Starmont 2009 Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley
Here we have a wine from the second label of Napa Valley’s Merryvale Vineyard. Wine Spectator frequently calls out that their cabernets are deluxe in a way only Napa Cabs …
classic
Bodega Benegas 2009 Don Tiburcio, Mendoza
The Benegas is the founding family of the wine trade in Argentina. Tiburcio Benegas founded the Trapiche winery in the late 19th century. By the 1970s, the family had sold off all their …
Michele Chiarlo 2007 “Tortoniano” Barolo
Barolo is a luxury that no one should do without. In the world of wine, it is like royalty. When a bottle of Barolo is priced under $40, it’s often worth …
Bodega Triton 2009 “Tridente” Tempranillo
What is this curious label? The wine region listed is “Vino de la Tierra de Castilla y Leon,” a reference to a huge — and unremarkable — wine region in central …
Cellars Baronia “Flor D’Englora” 2011 Garnatxa
It was not too long ago that $10 bottles of wine were ground zero for the frugal and the downwardly mobile. That is no longer the case, at least for wine …
Altadonna 2010 Nero d’Avola
Altadonna is a project by the well-known father & son winemaking team of Stefano and Niccoló Chioccioli. Their portfolio is a line of pan-Italian wines sourced from northern to southern Italy. While such …
Los Boldos 2008 Amalia, Cachapoal Valley, Chile
Vina Los Boldos is an old winery at the foot of the Andes Mountains dating back to 1850. In 1990 the Massanez family from France purchased the property, turned it into …
Chateau Ollieux Romanis 2011 “Cuvee Capucine” Corbieres-Boutenac
I don’t know why this wine is named Capucine. Was it named after the French actress who lives about an hour away? Or Refuge Capucine, a dog shelter near the winery? …
Nugan Estate 2012 “Third Generation” Shiraz, South Eastern Australia
Eight years ago, a juice company from Australia contacted me. They were moving into the wine market, and we’re working on distribution into the US. Could I help them? Sure, I …
Food & Wine Pairing Menu
Chef at the Wine SchoolPart of my job running the Wine School is to create the menus for our food & wine pairing classes. That includes our food and wine pairing …
Rivetto 2007 “Lirano Soprano” Barbera D’Alba
Rivetto is well known for their Barolo, which is all well and good. Those bottles earn their high price tags, but the hidden gem in the lineup is Barbera d’Alba. Along …
St. Urbans-Hof 2011 Zickelgarten Riesling Spatlese
I tried this wine for the first time almost one year ago. I was at the annual trade tasting for a wine importer. He had just brought this wine less than …
Chateau Lanbersac 2010 “Vieilles Vignes” Puisseguin Saint Emilion
This is a winery whose bottles never end up on our shores: it’s a tiny outpost in one of the most obscure satellite wine regions of Puisseguin-Saint-Emilion on the right bank …
Chateau de Roquebrune “Cuvee Reine” 2009 Lalande de Pomerol
The Guinjard family have been Bordeaux wine growers for five generations. Before 1970, most of that fruit went to other wineries. Over the past few decades, they have started making more …
Badenhorst 2010 Secateurs Red
Adi Badenhorst is showing himself to be an ingenious winemaker and a by-the-bootstraps winery owner. His vineyards in Paardesberg in Swartland, South Africa, are reclaimed from a defunct 1930’s winery. His …
Valdipiatta 2010 Chianti Colli Senesi
Colli Senesi is the wine region surrounding the Tuscan town of Siena. Two of Chianti’s top wine regions –Montepulciano and Montalcino– are located there. Valdipiatta is a well regarded producer of Vino …