Wines (24 View)

Organic / Natural

Organic

92 points Decanter
Plum and cherry aromas are ripe and rich with intense fruitiness. Sleek attack, quite concentrated and assertive, but not overbearing with black fruit flavours. Ripe plum and dark cherry integrate with persistent tannin. An easy drinking example, perfect for picnics or burgers in the summer.

Antonio Galloni of Vinous - The 2022 Barbera d'Alba is a very pretty, understated wine. Crushed flowers, sweet red berry fruit, cinnamon and orange peel are all laced together.

Organic / Natural / No Added Sulphur

La Lambretta 2022 is Gemma Mir??'s new wine, a unique expression of grape-ripened Muscat from Priorat. Sourced from 40-year-old vineyards at the Les Pinyanes estate, this wine is a tribute to Gemma's family memories, with subtle notes of citrus and Mediterranean aromas. Unfined, Unfiltered. 10% abv

Organic / Biodynamic

13% abv

Organic

Well-rounded and harmonious with concentrated fruit flavors of peaches yellow plums, apricots and floral notes while mineral on the palate with long mouth-watering finish. 50% Encruzado, 15% Malvasia Fina, 15% Bical, 15% Cerceal Branco, 5% others (co-ferment). After harvest, some grapes undergo 24 hours of skin contact, with the remainder pressed whole-cluster into cement and steel tanks. Following spontaneous fermentation, the wine ages on its lees for six months.

Natalia Jessa is the mastermind behind Gota which has a simple yet bold objective: craft aromatically-driven, authentic fine wines of Portugal, while remaining value-conscious. Her many prior travels throughout Portuguese wine country on behalf of one of Europe?????s major food markets enabled Natalia to develop invaluable relationships and gain access to some of the most exciting and as-of-yet undiscovered wineries and vineyards. She collaborates with them, as negociant, to select grapes that capture the optimal expression of a vintage. Vineyards are dry-farmed. Vines are ungrafted. To preserve fruit aromatics, winemaking utilizes ambient yeast and minimizes oak use. Adhering to tradition, wines are varietal blends and grapes are only native (no international varietals). Gota means "drop", referring to the humble origins of this project.

Winemaker Notes:
Dark purple red with violet hues. Profound and fruit forward, with ripe red berries, sweet spices and a hint of black pepper backed by toasted notes from its oak aging. Structured and balanced, with ripe tannins and fresh acidity that leads to toasted and vanilla hints on the finish.
Very versatile. It pairs well with lamb and grilled beef, spicy food and poultry.

92 points James Suckling
Ripe blackberries, sweet spices, crushed walnuts, cedar and wet stones. Some iodine, too. Full-bodied, firm and structured with chalky texture to the tannins and juicy acidity. Polished and even. Better after 2025.

94 points James Suckling
For an entry-level pinot noir from a cool region like the Mosel, this is absurdly good. Wonderful rooty complexity on the deep and subtle nose. Impressive concentration and a velvety texture that’s hard to resist. I love the vitality in the long, plush finish. Excellent aging potential. Drink or hold.

100% Pinot Noir from a mix of vineyards on slate. 50% stem inclusion. Vinified 3 weeks in open fermenters then matured briefly in used Burgundy barrels. Bottled unfiltered. Bright magenta in color, fruit-driven, juicy, buoyant, and addictively drinkable. The price is just silly. 12.5% abv

Features juicy plum and black cherry flavors, with a weave of anise and earth details. Falters a bit on the finish, where the wood plays a more prominent role. A very appealing Pinot. Drink now.

"Our signature Riesling is vibrant and aromatic, featuring the distinctive minerality that has become our trademark. Fragrant essence of spring blossoms sets the stage for a succulent palate of early fruit, balanced with a refreshing crispness, revealing the true qualities of the Riesling grape. A brilliant texture carries into a lingering finish, in a wine that accommodates a wide range of food." Winemaker notes

Whole Cluster Press, Cold fermentation 3+ months, No fining or filtering agents, Estate grown & bottled. Estate Vineyards: 65% HJW, 23% Josef, 12% Magdalena.

#82 on The Wine Spectator Top 100 Wines of 2024!

90 points Wine Spectator
Plump, juicy raspberry, blueberry and maraschino cherry flavors mingle with notes of red licorice, blood orange, clove and green cardamom, backed by a hint of toasted green tea that lingers on the silky finish. Drink now. 1,000 cases made, 500 cases imported.

In a word... Ripe. Dense purple in color, this wine opens with aromas of ripe red fruits, cherries, anise, cedar, savory spice, roasted coffee, and tobacco. The wine is velvety and lush presenting delicious flavors of raspberry, cherry and plum with warm baking spice, earthy undertones, and a hint of vanilla. The flavors are complemented by lively acidity and fine tannins that lift the wine suggesting a long life. The finish is long, supple and mouthwatering. This Paso Robles Cabernet is the perfect match for local almond wood grilled chicken with a side of stone ground grits, roasted poblano chiles and pepper jack cheese

Winemaker Notes:
"The J. Lohr Estates Seven Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon is dark and dense in color to the rim of the glass. Layered aromas of black cherry, currant and blueberry are accented by an authentic barrel-aged bouquet of dark chocolate, cocoa powder, and roasted coffee. The palate peaks with high-toned red berry fruit, and follows with bright acidity and a full structure that is both dense and soft at once. "

Organic

#69 On The Wine Spectator's Top 100 Wines Of 2024!

91 points Wine Spectator
A rich version, bordering on creamy, this peach-, apple- and stone-inflected white is complex and long, with fine balance and a long aftertaste that resonates with fruit and mineral notes. Drink now.

This is the best price in the country!

This is a true dry Riesling for folks who don't think they like Riesling. Slightly exotic nose, crushed volcanic rock, petrol, white peach. Racy, lean palate of salinity and mouth-tingling acidity. Bursting with character that will pair with food beautifully. A must try.

Not sure if you like Riesling because the ones you?????ve had in the past were too sweet? Well, you really should give today?????s wine a try, it will definitely open your mind to Riesling. Jakob Schneider Trocken Riesling 2022 is a dynamite example of DRY Riesling, that?????s right, dry. No cloyingly sweet fruit here. This racy, mineral-driven, divine nectar of the gods will have you loving Riesling in no time!

The Schneider family has been making wine in the Nahe village of Niederhausen since 1575. Today the winery is run by Jakob Schneider Jr. who took over after graduating from Geisenheim and interning at Knoll in Austria?????s Wachau. His wife Laura, sister Monika, and mother Liesel, all manage different parts of the estate.

Over 52 different soil types can be found here, mostly based on volcanic rock and slate. Working as closely as possible to nature in the vineyards, the Schneiders use humus in their very steep vineyards to help absorb and retain water, as well as straw and hay to prevent erosion. Schneider?????s wines maintain an old-world charm while showcasing a stalwart minerality only derived from the amazing terroirs from which they have.

The Melaphyr trocken, is named for a rare type of volcanic rock found in the estate parcels used for this bottling. Without getting too scientific, this is a "porphyritic igneous rock" / Mesozoic basalt. It?????s one of the volcanic soils the central Nahe contains, and it can provide aromas of soursop, lemon-balm, violets and ginger.

Clear and brilliant appearance with a silver luster and green reflections. A range of delicate and generous fruits. A creamy texture and a beautiful balance between refreshing sweet fruit flavors and acidity. To be enjoyed in it's youth.

Organic

94 points Wine Advocate
As with La Canoca, the 2022 El Bardallo changes from a single-vineyard to a paraje (lieu-dit) wine and includes more plots in the same place to increase the volume of wine produced. It's Tempranillo with some 10% white grapes, mostly Viura. It fermented with some whole-cluster fruit and indigenous yeasts and matured in 500- and 600-liter barrels. It's quite fruit-driven, aromatic and reminiscent of the old carbonic-fermentation reds matured in barrel, juicy and velvety, with abundant, chalky tannins and a dry finish. 3,200 bottles were filled in September 2023.

Jose currently farms 5 hectares of vines located in the villages of San Vicente, Labastida, and Briones. Practices are manual and organic although he is not certified. The vines range in age from 5 to 130 years old with the majority Tempranillo, a small percentage of Viura. The oldest vineyard plots are co-planted with tiny percentages of other grape varieties which include Garnacha and Palomino. When the grapes reach the cellar after being harvested by hand, they are fermented either whole-cluster, or partially destemmed. All fermentations are by indigenous yeasts and extraction is gentle. After pressing the wines are racked into 225-300L French oak barrels and transported to the aging cellar in San Vicente.

Organic

92 points Wine Advocate
I also tasted the 2022 Vi??edos en Labastida. The wines are produced in a similar way to highlight the differences of the places and vintages. In 2022, it's a similar blend of different plots with some 85% Tempranillo, 10% Garnacha and 5% white grapes, and it had a similar vinification and ??levage in 500- and 600-liter oak foudres in their cave. It's very primary and fruit-driven, with a nose of ripe berries and herbs, a lactic twist and a fine thread in the palate, with surprisingly fine tannins for a 2022. 3,600 bottles were filled in September 2023.

These are some of the most exciting new Riojas in the market.
Before modern or traditional Rioja, there was a simpler style of whole-cluster, co-fermented, and shortly-aged wines that were as naked and honest an expression of Rioja as one could find. So it's no surprise that Jos?? Gil followed in his ancestors' footsteps with focus in the vineyard rather than the cellar - which happens to be a cave in the outskirts of San Vicente.

Jose currently farms 5 hectares of vines located in the villages of San Vicente, Labastida, and Briones. Practices are manual and organic although he is not certified. The vines range in age from 5 to 130 years old with the majority Tempranillo, a small percentage of Viura. The oldest vineyard plots are co-planted with tiny percentages of other grape varieties which include Garnacha and Palomino. When the grapes reach the cellar after being harvested by hand, they are fermented either whole-cluster, or partially destemmed. All fermentations are by indigenous yeasts and extraction is gentle. After pressing the wines are racked into 225-300L French oak barrels and transported to the aging cellar in San Vicente.