95pts James Suckling

Bright pure-grape character with citrus and blackberry aromas and flavors. Medium body, fine and fresh tannins with lemony and stony undertones. White volcanic-stone minerality. A new second wine from Anakota. Drink or hold.

Winemaker Notes

An opaque, dark violet core of color gives rise to vibrant aromas of dried black currant, dried blackberry, and sun-dried Herbs de Provence. These powerful flavors wash across the palate along with dark chocolate covered espresso beans and very subtle toasted baking spices, indicating limited exposure to new French oak. Supple tannins frame the palate, while mouth-watering acidity provides a perfect counterbalance, leading to a long finish.

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.

95pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

The 2019 Pinot Noir Wayfarer Vineyard comes from all 11 clones grown on the Wayfarer property. Medium ruby-purple in color, it has broody aromas of blood orange, iron, rhubarb and cranberry sauce with notes of dusty earth and dried herbs. The palate manages incredible intensity, lift and expansive flavor layers with a very long, juicy finish that continually calls you in for another sip!

94pts Wine Spectator

Svelte and richly spiced, with plush, concentrated flavors of dark fruit and berries swathed with ripe acidity. Loamy hints to the Asian spice accents, with lots of chocolaty nuances on the finish.

94pts Jeb Dunnuck

The 2019 Pinot Noir Wayfarer Vineyard is one of the more approachable Pinots in the lineup, yet smart money will still give bottles a handful of years in the cellar. Spiced cherries, mulberries, spicy oak, violets, and orange blossom all define the aromatics, and it's medium-bodied, with a round, expansive texture, more velvety tannins, and a great finish.

Winemaker Notes

Violet, lavender and boysenberry aromas emerge from the glass, along with cherry, plum, dried herbs and fennel seed. A silky entry, lush body and creamy notes on the finish are juxtaposed by lively acidity, bringing a beautiful tension to the wine. This is a wonderfully complete Pinot Noir, a combination of focus and finesse, and it has a subtle power that will carry this vintage for many years.

Founder : Jayson Palhmeyer

Winemaker : Todd Kohn

97pts James Suckling

A stunning red with currants, blackberries, roses and violets. Medium to full body, ultra-fine tannins and polish and finesse to the powerful tannins. A real stunner. Better than 2015. Take a serious look at it, beginning 2024.

96pts Jeb Dunnuck

The ruby/plum-colored 2016 Château Malescot Saint-Exupéry comes from vines in the heart of the Margaux appellation and is 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 37% Merlot, and the balance Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. It’s a total rock star of wine and has fabulous notes of crème de cassis, barbecue smoke, graphite, and sandalwood that build beautifully with time in the glass. Medium to full-bodied, concentrated, layered, and seamless, it’s incredibly impressive and I’d wager up with the finest vintages ever from this estate. Give it a few years and enjoy over the following 20-25. Bravo!

95pts Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

Medium to deep garnet-purple colored, the 2016 Malescot St. Exupery sings of cassis, fragrant earth, tobacco and lilacs with a compelling waft of mocha. Medium to full-bodied and strutting loads of expressive fruit layers at this youthful stage, it's framed by ripe, grainy tannins and oodles freshness, finishing with great length and depth.

93pts Wine Enthusiast

This estate is really improving. The wine in this vintage is full of fragrant fruit, with the tannins making a fine backdrop to the juiciness. It's going to be a fine medium-term wine.

93pts Decanter

This has forward oak edging and attractively smoky fireside notes of ash and grilled sarments. The tannins are monolithic at this stage, and there's a lot to be impressed about in this wine, although it has closed down pretty severely, emphasising austerity rather than seduction. There's no question that all the elements for ageing are present and correct - it's a confident expression of the vintage and one with huge potential. Matured in 70% new oak. From a high yield of 51hl/ha.

93pts Wine Spectator

This opens slowly, showing a slight woodsy bent, with alder and mesquite notes leading off, but as it does the core of red currant, blackberry and plum fruit flavor fleshes out nicely, soaking up the woodsy element while adding in light savory detail and black tea and violet notes. A long mineral echo chimes through the finish. Best from 2022 through 2036.

97pts Jeb Dunnuck

The 2019 Chardonnay Le Souvenir Sierra Madre Vineyard just about jumps out of the glass with its orchard and citrus fruits, spice, and rocky, mineral, marine-like aromas and flavors. Coming from a site outside of Santa Maria, it's medium to full-bodied, has wonderful purity and precision, integrated acidity, and a great finish. It's unquestionably up with the top Chardonnay in the vintage and will keep for 5-7 years, although I see no need to delay gratification.

94pts Vinous
The 2019 Chardonnay Sierra Madre Vineyard Le Souvenir is weightless and classy from the very first impression. Lemon peel, mint, white pepper and white flowers all grace this ethereal, finely-cut Chardonnay. The Sierra Madre is a signature wine in Paul Lato's range. The 2019 is another terrific edition. I very much like the acid-driven energy here.

93pts Vinous

Keenan's 2018 Merlot Reserve Mailbox Vineyard is another attractive wine in the range. It offers darker tonalities of fruit to match its mid-weight personality. A touch of oak sweetness is well-judged in this very appealing, supple Merlot from Keenan. Hints of lavender, mocha and spice add raciness throughout.

Winemaker Notes

Hints of violets and a signature earthy spiciness show in the nose, a chocolaty creaminess combines with the rich dark full fruit on the palette, the finish is beautifully layered, deep, elegant and very, very long.  

The Robert Keenan Winery is located in Spring Mountain District, high in the Mayacamas mountain range above the town of Saint Helena. We planted eleven acres of Merlot vines in the rocky soils surrounding the winery and we believe this mountainside vineyard produces some of the finest Merlot in all of Napa Valley. Sited above the dense layer of fog that creeps up the Napa Valley most evenings, the vineyard warms earlier in the morning and temperatures remain warm throughout the night. The combination of these warm temperatures, steep hillside vine rows, and gravelly soils promotes stress on the vines, leading to increased intensity of flavors and aromas in the finished wine.

For the sixteenth consecutive year the rechristened “Mailbox” vineyard has been chosen as the source for the Reserve Merlot bottling. Hints of violets and a signature earthy spiciness show in the nose, a chocolaty creaminess combines with the rich dark full fruit on the palette, the finish is beautifully layered, deep, elegant and very, very long. Drink now or decades from now.

95pts Wine Enthusiast

Planted in almost entirely sand, this own-rooted vineyard with some vines over 120 years old is a singular expression of Barbera. Elegant aromas of wild rose and fresh bay leaf mixed with cranberry, sour cherry and underbrush are just some of the notes you will discover in this complex wine. The palate is refined and well-balanced with fresh youthful red fruits, fresh flowers and fine tannins driving the wine home. Drink Now–2035.

Winemaker Notes

Elvio Cogno Pre-Phylloxera Barbera d'Alba is made from 100 percent Barbera.

Produced from one of the last archaic vines of the Langhe area, an open air museum of viticulture from a time gone by, the plants are over one hundred years old. The vines are not grafted but propagated through cuttings, thus maintaining, over the decades, the original Barbera characteristics.

The vineyard has an excellent exposure and sandy-chalky terrain, situated in Berri near La Morra, which guaranteed the vines a natural protection from Phylloxera and imparts unique and exclusive characteristics to the vines. The intriguing simplicity of the vines and their typical, traditional charm that derives from the microclimate and favorable altitude make a one of-a-kind wine.

The low production per hectare guarantees an intensely rare and rich organoleptic concentration. The wine is refined in oak casks that slowly develop the primary aromas. Pleasant and refined, complex even as a young wine but able to withstand bottle aging, it expresses its solid uniqueness even over the years.

A bright, rich ruby color with intense purplish highlights. The aroma is enveloping, aromatic and deep with noticeable spices on first impression and raspberry, strawberry and ripe cherry notes in background. Finish with pleasant harmonies of wild flowers. On the palate it is well structured, fresh and the acidity is excellently balanced, the tannins texture is embracing and flavors remind you of sour cherries, blackberries and prunes.

Winemaker Notes

A beautiful aromatic intensity developing delicate floral notes (small white flowers, blackcurrants) followed by powerful mineral aromas (pebbles and gun powder). An elegant bouquet, complex and typical of the richness of this great terroir. In the mouth, the attack is round and supple with a slight lovely tangy touch. Intense aromatic notes on a fleshy mineral structure reinforce the complexity. The finish is long and harmonious, full of fruity notes (both exotic and citrus).

This wine pairs beautifully this wine with shellfish, seafood and goat cheeses.

Blend: 100% Sauvignon Blanc

Vineyard Notes

Comte Lafond Grande Cuvée is produced by Baron Patrick de Ladoucette in the Loire Valley on soils that are mainly limestone with some parcels of flint clay. Patrick is sometimes referred to as "The King of the Loire Valley" for his contribution to the worldwide recognition and acclaim of this appellation. Les Deux Tours wines originate from a terroir that is known as the “Valley of the Kings,” which is located along the Loire River, the longest waterway in France.

The growing area is the Sancerre Controlled Appellation area, which includes the villages of Bué, Chaudoux, Chavignol and Verdigny. Vines are aged from 25 to 35 years. The soil is a combination of clay, limestone and silica.

94pts RobertParker's Wine Advocate

Aromas of blackberries, black licorice and baking spice. Full-bodied with velvety tannins. There is a sappy character to the fruit here. Resin and grilled meat. Bright acidity. Drink now. Screw cap.

92pts James Suckling

Winemaker Notes

2019 was the smallest vintage in twenty years due to a drier than average growing season with spring frosts. What little fruit there was ripened quickly in the hot, dry conditions of January and February, with a mad rush to pick before sugar levels became excessive. On the plus side, the lack of rainfall meant there was no disease pressure this season. The reds will be bold, dark, rich and long-lived. Sadly, they will be in very short supply. 

Medium to deep crimson with purple hues. A rich bouquet of red and blue fruits, herbs and cedar, entwine with hints of sweet spice, roasted and savoury notes. Palate: Rich and juicy raspberry and Satsuma plum fill the mouth, with allspice sweetness adding to the mouthfeel. The fruit is well balanced with hints of briary spice and textural, fine-grained tannins on the lengthy finish.

Paring: Rabbit stifado; pork or duck roast; mushroom risotto; roasted vegetable tartlet; matured cheese platter.

Vineyard Notes

Orphan Bank is testament to Langmeil’s commitment to preserving old and rare Barossa vineyards. Ten rows of Shiraz planted pre-1860 were saved from the developer’s bulldozer and replanted alongside the original Langmeil vineyard on the banks of the North Para River. We called these ten rows the “Orphans”, but after 150 years they have a new home.

Blend: 100% Shiraz

Winemaker Notes

The color is deep and limpid. On the nose we can smell the slight oaky and grilled, red -fruit aromas. The palate is rich and round with a good length. This wine has a good structure and a good persistence.

Lou Dumont, located in Gevrey Chambertin, was established in 2000 by Japanese  sommelier and oenologist Koji Nakada and his wife Jae Hwa Park and in 2012 purchased their first parcels of land in Burgundy: no small feat for a non-native Burgundian. The name Lou Dumont is a combination of their goddaughter’s name, Lou, and the French for mountain, paying homage to the areas in Japan and Korea where Koji and Jae Hwa grew up. The Kanji symbol on the label—sky, earth and man, refer to the basic elements which make wine possible and the concept of terroir. Koji’s goal is to produce pure, honest, regionally correct Burgundy from organically farmed grapes and with minimal manipulation. 

Koji takes a minimal approach to his wines, limiting pump overs and punch downs. He vinifies with natural yeasts and adds low doses of sulfites during vinification and a little at bottling--no more than 30 grams/liter for reds and 50-60 grams/liter for whites.

Organic

Sustainable

Winemaker Notes

The nose is initially slightly tight, with notes of freshly struck matches, then the ripe aromas of white fleshed fruits, citrus peel and green apple emerge. The palate is clean, rich and intense with a fresh, long and persistent finish. This wine goes perfectly with ham in parsley aspic, terrines, snails and grilled fish. Goat cheese, Comté, Beaufort and cheeses in the Gruyère family also bring out the best in it.