Featured Wines - December 2006

The 2005 Nora Albarino is classic Albarino: highly aromatic, deep, and dry. However, set in a balanced, medium body, the 2005 Nora is perhaps the friendliest, most flamboyant Albarino wine we have ever tasted. An enchanting bouquet of peach, pear, and dried exotic fruits tantalizes the nose. And on the palate, this wine offers an even sharper image of Albarino, offering up a beautiful taste of exotic fruit, followed by a long, deep down mid palat...

The 2002 Lanzerac Classic from Stellenbosch embodies all the qualities one seeks in a world class red wine. Serve the regal Lanzerac Classic and listen as your guests sing its praises. A deep royal purple tinged with ruby flashes speak to the noble nature of this stunning South African blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec. A robust, fruity aroma mingles with clear mineral and earth fragrances. A faint big game scent rai...

Brooding, packed, and completely hedonistic, the 2003 Domaine Père Pape La Crau de Ma Mère Châteauneuf-du-Pape is great Châteauneuf-du-Pape in the making. First and foremost, it is essential to state that the 2003 La Crau de Ma Mère is no lightweight, despite its formidable up front appeal, lush texture, and flamboyant flavor profile. It tops out at more than 14.5% alcohol, but it never appears out of balance. The wine is deep in color and the no...

Wow! Elegant. Tasty. Eminently drinkable. All describe the 2004 La Cappuccina Madégo. This offering from La Cappuccina shines with a deep ruby color and entices with a clean, berry fruit aroma that promises sun-drenched ripeness and pleasing flavors. Harvested entirely from the Madégo vineyard – thus explaining the wine's name – this 2004 meritage style red blends Cabernet Sauvignon (70%) with equal measures of Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Based on...

"Ahh . . . soft, scented, and sophisticated, there is nothing quite like white Burgundy now is there," extolled one of our panel members upon first savoring the 2004 Amiot Guy et Fils Chassagne-Montrachet Vielles Vignes. Indeed, there is no other white wine more rewarding than estate bottled Chassagne-Montrachet, the finest white Burgundy and the quintessential Chardonnay. And Guy Amiot's 2004 Chassagne-Montrachet Vielles Vignes is certainly one ...

The 2005 Casa Silva Reserva Viognier is, indeed, the finest Viognier wine we have ever tasted from South America. Moreover, it is also one of the finest New World examples of the mercurial Viognier grape that we have ever tasted. Kudos to winemaker Mario Geise and the Casa Silva team for fashioning such a splendid Viognier! Up front, in your face, amplifying Viognier, the 2005 Casa Silva Reserva sports a knockout nose that is loaded with pure rip...

It is hard to believe that such a young, richly robed, highly charged wine as the 2003 Domaine De Villemajou Corbières can, also, be so drinkable and downright pleasurable at a tender age. However, this just underscores the greatness of the Languedoc and the very high level of wine making that is practiced at Domaine De Villemajou. The 2003 Domaine De Villemajou is a work of Provencal art. From an amplifying nose, redolent with the scent of roses...