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The Prisoner and Matt Cline’s “CMZ” Since 1982, when he discovered the old vines of Contra Costa planted at the turn of the 20th century by Portuguese and Italian immigrants, Matt Cline has crafted luscious single-vineyard reds in the classical spirit of Paul Draper at Ridge Vineyards. Sixteen years later, a brilliant newcomer named Dave…
“Established 1885” but Going STRONG in 2016! The impassioned stories of the Italian and Portuguese immigrants who carved Zinfandel, Carignane, Mataro, Black Malvoisie, and Alicante Bouschet saplings into the white sands of Contra Costa have been well-documented on these pages. As many of the family patriarchs had been wine-grape farmers in the old country, on…
Wine Advocate’s 91 points: The Hottest Little Red in France It made little sense to anyone at the time. Michel Chapoutier is one of the most revered winemakers in France. His Hermitages and Côte-Rôties are the Northern Rhône equivalent of Bordeaux’s First Growths, garnering more perfect 100-point reviews from The Wine Advocate in the last…
Winemaker of the Year “Delivers the Goods” “The ultimate viniculturist.” That’s what Australia’s greatest critic, James Halliday, called Bleasdale winemaker Paul Hotker after naming him 2017-2018 Winemaker of the Year. The award caps an unprecedented hot streak dating to 2007, when Hotker arrived at Bleasdale. Since then, Hotker has turned out 11 wines rated 95…
Wine Advocate: “A terrific example of how much wine one can buy for under $25 a bottle!” In December 2012, Robert Parker sold a controlling interest in The Wine Advocate to a group of Singapore investors. While press releases insisted that Parker would be maintaining an active role in the company, some suggested that the…
Galloni gushes: “That wine is so **** good!” We ran into Antonio Galloni last December at an event in Manhattan. Every time we see each other, the conversation always turns to wine — what else? We mentioned that we’d be offering the 2013 Castello ColleMassari Montecucco Rosso Riserva. Galloni had tasted the wine a few weeks…
2013 Fattoria di Basciano “I Pini” — Wine Spectator’s “Seamless” 94-pointer The Masi family purchased the magnificent, sprawling estate in 1900. One thousand feet above sea level, about 45 minutes south of Florence, from the upper level of the ancient watchtower (now beautifully restored) one looks down on the Argomenna Valley on one side and…
Quintessa is one of Napa’s premier estates, situated on royal Rutherford terroir literally across the road from Michelin-starred Auberge du Soleil. But the real beauty of the property begins out of sight, far beyond the road, where a private glass-encased tasting space opens up to views of a lake and perfectly manicured rows of prized…
Matt Cline’s Run at ‘The Prisoner’ Since 1982, when he discovered the old vines of Contra Costa — planted by Portuguese and Italian immigrants before the turn of the 20th century — Matt Cline has crafted some of the most intensely concentrated if classically structured single-vineyard reds in the New World. In 1998, a young…
Mea Culpa at VinItaly: Riccardo Baracchi’s 93-point Super Tuscan of the Year In 1971, the Marchese Incisa della Rocchetta released the first vintage of Sassicaia, a 1968 Tuscan Cabernet Sauvignon drawn off a small hand-tended vineyard in Bolgheri. That same year saw Piero Antinori craft a Bordeaux blend off an estate in Santa Cristina that…
The “Extraordinary” 2014 Vintage on Mt. Etna and #3 on Wine Enthusiast’s Top 100 In December of 2015, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate published its 2014 vintage report on Sicily, awarding a 97-point score —“Extraordinary” by Parker’s rating scale and the highest EVER given to the region. While the Italian mainland had its most challenging growing…
The Bean Counters, Chapoutier and “Cost Plus Ten” Give this one to the Bean Counters. In January 2015, we approached a number of our closest importer partners with a concept called “Cost Plus Ten.” They agreed to come clean with the winery’s ex-cellar prices. We agreed to pay a 10% upcharge … and also to…
Parker’s “Most Illustrious” Winemaker’s Prized Napa Terroir Blackbird Vineyards winemaker Aaron Pott worked with Michel Rolland and John Kongsgaard — before joining superstar Saint-Émilion estates Château Troplong Mondot Premier Grand Cru Classé and Château La Tour Figeac, little wonder Robert Parker describes him“in the top hierarchy of Napa Valley’s most illustrious winemaking consultants.” In fact,…
Chad’s Blockbuster Super Cuvée from Spectator’s “Dream Vintage” We agreed to meet Chad at the Oxbow Market in Napa to taste what he called his “super cuvée.” He had arrived ahead of us, and was seated at a table near the Fieldwork Brewing Company, having a Pilsner and polishing Riedel glasses. In all our years…
Washington’s Lafite-Rothschild Delivers “Yum Factor” Critics adore DeLille Cellars and its 2014 “D2.” The winery Robert Parker called “the Lafite-Rothschild of Washington State” regularly earns praise “for the way their wines combine sheer fruit intensity and structure,” as Vinousputs it. In its 93-point review, Wine Enthusiast extols the 2014 DeLille “D2” for its “high yum…
Three Shades of Red — From Del Posto to The French Laundry Just south of Florence at the center of Chianti, you’ll find “Chianti Classico,” the sweet spot. And at the center of Chianti Classico, you’ll find the 720 acres of Isole e Olena, soaring 1,300 feet above sea level. For six decades, the De…
Breaking open Thomas Keller’s “Padlock” At age 15, Thomas Keller found himself washing dishes at the Palm Beach Yacht Club for $4/hour. But even as he sponged plates and polished silverware, young Keller couldn’t keep his eyes off “the line.” Several months later, he was promoted, trading his washcloth for a set of J.A. Henckel…
Wine Spectator Cover Boy: Decadence on Central Coast In 2009, we were just getting our sea legs. That spring, we got our first call from Joey Tensley. Joey is a gregarious guy with an oh-shucks farm-boy demeanor that all but hides the disarming intelligence that lurks behind the scenes. But with the country locked in…
A Wine Access Client Favorite Returns in New Vintage The 2014 Titus Vineyard Andronicus Proprietary Red is one of the most anticipated labels we’re offering this year. Just last week Wine Access clients snapped up our entire allocation in hours. Thanks to Chappellet mastermind Phillip Titus for offering up another 75 cases of his own…
Leo Trentadue’s “Old Patch Red” Lot #41 Evelyn and Leo Trentadue carried on the Italian family’s long tradition of farming when they settled in Northern California. But by the late 1950s, there was little market for apples, prunes, pears, and table grapes. As developers encroached upon their orchards, already blueprinting what would eventually come to…
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