The NV Champagne Grand Cru Les Parcelles Bouzy Extra Brut is 70% Pinot Noir with the remainder Chardonnay, with the base wine coming from the 2017 vintage. It reveals very attractive aromas of toasted brioche, raspberry, lavender, and black cherry, and it is dry and inviting, with pure red fruits that fill the palate, with its florality lasting long after the finish, with a cleansing lift of salinity. This beautiful wine is deceptively easy drinking now. Disgorged July 2021. Drink 2022-2032. Score - 92+. (Audrey Frick, jebdunnuck.com, Nov. 7, 2022)
A slightly different breed than the '21, the 2022 Antinori 'Tignanello' Red Wine really needs about an hour in the decanter to get going. I enjoyed this wine on five occasions while staying in Firenze and each time I noticed how the wine began to slowly evolve after an hour. It is even more heady and intense than the '21, with a seamless texture and polished tannins that frame a gorgeous core of creme de violette, cassis, loamy soils and suggestions of sweet pipe tobacco on the palate. A total head-turning bottling, make sure to give this a lot of air if enjoying in its heady youth. Drink date: 2026-2046. Score - 99. (Dr. Owen Bargreen, owenbargreen.com, June 10, 2025)
From the historic estate, a Brunello with a classic plant and great olfactory impact: black mulberry on the nose, touches of clementine peel, then cinnamon, to the salty palate, with a finish on notes of small fruits and sweet spices. Persistent. Score - 95+. (Luca Gardini, gardininotes.com, Oct. 2024)
Beautifully perfumed aromas of violets, cedar and fresh raspberries with some strawberries, too. Full-bodied with firm, chewy tannins that add tension and focus, as well as a crunchy undertone. Needs three or four years to soften. Best after 2028. Score - 97. (jamessuckling.com, Sept. 24, 2024)
Sourced from 20-year-old vines planted in clay and limestone, this wine offers up sharply defined red cherry, redcurrant, blackberry, blackcurrant, and savoury herbs, with an evocative but delicate smoke note. Quite fine, silky and structured, it's perfect for grilled duck breast. Drink through 2028.
Presenting expressively vibrant white pomelo, honeydew melon, green apple, and greengage, evolving to dill, tarragon, zesty lime, and gooseberry. Finishes with elegantly lingering ... minerality and delicate marzipan nuances. Score - 92. (International Wine & Spirit Competition, 2024)
As difficult as it is to pick a winner between the Gualtallary and El Cepillo bottlings, the 2021 Gran Enemigo Gualtallary Single Vineyard gets my nod as the supreme example of the Gran Enemigo Single Vineyard Cabernet Francs. It hails from a plot planted on calcareous rocky soils in 1995 with 10,000 vines per hectare, fermented with 40% whole bunches in barrique and underwent a 15-month élevage in 100-year-old foudre. Opening with a brooding, inward and quietly perfumed nose, its aromatic profile ceaselessly expands to encompass all manner of herbal and floral complexity, combining simmering intensity with supreme elegance. The palate follows suit with a rich, silky, refined and gently succulent energy, releasing into a graceful, dense and glacial conclusion that gives equal measure to vertical energy and horizontal richness. The finish slowly but steadily builds upon itself, revealing shimmering acidity and ultra-refined tannins with increased aeration. There is no better example of Cabernet Franc's suitability in the Uco Valley, a match rendered here with incomparable finesse, depth and complexity. Drink date: 2024-2041. Score - 99. (Matthew Luczy, robertparker.com, May 1, 2025)
Flint and cashew aromas get a vibrant lift from the lemon and lime curd aromas on this highly classy-yet-approachable Chard from one of New Zealand's most famous brands. Similarly, the palate feels open and complete, with lovely texture and acidity zhuzhing up the grilled stone fruit and spice flavors flowing to a long finish. Drink now with roasted chicken or mushroom or cellar for several more years. Score - 95. (Christina Pickard, Wine Enthusiast, Nov. 1, 2025)
The Romanian variety Grasa is capable of producing dry and semi-sweet styles. A true gem, it's found only in Romania, and even there only approximately 450 hectares are planted. These are ripe, round wines with suggestions of walnut, almond and apricot. They are notably balanced and vibrant. This botrytis-affected wine will be ideal with nuts, dried fruit, or blue-veined cheeses.
A solid, dense and young wine, this comes a blend of Touriga Nacional and Alicante Bouschet. It has balance, the two varieties complementing each other with their perfumed richness. It needs to age, so drink from 2025. Best Buy. Score - 91. (Roger Voss, Wine Enthusiast, March 1, 2024)
Created by legendary 'flying winemaker' Michel Rolland, this blend of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 10% Agiorgitiko is rich and decadent. There's engaging wood smoke, generous chocolate cake and blackcurrant, and a long, smoky finish. This will drink into the mid-2030s and will be great with lamb or mushroom-based dishes.
The super bargain of the portfolio has to be the red 2017 Viña Cubillo Tinto Crianza, which this year shows more development and faster aging, with more tertiary notes than the other reds from 2013 and 2014 that I tasted next to it. The frost of April 2017 killed 100% of the vegetal mass at Cubillo, and the grapes they picked were exclusively from the second generation, therefore fruit that ripened in a much shorter cycle, as the harvest was also earlier. It has notes of damp earth, mushrooms, truffles and forest floor, dry leaves and decayed flowers and herbs. It has a polished palate and is medium-bodied, with mostly resolved tannins, and it feels a little lighter. But it's still worth it. It was produced with a blend of ... [Tempranillo, Garnacha, Graciano and Mazuelo] from vines averaging 53 years of age. It fermented in their old oak vats and matured in used American oak barrels for three+ years. It has 13.5% alcohol, a 3.0 pH and 6.5 grams of acidity. Drink date: 2024-2036. Score - 93. (Luis Gutiérrez, robertparker.com, Feb. 27, 2025)
The 2023 Le Serre Nuove dell'Ornellaia is a delight. Crushed flowers, ripe red cherry fruit, spice, cedar and sweet pipe tobacco are all nicely laced together. This mid-weight Serre Nuove is notable for its forward fruit, mid-weight structure and overall appeal. Floral top notes extend the effortless, silky finish. Drinking window: 2025-2035. Score - 93. (Antonio Galloni, vinous.com, Feb. 27, 2025)
Created by the superstar team of Jon Bon Jovi, his son Jesse, and iconic winemaker Gérard Bertrand, this blend of Grenache, Cinsault and Mourvèdre was first released in 2017 and has earned an enthusiastic following for its snappy, pure, fresh melon, cherry, peach, dried herbs, spice, and wet-stone minerality. Fun, appealing and fresh, it's everything you want in a rosé.