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Vinous Table: La Maison d’Estournel, Bordeaux, France
Vinous Table, France: Bordeaux
, Aug 2026
Where do you stay in Bordeaux? It’s one of the questions I am asked most often. La Maison d’Estournel has become one of my favorite stops over the last few years. This small, cozy country manor transformed into a hotel offers outstanding hospitality, exceptional food and wine, proximity to châteaux and the modern amenities that international travelers demand.
Chianti Classico: Looking Up
Italy: Tuscany, featured
, Aug 2026
After three very tough vintages, things are looking up in Chianti Classico. The young 2025s hold significant promise, while 2024 is revealing itself to be surprisingly good in spots, despite some inconsistency. That’s a big improvement over 2023 and 2022, when so many producers were impacted by severe weather events that dramatically lowered production and negatively impacted quality. I continue to be impressed with a general trend of increasing quality.
Vinous Table: The Inn at Pound Ridge by Jean-Georges, Pound Ridge, New York
Vinous Table
, Aug 2026
The Inn at Pound Ridge by Jean-Georges is a jewel of a restaurant in one of the prettiest and most quaint towns in New York’s Westchester County. The Inn has become a family favorite. Food, wine and service are all superb, and yet the casual setting makes the Inn extremely versatile for anything from a family gathering to a date night.
Vatan Sancerre Clos La Néore: 2005-2022
France: Loire, Verticals & Retrospectives, featured
, Aug 2026
Mention Clos La Néore and oenophiles’ ears immediately perk up. One of the world’s rarest and most distinctive whites, Clos La Néore represents the pinnacle of artisan farming and winemaking. This vertical spanning thirteen vintages back to 2005 showed Clos La Néore in many facets, from wines driven by steely minerality to those marked by textural richness and weight. With one or two exceptions, the wines were superb.
Vinous Table: La Fontaine De Mars, Paris, France
France, Vinous Table
, Aug 2026
Readers in search of a classic bistro on Paris’s Left Bank will want to check out La Fontaine De Mars. Located near the Eiffel Tower, La Fontaine De Mars opened in 1908 and offers a super-classic old Paris vibe.
The Original Napa Valley Icon: Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon S.L.V.
napa, Verticals & Retrospectives, featured, United States: California
, Aug 2026
Fifty years ago, Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars’ 1973 Cabernet Sauvignon Stag’s Leap Vineyards bested some of France’s best-known wines at an unassuming blind tasting. That tasting, chronicled as the Judgment of Paris, became a cultural phenomenon that changed the wine world. On the eve of the 50th anniversary of this momentous occasion, Vinous was thrilled to host a deep retrospective of the estate’s Cabernet Sauvignon S.L.V. going back to the 1973.
Remembering David Hirsch
Vinous Remembers, United States: California
, Aug 2026
The wine world lost a trailblazing pioneer when David Hirsch passed away on July 28, 2026. He was 81 years old.
Tuscany’s Maremma: Scenes from the Coast
Italy: Tuscany, featured
, Jul 2026
The Tuscan Maremma is home to some of Italy’s most iconic estates and wines, showing what is possible in a region that was once marshland. These labels have garnered considerable critical acclaim over the years and become favorites with consumers around the world. And yet within the context of fine wine, Maremma is a very young region. Only a small handful of estates are in their third generation, and virtually all others are much younger. My most recent round of tastings revealed a region in the middle of a radical transformation.
Vinous Table: Origines, Paris, France
Vinous Table
, Jul 2026
Vinous readers planning to spend time in Paris will want to book a table at Origines. Located in the 8th Arrondissement, Origines is a showcase for Chef Julien Boscus’s ingredient-driven, seasonal cuisine. Guests can choose from several tasting menus plus à la carte dining. The menu is small, which I always view as a sign of focus, but that also means guests with dietary restrictions are best served by planning ahead. Wine Director and Chef Sommelier Adrien Butko offers a thoughtful, highly curated wine program. Prices are quite reasonable by Parisian standards.
Dom Pérignon Rosé Through the Decades at Vinous Icons
France: Champagne, Verticals & Retrospectives, featured
, Jul 2026
“What is the greatest tasting you have ever gone to?” It’s one of the questions I am asked most often. Of course, it is an impossible question to answer. A few events come to mind. One is an extraordinary tasting of Dom Pérignon Rosé I attended in 2015. That evening was the inspiration for a very special Dom Pérignon Rosé lunch we hosted recently at Vinous Icons.