"We have refrigerated sunshine. It is sunny all the time, but it is never hot." The Hilt winemaker, Matt Dees, was referring to the one-two punch of the cold Pacific Ocean mere miles away and the mountains just south of The Hilt vineyards that block warmer, more southerly influences. I had tasted The Hilt Pinots before and found them not just crunchy, but almost raw. With such a vivid vineyard description, it certainly was easier to understand the wines' dispositions.
Read MoreI often say that the trend of "chillable reds" is the effect of long-offered, bad advice. The old days of "room temperature" are now equivalent to "cellar temperature". To achieve cellar temperature in our modern homes, we need to chill the wines if we don't have wine fridges. These three Argentinian reds from Mendoza certainly benefited from cooler temperatures. All were at about 60° F when I tasted them.
Read MoreThings move quickly at Domaine Courtault-Michelet. That's unusual on the sleepy hillsides surrounding Chablis. However, once you meet Stéphanie Courtault, the second-generation winemaker now leading the estate with her husband, Vincent Michelet, it's not so surprising. She's full of energy and enthusiasm - and with good reason considering how quickly her family's estate has made a name for itself and how rapidly it has grown.
Read MoreCharles Heidsieck made its first Blanc de Blancs in 1949. This non-vintaged cuvée, however, disappeared from the house's line-up until its reintroduction in 2018. This is composed of 2012 Côte des Blancs Chardonnay with 25% reserve wines averaging five years old. Disgorged in 2018, it received 10 g/L of dosage. It is a wine with captivating flair.
Read MoreWines arrive constantly at my doorstep and occasionally, I end up with wines that didn't fit into a tasting elsewhere that still merit write-ups. Such is the case here, with both of the reds being personal favorites.
Read MoreThe new Prosecco DOC Rosé category continues to impress. The Consorzio's rigid standards for Rosé DOC - between the two exclusive varieties allowed, the quantities required of each variety, the vintage prerequisite, the longer fermentation period and the narrower residual sugar allowances - are creating a more homogenous category that is easier to navigate than the (non-rosé) Prosecco DOC category. I'm happy to report that the Caposaldo entry in the field performs nicely. Of notable interest is the fact that 100% of the grapes are hand-picked.
Read MoreOperating under Winery License No. 4 since the repeal of Prohibition, the Pellegrini family of Sonoma has Pinot Noir vines that are about to mark their 50th birthday. The oldest in the Russian River Valley, the Olivet Lane Vineyard's vines show up as single vineyard designates on many prestigious producers' labels: Williams Selyem, Merry Edwards, MacRostie and Gary Farrell among them. In contrast to the star-struck prices of some of those cuvées, the Pellegrini family's wines offer better value at the high-end.
Read MoreI recently reconnected with the Wentes of Wente Vineyards for the inaugural World Chardonnay Day webinar. The Wente Family is known for its "Wente clone" of Chardonnay, which is a highly sought-after heritage clone in California.
Read MoreBarbara Banke of Jackson Family Wines does nothing that isn't infused deeply with passion. So when I heard that she entered a partnership with a long-standing friend, Peggy Furth - formerly of Chalk Hill Estates - to develop a line of wines called Windracer, I was immediately curious. These are two class-act, business-savvy women, who earned their stripes and their very considerable paychecks on their own, well before they became part of California's North Coast elite vintners. I knew that the wines and terroir they chose would be distinctive.
Read MoreRon Rubin makes not only wine but also tea with Republic of Tea. That certainly offered some level of confidence when I agreed to taste the wines. This guy clearly knows how to taste! The prospect of making high-priced, super-limited-production, hard-to-find wines is not what makes Ron tick.
Read MoreIf you're not familiar with the underlying characteristics of German geography, it may be helpful to know that the Pfalz is sometimes called the "Tuscany of Germany", thanks to its southern position and ample sunshine. Clearly, this is a region that needs rosé, and by the taste of this one, we're lucky they don't drink it all themselves!
Read MoreFEL focuses on Anderson Valley, which is packed with contrast - like Florence's wines apparently, despite its small size. The Anderson Valley is just slightly longer than the island of Manhattan! For every mile that one moves toward the Pacific coast from Boonville at the valley's eastern edge, there is the loss of one degree Fahrenheit from the average daytime temperature. There is a five week spread between picking in Boonville and Navarro, at the valley's western point! As winemaker Ryan Hodgins - who grew up outside the Willamette Valley but transplanted to California in 2002 - said, the Anderson Valley is nature's tipping point between "the feel" of the rest of California to the south and Oregon to the north.
Read Moren early 2018, Chehalem and Stoller became fully interconnected through a single owner, though the two properties retained their distinct personalities. The Chemistry label soon brought them together to make a third, easily accessible wine label - both in style and in price. Here's the latest...do NOT miss the "*" wines!
Read MoreCasa Paladin makes truly striking rosé - both still and bubbly. The Pinot Grigio rosé is particularly fun for its play on Pinot Grigio's natural pink and gray clusters, meriting a favorite notation "*". The packaging of all these wines is striking, too, especially the Prosecco bottles.
Read MoreHailing from small lots planted on rocky, volcanic terrain at high elevation, the wind-blown vineyards of Bryn Mawr produce energetic wines. Appropriately, Bryn Mawr is Welsh for "high hill". Winemaker Rachel Rose leads both the vineyard and the winemaking program with the aim of integrating the natural world and its effects into her wines. These wines salute approximately the one-decade mark since Jon and Kathy Lauer purchased the 26-acre estate.
Read MoreBouchaine's wines have a cosmopolitan edge, showcasing grace and pedigree with vigor. These are classy, approachable wines with broad appeal. Sitting on 104 contiguous acres on the southern cusp of cool climate Carneros overlooking San Francisco, Bouchaine Vineyards celebrates its 40th anniversary this year. Founders Tatiana and Gerret Copeland were pioneers in Carneros, which didn't become an AVA until 1985.
Read MoreFor almost 100 years, the Zemmer family has been making wines in southwestern Alto Adige in the small town of Cortina. This is the last town of German speakers before reaching the Trentino border, and it is uniquely positioned on the valley floor rather than perched in the hillsides. The winery's website has a brilliant, interactive aerial view where visitors can take in the natural beauty of the Dolomites while observing where the Zemmer vineyards lie.
Read MoreThese last few years I have tasted very few Alsatian wines at professional tastings. So, I jumped at the chance to taste these wines presented in New York in late spring. All of the wines showed well, but one domaine in particular stood out: the Domaine Kirrenbourg wines are riveting.
Read MoreDark salmon in color, this rosé is visually appealing in its attractive, clear bottle. Alas, something is off-kilter here, which is surprising for a producer and range that generally make reliably good still and sparkling wines.
Read MoreYet again, Rodney Strong has released some solid wines, especially at the value end of the spectrum. The Chalk Hill Chardonnay is a perennial star, and the 2017 Russian River Pinot Noir is especially tasty!
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