Red

98 points Vinous
Antinori?????s 2018 Solaia captures all of the elegance of this important vintage. The bouquet alone is mesmerizing. It speaks to the stunning beauty and pedigree of Cabernet Sauvignon as grown at the Antinori family?????s Tignanello property. Sweet scents of cr??me de cassis, lavender, graphite, mint, spice and espresso lead into a fine, delineated palate. Bright and energetic, Solaia is decidedly medium in body in 2018, with striking purity and exceptional beauty. I can?????t remember ever tasting a young Solaia with this much sheer appeal and balance in the early going. In 2018 Solaia is 73% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Sangiovese and 7% Cabernet Franc.

A red wine blend for the sailing enthusiast, created to set our mind sails to the thrilling adventures awaiting us beyond the horizon. Our chosen blend is 55% Malbec and 45% Cabernet Sauvignon. Red fresh fruit aromas mingle with smoky and chocolate hints from oak aging. Full-bodied with currants, and spices such as black pepper reveal themselves - firm tannins.

60% Fermented in our exclusive concrete vats called Mates and 40% fermented in new 4500 las Frenck Oak vat using only indigenous yeast

Bodegas Anaia is equipped with world-class innovative high-technology, their concrete fermentation vats, without epoxy, called Mates. Each ca hold 9,600 liters (2500 gallons), for the wine’s fermentation and aging, with a unique tilting system, powered by hydraulics to assure smooth controlled, and even contact between grape solids (cap) and liquids. The main purpose is not to stress the wine by pumping it up preserving its unique natural aromas.

The plantation is at an altitude of 960 meters above sea level, (3,150 feet) stretching over the coolest area of Agrelo, Argentina.

93 pts Wine Spectator
This red is sleek and solid, in the modern style. Bright cherry, berry and currant flavors mingle with licorice, black tea and mineral notes, giving way to a floral and minerally finish. The firm tannins are well-integrated and juicy acidity keeps this lively. MourvA¨dre, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. Drink now through 2029

Brilliant ripe black cherry red colour with good depth. Fruity aromas with elegant notes of fine wood. Velvety in the mouth with a long finish.

Organic

Capitan Fanegas is the personal project of Mario Ruiz-Clavijo from the historic Bodegas Marques de Arviza in Rioja. The philosophy behind the Capitan Fanegas wines is to make single vineyard expressions of Rioja that reflect and express the sites they come from. The wines are vinos de author; unique representations that are true to the Rioja style.

For 6 months the wine is aged over fine lees. After it was racked to remove the sediments and lees. Then the wine was aged for an extra 12 months without any racking and no sulphur added until bottling giving a total aging in concrete of 18 months. The philosophy is to age the wine with a a hands off approach to avoid oxidation, because Graciano is an easy oxidative variety. Aging in concrete tank gives the wine and extra refinement. Porosity provides a very interesting evolution to the wine like the micro oxygenation in the barrel, but without added flavor or added aromatic impact. With this process, the evolution and maturity of the fruit of the wine is enhanced and helps to maintain the purity of the Graciano character.

It’s aromas of red and black fruits, floral and some spicy notes, are typical of the Graciano variety. Also, some hints of leather, tabaco, iron, licorice and other tertiary notes given naturally by the variety. The palate is fleshy, powerful, tasty, and spicy with a long and very elegant finish. The tannins on this wine are big but elegant. Due the hands off process we use during aging, we highly recommend decanting the wine prior tasting.

70/30 blend of Alicante Bouschet and Trincadeira, aged for 15 months in new French oak. It comes in at 14.5% alcohol. Far more elegant and graceful than the regular Tinto, this is equally powerful but not as jammy, not as dense and far fresher. Here, the fruit is expressed better. There is still intensity of flavor, without the same heaviness, without the same stolid demeanor. It's tightly wound and beautifully balanced. This is nicely done.

Organic

The composition is 60% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Franc and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon. This wine is marked by a vibrant ruby/garnet color married to a richly spicy nose with hints of tobacco and coffee in the background; the flavors are dominated by red currant, cassis, and raspberry; the texture is silky and the wine is smooth and generous on the palate; the subtle tannins have grip but are graceful making this wine particularly welcoming over the near term.
The Pueyos follow traditional vinification techniques. After a 3 day cold maceration, fermentation takes place in both cement tanks and stainless steel tanks. Either way, temperatures are closely monitored so the fermentation proceeds at a controlled pace with maximum temperatures reaching 28 degrees Celsius. The “cuvaison” (fermentation + maceration) usually lasts between 15 and 20 days. Closely monitoring the temperature during fermentation helps avoid extracting the harsher, more bitter tannins that can appear if the temperature gets too high. Half of the wine is aged in barrels for 18 months following fermentation. Only 25% new barrels and 25% one-year-old barrels are used each year, to avoid overwhelming the fruit. The second part of the cuvée is aged in cement tanks. The two parts of the wine are ultimately blended, then fined with egg whites before bottling.

The 2017 vintage was tied for Third Place in PJ Wine's - Wine of the Year 2021 blind taste-off.

100% Merlot aged one year in a combination of neutral oak and steel tank. Medium-bodied, easy drinking Bordeaux with mild tannins. The brambly fruit has a radiance that makes it a pleasure to drink. Truly amazing value and a pleasure to drink, with lovely supple fruit and fine gravelly notes to complete the profile. A baby Graves to drink every night!

Château Cantelaudette is part of the Bordeaux holdings of the Chatelier family, which also owns Château Chatelier (formerly known as Château Fantin). The estate, located in the appellation of Graves de Vayres, was established by the family in 1870. At the time, as was the custom, they planted a variety of crops including grapes.

Château Cantelaudette is set between the cities of Bordeaux and Libourne in the northern part of the Entre-Deux-Mers region on a plateau overlooking the Dordogne River. The proximity to both the river and the ocean brings a warming influence that helps to fully ripen the grapes.

Jean-Michel is committed to improving the impact of farming on the environment and has obtained the demanding Haute Valeur Environnementale certification, which reflects excellence in the areas of biodiversity, plant protection, management of fertilizer use and management of water.

93 points Decanter
Good complexity on the nose, chocolate, cherries, plums and blackcurrants. Succulent straight away, it makes you suck your cheeks in, the tannins are abundant and fill the mouth but with a soft, juicy chewiness that's really pleasant. I really like this density, it feels full without being too much - all in balance. A really enjoyable wine, good to have with food and will age well continuing to integrate and soften, but I like its fruit-forward confidence right now. A bit of milk chocolate sweetness, some chalkiness and then a herbal element too - everything you need in a good claret! with typicity and approachability. Top value too. Drinking Window 2023 - 2033.

92 points Wine Enthusiast
The estate on the plateau of Saint-Estèphe is well situated to produce this rich, full-bodied wine. Broad tannins give the dry core essential for aging. They are balanced by black-currant fruits from the 50% Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend. It will age well; drink from 2025.

92 points Vinous
The 2018 Laffitte-Carcasset is gorgeous, just as it was from barrel. This mid-weight Saint-Estèphe impresses with its nuance and delineation. Bright red fruit, iron, menthol, anise, cedar and rose petal lend uncommon complexity, while fine grained tannins give the wine proportion and drive. This polished, under the radar gem is a real delight. Laffitte-Carcasset is an especially delicate wine for the appellation.

Review is on the previous vintage.
92 points Vinous
Deep ruby. Smoke-accented cherry cola, blackberry and floral scents show very good clarity and spicy lift. Broad and chewy in texture, offering ripe dark berry, cherry preserve and licorice flavors and hints of spicecake, vanilla and candied flowers. Closes on an appealingly sweet note, with even tannins and strong, smoky tenacity.

Organic / Natural

The grapes are from old vines (60-90 years old) with granite soils and average altitudes of 400m, ocated in the "La Madone" plot in Villié-Morgon, Beaujolais, France. The harvest is manual and the
grapes are destemmed and gently pressed. The must ferments in stainless steel tanks at controlled temperatures and the wine is aged for 10 months in French oak barrels. 13.5% abv

Having lived and worked among the ‘superstars’ of Beaujolais, Joseph Chamonard created a wonderful environment for his vines in Morgon. On the hill of Morgon, his vines stayed healthy without chemical assistance, remaining in their natural living soils alongside the packed earth and starved vines of his neighbors. Sadly, Joseph passed away in 1990, leaving his daughter Genevieve and her husband Jean-Claude Chanudet to carry on the health of his 4 hectare parcels, located in Corcelette, near the town of Ville-Morgon. With each successive vintage the duo has strictly kept to disavowing chemical treatments, in or out of the vineyards. Harvest is done by hand late in the season for full natural ripeness and complexity, with only natural yeasts used for fermentation and little else done outside of patient guidance to its natural end. The wine is made the traditional way with respect to nature. As some of the others of his era passing on as well (Marcel LaPierre in 2010), there is a sense that the pattern set here in Beaujolais will be altered. With so much natural beauty remaining, it will take more than a gang of four to do so, after all, it's now almost tradition.

100 points Jeb Dunnuck
The flagship 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon checks in as 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc, and 5% Petit Verdot brought up in 40% new French oak. With an essence of Cabernet like character in its darker currants, green tobacco, cedar, graphite, and floral aromas and flavors, this gorgeous wine is full-bodied and has bright yet integrated acidity, polished tannins, and a great, great finish. It’s just gorgeously put together and a magical, flawless wine. It’s going to take a decade to hit maturity but will evolve for 40-50 years in cold cellars. It is as good as it gets in classic, age-worthy Cabernet Sauvignon!(1/2021)

100 points James Suckling
This is incredible on the nose, offering hot stones, blackcurrants, iodine and wet earth. Full-bodied with a tight center palate, then it opens with a tannin structure that is weightless and spreads across the palate. Totally integrated on the palate. This is a magic-carpet wine. Really incredible. One of the reference points for the vintage. Drinkable now and please try a bottle, but it’s one for the cellar. (5/2021)

99 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Very deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Dominus slowly emerges from the glass with profound notes of blackcurrant cordial, ripe black plums, boysenberries and Black Forest cake with hints of violets, star anise, cracked black pepper, raspberry leaves and pencil lead, plus a touch of garrigue. Medium to full-bodied, the palate delivers impactful black fruit layers, creating a beguiling sense of richness that is beautifully countered by invigorating freshness and great poise, framed by super ripe, plush tannins and beautiful tension, finishing on a lingering fragrant earth note and, finally, lots of mineral sparks. For all that it is at the moment, one cannot help but feel that this 2018 is holding something back. Give it a good five years in bottle, at least, and then get set for what I suspect will be a mindblowing transformation over the next 30 years+. (LPB) (2/2021)

97 points Vinous
The 2018 Dominus is wild and exotic from the first taste. Lifted aromatics make a strong opening impression. There is something exuberant about the 2018 that is hard to describe. The 2018 is not a huge Dominus, nor is it massively structured, but the intensity of the flavors is remarkable just the same. Dark raspberry, spice, leather and cedar are some of the many notes that open over time. (AG)

89-92 points Burghound
(85% from Vaumuriens-Haut and 15% from En Chiveau). This is quite firmly reduced and while the underlying fruit appears to be ripe it?€?s difficult to read in this condition. Otherwise there is excellent punch to the chalky- textured and muscular medium weight flavors that conclude in a sleek, chiseled, linear and youthfully austere finish. This is an excellent Pommard villages with fine aging potential.

99 pts James Suckling
Blackberry and black chocolate with mint, conifer and clove. Sweet tobacco, violets and flowers, too. Some graphite. Cool and complex. Full-bodied with ultra fine, dusty tannins and a wonderful, extremely long finish. Savory and refined. A classic-styled 2018. This needs time, but is so approachable and gorgeous. One of the best Insignias ever. Alive and changing all the time. 40% Stags Leap AVA. 87% cabernet sauvignon, 8% petit verdot, 3% malbec and 2% cabernet franc. Leave this for five or six years, but so wonderful now.

97 pts Wine Advocate
The 2018 Insignia is a blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 3% Malbec and 2% Cabernet Franc. The vineyard sources this year include: 30% Las Rocas (Stags Leap District),18% Yountville (Oak Knoll District), 13% Banca Dorada (Rutherford), 18% Suscol (South Napa Valley), 14% Home Ranch (St. Helena), 12% Las Rocas (Stags Leap District), 7% Barboza (Stags Leap District). It was aged for 24 months in 100% new French oak barrels. Deep garnet-purple colored, it comes storming out of the glass with powerful notes of blackcurrant cordial, stewed black plums and boysenberries, plus hints of cedar chest, graphite, menthol and wet slate with a fragrant waft of clove oil. The medium to full-bodied palate already demonstrates remarkable balance at this youthful stage, featuring a firm backbone of fine-grained tannins and bold freshness to support the tightly wound, crunchy black fruits, finishing long and spicy. 17,000 cases were made.

97 pts Vinous
The 2018 Insignia is a boisterous, explosive wine. Medium in body and gracious, with striking aromatic presence and tons of silkiness, the 2018 is all class. Today it comes across as a more refined version of the 2016, with similar depth, but riper, sweeter tannin and perhaps a touch more finesse as well. I can't wait to taste it from bottle.

Winemaker Notes:
Aromas of lush, bright black cherry, blackberry and cassis draw you in. Round, rich, seamless tannins provide a robust backbone and supple mid-palate. Notes of cedar, vanilla and a hint of mocha linger on the finish.

This modern, multi-layered and Bordeaux style blend shows aromas of blackcurrants, blueberries, plums and black pepper with nuances of pencil shavings and dried herbs. On the palate, the intense concentration is prompted by a firm tannin structure and layers of sweet fruit with an excellent finish.

Master of Wine Tim Atkins awarded this 94 points!

93 points James Suckling
A pretty nose of raspberries, cassis, fresh herbs, vanilla and sweet spices. It’s medium-bodied with round tannins. Creamy and fruity with chocolatey character on the mid-palate. Supple finish with excellent length. Tangy acidity. 100% tempranillo. Drink or hold

92 points Wine Advocate
Their young and fresh red 2018 Vina Alberdi, already a Reserva (Crianza in Spain), matured in oak barrel for two years in new barrels for the first year and in used barrels for the second year. During the elevage, they racked the wine manually from barrel to barrel four times. 2018 was a year of lower alcohol and more freshness in the wines, and they thought the wines were not designed for the long haul; so, they didn't produce any other wine, and so the only wine from 2018 IS VINA ALBERDI! Which means that all the Tempranillo grapes that were destined for 890, 904 and all the other wines went to this wine. They didn't use the Garnacha (which was sold in bulk). So, this is a super- Vina Alberdi, which shows more Crianza style in this cooler vintage but with very good depth and complexity, perhaps a more modern and fresher style. The wine has a seamless palate and a juicy texture, with more color than other vintages, more intensity, more fruit... It has grapes from very good vineyards and poor soils that were never destined for this wine. Highly recommendable and very versatile. It has potential to age.

Organic

93 points Wine Advocate
Green asparagus and earthy notes intermixed with dark berry aromas open the 2018 Saumur Puy Notre Dame Tête de Lard, which benefits from aeration. Black-red in color, the unfiltered wine aged in old barrels for 12 months and was bottled in April last year. It is a concentrated, enormously juicy and fruity-intense red wine with a velvety texture and fruit aromas of blue berries, blackcurrants, elderberries and cowberries. The soft tannins are completely interwoven with the viscous texture of this very particular red that is so soft, sweet and fruity, as if it were still fermenting. I'd cellar it for several years and assume that at 10+ years old could be the right moment to enjoy this biodynamic wine, although I also recommend tasting a bottle every second year or so to see how this natural product develops. Tasted in June 2021.

Peasant and responsible agriculture is a way of life and of thinking. when producing my grapes, i aspire to act sensibly for the people and the planet . this state of mind develops naturally from a respectful relationship with nature. since 1998, the vineyard has been cultivated and
certified by ecocert in organic farming and since 2010 in biodynamic farming by biodyvin. knowing how to adapt to a changing environment requires constant questioning. the planting of forgotten grape varieties such as pineau d’aunis, the incorporation of trees into the cultivation of
the vine (agroforestry) or the gradual abandonment of all modern oenology are avenues that i have followed for more than 20 years. other projects will emerge in the coming years. revitalizing authenticity, durability and liveliness is an integral part of the culture of my estate. the
entire manoir de la tête rouge team and i are passionate about this peasant and caring approach.

100% CABERNET FRANC FROM 20-25 YEARS OLD VINES.
12 MONTHS IN OLD OAK BARRELS + 4 MONTHS IN CONCRETE TANK.
FILTERED. UNFINED.

Organic

95 points Vinous
The 2018 Numanthia, sourced from old vines in Toro, spent 18 months in French oak (60% new, 1/5 in 400-liter barrels). Garnet in hue. It exudes red fruits, plums and wild herbs on the nose, with cedar, vanilla, dried flowers and furniture wax. Dry and rich, it offers a creamy, overwhelming palate with polished tannins and a silky texture, leading to a plush, flavorful finish. This is a well-balanced and nuanced Toro.

92 points James Suckling
Black fruit, nutmeg, charcuterie and roasted marshmallows on the nose. Some licorice and five spice, too. It’s firm and dense, with a medium to full body, tight tannins and a compact core of spicy black fruit.

91 points Vinous
The 2018 Reserva is 100% Tempranillo sourced from San Vicente de la Sonsierra and Ábalos, Rioja Alta. This garnet wine unfolds sour cherry and dried flower notes with hints of fennel and herbs. Dry and mild, the fairly concentrated and chalky palate lingers with a juicy touch.

18 months in French and American oak barrels, followed by two years in the bottle.

96 points Decanter
The 2019 Silver Oak Napa Valley Cabernet shows a deep, ruby colour. It is a beautifully compact wine that delivers complex and nuanced aromas of Bing cherry and black raspberry with tobacco, currant leaf, and cedarwood laced with dried sage. Focused and linear on the medium to full-bodied palate, showing expressive dark berry character and exotic oak spices with a firm backbone of fine-grained structured tannins. Cool raspberry, cherry, and blackberry fruit are perfectly represented, and the lengthy finish is crisp, lively, and energetic. No doubt, this is one to cellar. Exhaustive oak seasoning experiments led by winemaker Nate Weis resulted in the discovery that the American oak they age Silver Oak in when seasoned for 24 months and toasted for 90 minutes, marks the point at which the oak imparts more vanillin character and delivers better tannin integration. By contrast, the 2018 vintage was aged in American oak, seasoned for 16 months and toasted for 60 minutes. Weis explains that their experiments showed that underseasoned American oak imparts a dill character, while overseasoning results in coconutty notes, but finding a sweet spot delivers that vanillian quality winemakers look for in French oak. Taste the 2018 and 2019s side by side if you can, and note the subtle differences and shift to a more savoury profile in the 2019 vintage, with a very precise integration of oak tannin. It will be exciting to follow their progression in the cellar and see how subsequent vintages shape up in healthy and challenging harvest years.

Organic

Nebbiolo based cuvee 90% Spanna, Uva Rara and Vespolina.