Bernard Defaix: A tour of Chablis’ Left Bank
By Josh Shapiro
The hierarchy of Chablis is beautifully logical. When a producer gets it right, you can literally taste your way up the ladder, feeling the terroir shift and the intensity build...
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Azelia: A Great Old School Barolo Normale from a Top New School Producer
By Floribeth Kennedy
There’s no shortage of flash in Barolo these days, with sleek new cellars, soaring scores, crus that demand cult-like devotion. But in the hills of Castiglione Falletto, Azelia keeps to...
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Farella: Cool Climate Napa Cabernet
By Josh Shapiro
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...
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“Un Rosé très osé”: Pierre Gimonnet’s "Daring" Rosé Champagne
By Josh Shapiro
“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,...
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Little Grapes from Michele Chiarlo
By Floribeth Kennedy
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....
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Arnot-Roberts: Story-Telling with Pinot Noir
By Josh Shapiro
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...
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Not Baby Puligny—Better: Carillon’s Old-School Bourgogne Blanc
By Josh Shapiro
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...
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Recaredo Corpinnat Brut Nature "Terrers" 2019: A New Catalan Classic
By Josh Shapiro
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...
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Lucien Crochet’s Happy Medium Sancerre
By Josh Shapiro
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...
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Von Winning: The Forster from the Pfalz
By Josh Shapiro
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....
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When Barolo and Barbaresco Meet: Roagna's Lovely Langhe Rosso
By Floribeth Kennedy
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...
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Sanger Champagne "Voyage 360" Brut Nature: Champagne’s Great Teaching Moment
By Josh Shapiro
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....
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Chapter 1 from Les Quatre Piliers
By Josh Shapiro
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?...
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Evolving Cornas by Vincent Paris
By Josh Shapiro
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...
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