Coombsville isn’t the first place most people think of when they think “Napa Cab.” And that’s kind of the point. Tucked into Napa’s southeastern corner, closer to the bay than to Highway 29, it’s cooler here. Slower. The soils are volcanic ash and cobblestone. The fog lingers. And the wines—well, they’re different.
“Un Rosé très osé” — that’s how Didier Gimonnet describes this wine. “A very daring rosé.” And coming from a house that built its reputation on crystalline Blanc de Blancs, it is at least a little daring — but in the most Gimonnet way possible.
Ask a Piemontese winemaker what they drink with lunch, and odds are, it’s not Barolo. It’s Barbera. Or maybe Nebbiolo—but not the kind that needs a decade in the cellar. These are what we call the Little Grapes of Piedmont, though there's nothing small about their charm, versatility, or place on the local table. They remind us that Piedmont is far more than just a hunting ground for trophy collectors.
Every year, when the new vintage of Arnot-Roberts Pinot Noirs land, we get excited. Not because they’re flashy or hyped — they’re not — but because they deliver something that has been far too rare in California for far too long: purity, precision, and place.
It's so good, it's tempting to call it Baby Puligny. But that misses the point. Carillon's Bourgogne Blanc isn't a stand-in—it's the real deal: a true Bourgogne Blanc of the old school.
For decades, sparkling wine from Catalonia has meant Cava. But recently, a select group of quality-minded producers—including the visionary Recaredo—has moved beyond the generic Cava label, creating the new designation Corpinnat. This small group prioritizes sustainability, hand-crafted quality, and indigenous grape varieties, setting far stricter standards than traditional Cava regulations.
Sancerre (check out our Ultimate Guide to Sancerre) season has begun, and we’ve got the perfect wine to kick it off: Lucien Crochet’s 2023 Sancerre Blanc “Croix de Roy”.
Crochet has long been one of the best in the entire Loire, and a cornerstone of the Neal Rosenthal portfolio for over 40 years. They have some of the best plots in the village of Bué, where the domaine is based, as well as Vinon and Crézancy (yes, like Burgundy or Champagne, Sancerre has its own set of villages with distinct personalities).
Von Winning emphasizes gentle, thoughtful winemaking, relying on spontaneous fermentations and aging in large old barrels rather than stainless steel. They produce wines of intense precision, texture, and subtle complexity. Their approach underscores that Riesling from the Pfalz can offer the best of both worlds: richness balanced by elegance.
Galloni calls Roagna’s Langhe Rosso “fabulous”, but longtime readers of this newsletter will already know that this stunning Piedmont gem is all that and more.
We’ve just received our allocation of Roagna’s Langhe Rosso, a wine which is part Barolo, part Barbaresco, and entirely fabulous, oozing with Piedmont elegance and intensity.
In Avize, there’s an unusual producer quietly shaping the future of Champagne. Sanger isn't a typical domaine: it’s the teaching winery of Avize Viti Campus, the region’s premier winemaking school. This isn’t just a place where Champagne is made—it’s a place where Champagne is learned, explored, and perfected, vintage after vintage.
For us, the Touraine – a subregion of the Loire Valley (See our complete guide to the Loire Valley) – has always been very “useful”. Need a cheap Sauvignon Blanc? The Touraine usually has an answer for you.
A new producer has set out to prove that the Touraine is far more than merely useful. His name is Valentin Desloges.
If you’ve yet to discover Vincent Paris—or if you simply haven’t checked in lately—this wine is a perfect introduction to his evolving vision. Paris doesn't merely carry forward his uncle's legacy; he's writing the next chapter for Cornas, demonstrating why this once-rustic region has become essential drinking.
