Events

93 pts Stephen Tanzer
"Ruby-red. Aromas of dried cherry, raspberry, vanilla, mocha and Cuban tobacco, with smoke and potpourri accents. Supple and expansive, offering sweet, spice-accented red and dark berry and floral pastille flavors that stain the palate. Dusty tannins add shape and grip to the very long, smooth, penetrating finish. I find this wine quite approachable now but it has the balance to age. Not the weightiest Valbuena but very impressive for the vintage."

"The 2007 Valbuena is rounded and warmer than the 2006 with lush dark berry fruits interlaced with scents of espresso and bay leaf. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, crisp acidity with a composed, focused finish of black cherries, raspberry, cedar and mocha. The 2007 has great precision and focus. It is more feminine and assured than the 2006, but one senses that it is holding something back to charm consumers in five or six year?????s time. This is very impressive. Drink 2017-2030. " 92pts WA

95 points Wine Advocate
2020 was drier than average until the harvest, when it rained and diluted the grapes, and they had to wait to regain concentration. The result is that the 2020 Alion is a wine with better balance and freshness. They felt the skins were very ripe and they could extract more and use a little more American oak (4%) in the elevage. From 2019, they kept the press wine separate until June, and they keep separate quantities of press wines that are aged in different containers depending on the quality of the wine. They used a percentage of concrete and oak vats for the elevage, which gives the wine more verticality and freshness. It's a subtle and elegant Alion, not as dense as some other vintages, but with nice balance and very elegant tannins Drinking Window: 2025 - 2035

94-96 points Wine Advocate
The nose of the 2022 Flor de Pingus has a peachy note (peche de vigne!). It's perfumed, elegant, more fruit-driven, tender, delicate and ripe without excess (but possibly the ripest of the 2022s, perhaps the influence of the younger vines). It has a tender palate with glossy tannins and a rounder mouthfeel. The finish is dry, even a little austere, with fine chalkiness. In general, the 2022s showed quite well, much better than expected. The wine was blended and clarified and is in tank waiting to be bottled. They expect to bottle the 2022s in June (or late May). They expect some 89,000 bottles, a little less because the young vines suffered more with the heat.