| Country: | France |
| Region: | Burgundy |
| Winery: | Chartron et Trebuchet |
| Grape Type: | Chardonnay |
| Vintage: | 2018 |
| Bottle Size: | 750 ml |
Alejandro Bulgheroni Lithology Beckstoffer Las Piedras Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon.
From a St. Helena vineyard planted by early Napa settler Edward Bale more than 150 years ago, and later serving as the estate vineyard for the area’s first winery built by Henry Pellet in 1860, the Las Piedras site always gives us our prettiest wine. When placed next to Dr. Crane and To-Kalon wines, the Las Piedras show a certain elegance, with a very graceful entry and finely detailed complexity. We produce it with at least 75% new French oak, so there is a floral, spicy, and vanilla accent to the intense red and black fruits, cassis, and black cherry liqueur. What distinguishes this bottling is the beautifully fine tannins, delicate texture, and stunning purity. (Less than 100 cases made.)
Fermentation 70% Oak, 24% Concrete, 6% Puncheon
Review:
-Jeb Dunnuck 98 Points
Argot Chardonnay Sonoma County is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
Pouring a green-tinted gold, our Sonoma County Chardonnay is a beautiful wine from word go. Radiating from within, a blast of apple/pear fruit informs this wine both aromatically, and on the palate. As flavors unfurl, a progression of orange blossom, pineapple, white peach, and hazlenut are followed by a finish dominated by ginger, baked apple, with a trailing kiss of mint’s freshness. A stunning wine — wholly informed by the perfection of 2018’s growing season — defined by its dichotomy of massively intense flavors, and superb acidity and freshness.
Raised by minimalistic methods, often associated with the classic Chardonnay winemaking techniques of Meursault. With a focus on the coolest Chardonnay region in Sonoma County, 2018’s long, even growing season favored our vineyards’ moderate climate, old vines and deep volcanic soils. These grapes were allowed an extended ripening period on the vine, resulting in perfect balance and concentrated flavors.
Review:
-Jeb Dunnuck 91 Points
Avennia Red Willow Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100% Cabernet Sauvignon.
The Red Willow Cabernet is a true blockbuster.
Coming from one specific block of 30 year old vines at this iconic vineyard, then strictly barrel selected, this is the essence of powerful, old vine Washington Cabernet. After all of our efforts promoting the idea of the Bordeaux blend, it would take a pretty compelling argument to suspend that idea and make a 100% varietal Cabernet. In 2016 Red Willow provided us with just that. Each time we tasted it in the barrel, the belief grew that this was something special. Something we can't make every year. In the end we were won over, and decided to make a limited amount of this wine. But don't be fooled, as this too is a blend and a selection. Each year as we are tasting the grapes as harvest approaches, we notice that the vines near the bottom of this long, steep west-facing slope, are a little different. The vines at the bottom are in a little richer soil, and get a little more water, so we pick them separately, sometimes even a week or ten days apart, and keep them separate in barrel.
This wine is all from the top of the vineyard, with its lower yield and poorer soils giving more concentration and interest. Then further, nearly every combination of new and used French oak barrels were trialed to find the best blend. It's not enough just to use the four best barrels, but to trial each combination to see how they complement each other. For a wine with this much mass, 100% new French oak was used for the first time at Avennia. It is a wine that needs a little cellaring to start, but should last a very long time.
Review:
-Jeb Dunnuck 96 Points
Enemigo El Enemigo Gran Enemigo is made from 100% Cabernet Franc.
In the spectrum of people who pay attention to detail, winemakers are often incredibly detail-oriented. This can sometimes spill over to become an internal battled, and, as Alejandro Vigil and Adrianna Catena state, "We are our own worst enemy." El Enemigo pays homage to this internal struggle.
The nose presents sweet aromas of black ripen fruits with hints of vanilla and chocolate, which appear after the oak ageing. The mouthfeel is sweet with structured, persistent tannins due to the natural acidity of this wine, leading into an excellent long finish.
Review:
-Wine Advocate 97 Points
-Decanter 97 Points
Casanova di Neri Brunello di Montalcino Tenuta Nuova 2018 is made from 100% Sangiovese.
Founded in 1971 by Giovanni Neri and today led by his son Giacomo, Casanova di Neri is one of Montalcino's most acclaimed estates, farming a mosaic of vineyards across the appellation. Tenuta Nuova is their benchmark cru bottling — richly styled yet precise, and long regarded as one of Brunello's reference wines.
Brunello di Montalcino is made entirely from Sangiovese grown on the hills around the town of Montalcino in southern Tuscany, and aged for years before release. The Tenuta Nuova fruit comes from the warmer south-eastern side of the DOCG; the cooler, classically proportioned 2018 vintage yielded balanced, aromatic wines with fine, chewy tannins.
Review:
Elegant and perfumed nose of dried roses, violets, lemon zest, slate, cherries, aniseed and truffles. Very fine, tight and precise tannins. Medium to full body. I like the floral and saline undertones. So precise and fresh with a tight finish. Crushed stones at the end. Try in 2025, but already attractive to taste and drink.
James Suckling, 96 points
Review:
-Falstaff 98 Points
-Jeb Dunnuck 96 Points
-The Wine Independent 96 Points
-Robert Parker The Wine Advocate 95 Points
Chateau Talbot Saint-Julien Grand Cru Classe is made from 69 % Cabernet Sauvignon, 26 % Merlot, 5 % Petit Verdot.
The wine presents a delicate and captivating nose of black fruits, fresh tobacco, peppermint and floral nuances. Ripe and juicy fruit flavors of black currants on the palate with well integrated velvety tannins and a beautiful refreshing acidity to the long finish.
For the 2018 vintage, a special packaging with a unique silkscreen printing bottle was created to mark the 100th anniversary of the Cordier Family's acquisition of Chateau Talbot
Pair with red meat, roast pork, game meat, poultry, hard cheeses, poached pear.
"Rich aromas of blackcurrant, blackberry, chocolate, tobacco and licorice. Oyster shell, too. It’s full-bodied with firm, well integrated tannins. Polished, silky layers with a long finish. Gorgeous ripe and bright fruit in the center palate. Best in a long time. Try from 2025."
Review:
-James Molesworth (Wine Spectator) 96 Points
-Jeb Dunnuck 95 Points
-James Suckling 95 Points
-La Revue du Vin de France 95 Points
Chartron & Trebuchet Puligny-Montrachet is made from 100 percent Chardonnay.
Golden yellow color with green reflections. Mineral aromas (flint), floral (hawthorn) and milk (butter, warm croissant) that blend elegant with notes of honey and hazelnuts. On the palate, great concentration of aromas. A finish powerful and distinguished.
This Puligny Montrachet is blends elegantly with meat and fish (veal or chicken in white sauce, roasted sea bass, but also foie gras) or grilled shell fish with sauce (shrimp, lobster...).
Delicious as an aperitif or with mild tasting cheese (camembert, brie, blue, goat, gruyere...).
The Chartron et Trebuchet Estate
Owners of Premiers and Grands Crus in Puligny-Montrachet since 1859 with the Domaine Jean Chartron, Jean-René Chartron founded the Maison Chartron et Trébuchet in 1984 with Louis Trébuchet, manager of a wine trading company.
Vincent Sauvestre acquired the company in 2004. His objective is to continue to promote the great white wines of Burgundy, whilst respecting and perpetuating the quality work achieved by Jean Chartron and Louis Trébuchet.
The Maison Chartron et Trébuchet specialises in producing great white Burgundy wines. The know-how of the winemakers begins with a radical selection of the very best plots: the highest-quality terroirs of the Côte are chosen and the grapes are carefully monitored throughout the ripening period. Grapes are hand-picked when the balance between acidity and sweetness is at its prime: the fruit must not be too ripe so that the full potential of the terroir is maintained, including its acidity, to ensure that the wines age properly. All of the winemaking is done in casks: the alcoholic fermentation is followed by malolactic fermentation. A proportion of 20 to 40% of new barrels is used, depending on the appellations and the vintage. Wines are left to age for 12 to 18 months depending on the appellations.
The Chartron et Trebuchet Vineyards
Chartron et Trébuchet's vineyards are all planted on Limestone and Clay based soils. In average, the age of the vines is 30 years old.
Intense ruby red color. Hints of spices, fruit and flowers, a bouquet that reflects the soil on which it is born, rich in Alberese. In the mouth it is soft, with a pleasant acidity that makes the wine fresh and lively. Sweet and ripe tannins give the wine a pleasant persistence. Riserva dei Colli is an excellent expression of the Estate's Sangiovese, so much so that it bears its name.
Review:
-James Suckling 94 Points
-Wine Spectator 93 Points
Pago de los Capellanes El Nogal is made from 100% Tempranillo.
A single-vineyard wine from the “El Nogal” parcel in the town of Mambrilla de Castrejón, grown at 850 meters (2,750 feet) above sea level. A hillside of tinto fino vines a short distance from the winery, with uninterrupted views of the Duero and the wind stirring the airy branches of the great walnut tree that guards the vineyard. Its sandy, stony soils, a sense of harmony and a special microclimate all seem to enhance the talent of its surroundings.
We have vinified the evocative grapes of this plot for the past several years to produce an endlessly charming wine — overwhelming, powerful and exquisite, with a vitalising force.
Review:
Walnuts, chocolate and dark fruit with a touch of thyme. The palate is full-bodied, with a luscious expression of fruit and fine-grained tannins, all retaining a broad sense of harmony. Drink or hold.
- James Suckling 94 Points