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Alto Piemonte: Small Is Beautiful
Italy: Piedmont, featured
, Feb 2024
Alto Piemonte remains one of the most glorious, under the radar regions in the world. Wines of delicacy and transparency communicate the essence of site in the handful of villages that comprise this series of small appellations in Northern Italy. Many estates featured in this report are quite small, making some bottles hard to find. Nevertheless, consumers and professionals seeking fine, artisan wines of place that can diversify any cellar will find so much to admire in Alto Piemonte today.
Festa del Barolo 2023 Recap
Italy: Piedmont, featured
, Jan 2024
Festa del Barolo is right around the corner. As we make the final preparations, so many memories of the 2023 edition come rushing back. In 2023, we presented an expanded program of tastings, seminars and dinners. This is a look at some of the many highlights.
2022 Sonoma Preview: A First Look
featured, United States: California
, Jan 2024
Pinot Noir leads the way in what is turning out to be a surprising set of new releases from Sonoma. The 2022 growing season was marked by several key events, most notably record-setting heat over Labor Day weekend. Not surprisingly, there is some variability, but there are also plenty of stunning wines that are well worth seeking out. This Preview covers new releases from Sonoma and neighboring regions. As is our custom for this article, we will post frequent updates in the coming weeks, which we feel is the best way to keep readers current, given the sheer volume of wines released this time of year.
2020 Barolo: Selective Excellence
Italy: Piedmont, featured
, Jan 2024
Grace, elegance and understatement are some of the qualities readers will find in the 2020 Barolos. The best wines are undeniably striking. That said, the vintage is not an unqualified success, as the growing season presented its fair share of challenges. Overall, 2020 is a vintage of mid-weight Barolos. These are wines to admire for their balance and seductive appeal more than their power or structure.
Cellar Favorite: 2010 Château Canon
France: Bordeaux, Cellar Favorites, cellar favorite
, Jan 2024
The 2010 Château Canon is interesting to revisit today, especially considering the vintages that have come after it, some of which will take their place among the greatest ever made here.
Ulysse Collin Rosé de Saignée Les Maillons Vertical
France: Champagne, Verticals & Retrospectives, featured
, Jan 2024
My most recent visit to Champagne Ulysse Collin was not especially well-timed. Then again, maybe it was. Olivier Collin had just finished disgorging his next set of releases, so I could not taste those wines. Instead, Collin surprised me with a vertical of his Rosé de Saignée Les Maillons, long one of my favorites here and a wine I have followed since its debut. Rosé de Saignée is also a style of Champagne I personally enjoy quite a bit, as it is so well suited to the dinner table.
The 2021 Napa Valley Cabernets, Part One
featured, United States: California
, Dec 2023
After the brutal 2020 vintage, Napa Valley fans will be thrilled to start exploring the 2021s. The 2021s are aromatic, refined and wonderfully expressive. I found many wines to be truly exceptional both in terms of quality and what seems to be a more finessed approach than in the past, something that is evident at many estates. Vintage 2022 presented more than its fair share of challenges, so 2021 is most certainly the vintage to focus on, at least for the time being.
2023: A Wild Rollercoaster Ride
featured, General Interest
, Dec 2023
Two thousand twenty-three was a wild rollercoaster ride. A year of thrilling highs and devastating lows. We added Anne Krebiehl MW and Nicolas Greinacher to our growing team but also lost Josh Raynolds. As we look back at some of the most memorable events of the year, I would like to thank our readers around the world for giving us the opportunity to do what we love most.
Roederer Cristal Full Circle: 1993-2015
France: Champagne, Verticals & Retrospectives, featured
, Dec 2023
My visit to Roederer a few months ago, the first post-COVID-19, was memorable. After a survey of the 2022 vins clairs, longtime Chef de Caves Jean-Baptiste Lécaillon presented a vertical of every Cristal he has made and released since assuming his current role in 1999. It was an incredibly instructive tasting that encompassed several themes over what has arguably been the most significant period in Roederer’s long history.
Champagne: 2023 New Releases
France: Champagne, featured
, Nov 2023
Champagne is one of the most dynamic regions in the world. Change and innovation continue at an increasingly fast pace. Many of the most coveted wines now command Burgundy-like premiums, a relatively recent phenomenon here. There’s a lot more going on beyond the obvious, though, and plenty to explore.