Soave also has its share of Foillards – a handful of producers who make great wines from top terroirs using traditional or enlightened methods, usually both. Pieropan may be the best of them. Among their lineup are two singe-vineyard bottlings from the heart of the Soave Classico zone, where old vines grow in volcanic soils at fairly high altitudes.
Posted on August 16, 2023
Jeff Patten
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Today's special place is to the north of the Loire Valley, on a tributary confusingly named the Loir (our spell check so badly wants to add the "e"). Here, those generations of experimenters discovered that it happens to be a perfect place to grow a grape they call Pineau de la Loire (this time you really do need the "e") but everyone else calls Chenin Blanc.
Posted on August 13, 2023
Jeff Patten
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When Andre Almaric purchased the Domaine de Marquiliani estate in 1954 he had his work cut out for him. Twenty years earlier the estate was mostly destroyed in a series of fires and it had been abandoned and in a state of disrepair ever since. In the ruins, he saw an opportunity to carve out a life and legacy for himself.
Posted on August 09, 2023
Jeff Patten
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Ciro Biondi is one of the key players in the renaissance that has made Mount Etna one of the greatest wine spots in Italy, and the world. Little known even 20 years ago, wine geeks worldwide now seek out these amazing wines made from ancient vines, indigenous grapes, high altitudes and terroir that is so exotically volcanic that you can still see lava flowing nearby.
Posted on August 06, 2023
Lee Madueno
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The name John Paul Cameron has become synonymous with the best Pinot Noir and Chardonnay made this side of France. He isn't a household name simply because very little of his wines leave his home state of Oregon, many destined for the best restaurants in Portland or the cellars Burgundy collectors, as John’s wine’s are well loved by even those who drink wines exclusively from the Cote d’Or.
Posted on August 02, 2023
Lee Madueno
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In recent years, the world of Rosé wine seems to have gone straight from sweet white Zinfandels to the palest, lightest pink wines imaginable, usually from Provence, but increasingly from every other corner of the wine world as well.
All of this, of course, misses a very important wine category, that we’ll just call “Serious Rosé”
Posted on July 31, 2023
Lee Madueno
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Trediberri is a couple, Stefania and NIcolas Oberto, making Barolo in La Morra, the village known for its elegance and pretty aromatics. A few years ago, our colleagues in New York “discovered” them, when they showed up at the New York shop and told us they were looking for a U.S. importer. After tasting their unbelievably good wines, we put them in touch with some good people and the rest is history. Trediberri has since become the latest Barolo sensation in America.
Posted on July 26, 2023
Jeff Patten
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Danilo Thomain is the only independent vigneron working in Hell. Well, not strictly "Hell," but a tiny Valle d’Aosta vineyard charmingly named Enfer d’Arvier, French for "The Hell of Arvier." There’s nothing devilish about the wine, though. In fact, it’s one of our favorite off-the-beaten path Italian reds, full of the particular charms of this Alpine region: silky texture, ripe brambly-berry fruit, racy acidity, and a cooling mountain herbaceousness.
Posted on July 23, 2023
Lee Madueno
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La Pépie is racy, crisp, acid and mineral driven; beautifully balanced by a hint of richness from the sur lie factor. A perfect encapsulation of Marc Olivier's exceptional terroir as well as Pépière’s precise and clean, natural winemaking style.
Posted on July 19, 2023
Lee Madueno
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Just like in years past, Tessier’s 2021 “Phil’en Bulle” is one of the best pet-nats around. Brisk and bright, that year spent on its lees gives the palette a serious density with layers of almond, citrus oil, white stone fruit and caramel. Finished long and refreshing this is an exceptional food wine that will go with almost anything. It also happens to make the best French 75.
Posted on July 16, 2023
Lee Madueno
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As much as we love Barolo and Barbaresco, it’s always fun to point out that these together make up only 3% of all the wines produced in Piedmont. In Piedmont, they are considered wines for the tourists. The locals drink what are affectionately known as the “little” wines, and chief among them is Barbera d’Alba.
Posted on July 12, 2023
Lee Madueno
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Among the many great winemakers from Burgundy who have landed on the West Coast and are making wine here, the most exciting of all might be a relatively recent arrival, Etienne de Montille of Domaine de Montille and Château Puligny-Montrachet. His wines are sought after by all those who love Burgundy, especially fellow winemakers.
Posted on July 05, 2023
Lee Madueno
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