black fruits as well as peppery spice, herbes de Provence, and sandalwood. It's balanced, has supple, incredibly polished tannins, no hard edges, and is just a beautiful Garnacha that has so much to love. It will keep for 5-7 years, if not longer."
- Jeb Dunnuck (August 2022), 93 pts
Fayolle Crozes-Hermitage Rouge La Rochette is made from 25-year-old vines planted on loess and red granitic soils. 100% Syrah.
Deep ruby red color.
The wine has plenty to offer with red and black fruit aromas, as well as a good minerality.
The finish is long, clean and juicy and offers some white pepper spiciness typical of the best Crozes-Hermitage.
Soil type is red brittle granite and white soil.
Hand harvested in small crates. The grapes are then pumped into tanks (full cluster, not destemmed).
It will stay in this tank for 15 days for the skin contact maceration and the Alcoholic fermentation.
They will also use the "rack and return" technique (delestage).
Then the wine is transfered into neutral French Oak barrels where the wine will complete the Malo-Lactic fermentation.
Fefinanes Albarino de Albarino is 100 percent Albarino
Fresh fruit aromas of apricot and peach slices with notes of lemon and green apple. Pretty notes of honey and wet nutmeg, and the mouth is round, clean, and pleasant with baked apple, honey, and lemon.
This is a classic Albariño which is good young, but actually improves over two to three years and remains quite drinkable for up to five years. Owner Juan Gil comments that the wine really starts to come into its own in June/July, and he actually prefers it 18 or more months after it's made. A Fefiñanes "vertical" of three or four vintages can provide some most interesting surprises.
Ferme Blanche Cassis Blanc Excellence is made from 50% Marsanne and 50% Clairette.
On the nose, white fruits, citrus zest, hint of vanilla. Velvety well balanced mouth of ripe fruits and minerality.
Pair with trout, Scallop, or better yet lobster would complement this wine perfectly.
Ferme Blanche Cassis Blanc Excellence is made from 50% Marsanne and 50% Clairette.
On the nose, white fruits, citrus zest, hint of vanilla. Velvety well balanced mouth of ripe fruits and minerality.
Pair with trout, Scallop, or better yet lobster would complement this wine perfectly.
Ferme Blanche Cassis Blanc Excellence is made from 50% Marsanne and 50% Clairette.
On the nose, white fruits, citrus zest, hint of vanilla. Velvety well balanced mouth of ripe fruits and minerality.
Pair with trout, Scallop, or better yet lobster would complement this wine perfectly.
Figgins Estate Red Wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot & Merlot
Dark to the rim, with signature aromatic notes of ripe red and blue fruits, tanned leather, black olive, and lilac. The nose simply brings a smile. On the palate, if I had to describe the wine in one word it would be precision. The way the sweet fruit and dramatic length are braced by lively acidity and tannins aligns so perfectly that the wine is, quite simply, delicious.
Review:
Inviting aromas of vivid red fruit, fresh herbs and paprika. Full-bodied with juicy, fruit-soaked, fine tannins. Delightful. So much happening here. The fruit is plentiful and full of charming spice and herbal complexity. Very well balanced and long. Fresh. A blend of cabernet sauvignon, merlot and petit verdot. Best after 2024 but attractive now.
-James Suckling 96 Points
Filippino Elio Barbaresco San Cristoforo Riserva
Made from 100% manual harvest Nebbiolo, the wine comes from the hillsides of San Cristoforo hill in Neive enjoying a south-southwest exposure. The fruity bouquet offers subtle notes of violet and raspberries, combining with spicy hints of cinnamon, cocoa and leather. Full, enchanting and elegant taste, intense with a good body.
The best grapes are delicately pressed and the stalks are removed. The must ferments in stainless steel vats at a controlled temperature of 26°C with a maceration of 20 to 25 days. After racking, the new wine is put into 25 e 30 H Slavonian oak casks for long months. Next, it is bottled and left to age for at least an additional 24 months.
Review:
Spiced red and black fruits, licorice, Asian spice, and graphite all define the aromatics of the 2015 Barbaresco San Cristoforo Riserva, a medium-bodied, beautifully balanced, supple, elegant Barbaresco that has fine tannins and a great finish.
-Jeb Dunnuck 95 Points
This 100% Cortese white offers fruity aromas intertwined with hints of daisy and acacia flowers. Fresh and elegant on the palate with charming citrus notes.
Finca La Pared Cuvee Especial is made from Graciano & Syrah.
The Cuvee Especial is a Graciano and Syrah blend aged in oak barrels that produces a full-bodied, fresh wine of great complexity and long lasting finish.
Review:
"A deep, brooding nose with lots of fine oak spices and hazelnuts that adorn the blackberries and violets. Succulent and bright on the palate, with caressing, silky tannins dialing into the black and blue fruit. Quite long and subtle. Delicious now, but can hold, too."
- James Suckling (June 2022), 94 pts
Flanagan Russian River Chardonnay is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
Grapes for this wine are sourced from several top Russian River Chardonnay sites including Platt Vineyard, Ritchie Vineyard and Bacigalupi Vineyard.
A typical day in Russian River begins with cool fog that fades by mid-morning as the warm sun transforms the vineyard into a warm, welcoming place buzzing with bees. In the late afternoon the ocean air sweeps in from the west cooling the vineyard down. Soils of clay and volcanic rock, carved into rolling hills by the Russian River, are the bass line to the melody played by the sun, wind and fog.
Flanagan Chardonnay RRV has an expressive nose that is typical of the Wente Clone of Chardonnay. The palate has an elegant mélange of stone fruit and ripe citrus flavors supported by understated barrel notes. The key to the wine is the bright acidity that ties everything together. This is a great example of what top Russian River Chardonnay sites can produce when wine making is focused on balance.
The Sonoma Coast AVA is becoming known as the top source for cool climate Pinot Noir. Flanagan Pinot Noir is founded in letting each site and each vintage express itself. They do not have a dogmatic approach to wine-making. Pinot Noir, more than any other grape variety, is made in the vineyard.
The nose is reminiscent of Chambord with rich raspberry notes. The palate has great depth of fruit and notes of Christmas spices like clove and nutmeg. The wine displays vibrant acidity and has a very clean finish. Our Flanagan Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast pairs beautifully with duck, salmon, pork and game; like pheasant, venison, and elk.
Flaunt Pinot Noir Sexton Vineyard is made from 100 percent Pinot Noir.
The Sexton Vineyard Pinot Noir is a beautiful wine with bright and lively aromatics. This wine is big and yet balanced with good density and concentration showing decent tannin and acidity with flavors of cranberries balanced out with raspberries and darker fruits with the earthy forest floor notes for which the Sexton Vineyard is known. This is a very complex and complete Pinot.
No residual sugar.
Total acidity is 5.7
pH is 3.61.
Force Majeure Epinette is made from 79% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot .
Epinette is Force Majeure's Right-bank Bordeaux-inspired blend, and was named after an avenue in Libourne (France) that leads to Pomerol and Saint-Émilion, the home of Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Epinette is also the name of a musical instrument akin to a piano, as well as a word for pine tree, which is a fitting nod to their home in Washington state.
The wine itself is a blend of primarily Merlot and Cabernet Franc, with smaller amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot, proportions of which change depending on the vintage. The Merlot and Cabernet Franc are grown in lower areas of the vineyard with deep, well-drained soils, much less rocky than the soils of our Rhone varietals.
Review:
The 2018 Epinette is the Merlot-dominated release from this team, and it's 79% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot, all from the estate vineyard on Red Mountain. Lots of smoky black cherry and darker currant fruits as well as notes of chocolate, graphite, lead pencil, and chalky minerality emerge from the glass, and this full-bodied beauty is beautifully textured, with a stacked mid-palate, velvety tannins, and a blockbuster finish. It's up with the finest Merlots in the New World and will drink brilliantly for at least a decade, if not longer.
Previously known as Grand Reve, Force Majeure has skyrocketed to the top of the pyramid in Washington State, in no small part due to their talented winemaker, Todd Alexander, who moved from Bryant Family in Napa to Washington State to focus on this estate. While the focus is on their Red Mountain Vineyard, they make a bevy of world-class wines from throughout the Columbia Valley. Anyone doubting the quality coming from Washington State these days owes it to themselves to try these wines.
-Jeb Dunnuck 97 Points
Force Majeure Parvata is made from 69% Mourvedre, 21% Syrah, 10% Grenache (2016) / 43% Mourvedre, 25% Grenache, 23% Syrah, 4% Cinsault, 5% Counoise
Parvata means “mountain” in sanskrit, and is the name for this southern Rhône-inspired blend, grown mostly in the sandy, loamy soils of the lower section of the Red Mountain vineyard, which bring to the wine a good degree of finesse and high-toned aromatic notes, white pepper, dried herbs and grapefruit peel.
Review:
"Based on 57% Mourvèdre, 25% Syrah, and the rest Grenache, the 2018 Parvata has a wonderfully earthy, complex, classic Mourvèdre nose of ripe red and blue fruits, gamey meat, cracked pepper, violets, and tree bark. This carries to a plush, up-front, incredibly sexy 2018 with notable purity, full-bodied richness, integrated tannins, and a great, great finish. It's slightly more up-front and supple than I expected from barrel, but this incredible wine just begs to be drunk. Nevertheless, I still think a year of bottle age is warranted and it should drink well for 10-15."
- Jeb Dunnuck (May 2021), 96 pts
Fortezza Falanghina del Sannio Taburno is made from 100% Falanghina - 25 years old
No oak.
Straw yellow color with greenish reflections. Fresh and floral scents, citrus aromas, apple, pear and mineral notes. Round, smooth and juicy with high acidity, yet well balanced with rich flavors.
Southeastern exposure with an altitude of 300-450 meters above sea level.
Planting density: 3,500 vines per hectare on average.
Training system: espalier with Guyot pruning.
Manual harvest in small crates between the end of September and beginning of October.
Winemaking in white in stainless steel tanks at controlled temperature.
Pairs well with seafood, mozzarella cheese, risotto, white meats.
Fortezza Veceta Chardonnay is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
Even tough the name LA VECETA is not present on the label, it is the name of the lady that is present on the front label. The Veceta is the "Lady" that wakes up very early in the Morning to go to work in the vineyard before the sun get too hot to work. On the label she is depicted in the center bent over the ground.
Brilliant straw yellow. On the nose it expresses itself with hints of peach, tropical fruits and citrus fruits and notes of white flowers. In the mouth it is intense, full, tasty and balanced and the notes of red peach perceived on the nose give way to peach in syrup in the mouth.Very versatile and extremely pleasant wine.
Ideal for cheering up an aperitif but goes well with fish-based dishes, fresh cheeses, salads and summer menus. Ideal for cheering up an aperitif but goes well with fish-based dishes, fresh cheeses, salads and summer menus.
Mascot is a small-production label founded by Will Harlan in Napa Valley. The wines under this label are made from the younger vines of Harlan Estate, BOND, and Promontory, but The Mascot bottles share an exclusive preview at the development of their estates. Founded as an initial experiment to see what the young vines were capable of producing, the wines were initially only shared with close friends and family. By 2008, Will officially released the first vintage to the public since production had increased significantly. They create just one wine made from Cabernet Sauvignon, and the bottle is aged for five years before release. Assembled into a single, youthful expression, this wine shares a glimpse into the evolution and pedigree of its parent estates.
Tasting Notes:
A mild winter with scant rainfall introduced the 2020 growing season. Conditions remained pleasantly even-keeled throughout the spring, except for some light precipitation in March. It is worth noting that decades of research and steady viticultural progress have enabled our vines to begin achieving tannin and textural ripeness earlier in the season, and this fact—along with the drought conditions experienced in preceding years—led to one of the earliest picking windows in our history. This development proved crucial to the 2020 vintage, when we were fortunate to have fully completed our harvest before the Glass Fire began in late September. A vibrant purity manifests within this vintage’s generosity, which advances without excess of weight or volume. Aromas of gentle red fruit give way, eventually, to a savory darkness and finely wrought core. An effortless, structural tension transforms into a silky softness on the palate that envelopes The Mascot’s inner depth and dimension. The 2020 vintage resonates rather than roars: its intricate threads of tannin, acidity, and nuance interweave to form a complete expression that shimmers with sensory detail.