2003 Domaine de la Fontainerie Vouvray Coteau Les Brules Moelleux, France, Loire, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2003
Score: 
93
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$54.00USD

This is a late harvest wines made from Chenin Blanc grapes in the Loire Valley, France.  12% abv.  Very pretty in the glass with a deep golden color, clear and bright.  The nose has orange zest, honey apricots and sea air.  Full bodied.  Good acidity.  On the palate, this is sweet and is probably best served as a dessert wine.  Not cloying.  Notes of apricots and slight honey.  Long finish.  Deep and complex.  This will drink well on its own, but would work great with less sweet dessert such as a simple cookie or a Polenta Cake.  Sweet Chenin Blanc wines can last a long time.  This is alrea

2020 François et Julian Pinon Vouvray Les Trois Argiles, France, Loire, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2020
Score: 
94
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$28.00USD

The wines of François Pinon have been some of our favorites for quite some time.  His son Julien is now involved with him at the winery.  This wine is so named as the grapes (100% Chenin Blanc) come from three separate plots.  The wines are fermented with native yeasts in old wooden vats in the naturally cool cellar carved out of a limestone hillside.

2021 Vincent Carême Vouvray Plaisir Ancestral Brut Nature, France, Loire, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2021
Score: 
88
Grade: 
B+

This is a sparkling wine from the Loire Valley made from Chenin Blanc grapes.  The wine receives zero dosage.  It is made in the pétillant style using "natural" winemaking techniques (no added sulfites).  Pale gold in color, clear and bright.  Lots of quickly disappearing, medium sized bubbles.  The nose is lovely with green apples, with a slight smoky note and some minerality.  Medium bodied.  Good acidity.  On the palate, sour apples, some green apples and minerality.  This is mostly dry.  Nice on its own, but better with food.  This is versatile and will work with a wide variety of foods

Hardy’s 2019 Tintara Cabernet Sauvignon

Vintage: 
2019
Score: 
91
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$20.00USD

Finding a value wine is not an easy task and a solid Cabernet in particular is even more risky. But this Cabernet offers light blueberry, huckleberry, Rainer cherry, plum, raspberry, pink peppercorn, a wisp of mocha and light vanilla touches. The tannins and acidity are mild, making this very drinkable from the start. Hardy is a name well known in Australia, having over 150 years of winemaking behind them, and their Tintara vineyard. This relatively new introduction to the U.S. offers an enjoyable Cabernet from a trusted producer at a reasonable price. ORIGIN: McLaren Vale, Australia.

2020 Domaine Nicolas Brunet Vouvray Brut, France, Loire, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2020
Score: 
88
Grade: 
B+
Current Price: 
$29.00USD

This is a sparkling wine (Methode Traditionelle) made from Chenin Blanc in the Loire Valley of France.  Yellow/gold in color with slight green hues, mostly clear and bright.  The mouse shows a fair amount of medium sized bubbles.  The nose has a nice minerality to it with crushed rocks and a slight seltzer quality.  Nice mouthfeel.  Medium bodied.  Good acidity.  On the palate, there is a nice seltzer note with slight ginger and a hint of char.  A bit of an herbal note (almost scallion like) on the finish.  This drinks well on its own and is very food friendly.  It would be excellent with l

2021 Donnafugata Bell'Assai, Italy, Sicily, Vittoria, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2021
Score: 
92
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$30.00USD

This is a wine made from the Frappato grape in southeastern Sicily.  Donnafugata is one of the top wineries in Sicily.  13% abv.  Ruby in color with some purple swirls, mostly clear and bright.  The nose is nice with cherries, strawberries and floral notes.  Light tannins.  On the palate, there is depth here but it takes some air/cellaring to bring it out.  Flavors of cherries and cranberries with a bit of salinity and slight underlying char.  Good acidity.  Long finish.  It drinks well on its own, but is better with food.  This would be great with an Anchovy Pizza, but also Salmon.  It may

2019 Poderi' dal Nespoli Sangiovese di Romagna Superiore Riserva Il Nespoli

Vintage: 
2019
Score: 
93
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$35.00USD

This is a Sangiovese wine from Emilia Romagna in Italy.  What an impressive Sangiovese!  Deep garnet in color, mostly clear and bright.  The nose is nice with cherries, black cherries, anise, tea leaves and slight ground coffee notes.  Medium to full bodied.  Good acidity.  On the palate, this is young with some tannins.  Lots of cherries, black cherries and plums with underlying forest floor/earthiness.  Good finish.  There is some depth but this will take a few years to unwind.  While drinking well already, a few more years of cellaring would help.  If not, give it plenty of air before se

2019 Dough Wines North Coast Cabernet Sauvignon

Vintage: 
2019
Score: 
90
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$22.00USD

Offering a lighter style of Cabernet, this 2019 Dough is definitely a solid value. Black cherry, blueberry, blackberry, light plum, pomegranate, rhubarb, green tea leaf and black cherry, announce themselves and it offers moderate acidity and decent tannins. The wine was aged 16 months in both American and French oak barrels.

2006 La Poderina Brunello di Montalcino, Italy, Tuscany, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2006
Score: 
94
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$100.00USD

From the excellent 2006 vintage, this seemed to be just about at peak.  Pop and pour.  Deep garnet in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is lovely with dark cherries, slight plums, tea leaves, dust and spice.  Full bodied.  Tannins about resolved, maybe some wispy ones left.  On the palate, cherries and black cherries with some dried fruits.  Complex and layered with forest floor/tea leaves and spice.  Good acidity.  Long finish.  This drinks well on its own, but would work better with food.  A nice match would be a Lasagna.  Drink over the next five to ten years. 

2017 Cantina di Montalcino Brunello di Montalcino, Italy, Tuscany, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2017
Score: 
93
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$30.00USD

Cantina di Montalcino is the only cooperative in the Brunello DOCG.  It has just under 100 members who are for the most part, small vineyard owners.  This is an excellent wine and don't be afraid of buying from a co-op.  The vintage, 2017, was hot and dry, and the wines produced were more generous and flashy than a more typical vintage.  The wine is purple in color, ruby at the rim, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is great with black cherries, dried cherries, cigar tobacco, spice and slight char.  Full bodied with medium to firm tannins.  On the palate, cherries, black cherries with som

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