Multifarious 2017 Mosels, Part 1: Winningen to Wehlen
germany: Mosel, featured
, Jan 2020
Along the Mosel, local weather conditions, vine genetics and snap picking decisions counted in 2017 for almost as much as site, viticultural regimen or talent. Superb wines are numerous, but still the exceptions.
Gulfi Nero d’Avola Nerosanloré: 2001-2015
Verticals & Retrospectives, Italy: Center & South, featured
, Jan 2020
Gulfi was the first winery in Sicily to believe in single-contrada Nero d’Avolas. Today, Gulfi makes four such wines that highlight the extraordinary diversity of these sites, all of them so well-suited to showing the potential of Sicily’s indigenous Nero d’Avola. This vertical spanned a representative selection of the Nerosanloré - arguably the most elegant of the wines.
Valle d’Aosta: Micro Productions, Mega Quality
Italy: North, featured
, Jan 2020
Valle d’Aosta makes some of Italy’s most distinctive wines. Unlike most other regions of Italy, producers here excel with both native and international varieties. The latest vintages confirm this – and then some.
Tiberio Pecorino Colline Pescaresi 2005-2018
Italy: Center & South, featured
, Jan 2020
Tiberio’s Pecorino has fast become a gold standard for the variety, delivering aromas and flavors and a relatively rich glyceral texture that are archetypal of the cultivar, but with more refinement than most wines made with this trendy Italian native grape.
Seeing 20/20 – Sonoma & Anderson Valley Preview
United States: California, featured
, Jan 2020
Two thousand eighteen is shaping up to be a spectacular vintage for Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah and Zinfandel-based reds. The 2018s are bright, vivid and exceptionally beautiful. Moreover, the wines are incredibly expressive of site, making 2018 a fabulous vintage for readers who want to explore the many nuances of top vineyards in Sonoma and Anderson Valley.
2017 & 2018 Napa Valley In Depth
United States: California, featured
, Jan 2020
My tastings in Napa Valley this past fall were incredibly illuminating. Although much maligned, the 2017 vintage yielded a number of exceptional wines. Quality is irregular, though, and there are certainly many 2017s that show the signs of a very challenging growing season. Readers will need to be especially selective. Two thousand eighteen is a much more even year. The wines are still in barrel, in many cases not blended, but my early tastings suggest they have quite a bit of potential.
2018 Burgundy: Confounded Expectations
France: Burgundy, featured
, Jan 2020
Burgundy can be confounding at the best of times, both in a positive and negative sense. For many, that’s part of its allure. The 2018 vintage sprung many surprises, thankfully many of them positive. The bigger question is whether it is a harbinger of things to come.
Friuli Venezia Giulia: The New Releases
Italy: North, featured
, Jan 2020
Along with Piedmont and the Valle d’Aosta, Friuli Venezia Giulia offers wine lovers the greatest diversity in grape varieties and wine styles of any region in Italy. The whites and sweet wines are among the best in the country, and the reds have also become especially enticing in recent years.
DeLille Cellars Chaleur Blanc: 1995-2016
United States: Washington, Verticals & Retrospectives, featured
, Jan 2020
DeLille Cellars’ Chaleur Blanc has been Washington State’s most consistently brilliant white wine since the mid-2000s. It has achieved an exceptional track record for longevity over a quarter-century of production, as this vertical back to 1995 showed.
Masseto Retrospective at the Country Music Hall of Fame
Italy: Tuscany, Verticals & Retrospectives, featured
, Jan 2020
Well, I have to hand it to the Nashville Wine Auction and President/CEO Holly Whaley. They really knew how to get me to say ‘yes’ to participating in a Masseto tasting in Nashville. Wine, guitars and country music, all for charity. That will get me every time. I was thrilled to co-host this complete Masseto retrospective with winemaker Axel Heinz, singer/songwriter Martina McBride and her husband, producer John McBride. It was a phenomenal weekend.