Sitewide Sale - Reds

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2015

Wine Spectator 96 Points | An elegant and rich-tasting red, full of concentrated red plum, cherry and currant flavors, backed suave, medium-grained tannins. The finish offers a caressing palate of lush spice, cocoa powder and cream nuances. Drink now through 2024.

Wine Enthusiast 94 Points | It's been a long time since Concha y Toro has put out a Don Melchor Cabernet with this much concentration and overall quality. An earthy nose with foresty berry aromas and generous but controlled oak sets up a fully stacked palate that's chewy but not fiercely tannic. Dark toasty chocolaty black-fruit flavors finish with a note of cherry cough drop and moderate acidity that says this is more or less ready now. Drink through 2025.  Editors' Choice

Wine Advocate 93 Points | 2015 was a warm and dry vintage, and the 2015 Don Melchor shows notes of ripe plums and is subtly balsamic. The palate is round and powerful, with good balance and nice integration of the oak. With time in the glass, more spicy aromas of paprika and merken emerge, but there is a notable absence of green notes. It's a ripe and round vintage of Don Melchor, faithful to the conditions of the year.

Decanter 96 Points | The current release is a stunning wine. The familiar mineral and dark fruit bouquet leaps from the glass and those notes follow on the palate. Even with the Petit Verdot in the blend, the volume is lower so you hear the notes better. Similar to the 2014, but 2015 exhibits more elegance and poise.

James Suckling 98 Points | This is a red with extremely creamy tannins that are fine and polished, giving length and definition to the wine. Full-bodied, yet tight and compact with plenty of currants and fresh herbs. Extremely long and flavorful. Drinking beautifully now.

Erin Brooks of the Wine Advocate writes 97+ Points |  The 2019 Soul Of A Lion is a blend of free-run Cabernet Sauvignon (77%), Cabernet Franc (14%), and Petit Verdot (9%), aged 22 months in 100% new French oak. Opaque ruby in color, it offers aromatic contrast between dark, savory cherry fruit, chargrill and graphite, and top notes of green pepper and rose petals. The palate explodes with detailed flavors and its tannins are already resolved and chocolaty, with seamless acidity and exotic spicy layers emerging on the extended finish. Wow! Drinking 2022 -2042.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2020 

Wine Spectator 93 Points | The 2020 Vosne-Romanée 1er Cru Aux Malconsorts opens in the glass with notes of plums and wild berries mingled with aromas of orange oil, exotic spices, smoked duck and loamy soil. Medium to full-bodied, layered and muscular, it's finer-boned and less overtly powerful than its 2019 and 2018 predecessors, even if it's still a serious, structured, concentrated wine.

Barrel Sample: 93-95 Burghound 93 Points | This is the first wine to show any appreciable reduction though the whole cluster vinification does peek through the funk. Once again, the bigger-bodied and much more muscular flavors possess a highly attractive texture thanks to the generous dry extract that partially buffers the prominent tannic spine supporting the robust, powerful and gorgeously complex and persistent finish. This is a classic Malconsorts which is very much built to reward longer-term cellaring.

Barrel Sample: 93-95 Decanter 96 Points | A dense, almost creamy, concentrated cassis fruit, adorned with notes of smoke, spice and salt. Focused, with plenty of tannin and extract, this is a wonderful wine. 2020 saw tiny yields from Dujac's 1.55ha in Malconsorts - no more than 10-15 hl/ha. The fruit was partially destemmed and fermented slowly prior to ageing. The wine gets the same 16 months in 70% new casks that the grand crus receive. 

Winemaker Description

Distinguished as a fine Syrah producing zone since the 18th century, Cornas, like Cote Rotie, is made up of vineyards covering steep and hard-to-work, granite terraces. As a result the region’s wines fell out of favor during the mid 20th century when the global market was more focused on bulk wines and vineyards that yielded high quantities. It wasn’t until the 1980s when a group of energetic young winemakers reestablished the integrity of these precipitous terraces and also began making an ultra-modern style of Syrah. The new style didn’t need a decade before it was drinkable and could reach the consumer faster than the region’s traditional wines. Given the new quality coming out of the zone, its popularity once again soared and today a good Cornas can easily challenge many of those from Hermitage. Characteristics of Syrah from Cornas include teeth-staining flavors of blackberry jam, plum, pepper, violets, smoked game, charcoal, chalk dust and smoke. 

Expert Reviews

Expert Reviews

Burghound 93 Points | A brooding and densely fruited nose grudgingly reveals its array of dark berries, poached plum, warm earth and a soupçon of wood. The supple but mouth coating and velvet-textured larger scaled flavors that coat the palate with sappy dry extract while delivering excellent persistence on the youthfully austere, powerful and balanced finale. This excellent effort is very firm and should age accordingly; indeed two decades is not out of the question.

Decanter 94 Points | Flamboyantly fruity and very approachable, the wine has an expressive cherry and rose petal fruit, with a hint of exotic spice. The texture is powerful, yet fresh enough to retain a compelling vivacity. Grivot owns a large parcel of 1.86ha in Quatorze Journaux along the bottom of the Route Nationale. The quality of the wine belies the received wisdom about this location. The grapes are destemmed and gently fermented, with the must lightly pumped over after a few initial punch-downs before ageing. (CC) 

Vinous 92 Points | The 2020 Clos de Vougeot Grand Cru came across a little backward and surly on the nose compared the the Vosne-Romanées despite coaxing. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy red fruit, fine definition, taut and fresh with a well-defined finish. Here, I actually find more in the mouth than on the nose, at least at the moment. Hopefully the aromatics will kick on during élevage. (NM)  

Winemaker Description

For more than four centuries, the members of the Méo family have devoted themselves to growing vines and making wines. They came originally from the Burgundy village of Selongey, in the north of Côte d'Or, where today, even if the vines, alas, have disappeared, a pressing house, dating from the year 50 AD, bears witness to the presence there of Gallo-Roman winegrowers. From the 19th century onwards, the Méo children chose the course of study. 

The great-grandfather of Jean-Nicolas, for example, was a primary-school teacher, his grandfather graduated from the École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées (civil engineering) and his father, Jean Méo, was a graduate of the École Polytechnique and an engineer in the Corps des Mines. Jean was later to be elected a Member of the European Parliament and sat on the Council of Paris. It was thanks to Jean Méo's mother, Marcelle Lamarche-Confuron, originating from an old winegrowing family in Vosne (with already a small activity as négociants), that the Méos came to settle in Vosne-Romanée. As for the vines, it was the 20 hectares (50 acres) at the top of the Clos that were for sale ... Étienne Camuzet enlisted the help of his fellow winegrowers from Vosne-Romanée to acquire them. He would keep 3 hectares (7.5 acres) himself, immediately below the château. Domaine Méo-Camuzet bottles four astounding grands crus (Richebourg, Clos de Vougeot, Corton Clos Rognet, and Échezeaux, with two more Cortons on the way), ten premier crus (from the communes of Vosne-Romanée, Nuits-St-Georges, Chambolle-Musigny, and Fixin), several village wines, one Bourgogne Rouge, and only one white. Jean-Nicolas aims for balance and purity of fruit, which he accomplishes with terrific success. 

Though delicate and fine, even in their youth, the paradoxical concentration and intensity of these wines make them ideal for long cellar aging. These rare, stunning achievements are a Burgundy lover’s dream. 

Winemaker Description

Intense ruby red. Dry, with generous body, harmoniously balanced and velvety texture. Classic, ripe red-fruit, long finish, rich and very elegant. Spices, violet, plums and intense tar, very typical for the Brunate vineyard.

Expert Reviews 

98 Points James Suckling | The density of ripe fruit is fantastic in this young Brunate with black berry, blueberry, stone and earth character. Very pure. It’s full-bodied yet reserved and focused with a long and intense finish. Very fine tannins. Complex. From organically grown grapes. Vegan.

97 Points Robert Parker | The Vietti 2019 Barolo Brunate shows an earthy, almost autumnal quality that you don't get in the other wines presented by this leading estate. The bouquet opens to dark fruit, peat moss and rusty nail. The wine is long and fine-textured with silky sensations that add softness to the mouthfeel. Hints of baking chocolate or espresso bean appear on the close.

96 Points Wine Spectator | Steeped cherry and raspberry paste are propped up by a ballast of graphite in this tasty red. Tannins are fine. There is a yin/yang here between ripe wild cherry, kirsch and raspberry fruit and notes of eucalyptus, juniper and hay. They fall under the grip of dense, assertive tannins on the finish today, yet there is plenty going on in this seductive red. Excellent refinement and length.textured but build in intensity, making for a well-framed close, flecked with black tea and sandalwood notes. A perfumy, energetic style with nice form.

95 Points Jeb Dunnuck | More structured, the 2019 Barolo Brunate has more depth and richness, possibly because the Brunate has a more southwest exposition. It is ripe with strawberry, spice, and pressed flowers and is more monumental in its gripping ripe tannins, with black tea, black raspberry, and turned soil. This can stand up to more substantial fare at the dinner table. Hold it another couple of years and drink.

95 Points Wine & Spirits | Luca Currado’s Brunate shines in this lighter vintage, its fresh cherry flavors tangy and taut yet offering plenty of juicy appeal. Hints of rose petal and fresh herbs lend a softness that’s balanced by lively acidity and a high note of orange peel. The wine continues to brighten over several days.

Expert Reviews

Wine Advocate 94 Points  | The 2020 Bonnes-Mares Grand Cru wafts from the glass with aromas of wild berries and plums mingled with peonies, orange rind and exotic spices. Full-bodied, rich and muscular, it's deep and powerful, with imposing reserves of concentration, while remaining vibrant, even fine-boned despite its substance and plenitude.

Burghound 95 Points | Markedly floral-suffused aromas are comprised by notes of more distinctly spiced and earthier plum and black cherry where a hint of the sauvage lurks in the background. The equally sleek though notably more voluminous and powerful if less mineral-driven flavors coat the palate with dry extract while offering excellent depth and persistence on the beautifully balanced finale. This is one of the best Mugnier Bonnes Mares in recent memory. 

Contact us for current bottle photograph.  Call or text us at 212-724-6767.

Please contact us for a current bottle photograph.  Text or call 212-724-6767.

Contact us for current bottle picture.  Call or text us at 212-724-6767. 

Winemaker Description

Initial dark fruit, spice and baking aromas in the 2015 Opus One are interwoven with seductive notes of violet, black tea, and sage. The entry is vibrant with ripe dark fruit flavors of plum, blackberry and blueberry followed by hints of vanilla and cocoa.

Silky, fine-grained tannins provide structure and a creamy texture. The wine finishes with fresh acidity and a rich, lingering finish that promises longevity in the cellar.

Blend: Cabernet Sauvignon 81%, Cabernet Franc 7%, Merlot 6%, Petit Verdot 4%, Malbec 2%

Expert Reviews

Wine Spectator 93 Points | Pure, rich dark berry, plum and gravelly earth flavors are framed by spicy, cedary oak notes, ending long, clean and elegant, with just the right touch of tannins. Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Malbec.

Wine Advocate 97 Points | “This wine was too much—too much like a caricature for me,” winemaker Michael Silacci confessed to me while tasting the 2015 Opus One together again recently. “So, when we took it out of barrel to prepare for bottling we added a few more components.” Medium to deep garnet-purple color, it bursts from the glass with beautiful violets, lavender, rose hip tea and chocolate-covered cherries scents over a core of crushed blackberries, black cherries, cassis and iron ore. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is wonderfully bright and crunchy, with bags of fresh black and red berries and a wonderfully plush, finely grained texture, finishing long and fragrant.

James Suckling 98 Points |  Purity and brilliance on the nose with so much currant and flower character. Roses, currant bush and fresh leaves, too. Brightness is the word that comes to mind. Full-bodied and broad-shouldered. Juicy and so gorgeous now. Balance is so wonderful here. All about harmonious fruit and tannin balance. I like it slightly better than the excellent 2014. 81% cabernet sauvignon, 4% petit verdot, 7% cabernet franc, 6% merlot and 2% malbec.

Call or Text us at 212-724-6767 for current photographs

Expert Reviews

Wine Spectator 91 points | Elegant and gorgeous to drink now. Peaked. Ruby red color with an amber edge. Lovely aromas of plum, berry and mint. Full-bodied, with currant, dried herb character. Medium finish.--Latour vertical. Drink now.

Wine Advocate 96 points | Tasted at dinner at Domaine de Chevalier. The Latour ’70 can be such a variable beast. This is certainly one of the better, more representative bottles. Deep garnet in colour, nice limpidity in the glass. It has a beautiful nose that to be honest, sweeps aside the respectable Domaine de Chevalier ’70 poured alongside, like a lord dismissing his servant with a swish of his hand. Graphite, wild black fruit, freshly rolled tobacco and a faint hint of truffle. The palate is medium-bodied and after forty years, still quite austere but the balance is nailed. Masculine and foursquare, a Latour with a lot of horsepower…but not necessarily revving in top gear…at least not after four decades. Lovely cedar and mint on the long, long finish. Wonderful. I do not think this wine will get any better, but a divine vinous experience now. (NM)  (11/2010)

James Suckling 94 points | Soft, round and wonderful with currants, licorice and delicate berries with a stony, wet earth undertone. Full and velvety texture.   (3/2012)Vinous 94 points A flight of 1970s that followed (all from magnums) was special, to say the least. The 1970 Chateau Latour was incredibly fresh in its generous expression of fruit, with a full-bodied, intense personality.

Call or Text us at 212-724-6767 for current bottle photograph

Winemaker Description

Second Classified Growth in 1855, located in the prestigious appellation of Saint-Julien.

Contact us for current bottle picture. 212-724-6767 text or call. 

Contact us for current bottle picture. 212-724-6767 (text or call). 

Expert Reviews 

Wine Advocate: 98 Points | Wafting from the glass with a deep and complex bouquet of dark wild berries, cassis, wilted rose petals, blood orange, exotic spices, licorice and coniferous forest floor, the 2017 Romanée-Conti Grand Cru is full-bodied, satiny textured and multidimensional. It's just as powerful as this year's La Tâche but even more elegantly framed by filigree structure, concluding with an intensely sapid and penetratingly fragrant finish. Pristinely balanced, this young Romanée-Conti possesses huge reserves for the long haul despite its deceptively supple youthful appeal, and it will reward extended bottle age.

Decanter: 98 Points | This has gained in weight and intensity since I tasted it from barrel in October 2018, but it’s still innately graceful: a string quartet rather than a full orchestra perhaps. On the nose, aromas of incense, fresh tobacco and forest floor are complemented by sweet spices and stylish new oak. The palate is layered, refined and savoury, gaining in intensity on the tongue and finishing clean, bright and refreshing with the promise of greater things to come. Stunning.

Burghound: 97 Points | Once again there is evident restraint to the almost taciturn but still kaleidoscopically broad-ranging nose of wonderfully pure and fresh and spicy aromas that include plenty of floral influences on the red currant, cherry, sandalwood and rose petal. The silky and equally pure middle weight flavors possess excellent punch and a similar level of minerality on the focused, powerful, linear and impressively persistent finish that slowly fans out as it sits on the palate. In contrast to the flash of the La Tâche, this is Zen-like in its sense of harmony and focus.

Winemaker Description

Domaine Jacques Prieur owns a 1.8 acre parcel of Les Bressandes in the Grand Cru of Corton. Les Bressandes sits on the northern portion of the hill of Corton on the lower slopes. Soils are heavier here than further uphill consisting mainly of clay and small amounts of limestone.

Vinification: Grapes are hand harvested, strictly sorted and destemmed. The must will sit on the skins for 19 days prior to fermentation. The wine ages for 17 months of in oak barrels deep in the cellars of Domaine Jacques Prieur. 

Winemaker Description

The Charmes-Chambertin is a dry red wine, coming from a terroir which benefits from an oceanic to semi-continental climate influence on limestone and marl soils.

This wine has a dark ruby, deep color. The bouquet on the nose is fine and delicate, very complex; before aeration, it opens with delicate notes of red and black fruits such as gooseberry, raspberry and blackcurrant, spicy aromas stand out clearly and spikes of violet and pink. Over time, musk notes, roasted coffee beans, licorice, and vanilla appear. The attack is fresh, the wine is dense, but full of sweetness, and ends on a both long and intense final note. 

Expert Reviews

Wine Advocate 93 Points | Notes of red berries and plums mingle with hints of rose petals, peonies, grilled meats and forest floor in an inviting bouquet, introducing Rousseau's 2019 Ruchottes-Chambertin Grand Cru Clos des Ruchottes, a medium to full-bodied, bright and lively wine that's ethereal and perfumed, with a pretty core of fruit and a long, saline finish. Barrel Sample: 93-95

Burghound 95 Points | An elegant combination is comprised by notes of various red berries, especially essence of cherry, along with anise, the sauvage and a pretty dollop of spice elements, all of which is trimmed in enough wood to notice. The energetic and beautifully well-detailed and tautly muscular yet elegant flavors brim with an abundance of dry extract and minerality while concluding in a decidedly sleek and stunningly long finish that evidences a hint of youthful austerity. This markedly firm effort is gorgeous and possesses the wherewithal to age and improve for two to three decades.

Vinous 96 Points | The 2019 Ruchottes-Chambertin Clos des Ruchottes Grand Cru has a thrilling bouquet struck through with mineral-rich red berry fruit that teasingly takes time to unfurl in the glass; you can sense the limestone, and hints of graphite emerge later. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grained tannins, quite piquant in style, leading to an edgy, slightly chalky finish that bristles with energy. This has great potential as a poised Ruchottes. Barrel Sample: 96-98 

Please contact us for a current photograph. Call or text us at 212-724-6767.

Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande (commonly referred to as Pichon Lalande or Pichon Comtesse) is a winery in the Pauillac appellationof the Bordeaux region of France. Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is also the name of the red wine produced by this property. The wine produced here was classified as one of fifteen Deuxièmes Crus (Second Growths) in the original Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855.

Winemaker Description

Eye: Deep dark ruby colour with mauve tints. 

Expert Reviews

Wine Spectator 95 Points | This has gorgeous espresso and roasted mesquite aromatics, followed by dense but velvety-textured plum sauce, blackberry paste and cassis flavors. The long, suave finish smolders with Lapsang souchong tea and singed iron, showing ample grip for the cellar. Best from 2012 through 2025.

Stephen Tanzer 96 Points | Opaque ruby. Boysenberry, blueberry and smoky Indian spices on the expansive, heady nose, with a sexy floral quality that gains strength with air. Deep, sappy and palate-staining dark fruit compote flavors show unlikely energy and become spicier and smokier with air. A strikingly expressive, potent and compellingly fragrant wine that finishes with superb clarity and floral-driven persistence. 

Winemaker Description

Our 2013 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is dark ruby in color and entices you with a nose of raspberry, cassis and loose pipe tobacco. This full-bodied wine has an assertively silky structure and is notably spicy on the palate. Flavors of sage and blackberry mark the wine’s entry. The strong acidity in the mid-palate is followed by a lingering finish. Given proper cellaring, this wine will provide drinking pleasure through 2038.

Expert Reviews 

Wine Spectator 95 Points | Dense and muscular, with cherry, strawberry, rose, mineral and eucalyptus flavors in the grip of assertive tannins. Despite being lithe and light-bodied, this red finds equilibrium in the end, with the red fruit lingering on the finish. Best from 2026 through 2045.

Vinous 93 Points | The 2017 Barolo Pira is a powerful, intensely savory wine. Dark cherry, herbs, leather incense and licorice all add to an impression. The Pira Barolo is one of the most reticent wines in this entire collection. It is hard to read today, despite its obvious weight and character. 

Winemaker Description 

Castello dei Rampolla d'Alceo is a premium, proprietary blend of Cabernet and Petit Verdot grapes exclusively from the renowned Panzano in Chianti region of Tuscany. This organic and biodynamic red is sure to tantalize your taste buds with its complex bouquet and flavor profile.

Expert Reviews

Vinous 96 Points | The 2009 d'Alceo comes across as much more classic in style and structure than the 2008. According to Luca di Napoli, the trick to 2009 was harvesting on the early side. Freshly cut flowers, sweet red berries, plums, mint and licorice all take shape in the glass Over the last few months, the 2009 d'Alceo has softened a bit, releasing expressive, floral aromatics, brighter shades of fruit and striking inner perfume, but it remains quite vibrant in the context of a vintage in which so many wines are quite a bit riper in style. The 2009 is a wonderfully deep, resonant d'Alceo that should offer a wide drinking window starting in a few years. It certainly looks like Rampolla nailed the vintage.  Drinking 2019 - 2039.

Antonio Galloni, 96+ | My absolute favorite wine of 2022 was a bottle of the Castello dei Rampolla 2006 d'Alceo that I had the good fortune to drink at dinner during a work event in Tuscany last year. I remember the wine vividly, and if I were to review it again, it would certainly merit a perfect score. With that profound inspiration in mind, I feel especially optimistic toward this outstanding group of new releases from Maurizia di Napoli and her talented team. This historic estate has farmed according to organic and biodynamic methods since 1994, making it one of the first in Italy to do so. In truth, I have found some inconsistencies along the way over the many years I have reviewed and adored these wines. Such is the magic of artisanal winemaking. But thanks to that memory of that 2006 d'Alceo, I remain in awe of Castello dei Rampolla today. 

Please call us or text us at 212-724-6767 for current bottle photographs. 

Contact us for current bottle picture. 212-724-6767 (text or call). 

Call or text us at 212-724-6767 for current bottle photographs. 

Expert Review

Wine Spectator 90 Points | One of the insider favorites of the vintage, this bottle was firm, smooth and polished, a beautifully balanced Calon that layers its spice, tobacco, black cherry and earthy-cedary notes on the finish. Might be losing it somewhat, but still graceful.--1945 horizontal.

Winemaker Description

The history of the vineyards of Lafite is quite old. In a field that was already planted with vines, Jacques de Ségur structured the vineyards in the late seventeenth century and the reputation of this wine was already well established. His son Alexandre expanded the field in 1695 by marrying the heiress of Latour. Nicolas-Alexander was born from this union. He is the one who built in the early eighteenth century the prestige and reputation of Lafite, the wine is already acclaimed in Versailles and also in the British Kingdom.

Upon the death of the latter, Lafite knows a succession of owners, it will be auctioned after the Revolution, but the quality will be maintained at the highest level thanks to the care of its commissioners, the family of Joseph Goudal. Chateau Lafite will be classified 1er Grand Cru Classé in 1855.

Please call or text us at 212-724-6767.

Winemaker Notes

Winemaker Description

From an outstanding vintage marked by a long, slow ripening season, the 2018 Baby Bear Syrah is a handsome, intensely colored wine loaded with wild blackberry, fresh blueberry, and dark, spicy aromas and flavors. A streak of olive tapenade, smoked charcuterie, and freshly cracked black pepper add interest across a textured palate laced with silky tannins and vibrant acidity. The finish is long and refined. 

Expert Reviews

Wine Spectator 94 Points | Impeccably balanced and refined yet plump with personality, this red offers multilayered blueberry and huckleberry flavors accented by black olive and smoky cracked pepper. Finishes with rich, polished tannins.

James Suckling 93 points | A tad reductive on the nose, so be sure to let this breathe. Hot stones, wild herbs, ripe plums, blackberries and vanilla on the nose. Full-bodied with fine tannins. Vibrant and complex. Atop the core of ripe dark fruit there is ground baking spice, oregano and white pepper. Very steady. Drink or hold.