Specials

95 Points! The 2020 Châteauneuf Du Pape La Côte Ronde is an even split of Grenache and Syrah, and as usual, was brought up all in new oak. It has an awesome nose of cassis, blackberries, graphite, ground pepper, and violets, with its new oak perfectly integrated into the wine. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it has impressive tannins, terrific overall balance, and a great finish. This brilliant effort will keep for 10-15 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

95 Points! The 2021 Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills offers a richer, nicely oaked profile that includes honeyed stone fruits, toasted spice, crushed stone, and salted citrus-like nuances. It's rich, medium to full-bodied, and has a concentrated, mouth-filling profile that's grounded by a beautiful spine of vibrant acidity. It benefits from air, and this is another awesome Chardonnay from this team that readers will absolutely love. - Jeb Dunnuck

95 Points! The 2019 Savitar Shiraz was my pick of the bunch. This is serious, precise and driven and, again, sourced from Whites Valley, as is the 2019 GAM Shiraz. The maturation rolls out in 100% French oak. The extract here is savory and firm; the fruit is driven by tannins, and they really screw down the fruit and compress it in the glass. It’s tight. One can see that the longevity of this wine may outweigh that of the others, making it quite a layered and exciting wine to drink—certainly now, but in the future too. - Erin Larkin, robertparker.com

94 Points! Classically dense and modern, the 2019 Savitar is a massive crowd-pleaser that will knock your socks off. There is immense colour - it's almost black as the ace of spades. The nose is hit with wave after wave of dark fruits, liquorice, blackberry, chocolate and spice. It's big but balanced; luscious flavours and sweet oak provide a long, supple finish. An excellent vintage of Savitar. - Angus Hughson, Vinous Media

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

97 Points! Aromas of bark, dark cherries and flowers, too. It’s medium- to full-bodied with purity of fruit that runs the length of the wine. It goes on for minutes. Very fine tannins. From organically grown grapes. Needs three or four years to completely come together, but gorgeous. Drink after 2026. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! There's a fruity side to this red as well as a spicy side, with cherry, strawberry and black pepper flavors throughout. Floral, iron and underbrush accents add depth, yet it's the beam of pure cherry that prevails. Shows prodigious length on the finish. - Wine Spectator

94+ Points! Following a challenging harvest for Sangiovese, the Fattoria le Pupille 2020 Poggio Valente generates aromas of wild cherry, pressed violet, balsam herb and grilled rosemary. There is a lot of good freshness (this was the difficulty of the vintage), and the wine has good tannic support for a rich core of fruit. Poggio Valente is not dominated by oak, and that is also what sets it apart. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

95 Points! The 2021 White Blend, a blend of Albariño, Chardonnay, Viognier and Pinot Gris, has intense aromas of peach, lemongrass, fresh citrus, honey and flint, opening to new aromatic nuances with each return to the glass. The medium-bodied palate is bursting with perfumed fruit, loaded with juicy acidity, and it finishes with a touch of anchoring texture. It's a delicious yet serious white with alluring generosity that keeps you coming back for more. - Erin Brooks, robertparker.com

95 Points! The 2019 Chardonnay Bennett Valley waltzes out with alluring notes of fresh apricots, honeydew melon, and grapefruit, with hints of orange blossom and powdered ginger. The medium-bodied palate is tight-knit and elegant, with a seamless backbone and loads of savory nuances to accent the stone fruit layers, finishing long with a spicy kick. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, The Wine Independent

95 Points! The effusive sliced-pear and white-peach aromas introduce you to this extraordinary, contemporary interpretation of this grape, which is so often dismissed as old-fashioned. The abundant fine tannins remind me of natural wines, but there’s a level of brightness here that’s totally Alpine and gives it remarkable drive at the very long wet-stone finish. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! Such an elegant wine for this Grand Cru that tends towards aromatic richness, the pineapple and basil notes very delicate on the nose. On the medium-to full-bodied palate there’s more succulence, but even there the crushed-stone minerality keeps everything very cool and straight. Very long, focused finish with so great vitality and very fine tannins. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! So much candied citrus, angelica, dried sage and thyme in the nose! However, this compact and highly structured Alsace Grand Cru dry riesling is still very youthful and really needs a lot of aeration (decanting and big glasses!) to open it up. Stunning complexity of fruit, herbal and mineral character at the imposing yet very cool finish. From biodynamically grown grapes with Demeter certification. Drinkable now, but best from 2025. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! From just outside the town of Windsor, the 2020 Chardonnay UV - El Diablo Vineyard is energetic with aromas of green apple, lemon verbena, and delicate savory herbs. The palate is juicy and long, with lemon curd and snappy acidity, balancing out with a clean finish. Drink over the next 15 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

98-100 Points! The 2018 Cote Rotie La Mouline is immensely seductive, offering up enticing notes of floral potpourri and red berries on the nose. Those strawberries and raspberries persist onto the full-bodied palate and through the long, lush finish, buoyed by supple, creamy-textured tannins. This is the most complete, compelling vintage of La Mouline I've tasted. - Wine Advocate

99 Points! Just about pure perfection as well as a desert Island wine, the 2018 Côte Rôtie La Mouline comes from a tiny parcel in the Côte Blonde lieu-dit and spent four years in new barrels. Incredible notes of black raspberries, spring flowers, bacon fat, smoked game, violets, and pepper all emerge on the nose. These carry to a full-bodied, round, supple, sexy Côte Rôtie offering ultra-fine tannins, an insane level of purity, no hard edges, and a monster of a finish. As with the other 2018s here, it leads with its fruit and has a supple, ethereal style on the palate... - Jeb Dunnuck

95+ Points! A wine readers should snatch up is the 2019 Cornas from Johan Michel, a majestic, full-bodied, incredibly seamless beauty that does everything right. It certainly shows the ripe, sunny style of the vintage and brings ample fruit, richness, and power, yet it still has incredible focus as well as purity and freshness. Black raspberries, cassis, blueberries, violets, bacon fat, and peppery notes all emerge from the glass, and it has no hard edges and a sensational mouthfeel that keeps you coming back to the glass. It will evolve for 15 years or more, and I doubt it will ever close down. Those who like ripe, sexy, yet still pure, focused, and flawlessly balanced Cornas should back up the truck for this sensational wine. - Jeb Dunnuck