New Wine Arrivals

Rhone Report 90-93"Tasted as a tank sample and a blend of 70% Grenache and 30% Syrah, the 2010 Domaine Vindemio Côtes du Ventoux Regain (aged all in stainless steel) is a beautifully proportioned Côtes du Ventoux that delivers loads of pure black cherry and currant styled fruit that’s intermixed

Neal Martin 90"The Panigon has a candied bouquet with baked red cherries, touches of dark chocolate and dried orange peel. The palate is medium-bodied with fine, lithe tannins. There is lovely purity here, whilst the finish is focused and long. This is a little gem. Drink now-2018. Tasted

Robert Parker 90"The sensational 2011 Vin de Pays Syrah-Sublime (100% Syrah) reveals sumptuous notes of spring flowers, blackberries, cassis, licorice and forest floor. Drink this complex, textured, full-bodied vin de pays over the next 2-3 years, although it may last even longer."

Wine Advocate 94"The 2011 P.F. is also from Iniesta and sees 10 months aging in 600-liter used French oak. The nose is broody and demands coaxing, reluctantly offering black currant, cranberry, cold stones and a touch of boysenberry jam. The palate is offers an effervescent entry – this wine just

Robert Parker 90"The early-bottled, gorgeous 2012 Miraflors Rose is a blend of 70% Mourvedre and 30% Grenache Gris that was aged on its lees for four months prior to bottling. Its beautiful color is accompanied by scents of framboise, earth and strawberries presented in a medium-bodied,

Wine Spectator 90"This shows fine depth and balance, revealing black cherry and blackberry notes on a supple texture. Hints of citrus and bitter almond appear on the lingering finish. Drink now through 2014.""A true Barbera specialist, the family making this lush red wines prides themselves on

Wine Advocate 91-93"The 2011 Almirez was tasted as a final blend, although bottling was planned for the month following my visit. It comes from vineyards in Valdefinjas and Toro from vines between 15 and 65 years in age. The “crazy” thermal jumps meant there was much more freshness in this

Wine Spectator 90“In a blind tasting of a flight of Provençal rosés at Wine Spectator’s New York office, the wine was refined and elegant, with pure flavors of dried red berry and tangerine, and a focused finish with flint and spice notes...The Cotes de Provence rosé is a blend of redgrapes

Wine Advocate 90"Villa Medoro’s 2011 Trebbiano d’Abruzzo Chimera is richer, rounder and a bit more polished than the straight Trebbiano. A note of gunflint and crushed rocks at times recalls Meursault in this gorgeous, vibrant white. Layers of melon, white peaches and flowers meld into the

Wine Advocate 92"The 2010 Monastrell comes from 40-year-old vines cropped at 2.5 tons per hectare and aged for 12 months in French oak barrels. It has a clean fresh nose of bilberry and blackberry that is well defined and elegant for a 15% alcohol wine. The palate is medium-bodied with an

Wine Spectator 91"Vibrant, generous and expressive, offering cherry and pomegranate flavors, with fine tannins wrapped around a hint of green tea on the finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Sangiovese and Alicante Bouschet. Drink now through 2016."—H.S.

Rhone Report 91"Comprised of 80% Garnacha and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon aged for 20 months in French and American oak barrels and foudre, the 2010 Conreria d’Scala Dei Priorat Black Slate Escaladei is an energetic, beautifully lifted and elegant Priorat that delivers plenty of jammy black raspberry,

Wine Spectator 92“An elegant style, this is sleek in body and rich and layered in flavor, with a subtle display of ripe spice, baked apple, citrus, pear and honeysuckle flavors. Ends with a tapered finish that shows fine toasty oak. Drink now through 2018.” James Laube April 8, 2013" Each

Wine Advocate 95"The 2009 Antiguos Vinedos comes from four small plots cropped at 3,500 kilogram per hectare, a selection of old vines then raised in new and used oak for 14 months. It has a startlingly fresh bouquet with wild strawberry, raspberry leaf and crushed stone, straight out of the

Wine Advocate 94-96" Although these wines are normally reviewed by my colleagues David Schildknect in his Languedoc-Roussillon and Alsace reports and Lisa Perrotti-Brown in her reviews of Australian wines, I tasted them during my visit with Chapoutier, so I will include them in this report as they

Wine Advocate 93"The opaque purple-colored 2010 Tarima Hill exhibits notes of chocolate fudge, pen ink, graphite, blueberries and blackberries. This full-bodied, 100% Monastrell should drink well for a decade or more. These amazing efforts taste more like they should cost $30 to $50 as opposed to

Wine Advocate 91"The 2011 Tilia Merlot undergoes a 20-day skin maceration and is aged in oak for six to nine months. It has a lovely nose, one of the best I have found for this varietal, with vibrant dark cherry, black plum and mineral notes. The palate is well-balanced with fine tannins. It is

Wine Spectator 96" A gorgeous wine that deftly balances polished cassis, dark cherry reduction and blueberry notes on a compact frame. This is structured, with silky tannins lining the long finish that lingers on with hints of apple wood, spice box and underbrush. Carmenère, Cabernet Sauvignon and

Robert Parker 95 "A candidate for wine of the vintage, the 2009 Châteauneuf-du-Pape (a tank-aged blend of 90% Grenache and the rest Mourvedre, Syrah and Cinsault from 80+ year old vines) is a naked expression of Châteauneuf-du-Pape that is pure fruit and complexity. Its dense purple color is

Wine Spectator 90 WS TOP 100 2011 Rank 51"A ripe red, offering ample acidity to support the jammy kirsch, plum sauce and wild berry coulis notes that are framed by medium tannins, with the finish pumping out hints of smoke, spice box and graphite. Drink now through 2017. 60,000 cases imported."

Wine Advocate 93"The 2010 Zolo Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is a worthy follow-up to the 2009. It has a sedate, well-defined bouquet of kirsch, cranberry, raspberry and that gravel note. The palate is full-bodied and well-balanced with earthy ripe black fruit. It is a little broody, but draws you

Robert Parker 96-98+"The 2010 Chateauneuf du Pape Cuvee Reservee, which I tasted from several foudres, is essentially equivalent in quality, but it has not yet been bottled. If I understood Paul Feraud correctly, he tends to prefer the 2009, but says Laurence prefers the 2010. In any event, this

Robert Parker 95"Dense ruby/purple, it tips the scales at 15% natural alcohol and was bottled unfined and unfiltered. Full-bodied in texture, it offers up loads of blueberry, blackberry and raspberry fruit intermixed with some cedar, vanilla and a touch of spring flowers. Impressively built, with

Wine Spectator 90"Zesty and racy, with floral raspberry and cinnamon aromas that lead to lively and appealing flavors of cherry, spice, herb and anise. Drink now through 2018." 3,330 cases made. ~T.F.

James Suckling 97“Amazing aromas of black truffles, crushed blackberries and dark chocolate. Driedflowers too. Full-bodied, with wonderful fruit that is layered and gorgeous. The finish isfruity, long and stylish. Give it three years to come together. Best after 2013."Wine Advocate 94