93pts Jeb Dunnuck

Stone fruits, bright citrus, and a touch of pineapple all emerge from the 2021 Châteauneuf Du Pape Blanc, another juicy, vibrant, perfectly balanced white from this talented team. This shows the purity of the vintage yet also brings rock-solid ripeness, texture, and length.

Winemaker Notes

Domaine de la Solitude Châteauneuf-du-Pape Blanc is an elegant wine of great complexity, with citrus aromas enveloped in layers of minerality and herbal nuances. On the palate, this wine is full-flavoured with a creamy texture, powerful and long.

This domain has one of the best terroirs in Châteauneuf-du-Pape with its abundance of rounded quartzite stones from the Villafranchian period. These stones absorb heat during the day then radiate it at night, promoting full grape maturity. The grapes are manually harvested, once each variety has reached phenological ripeness, based on grape tastings by an expert panel. The grape bunches are then meticulously sorted to remove any unwanted fruit.

The grapes were pressed immediately upon arrival at the winery. The juice was cold settled and then fermented in temperature controlled tanks. The wine was racked and then aged on its fine lees in small tanks with regular stirrings. A proportion of the Roussanne was matured in new oak for a short period, adding subtle complexity to the resulting wine. The wine was then bottled during the spring following the harvest.

Winemaker Notes

The delicate and complex olfactory expression opens on aromas which remind of white flower, exotic fruits. There is a very beautiful complexity for a vintage where the end-of-season’s sun brought a lot to the aromas. Excellent complexity that translates into great and elegant richness. Nice attack, straight and bright, it takes place with elegance on fruity notes associated with a dense structure and a beautiful acidity which brings a great length in the end of the mouth. There are aromas of exotic fruits (litchi, mango).

98pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Certainly one of the best vintages of young Amon Ra I've ever tasted, the 2018 Amon Ra Shiraz is a stupendous effort. From old vines in the Ebenezer section of the northern Barossa, it starts off with a whirlwind of mocha, blackberry and dried spices, then actually gets more red-fruited as it sits in the glass. Full-bodied, rich and concentrated without being jammy or overdone, the wine finishes long and savory, framed by dusty tannins and mouthwatering black olives. Winemaker Ben Glaetzer compares 2018 to 2004 (which continues to drink well).

Winemaker Notes

Midnight black with inky purple tone in appearance. An enticing combination of blue and black fruits with notes of espresso and dried spice. Rich and deep yet bright and fresh. Multilayered flavors of nutmeg, cloves with brooding dark berry fruit and firm tannins of exceptional length.

95pts James Suckling

Pungent nose of violets, amarena cherries, dried figs and lightly charred oak. Some toffee notes emerge with air, together with more pressed flowers. Not so much full-bodied as full-flavored, with silky, fine and polished tannins. Very young and driven at the moment. Lacks the depth and complexity of more fortunate vintages, but still shows exceptional quality. Try from 2024.

93pts Wine Spectator

A compact, focused red, this presents pretty violet, medicinal herb and anise notes on the nose as it slowly expands -- flavors that are more subdued at first on the palate. This is supported by dense, plushly textured tannins, flavors of mulled cherry, dark chocolate and amaro, loamy earth and smoke that are slowly revealed, gaining momentum and lingering on the long finish. Give this some air or time in the glass to allow it to shine brightest. Corvina, Rondinella, Croatina and Oseleta. Best from 2024 through 2032.

Winery Notes

The Dal Forno family has been making wine since 1983. Located in Val D’Illasi, the estate consists of 65 acres of vines planted to traditional indigenous varieties of Corvina, Corvinone, Rondinella, Oseleta and Croatina. The estate vineyards and farm are located where the slopes begin to rise toward the mountains and sit 1,000 feet above sea level. The loose, alluvial soils, meticulous pruning and scrupulous viticultural techniques ensure remarkable-quality grapes. The Dal Fornos use traditional methods to grow the finest fruit, and then employ modern techniques to produce the best wines — classic in expression and modern in purity.

Blend: 70% Corvina and Corvina grossa, 20% Rondinella, 5% Croatina, 5% Oseleta

#31 Jeb Dunnuck's Top 100 Wines of 2021 - 97pts JD

97pts Jeb Dunnuck

The 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Cuvée Vieilles Vignes (90% Grenache and 10% Mourvèdre) comes all from the stony, pebbly soils of La Crau and was brought up in tank and demi-muids. Ripe black cherry fruits, iodine, ground pepper, and bloody, meaty nuances all emerge on the nose, and it's full-bodied, with a seamless, multi-dimensional texture, ultra-fine tannins, and a rock star of a finish. It's just a brilliant, elegant, pure, lengthy wine that does everything right. Drink this classic, traditional, structured wine over the coming two decades.

95pts James Suckling
Although this is still a bit closed, the pomegranate and sour-cherry aromas are delightful and the hints of coffee, tobacco leaf and cigar box add complexity. Rich and concentrated, but very focused. Huge tannin structure, but beautifully crafted and the wine glides over your palate. Long, youthful finish. From the La Crau site, this is a blend of grenache from 70-year-old vines and mourvedre. Drinkable now, but best from 2024.

94pts Wine Spectator
Seduces with plum puree, dried violet and cherry flavors, showing beautiful freshness and a textured feel. Reveals singed sandalwood accents that add depth and structure, gaining power as this builds toward the lengthy finish. Grenache and Mourvèdre.

93+pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The yin to the yang of the estate's Mourre des Perdrix bottling, the 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee Vieilles Vignes is almost all Grenache (10% Mourvèdre) from stony, galets roulés sites in Coudoulet, la Crau (sud) and Cristia. It's all black cherries and mocha on the nose, then full-bodied and rich but rather coarse and open-knit on the palate. It's long on the finish and shows remarkable intensity, but it doesn't have the same degree of elegance as the other offerings from Charbonniere; perhaps that will emerge with further cellaring. A second sample (tasted nonblind) revealed more of that elegance, with an almost airy, ethereal feel on the palate that belied the wine's enormous concentration and power. 93+

Winemaker Notes

Old vines offer restricted yields and vigor while concentrating energy on the grapes. This is evident here as the wine showcases intense red and black fruits, underbrush, roasted aromas and spice. The mouth offers a great density with a very long finish.