Products meeting the search criteria

Domaine de Beaurenard Chateauneuf-du-Pape is made from  65% Grenache, 15% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre.

Domaine de Beaurenard’s flagship wine is a quintessential blend, reflecting all the diversity of the terroir and the perfect synergy that exists between the soils and the grapes. It offers a supple and refined texture associated with a delicate aromatic palette that is the result of a constant quest for freshness.

Review:

Checking in as a blend of 65% Grenache, 15% Syrah, 10% Mourvèdre, and the rest a handful of varieties, the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape was brought up in a mix of foudre and older barrels. This deep ruby/purple-hued effort has a pure, vibrant, incredibly seamless, medium to full-bodied style that carries classic notes of black raspberry and black cherry fruits as well as peppery herbs, violets, spring flowers, and sous bois. This straight-up gorgeous, seamless, ultra-fine 2019 should be snatched up by readers. It has a rare mix of elegance, purity, and power, and it’s going to have two decades of prime drinking.

-Jeb Dunnuck 95 Points

Domaine de la Janasse Chateauneuf-du-Pape Cuvee Vieilles Vignes is made from 65% Grenache, 20% Mourvèdre, 10% Syrah, 5% divers.

In contrast to Chaupin, which is made from old-vine Grenache on sandy soils, the cuvée Vieilles Vignes is from old vines of Grenache, Mourvedre, Syrah along with smaller percentages of other permitted varieties that are grown in these old vineyards. The wine is sourced from 4 terroirs: pebbly clay, sand, gravelly red clay and sandy limestone. Vieilles Vignes is always the most powerful and concentrated Châteauneuf-du-Pape cuvée made at Domaine de la Janasse.

Review:

The 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape Vieilles Vignes also saw some stems (the estate started keeping some stems with the 2016 vintage) and was 75% destemmed, with the blend being 70% Grenache, 20% Mourvèdre, and the rest Syrah, Cinsault, and Terret Noir. As usual, it’s a more powerful, black-fruited wine comparted to the Cuvée Chaupin and has lots of crème de cassis, liquid violet, crushed stone, woodsmoke, and peppery herbs. It displays the vintage’s purity and freshness yet brings the concentration as well as the structure. I’ll be shocked if it’s not in the handful of top wines in the vintage.
-Jeb Dunnuck 96-98 Points

The 2021 Domaine Joseph Voillot Volnay Les Champans Premier Cru is from the domain’s largest premier cru holding, 4.2 acres whose vines date from 1934, 1971, and 1985. Champans is down-slope in the premier cru band, and its wine typically has more fruit and power than other Voillot Volnays.

Review:

‘The 2021 Volnay Les Champans Ter Cru has much more brightness and delineation than the Fremiets this year, with red cherries, wild strawberries and ust a touch of iodine and sous-bois. This is nicely focused. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy red fruit, fine structure, pliant tannins and a harmonious finish. Not the most complex Champans encountered from this address, yet it has class.

-Vinous 91-93 Points

The 2021 les Champans is also a simply stunning example of this fine premier cru vineyard. The beautifully elegant nose wafts from the glass in a blend of red and black plums, cherries, spit-roasted quail, a complex base of soil, woodsmoke, coffee bean and a deft touch of vanillin oak. On the palate the wine is pure, full-bodied and shows off superb depth at the core, great soil signature, ripe, fine-grained tannins and a long, nascently complex and very promising finish. This is a touch more reserved on the palate than the Fremiets and will take a bit longer to blossom, but it is going to be stellar. 2034-2085.

93+ pts- John Gilman, View from the Cellar #102

Domaine Nico le Paradis Pinot Noir is made from 100 percent Pinot Noir. 

The cool climate vineyard that belongs to Laura and her sister Adrianna Catena feels like paradise itself to Laura. It is lined by trees and fruit orchards, with majestic views of the Andes. Inside the 12 Hectare vineyard, there is a little house with two tiny bedrooms and a kitchen, where Laura dreams of spending a whole month reading books-Laura's version of paradise. The little house is affectionately named Chateau Laura. About the Vineyard The tiny parcel where Le Paradis is grown was planted in 2011 with Dijon 667 Clones over two acres. Wine Production The grapes from this small parcel were elaborated in 15 separate microvinifications.

All the microvinifications were fermented with indigenous yeast. 20% of the microvinifications were fermented with 100% whole clusters in oak roll-fermentor of 600L and low temp (22 Celcius degrees). 40% were fermented with 20% whole cluster in small vats of 800L and 40% fermented in small vats of 800L without sulfites until 4%V/V of alcohol.

Review:

From soils rich in calcium carbonate and sand, in a vineyard 1,600 meters above sea level, this wine comes from a selection of 2.7 hectares that produced very little fruit in 2016, just barely enough to fill 800 bottles. But watch out for this white, with its edge, its minerality, those saline notes that are so characteristic of chardonnay from the chalky Gualtallary soils. The wine was aged for a year in used barrels, and it has some of the toast, but here it’s the deep minerality that dominates.

Patricio Tapia - Descorchados 96 Points

The 2017 was a very different year to 2016 in terms of the viticultural conditions and it was interesting to watch the progression of the wine and scrutinize its quality as it developed over its first two winters. Whereas 2016 had a very mild winter and exceptionally hot summer, this was compensated by abundant winter and spring rainfall. Conversely, 2017 was warm and drythroughout, although summer temperatures were closer to average, whichproved to be a very significant factor allowing for complete, balancedripening.

It is rare to see such tremendous depth and intensity in color as this winedisplays. The freshness of the floral aromas is very attractive with adominance of rockrose, a flower that grows wild around the hills of Senhorada Ribeira. On the palate, it is exceptionally full-bodied, rich andpowerful with black fruit coming to the fore. Gorgeous, ripe fruit isbalanced by the fine tannin structure. On the finish, it is typically Dow,austere and somewhat drier than many other ports. The intense fruit flavors linger long on the palate.

Dow’s Vintage Ports are only produced in years of exceptional quality and represent only a very small part of the total company’s production in that year. On average only two or three times every ten years are the weather conditions sufficiently good to allow for the making of Dow’s Vintage Port.

Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries, Dow’s Vintage Ports have been landmark wines in virtually every great year, consistently setting the standards amongst all Port houses. Vintage Ports such as the remarkable Dow 1896, the 1927, 1945, 1955, 1963, 1966, 1970, 1980 and the Dow 1994 are all legends in the history of this great wine. These Ports are still magnificent today, even when 50 or over 100 years old. Few wines can claim this quality and this pedigree.

Dow's Vintage Ports are drawn from the companies' finest vineyards; Quinta do Bomfim and Quinta de Senhora da Ribeira. Each property contributes to the Dow’s unique and distinctive style. When young, Dow’s Vintage Ports are purple-black, austere, complex and intensely concentrated, full-bodied and balanced with very fine peppery tannins.

Over the centuries, the Dow winemakers have evolved a style that suits the house’s key vineyards; fermentations are a little longer, resulting in a drier Port Wine that has become the hallmark of Dow’s. Abundant fruit flavours with hints of ripe blackberries, give elegance and poise to Dow’s. The nose is deep and powerful with strong overtones of violets when young, these mature into fine cinnamon and rose-tea aromas with age. The very high percentage of Touriga Franca and Touriga Nacional planted on the vineyards result in the powerful structure and aging potential of Dow’s Vintage Ports

Dow’s Ports avoid an over-rich style and requires a very high degree of skill in wine making and great experience in selecting the finest wines of each year and each vineyard. These wines are aged in seasoned oak casks for some 18 months and are bottled without any filtration or fining whatsoever.

Dow Vintage Ports can be enjoyed when vibrant and young or they can be allowed to age for many years in bottle into a soft and delicate wine of velvet-like elegance.

In the 1920’s, the celebrated Oxford Professor George Saintsbury underlined Dow’s outstanding reputation when he wrote in his famous ‘Notes on a Cellarbook’ (first published in 1920), “There is no shipper’s wine that I have found better than the best of Dow’s 1878 and 1890 especially.”

James Suckling, one of today’s leading authorities on Vintage Port was equally impressed by another legendary wine - the Dow’s 1896 - “The ancient {1896} Port still had an amazing ruby colour with a garnet edge, and it smelled of raisins, black pepper and berries. It was full-bodied, with masses of fruit intertwined with layers of velvety tannins. It was superb.” In 1998, when this wine was 102 years old, he awarded this Port an exceptional 98 points.

Review:

Based on fruit from the predominantly south-facing Quinta do Bomfim in the Cima Corgo and Quinta Senhora da Ribeira in the Douro Superior, with Touriga Nacional and Touriga Franca making up 80% of the blend. This is opaque and closed in but powerfully ripe with underlying pure berry fruit. It's seemingly quite introverted compared to some of its peers at this stage, but it's still full, rich and opulent on the palate. It also shows the latent power of the vintage, made as it is in a slightly drier style (3.4 Baumé), with lovely minty fruit and full, ripe sinewy tannins all the way through the finish. Long and lithe, and very fine.

-Decanter 97 Points

A dense, thickly textured version, dripping with warm salted licorice, tar and açaí paste notes, while plum and blueberry pâte de fruit, chai spice and chocolate elements fill in behind. Lots of brambly grip flows underneath. Shows a very sappy feel on the finish. Best from 2035 through 2055. 5,250 cases made, 1,092 cases imported

-Wine Spectator 96 Points

Vinous 97 Points

Halter Ranch Vineyard Ancestor Estate Reserve is made from 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Malbec, 17% Petit Verdot,

Their flagship wine, Ancestor is their Bordeaux-style reserve blend, and an homage to the Ancestor Tree, the largest Coast Live Oak on record. The 2019 Ancestor showcases aromas of red currant and dark chocolate along with subtle hints of cinnamon and clove. The entry is soft and rich with layered flavors of blueberry, blackberry, and dark cherry. The mid- palate is thick and mouth coating with balanced acid. The finish is framed by integrated tannins and delicate flavors of caramel and truffle.

Pair with roasted meats, reduction sauces, and hearty stews. 

Review:

Baked blackberry, leather, cocoa and espresso-bean aromas show on the nose of this blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Malbec and 17% Petit Verdot. The palate is generous in fruit, tense in tannins and very approachable, showing creamy blueberry, pepper and wild-herb flavors.

-Wine Enthusiast 93 Points

Howard Park Abercrombie Cabernet Sauvignon 100% Cabernet Sauvignon.

The 2018 Abercrombie reflects the highs that can be achieved in a superb vintage when thoughtful and deliberate winemaking combine with exceptional vineyards. The color is a vivid, deep ruby, tingeing purple and betraying the wine's youth. The bouquet evolves in a measured fashion as the wine slowly aerates, filling the glass with textbook Cabernet perfume of powerful dark fruits, rubbed bay leaf, cedar, coffee beans and vanilla. Intensity and purity of fruit is the standout feature, and this transmits seamlessly to the palate, where the profound structure and effortless length also take centre stage. The harmony of rich fruit, clean and vibrant acidity and fine, abiding tannins speak to the beguiling nature of this young wine and the glorious future that awaits its patient custodians in ensuing decades. This is true West Australian Cabernet.

Named for Walter Abercrombie, the much loved Great Grandfather and mentor of Jeff Burch, the owner of Howard Park Wines, this is Howard Park's finest Cabernet Sauvignon.  

Howard Park’s winemaking philosophy is to craft elegant, age-worthy wines from our best sites in the Margaret River & Great Southern regions of Western Australia. Critical site selection, meticulous viticultural practice and detailed winemaking underline each Icon wine.

Review:

This is really fine with such polished and manicured fruit and tannins that deliver a thoroughly refined and beautiful palate with sweet dark fruit, from currants to blackberries. Long, long finish. Hard not to drink now. But one for the cellar. Try after 2025.

-James Suckling 97 Points

J Lohr Signature Paso Robles Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 80% Cabernet Sauvignon 6% Cabernet Franc 6% Saint Macaire 4% Petit Verdot 4% Malbec.

J. Lohr Signature Cabernet Sauvignon was first produced to honor the 80th birthday of founder Jerry Lohr. This limited release was specially selected and blended from the exceptional 2016 vintage in Paso Robles. It is both a tribute to Jerry's pioneering efforts in the region and our red wine portfolio's ultimate expression of Cabernet Sauvignon. VINEYARDS & CELLAR Beck Vineyard, in the Creston District of Paso Robles, is a unique, high elevation site that sits at 1,700 feet above the early morning fog line. Its calcareous soils and cooling afternoon winds are perfect for growing Cabernet Sauvignon. The Cabernet from this vineyard ripens early with excellent color, purity of fruit, and phenolic maturity. Incorporation of Cabernet Franc brings freshness to the blend, while the rare Bordeaux variety, Saint Macaire, brings density and a savory character. Petit Verdot and Malbec add structure, color, and a component of bright fruit. The hand-harvested grapes were held separate at harvest and berry-sorted into six-ton open top tanks for fermentation. Maceration took place on the skins for five days, before early pressing to achieve ideal tannin extraction. Aged 19 months in 100% new French oak from coopers Nadalie and Sylvain.

Review:

The nose on this luxury-level bottling is pure and refreshing, offering aromas of black cherry, loamy soil, dried mint and caramel-laced coffee. The palate is framed by upright tannins, yet is soft enough to enjoy now, showing deep flavors of black currant, dried herb, milk chocolate and toffee. Drink 2020–2040.

-Wine Enthusiast 95 Points

Laurent-Perrier Grand Siecle No. 26 is a blend of 58% Chardonnay, 42% Pinot Noir

 white gold in color with delicate and persistent bubbles, Grand Siecle No. 26 offers a very complex nose which mixes honeysuckle, lemon, clementine and fresh butter aromas, followed by notes of hazelnut and a touch of honey. The feel in the mouth is very delicate and fresh with candied lemon and fresh hazelnut aromas. The palate is silky and mineral with notes of honeysuckle, flaked almonds and clementine.

It pairs with high quality produce and refined dishes, including shellfish, noble fish and white meats such as Thai style langoustine tartare and fine roasted poultry.

• 3 exceptional years chosen for their complementarity among the rare Laurent‑Perrier vintages.


• A majority of Chardonnay complemented by Pinot Noir from a maximum of 11 Grands Crus out of the 319 Crus in the Champagne region.
  


• Aged for 10 years on the lees for the bottle format and a few more years for the magnum format.

Vintage in Champagne is usually synonymous with excellence for Prestige Cuvées. Contrarily, Laurent‑Perrier believes that only the art of assemblage can offer what nature can never provide, that is, the perfect year.

The expression of the perfect year is that of a great champagne wine that has long ageing potential and over time develops depth, intensity and aromatic complexity yet retains its freshness and vibrancy.

Since 1959, Grand Siècle has been revealed only 26 times in bottle format and 23 times in magnum.

The « Grand Siècle » (Great Century) is the name given to one of the most prosperous periods (17th century) in the history of France known for the capacity of man, through his works, to create what nature cannot. Louis XIVth, known as the « Sun King », by creating the « Château de Versailles » and its gardens, was the architect of this model of harmony, balance and perfection.

The symmetry and perspective of the « Jardins à la française », the capacity to grow Mediterranean fruits (especially Oranges inside the « Orangerie ») in such a Northern climate, creating the Grand Canal, the fountains and ponds with no nearby rivers are many illustrations of this ability of man to sublimate natural elements. The name of Grand Siècle was chosen for Laurent‑Perrier’s Prestige Cuvée based on this common vision to reach a perfection that Nature, on its own, cannot provide.

Review:

This is really something. Electric on the palate. The aromas are so complex with sliced fresh and dried ginger, subtle pie crust, tarte tatin and hints of nutmeg with some salted caramel. Toasted bread, too. Always subtle. The palate is full- to medium-bodied yet hemmed-in with a freshness and balance that draws you back. Savory and vibrant. It's full of energy. Spectacular. Fascinating. Symphonic blend of 2012, 2008 and 2007. 65% of the 2012, 25% of the 2008 and 10% of the 2007. Eight grand cru. Chardonnay 58% and 42% pinot noir. Disgorged February 2023. 10 years on the lees. 7g/L dosage.

-James Suckling 100 Points 

Morlet Family Vineyards Mon Chevalier Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 1% Malbec and 1% Petit Verdot .

Located on the hillsides of Knights Valley, near Calistoga, this vineyard benefits from its proximity to Mount St. Helena, whose warm and windy climate is ideal for the long ripening of the Bordeaux red varietals. Handcrafted by using classical winemaking techniques, this special wine is dedicated to our son, Paul Morlet.

Dark red with a hue of purple. Intense and complex bouquet of red, black and blue berries intermixed with notes of blueberries, minerals (graphite, wet river rocks) licorice, fresh blond tobacco and a hint of lavender. Full bodied, the palate is reminiscent of the nose, with a richly tannic yet round frame and a great intensity. The hillside tannins and the classical aromatic complexity create a harmonious ensemble, leading to a very long and elegant finish. Built to age for decades, this collectible wine opens up after a few years of cellaring and is particularly representative of this special vineyard from the hillside of Knights Valley. Mon Chevalier features the interaction of the loamy, well drained and rocky volcanic soil, the typical sunny mountain climate and the low-interventionistic Morlet winemaking approach.

Propietary Name Mon Chevalier

Name Meaning My Knight Named after our son, Paul Morlet

Type of wine Vineyard designated

Appellation Knights Valley

Vineyard singularity Morlet Family Estate Hillside 1100-1200 feet elevation Rhyolitic, loam & volcanic ash

Typical harvest date End of October

Picking Manual, small lugs, refer truck

Sorting Cluster by cluster, berry per berry

Fermentation Through native yeast Tank and Puncheons

Upbringing 16 months French oak from artisan coopers

Bottling Unfiltered

Cellaring time Decades

Serving Room temperature

Decanting recommended

Review: 

 
The estate-grown 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Mon Chevalier is a blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Cabernet Franc, 1% Malbec and 1% Petit Verdot. Very deep purple-black in color, it charges forth with intense notes of crushed black cherries, black berry preserves and cassis scents with touches of spearmint, Indian spices, espresso and dried lavender plus a waft of roses. Full-bodied, the palate reveals incredible restraint, slowly revealing earth and black fruit layers framed by firm, grainy tannins and just enough freshness, finishing very long and spicy.

-Wine Advocate 96+ Points

Moving to the top releases, the 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon Mon Chevalier comes from Knights Valley and was brought up in puncheons. A gorgeous bouquet of sandalwood, violets, loamy earth, and incense as well as some iron-laced black and blue fruits flow to a rounded, supple, incredibly textured Cabernet that has sweet tannins, a stacked mid-palate, and a great finish. It’s already terrific yet will keep for 20-25 years or more.

-Jeb Dunnuck 96 Points

Mt Brave Malbec is made from 100 percent Malbec.

On the Palate of the 2016 Mt. Brave Malbec killer spice overlays rich boysenberry and black currants. A pop of fruit carries across to the finish which is clearly mountain structure based.

Review:

The 2016 Malbec Mt. Veeder is another fabulous wine from winemaker Chris Carpenter. It offers a vibrant, focused, savory style in its blue fruits, graphite, and lead pencil aromatics, and has a concentrated, layered style on the palate. It’s a complex, age-worthy Malbec that will evolve for over a decade.
-Jeb Dunnuck 96 Points

The 2016 Malbec Mt. Veeder (100% Malbec) is very deep purple-black in color and reveals stunning black and red cherries, black plums and violets with wafts of unsmoked cigars and mossy bark. Full, concentrated and seductive in the mouth, it has a solid line of fine-grained tannins and loads of bold, perfumed fruit, finishing long. 484 cases produced.

-Wine Advocate 95 Points

This shows a vivid boysenberry and blackberry fruit profile, laced with licorice, roasted apple wood and violet notes, all backed by a solidly grippy structure and a late zing of minerality. Best from 2021 through 2038. 6,441 cases made. 

-Wine Spectator 94 Points

REVIEW

Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Snake Oil needs a little swirling to reveal emerging notes of freshly crushed blackcurrants, blackberry pie and mulberries plus suggestions of tilled soil, cedar chest and Indian spices with a touch of roses. The full-bodied palate completely coats the mouth with opulent black fruit preserves and exotic spice layers, supported by velvety tannins and lovely freshness, finishing long and perfumed.

-Wine Advocate 93+ Points

The 2018 Priest Ranch Snake Oil is all Cabernet Sauvignon, from a trio of hillside vineyards on the Somerston Estate. It has beautiful blueberry and plum fruits as well as notes of sappy herbs, violets, and bouquet garni. More medium-bodied, focused, and elegant, it shines for its purity, freshness, and length. It’s a classic 2018 that will have 15+ years of longevity.

-Jeb Dunnuck 93 Points

Our 2018 Snake Oil was handpicked, sorted, and fermented naturally, then aged for 24 months in 75% new French oak barrels and 25% once-used French oak barrels.

HARVEST NOTES 

The early half of 2018 brought us moderate temperature allowing for a long growing season.   We had a majority of our rainfall in February followed by a mild Spring.  Then summer brought consistent temperatures with little heat spikes.  This weather allowed for longer hang time and for the fruit to ripen at a slower rate.  The 2018 harvest at our estate began in late August and resulted in exceptional quality.

Miso Tahini Bacon

Sokol Blosser Big Tree Block Pinot Noir is made from 100 percent Pinot Noir. 

1970 was winding down when our founders, Bill Blosser and Susan Sokol Blosser pulled their ’68 VW Camper up to an abandoned prune orchard some 30 miles southwest of Portland. These moonstruck kids had little farming experience and just a basic knowledge of winemaking. What they did have, in abundance, was a passion for growing the Pinot Noir grape and creating world-class wine. Soon after settling on this extraordinary land, they planted their first vines and cinched their place as pioneers in Oregon’s budding wine industry.

Review:

A very impressive wine for the striking sense of spice, white-pepper and briary, forest notes, across red cherries. The palate has sapid, focused style with such taut yet silky tannins holding long and true. Pure red cherries here. Drink or hold.

Every now and then, in life and in wine, we are presented with unique opportunities to express ourselves and create something truly remarkable.

When rare opportunities arise, we need to capture, nurture and develop them so that their potential is fulfilled. So when Torbreck was given the opportunity to work with one of the most famous vineyards in the Barossa Valley, it became almost inevitable that the resulting wine would be truly remarkable.

In 2003, Torbreck growers and fourth generation descendants of the Seppelt family, Malcolm and Joylene Seppelt, asked our winemakers to create for them a small batch of Shiraz from their old Gnadenfrei vineyard in the sub-region of Marananga.

Planted in 1958, the five acre vineyard is traditionally dry grown and comes from an original Barossa clonal source. South facing, on the eastern side of a ridge separating the Seppeltsfield and Marananga appellations, these aged vines have been meticulously hand tended, traditionally farmed and pruned by a grower with a lifetime’s experience on Western Barossa soils of very dark, heavy clay loam over red friable clay. The resulting low yields of small, concentrated Shiraz berries make the vineyard the envy of all winemakers in the Barossa.

We looked longingly at the wine when it was returned to the Seppelts, knowing that it was the best we had ever made. In 2005 we convinced the Seppelts to sell Torbreck the fruit and The Laird was born. In 2013 Torbreck purchased the Gnadenfrei vineyard, securing The Laird’s reputation as one of the world’s great single vineyard Shiraz wines.

Torbreck is the name of a forest near Inverness, Scotland and you’ll find more than a passing nod to the Celts in our wine naming conventions. The Laird of the Estate in Scotland is the Lord of the Manor and master of all he surveys.

Review:

I poured the 2017 The Laird, set it aside and got about doing other jobs for 45 minutes or so, to give it some room to breathe. And it does breathe. It has its own pulse and beat and life, and it flexes and moves in the mouth. This is incredibly enveloping, with aromas reminiscent of campfire coals, charred eucalyptus, lamb fat, roasted beetroot, black tea and a prowling sort of countenance. In the mouth, the wine is bonded and cohesive and seamless, there are no gaps between anything, no space between fruit, oak and tannin; it all comes as one. While this is a singular wine, it is so big and concentrated that it needs no accompaniment other than some fresh air and a good mate. It's denser than osmium and is impenetrable at this stage.

W & J Graham's Vintage Port 2016 is made from 37% Touriga Nacional, 42% Touriga Franca and various others.

Like most parts of the world, the Douro has not been isolated from the effects of climate change, and unusual weather conditions over recent years have often departed from those typically associated with classic vintage years. Fortunately, in 2016 the stars aligned and the year brought superbly structured and balanced wines, allowing Graham's to announce a full vintage declaration.

The 2016 is a classic expression of the Graham's style: concentrated and opulent with layers of fresh, ripe, black fruit flavors. Aromas of mint and eucalyptus with chocolate notes. The Graham 2016 combines superb complexity, structure and balance.

Reviews:

Extremely complex aromas that show the classic Graham character of black-fruit marmalade and burnt oranges. Follows through to a full body with great grip at the finish. Lightly sweet. Chewy and powerful. Such a focus at the end.

-James Suckling 99 Points

This is lush and captivating in feel, with a velvety flow to the mix of plum, blackberry, boysenberry and açai berry compote flavors. A bold streak of licorice runs through the finish, underscored by a brambly note that imparts balance. A stunning display of fruit. Best from 2030 through 2050.

-Wine Spectator 98 Points 

Super-ripe with an expressive plum and dark chocolate aroma. Rich opulence backed by dark chocolate intensity and spicy tannic grip – big and bold on the finish. Voluptuous with fabulous richness, big and bold on the finish. This is one for the long haul but it’s already very impressive.

-Decanter 98 Points

Aalto P.S. Pagos Seleccionados Tinto  is made from 100 percent Tempranillo.

Climatic conditions

The farming year began with a mild autumn and little precipitation. A very dry winter started with -9ºC reaching at the end higher temperatures than normal for that time of the year. Spring and summer characterized by little rain, only some rain showers in July and late August avoided the hydric stress of the vines. The vegetative cycle of the vine developed with big variations of temperatures, alternating warm and atypical low temperatures of 4ºC for mid-June. The ripening of the grapes happened under very good conditions and the harvest started on 24th September 2019.  

Grape origin

100% Tinto Fino (Tempranillo) primarily from very old vines – 60 to 90 years old – from selected plots in La Horra and La Aguilera. The harvest was done by hand, in small boxes of 15 kilos that are thoroughly inspected, bunch by bunch, on the selection table.  

Tasting notes

Review:

Color: dark cherry, Aroma: toasty, spicy, fine cocoa, black fruit, Mouth: tasty, toasty, fine bitterness, ripe tannins

Guia Penin 94 Points

Aalto P.S. Pagos Seleccionados Tinto  is made from 100 percent Tempranillo.

Climatic conditions

The farming year began with a mild autumn and little precipitation. A very dry winter started with -9ºC reaching at the end higher temperatures than normal for that time of the year. Spring and summer characterized by little rain, only some rain showers in July and late August avoided the hydric stress of the vines. The vegetative cycle of the vine developed with big variations of temperatures, alternating warm and atypical low temperatures of 4ºC for mid-June. The ripening of the grapes happened under very good conditions and the harvest started on 24th September 2019.  

Grape origin

100% Tinto Fino (Tempranillo) primarily from very old vines – 60 to 90 years old – from selected plots in La Horra and La Aguilera. The harvest was done by hand, in small boxes of 15 kilos that are thoroughly inspected, bunch by bunch, on the selection table.  

Tasting notes

Review:

Lots of depth here, with ripe blackberries and some nicely baked black cherries, roasted herbs, incense, dark spices, mussels and a balsamic tinge. An admirably fine dollop of tannins on the palate, which are immaculate and juicy, as they thoroughly dunk into the black fruit, melting into a persistent finish that lasts for over a minute. Very impressive. Drink or hold.

-James Suckling 96 Points

Alejandro Bulgheroni Lithology Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon is made from 100 percent Cabernet Sauvignon. 

Alejandro Bulgheroni Estate Lithology is a series of single vineyard and AVA-designated wines made from select sites within Napa Valley. Lithology Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard is produced solely from fruit grown in the historic Beckstoffer to Kalon Vineyard planted in 1865 by W.H. Crabb and represents Oakville's famous bench land.

Review:

The 2019 Cabernet Franc Lithology Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard just shines for its bouquet, which is classic To Kalon with its floral, incense, spicy, red and black-fruited aromatics. These all flow to a medium to full-bodied, utterly seamless Cabernet Franc that’s balanced, has laser-like precision, and a great finish. This isn’t the biggest or richest wine in the lineup, but it’s Cabernet Franc in all its glory, with soaring aromatics and complexity, ample richness and texture, and a beautiful sense of finesse and elegance. It’s going to keep for 15-20 years with no issues.

-Jeb Dunnuck 98 Points

Composed of 90% Cabernet Sauvignon and 10% Cabernet Franc, the 2019 Lithology Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard is a barrel sample with a deep garnet-purple color. It needs a fair bit of coaxing to unlock scents of blackberry pie, warm blueberries and cassis plus suggestions of spice cake, underbrush, candied violets and chocolate box. The full-bodied palate brings forth loads of earthy layers to accent the rich, black fruits, framed by plush tannins and lovely freshness, finishing long and fragrant.

-Wine Advocate 97 to 99 points


The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Lithology Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard is one of the very finest wines I have tasted from Alejandro Bulgheroni's Napa Valley project. The 2019 To Kalon captures all the pedigree of this iconic Oakville vineyard, and yet also remains nuanced and wonderfully finessed for an intense wine. To Kalon Cabernets are rarely this elegant, but the Bulgheroni 2019 sure is.

-- Antonio Galloni 97 Points

The 2019 Helena Montana is characteristically powerful & complex on the nose, showing ripe red and black cherry, along with dried herbs de Provence, and subtle hints of toasted clove, cinnamon, and nutmeg spices. The palate is loaded with structure and complexity, showing concentrated fruit and non-fruit flavors, framing a powerful core of firm tannin and juicy acidity. The finish is very long, and balanced.

Review:

Incredibly spicy and aromatic with pumice and cloves. Pops out of the glass. Cedar, too. Full-bodied with soft, polished tannins adding tension and creaminess. Long and beautiful. All about class and breeding. Try after 2025.

-James Suckling 99 Points

Production notes: