Wines

100 Points! An extremely aromatic and focused Clos Apalta with blackberry, blueberry, floral and hot stone character. Full body, very linear and ultra-fine tannins. Focused and tight. Precise and long. This is the most polished and beautiful definition of this wine ever. You want to drink it now but better in 2020. A blend of carmenére, cabernet sauvignon and merlot. - JamesSuckling.com

PLEASE BE AWARE, THIS IS A PRE-ARRIVAL WINE - YOU WILL NOT BE CHARGED SHIPPING FEES UNTIL THE WINE(S) ARRIVE

93 Points! Tangerines with cedar and dark-fruit flavors as well as spices. Lovely velvety texture frames dark-fruit flavors and a chalky character. Fine-grained and linear. Better in 2021. - James Suckling

91 Points! Presents an elegant mix of dusty, loamy earth and red and dark berry flavors, tilting toward currant and plum notes, with touches of sage and cedar. Ends with fine-grained tannins that hold the elements in place. Drink now through 2029. - Wine Spectator

97 Points! From the 5.83-hectare walled vineyard in a cooler, 'classic' vintage for Champagne, giving this a finessed and charming expression. Baked pastry and soft lemon curd notes on the nose, smells inviting and softly floral - honeysuckle, jasmine, lemon and lime rind with some peach. Juicy and so zesty straight away, bright, mouthwateing, scintillatingly fresh and lively, thrilling even, with tiny persistent bubbles that instantly froth and fill the mouth. Alive and energetic with lemon rind and juice, succulent green apples and strawberries, grapefruit and ginger bitterness with touches of salinity and graphite dotting the finish. This makes you instantly want another glass, but this has structure too and such a long finish. No malolactic fermentation. Dosage 4.5g/l. Made by Charles Philipponnat and Thierry Garnier. - Georgia Hindle, Decanter Magazine

96 Points! The 2014 Clos des Goisses, 71% Pinot Noir and 29% Chardonnay, is Extra Brut at 4.5 g/L dosage and was disgorged in March 2023. It needs a little coaxing to bring out delicate scents of wet pebbles, lime blossom, and green apples plus emerging wafts of Marcona almonds, yuzu, and baking bread. Light-bodied and very dry, the palate is super-fine and delicately crafted, with a lively backbone supporting the intense flavors, finishing long and minerally. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, The Wine Independent

91+ Points! Sourced from the upper part of the vineyard, the 2014 Riesling Grand Cru Hengst Samain is rich, ripe and concentrated on the nose, though still closed. Rich, round and intense on the palate, this is a very firmly structured but also finessed Riesling that indicates an enormous ripeness and power; but it should be aged for another couple of years. Picked at the 9th of October, so a week later than the regular Hengst. - Stephan Reinhardt, robertparker.com

93 Points! A juicy, fruity red with ripe berries and some dusty tannins. It’s medium-bodied with a solid core of ripe fruit and creamy tannins. Nice tannin quality. Better in a year or two, to allow it to soften. Try in 2021. - JamesSuckling.com

Pacherenc du Vic-Bilh Sec is one of the oldest appellations: a magical, mythical name, imperial and secret, synonymous with respect. "The tamer of grapes varieties and creator of great wines, Alain Brumont, has made a great dry white wine at Montus." (Pierre Casamayor). Focusing relentlessly on experimenting with barrels for 20 years, Château Montus Sec has received the full benefit of these efforts: this wine's special character is due to its vinification and ageing in 600 litre barrels, called demi-muids, made from wooden staves that are more than four centimetres thick. The impact of the wood on the wine is reduced, with a more mellow woodiness, beneficial to the preservation of the fruity aromas, while maintaining a perfect balance, for a very expressive, high quality wine

99 Points! So much violets, licorice, pencil, flowers and currants define this on the nose before it moves to fresh mushrooms. It’s full-bodied yet compacted with tension and a compressed center palate. Incredible, fine-grained tannins and energy. The length is truly great. Should be even more beautiful in 2024. Give it time. - JamesSuckling.com

97+ Points! With Château Latour's new releases for the year arriving on the market in the next few days, I took the opportunity to taste the wines with the estate's perfectionist technical director Hélène Génin on my most recent visit. I'll be including more insights into Latour's contemporary viticulture and winemaking—as well as some observations on what makes Latour's famous enclos so special—in my report on the bottled 2019s. This short article, in the interests of timeliness, is limited to the tasting notes themselves. As those notes make clear, between the expressive, charming 2017 Le Pauillac de Château Latour; the concentrated, impeccably balanced 2016 Les Forts de Latour; and the deep, introverted, utterly classical 2014 Latour itself, admirers of this estate will find three excellent wines that are cut from very different cloth, and all three are more than worthy of attention. - Wine Advocate

94 Points! The 2014 Brut Millésime Carte d’Or is fabulous. Bright and beautifully sculpted, the 2014 is so impressive right out of the gate. Lemon peel, dried herbs, flowers, mint and sage all develop over time. Translucent and so expressive, the 2014 is a real knock-out. Disgorged: November, 2020. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

Only $69.98 at checkout...micro-boutique Cabernet crafted by the great Jon Kongsgaard!