Review Date: 6-11-2013

I drank a bottle of this recently with some Becker Lane pork chops, this wine is just beautiful. Pure Sangiovese aged in barrique, supple, warm, ripe fruit, great length and balance, just a pleasure to drink. The classic ripe cherry/plum fruit flavors just sing and there is nothing like Sangiovese and pork! Especially when it is Becker Lane.

Review Date: 6-10-2013

Massolino produces classically styled Barolo from Serralunga, the most robust and brawny of the Barolo communes. This 2006 is perfectly balanced and from a tremendous vintage, however this wine is in its hibernation period, another 5 years in your cellar will launch it into the I'm ready to drink stage. Have patience the price is tremendous and it will be worth the wait!

Review Date: 6-8-2013

San Felice has been making good, sturdy Chianti Classico for decades and if you’ve traveled to Siena you’ve undoubtedly come across a bottle. So when I tasted this 2009 the quality jump was a bit of a shock. They’ve changed the blend a bit using only indigenous grapes, predominantly Sangiovese but it is the addition of Pugnitello (along with some change in vineyard practices) that really makes this wine jump. The wine has lots of spice, earthy complexity but it is the powerful center, palate presence and uplifting fruit that really make this sing. Take home a bottle, decant it for an hour while you’re preparing the BBQ, fire the T-Bone up just like you were having a Bistecca Fiorentina (rare is best) drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil over it and WOW you’ve got yourself one helluva day!

Review Date: 6-8-2013

When I first tasted this wine I was stunned by the nose, the fruit aromatics were so complete and tantalizing I couldn’t wait to taste it. On the palate it was just as exciting, supple, smooth, luscious fruit yet balanced with classic Sangiovese acidity making it fresh and enticing. The warm Tuscan summer sun finally came out in mid August in 2011 and the grapes at Ferrero responded perfectly, a rich, complex and easy to drink Rosso di Montalcino for a bargain price. This wine is really drinkable now and perfect for your favorite pasta, especially pappardelle con cinghiale with some extra virgin olive oil delicately drizzled over the top!

Review Date: 6-7-2013

One doesn't usually get to taste much in the way of Old Amarone, but thanks to Bertani's late release program and their incredible depth of stock you can get a direct from the winery example of classic Amarone. This wine has layers of complexity, and after 33 years a the sweet baby fat has dropped away to reveal an extraordinarily complex wine that no longer is left to the cheese course, this is a main course wine for beef or lamb. Take advantage of this stupendous deal, you'll be blown away.

Review Date: 5-22-2013

Waxing poetically about California Chardonnay isn't usually amongst my staff reviews. Even more so for unoaked California Chardonnay which mostly seemed to have lacked any flavor once the oak was gone. This wine however has completely changed my opinion, this is a complete wine, it just never needed the oak like most California Chards. The Jaybird has size, focus, natural balance, pure chardonnay flavor, and a wonderfully expressive aromatic profile. The even more amazing thing is the price? This lands in the "Are you kidding me?" category, this wine outperforms so many other unoaked California Chardonnay it is in a league of its' own! Bravo to Kenneth Volk, longtime pioneer in this region blazing a trail towards real wine!

Review Date: 5-17-2013

The 2007 vintage in Tuscany produced many top quality wines and this Super Tuscan from Viticcio shows the power, structure and age worthiness of Bordeaux blends from Chianti. Powerful,focused with a blend of gravelly earth and ripe cherry on the palate, long and intense a wine with great structure.

Review Date: 5-15-2013

I've always thought Fiano d'Avellino was really good but never great, that was until I had this wine. Tenuta Sarno has more depth, more structure and more flavor than I can ever remember having before in a Fiano. The aromas are spicy and powerful while on the palate layers of complexity, alternating between a leesy, biscuit like richness and a slightly gritty tannin grip really make this wine's presence unmistakable. I would love to have this with a bigger, more structured fish like Swordfish although I'm sure many of you'd head towards Lobster. I really think this wine is stunning, you definitely need to try this!

Review Date: 5-14-2013

This is a beautiful expression of the 2008 vintage in Barolo and that vintages is turning out to be one of my favorite vintages in recent years. The wines are balanced, full of classic aromatics and flavors yet showing enough character and complexity in a drink now wine that would satisfy most Barolo lovers and still show flavors that are reminiscent of bygone decades. This Ascheri is elegant, I mean by that it has grace not that it is lightweight, ok by Paso Robles standards it isn't a "BIG" wine but certainly full-bodied, yet doesn't have the mouth searing tannins of Barolo past. Perfect accompaniment to Risotto with Porcini or Barolo al Brasato (Pot Roast).

Review Date: 4-18-2013

I often fear "Super Tuscan" blends of Sangiovese with Bordeaux varietals, so often the Sangiovese is poorly grown and suffers at the hand of the more powerful Bordeaux varietals even in small amounts. Segue to the “new” owner (since 2004) Eric Albada Jelgersma a Dutch Businessman who also owns Château Giscours and Château du Tertre in Margaux in Bordeaux and insert a very young French winemaker for his first venture in Tuscany… I cringed… However at the first whiff of aromas I knew that this wine is truly astounding. The blend is Sangiovese (85%), Merlot (10%), Cabernet Franc (3%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (2%) a “classic” Super Tuscan blend and hails from the Tuscan coast in the town of Riparbella near Bolgheri. The Sangiovese is brilliant, long, aromatic, complex fruit with layers of ripeness, earth, spice and hints of leather coupled with subtle hints herb and spice from the Cab Franc, supple mid palate from the Merlot and a bit of back end power from the Cabernet Sauvignon. All of this is aligned along a perfectly balanced central acidity that gives a long, long finish to this wine. Outstanding value, wonderfully drinking now and will age well for another 5-7 years.

Review Date: 4-4-2013

It seems to be a never ending parade of "what kind of grape is that"? Crovino? And yes they are they only producers who make one... BUt thank GOD they do! The wine has a great fleshy richness on the palate without being over ripe. A little bigger than a CRU Beaujolais, a little softer than Nebbiolo, and 100% delicious.

Review Date: 4-4-2013

Ligurian Grenache? That's what I thought, but wow this stainless steel aged red has "classic" Grenache fruitiness, with sort of a crunchy freshness. A really complete wine, complex, fruity and absolutely delicious!

Review Date: 4-4-2013

This wine is such a pleasure to drink, another outstanding effort from the tremendous 2008 vintage for Barolo. The aromatics are classic, earth, floral, not a sweet ripeness but complete ripeness, rich but not fat on the palate and a layered finish that just begs you to take another drink, and at this price....what a steal.

Review Date: 4-2-2013

This 2009 Barbaresco has superb, deep fruit aromatics, and a power that just seems to fill your glass with a breath of the harvest. Powerful and complex on the palate but while still holding that “sweet” profile that softens the tannins into balance. A long life a ahead and impressively drinkable now.

Review Date: 4-2-2013

After the success of the 2009 Barbera from Oddero I was readily looking forward to the 2010 edition! Well the wine is tremendous, that classic Oddero earthiness coupled with layers of supple fruit balancing the acidity and leading to a very complex and long lasting finish.