close
Wine Scores
Below is a listing of the wine review scores we frequently reference in our notes. While these sources remain an excellent source of information, we always recommend that you trust your own palate. Scores in these publications often represent the personal taste of an individual critic, which may not always coincide with your own. We have a huge team of excellent wine professionals that can match wines you've had in the past with new arrivals that meet your flavor profile.
- Allen Meadows - Burghound
- Connoisseurs Guide
- Gambero Rosso
- James Halliday
- James Suckling
- Malt Advocate
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
- International Wine Cellar
- Wine & Spirits
- Wine Enthusiast
- Wine Spectator
- The Wine News
- Malt Advocate
Reviewers
AllK&L Email Alerts
Sign up to receive custom alerts, new arrivals and the latest happenings from K&L Wines
Staff Favorites - Ryan Woodhouse
|
Reviews
| Page: prev 1 2 3 4 5 next |
2011 Heggies Chardonnay Eden Valley South Australia
Review Date: 3-1-2013
Very interesting aromatics. Lemon curd, melon and hard ground spice like nutmeg of clove. On the palate this wine is very supple and elegant. Baked apple and subtle oak tones . A bright energetic chard showing its high elevation cool climate origin.
Price: $19.99
2012 Reyneke Sauvignon Blanc Stellenbosch
Review Date: 3-1-2013
Intense nose, creamy citrus sorbet and white blossom. On the palate peach and stone fruits, yellow plum. This is followed by a more snappy citrus zest. The wine is texturally rich from extended lees contact adding a subtle nutty character and some muted savory notes on the mid palate. Fantastic length and layers of flavor. Another epic South African Sauvignon Blanc!
Price: $24.99
2010 John Duval "Entity" Shiraz Barossa Valley South Australia
Review Date: 3-1-2013
A spectacular value when you consider this wines lineage with John Duval's decades at the helm of Penfolds Grange. Not to mention the fact that it’s phenomenal on its own merit! The fruit purity here is what impresses me the most. The weight and richness of the wine is disguised by its elegance and light-footed nature on the palate. The wine has plenty of silky dark fruit, some mocha, hints of spice and pepper to add an intriguing edge to the roundness of the fruit. A freshness to the acidity lifts the finish. Great wine, just how Barossa Shiraz should be, rich and dense but balanced and complex.
Drink from
2013
to
2020
Price: $32.99
2011 Erik Banti Morellino di Scansano
Review Date: 12-29-2012
Seriously good everyday Sangiovese from the coastal part of Tuscany in the town of Scansano. Fantastic value for everyday drinking. Bright fruit, impeccable balance, a nice savory aspect and more earthy expression than you normally get for this money. Great wines for most Tuscan fare, but perfectly quaffable solo. A fitting encore to this wines previous vintage. I think the 2011 is a little denser and darker fruited perhaps owing to the warmer growing season, but still very quaffable.
Top Value!
Price: $10.99
1999 Bodegas Puelles Gran Reserva Rioja
Review Date: 12-29-2012
A remarkable wine that has aged with grace and finesse. We tasted this at a recent Rioja dinner and I was not alone in thinking what a stunning Gran Reserva this was for the incredible price of $19.99! Not a big wine but one remarkable balance and poise. Perfect acidity to hold the wine together as the tannin fades away. Some red fruits left but lots of those classic leathery, cigar box and warm earthy components starting to show and this bottle gains bottle age complexities. Perfect for roasted game, sausage or cured meats.
Drink from
2012
to
2016
1979 Glenfarclas K&L Exclusive Single Barrel Cask Strength Single Malt Whisky 750ml
Review Date: 12-28-2012
I tasted this whiskey last week and was really impressed by its ethereal quality. It is delicate in nature but has so much depth and complexity, richness with out weight. A couple days later I was watching Jiro Dreams of Sushi and was moved by the concept of his Sushi being about increasingly complex tastes, guided by traditional rules of extreme simplicity. While I have never had Jiro’s food (and likely never will) I thought of this whiskey and indeed other wines that I have tasted that have so much character, drive, power and complexity but without density and weight. A purity that makes them compelling. Some of the best things in life have this quality and when you find them it is a truly special experience that is very hard to define.
Price: $299.99
Quartz Reef "Methode Traditionelle" Sparkling Wine Brut Central Otago
Review Date: 11-26-2012
A very very good choice for bubbles this holiday season! Quartz Reef are (in my humble opinion) hands down the best sparkling producer in New Zealand. This stunning Brut is made from 58% Pinot Noir and 42% Chardonnay from Central Otago. The fruit is all grown Organically / Biodynamically and carefully hand picked. The wine spends a minimum of two years on the lees, after which every bottle is expertly hand riddled and disgorged. This wine is bright, fresh and pure. It shows crunchy, fresh orchard fruit with some citrus notes and a wonderfully floral, subtly toasty nose. On the palate the pedigree of the fruit is complemented by a wonderful rich and creamy texture. Excellent persistence and balance on the finish with mineral tones from the weathered granite and quartz rich soils from which the estate gets its name. Truly world class wine that performs far above its price point.
Top Value!
Price: $21.99
2009 Sacred Hill "Helmsman" Cabernet-Merlot Gimblett Gravels Hawkes Bay New Zealand
Review Date: 11-26-2012
A big, robust, and structured Cab blend from this excellent vineyard of the Gimblett Gravels. It expresses saturated rich dark fruit equal to this wines muscular frame. Crushed rocks and dusty tannins mingle with tobacco and cedar nuances with more air.
Drink from
2012
to
2022
Price: $39.99
2010 Sacred Hill "Rifleman" Chardonnay Hawkes Bay New Zealand
Review Date: 11-26-2012
From the Rifleman’s Vineyard on the Gimblett Gravels in Hawke’s Bay. Fermented in French oak barrels with all wild yeast. This is a powerful Chardonnay. Concentrated peach and tropical fruits, toasty oak and spice. A big rich wine with a firm backbone of great acidity tying it all together. World class Chardonnay.
Drink from
2012
to
2018
Price: $39.99
2010 Rippon Riesling Lake Wanaka Central Otago New Zealand
Review Date: 11-26-2012
From 30+ year old un-grafted vines on their native root stock, farmed organically for 30 years and biodynamically for the last decade. The soil is composed of deep compacted schist (Riesling’s favorite!)spilling down from the mountainside and some clay lenses from the nearby lake shore. This wine has intense minerality, fabulous aromatic exuberance and impeccable balance. The subtle sweetness is checked by focused acidity that will undoubtedly keep this wine singing for a decade+.
Drink from
2012
to
2025
Price: $27.99
2010 Château de la Charrière Bourgogne Rouge Domaine Yves Girardin
Review Date: 11-26-2012
What a great little Bourgogne Rouge. Quite deep and richly fruited for it's class. Shows the purity and brightness of the 2010 vintage well. Quite scary how good $15 Burgundy can be! An everyday wine of exceptional value.
Top Value!
Price: $14.99
2010 Von Strasser Winery "Rudy" Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon
Review Date: 11-26-2012
One of the best $20 Cabs we carry! The 2010 vintage has a touch more softness and rounder edges. The very grippy tannins of the 2009 have been toned down a touch. This wine is exceptionally balanced and drinkable now and over the next five years.
Top Value!
Price: $19.99
2011 Domaine Gueneau "Le Clos Chartier" Sancerre
Review Date: 11-6-2012
A delicious new Direct Import Sancerre for us! This wine is pure and bright with nice citrus and peachy fruit flavors with the classic mineral undertones you expect from quality Sancerre. In fact this wine is a single vineyard release pulling from Domaine Gueneau's top Clos Chartier. This small vineyard has the classic flint laced clay soils that give this famous village its incredible terroir. If you like Sauvignon Blanc with minerality in spades this is a wine for you! Perfect for holiday season appetizers, fish and white meats.
Top Value!
Price: $19.99
2011 Schild Estate Grenache-Mourvedre-Shiraz Barossa Valley
Review Date: 10-28-2012
I'm really impressed with this wines brightness. Great drive, energetic fruit and spicy hints. Wow.. really this wine is $13.99?! Very nice exprsssion of Grenache with what I can only describe as pumped up Pinot Noir. Great dark red berry fruits, baking spices a touch of cherry wood smoke. This wine really shows how Barossa can make very balanced fresh wines. Excellent, especially for the money.
Top Value!
Price: $13.99
2007 Viña Eguía Reserva Rioja
Review Date: 10-28-2012
What a stellar little wine from Eguia. A nice rich supple style, but the time in wood and bottle has tempered the over exuberance of the fruit and allowed some of the finer earthy, savory components, that we love Rioja for, creep in behind. A very good Reserva at a great price.
Top Value!
Price: $14.99
| Page: prev 1 2 3 4 5 next |
