This is ripe, lush Rasteau, with ripe dark cherries and plums seasoned with black pepper, rosemary, and lavender leaves. The palate has a comforting sense of fullness and warmth, with very fine but drying tannins and supple yet balanced acids. The finish is warm and fruit-forward. Tasted June 2024. Score - 89. (Megha Jandhyala, winealign.com)
This wine is structured and serious without sacrificing elegance or style. It has lifted red flowers, with ripe red fruit, cranberry, red cherry, earth and vanilla. The balance and acidity here makes this exceptionally approachable and food-friendly. A wine for grilled salmon-and-veggie skewers. Drink till 2027+.
Costa Lazaridi blends international variety Sauvignon Blanc with the native Assyrtiko to craft this exceptional white wine. It's zippy, complex and food-friendly, with ripe citrus, currant leaves and vanilla leading to a fine, precisely balanced finish. Sip with lemon herbed chicken or stuffed grape leaves.
This wine comes from ancient limestone vineyards dating to the 12th century planted by the monks of Saint-Laurent l'Abbaye. It showcases floral and mineral tones along with binned apple and pear. Drink through 2028, especially with seafood or goat cheese.[Challenge International du Vin did not include a tasting note.] Score - Gold. (Challenge International du Vin, 2024)
(Translated from the French) Seductive and flavourful both in aromas and flavours. Fruity notes dominate, with hints of jammy red fruit that seem light thanks to the fine bubbles. A moderate sweetness entices, with accents of red currant jelly, but the Champagne remains straightforward and vivacious. Balanced. Score - 94. (Terre de Vins, Dec. 2023)
This wine comprises fruit from specially selected small lots across a number of Marlborough sub-regions. Each growing area informs the wine with its distinct character, creating a dynamic, intense, complex Savvy that delivers sophisticated citrus, tropical fruit and savoury herbal notes, with a fine minerality. Perfect for barbecued seafood or grilled veggies.
Bark, dried spice and tobacco leaf with porcini mushrooms and dried red fruit. Flavorful and intense on the palate with full body and an intense finish. A good appassimento, if you like the style, which is not about primary fruit freshness. 60% from grapes dried on the vines, blended with 40% wine from normally harvested grapes. Drink now [through 2026]. Score - 90. (Zekun Shuai, jamessuckling.com, March 13, 2024)
Lots of ripe fruit and no shortage of wood with a drying sensation on the palate. Lacks a bit of verve and extension, also elasticity. That said there is flesh and pulpiness to this substantial chardonnay. Drink 2024-2026. Tasted blind at NWAC 24, June 2024. Score - 89. (Michael Godel, winealign.com)
Flat Rock Twisted 2023 is an excellent value, dry, medium-bodied and fruit-driven Niagara Peninsula red at $20. Produced from mostly Gamay with Merlot and Pinot Noir grapes added to the mix, you can count on fresh cherry, red berry, savoury herbs, cracked black pepper and cedar brush spice flavours generous on the palate with vibrant acidity for food. Enjoy it lightly chilled with roast chicken with a red currant and cranberry coulis. Drink: 2024-2026. Score - 90. (nataliemaclean.com, Oct. 19, 2024)
This blend of Montepulciano and Sangiovese is always a wine of great value and style. Supple, complex and floral, with vanilla spice, cherry, black fruit, plum, leather, peppercorn and bramble tones, it's crafted in a modern, approachable style.
This playful, lighter-styled Monastrell has a sense of levity. Savory aromas of garrigue and boysenberry are heightened by aromas of rhubarb and black raspberry. A fruit-forward palate largely abandons savoriness suggested on the nose and embraces youthful tannins followed by a smirk of acidity. Best Buy. Score - 90. (Reggie Solomon, Wine Enthusiast, April 1, 2025)
Intensely aromatic and inviting, the bouquet shows kiwifruit, green rockmelon, feijoa and sweet basil aromas, followed by a succulent palate delivering terrific fruit power combined with juicy acidity, finishing long and exuberant. At its best: now to 2026. Score - 94. (Sam Kim, wineorbit.co.nz, March 2024)
This 100% Viognier was sourced from organically grown vines planted in clay and limestone soils. There is a great deal of nectarine, pear and apple here, with a snappy mineral underpinning. The rich texture and bright acidity make this a great option for sushi.
This is the top expression of Pinot at Henry of Pelham from the Old Farm Block 100 planted between 1998 and 2006. The wine was aged in European oak, 30% new, for 10 months. It has such a beautiful, lifted nose of brambly raspberry perfume, cherry/kirsch, strawberries, violets, cassis and fine oak spice. It has wonderful texture on the palate and persistent flavours from the medley of red berries, anise, red currants and spice box with a long, finessed finish. A gorgeous expression of cool climate Pinot Noir that can improve in the cellar until 2028. Score - 93. (Rick VanSickle, winesinniagara.com, Oct. 29, 2024)
This pretty Pinot evokes ripe red berry fruit and cherry in an easy, elegant package. Sip it with grilled chicken and mushrooms, duck, or roast beef sandwiches.
Rich, heady fruits, dark tones, blackberries and bramble fruits. Feels more seductive on the nose. This is round and plump, full of life, bursting with fresh juicy fruits. This has a really good mouthfeel, it coats the mouth in flavour but not tannins. Structured, plump and vibrant. Feels fun, round and juicy. Good lift all the way through with driving strawberry, red cherry and some plum notes. Fresh and lively with a cooling finish too. Well made, easy to drink and recommend. A blend of 62% Merlot, 33% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc. Drinking window: 2023-2034. Score - 92. (Georgina Hindle, decanter.com, Jan. 4, 2022)
A blend of 40% Alicante Bouschet with 30% apiece of Aragonez (Tempranillo) and Trincadeira, this offers spicy dark fruit and will pair perfectly with grilled sausages, roast meats or smoked cheeses. Drink through 2028.
Enticing aromas of ripe red plums, violet perfume and subtle forest-floor notes define this Barbaresco. The palate is well balanced, with a seamless integration of juicy fruit flavors of cherry and raspberry jam that, even with its ripeness, pop off the palate with refreshing acidity. Rounded and velvety tannins linger on the finish. Drink from 2026. Score - 90. (Jeff Porter, Wine Enthusiast, Nov. 1, 2024)
Fresh plums with hints of clove and star anise. Fresh savoury fine tannins, layered mouthfeel and long finish. Score - 92. (International Wine Challenge, 2023)
Cantina Bolzano is south Tyrol's largest cooperative winery, representing a union of over 224 growers from 350 hectares of Bolzano's finest vineyards. Made from fruit grown at high elevations around Bolzano, this Chardonnay offers tangy mango and honeydew melon with hints of honeysuckle and orange blossoms. Pair with seafood or veggie dishes.