Wines

95 Points! It’s really hard to believe that this is a 2020, such is the youthful energy of this extraordinary wine. I love the intense lemon blossom aroma in the nose. Concentrated, creamy and very elegant, this high-end Savennieres isn’t difficult to understand. Less fundamentally mineral than the very best, but still plenty of wet stone at the long silky finish. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.- JamesSuckling.com

98 Points! It’s hard to find adequate words for the cornucopia of flowers, citrus and stone fruit aromas of this wine. The flinty element creates the most beautiful tension along with the wonderful interplay of fruit and wet stone minerality on the breathtakingly precise and pure medium- to full-bodied palate. And the incredibly energetic, almost endless finish sweeps you away. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! Still youthful with aromas of summer meadows, dried flowers and flint, this sleek and medium-bodied chenin blanc is extremely focused and mineral. At the very long, dry finish the wet stone character is wrapped in a delicate veil of beeswax and honeycomb. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! Hold on to your hat! The nose of this extraordinary dry chenin blanc is right on the borderline between summer flowers and floral hone, and it pulls you inexorably into this extremely vibrant and mineral wine. Astonishing concentration for the barely medium-bodied palate, the minerality cascading over you as if you were standing directly beneath an Alpine waterfall. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

93 Points! Pure and focused, offering violet, cherry, raspberry and mineral aromas and flavors. Shaped by vibrant acidity, this red persists with a lingering, resonant aftertaste. - Wine Spectator

94 Points! The Stefania Barbot 2019 Taurasi Fren offers pretty concentration and richness with dark fruit that starts with blackberry preserves, cherry confit, rum cake and sweet spice. The full-framed Fren could use another few years of bottle age to soften those chalky Aglianico tannins. Despite the wine's robust profile, the fruit remains punchy and lively. This wine ages for three years before its release, including two years in oak. Fruit comes from old vines aged from 70 to 90 years old. Only 4,000 bottles were made, and you get a beautiful Taurasi at an affordable price. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

91 Points! A pure expression of Aglianico, the Stefania Barbot 2019 Irpinia Campi Taurasini Ion is thick and darkly concentrated with a powerful 15.5% alcohol content. That brawn and muscle proves distracting, especially on first impact. However, the overall quality of dark fruit, with pressed blackberry and dark cherry, gives the wine pretty vertical lift and inner energy. On the palate, the wine is more streamlined and elegant than you might initially expect. Ion pulls itself nicely together at the end. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

92 Points! Lots of focused crushed-berry and cherry character. Very fresh. Medium body. Fine and delicate tannins and a delicious finish. Sort of Beaujolais mouth-feel to this. Drink now. - JamesSuckling.com

An important new source! The fermentation of this classically styled white, Aubépine, takes place in old oak barrels with the total lees from the press—no débourbage (wherein the lees are settled before the wine is racked off them). There are no finings and filtrations, nor additions of sulfites—though, as already mentioned, necessary exceptions can be made. Fermentations can last months or more than a year before dry. Aubépine is a specific site of old vines closer to the Cher than the Loire.

93 Points! Here's a fun new wine from Elena Fucci named "sceg," after the local dialect word for pomegranate. The 2021 Aglianico del Vulture Sceg is made with fruit from old vines in the village of Barile, perched on the steep slopes of the extinct Vulture volcano. This wine sends an important message for Aglianico because it aspires to a more contemporary profile with bright fruit flavors and an accessible drinking style. We're still talking about the mighty Aglianico grape, so you can expect ample tannic structure and texture; however, this wine does indeed break down in terms of bouquet with tart berry, cranberry jelly from a can and Amarena cherry. And, yes, there is plenty of pomegranate berry too. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

92 Points! Camphor complicates grilled herb and red plum aromas as the 2021 Aglianico del Vulture SCEG opens in the glass. This is an especially rich and supple rendition of SCEG, with sour citrus enlivening masses of dark red fruits and perfumed inner florals that resonate throughout. Juicy acidity maintains an energetic feel as grippy tannins come forward through the close, as the 2021 finishes long and staining with a youthful tension that puckers the cheeks. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media

93 Points! Crushed red plums, blood orange, and sweet spice create an alluring bouquet as the 2021 Aglianico del Vulture Grifalco lifts from the glass. This is soft tectured with a saline tinged core of wild berry fruits. Violet inner florals amass toward the close. The 2021 Finnishes with medium length and perfumed, grippy tannins as sour citrus nuances add freshness. I truly admire the energy and the classic lines inherent in this beautiful Vulture Aglianico. - Eric Guido, Vinous Media