Wines
- Domaine Berthoumieu Madiran Cuvée Charles de Batz 2017$21.98Availability:In Stock
From the importer: The domaine’s top red wine is the cuvée Charles de Batz, which was the original name of d'Artignan. The wine is composed of 90% Tannat with 10% Cabernet Sauvignon from vines that are between 50 and 100 years old. After being completely destemmed, the Cabernet and Tannat are fermented separately in cement tanks. During this time, a bit of micro-oxygenation or microboullage takes place. The wine then goes into oak (50% new) in an underground cellar where it also undergoes malolactic fermentation. After 12 months in wood, it is blended and bottled after a very light filtration.
Very ripe, rich Madiran that takes no prisoners. This wine succeeds in obtaining more fruit than tannin! The color is nearly opaque—wine doesn't get much darker than this. It displays notes of black fruit (blackcurrant and blackberry) along with just a hint of red fruit. There is a cedar-like creaminess to the oak which is extremely well-integrated. Tannins pick up on the finish but, let's face it, this is Madiran and that is to be expected. These tannins seem to dissolve when the wine is matched with richly flavored meats like leg of lamb, duck, goose or game.
Learn MoreHURRY, ONLY 9 LEFT! - Passopisciaro Etna Rosso Passorosso 2021JS94VM93$36.98Availability:In Stock
94 Points! Made with Nerello Mascalese taken from all the vineyards. The aromas show plenty of strawberries and cherries with wrought iron and pumice. Medium-bodied with creamy and polished tannins with hints of cedar and light nutmeg. Savory and lightly tannic giving it tension and beauty. - JamesSuckling.com
Learn MoreHURRY, ONLY 1 LEFT! - Léoville Poyferré St. Julien 2010JD100WA98+$169.98Availability:Out of Stock
100 Points! Pure gold, the 2010 Château Léoville Poyferré, which was drunk beside a perfect 2009 Latour, offers everything you could want from wine. Sporting a deep purple hue as well as an incredible array of crème de cassis, graphite, damp earth, leafy tobacco, and beautifully integrated oak, it hits the palate with an incredible amount of fruit and opulence while always staying pure, precise, and as seamless as they come. It shows the density and power of the 2010 vintage, but it’s remarkable in its balance, purity, and length. As with most 2010s today, it's still youthful and certainly in its early drinking plateau and has another 40-50 years of prime drinking. - Jeb Dunnuck, 2022
Learn More - Girolamo Russo Etna Rosso 'a Rina 2021JS94$31.98Availability:In Stock
94 Points! Plenty of citrus, orange peel, honey and beeswax with some pumice and volcanic soil character. Medium body, with firm and integrated tannins that are energetic and integrated. Very pretty now but even better in three or four years. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com
Learn MoreHURRY, ONLY 8 LEFT! - Tenuta delle Terre Nere Etna Rosso Santo Spirito 2021JS96VM93$54.98Availability:In Stock
96 Points! This shows notes of darker berries with red licorice and fresh ripe peaches. Intense with hints of moist clay soil and bark undertones. Full and steady on the palate with a firm backbone of chalky tannins that go on for minutes. Lot of tension and energy. Stays long on the palate, turning to a more smooth and powdery mouthfeel. Needs some time. Try after 2025. - JamesSuckling.com
Learn MoreHURRY, ONLY 12 LEFT! - Tenuta delle Terre Nere Etna Rosso Calderara Sottana 2021JS95VM94$69.98Availability:In Stock
95 Points! This is more vibrant with red berries, blood oranges, light spices and hints of terra-cotta. Medium-bodied, juicy and fruit-forward with tangy acidity and dusty tannins. Hints of bitter orange at the end. Long and chalky yet very attractive and enjoyable now. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com
Learn More - Tenuta delle Terre Nere Etna Rosso San Lorenzo 2021JS95VM94+$69.98Availability:In Stock
95 Points! This shows a very attractive, savory character with red cherries and raspberries, accompanied with dried summer herbs, candied orange and red spices. Dry earth, too. Medium- to full-bodied. Very even and seamless tannin structure. Refined and polished with a dusty earthiness that leads to a dry, delicate finish. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com
Learn More - Tenuta delle Terre Nere Etna Rosso Moganazzi 2021JS96$54.98Availability:In Stock
96 Points! This has a fresh and fragrant nose with beautiful cherries and raspberries as well as rose petals, licorice and crushed stones. It’s firm and linear on the palate with a medium body and vivid acidity. It’s hard to draw a line between the tannins and the earthy, mineral aspect as both build a chalky mouthfeel and lead to a long textural finish. I like the finesse here despite being still quite tight and firm. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com
Learn MoreHURRY, ONLY 3 LEFT! - Tenuta delle Terre Nere Etna Rosso Feudo di Mezzo Il Quadro Delle Rose 2021JS96$54.98Availability:In Stock
96 Points! Pure cherry fruit here, reminiscent of kirsch, with orange peel and an ashy, mineral backbone to it, almost like cracked flint or gunpowder. Similar aromas and flavors on both the nose and on the palate. Medium- to full-bodied, really tense and firm with chalky tannins and a lingering crushed granite and rock sensation on the palate. Seashells, too. Long. Try after 2025. - JamesSuckling.com
Learn More - Calabretta Nerello Mascalese Vigne Vecchie 2014$29.98Availability:Out of Stock
From the importer: Calabretta’s vineyards are located nearly a half mile above sea level in the black volcanic soils of Etna’s north slope, between Randazzo and Castiglione di Sicilia. There, Calabretta farms roughly seven hectares of mostly 70- to 80-year-old vines—many of them ungrafted—on stepped terraces supported by stone walls...Calabretta’s jewel is its Nerello Mascalese Vigne Vecchie, a gift for lovers of traditionally made Italian reds. The extended aging shows in the wine's velvety texture. It coats your palate without a trace of excess weight, sliding towards an unique convergence of value, character, and age rarely seen in Italy, if not the world.
Learn More - Girolamo Russo Etna Rosso San Lorenzo 2019JS96VM95$59.98Availability:Out of Stock
96 Points! This displays an amazing balance of power and grace, throwing in a shovel load of terroir, too. The aromas and flavors extend from ripe red fruit, through red licorice, tufo, orange rind and bright herbs. Medium-bodied with some firm tannin, but there's no stopping the complex fruit. This is top-class Etna rosso. Drinkable now, if you don't mind the firm tannin, or hold. - JamesSuckling.com
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- Garzón Tannat Single Vineyard 2018JS94$24.98Availability:In Stock
94 Points! Extremely perfumed with violet and blueberry aromas that follow through to a full body with creamy, refined tannins. Wonderful depth, due to the compact fruit and vertical line of tannins. Black pepper to the dark fruit. Better in two or three years. Try after 2022. - JamesSuckling.com
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- Garzon Tannat Reserva Uruguay 2019JS91$14.98Availability:In Stock
91 Points! A full-bodied red with aromas of black cherries, blackcurrants, violets and black licorice. Tannic and chewy with a firm core of dark fruit. Try from 2023. - JamesSuckling.com
Learn MoreHURRY, ONLY 11 LEFT! - Calabretta Cala Cala Vino Rosso NV$17.98Availability:In StockSouth-facing, organically-farmed estate vineyards planted to Nerello Mascalese and Nerello Cappuccio. Extended aging, at least 6 to 7 years in large botti. Learn MoreHURRY, ONLY 2 LEFT!
- Girolamo Russo Etna Rosso Feudo 2019JS94$69.98Availability:In Stock
Killer Juice, 94 Points! Amazing concentration of clean red fruit and soil here, together with tangy wild herbs and something citrus. You can almost smell the volcano! Medium-to full-bodied with a dense core of fruit and quite challenging tannins for now. Give it a year to even out, but this is the muscular cousin of the Russo family. Try from 2023. - JamesSuckling.com
Learn MoreHURRY, ONLY 3 LEFT! - Tenuta delle Terre Nere Etna Rosato 2022WS91JS92$25.98Availability:Out of Stock
92 Points! Notes of candied cherries and dried orange peel with hints of flowers and minerals. Clean and focused on the palate with a medium body, steady acidity and tangy, flinty character on the finish. From organically grown grapes. Drink now. - JamesSuckling.com
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