2019

ROCKIN’ RIOJA FROM RODA

This has been a rather interesting story since the onset. When we first ran into the label years ago, it was one of the more impressive newcomers we had seen. Yes it was Rioja within the definition of the appellation, but somehow there was a deeper color, plumper mouth feel, and bluer fruit than we had generally experienced in our extensive ‘research’ with a variety of labels in the region. We took this fresher fruit style to be a more modern but very successful take on the genre and we were big fans in those early years.

Some time later, new offerings from Roda seemed to miss the mark, and what had been an exciting new source for us previously was eclipsed by a number of things we found as we continued our research into the region. We weren’t as enthusiastic in seeking out the newest releases and, for a time, we didn’t see the wine at all. A couple of years ago the Roda label reappeared with a new distributer and clearly had rediscovered their mojo. This 2019, essentially their second tier bottling, is the best Roda we have tasted in that series.

Roda’s history isn’t as lengthy as some of the bodegas in the region. Their explanation is “in the late 80’s, a new generation renews the vine and wine sector. Carmen Daurella and Mario Rotllant arrived in La Rioja with the firm intention of creating a project able to provide the world of winemaking with something new. This is where a fascinating, ambitious, exigent and unprecedented adventure began: Bodegas Roda.” We aren’t sure what that means but they seem to be doing everything right.

Their fruit comes only from their estate vineyards and certain parcels are selected for each expression (there are five) of Roda’s wines. In their words, “In RODA we look for the parcels that that year have ripened in a red fruit profile, with the expression of the aromas present in the edge of the glass, ready to be felt immediately; with sweet spice notes and a kind freshness. In the mouth the red fruit carries the importance, with a fresh, long, silky, voluptuous and continuous mouth pass.” The vineyards are sustainable, and no chemicals are used.

The vines for the Roda Rioja Reserva 2019 bottling are over 30 years old and bush vines, harvested by hand into small crates. The grapes are sorted on a conveyor belt then fermented in upright French, temperature-controlled oak vats. Malolactic occurs in 225L barriques. The wine then spends 14 months in French oak, 40% new, and then 22 months in bottle until release. The blend for this vintage is 91% Tempranillo, 5% Graciano and 4% Garnacha. The wine has gotten some nice press already.

Luis Gutierrez from Wine Advocate wrote, “The wines are quite transparent of the vintage conditions, with the 2019 Roda being round, lush and velvety, with polished and sleek tannins and more volume and concentration, reflecting a low-yielding, warm and dry year. This is a cuvée with more red than black fruit produced with 91% Tempranillo, 5% Graciano and 4% Garnacha from 30-year-old vines fermented with indigenous yeasts and matured in French barriques, 50% of them new, the other 50% second-use for 14 months. It’s a red with 14.5% alcohol, ripe fruit, measured oak and integrated acidity…92 points.”

And from James Suckling, “Fruity and primary with rich black cherries, red plums and damsons, adorned by some coffee, black pepper and chocolate. A pretty, modern, juicy expression of Rioja with a medium to full body, rounded by assertive and fine-grained tannins. Long, with some dark chocolate in the finish. Drink from 2023… 93 points.”

That said, we’ll politely disagree a little. We’ll give the scribes the benefit of the doubt since both notes are nearly a year old. Presumably this wine has developed further in the bottle because what we tasted was pretty sensational. It hits all of the notes that the best Roda efforts have. The fruit is bright, tender and complex, with the dark red fruits they claim they are looking for in full bloom and even leaning a little blue. Black cherry, ripe plum, and even impressions of blackberry, spice notes, vanilla, dark chocolate, it is succinctly balanced and both modern and engaging. This is an expressive, hedonistic, beautiful, refined bottle of Rioja that really rang our proverbial bell from the first whiff.

CHATEAUNEUF INSIDERS’ PICK

It’s pretty easy to get lost in the crowd. Back when we started seriously working with Chateauneuf in the early 90s, there weren’t near as many selections available in this market as there are now and the series of vintages up to 1998, a breakout year and the beginning of an unprecedented run of vintages in the southern Rhone that has continued through 2020. There are a lot of domaines and a lot of scores out there, and our job is to highlight as many things that we think are viable. But there are some really delicious wines that represent sensational value for the genre that don’t necessarily get the broad attention they deserve. That is one of the things we can do in this space.

Jean Royer, who also makes another house favorite Chateauneuf-look alike steal called Le Petit Roy from grapes outside the appellation and sometimes declassified Chateauneuf, is one that we think falls into that category. His cuvee ‘Tradition’ is exactly that…a classic, sappy Grenache-based effort that is plush, tender, and engaging. The domaine was one of the late Philippe Cambie’s first clients when Cambie started back in 1998, and they have learned well.

It gets good reviews, this one garnering a 93 from Wine Advocate and 92s from Jeb Dunnuck and Wine Enthusiast. For whatever reason, Vinous hasn’t said anything about this wine since 2009. They also make a couple of upper cuvees which of course limits this wine’s ‘upward mobility’ in the numbers game. On the hedonist scale, however, it scores high.

We are fans and, even though we have plenty of wines representing the region, we couldn’t leave the Jean Royer Chateauneuf Tradition 2019 off the team. A blend of 85% Grenache and 5% each Syrah, Mourvedre and Cinsault, it is an ample, layered, sexy bottle of Chateauneuf and it sells for under $40!

The reviews tell the same story. Joe Czerwinski of Wine Advocate say, “…the palate is full-bodied, creamy and lush. Supple but concentrated, this strong, almost entirely tank-aged effort finishes long, with ample intensity.” And from Jeb Dunnuck, “…a big, ripe, incredibly sexy classic cuvée that has full-bodied richness and no hard edges. It’s for the Grenache lovers out there.” You get the picture.

DID SOMEBODY SAY MERLOT?

Yeah we know that, largely thanks to the scathing ridicule of the varietal in the movie Sideways, the great sea of Merlot that was the trend previously has dried up. Nobody talks about Merlot any more and, while we have seen all manner of trends going south (see also Australian wine), we know its easier to follow the crowd for most folks. Some of us can still remember back to a time when bottling a varietal Merlot was pretty avant garde and wineries like Keenan and Duckhorn created a whole new awareness in the marketplace. For all you naysayers out there, we also like to mention that some of the world’s most sought after wines (Chateau Petrus, Chateau Trotanoy for example) are made from the stuff.

Some wineries never gave up the ghost and, frankly, Merlot can be a rather delicious alternative in the right hands. Getting back to history, the Merlot craze was so strong that producers were growing it in places that it shouldn’t have been grown and slapping together very ordinary bottlings that barely qualified varietally so they could capitalize on the trend. The same thing is happening today with pink wine. The point is that a lot of wines were made that sullied the grape’s reputation, but shame on the industry for that.

In any case, one of the wineries that was in early in the game and still doing very good work is Saint Francis. We hadn’t seen the wines in some time but a rep trotted in with a series of new releases from this old guard Sonoma producer, including reserve bottlings, and the most impressive, as well as the most remarkable value was the Saint Francis Merlot Sonoma County 2019.

Yes we are recommending a Merlot because it was an ample, plush, very solid red at a really good price. Deep color, inviting nose of blackberry, black cherry, spice, briar, and a little vanilla, the fruit appears unmanipulated and it’s pretty juicy. The juice comes from two sustainably farmed vineyards in the Sonoma Valley, Behler and Wild Oak, and saw 16 months in French oak, 25% new. The winery notes said it got a 91 point score from someone but didn’t say who. Not really the point though.

Our whole trip is that one shouldn’t be ashamed to drink Merlot when it’s this tasty and only $15.98. This is the kind of solid citizen that helped make the varietal popular in the first place. Just sayin…

2020 BURGUNDIES: WE’RE NOT NAGGING BUT…

In virtually every offer we have made on the 2020 red Burgundies, we have included our monologue about how special a moment it is for Burgundy fans. It’s something of a harmonic convergence of a number of factors that have created what we see as one of the most opportune buying windows we have ever scene for this difficult-to-play category. We’ll synopsize as best we can.

First, global warming has raised the bar for a lot of so-called lesser Burgundy appellations from a historic perspective. Prices in the region have been established over decades (centuries?) based on the consistent performances of certain villages. Conversely, those villages that haven’t been able to be as dependable because their climate is more marginal have an upper limit on what they can charge for their wines. Global warming has added a couple degrees of ripeness to those marginal Burgundy regions (Marsannay, Mercurey, Givry, for example) and created far more consistent, engaging and successful harvests while the prices have been slow to adjust upward.

The 2020 vintage was a flashpoint as a warm, ripe harvest combined with an abnormally short crop (also thanks to the quirky weather patterns brought on by global warming, but that’s a much more complicated explanation) has created a crop of rich, deeply colored, well endowed red Burgundies the likes of which we can’t recall. The 2019 vintage was also extremely successful and there are a few bits of that vintage still around.

Even though the crop loads have been lighter, most producers have thus far mainly kept prices relatively reasonable. The situation has also been aided (to an extent) by an extremely attractive, historically low exchange rate with the eruo vis-à-vis the U.S. Dollar. To summarize, you’ve got one of the best vintages we have ever seen on the market at a time when the prices are based on the most opportune exchange rate.

Looking forward, the 2021 vintage was an even shorter crop and, according to most accounts, not particularly special. Given the extreme shortages, to put it bluntly, prices will rise even without additional help from a declining exchange rate or a highly collectable vintage. Any additional negative ‘money’ moves will only augment the problem. So you will effectively be asked to pay more for lesser wines with the 2021s. Thus far 2022, the vintage, looks positive, but also vulnerable to yet another round of price increases.

Right now, Burgundy lovers, you are in the perfect window…a broad selection of viable wines from a historic vintage at some of the best prices relatively. To be sure, things are starting to change. Some of those ‘lesser’ appellations are edging up pricewise in this extremely successful vintage. But the prices for what’s in the bottle in most cases are still at a relatively good value point for the category. In other words, you may never have the opportunity to get Burgundy this good for this kind of money in the foreseeable future.

We keep to the message not because we’re like those nagging ‘aunts’ on that TV insurance commercial (“expired…expired”), but because it’s the truth. Sure, there will be people that will ‘opt out’ if Burgundy gets too crazy. The recent spate of good vintages and relative affordability, however, have reminded us how much we love Burgundy. Maybe you’ve felt that, too.

There have been long stretches over the years with Burgundy where either the vintage or the price (or both) have not been particularly accommodating. The last couple of years have been really fun. But as we know with Mother Nature, nothing lasts forever. This is a rare, special moment where Burgundy aficionados have an advantage. It’s our job to point that out (even if it might sound a little naggy). But this too will pass and these times will become the ‘good old days of yore’. Stock lists below, good hunting!

Check stocks of 2020 Red Burgundies

Check stocks of 2019 Red Burgundies

DOMAINE DE LA SOUMADE: RETURN OF AN OLD FRIEND

As we told the story last time (with the 2016s), we were going through some open market offers in Europe and ran across one for a Winex favorite from years past, Domaine de la Soumade in Rasteau. We recalled they used to make some pretty impressive juice, Rasteau that played at a much higher level than the appellation. At the time we researched to find only four people in the country were offering this wine. Naturally we were all over that. This time around when we ‘wine-searchered’ the 2019 vintage from this house we found only one store offering it for sale…us. We can’t imagine why this talented, established producer hasn’t yet found a U.S. importer. But we aren’t losing any sleep over it as long as we can get it.

Domaine la Soumade was established by André Roméro in 1979. Since 1990 the whole production has been bottled at the domain. In 1996, when his son Frédéric Roméro had earned his BEPA Diploma in viticulture and oenology, he returned to the domain to join his father. These days André is dialing it back, essentially semi-retired, and the reins are now firmly in Frédéric’s capable hands.

The domain covers 27 hectares, one of which is in Gigondas and the rest is situated in Rasteau. They make nine different wines including four selections of Rasteau. The trend here is to use more large foudres (really big barrels) with the idea of keeping the star of the show, the super ripe Grenache, as fresh and bright as possible. They farm lutte raisonée, in effect organic unless there is a problem that can only be solved by commercial applications. They also have a somewhat unique situation in having Bordeaux superstar winemaker Stephane Derenencourt as a consultant. As we said, this domaine has always played above their appellation, and the 2019s are once again highlight performances.

The one thing about not having broad (or much of any) distribution in the U.S. is that your wares don’t get in front of the media as much, or in as timely a manner. While there are reviews out on a broad array of the 2019 southern Rhones as a category, very few pundits who have gotten to the 2019 Soumade wines. We did find one source that was as enthusiastic as we are although, truth be told, we were in on these wines regardless. They are quite easy to like and their track record is impressive. These two represent the best efforts.

The Domaine le Soumade Rasteau Cuvee Prestige 2019 slowly emits deep aromas of cranberry, dark berry, cured cherry, anise, and floral notes. There’s plenty of juicy, darker fruits in the mid-palate, some pretty spice and fresh herb notes around the edges and a surprising touch of pastry crust. Bright and lively, very expressive, this one definitely shows breeding beyond its sub-$20 price point.

Wine Enthusiast gave us the blend as well as some ‘encouraging words’, “Sun-kissed but zesty blackberry and boysenberry flavors are etched by veins of salt, crushed granite and peppercorn in this full-bodied blend of 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% Mourvèdre. Matured in equal parts stainless steel and large-format barrels, it’s pristine in black-fruit flavors and briskly balanced in acidity. Edged by very fine, peppery tannins, it’s vibrantly youthful now but should improve through 2029…93 points.”

The Domaine le Soumade Rasteau Cuvee Confiance 2019 is a similar blend from top parcels of older vines. Even though the scores are only a point apart from this reviewer, this one works at a level comparable to a very good Chateauneuf. There are more layers to the nose, with darker fruit and inviting spice and red licorice notes combining with a well tucked in florality. More stuffing, more intensity here along with sweeter, denser, even more compelling fruit, and this wine is tender yet vibrant and the balance is impeccable. Very classy juice.

Wine Enthusiast’s view was appropriately complimentary, “Domaine La Soumade devotes its oldest vines from 50-100 years old to this blend of 70% Grenache, 20% Syrah and 10% Mourvèdre. Vinified entirely in large-format wood vessels, its black plum and cherry flavors are lusciously concentrated but maintain a zestiness and mineral edge that are thrilling. Full bodied and opulent, it’s a velveteen, solidly structured red that should drink beautifully now–2030…94 points.”

We expect even bigger numbers down the road for the 2019s from other reviewers based on the reviews of the 2016s (2019 is another excellent vintage), but there haven’t been any more reviews of 2019 as yet. So you are still ahead of the game.

One interesting note. If we were unscrupulous merchants, we could point out we were substantially below the stated retail prices in the Enthusiast pieces ($60 and $70 respectively). We’ve never seen them offered anywhere near those prices. Suffice it to say, however, at $19.98 and $29.98 respectively, they deliver superb value. Limited.

ANOTHER CAPTIVATING 2019 VOSNE ROMANEE

First we’ll again make the point that, while we know our way around Burgundy pretty well, it isn’t necessarily our mission to focus on higher end fare. We are more the guys who look first for that diamond in the rough that doesn’t cost a car payment to purchase and plays above its station. But every so often we run across one of those ‘must have’ bottles that’s approaching three-digit price territory. Vosne Romanee is expensive real estate anyway and the produce from here is among the most sought after and highest priced. So something like this, that exhibits the personality of the village so eloquently, is very desirable. This version also comes from a source that has an exceptional track record for engaging reds which is even more important in a great vintage like 2019. Though most Burgundy fans know this, here’s a brief ditty on the producer. Maison Camille Giroud ranks among the most venerable boutique négociants in Burgundy. Founded in 1865, Giroud earned an impeccable reputation over the last 150 years as a specialist in traditional vins de garde. In 2001, Giroud was acquired by a group of investment bankers led by wine collector Joe Wender and his wife, Napa cult vintner Ann Colgin. They hired wunderkind David Croix not only to manage the distinguished cellar but also to begin acquiring grapes and making first-class wines. Croix accomplished this goal with flying colors and has now been succeeded by the highly-talented Carel Voorhuis. The Les Chalandins is located on the Flagey-Echezeaux side of the village at an altitude of 245 meters on a hill that faces south-east and extends up to the lower part of Clos Vougeout. It sits on deep clay-silt soil laid atop the marl of Bresse. Barrel notes from Neal Martin of Vinous tell the story, “The 2019 Vosne Romanee Les Chalandins is matured with just under 50% whole cluster and 20% new oak. It ha a well-defined bouquet of brambly fruit, rose petal. and crushed rock aromas. The palate is medium bodied with supple tannins, a rounded texture and a harmonious silky smooth finish. A lovely wine from Camille Giroud...90-92 points.” Nice cellar notes from Burghound as well from a year and a half ago, “A spicy and very Vosne-like nose freely offers up its aromas of black pinot fruit, plum, hoisin and exotic tea. The suave and highly seductive flavors coat the palate with sappy dry extract while the finish displays focused power on the mildly warm finale. This needs to develop more depth but it should be able to do so if allowed a few years of cellaring.” The scores are pretty strong considering the ‘hierarchy’ as these folks make a lot of wines and a number of Grand and Premier Crus. The Camille Giroud Vosne Romanee Les Chalandins 2019 is everything you could want from this part of the world. That layered, super-spiced red cherry fruit that is distinct to this village, that lush yet suave, nuanced palate, it’s all here in an engaging style that should age nicely as well, though like most 2019s it is quite pleasing already.

THE SUPER DELUXE CHATEAUNEUF SHOPPER, OH MY!

Another day, another lagging boat showed up bearing treasures acquired at what now seems like long ago. Supply chain issues are real. This particular bateau (ship) bore a number of absolute jewels from the southern Rhone which prompted us to look over our current stocks of Chateauneuf du Pape from the gorgeous 2019 vintage. We realized we had accumulated quite the selection.

It was altogether too massive to present in its entirety. So we settled on presentation only elite, top-of-the-heap bottlings that had scored 96 points and above. Even at that, our cup almost ranneth over. Even with our long history presenting Chateauneufs in virtually every conceivable way over the years, this collection has to be some sort of high water mark.

Yes, it has been a grand period for the southern Rhone since 1998. But 2019 is a top-notch harvest within that lofty string of hit vintages. As we have presented in past offerings, while 2019 is not quite as fool proof from top to bottom as, say, 2016, the best of the 2019s are on par with top efforts in any vintage. This group represents those high achievers. What we have put together here is a ‘Super Deluxe Chateauneuf Shopper’. In this lineup, every wine scored a minimum of 96 points or more. Ne Plus Ultra, Crème de la Crème, call it what you want, this is an embarrassment of riches or the definition of “too much good stuff.”

These would all qualify as the ‘cherries on top’ of whatever you may have acquired thus far from this exceptional vintage. If you haven’t done much yet, you could put together a broad and enviable collection of top fight Chateauneufs in one fell swoop. We sent these as an email, took a pretty good hit, reshuffled and are presenting it again. We can honestly say that the numbers and the reviews here speak for themselves. It’s a lot to digest, but we’re confident you folks can handle it. That’s why we put it in a format you can revisit any time you want. Good hunting to all…

VIEILLE JULIENNE CHATEAUNEUF DU PAPE LES HAUTS LIEUX 2019– from Jeb Dunnuck, “The 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Les Hauts-Lieux includes slightly more Mourvèdre and comes from a cooler parcel in the northern part of the appellation. It has another level of purity and precision compared to the Trois Sources and has extraordinary notes of blueberries, cassis, black licorice, violets, and crushed stone-like minerality. Incredibly concentrated, massive, and yet perfectly balanced, it has no hard edges and is just an incredible tasting experience. Hide bottles for 4-5 years and enjoy over the following 20-25 years….98+ points.”

VIEILLE JULIENNE CHATEAUNEUF DU PAPE LES TROIS SOURCES 2019-from Jeb Dunnuck, “More cassis, morello cherry, Asian spice, and a beautiful sense of minerality and loamy earth emerge from the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Les Trois Sources, a full-bodied, concentrated blend of 60% Grenache, 15% each of Cinsault and Syrah, and the balance Mourvèdre. Coming all from the estate’s sandy soils in the northern part of the appellation, this incredibly concentrated, textured wine has perfect balance, building tannins, and a great finish. Give this beauty another 4-5 years in the cellar and drink it over the following two decades or more…96+ points.”

LA BASTIDE SAINT DOMINIQUE CHATEAUNEUF DU PAPE LES HESPERIDES 2019– from Jeb Dunnuck , “An even split of Grenache and Mourvèdre brought up mostly in tank (20% in demi-muids), the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Les Hesperides is a dense, meaty, powerful wine offering a monster bouquet of black cherry and blackberry fruits as well as roasted meats, chocolate, bouquet garni, and spice. Beautifully textured on the palate, it’s full-bodied and powerful yet stays light and graceful, with building tannins and a great finish. It’s another head-turning good wine from this estate…97 points.”

CRISTIA CHATEAUNEUF DU PAPE VIEILLES VIGNES 2019-from Jeb Dunnuck, “The 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Vieilles Vignes (100% Grenache) brings more opulence and sexiness, with a more unevolved vibe in its ripe black fruits, violets, toasted spice, and Provençal garrigue-like aromas and flavors. Brought up in equal parts used barrels, new French oak, and demi-muids, it hits the palate with full-bodied richness, a seamless, incredibly elegant texture, ripe tannins, and one hell of a great finish. This is a Grenache lover’s dream, and it should continue drinking brilliantly for another 10-15 years…97 points.” (Also Wine Spectator 96)

CLOS SAINT-JEAN CHÂTEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE LA COMBE DES FOUS 2019-From Jeb Dunnuck, “Sensationally pure cassis and blackberry fruits as well as complex notes of lavender, Provençal garrigue, ground pepper, and flowers all define this full-bodied 2019, which displays the vintage’s ripe, perfumed style while bringing more finesse, elegant, and purity than just about every other wine out there. It’s the finest vintage of this cuvée I’ve tasted and has another 15-20 years of prime drinking ahead of it…100 Points.”

DOMAINE PIERRE USSEGLIO ET FILS CHATEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE RESERVE DES DEUX FRERES 2019–From Jeb Dunnuck, “While the 2020 will include a splash of Syrah, the 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Réserve Des Deux Frères is its normal 100% Grenache and is a selection made in the cellar. In 2019, it ended up being roughly 30% new oak, and I think there were some stems included as well. It’s another magical wine from this estate, boasting a dense purple hue as well as a perfume of black raspberries, cassis, blueberry liqueur, spring flowers, toasted bread, and lavender. Full-bodied on the palate, with an incredible mouthfeel, riveting purity, and ultra-fine tannins, it’s unquestionably one of the all-time greats of this cuvée. Give bottles 3-4 years and enjoy over the following two decades or more…100 points.” Also Wine Advocate 98)

ROGER SABON CHATEAUNEUF DU PAPE CUVEE PRESTIGE 2019-From Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com, “One of the top vintages for this cuvée, the 2019 Chateauneuf du Pape Prestige features intense aromas of black cherries and purple raspberries, without the dark chocolate nuances that appear in the other 2019s at this address. It’s full-bodied, dense and concentrated, big but also silky and fine, with a long, elegant finish. It’s a Grenache-led assemblage of lots from the lieux-dits of les Brusquières and Cabrières…97 points.” (Also Jeb Dunnuck 96, Decanter 95, Wine Advocate 96)

LE CLOS DU CAILLOU “LES QUARTZ” CHÂTEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE 2019– From Jeb Dunnuck, “Moving to the tiny production 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Les Quartz, which is mostly Grenache with around 25% or so of Syrah, it has a rich, full-bodied, dense, and almost backward style to go with powerful black fruits, ground pepper, and violet aromas and flavors. I love its purity of fruit, and it builds nicely with time in the glass, showing more mid-palate depth as well as ripe tannins. It’s a stunning bottle of wine, but patience will be required. Hide bottles for 4-5 years and enjoy over the following two decades…97+ points.” (Also Decanter 96)

SAINT PREFERT CHATEAUNEUF DU PAPE COLLECTION CHARLES GIRAUD 2019– From Jeb Dunnuck, “The 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Collection Charles Giraud includes a big chunk of Mourvèdre and is 60% Grenache and 40% Mourvèdre that was partially destemmed and brought up in demi-muids. If offers a deep ruby/plum color as well as a rich, savory, complex bouquet of black raspberries, cassis, toasted spice, cured meats, and graphite. The Mourvèdre really shows in this beauty, and it’s full-bodied, concentrated, and structured, yet never loses its seamless, flawlessly balanced profile. It’s going to need 4-5 years of bottle age but will have 20-25 years of ultimate longevity. It’s another thrilling wine from this estate…99 points.” (Also Wine Advocate 96)

DOMAINE DE LA CHARBONNIERE CHATEAUNEUF DU PAPE LES HAUTES BRUSQUIERES 2019–From Jeb Dunnuck, “The 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape Cuvée Les Hautes Brusquières (60/40 Grenache and Syrah) comes from a cooler terroir near the Mount Redon plateau and was brought up in oak tronconique tanks and demi-muids. Its dense purple, almost opaque hue is followed by a brilliant perfume of mulled red and black fruits, peppery herbs, crushed stone, violets, and licorice. With full-bodied richness, a layered, multi-dimensional texture, and just about perfect tannins, it’s another superstar wine from this estate that’s up with the finest vintages to date…97 points.” (Also Wine Advocate 95)

CHARVIN CHATEAUNEUF DU PAPE 2019 – From Jeb Dunnuck, “The 2019 Châteauneuf Du Pape from Laurent is the usual blend of 82% Grenache and the rest nearly equal parts Syrah, Mourvèdre, Vaccarèse, and Counoise that was brought up all in concrete tank. It shows the sunny, spicy, Provençal style of the vintage beautifully while still having incredible freshness in its red and black fruits as well as garrigue, ground pepper, spring flowers, and incense aromas and flavors. Gorgeous on the palate as well, this medium to full-bodied Châteauneuf du Pape is balanced and has terrific tannins, no hard edges, and a great finish. Rhône lovers need to have this beauty in their cellar, and it’s going to offer pleasure for a solid two decades…96 points.”

SERIOUSLY GOOD CABERNET

We taste a lot of Cabernets always with the intent of finding the best and the brightest as well as striking values when the opportunity presents itself. It is rare for us to get ‘wowed’. But in the case of The Setting Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley 2019, we were impressed in a way that rarely happens around here.

We’ll give you the winery spiel first, “Known for his ability to extract the deepest expression of each vineyard into his wines, Jesse uses extended barrel time in new and neutral oak, as well as minimal intervention to produce unfined, unfiltered wines that delicately balance purity of fruit with the distinct characters of each site.”

While that sounds like a pretty lofty profile for winemaker/partner Jesse Katz, son of famous photographer Andy Katz, in our experience nothing is overstated. Having spent time a Petrus, Screaming Eagle, Robert Foley, and Vina Cobos, he had the opportunity to work with top of the heap talent and clearly learned his craft well. He was the founding winemaker at Lancaster, and has been getting accolades for his current work at Aperture, and this project is his own. The expectations were high and they have been met if not exceeded.

The 2018 version of this wine were pretty spectacular and collected a number of impressive scores including a 97 from Wine Advocate. There have been no reviews we have seen on this wine yet, but we suspect it will get its due. What is interesting here is that the review on the 2018 from Jeb Dunnuck is pretty much interchangeable with our impressions of The Setting Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley 2019:

“The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Alexander Valley is stunning stuff, offering up a dense purple color as well as both black and blue fruits, notes of lead pencil, crushed stone, graphite, and tobacco, full-bodied richness, ripe, velvety tannins, and a great finish. This powerful, sexy, seamless Cabernet will keep for two decades or more. “

Like the winery press release says, this wine really does deeply express the dark red fruits and spice, layered with chocolate and coffee tones, that is the Alexander Valley at its best. The depth of fruit, power, poise and balance are at a level that few producers achieve at any price. It is one of the most impressive Cabs we have tasted in a very long time and actually represents a value at a price under $100. As you know, we don’t spend a lot of time trying to sell California wines in this kind of price range. But this one is well worth the experience.

ANOTHER EXCEPTIONAL NAPA CAB VALUE FROM KRUTZ

Not to sound like a broken record but we are starting to see at our end of the distribution spectrum the beginning of what we shall call ‘the great nothing’. We’re referring to the anticipated shortage of Cabernet Sauvignon over the next couple of years. If you’ll recall, late wildfires in the fall of 2020, besides destroying a lot of property, created smoke taint on many of the grapes that were still hanging in the vineyards which, at that time of fall, was mainly Cabernet.

A lot of premium wineries are not producing 2020 vintage Cabs. We’ll leave the rest of it to your imagination except for saying that Cab drinkers need to prepare for ‘the gap’. For our part, we are going double-time through Cabernet options, and still finding some pretty cool stuff from the 2018 and 2019 vintages. But as you can imagine, the number of options are shrinking while our standards are unchanged.

In light of that, let us introduce a label that is new to us. Krutz is a family winery that started in 2003 in Monterey with a 60 case production and eventually migrated to Sonoma. Actually first they migrated to California from Mississippi where the brothers Krutz were born. The bottle bears a magnolia on the label (the state flower of Mississippi) to represent their southern roots.

Thought they are located in Sonoma, they make wine from all over the place. For example there is a Pinot Noir from Soberanes Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands, and under their value Magnolia label a Sonoma Cabernet. But it was this Krutz Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2019 that presented us something that was really timely. The fact we could sell this dark, ample, tasty Cabernet for under $40 that made it an even more important find.

The Krutz Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2019 is 100% Cabernet from multiple vineyard sites in the Valley. For the geeks out there, the notes say the soils are ‘mountain rock’ and the vines were Clone 4 and Clone 7. Of more specific interest to us is that the wine saw 22 months in French oak, 50% new. Only 300 cases were produced.

This has classic deep Cabernet color and aromas of chocolate, cassis, and cedar. It has the size and volume in the mouth to please Cabernet fans, a plush palate feel and fine balance. The finish brings back the chocolate plus tobacco and the telltale signs of premium oak in support of the fruit.

With only 300 cases, not a lot of pundits have run across it. But Jeb Dunnuck’s take echoes our own, “The 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon is outstanding. All varietal aged in 50% new oak, it has some pure cassis fruit as well as textbook herbal and tobacco notes. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it’s elegant and has supple tannins, wonderful balance, and a great finish. It could be two to three times the price and still be a good value…93 Points.”

Forty bucks for good Napa Cabernet is a sensational deal in today’s market, particularly given the Cabernet outlook for the next couple of years. But it is also part of our Blue Chip Wine Club, so members can save even more!

ALL-STAR COTES-DU-RHONE FROM AN ICNOIC VINTNER

Yeah, we know. Sometimes we repeat ourselves. But when something is a core value of ours, and has been an important part of our successful, long term acquisition program, it’s worth repeating. We don’t even know how many times we have invoked the “buy little wines from great producers” mantra. We only know that it has worked remarkably well.

Today’s subject is the Cotes-du-Rhone from the delicious 2019 vintage, made by one of the greatest producers of Cote Rotie that you probably never heard of. The vintner is Stephan Ogier, producer of some of the most coveted Cote Roties on the planet. Part of the problem is that he doesn’t make a lot of wine and most folks never see it. We’ve had the good fortune to taste a couple of his master works a few years ago before his wines became virtually ungettable.

In any case, any time we come across something from this talented vintner, we’re interested, and the Stephane Ogier Cotes du Rhone Temps est Venu 2019 definitely got our attention. It is a blend of 60% Grenache, 35% Syrah and 5% Mourvèdre, from Plan de Dieu and Visan, both in the Southern Rhône that is aged in concrete.

The grapes came from vines averaging 30-50 years of age planted in soils of blue clay covered with pebbles. The grapes are harvested by hand and sorted twice, in the vineyard and in the cellar. Then the grapes are whole cluster fermented with natural yeasts.

Joe Czerwinski of Wine Advocate commented, “…it offers attractive scents of garrigue, black cherries and dried spices on the nose, while in the mouth, it’s full-bodied, round and generous. Gently framed by supple tannins and a touch of alcoholic warmth, it hints at cherries jubilee on the finish…89 points.”

We didn’t worry a lot about the score. The man was in a cellarful of potential 100 point Cote Roties so a Cotes du Rhone had a little less of a chance to shine. But here in our chairs we were not so distracted and the texture was clearly more polished than your garden variety Cotes du Rhone, the fruits leaning a little bluer thanks to the higher dose of Syrah. At $18.98, it’s pretty classy juice and about as inexpensive as you’ll find anything from this address.