Wines (24 View)

Organic

#22. on The Wine Spectator Top 100 Wines of 2023!

94 points Wine Spectator
A solidly built red introduced by aromas of mint, lavender and wild rosemary. Shows cherry, raspberry, earth, iron, sanguine and tobacco flavors allied to an almost viscous texture as this cruises to the long finish. Impressive now, yet will be better in three to five years. Best from 2026 through 2045

Organic / Biodynamic

91 points Vinous
The 2020 Les Choisilles offers a floral and pear-like aromatic character. It's round and ripe with good grip on the finish, which could be a result of the vintage having had little juice in it; the wines have excellent structure and fruit purity by Rebecca Gibb on 6/2022. Drinking window 2022-2032.

Old vines from the vineyards of Les Epinais, La Taille aux Loups and Clos au Renard. The wine is named after a type of black flint called choisille. Vinified sec in stainless steel using indigenous yeasts. Aged in a combination of tank and used demi-muids. The 2020 has 4.2 grams per liter residual sugar per liter and 3.75 grams per liter of Total Acidity.

A powerhouse Toro that was really impressive. Bordeaux and California Cabernet Sauvignon drinkers are going to love this. This is not for the faint of heart!

"Framed by firm acidity, this vivacious Champagne is almost crunchy in texture, showing harmony to the flavors of white peach, grated ginger, clover honey and candied lemon zest. Delivers a mouthwatering, chalk-tinged finish. Drink now through 2018. 20,000 cases imported." 90pts WS

"This champagne is a brightly sparkling, light golden yellow liquid with an abundance of fine and elegant bubbles. The nose reveals initial aromas of ripe fresh fruit (white and yellow peaches, apricots), tropical notes (lychee and pineapple). It then opens up with the fragrance of vanilla before developing notes of milky caramel, breadcrumbs and yeast, culminating in aromas of dried fruit and honey. An explosion of freshness in the mouth, followed by strong persistence. The complex aromas of fresh fruit and caramel perpetuate the intensity." Winemaker notes

A cuvee blended from 77 crus, every one unique. The grape variety traditionally used by Mumm, Pinot Noir (45%), endows the wine with structure and strength; Chardonnay blend (30%) that ensures both finesse and elegance. The fruity, sharp and well-rounded notes of Pinot Meunier (25%) complete the blend. A separate pressing and vinification for each grape variety and cru, to ensure a wide range of aromas and taste sensations. 25% to 30% addition of reserve wine which brings depth to the final blend. A residual sugar content of 8g/l to remain constant and true to the Maison MUMM style.

Georges Hermann Mumm is the man to whom we owe the House's iconic cuvee. In 1876, to assert the quality of its champagne, the House decided to adorn their bottles with a red silk ribbon, a reference to the Ordre de Saint Louis and to the Grand Cordon de la Legion d'Honneur. Its success was immediate: a symbol of Maison Mumm's excellence and expertise, the Cordon Rouge cuvee henceforth became a true benchmark all over the world.

This is rich on the nose, with candied fruit, fruitcake, toffee and maple syrup. Full-bodied and medium sweet, with a brilliant aftertaste of fruit and caramel. Lasts for minutes on your palate. - WS92

93 points James Suckling
This has a lovely nose of cedar, grapefruit, lemon rind, apricot stones and tarragon. Salted butter. It's medium- to full-bodied, deliciously saline and creamy, with a long and elegant finish.

Organic

As noted in the Oberberg Auslese Trocken note, this is one of the more powerful vineyards Hans Josef farms. It also tends to have one of the higher acidities and that tracks here - compared to the Sonnenberg, the Oberberg is a bit more structured, a bit more linear and zippy.Only around 20 grams residual sugar. - Importer

Organic

93+ points Wine Advocate
It was very interesting to taste the 2020 Sensal next to the 2019. The village red in this almost perfect harvest is a blend of Monastrell, Bonicaire, Arcos and Garnacha from older and younger vines fermented by plot with indigenous yeasts and a significant number of full clusters. The ??levage lasted 10 months and was part in concrete, part in 300-liter oak barrels. The grapes achieved full ripeness and have plenty of aromas and flavors, with 13.59% alcohol, more Mediterranean while keeping the balance. This is what Sensal has to be, marked by the Monastrell, with that rustic touch of tree bark, with more color, concentration and power than the 2019 I tasted next to it. It has great depth and intensity, reflecting a superb Mediterranean vintage. 2,800 bottles were filled in July 2021.

Javi Revert is one of the best young winemakers from the Mediterranean zone of Spain. After years working for Celler del Roure, he started his own personal project. He also has a joint venture with a friend (also ex-Celler del Roure) and is the winemaker at Finca Sandoval. He has completed with plantings to have 10 hectares, half old vines planted by his grandfather and the other half planted by him, to have the grapes for the planned 25,000 bottles by 2026. He now makes some 12,000 bottles. He's conducting soils studies to achieve more precision in his wines. 2019 and 2020 were two very different vintages: 2019 had catastrophic torrential rains (the famous cold spell) of up to 300 liters in a few days in September in the middle of the harvest, whereas 2020 was a much better vintage, healthy and with very good quality, eminently Mediterranean.

Appellation: Valencia
Variety: Bonicaire, Garnacha, Monastrell, Arcos
Age of vines: 5-50
Farming: Practicing organic
Soil: Clay limestone, sand, gravel; altitude: 700 meters
Fermentation: Hand harvested, partially destemmed, natural yeast fermentation in amphorae and neutral French oak barrels
Aging: 10 months in neutral French oak barrels, amphorae, and glass demi-johns, bottled unfined with a light filtration, suitable for vegans

Organic / Biodynamic

92 points Wine Enthusiast
Sourced from biodynamically grown grapes, this single-vineyard Chablis highlights penetrating white-peach and grapefruit flavors accented by wisps of smoke and incense. While concentrated and voluminous in mouthfeel, it's cut by steely edges of acidity and a zesty lime-pith finish. The wine drinks well young and should maintain peak through 2027.

80% Tempranillo, 20% Garnacha sourced from the prized Finca la Pedrizavineyard.

95 points James Suckling
Savory and complex with dried orange peel, cedar and plenty of sweet spices, walnuts, caramel, dried mushrooms and pine needles. Shows maturity here, with a medium body and superb freshness. Incredibly long finish with lots of truffle and walnut. Lasts over a minute. Very complete now, but you can still hold it.

94+ points Wine Advocate
The 2016 Viña Ardanza Reserva was produced with 80% Tempranillo and 20% Garnacha that matured in used American oak barrels for three years, where it was hand-racked from barrel to barrel six times in the case of Tempranillo and five times for the Garnacha, as it had a slightly shorter élevage of 30 months. Against all odds, I found the 2016 to be fresher than the 2015 and less developed, despite the fact that winemaker Julio Sáenz told me he considers it a warmer year. But I have found many wines I like in 2016, and the wine feels very clean and quite harmonious, younger and less developed, with more primary notes and a velvety mouthfeel. 600,000 bottles produced. The wine was bottled in June 2020.

93 points Decanter
Gorgeously plump blackberry and damson fruit here, high impact with chewy tannins that build through the palate and give an impression of confidence and pleasure. A clear crowd pleaser, with cocoa bean and chocolate shavings, no need to wait too long to approach. 30% new oak.

92 points Wine Advocate
Deep purple-black colored, the 2019 Le Marquis de Calon-Ségur wafts out of the glass with fragrant potpourri, garrigue and Darjeeling tea scents over a core of redcurrant jelly, plum preserves and blackcurrant pastilles plus a touch of cracked black pepper. The full-bodied palate has a rock-solid frame of grainy tannins with loads of freshness supporting the crunchy black fruits, finishing long and savory.

92 points Jeb Dunnuck
A bottle of wine I'd happily drink, the 2019 Le Marquis De Calon Ségur sports a ruby/purple hue as well as classic Saint-Estèphe notes of red and black fruits, damp earth, leafy herbs, and even some spicy, floral nuances that I don't normally find in young Saint-Estèphe. Medium-bodied on the palate, it's nicely balanced, has well-integrated acidity and tannins, and outstanding length. It's a rock solid second wine with loads to love.

56% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc, 2% Petit Verdot

95 points James Suckling
Savory aromas of subtle earthy berries, oranges, iron and hints of walnut, tobacco and mushrooms. Fine tannins with high acidity on the palate with juicy, savory berries and a long, citrusy finish. A hint of tertiary caramel character at the end, making this very complex and complete. Drink now or in the next 10-15 years.

93 points Wine Advocate
The 2012 Viña Bosconia Reserva is perhaps a little too young (María José López de Heredia likes more polished wines, and for her this wine was too tough), with some tannins and the chalky texture from the limestone soils. This blend of Tempranillo with 15% Garnacho and 5% between Graciano and Mazuelo matured in used American oak barrels for five years. 80,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in May 2019.

93+ points Wine Advocate
The 2013 Viña Bosconia Reserva even in a cooler and rainier year, like 2013, has a rounder body and still 13.5% alcohol. They also insisted that "remember that we can use 15% of wine from another vintage, and perhaps we topped this one up with wine from 2015. We want consistency year after year." This matured in barrels for five years and was bottled unfiltered but fined with egg whites. It's expressive, elegant and subtle, clean and complex, with polished tannins and very good acidity (pH 3.3 and 6.7 grams of tartaric acid per liter of wine).

91 points Wine Spectator
A well-balanced Champagne, with a vibrant backbone of acidity and a creamy mousse, this offers spice and tea rose accents to the crushed white cherry, toasty and candied lemon zest flavors. Clean-cut finish.

A blend of 50% Pinot Noir, 25% Pinot Meunier and 25% Chardonnay from the Montagne de Reims and the Côte des Blancs; about half of the juice comes from 1er Cru and Grand Cru vineyards.

The Marie Weiss label is produced by the superb, small Champagne house of Ployez-Jacquemart, which is located in the small village of Ludes on the Montagne de Reims. The Marie Weiss bottling is produced entirely from purchased grapes or must, and the new release was quite a lovely bottle. The refined and complex nose wafts from the glass in a blend of apple, white peach, brioche, a nice touch of fresh nutmeg and a lovely base of chalky soil tones. On the palate the wine is full-bodied, crisp and wide open, with good mid-palate depth, lovely focus and complexity, elegant mousse and lovely balance on the long and classy finish. This is not quite as structured out of the blocks as the Ployez-Jacquemart Brut NV, which really is built to age long and gracefully, and the Marie Weiss is a lovely counterpoint from the Ployez family for those who really want to drink their bubbly right after it is purchased.

96 points Vinous
The 2021 Game Trail exudes finesse from the very first taste. Crushed flowers, dark red-toned fruit, cinnamon, leather, menthol and dried rose petal build effortlessly as the 2021 shows off its undeniable class. Cabernet Sauvignon at 1,400 feet in the Yorkville Highlands is utterly sublime in this bottling from Marietta.

94 points Wine Advocate
The 2021 Game Trail Cabernet Sauvignon is crunchy, refreshing and easy to drink. It's scented of fresh blackcurrants and cherries, plus nuances of garrigue and charcuterie. The full-bodied palate is light on its feet with softly chalky tannins, bursts of mouthwatering acidity and a long, mineral-driven finish. You could drink this on its own or have it with medium-weight dishes at the table.

94 points James Suckling
Spicy oak to the black berries, blueberries and plums. Pretty fluid despite the medium to full body with nicely chewy tannins. Fine-grained, structured and long.

Organic

95% Viura, 5% Garnacha Blanca from Rioja Alta and Alavesa.
Dry farmed, sustainable/non-certified organic plots from Sotés, Cenicero, Hornos de Moncalvillo, Uruñuela and Hornilleja, ranging from 40-100 years old vines. Continental climate and higher altitudes lead to warm days and cool, fresh nights.The regions Calcareous clay and alluvial silt soils retain beautiful acidity allowing the wine to retain maximum freshness and aging potential Production: Hand-picked fruit is destemmed, and allowed to go through native fermentation with ambient yeast. Post fermentation, the wine is aged in 90% French, 10% American Oak for 36 months before bottling without fining or filtration. The wine spends 30 months in the cellar before release.

Soft, smoky fruits with candied peach and hints of almonds and dried flowers are incredibly giving on the nose. There are subtle notes of oak and a touch of that aging development with a gorgeous presence of acidity and creamy balance. Chamomile, grilled lemon and citrus curd all tempt the palate. This is a serious wine with aging potential that could also be enjoyed today in a very big
way.

93 points Wine Advocate
Packaged with its distinctive black label, the Mastroberardino 2018 Taurasi Radici offers impressive complexity with a long succession of aromas that includes dried blackberry, cherry liqueur, tarry smoke, campfire ash, sweet baking spice and cinnamon. The bouquet is also heavy on bramble, rosemary sprig and forest floor. It is all smoothed out by soft tobacco. This wine shows robust fruit weight and equally balanced oak spice. The tannins are well managed and Radici is long in persistency.

Round and fruity, like a good Macon Chardonnay. Shows apple and berry flavors in a soft yet balanced frame. Drink now. ?BS - WS87

91 pts Wine Spectator
An aperitif-style Champagne, with flavors of creme de cassis, lemon curd and pastry riding a creamy mousse and framed by crisp, well-knit acidity. Drink now through 2020.

"It is composed of 20% of the Chardonnay grape variety, for elegance and delicacy, 40% of Pinot Noir, for roundness and structure and 40% of Pinot Meunier for fruitiness. Pale gold in color, abundance of delicate bubbles. Floral aromas of fruit with subtle predominance of white fruits: pear, apple, almonds and hazelnuts. Fresh opening, smooth, pleasant and balanced." Winemaker notes