Sitewide Sale - Reds

Ned Goodwin MW writes:  Benchmark Valpo. Others should take note. A thirst-slaking rail of salty phenolics, doused in tangerines and sour cherries, with a touch of garden and alpine herbs. Brisk acidity carries length, finishing with a kick of quinine. Delicious. From organically grown grapes. Sustainable. Drink now.  - James Suckling 91

Alison Napjus writes:  A bright, balanced red, with light tannins and ripe cherry and cranberry fruit accented by blood orange peel, incense and rooibos tea notes. Drink now.  - Wine Spectator

Winemaker Description 

A young and uninhibited wine which is the lifeblood of the land from which it originates. A magnificent table companion suitable for serving with all kinds of dishes. After many years of sustainable agriculture the Speri family obtained organic certification in 2015. All Speri wines are now organic.

Ruby red in color with purplish highlights and an intense, vinous bouquet, with hints of violets and cherries. A medium-bodied, fruity wine, to be enjoyed young. An ideal accompaniment to hors d’oeuvres, soups, pasta and typical Mediterranean dishes.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2019

James Suckling 93 Points | Cassis, dried blueberries, violets, ink, graphite, dried leaves and cigar box on the nose. Full-bodied with firm, polished tannins. Smooth and supple with excellent balance and length. Drink from 2023.

Decanter 91 Points | Aromas of cassis, cigar box and cocoa. Concentrated palate, with chocolate-covered cherry fruit flavours and fine-grained tannins. Lovely acidity. Blend : 99% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Cabernet Franc.

Jeb Dunnuck 91 Points | A terrific, well-priced Napa Cabernet, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Artemis has a great nose of pure cassis fruits as well as tobacco, spring flowers, and a touch wet stone and graphite. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it has a good sense of elegance and ripe tannins.

Producer Description 

Our Napa Valley Merlot opens with lively bright red fruits and a soft, lush texture. Delicate floral aromas combine with ripe blackberry, milk chocolate, wet stone and barrel spice. The finish is bright and spreads out on the palate to reveal mineral notes that support the silky tannin structure.

Deep ruby in color, the 2019 Napa Valley Merlot features a tempting nose with hints of violet, ripe cherry and warm baking spices. The palate is supple in texture with luxurious layers of brambly red fruits, cocoa, and dusty tannins. This classic Napa Valley Merlot finishes long and vibrant with lingering notes of graphite.

Expert Review - Vintage 2019 

The quality in the vintage is undeniable, "perhaps the best I have ever tasted at this stage." Jancis Robinson

James Suckling writes 90 Points | Dark plums, wet earth, dried herbs and walnuts on the nose. Medium-to full-bodied with firm tannins. Chalky with dark-fruit character and a chewy finish. Drink in 2024.  - James Suckling 90

Lisa Perrotti-Brown of the Wine Advocate writes |   Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2019 Clos de la Cure comes tumbling out of the glass with playful black cherries, fresh black plums and redcurrant jelly scents plus hints of dried Provence herbs, damp soil and moss-covered tree bark. The medium to full-bodied palate has plenty of herb-laced black fruits with a chewy texture and racy acidity, finishing on a lingering wild thyme note.  - Robert Parker Wine Advocate

Winemaker Description 

Clos de la Cure is a beautiful walled 6 hectare vineyard situated on the St. Émilion plateau. This estate and Château Milon are owned by Alexia and Pierre Bouyer and the estates represent more than seven generations of viticultural heritage. The domaine treats their vineyards with all the respect due to a Grand Cru with an ecological friendly approach. 

This classic right bank Bordeaux has great structure, medium plus body, good complexity and depth with thick tannin and balanced acidity. The vibrant palate has intense flavors of blackberry, plum, raspberry, black cherry, red cherry, earth, mushroom, leather, tobacco and spice. The finish is long lasting. Think hearty beef stew. 

Expert Review - Vintage 2021 

Wine Spectator 91 Points | Leads with mulled cherry and plum notes, with hints of warm licorice and fruitcake, plus red tea filling in on the finish. Reveals fresh underlying acidity that extends the finish nicely. Drink now through 2026.

Winemaker Description 

Producer Description 

Layers of fresh raspberry and plum with hints of candied violets and earth. Vivid red notes carry throughout with tart cherry and hibiscus, with an undercurrent of sassafras and vanilla. Bright acidity on the palate, with velvety, yet structured tannins on the finish.

James Suckling - 91 Points "This is effusive and fruity, almost sweet in its ripeness and ready to drink soon. Sunny aromas of sweet cherries and strawberries lead to dark cherries and plums on the palate, backed by moderate tannins on a full body. Drink now. "

The Wine Advocate - 90 Points "There are more than 25,000 cases of the excellent 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Grown, a blend of fruit from the winery's Coombsville and Stags Leap District properties. Aged in 40% new oak (almost entirely French, although there is a small Hungarian component), it marries notes of cedar and dried spices with ripe cherries. It's medium to full-bodied, silky textured and open-knit, not hugely rich or concentrated, just a nice, balanced effort to drink over the next decade."

Upon opening, concentrated aromas of blackberry and dark plum fill the nose. The palate is full-bodied with flavors of dark cherry, boysenberry, and a hint of tobacco. Well-balanced and structured with lingering notes of toasted oak on the long finish.

Winemaker Description 

Alavida Malbec is vibrant and dry, with black fruit and floral notes typical of a quality Malbec from our corner of the planet. Enjoy!

A spanish riff similar to the hebrew toast l’chaim! is an invitation to people everywhere to come together and share in the simple joys of good food and wine. argentina is a nation rich in diversity and our multi-cultural family at domaine bousquet has been making certified organic wines in argentina since 1997, when we began planting vines in the upper reaches of tupungato’s cool-climate gualtallary area.

USDA Organic certification.

Vineyards of the Uco Valley at the foot of the Andes at 1200 m.a.s.l. The low temperatures of the valley presents allow for an optimal development of the grapes, managing to develop their quality to the maximum. Gravel and sand Soil.

Winemaker Description

The grapes used to produce this exceptional Merlot were hand selected from Barkan's vineyards located in the northern Galil region. This Merlot has a deep ruby color with an extremely rich and full character. With its bouquet of ripe cherries, fresh peppers, and velvety soft tannins, Barkan Classic Merlot complements pasta or meat dishes as well as cheese.

Winemaker Description

Gilgal Cabernet Sauvignon-Merlot is made from Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot fruit grown in the cold climate and high altitude unique to the Golan Heights and Upper Galilee. This attractive blend displays characters of both classic varieties. More than anything, the wine's distinctive style and personality express the Golan growing regionand the people who created it.

Aromas of raspberry and cherry are balanced by notes of orange peel and chocolate with hints of flowers and French oak. This medium-to-fullbodied blend is flavorful and complex. 

Winemaker Description

Kith & Kin, Old English for “Friends & Family”, is a Cabernet Sauvignon sourced from all corners of the Napa Valley but with its heart rooted in Rutherford. This wine is approachable in its youth, with balanced tannins and a fruit-forward character. The vast majority of fruit comes from our estate, supplemented by a limited amount from Napa Valley growers.

Beautifully complex and rich aromatics of bright cassis and ripe red fruit jump out of the glass upon the first encounter. This wine opens with bright raspberry, softening through the mid-palate with notes of toffee, cocoa, and crème brulee. The soft and smooth mouth feel paired with fine-grained tannins effortlessly round out this young and serious, yet remarkably approachable Cabernet.

Expert Reviews

Winemaker Description

This wine embodies the most spontaneous expression of Corvina: fragrant fruit and full flavor. Ruby red in color with purplish highlights, accompanied by a concentrated, fragrant nose with notes of ripe cherries, blackcurrants, blackberries, and green peppercorns, followed by hints of cocoa powder and dried fruits. The vibrant, juicy palate is underpinned by velvety tannins and has a long, flavorsome finish.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2022

Nicolas Greinacher writes:  The captivating Grenache-only 2022 Gigondas Le Gour is sexy and layered. Pronounced rose petal, crushed violet, orange blossom, quince and raspberry aromas rise up from the glass. The floral lift is just stunning. Despite its medium to full-body, this athletic 2022 red offers a seamless mouthfeel and is wonderfully light on its feet.  Drinking 2025 to 2032.  - Vinous 93-95

James Suckling writes:  A superb wine made exclusively from grenache from 80-year-old vines, silky and ethereal. The nose is seductive, with crushed wild strawberries, bitter oranges, roses and some peppercorns. Medium-bodied with finely grained tannins. Such finesse of texture, with a silky core of bright, transparent and succulent berries. There is tension and vibrancy with an infused character. Intense while being restrained and always in control. Long finish. Drink or hold.  - James Suckling 97

Winemaker Description

This Malbec shows an intense, deep ruby red color. In the nose are aromas of berries, cherries, followed with notes of black pepper and light touches of vanilla and chocolate. On the palate, notes of plums and spices stand out with an impeccable structure and juiciness.

Producer Description

The Perrin family selects Grenache, Syrah, Carignan and Cinsault, vinifying in a manner reflecting their Châteauneuf tradition. This is a richly fruity and supple wine, ruby-purple colored, with aromas of cassis and herbs, flavors of plum and blackberry on the palate.

Expert Review

Wine & Spirits 90 Points | The Perrin family of Chteau Beaucastel in Chteauneuf-du-Pape make this wine at their estate in Ventoux, blending equal parts cinsault and grenache with 20 percent syrah. The 2017, from the driest vintage theyve experienced in 30 years, is firm and crisp, with tangy berry flavors playing over a stony savor that holds the wine long and clean.-W&S

Winemaker Description

We embraced the structure up front when making this wine because we wanted a strong phenolic profile to bind with and stabilize the tannin. Baking spices (clove and cinnamon) with a kiss of oak.

Ripe black fruit on the palate, black currant and blackberry. A hint of vanilla and smooth tannins on the plush finish.

Winemaker Description

The result of a nearly perfect, long and cool ripening season (and oblivious to the Covid chaos swirling around it), the 2020 was picked and in the barn fully two and a half weeks before the Glass Fire broke out. Industrial-grade air filters kept smoke out of the winery as the wines went down to barrels. We are so grateful, and relieved, to present the lovely 2020.

This wine is wildly complex with tart cherry, blueberry, red and black currants, raspberry, plum and boysenberry fruit, fleshed out with notes of baking spices and peppermint. The tannins are characteristically polite yet grippy. Mineral notes add lift and the evolving violet perfume is so pretty. - Cathy Corison.

Expert Ratings - Vintage 2020 

Decanter 96 Points | Medium to full-bodied beautiful and restrained with savoury aromatics of fennel black liquorice cedar and black currants. Soft satiny blackberry fruits are lifted by fine-grained yet supple tannins while a purity of fruit guides the palate to a long tobacco-tinged finish marked by a mineral-freshness that beckons sip after sip. 100% Cabernet aged 18 months in 50% new French oak barrels. (Drink between 2023-2035. (2020).

Wine Spectator 93 Points | Distinctive, with a vivid display of mulberry, pomegranate and plum fruit aromas and flavors that glide through easily, carried by a silky but persistent structure. Reveals nice floral nuances through the finish, with a late twinge of iron, too. (2020). 

James Suckling 92 Points | Quite fruit-expressive and floral with spiced dark cherries rust baked plums hibiscus and violet extract on the nose. Rich and fruity with tart cherries cassis and dried herbs on the palate. Full-bodied and juicy with silky tannins that smoothen it out. Drink or hold.

The Wine Advocate 91 Points | Corison fans should enjoy the 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon. Gentle herbal streaks run through the wine's classic black cherries and cassis fruit. Medium-bodied sleek and streamlined it shows vibrant energy and ample length framed by gentle silky tannins.

Jeb Dunnuck 91 Points | The base 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon is pretty with a medium-bodied elegant style as well as lots of sappy herbs flowers and currant-driven aromatics fine tannins and nicely integrated acidity. Drink this balanced satisfying old school Cabernet over the coming 10-12 years or so. This Cuv e spent 18 months in 50% new oak.

Winemaker Description

Peay Vineyards is a first-generation family winery. Husband and wife, Nick Peay & Vanessa Wong, grow and make the wine and brother, Andy Peay, and his wife Ami, sell the wine and run the business.

All wines are made from grapes grown on our 53-acre estate vineyard located above a river gorge in the far northwestern corner of the Sonoma Coast, 4 miles from the Pacific Ocean at Sea Ranch. We sit in the chilly inversion layer with fog and wind from the Ocean maintaining cool temperatures with plenty of sunlight.

The Scallop Shelf has evolved over the last 15 years into the most mineral-driven and understated of our Pinot noirs. The 2021 is perfectly proportioned and harmonious with aromas of sassafras, wet slate, and apple skin with a floral and savory note popping in and out. The elements of the wine are already remarkably well-integrated with notes of cedar, forest floor, and ras el hanout spice framing the fruit. The finish is bright and the flavors go on and on. A wonderful Scallop Shelf from a superb vintage.

Winemaker Vanessa Wong left her position as winemaker at Peter Michael Winery in 2001 to launch Peay Vineyards. Formerly she worked at Chateau Lafite-Rothschild, Domaine Jean Gros and Hirsch Winery.

We farm organically and maintain our licenses for fish friendly farming and integrated pest management. The health of our vineyard dictates these approaches to farming and making wine. We also run on bio-diesel at the vineyard and solar power at both the vineyard and winery.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2021 

Jeb Dunnuck 99 Points | More mineral aromas emerge in the 2021 Pinot Noir Scallop Shelf, with notes of wet stone, black raspberry, and fresh herbs. Medium-bodied and more tension driven, it’s taut with orange zest, clove, and gravelly, saline earth. It’s going to need time to unpack. Drink 2026-2046. (2021). 

Robert Parker 96 Points | The 2021 Estate Pinot Noir Scallop Shelf is delicate and perfumed this year. Pale ruby-purple in the glass it has pretty scents of red licorice and raspberry lavender and saline with mushroom undertones. The medium-bodied palate has a frame of chalky tannins and fireworks of fresh acidity. Despite its lifted character it's bursting with floral fruit and has a long perfumed finish. Give it a couple of years in bottle to unwind. (2021). 

Vinous 96 Points | I tasted many Peay wines during my last visit and the months preceding. The Peay team led by brothers Andy and Nick Peay and winemaker Vanessa Wong turned out an absolutely brilliant set of 2021s. Every wine is a joy to taste. The 2021 Pinot Noir Scallop Shelf offers a more linear mineral-driven expression of the estate. Most of this fruit is Pommard clone but that is not especially evident. Red-toned fruit chalk mint white pepper and slate lend brightness. This linear focused Pinot bristles with saline energy and tension. Give it time.

Winemaker Description

Vibrant acidity and refined tannins seep into the fabric of this round red, which is laced with cherry, raspberry and floral aromas and flavors. Mineral and underbrush accents add depth as this plays out on the long, dusty finish. Best from 2026 through 2043.

Expert Review - Vintage 2019 

Vinous 94 Points | The 2019 Brunello di Montalcino Ugolforte opens with a minty freshness as flint stone and dusty rose give way to crushed cherries. Silky and pliant, this possesses an elegance not often seen, with violet and lavender tones accentuating its polished red and blue fruits. This tapers off with sweet tannins balanced by an orange hint. A structured yet mouth-watering sensation lingers on. What a beauty this is.

Winemaker Description

Expert Ratings

James Suckling 93 Points | “Lovely crushed berry and cherry aromas and flavors. Medium-bodied with bright acidity and a crunchy and delicious finish. A blend of mostly merlot and cabernet sauvignon with some syrah and cabernet franc.

Winemaker Description

Impressive dark cherry red color with great depth. Seductive floral and dark fruits (cassis, blackberry jam) aromas with undertones of Mediterranean woodland (eucalyptus) and spices (white pepper). Delicate, yet flavorful on the palate with a backbone of very fine-grained tannins and an elegant persistence that culminates — true to its name — in a chorus of aromas and flavors.

Expert Reviews

James Suckling 92 Points | Sweet cherries and berries on the nose with rose petals and lavender. Medium to full body, firm and chewy tannins and a flavorful finish. Another year or two will soften this. Try after 2021. (2018). 

Wine Spectator 90 Points | A toasty red, with smoke, mocha, grilled herb and iron notes accenting baked black cherry and plum fruit. Dense and medium- to full-bodied, with fine-grained tannins firming the tightly meshed finish. Carignan, Grenache and Syrah. Drink now through 2028. 5,100 cases made, 250 cases imported. (2018).

Winemaker Description

With this new wine from Sumoll, Grosella, we return to our origins.

Winemaker Description

Rico Nuevo is a relatively new player in the Spanish wine scene, but they’re already making plenty of waves. The winery is right near Leon in the heralded Gredos Region. All eight wines they submitted to Parker’s Wine Advocate got at least a 90-point score. 

The key to success here is the region of Gredos itself as well as the 77-year old Garnacha vines that the winery taps into. The region is known for making a more savory, higher toned expression of Garnacha, but Rico Nuevo really epitomizes that elegance.

They divide their own property with 40 micro parcels, all along the highest elevations of the north side of the Gredos Mountains. Here everything is organic and biodynamic and they’re very hands off in the vineyard, letting the gnarly old-vines do all the talking. It works so well.

Tasting Notes: Beautiful red fruit - cherry, cranberry, raspberry. Floral notes and Mediterranean herbs. 

Winemaker Description

Partida Pedrer macerates in the winery with part of the whole berry and part of crushed grapes for 8-10 days. There it begins a spontaneous fermentation with native yeasts that ends and ends up aging in cement jars. Finally the wine is bottled without any type of additive.
 
Partida del Pedrer is quite a challenge. A natural red wine that shows the purity of expression, without additives of any kind. Pure Priorat.

Winemaker Description

Intense purple color. Aromas of tobacco, licorice and blackcurrants. Full-bodied with hints of toast and mature fruit. Long balanced finish.

Expert Rating

89 Points Wine Spectator | Delivers dark and juicy blackberry and black plum fruit underscored by subtle smoke and earth notes. Medium-bodied, with accents of dried medicinal herbs, anise, iron and graphite on the finish alongside lightly chalky tannins.

Winemaker Description

Impeccable harmony between the notes of ripe fruit and the aromas of carbonic maceration. Sweet, full-bodied and a long, pleasant finish.

Owned and run by winemaker Ignacio Valdera, Bermejos is situated on the easternmost Canary Island of Lanzarote. This wine is made with 100% Listán Negro fermented via carbonic maceration. Listán Negro is hardly grown at all on the European mainland—it was wiped out by the phylloxera epidemic—but it is widely planted on the Canary Islands.

Expert Reviews

Oscar Garcia 67Wine.com | Bodegas Los Bermejos Listan Negro is made with 100% Listan Negro. The rich volcanic soils of the Island of Lanzarote serve as the catalyst for this tantalizing red. Aromas of black olives, green herbs and that unmistakable "volcanic" minerality are the primary notes on the nose. Medium-bodied with notes of preserve dark fruit, black pepper and earthy undertones. The finish is fairly savory with fruity nuances.

Winemaker Description

The wine is a deep, garnet-hued red. The nose exudes intense black fruit aromas enhanced by notes of vanilla, pepper and mild spice. From a structured and sappy attack, the mid-palate reveals a creamy, satin-smooth body on the black fruit and chocolate flavors. Perfectly integrated, smooth and well-rounded tannins linger on a pleasant touch of fruit. Floral and licorice notes usher in a long and elegant finish. 

Expert Reviews

93-95 Points Wine Enthusiast | This rich and juicy wine is full of black fruits. The tannins are ripe and integrated into the black currant fruitiness. While the tannins currently pack a punch, they will integrate and allow the wine to age. (2019).

94 Points Wine Spectator | Features a racy, chalky minerality that runs amid a core of steeped plum and black currant fruit, with lively cedar, black tea and savory nuance all around. Sneaky long too, thanks to its mineral thread. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. (2019).

94 Points Jeb Dunnuck | Based on 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 27% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Petit Verdot, the 2019 Château D'Armailhac showed beautifully from barrel two years ago, and it doesn’t disappoint now from bottle. Despite the high Merlot content, it has a firmer, focused, youthful style that's going to benefit from short-term cellaring. Giving up plenty of ripe black cherry, mulberries, and cassis-like fruit as well as textbook Pauillac lead pencil, forest floor, and tobacco, it's medium to full-bodied, has good mid-palate density, subtle background oak, ripe yet building tannins, and a great finish. It shows the vintage's more elegant, classic style yet doesn't lack for concentration or length. It's going to benefit from just 3-4 years of bottle age and drink fabulously well for two decades. It's the finest d’Armailhac I've tasted. (2019). 

94 Points James Suckling | A solid, linear red with a beautiful core of fruit and firm tannins, showing blackcurrants and finesse. Full and compact. It’s very fresh and aromatic with violets and hints of spices. Clean and vivid at the end, 62% cabernet sauvignon, 27% merlot, 9% cabernet franc and 2% petit verdot. (2019). 

92-94 Points Vinous | The 2019 d'Armailhac was the last vintage made in the old winery that has since been demolished to make way for a new gravity-fed facility that will be equipped with 50 smaller vats tailored to the parcels in the vineyard. It will provide greater space that will permit longer élevage if desired. It is fascinating to juxtapose again its Clerc Milon stablemate. There is more amplitude on the nose, it is more forthright with blackberry, wild hedgerow, tobacco and a subtle leather aroma. It comes across less high-toned than previous vintages. The palate is medium-bodied with very fine tannins and slightly more mid-palate depth/grip than the Clerc Milon. The crescendo here is wonderful, fanning out towards the finish with subtle black pepper, sage and mint notes. This is a delicious d'Armailhac in the making. 

93 Points Robert Parker | More classically proportioned than the exuberant 2018, the 2019 D'Armailhac wafts from the glass with aromas of violets, blackberries and cassis complemented by subtle hints of licorice, sweet soil tones and warm spices. Medium to full-bodied, velvety and perfumed, it's fleshy and enveloping, with an ample core of succulent fruit and beautifully polished, powdery tannins.

93 Points Decanter | Thoroughly enjoyable Armailhac, with concentration immediately apparent on the nose, more so than in many vintages of this wine. There's a pleasing austerity to the tannins giving a confident but not overbearing structure with lovely juiciness on the finish. Of the three Pauillac estates in the Mouton stable, this has the youngest vines as an average age (although also some of the oldest vines in the whole of the Médoc, dating back to the 1890s) which sometimes holds it back from reaching full complexity of expression, but that is not something you'll be complaining about here. Instead you get a fresh core, silkily textured blackberry and cassis fruits with good balance. This is the last vintage made in the old facilities, as they are about to re-do the cellars. 

Winemaker Description

This wine has a dark, intense color, with hints of violet. The nose reveals a complex mix of aromas including raspberry, black pepper, violets, cloves and subtle notes of dark chocolate. On the palate the wine is well-balanced with a refreshing acidity and ripe tannins that contribute to the harmony and smoothness of the palate. 

Expert Ratings 

98 Points Decanter | Fresh berries such as blackcurrant, violets, balsamic notes and tobacco combine in the nose. On the palate, it’s harmonious and refined, showcasing good freshness and extremely subtle, fine tannins. The cool summer of 2019 made this vintage one of the best in decades. Caro 2019 is one of the finest incarnations of this Bordeaux-inspired wine, a blend of 64% Malbec with 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, aged in barrels for 18 months. Boasts significant ageing potential; at least 10 years.

95 Points James Suckling | Chocolatey, cedary oak with truffles and tobacco here. While there is a lot of oak to flatter at this stage, it still delivers restraint, bearing and class. Keep smelling and you'll find scented, dark lead pencil, meaty spices, fine blackberries and a hint of tar. Ripe and rich, but nuanced, with more complexity that takes time to fully uncoil. Really silky, precise and polished tannins, loaded with some fruit sweetness on the palate, then extending to the finish that lasts a minute. Drinkable now, but better to hold.

94 Points Robert Parker | The serious, balanced and quite complete 2019 Caro was made with 64% Malbec and 36% Cabernet Sauvignon and produced in a classical style. It's a wine with ripeness, Mendoza sun and Bordeaux elegance and subtleness. It feels harmonious and integrated, with 14.5% alcohol and good balancing freshness. It matured in French barriques and 4,200-liter oak foudre for 14 months, which was a shorter élevage and using larger-volume containers to achieve neatly integrated oak. It's complex, clean and elegant, and the palate reveals a velvety texture with juicy fruit and round tannins.

93 Points Wine Spectator | Elegantly styled, with lovely notes of plumeria and cocoa nibs clinging to lush blackberry and cherry flavors, which are buoyed by fresh acidity midpalate and fan out around fine tannins. Ends with notes of slate and spice. Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. Drink now through 2032.

Winemaker Description

There is so much perfume in this wine: fresh flowers and lavender are bolstered by ripe plum, sandalwood and cherry compote. There’s also an incredibly appealing note of Earl Grey or bergamot that lifts the entire aromatic profile. Lingering behind the fruit is where the action starts as black pepper, vanilla, crushed rock and soy are revealed.

Farming requires optimism. That’s especially true in viticulture, given the timeline to transition bare ground into a finished wine.

At a minimum, it takes three years from gently hand-planting each individual vine to the first harvest. However, that initial crop is quite small and it will be another two to three years before the vines really hit their stride. After harvest, fruit destined for the Montelena Estate Cabernet Sauvignon will spend an additional two years in barrel before bottle aging in our cellar prior to release. At best, it’s six solid years of farming, winemaking and cellaring before we can pull that first cork. That type of commitment requires a fundamental belief in ourselves, our work and our mission.

We have to believe that going the extra mile, pushing a little harder and accounting for every small detail is not only worth it, but will be appreciated years from now. Moreover, we have to be curious, creative and daring for the future of each wine and the land we steward. In short, we have to believe that the future will be better and we cherish our small contribution.

Located in the southeast of Sicily in the province of Ragusa, Vito Catania of Gulfi Cantina is a leader of organic farming, in a very unforgiving region. Here, clay-limestone soils and 420 meters of elevation yield mind-bendingly tasty reds, made from Nero d'Avola and Frappato.

Following more natural cellar practices, and aged for one year in barrel, the nose is a ruse of sour cherry, plum, and grilled herbs. Super silky and full of Mediterranean gusto on the palate,

Neal Martin writes:  The 2022 Morgon comes from 70- to 100-year-old vines on alluvial soils, farmed organically for 20 years. It underwent a 20-day maceration with just one pigeage (note A) before de-vatting. This has a very mineral-driven/slate-tinged bouquet that, thankfully, has sufficient fruit to back it up. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins, just a very subtle marmalade note complementing the red fruit and gentle grip on the finish. Excellent.  Drinking 2024 - 2031. - Vinous 92

Note:  breaking up the thick layer of skins, stems and seeds that forms at the surface of fermenting red wine and submerging it during fermentation to extract color, tannins, flavor and aromas from the grape solids.

Winemaker Notes

Winemaker Description 

This wine is 100% hand harvested Garnacha from a single plot that is all planted to goblet within the estate vineyard in the Los Chacayes IG within the Uco Valley. The nose is vibrant and perfumed showing raspberry and cranberry wrapped up in wet clay and a touch of ash. The palate is soft and round with red cherry and baking spices with a light tannin backbone. A very nuanced and layered wine.