I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes in a “mini-review” format.
They are meant to be quirky, fun, and (mostly) easily-digestible reviews of (mostly) currently available wines (click here for the skinny on how to read them), so you can get right to the point and decide if they’re for you (or not). Cheers!
- 2014 Chateau Cartier Saint-Emilion Grand Cru (Saint-Emilion): Still very much delightfully energetic, and energetically delightful. $30 B+
- 2018 Domaine les Carmels ‘Les Caprices’ (Cadillac Cotes de Bordeaux): Pucker up, because the earthy vibrancy rarely quits when sipping this one. $25 B
- 2015 Cellier des Dauphins ‘Les Dauphins’ (Cotes du Rhone): Massive bonus points awarded for retaining chocolaty tastiness after all this time. $11 B
- 2018 Muller-Catoir Scheurebe Trocken (Pfalz): Flint, spice, and Asian pear in a rhythmic and repetitive dance. $25 B
- 2020 Cline Cellars Ancient Vines Zinfandel (Contra Costa County): The vines are ancient, the style is modern, and the espresso bean and pepper action is almost irresistible. $20 B+
- 2019 Sonoma-Cutrer Les Pierres Chardonnay (Sonoma Valley): Tastes good, and it knows it, and isn’t afraid to flaunt it in big, showy ways, either. $33 B+
- 2018 Cameron Hughes Lot 729 Pinot Noir (Russian River Valley): A floral, earthy, easy-to-imbibe steal. $16 A-
- 2018 Dutcher Crossing Cut Root Vineyard Pinot Noir (Russian River Valley): Fruitiness that’s both plush and elegant? Uhm, yeah, we’re down with that. $56 A-
- 2019 Dutcher Crossing Sauvignon Blanc (Sonoma County): Tropical, balanced, vivacious—you could ask for me, but you’d have to be seriously greedy to do so. $33 A-
- 2018 Vina Maquis Cabernet Sauvignon (Colchagua Valley): Enough toast, jam, bacon, and stewed red berry fruit for a proper English breakfast. $20 B+