2010 - Present Wine

Winemaker Description

Les Sablonnières comes from a tiny plot (23.64 ares) near the village of Beaunay in the Coteaux du Petit Morin. The parcel has a south-southwestern exposure at 200m planted to pinot noir and pinot noir droit (a small-berried clone prized for its structure) on sandy-clay topsoils, over a chalky subsoil. 2019 was the first time this vineyard was fermented alone and the results are stunning. Les Sablonnières is particularly suited to producing fine pinot noir that is both well-structured and immediately inviting, with a beautiful nose and effortless grace. 

Handed harvested fruit is  taken to a state-of-the-art press house located just five minutes from her vineyards in the village of Vert-Toulon, where they were pressed in a Coquard press with an inclined plate (the latest generation of Coquard). Only the heart, or the coeur de cuvée, of the first pressing is utilized. 90% of primary fermentation occurs in used (5-7 years old) 228L Burgundy oak barrels, and 10% in new barrels, without fining, filtration, or cold stabilization. Malolactic fermentation is natural and spontaneous in the barrel. Wines are naturally stabilized and aged for ten months in the same oak barrels with bâtonnage three times. Aged 36 months in bottle before disgorgement and a dosage of 3g/L from concentrated grape must from her vineyards.

Winemaker Description

Expert Reviews

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2022

Australian Wine Companion 95 Points | The Penfolds chardonnay wines have been in fine form in recent years. Here it is the Bin 311, hailing from the regional triumvirate of Tasmania, Tumbarumba and the Adelaide Hills, aged in French Oak (34% new) for eight months. Pale straw with green flashes and a tight, lemony aromatic profile with notes of nectarine, lime zest, lemon curd, grilled nuts, crushed stone and minerals, plus a liminal whiff of struck flint. Elegant and pure with a fine framework, racy mineral-laden acid propulsion and a light textural phenolic pressure on the palate. It's an elegant, mineral-driven wine and a damn good one at that.

94 Points James Suckling | Flint. Kumquat, lime zest and stone fruit allusions. Cool climate Tasmania and Tumbarumba fruit. Mid-weighted and tautly furled with a core of fruit sweetness that expands across the filigreed finish. Long! I like this wine. While it is reductive in the contemporary Australian vein, it is far less so than the Penfolds chardonnay style of just a few years ago, with a relaxed glide across the finish. Creamed cashew and praline at its core, conferring generosity. Real juice, thrust and crunch to this. Drink or hold.

93 Points The Wine Advocate | The 2022 Bin 311 Chardonnay hails from three regions: Tasmania (38%), Tumbarumba (33%) and the Adelaide Hills (29%). It matured in French oak for eight months (34% new). Crushed salted nuts, white peach and layers of nectarine and green apple populate the palate. It's svelte, polished and classy to a tee. It has the Penfolds phenolic stamp of seamlessness without being glossy or overdone. Lovely wine. Pleasure here! It was a lovely season in all three regions.

Winemaker Description 

Pale straw with lime green hues. An exhilarating Chardonnay. The benefit of multi-regional blending is evident, with each distinct region bringing nuance to the final blend. Struck flint and steely minerality are a nod to the Tasmanian inclusion. Subtle white stone fruit and cured lemon suggestive of the Adelaide Hills. While lime, lemon and wet stone minerality a reflection of the high-altitude vines of Tumbarumba. A hint of Tahitian lime zest ‘oil’ adds an exotic note, tempered by a lemon curd/ pastry sweetness. An exemplar of the modern Penfolds Chardonnay style. An elegant wine, with lovely cool climate fruit providing ample palate weight. Honeydew melon, white peach, cashew and nougat drive the flavor profile. There is a trademark minerality running through a seam of soft acidity. The phenolics are grippy and textured, melding seamlessly with fine grained French oak. This is a wine punching well above its weight division. Drinking beautifully now but will hold for a decade or more for those who like a more developed expression of the varietal.

Leif makes tiny quantities of still and sparkling ciders. The fruit he uses is a blend of heirloom apples selected to express the delicate differences in variety and terroir of three historic cider-producing regions in New York. Fermentations start with a wild yeast pied du cuvée, and run long and cool to complete dryness. There is oak aging and considerable lees exposure. The sparkling ciders are traditional method without disgorgement.

The results are vinous ciders of tremendous character — textured, delicate, and nuanced, revealing of tradition, region, variety, method, and intent. Their notably high acids and greater phenolic content from maceration processes and lees contact, as well as bottling with their lees, equip them for aging and evolution in bottle. Winemaker Description. 

From certified sustainable, biodynamic practicing orchards just outside of beautiful Ithaca, NY (it really is gorges!). Made from a huge assortment of different apple varieties.  

This is a delicious, dry cider that is crisp, fresh and clean. Redbyrd is a shining star in the movement of a small number of New York cider producers intent on reinvigorating the glory of traditional ciders. Winemaker Description. 

What are we up to? In Decideret we make wild fermented ciders and fruit pét-nats. We use surplus garden apples and organic fruit from the best orchards in Denmark.  We make highly enjoyable vinous ciders with little intervention. At the same time we aim to push the boundaries for what cider can be. It is time for a real cider culture Our ciders are quite vinous, dry but at the same time juicy like a pét-nat.

They can be quite different from what is normally perceived as cider. We are working to prove that a cider can be every bit as quenchy as beer, as complex as wine, as sour as lambic, and as fruitful as freshly pressed juice.  We crush and press apples, ferment juice into cider, and bottle it by hand in small and big bottles – cider can be kept well in both a wine cellar and in a breast pocket. Some ciders are to be drunk young and fresh with a full throttle fruity flavour. Other ciders release their potential when aged in oak or with a long maceration.

Winemaker Description

Bright cherry, raspberry and strawberry notes greet the nose, along with fresh rose petals, baking spices and hints of earth. Bright acidity on the entrance combines with the showy red fruit and flavors of forest floor, rhubarb, sage and toast on the palate. Round, supple tannins provide an exceptionally good transition to the finish, with structured tannins providing nice body and length. 

Winemaker Description

Overall goals and philosophy of wine: Syrah is a beguiling grape with many expressions in the vinous world, from the gamey classics of France to the inkiness of Australia. In the Finger Lakes, it takes a special site to nurture these beautiful vines to full maturity, but in Glacier Ridge we have found just such a vineyard. With intense Vietnamese peppercorn aromatics, bright red cherry flavors, and a brooding minerality underneath, this Syrah is a pure expression of what can be achieved with one of our favorite grapes in a cool climate. Put simply, think northern Rhone rather than Barossa. 

Notable vineyard management details: Glacier Ridge takes a studied minimalist approach in the vineyard; all weed control is manual and allows for some non-grape vegetation for competition as well as insect biodiversity. Crop size are subsequently lower as a result, with a notable difference in increased ripening capability of the grapes. 

Winemaker Description 

This 100% Sauvignon Blanc shows delicate notes of lime and grapefruit with a hint of honeydew melon. Bright and fresh with a long, clean finish. Sustainably farmed and hand-harvested with minimal intervention and fermented in stainless steel tanks.

From Mexico to New York: Started in 2019, RG | NY is a new brand from the Rivero González family who have cultivated the land of their vineyards in Parras, Coahulia Mexico –the oldest winegrowing region in the Americas - for 25 years. The González family is characterized by being true to their values excellence, heritage, craft, innovation, sustainability, and community. They aim to continue their family’s winemaking tradition and legacy on the North Fork. Bright, expressive, young and fruit-forward.

These are wines that perfectly represent North Fork region; well-balanced acidity and freshness with a lingering finish that seamlessly makes them the perfect wines for year round consumption. Comprised of complex wines from special vineyard blocks with smaller productions; wines that require greater attention, as there’s more challenge in finding the perfect balance and expression, to harvest at the right time, and to respect what the fruit has to give us.

RG | NY is a member of Long Island Sustainable Winegrowing (LISW); not-for-profit organization that provides education and certification for Long Island vineyards in order to reduce the environmental impact. 

Winemaker Description

100% Cabernet Franc. Les Picasses is the most famous Chinon lieu-dit, close to the village of Beaumont-En-Vron on the north bank of the Vienne River. It is a slope with full southern exposure and chalky clay-limestone soils. Raffault's mid-slope vines are at least 50 years old and are worked organically and harvested by hand.

The fruit is destemmed with the berries left whole; they are fermented with indigenous yeasts in tank with a maceration of 25-30 days. The wine is aged for one to two years in 30-hectoliter oak and chestnut foudres; it is then aged in bottle for several years before release. Winemaker Description. 

Winemaker Description

Very aromatic, fruity notes stand out over the wood ones. We perceive black fruits such as blackberries and plums alongside with spiced notes, obtained during its time in oak barrels, that bestow elegance. Roasted notes appear gradually as well.  The wine has a great structure and body. It is well-balance and velvety on the mouth. It has a pleasant and long lasting finish.

18 months in French oak barrels. The wine is then finely-tuned in the bottle for a period of six months. For the purpose of preserving every characteristic of the wine, before being bottled, the wine goes through a clarification and stabilization process, followed by a filtration process. Nevertheless, over time, due to the use of very gentle techniques, some natural sediments might appear. 

Winemaker Description

Domaine Zafeirakis’s 12 ha (30 acres) of vines are planted in Tyrnavos, in the foothills of Mount Olympos (seen in the image below) in Thessaly in the east of central mainland Greece. The winery is marked near the town of Larissa on this World Atlas of Wine map of Greece. This is a perfect spot for Limniona, a thick-skinned and high-acid grape which loves hot days and cool nights.

Expert Review

Jancis Robinson states as follows: The 50 Great Greek Wines. Zafeirakis Limniona 2019 was one of my favourite reds in the selection I tasted. It was already showing some signs of the interactions that happen between the many components in a wine when it ages in bottle (in those wines not made for immediate consumption), so that while all that lovely dark and dark-red fruit and the gentle spice notes provide delicious intensity and freshness – more blackberry and cherry than blackcurrant or strawberry – there’s now also the first signs of complexity, flavours that are much harder to describe because they are so special to high-quality, maturing red wine. 
The tannins are starting to soften though not yet silky, and while there is no rush to drink this, it is perfect now: a tantalising array of aromas and flavours to capture your attention even if you have indulged in a late-December flavour-fest or have opened one or two expensive bottles saved for special occasions. The last two lines in my tasting note read: ‘A sophisticated wine that still packs a punch. Seriously moreish.

Expert Reviews 

Wine Spectator 97 Points | Expressive and alluring aromas of warm plum reduction and boysenberry puree lead off here, followed by fleshy, seamlessly layered notes of blackberry, black currant, melted black licorice and smoldering tobacco. Shows a lovely tug of dark earth through the finish without sacrificing a sense of polish or giving ground to the waves of fruit. Displays terrific latent energy through the finish. Best from 2023 through 2040.Wine Enthusiast 97 points This is a beautifully fragrant wine that has power along with an elegant acidity. It has wonderful juiciness that cuts through any of the tannins to give great freshness, a silky texture and fruitiness at the end. Perfumed and stylish, this is a very fine wine. Barrel Sample: 97-99 (2015).

Wine Advocate 98 Points | Blended of 80% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Franc and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon, the medium to deep garnet-purple colored 2015 Vieux Chateau Certan opens with profound notes of blueberry compote, dried mulberries, black forest cake, licorice, violets and garrigue with wafts of black truffles, sandalwood and rose hips. Medium to full-bodied, very earthy/savory and beautifully layered with very plush yet present tannins, it offers lovely freshness and a very long minerally finish. So very Pomerol! 

Decanter 97 Points | This is a really complete wine with aromatic complexity, ripe fruit, beautifully suave texture and freshness and persistence on the finish. The tannins are abundant but fine, allowing the wine to build majestically on the palate. Harmonious as well. ‘It’s like 2010 with more Cabernet Franc (19%),’ says Alexandre Thienpont.

Jeb Dunnuck 100 points | I was able to taste both the 2015 and 2016 grand vins, and these are heavenly, magical wines that could not be any better. Starting with the 2015 Vieux Château Certan, it shows the opulent, flamboyant style of the vintage to a T and reveals a saturated purple/ruby color, a monster bouquet of blackberries, tobacco, kirsch, dried spices, and loamy earth, full-bodied richness, sweet tannins, and a finish that won’t quit. A thrill a minute, wine doesn’t get any better, and I only wish every reader could taste this beauty. Drink it any time over the coming 30 years or more.

James Suckling 100 points | The blackberries, blueberries, oyster shell and violets are so mesmerizing. Full-bodied, focused and deep. It takes you to another space and plane. Dried flowers and dark fruit. The tannins are perfectly crafted. Keeps going as you taste it. Drink in 2023 but why wait?

Winemaker Description

The Nebbiolo grape is the foundation (80%) of our flagship red wine ‘Bramaterra’ (DOC). Complemented by autochthonous grape varieties Croatina and Vespolina. The grapes are harvested exclusively by hand, with each grape variety and vineyard being processed individually. Followed by macaeration and fermentation in open Grenier oak vats. The young wine will then be matured for 18 month in a combination of used barrique barrels as well as large Stockinger oak barrels. The Bramaterra is finally kept on bottle for another 24 month before being released to market.

Expert Reviews

Vinous 97 Points | The 2016 Bramaterra is fabulous. Deep and exquisitely layered, the 2016 possesses stunning depth and textural nuance to burn. Rose petal, lavender, red/purplish fruit, cedar, tobacco and licorice all build in the glass. The 2016 is a wine of power, structure and dimension.  Drinking 2024 - 2026 -- By Antonio Galloni on March 2022

Antonio Galloni Range 94-97 Points | The 2016 Bramaterra is drop-dead gorgeous. Utterly captivating in its aromatics and inner sweetness, the 2016 is insanely beautiful. Sweet red cherry, candy, iron, graphite, rose petal and blood orange are some of the many notes that come alive with a bit of aeration. I tasted the 2016 from two core lots, separarely, and then in a hypothetical blend. It is a hugely promising wine.

Winemaker Description

Chansélus is a unique, minuscule production red (112 cases total!!!) from the prestigious Ribeiro D.O. which is more known for its world-class whites. Bernardo Estevez makes this field blend of Brancellao, Souson, Caino da Terra, Carabuneira, Trincadeira, Ferrol, Tinta Amarela, Caino Bravo, Caino Longo, Mencia, etc... from the 3 hectares of vines that he owns in 5 different sub-regions. 

He manages his vineyards personally following organic and biodynamic practices as laid out by Masanobu Fukuoka and he even brews his own natural treatments in his kitchen.

The wine is herbaceous and balanced with crisp acid, moderate tannins, fresh wild berry flavors and pronounced minerality from the sandy, granitic soils of Ribeiro. Pairs wonderfully with Galician pork sausages, smoked ham or sheep's milk cheese from the Pyrenees to the North.

Notes of dried orange peel, marzipan, honey, and white flowers. It has a savory finish which marries well with complex food flavors such as dim sum, sticky pork or even slow roasted lamb and can be served slightly less chilled than a conventional white to allow the oak flavors a chance to express themselves.

Selling Point Organic, Skin-contact, Fair Trade, Black woman-winemaker. Producer Description.

----------------

It is an ancient winemaking method that produces a really interesting, textural wine. This particular winemaking method dates back to about 6000 BC in present-day Georgia. The bunches of white grapes were crushed and then naturally fermented on the skins in large clay amphora (qvevri) which were sealed and buried underground to control the temperature. The fermentation on the skins gives the wine its colour, but also its texture and composite flavours.

Being an adventurous winemaker with an enquiring mind, Corlea Fourie was eager to try out this technique. So every harvest, she would set aside some Chenin Blanc grapes and ferment them naturally and on the skins. But sadly, it never worked. One year, she resolutely decided to give it one last go, but this time used Grenache Blanc grapes instead. The result was a delicious amber wine with complex aromatics including ginger biscuit, tangerine peel, bruised fruit and complex savoury notes.

Today this wine is called Fides, which means ‘trust’ or ‘faith’ in Latin, because it is a fine example of the trust relationship needed between winemaker and nature. It reflects the conviction and the hope of the winemaker to realise the beautiful potential hidden within nature’s bounty. Establishing the delicate relationship to tease out the best, explore the possibilities and honour ancient traditions takes persistence, thoughtfulness, knowledge, experience and care, but most of all trust. Today Bosman Fides is a celebration of that trust.

This Winery has been in the family for 6 generations and sits on a small hill overlooking the famous Chateau d'Yquem. It has just 14 hectares making it the smallest of the premier cru classe properties. A simple yet pretty sauternes that has good concentration and notes of coconut, marmalade, dried fruits and a long rich finish. A wine that is crying out for some blue cheese. Winemaker Description. 

Malbec in the Loire Valley is called Cot as it is in Cahor.  This is an inky dark wine that is dense, mouthfilling, with black fruit, raspberry, pepper, and rustic flavors.  This big red calls out barbecue!  We heartily recommend this special wine that rarely comes to the U.S.

Winemaker Notes

The nose on the powerfully built organic Malbec offers notes sweet and sour cherry, fresh blackberry, and country herbs. Concentrated and intense, presenting a silky texture and an elegant finish. A gorgeous Malbec from the banks of the Loire river. 

Winemaker Description

The Gattinara spends a minimum of 3 years in large oak whereas both crus see at least four years in large oak.

Expert Review

Vinous 95 Vinous | The 2018 Gattinara is a stunning wine in the making. Extraordinary in its complexity and nuance, the 2018 dazzles with a kaleidoscope of aromas, flavors and textures. Kirsch, hard candy, flowers and lively acids captivate the senses. The 2018 is elegant, weightless and full of character. It is, quite frankly, everything Gattinara can and should be. This is a great place to start for readers who want to know why the 2018 vintage is so magical at Nervi-Conterno. If it weren't for the single-vineyard wines, I would have said the 2018 is one of the very best wines that have ever been made here! (2018). 

Robert Parker 94 Points | Roberto Conterno acquired Nervi in 2018, and this is the first vintage in which the brand name is listed as Conterno Nervi (as opposed to Nervi Conterno, or just Nervi). Fully under his winemaking watch, the 2018 Gattinara comes from a vintage that performed well in this part of Alto Piemonte. Roberto had the confidence to produce his two single-vineyard expressions (Vigne Molsino and Valferana) in 2018, which is not exactly intuitive, as the growing season proved more challenging in other parts of Piedmont. But Roberto interprets each vintage with a keen eye and deft approach that is often contrary to his peers. I think what stands out here is the freshness, the balance of acidity that plays nicely into the minerality of the wine and the brightness of its wild rose and redcurrant flavors. This Gattinara carries a lot of fruit and primary intensity, all backed by subtle touches of balsam herb and soft tarry end notes. This 2018 underlines the elegance in Nebbiolo. (2018). 

Winemaker Description

Taste of black fruits, well-integrated tannins without aggressiveness. To be enjoyed with grilled or braised meats.

Winemaker Description

This small winery is the project of Sandrino Quadraroli, the owner of one of the finest restaurants in central Marche, Osteria del Borgia. Always a champion of the wines of his region, starting in 2012 he was finally able to crown his dream of producing wine. 

The 4 hectares estate was planted in 1999, upside down Guyot system, on clay, sandy and calcareous soil 500 meters above sea level on the south-facing hills right above lake Caccamo in the township of Serrapetrona located in the mountainous central part of the Marche region. 

The focus of the winery is the grape varietal indigenous to this sub-region: Vernaccia Nera, not found anywhere else in the world. This grape has a long history, however it was traditionally vinified sparkling and semi-sweet, possibly in order to tame the bold characteristics that this varietal has: crushed white and black pepper. Over the past two decades or so, a new generation of wineries in the area is concentrating on exalting the unique character of Vernaccia Nera and are bottling still, dry wines. The results are fascinating: the wines are distinctive, aromatic, full-bodied but elegant and vibrant, with good minerality and refreshing acidity. 

Winemaker Description

Intense color with purple reflections. The aromas of violets and Mediterranean herbs complement the delicate notes of chocolate and toast from the subtle aging.

Elegant on the palate, with fresh notes that combine with round and sweet tannins. In perfect balance with natural acidity, it is a pleasant and long-lasting finish.

An organic xarel·lo wine with minimum intervention.
 
From the flagship variety of the Penedès, the xarel-lo, comes this organic single-varietal wine. Calcari brings together the purest and most sincere expression of this ancestral variety, native to our territory and strongly rooted in our winemaking tradition.

Its characteristics give it great versatility, making it a variety suitable for the production of long-aged sparkling wines or wines with minimal intervention such as Calcari, a wine that allows us to see its great expressive capacity and its mineral characte. 

Made with a mixture of raisined grapes and others with botrytis, it is an excellent example of a Coteaux du Layon from the Loire, which brings together the best of two worlds. This delicious dessert wine is made 50:50 of noble rot and late harvest grapes. Made biodynamically and with natural yeast, it exhibits succulent flavours of mango, pineapple, and sweet spices such as saffron. A very high acidity makes this wine quite refreshing considering how sweet it is. Fruit and/or nut based desserts, salty blue cheese Deliciously sweet, with good acidity, ideal as an aperitif, with cheese or after dinner. Winemaker Description. 

Winemaker Description

In the hands of Hannes Schuster, Sankt Laurent becomes a focused expression of the soils in and around St Margarethen. Sankt Laurent is thought to be related to Pinot Noir, a crossing of the noble grape and another variety of unknown origin, native to Burgenland. The Schuster always shows earthy yet fresh mineral-rich notes of cherry and red berries which explode on the palate.

Silky tannins, delicate spice and a lovely long finish are signature characteristics. As all the Schuster wines, it is organically farmed with meticulous work in the ideally situated vineyards. This Sankt Laurent was fermented with native yeasts and spent one year in used 500 Liter Stockinger barrels. Winemaker Description. 

Winemaker Description

90 Points Wine Advocate | The 2021 Sankt Laurent Burgenland blends the fruit of 14- to 34-year-old vines cultivated in Sankt Margarethen, Zagersdorf, Oslip and Donnerskirchen. Aged in large, used barrels for 10 months, this release displays a bright cherry color and a pure, fresh and reductive nose of cherries, red berries, black pudding, earth and grass. Silky and fresh on the palate, this is a charmingly fruity, light to medium-bodied red wine with remarkable finesse, juiciness and fruit intensity. If at all, this autochthonous red is reminiscent of a refreshing Gamay from the Loire Valley. A great drinking pleasure indeed. 11.5% stated alcohol. Diam cork. Tasted in April 2023.

2πr 2021 is an organic red wine made in Priorat, Spain by Gratavinum. The name of the wine is a reference to the perimeter of a circle, and the wine itself is described as having "perfect roundness."

The nose is aromatic and complex, with notes of preserved red fruit, toasty oak, and cacao. The mouthfeel is soft and round, with ripe tannins and good acidity. The flavors are of red fruit, mineral, and wood smoke. The finish is long and fresh.

2πr 2021 is an ideal wine for wine lovers to enjoy with traditional Mediterranean cuisine. It is a complex and well-balanced wine with a lot of personality.

Winemaker Description

Hand harvested, destemmed manually using the zaranda (traditional bamboo screen) and fermented in open top lagars of raulí (native pink oak of Chile).

Free run juice is transferred into pipas (or barrels) made of raulí for several months after harvest on the fine lees.

Sustainable, organic, dry farming