Featured Wines - January 2021

A traditional Bordeaux blend of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Verdot from the outstanding 2018 vintage, the 2018 Château Tour de Gilet can rightly lay claim to be the finest wine to date from this overachieving property. And that says a lot given this château’s enviable track record under Claude Gaudin. Although always bolder and richer in flavor than most Petits Châteaux, Claude Gaudin’s 2018 Château Tour de Gilet truly shines, offering...

Ottosoldi is one of the most consistent producers of Gavi and the 2019 vintage in Gavi was another banner year for Cortese and Italy’s Piedmont. Ottosoldi’s 2019 Gavi D.O.C.G. once again embodies the essence of the Cortese varietal – supreme elegance and impeccable balance. From the wine’s pale yellow sun-splashed color to its long, snappy, dry finish, the 2019 Ottosoldi Gavi offers delightful drinking. Fragrant with floral scents and the delicate aromas of pear and citrus...

The sensuous, sophisticated, suave and downright delicious 2016 Viña Magna Seis Meses Ribera del Duero makes a strong case for Dominio Basconcillos as one of Ribera del Duero’s top ten producers. This organic offering, which earned 90 points from the Decanter World Wine Awards, emanates from selected lots of grapes grown on a mixture of gravel and clay soils, which provide superb drainage and impart complexity as well as a diversity of flavors to this...

A vibrant medium-bodied wine, the 2016 Patient Cottat Menetou-Salon embodies the essence of Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc. It offers an intense nose of exotic fruits, gooseberry, and white peach. Racy and crisp on the palate, it fills the mouth with tangy grapefruit, melon, fig, and herbal flavors. In the mouth, the wine’s citrus tones play counterpoint to the wine’s ingratiating minerality thanks to Menetou-Salon’s celebrated mineral-rich soil. Precision and vibrancy...

Under Christian Veyry’s ownership, Château Louvie continues its meteoric rise. A stellar performance in the exceptional 2015 vintage has imbued the dense, full-bodied 2015 Château Louvie Saint-Émilion Grand Cru (80% Merlot, 20% Cabernet Franc) with everything one can expect from a top notch Saint-Émilion Grand Cru. Deeply colored, seductively aromatic, and rich in flavor, this opulent red offers compelling notes of woodland berries, cassis, dark fruits, cedar, and chocolate...

Always quintessential Sonoma Chardonnay, Walt’s 2018 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay (92 points – Wine Enthusiast) truly dazzles the eyes, entices the nose, and caresses the palate. Radiant and sun splashed in the glass, the 2018 Walt Sonoma Coast Chardonnay emits an intoxicating array of floral and fruit aromas in the form of acacia, forsythia, pineapple, and pear, with delicate infusions of toasted hazelnut and creamy vanilla, too. The wine’s palate appeal is...

By selecting six of the appellation’s 13 legal red varieties and plots known for delivering freshness, the team at Château de Nalys has imbued the superb 2016 Saintes Pierres de Nalys Châteauneuf-du-Pape (93 Points – Wine Enthusiast; 92 Points – Wine Advocate) with a cornucopia of hedonistic scents and flavors that one can fully enjoy immediately as well as a decade from now. Raspberry, black cherry, and plum flavors grace the nose and palate. Infused with subtle hints of...