- Even though we are big fans of the 2019 Beaujolais, we haven’t done a lot of offers. The reason is simple. The boats of course, and a lot of our favorites are from smaller producers that don’t necessarily have a lot of any one bottling that we could get behind in an email. Given the current shipping logjams, things are arriving haphazardly as well. That doesn’t say anything about the quality. The 2019s are right behind the 2015s in our mind, perhaps a little lighter on their feet but gushing with cool, sweet, plush fruit and tender personalities. They are absolutely engaging At the moment we have a number of selections from house favorite Daniel Bouland and we’d suggest you give this proven Beaujolais star a good looking over while they are here. Great notes from Wine Advocate’s William Kelly.
- We’ve been following Domaine Olivier Hillaire since he purchased a part of the Domaine de Relagnes estate back in 2006 which included 3 ha. of Chateauneuf and 5 ha of Cotes du Rhone. The estate makes dense, rich, mouth-filling reds and typically gets good reviews, yet for some reason typically doesn’t evoke the same kind of enthusiasm from consumers. The 2019 Hillaire Cotes du Rhone Vieilles Vignes is a knockout. A blend of mainly Grenache (60%) with some Syrah (40%), it explodes in the mouth with authoritative dark cherry and plum fruit, some spice notes, and underpinnings of subtle earthy minerality. We have been impressed with a very high percentage of the 2019s Cotes du Rhones we have tasted thus far, but this one seems to have another gear and surprising length. It’s silly good for this kind of price.
- Boats have continued to be a problem as ports are jammed, shipments are backed up, and in some cases it has even been difficult to find a container to put the wines in because of over-the-top demand for shipping. In any case one important boat got in…the one carrying a load of top flight 2016 Brunellos. We’ll try and keep it concise for now, but these words from Antonio Galloni make the salient point about the vintage, “But now the big question is: Do the 2016s live up to our expectations? Oh, yes; they certainly do…Is There Really Any Such Thing as a Perfect Vintage? Many producers throughout Montalcino would say that there is, and the example that they would give you would be the 2016 vintage. To quote Francesco Ripaccioli of Canalicchio di Sopra in the northern eastern part of Montalcino, ‘…if we could control the climate of a vintage artificially, I believe that I would program it to be just like the year 2016.’…I heard many quotes like this one during the course of my conversations with producers. ” Consider this an ‘early bird alert’. There will be much written about the vintage, and we’ll no doubt send offers on items where quantities support it. But there are things that may not last that long so do yourself a favor and have a look. This is a great vintage. Shop the 2016 Brunellos.
- We met Gianni Venica Sr. many years ago and, through him, we came to understand the passion and dedication it takes to make brilliant ‘naked’ wines. With top notch Italian whites, they truly are made in the vineyard to show the purity and style of the fruit and the site. If you don’t do everything right, there are no quick winemaking fixes that wouldn’t stick out like the proverbial sore thumb. Wee have been following this producer, now in the hands of Gianni Jr., for decades and would like to point to his newest effort, the Venica & Venica Pinot Grigio Jesera 2019, is stunning. Exotic fruit, crisp acids, surprising substance, and engaging tactile quality, this is Pinot Grigio at another level. This year they employed some extended skin contact, called ramato, which adds to the ‘dazzle’. You’ll note the color is slightly pink as a result (Pinot Grigio has pink skin). A ’92’ from Vinous, this one is special.
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