Specials

91 Points! A ripe nose of blackberries, dark cherries, dried violets, potpourri and sweet spices. Full-bodied with powdery tannins. Textured and creamy. Supple, chocolatey finish. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

90 Points! The ripe and juicy 2019 Casar Mencía has a fruit-driven nose with notes of ripe berries and some flowers. It's at the higher end of ripeness on the Mencía spectrum and has 14.5% alcohol. It matured in 500- and 700-liter oak barrels for one year. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

Bright currant, sweet cherry, and rose hip on the nose. The palate reveals layers of darker fruits, black plum, blueberry pie, and baking spices. A sappy and exceptionally drinkable CdR. Much richer than the average.

97 Points! Black berry, slate, lead pencil, black currant, and wet earth. Excellent pedigree. Medium to full body with exquisite tannins that run the length of the wine and show intensity and focus. The purity of the cab character shows such clarity and resonates back to the great cabs of the 1970s. A blend of cab from the vineyards: Martha’s, Trailside, Howell Mountain, and Linda Falls. Drinkable but better in four or five years. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! From a vineyard with old vines and schistic galestro soils, the 2019 Brunello di Montalcino Poggiarelli opens to a deep and unique sense of aromatic layering, starting with dark fruit, sweet tobacco leaf, flavored cigarette and spice. The wine is rich with dense fruit flavors and ripe tannins. You taste Sangiovese's skins with a hint of bitterness. However, the truly distinguishing factor of Poggiarelli is the etched mineral notes. - Monica Larner, robertparker.com

Only $29.98 at checkout! 

If the vineyard sounds familiar, perhaps you've heard of a little PInot Noir winery by the name of Williams Selyem? This is the same vineyard that they use for their $125 Terra de Promissio bottling. Great site, wonderful wine, INCREDIBLE price...

From the winery: The fruit for this wine comes from two vineyard blocks located in the western slopes of Sonoma Valley, within the appellation's overlap with the Sonoma Coast AVA. The sites are distinguished by their extremely rocky soils - stones from which were used in the mid-1800's to construct the miles of stone walls that ribbon the region. The site's coastal influences and rocky, well drained soils produce moderate yields of very concentrated Zinfandel.

From the importer: From 100% Merlot grapes grown at the foot of the inactive Amiata volcano, the San Vito wine exudes an aromatic and intricate character. Sumptuous black fruit aromas unfurl into notes of tobacco, graphite, and oriental spices, enticing the senses. On the palate, it is rich and silky, with well-integrated tannins that linger through a long, persistent finish. Dense in color, the wine showcases a captivating garnet red hue that releases sumptuous fruit aromas to the nose. Prominent notes of blackberries, cassis, and violets stand out, gradually unraveling into more complex nuances of blond tobacco, graphite, and a melange of oriental spices. The sip is impressive yet rich in finesse, with a silky body enriched by well-smoothed tannins that stretch towards a persistent, aromatic finish.

From the importer: A south-southwest facing parcel located in Clos du Château de Chanzeaux, all from Coteaux du Layon. Thisparcel used to be part of the cuvee for their Cremant d'Loire, but was identified as worth a single-parcel bottling. Vinified dry, so must be classified as Anjou Blanc. The average age of the vines is 50+ years. Ground coverage alternates yearly between grass and herbs every other row for the health of the vines and nutrients. Schist and red clay soils.

All white wines are pressed whole cluster, which helps to protect the grapes from oxygenation and acts as a natural filter. The grapes are macerated for eight hours, after which the must is lightly filtered. Native yeast fermentation for 2.5 months, with malolactic in barrel. Matured in sandstone amphora for 12 months, and then two months in stainless steel before bottling.

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

97 Points! A complex nose of raspberries, redcurrants, blueberries, spices and dried herbs. It’s medium-bodied with elegant tannins. Round, juicy and layered on the palate, offering great harmony and balance. Fresh, yet complex with a savory finish. Old-vine character. The vines are more than a century old. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

The oldest Malbec vines in Chile, planted 1890!

93 Points! A pretty white with dried pear, lemon and some mango. Full-bodied and lightly tannic with a creamy texture and a flavorful finish. More fruit-forward and clean. Nice acidity for the vintage. 2/3 sauvignon blanc and 1/3 sauvignon gris. Drink or hold. -  James Suckling Learn More

93 Points! The 2019 Winemaker's Cuvee is 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 14% Merlot, 5% Malbec, and the rest Cabernet Franc and was aged for 15 months in 50% new French oak. It is rich with aromas of lavender, tobacco, and boysenberry compote and delivers ripe fruit through the mid-palate, with notes of blackcurrant, leather, and baking spice. This red has immediate appeal, but it will continue to evolve over the next 10 or more years. - Jeb Dunnuck

A complex and fresh wooded Chardonnay in a Burgundian style made by Philippe Colin. The subtle oak aromas bring to this wine a luxurious mouth feel. Grapes are handpicked early in the morning to keep the freshness of the grapes. The must is settled and the alcoholic fermentation starts with wild yeasts in a stainless steel tank for 1 week, before to be transferred into 450L Rousseau Piano oaks (French). Then, the malolactic fermentation is done naturally during the 12 months ageing. Batonnage are done every 2 weeks.

93 Points! Notes of pastry, roasted pineapple, minerals, cashews and fine lees on the nose. This is a flavorful and round verdejo, but subtle and tactile, with a bright streak of acidity passing through the palate and leaving a broad but fresh-toned mouth-feel. From organically grown grapes. Drink now or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

93 Points! The grand vin 2019 O Gran Mein is a blend of different varieties and vineyards that represents the best they have in white, fermenting each variety by plot, which gives them a lot of lots to make a blend. The idea is to achieve something that is complex but delicate rather than intense. It achieved 13% alcohol while it kept a pH of 3.34 and 6.29 grams of acidity, blending wines that fermented in stainless steel, concrete, foudre and 600-liter barrel and matured in tank for 14 months. It has aromatic complexity and depth and is elegant and nuanced, with herbal, balsamic and spicy aromas and the inland, river character. The palate is really balanced, and the mouthfeel is terribly stony, with a drying finish. Here they are again looking for potential to create this blend; they talk about wines for 30 years, guided by the first vintages in the 1990s. - Wine Advocate

91 Points! A blend of Roussanne and Viognier, the 2019 Vin De France Etincelle is an interesting wine that has Viognier-like aromatics of golden fruits and honeyed orange yet reveals more structure and focus on the palate, showing its Roussanne component. With wonderful purity, balance, and length, this is a gorgeous Vin de France that does everything right. It's ideal for enjoying over the coming year or two. - Jeb Dunnuck

97 Points! The 2019 Vigno had a spectacular and ever-changing nose from the moment I uncorked it. It started with some meaty notes and slowly started developing subtle nuances of roasted coffee, milk with cinnamon and herbs. It has a vibrant palate that makes it feel light and medium-bodied even at 14% alcohol, but the very low pH (3.32) and remarkable acidity (6.38 grams of tartaric acid) clearly lift it up. This is delicious, a wine that never fails to amaze me. It matured in 2,500- and 5,000-liter oak foudres and barriques for 14 months. 11,568 bottles and 60 magnums were filled in February 2020. This is not pure Cariñena, as it comes from a field blend with 10% to 15% other grapes—Malbec, Cinsault, Carmenere and Cabernet Sauvignon—that certainly add to it. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

From Relic: The Archive Wines began in 2010 with a fermentation lot of Cabernet Sauvignon that we loved, but that didn't quite mesh with our other sources for Artefact. On its own, however, it was delicious, complex and appealing. We decided that as we grew, we needed a home for these beautiful, misfit wines and that we would offer them as an exceptional value. All of The Archive wines are made with the same care - from grapes to bottle - as the Relic wines and are produced in especially small quantities.

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