March 2021

BONPAS COTES DU RHONE: ANOTHER FINE 2019

It has been pretty sensational times for the Rhone Valley. A string of successful vintages since 2015 including epic harvests in the North (2015) and South (2016), with plenty of goodies to be had (be it more selectively) in the other vintages. The word on 2019 in the North is very positive, perhaps on par 2015, though three haven’t been a lot of wines to look at just yet. As to the South, while we aren’t going to tell that 2019 is quite at the supreme level of 2016, it is outstanding and certainly one of the sexiest vintages out of the gate we can recall.

We spoke of the vintage a little bit in the piece we did on longtime favorite Chateau St. Cosme a while ago. That luscious mouthful however is Syrah-centric. This Bonpas Cotes du Rhone Reserve de Bonpas 2019 makes an elegant statement about the quality, substance, and unbridled juiciness we can expect from Grenache in this engaging vintage.

Part of the expansive collection of J.C. Boisset that includes several Californi and French properties as well as one in England and India as well as the iconoc Oakville Grocery, Bonpas is the ‘gateway to the southern Rhone’, a fortress built in 1318 on the road between Avignon (the Papal seat at the time) and Rome. The soils on the state are covered with galets, the round stones associated with the vineyard lands in the region.

As you might have guessed, the lead character here is Grenache from 40-year-old vines, with dollops of Syrah and Mourvedre rounding out the blend. The wine only sees large oak vats to mere aid on the aeration of the wine but not impart any oak notes that might interfere with the purity and authenticity of the fruit.

The Bonpas Cotes du Rhone Reserve de Bonpas 2019 is a crowd-pleaser in every way. Tender and supple for its young age, it’s a plush, forward display of ripe cherry and plum with a subtle underpinning of spice and light-handed minerality and earth notes. The fruit wins the day and the texture will have broad appeal. This is a juicy, versatile red that performs admirably for its modest fare ($12.98) and is another sensational ‘teaser’ for what we expect to be a very hedonistic vintage.

A WORD ON BARGAIN CHAMPAGNE

Of all the categories, Champagne (actually sparkling wine in general) is the most difficult to promote on a consistent basis. First off, it is the most ‘brand oriented’ because people feel the need to have the recipient of a gift or the guest know the status of the item. So the marketing is done with that is mind. High profile, non-vintage Champagnes are particularly poor sources of value because the big houses have an orientation to build their prestige via higher pricing (warranted or not) in conjunction with a more significant promotional infrastructure (boots on the ground, tchotchkes, etc.).

Also, because they are non-vintage, the opportunity to talk about this or that bubbly is reduced. Most are blended to achieve a consistent profile via the use of a series of reserve cuvees that can be varied to hit a particular style. This gives the consumer more confidence of course, but offers little in the way of ‘news’ as nothing visibly changes year to year since there are no vintages. It also can be confusing with respect to reviews since there is no vintage. If a Champagne got a 93-point review in 2011, is that review good forever? Of course not, but some people treat it that way.

Some writers try to eliminate the confusion by publishing the disgorgement date they reviewed. Often by the time the review hits the market, usually several months later, that date is no longer available or not in a particular market. So that additional information doesn’t necessarily help most would-be buyers as trying to find that specific bottling is suddenly a source of angst.

There’s plenty of angst in the world already, and Champagne is supposed to be fun. As people who don’t need a holiday, celebration, or any other excuse to pop a bottle of bubbles, and enjoy it in a wide variety of situations like, say, Wednesday night, we’re solely in it for the juice and always on the lookout for bargains in the category. We have talked about Monthuys Brut Reserve before. But it has been a while and we recently tasted it and decided it was time to talk about it again. After all, tasty, legit Champagne for under $25 is always newsworthy whether the vintage changes or not.

Monthuys has been around a long time by our standards. The Baron family itself has been managing vineyards in Champagne since the 17^th Century. They began as grape growers, and transitioned to Champagne producers in 1966 when Gabriel Baron decided to vinify his fruit by himself. The bottles were initially only sold to private customers and local restaurants. The estate developed into 20 hectares of vines nestled in the village of Charly-Sur-Marne, on the west side of Marne Valley.

The cuvee of 60% Pinot Meunier, 30% Chardonnay, and 10% Pinot Noir is selected from the best plots in the region, chalk and clay soils from along the Marne River, and the finished wine is given additional time in the bottle. There’s not a lot of techno-geek fodder as the cellar work is pretty straight forward and they riddle by gyro-pallet. That may not be ‘romantic’ to some but this one delivers plenty for the fare and that ultimately Is the point.

We found it a very pleasing mouthful of apple, peach and pear with a certain ‘biscuit’ aspect to the nose and hints of honey and toast as it finishes. Clean lines, fresh flavors, and a certain roundness in the mouth without being sweet, it hits all of the notes. It’s tasty, real Champagne without the pretense or the price tag ($24.98). Obviously, something like this is worth mentioning again and again.

A LATE ARRIVING 2016: LE FONTI CHIANTI CLASSICO

We have often said that we are going to pursue the 2016 Tuscans until we can’t find them any more. Le Fonti is a brand new face for us…on this side of the ocean. We had a positive impression of the house based on tasting the wine at Consorzio tastings at Vinitaly, probably one of the more difficult places to precisely assess as wine. Why is it tough to get a bead on a wine at a wine show? Simply, it’s the volume. You taste so many wines so quickly to make the best of your limited time there that it’s not always easy to recall the nuances and minutia.

In any case, we liked the Le Fonti Chianti Classico 2016 (the first time we have seen it here) one on one on this side of the ocean as well. Located between Siena and Florence, the winery sits in the heart of Chianti country in Panzano. At this site, nearly 1500 feet above sea level, this 15 hectare estate consists of 9 hectares of vineyards and the rest olive trees. The current owners, the Schimtt-Vitali family, took over the estate in 1994 and have replanted the vineyards since that time with the appropriate clones and rootstock. The vineyard and olive grove are all certified organic and they take meticulous care of their holdings.

The vines are planted to 85% Sangiovese and the rest more international varietals, Cabernet and Merlot. Manuel harvest is the practice here and bleed off 10-15% of the juice to make a rose, concentrating the remaining must. The final wine, predominantly Sangiovese with a small percentage of Cabernet and Merlot are put into French oak for 12 months and another 6 months in bottle before release

This version definitely shows a more modern bent stylistically, with a nice pop of dark cherry fruit right up from and som authority to the midpalate. Plenty of fresh fruit here with the more classic notes of earth and spice, but a rounder, fresher disposition in the glass and an outgoing immediacy to the style. It has all of the ‘pop’ of the 2016s, the lifted fruit and well infused, ripe tannins, but a distinct juicy, some might say ‘modern component that will appeal to a broader audience.

Enthusiastic comments from Vinous’ Antonio Galloni tell a similarstory, “Le Fonti’s 2016 Chianti Classico is fresh, aromatically expressive and a plain delight to taste. This is an especially mid-weight, gracious style that is typical of this sector of Panzano. Spice, licorice, leather, dried herb and menthol add shades of nuance to a Chianti Classico that speaks to finesse, nuance and the natural freshness of Sangiovese in this vintage more than anything else…92 points.”

Another exciting arrival from a very special vintage, enjoy and accumulate them while you can.

A NEW ‘OLD FRIEND’ IN NAPA

One thing we have been repeatedly reminded of over the years is that things can change. The most recent demonstration occurred recently with a Napa Valley winery called Amici. This was a winery that we had tasted on few occasions over the years and came to the conclusion that the label was largely forgettable. Yet across a board the in Amici lineup we were presented recently, virtually every offering impressed. So did the prices.

Amici started back in 1991 as a project among friends (amici is ‘friends’ in Italian). Clearly things have changed quite a bit since our earlier encounters. Starting as a virtual winery (a label that owned no vineyards or building as so many are these days), over time owner John Harris has forged long standing relationships with some serious fruit sources. They now make a number of single vineyard wines from some very recognizable vineyard sources and we have to presume that at some so of that juice trickles down into this Amici Cabernet Napa Valley 2018.

The current winemaking team of Anthony Biagi and Jesse Fox likely had a lot to do with the current high level of performance here. Biagi has an impressive resume including Cade, Hourglass, Odette, Plumpjack and Senegal, and joined Amici/Olema in 2015. Fox started at the French Laundry as a Cordon-Bleu trained chef but the wine bug bit him hard. He did some winemaking work internationally then spent a decade with Harlan, The Napa Valley Reserve and Ram’s Gate. He came to Amici/Olema in 2016 and teams with Biagi on both the Amici and their value oriented Olena projects. Certainly, the jump in quality we see here has a bit to do with them.

A blend of 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc that sees 18 months in 75% new French oak, there the promise of some pretty serious fruit in this wine. There is also a serious lineup of reviews which are all made more significant by this wine’s very modest tab (by Napa Standards). We’ll get to that in a minute.

It all started with a barrel review from Jeb Dunnuck, “…this is a vintage loved by winemaker Tony Biagi…Starting with the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley, it could end up being one of the values of the year if it shows this well from bottle, displaying classic cassis, tobacco, and crushed rock-like minerality. With medium to full-bodied richness and depth, ripe, polished tannins, and great purity of fruit, it’s tastes like it cost three times the price…93-95.”

Given the other reviews, it apparently did get into the bottle in fine shape, as the across the board kudos would attest (James Suckling 93, Vinous 92, Wine Advocate 92). From Suckling, “A cooler style of Napa cab with blackcurrants, hot stones and violets that follow through to a full-bodied palate with creamy, polished tannins that integrate nicely on the palate and provide a delicious combination of fruit and character…”

From Wine Advocate, ““The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley is a blend of 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot, 3% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc. Deep garnet-purple in color. It opens with expressive notes of warm cassis, black cherries, blackberries and fragrant earth with hints of bay leaves and black truffles. Medium to full-bodied, it delivers mouth-coating cassis flavors with compelling herbal sparks, framed by a lively backbone and wonderfully velvety tannins, finishing long.”

From Vinous Media, “The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon (Napa Valley) is fabulous. Rich, plummy and forward, the Amici Napa Valley Cabernet makes a terrific introduction to the vintage. Even better, it is incredibly fairly priced. Succulent dark cherry, plum, mocha, spice and licorice are kicked up in this fleshy, open-knit Cabernet Sauvignon.”

Given all of that, one would not expect to pay less than $50, yet that is the reality. The Amici Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2018 is one of the true sleeper Cabernet deals from this part of the world.

A LITTLE BIT OF LIQUID HISTORY from DOWN UNDER

This is a quick note to call your attention to a number of morsels that arrived from the iconic Australian producer Greenock Creek. We were heavily involved with these wines when they were first imported by Grateful Palate right around the ‘turn of the millenneum’. Greenock Creek was an established entity that really vaulted to fame as the wines received huge initial press from Wine Advocate as they came to the U.S. market. We’d go so far as to say that Greenock was a notable catalyst in the whole Aussie boutique movement that was exploding at the time.

The short story was that Dan Phillips was advised on certain labels to seek out on his first buying trip to Australia. One of the recommendations was Rockford Winery and, in pursuing that label, Dan met winemaking superstar Chris Ringland who was at the time also the winemaker for Greenock Creek wines that were being produced at Rockford. The rest is history.

In any case, these wines came from the Grateful Palate library and were all made under Ringland’s tenure. The reviews are consistently spectacular and the wines are are excellent representatives of their genre. A lot of the knock on Australian wines after the ‘golden era’ of the first decade after they established a strong beachhead here was that they don’t age. We beg to differ.

In all fairness, a lot of the bad rap on Aussie wines was based on a second wave of less established labels that benefited from the goodwill established by proven producers like Greenock Creek, Rockford, Clarenden Hills, and Kay Brothers. A number of them were from growers who wanted to have labels and may not have been ready for ‘prime time’.

The Greenock wines are a testament to the fact that the truly exceptional Aussie reds age very well, thank you. Have a look at this little slice of Australian wine history when the wines were made by an Aussie winemaking legend who has his own label now that sells for $400+ per bottle. Quantities, as you might imagine of library bottlings, are limited. There weren’t huge quantities in the first place. Good hunting. These are very rare.

SEE THE GREENOCK CREEK OLDIES

WALKIN’ THE FLOOR-WHY ARE THESE STILL HERE?

A lot of different wines are consistently rolling in and out of here. For most of you keeping track of as many SKUs as we have online is a difficult task. Heck we can barely do it and we’re here all the time. So every so often we like to physically stroll the floor and see if there are little bits that we haven’t talked about yet or possibly stumble over the remnants of something that should have been gone long ago.

* While pulling a few things for the home stocks, I ran across a few boxes of the Maucoil Cotes du Rhone Villages Vieilles Vignes 1895 2017. The story of the vineyard source for this wine is pretty unique and does a lot to explain this wine’s expansive, lush, layered fruit. The ‘1895’ in the wine’s title is when this vineyard was planted! Talk about old vines! The estate has been farmed organically and was ‘certified’ in 2014.

There’s plenty of vibrant kirsch fruit, superb balance, and layered flavors. Jeb Dunnuck’s notes, “…Côtes du Rhône Villages 1895 is a beauty! Deeply colored, concentrated, full-bodied and layered, it has a modern style but terrific purity and depth of fruit.” Beautiful Grenache, with a depth and harmony that only comes from old vines, it’s a superb buy. It’s not often you can find something with the kind of pedigree and polish this one shows for under $20. Just had a bottle recently and it made us wonder why a wine like this for this kind of price was still here.

*We have more than made our case about the quality of Tuscan reds in 2016, and Chiantis specifically. We have sold a lot of Chianti over the last 18 months. For the most part, most of the value-priced bottlings have passed now through the market. For no particular reason that we can think of, we still have a pretty fair supply of one of the most appealing, user-friendly versions we have offered, the Canonica i Ceretto Chianti Classico 2016.

The wine has 92-point touts from three major critical sources (Vinous Media, Wine Spectator, and James Suckling) and we’re selling it for under $20, which is essentially half price! We took another bottle home to make sure nothing had gone awry with the wine since our last bit of ‘research’. The bottle didn’t last very long as a testament to what we have been saying about this wine all along. It’s a supple, fruit-driven, honest, easy-to-like version of the genre.

We could reprint all of the reviews but Vinous’ Antonio Galloni covers all the bases, ” The 2016 Chianti Classico is soft, forward and absolutely delicious. Super-ripe red cherry, spice, wild flowers and licorice give the 2015 lovely juiciness and texture. This is an especially forward, ripe style, and yet there is plenty of lift as well as energy to balance things out. I especially like the wine’s immediacy. This is a terrific wine in its peer group.”

We realize sometimes things get lost in the shuffle. But the price and performance and agreeable style of this pair of reds make them definitely worthy of another look. As it is, we are surprised that they are still here at all.

WE ♥ ASSYRTKO

Even though we have run through some of the best buys of the Greek white from Santorini called Assyrtiko on the planet, we couldn’t resist another, near-perfect example of what the grape can be. There may have been an assist from the 2019 vintage as several white wine regions in Europe have delivered outstanding results from the vintage. But there aren’t a lot of (any?) ‘vintage charts’ to consult on the matter of Santorini. Nor can one presume to make comparisons between the Loire, Alto Adige, or Germany and a windswept island in the Mediterranean. Maybe we just have a thing for Assyrtiko.

We are pretty familiar with this unique varietal having stumbled across it well over a decade ago. Given the amount we have sold, clearly so are a lot of other folks. But in the interest of ‘continuing education,’ a brief recap is in order. Santorini is an island southeast of the Greek mainland. It is a place like no other and they have been cultivating grapes here since the 17^th Century, B.C.! The vines here, as a result of the windswept terroir and volcanic soils, are almost in a ‘basket’ configuration with the canes literally woven together. The basket-like way of pruning and “winding” the vines, called “kouloura,” is due to the weather conditions that have always existed on Santorini.

Argyros is the largest vineyard holder on the island, with an average vine age of 70 years and some vines nearing two centuries which, on Santorini, isn’t that unusual. Founded in 1903, the current owners of Argyros (the fourth generation) control over 120 hectares. The winery calls this ‘the most important bottling of the estate, the essence of what Estate Argyros stands for. Meticulously selected parcels, with ages exceeding a century, from top quality areas of the island, mainly Messaria, Karterados, Pyrgos, Megalochori and Akrotiri. Fermented in stainless steel at cool temperatures and aged for two months in stainless steel tanks on fine lees.”

Consider the Argyros Assyrtiko Santorini 2019 a premium version of the grape, even though you can pay much more (the Karamolegos reserves list at $55 and $85 respectively). The nose shows fresh, restrained pineapple and pear fruit and insistent salty minerality. In the mouth there is surprising weight and substance yet with enough lift to not sit heavy on the palate. Intense and expressive, this is a full-throttle version.

Wine Advocate is one of the few reviewers that devotes much ink to Assyrtiko and they had good things to say about this one, “The 2019 Assyrtiko, the regular Santorini is unoaked, dry (four grams of residual sugar, 7.01 of total acidity) and comes in at 14% alcohol…This is more along the lines of an upscale Santorini in style these days (although at a more reasonable price)—richer, full of flavor and nicely ripe. ..It certainly shows better today, as its bigger fruit is up front and delectable. .. For the moment, this 2019 finishes with authority—and that extra flavor…92 points.”

Assyrtiko has many faces, certainly more than we envisioned when we first experienced the grape all those years ago. But this unique varietal has proven it can play at a high level and this version is here because it was simply too good not to be!

NOT YOUR GRANDMA’S SOAVE

Soave has come a long way since 1970s when the market was saturated with versions from large industrial producers. A few dedicated vintners paid attention to detail, lowered yields, and today’s Soave bears no resemblance to the innocuous versions of the genre from yesteryear. One of our consistent favorites from what one might call the new age Soave is from Inama.

They have been growing grapes in the region since Roman times, with the DOC being established here in 1968. Garganega is the principal grape but the appellation allows for Trebbiano di Soave as well as Chardonnay to be grown. The secret to the best Soaves is using only Garganega, farming modest yields, and having prime vineyards in the Classico zone. Giusseppe Inama realized this early on and starting pruchasing small plot within the designated area in the 1960s.

The 2019 Inama Soave is one of the most compelling versions we have had from a producer that has been a staple around here. It simply has more of everything. Floral notes, pear, and white stone fruits invite you in via the very attractive nose. The same flavors, plus a subtle streak of minerality (the soils are red clay and volcanic tufo) present themselves on the palate. There is weight, substance, and freshness, the type character that can only be achieved through careful farming and meticulous winemaking.

No tricks here. This is a clean, naked wine at a sensational price ($12.98). It also has an enthusiastic review from James Suckling, “Dried-apple and pureed-pear aromas follow through to a dense, full body with layers of fruit and intense flavors. Such focus and purity. Benchmark, classic Soave. …93 Points.” Fire this up with some white wine fare and they will sing together.

A VERY SPECIAL CHIANTI

We have come through a very special period in Tuscany in general and Chianti in particular. But we are still on the lookout for more examples of 2016, arguably the best and most complete vintage we can recall in all of our years doing this. We are thrilled to run across regular Chianti bottlings from the vintage but, for the most part, the market has absorbed those wines. There should still be occasional appearances from Riserva and Gran Selezione bottlings from this exceptional vintage that should prove to be memorable high points.

We had great expectations, given what we have tasted from 2016, when a purveyor pulled one of the late arriving 2016 Chiantis out of their bags and the Caparsa Chianti Classico Riserva Caparsino 2016 did not disappoint. In fact it was arguably one of the most impressive examples of the vintage we have tasted thus far. Since we don’t have a long experience with this producer (or any prior to 2016), we can’t really say with any authority if how much of this wine is courtesy of the vintage, or if Paolo Cianferoni is some sort of winemaking genius. In any case, even among the sensational array of outstanding Chiantis we have tasted from 2016, this one is special.

Located in Radda in Chianti, there is a distinct mineral undertone that makes a first impression here and is part of the whole experience front to back. The flavors and profile are definitely Tuscan, the insistent stony underpinnings definitely something we associate with Radda (a relatively small designation), but the density and richness of the fruit component and mid-palate elevate this wine to another level. Given the performance here, we couldn’t even balk at the price, certainly at the upper end of the riserva classification though relatively modest by comparison to many of the Gran Selezione bottlings.

In the notes from the winery, this wine is 100% Sangiovese (hand harvested, of course) from an elevated site (about 1450 feet) that is spontaneously fermented with natural yeasts and then sees one year in large barrels. The color is impressively dark for Sangiovese, the aromas show powerful fruit tones and well as that stony minerality. The weight on the palate surprises for Sangiovese as well, the flavors deceptively rich and yet distinctively Tuscan, the tannins and acidity well tucked in as is the standard in 2016, this is a head turner.

Antonio Galloni was suitably impressed as well, “The 2016 Chianti Classico Riserva Caparsino is the more refined of the estate’s two Riservas. Aromatic, silky and also plush, the 2016 is fabulous. Mint, pine, lavender, espresso and macerated dark cherry all open up in the glass, but more than anything else, the 2016 is a wine that gracefully marries power with richness. The 2016 is a total knock-out. Don’t miss it… 96 Points.”

We understand that for some of you, $45 for something that says Chianti might be a little difficult. But this is one of those wines that rises above the appellation and bests most of the much pricier Gran Selezione wines we have tasted.

Like Galloni says, don’t miss it. He’s right.