K&L Wine Merchants - Staff Favorites

2023 Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe "Piedlong" Châteauneuf-du-Pape

By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 9/27/2026 | Send Email

I recently tasted this with our sales team in Hollywood, and it was a smash. At 90% Grenache (with the rest Mourvedre), the wine had that classic translucent brightness that immediately made me think of Grenache from yesteryear. But don't mistake that brightness for a lack of flavor. There is plenty going on here. The Piedlong has a sweet, captivating quality to the fruit that was fresh, inviting and constantly evolving in the glass. This was a showstopper, really. We all paused and marveled at the way the wine danced across the palate. It was lithe and energetic, but never shorted you on flavor. Each sip seemed to bring you right back for another. There is something so appealing about Châteauneuf when it doesn't rely on its weight to make its point. This has brightness, movement and plenty of personality. Easily one of my favorite glasses of Châteauneuf-du-Pape I've had this year.

Price: $69.99

JS: 98

JD: 94

VN: 93

2022 Château de Montfaucon Lirac

By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 9/27/2026 | Send Email

A newer addition to the Montfaucon portfolio, this Lirac fills the gap nicely between the La Côte Côtes-du-Rhône and the Baron Louis Lirac. Made entirely from estate fruit, it captures the brighter side of the region. Rich, ripe red berry fruit leads the way, with strawberry jam, red cherries and even some red flowers for good measure. This is pure pleasure in a glass. It is a more explosive style, reflecting both the ripeness of the vintage and a more ebullient side of vigneron Rudi de Pins' winemaking. Where Baron Louis leans darker, savory and more contemplative, this is about freshness, generosity and immediate appeal.

Price: $19.99

2021 Château de Montfaucon "La Côte" Côtes-du-Rhône

By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 9/27/2026 | Send Email

My apologies to all of you who have been waiting for this wine to be replenished. But I am here to tell you, as always, it is worth the wait. The 2021 "La Côte" is everything I want in an old-school Côtes-du-Rhône. Plenty of raspberry, toasted tobacco and a touch of peppery spice, with that savory quality that keeps you coming back to the glass. This wine is not about flashy fruit—it's a classic Rhône that delivers exactly what you want it to. For those in the know, you know what you've been waiting for. For those who don't, La Côte is one of our all-time best sellers, and with good reason. Vigneron Rudi de Pins' wines have been staples here at K&L for years because they consistently deliver character, quality and tremendous value. The 2021 is another reminder of why we keep going back to them.

Price: $15.99

2022 Château de Montfaucon "Vin de Mme la Comtesse" Clairette Lirac Blanc

By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 9/27/2026 | Send Email

Montfaucon always holds this white back for a few years before release, and it is a wine built around nuance rather than sheer intensity. Made from nearly 100% Clairette, it comes from a parcel of centenarian vines that look almost like alien creatures trying to escape the confines of the earth. A handful of old heirloom varieties are co-planted among them, keeping the wine from being entirely Clairette. But what you are really tasting here is a very old parcel, handled with little intrusion. Aged primarily in large neutral barrels, the wine continues to develop in the glass. It starts with dried nectarine before moving toward persimmon, with a touch of spice and a creamy texture that gives the wine remarkable presence. This is not a wine you rush through. It commands your attention and would be right at home with a potato and leek soup or some creamy, funky cheeses. I've had bottles with even more age on them, and they only become more intriguing. I think of this wine as a poem. It may not make perfect sense upon first glance, but the more time you spend with it, the more compelling it becomes.

Price: $39.99

2024 Château de Montfaucon "Comtesse Madeleine" Lirac Blanc

By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 9/27/2026 | Send Email

Cool and crisp the Comtesse Madelaine shows off that lovely subtle stone fruit character I love from these wines. A touch of apple, white flowers and a hint of salinity round out the character. Just enough acid tension to keep the wine balanced and worthy of seeking another sip. Delightful!

Price: $24.99

2020 Château de Montfaucon "Baron Louis" Lirac

By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 9/27/2026 | Send Email

The Baron Louis has been one of the great wines year after year from Montfaucon. Always a late release, the 2020 has just hit our shores and is firing on all cylinders. We often compare Lirac to Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The two regions sit across the Rhône River from one another and share many of the same soil types, but I have always found something distinctly different in Lirac. There is a more briary quality to the wines, with darker fruit, a savory undertone and a little more of that woodsy garrigue character lurking in the background. Working with Montfaucon for more than two decades has been a real treat, and the 2020 Baron Louis is everything I look for in Rudi's wines. Brambly blackberry, tobacco, garrigue and a hint of smoked meat lead into a finish of rich currant jam. It isn't quite as lipsmacking and opulent as Châteauneuf, but it is every bit as compelling. That's exactly what I like about Lirac and Rudi's take on the region. Gone are the days when these wines felt like they were trying to emulate their more famous neighbor. This is pure Lirac, made by someone we consider a dear friend and one of the region's top producers. Baron Louis remains a shining star in our Direct Import portfolio, and the 2020 is delicious now but absolutely worth discovering again after another few years in the cellar.

Price: $26.99

DC: 95

WS: 92

2025 Château de Montfaucon Lirac Rosé

By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 9/27/2026 | Send Email

The genesis of this wine has been great to watch. Originally, it was created as an homage to Tavel, the neighboring appellation famous for its rosé wines. It even came in the long, skinny bottle emblematic of the region. The wine was bright and crisp, with a lighter hue and a more traditional rosé profile. Over the last few years, vigneron Rudi de Pins has taken it in a very different direction, making it denser, richer and more vinous. It is now an almost brooding rosé that feels closer to historical Tavel, when the wines were more akin to light reds. Rudi even changed the bottle to reflect what he believes is a more serious style of rosé. It is now opaque, concealing that deeper color from prying eyes. Once poured, though, there is no hiding it. The color is more like freshly squeezed raspberries, with an almost purple rim. And the wine is exceptional. I have tasted every vintage since Rudi began making it and have even tried a few with several years of bottle age. They only get more compelling. This is winter rosé—or light red, depending on how you want to look at it. Just don't serve it too cold. You don't want to mask all that depth of flavor hiding behind the smoky glass. It is terrific now with roasted fowl—think braised turkey legs or grilled duck—but this is also a rosé worth putting a few bottles away for a couple of years. I think it's only going to get better.

Price: $19.99

Glenfarclas 25 Year Old Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky (750ml)

By: David Othenin-Girard | Review Date: 9/26/2026 | Send Email

I’m still flabbergasted by the price-to-quality ratio here, especially as competitors keep raising prices. Glenfarclas has long been one of my favorite distilleries, both for the consistency of its whisky and for the Grant family, which has owned it for generations. The 25 Year Old is a benchmark for mature Glenfarclas. It’s often compared with its Speyside neighbor Macallan, but it has a character all its own. Sherry casks play a major role, yet Glenfarclas isn’t bound to a single cask type. The result has enough richness and depth to satisfy a Macallan drinker, along with a subtle complexity that rewards hours of attention. Then there’s the price. I can’t think of another 25-year-old Scotch that delivers this much for the money. This may be the best value in mature Scotch, period.

Price: $274.99

2024 TWR (Te Whare Ra) Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough

By: Scott Beckerley | Review Date: 9/23/2026 | Send Email

It's back and it is still at a great price! I just re-tasted this today (9/23) and it is a good as ever! The prominent Gooseberry fruit is now more subtle and even more balanced by tropical upper palate notes and the ever-present Key lime flavors and scents. I also noticed that the nose had a tad more floral notes than in the past. It does retain what we come to expect from it...clean salinity and juicy acidity. The mid-palate stops just short of being plush and this adds some wonderful textural weight that makes this latest effort more versatile for your food pairings. For me, this is one of their best yet! Also, don't forget the Rieslings from this producer! They are also fantastic.

Price: $19.99

2025 Tenuta Roveglia "Limne" Lugana

By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 9/23/2026 | Send Email

The 2025 Tenuta Roveglia “Limne” Lugana is a fresh white with real flesh on it, and that combination is the whole point. The nose is clean and clearly drawn: crunchy apple, citrus and white flowers, with almond underneath adding a quieter, savory note. Then the palate fills out through the middle in a way that would surprise anyone expecting a lean, austere lake white. What makes Limne interesting is how that supple texture and its nervous energy work together: the freshness keeps the fruit defined without stripping the wine of substance. It is 100% Turbiana — genetically a Verdicchio, not a Trebbiano — from vines averaging 25 to 35 years old, and it spends four to five months in stainless steel, so nothing from a barrel gets between you and the fruit. The best cross over into Italian wine if you like Sauvignon Blanc!

Price: $14.99

Mystery Malt By Thompson Bro "US Exclusive" Series No. 4 Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)

By: David Othenin-Girard | Review Date: 9/22/2026 | Send Email

There have been few greater pleasures in my 20-plus years exploring whisky than the opportunity to taste blind. It happens so infrequently, and I have officially exhausted my credits asking my wife to organize tastings, that I simply never get to do it. So when our friends at Thompson Bros first mentioned this project a couple of years ago, I was absolutely floored. They proposed sourcing a huge variety of single casks and bottling them without revealing any specific details until the bottle was opened. I assumed the federal regulators might object, but it turns out the required information can be concealed beneath the capsule. The craziest part of the project is the extraordinary effort the brothers have made to balance the quality of every six-pack. Buy a sealed case and you are guaranteed six completely different single casks, carefully selected so that the overall quality remains remarkably consistent from case to case. It is a ready-made blind tasting requiring virtually no effort, and the list of possible casks is genuinely exciting and unusual. The project has now attracted significant international attention, and distillers increasingly see it as a calling card for their stocks rather than some goofy side project. As a result, the brothers have been able to source particularly compelling barrels for the series. I opened six and could not have had more fun. With a little care, you can easily avoid identifying the distillery when opening each bottle. Simply leave the foil around the cap intact, note which side conceals the round sticker underneath, and keep it facing away. You will have an instant blind tasting of the highest order. For several of these casks, this is the first expression from this distillery ever sold in the US. The list is HERE of what you might encounter: PLEASE NOTE ALL CASKS ARE BOTTLED 48% without Chill-filtration. Distillery AGE No. Bottles Cask Type Speyside 29 Year 89 Btls Refill Sherry Butt Inchmurrin 28 Year 24 Btls Refill Sherry Butt Inchgower 27 Year 29 Btls Refill Bourbon Hogshead Bruichladdich 21 Year 8 Btls First Fill Bourbon ASB Teaninich 17 Year 30 Btls Oloroso Hhd Tormore 17 Year 173 Btls Sauternes Cask Royal Bra 16 Year 19 Btls Refill Hhd Craigellachie 15 Year 64 Btls Refill Hhd Teaninich 12 Year 36 Btls Stout Barrel Bunnahabhain 11 Year 27 Btls Refill Hhd Wolfburn 11 Year 8 Btls Sherry Hhd Lochranza 10 Year 79 Btls Refill Sherry Hhd Kingsbarns 8 Year 133 Btls First Fill Bourbon Torabhaig 7 Year 149 Btls First Fill Bourbon Nc’Nean 5 Year 159 Btls STR Dornoch 5 Year 56 Btls Rye & Bourbon Lagg 5 Year 21 Btls First Fill Bourbon Glasgow 5 Year 10 Btls American Oak Virgin ASB Lochlea 4 Year 162 Btls Refill Bourbon Raasay 4 Year 120 Btls Dutch Oak Virgin Hhd

Price: $89.99

2016 Damien Hugot Grand Cru "Cramant" Blanc de Blancs Millesime

By: Kerry Kennell | Review Date: 9/22/2026 | Send Email

What a nose—flinty and chalky with hints of pastry and lemon curd. It rings all the fine bubbly bells and whistles, signaling that what I’m about to taste is going to be incredible. Rich and dry, this generous Champagne embodies pure elegance and sophistication: lemon, flint, chalk, and toast, culminating in a lingering toasty finish with subtle hints of vanilla pastry cream that swirls in the sinuses. I’ve tasted Champagnes that cost twice as much and not taste half as good. Fantastic value!

Price: $64.99

2021 Vietti "Castiglione" Barolo

By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 9/22/2026 | Send Email

Vietti is undisputed Piedmontese royalty. Based in the medieval village of Castiglione Falletto, the winery has spent over a century defining the modern era of Barolo. While they are famous for producing some of the region's first single-cru bottlings, their "Castiglione" label remains the ultimate masterclass in the ancient, historical art of blending. By meticulously sourcing fruit from top-tier crus across Barolo’s diverse communes—marrying the elegant, perfumed fruit of the calcareous-clay in the west with the powerful, structured fruit from the sandstone soils of the east—Vietti creates a wine that is greater than the sum of its parts. The 2021 vintage is already being hailed as a modern classic, offering perfect climatic balance. In the glass, it pours a glowing, translucent garnet. The aromatics are soaring and pure, delivering the quintessential Barolo bouquet of dried rose petals, tar, bright red cherry, and a whisper of alpine mint. On the palate, it is flawlessly structured. The tannins are firm but remarkably refined, wrapping around a vibrant core of red fruit and precise acidity. While it has the pedigree to age for decades, a few hours in a decanter makes it a magnificent pairing for truffle pasta today.

Price: $64.99

Wine Club

$59.99

JS: 95

VN: 94

JD: 93

2017 Assolati Montecucco Rosso Riserva

By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 9/22/2026 | Send Email

If you want to drink like a Tuscan insider, you need to know about Montecucco. Located in the Maremma, this rugged DOCG sits directly across the Orcia river from the legendary hills of Montalcino. It shares the same high altitudes, the same luminous Mediterranean sunlight, and the same rocky, galestro-rich soils that make Brunello so famous, yet it remains one of Italy's best-kept secrets. The Assolati family farms a tiny, pristine estate here, treating their Sangiovese with the exact same reverence as their famous neighbors. Their Riserva is a powerful, unadulterated expression of this wild terroir. The 2017 vintage was notably warm, and the roots of the old vines dug deep into the limestone to find water, resulting in a wine of incredible concentration and structural power. In the glass, it reveals a deep garnet hue. The nose is an intense, traditional weave of dried dark cherry, worn leather, sweet tobacco, and wild Mediterranean scrub. On the palate, it is robust and commanding, with firm, mouth-coating tannins and a core of dark fruit, finishing with a savory, earthy grip. This is "Brunello's rugged cousin," demanding to be served alongside a thick, grilled Bistecca alla Fiorentina.

Price: $34.99

Wine Club

$29.99

2022 Inama "Carmenère Più" Carmenere Veneto

By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 9/22/2026 | Send Email

The Colli Berici is a fascinating, overlooked pocket of the Veneto. This hilly, volcanic outcrop south of Vicenza is covered in terra rossa—iron-rich red clay over limestone—and enjoys a uniquely warm, dry microclimate. Over a century ago, local farmers planted what they thought was Cabernet Franc. It wasn't until the 1990s that the Inama family, pioneers of the region, correctly identified the vines as Carmenère, an ancient Bordeaux variety that had nearly gone extinct in Europe. Rather than tearing it up, Inama championed it, proving that the Colli Berici is Europe's premier terroir for the grape. "Carmenère Più" (meaning Carmenère Plus) blends this star grape with a small percentage of Merlot to round out its edges. The result is a dark, brooding, and intensely savory red. It pours an opaque ruby-purple. The nose leaps from the glass with aromas of dark cocoa, wild blackberry, and Carmenère's signature note of freshly cracked black pepper and subtle roasted herbs. On the palate, it is plush and velvety, with fine-grained tannins and a vibrant, spicy finish. It is the ultimate companion for grilled steaks, braised short ribs, or aged cheddar.

Price: $24.99

Wine Club

$19.99

WE: 92

VN: 91

2022 Anselmi "Capitel Croce' Veneto IGT

By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 9/22/2026 | Send Email

Roberto Anselmi is a legendary renegade in the Veneto. In the year 2000, frustrated by the lax regulations and mass-produced mediocrity of the Soave DOC, he made the radical decision to declassify all his world-class wines to simple Veneto IGT status. He chose to rely on the undisputed quality of his terroir and his meticulous farming rather than a compromised appellation name. The "Capitel Croce" is his masterpiece—a single-vineyard expression of 100% Garganega grown on ancient, pure volcanic tuff. What sets this wine apart is the winemaking: unlike most Garganega, it is fermented and aged in French oak barrels. Because of the incredible density and acidity derived from the volcanic soil, the wine absorbs the oak seamlessly, resulting in a white wine of profound structure and longevity. It pours a deep, glowing gold. The nose is a complex tapestry of baked apple, chamomile, apricot, and toasted almond, underpinned by a distinct, smoky flintiness. On the palate, it is rich, creamy, and enveloping, yet perfectly balanced by a driving mineral tension. This is a white wine for red wine drinkers, demanding rich dishes like lobster, truffle risotto, or veal scallopini.

Price: $24.99

Wine Club

$19.99

2025 Attems Pinot Grigio Ramato

By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 9/22/2026 | Send Email

The Attems estate boasts a millennium of history in the far northeastern corner of Italy, nestled in the Collio region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. While the modern world is accustomed to Pinot Grigio being a crisp, clear white wine, the "Ramato" (meaning coppery) style is actually a vivid return to the Republic of Venice's ancient winemaking traditions. Because Pinot Grigio is a genetic mutation of Pinot Noir, its skins are naturally a dusty pink-gray. By allowing the juice to rest on these skins during fermentation, Attems extracts a gorgeous, copper-pink hue and a stunning layer of texture. Grown in the region's famous ponca soils—stratified layers of marine marl and sandstone—this wine delivers intense saline minerality. In the glass, it looks like a rosé but drinks with the savory complexity of an amber wine. The nose offers wild strawberry, dried cherry, and a hint of broom flower. On the palate, the skin contact provides a delicate tannic grip, wrapping around a vibrant, structured core of red fruit and crushed stone. It is a fantastic, historical revival that pairs beautifully with prosciutto, rich seafood stews, or roasted poultry.

Price: $16.99

Wine Club

$10.99

2016 Damien Hugot Grand Cru "Cramant" Blanc de Blancs Millesime

By: Gary Westby | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

Simply spectacular Blanc de Blancs from the steepest slopes of the Côte des Blancs grand crus in Cramant! This all stainless, all old-vine vintage Champagne has the electricity and refreshment married to rich toasty character that reminds me of the greatest of the 2002s. I love the sourdough and citrus combination on the nose and vivacious acidity that follows the rich mid palate. Don't miss this great vintage offering from Damien Hugot!

Price: $64.99

2016 Rauzan-Ségla, Margaux

By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

The 2016 vintage is one of the defining Left Bank benchmarks of the modern Bordeaux era, and Rauzan‑Ségla is one of the wines that embodies its brilliance. Just as the Chanel team reshaped the Right Bank landscape with the groundbreaking 2015 Canon, 2016 Rauzan‑Ségla is their landmark achievement in Margaux—a breakthrough wine that crystallizes everything the estate has been building toward. Aromatically, it’s quintessential Margaux at its most refined: lifted florals, a touch of blood orange, and deep cassis. But the palate is where the wine’s stature becomes undeniable—pure, focused, elegant, and seamless. The red‑and‑black‑fruit profile is beautifully sculpted, yet the finish is what truly sets it apart: long, mouthwatering, and saturated with that unmistakable Cabernet essence that only the greatest 2016s deliver. This is a wine with decades ahead of it—easily twenty years or more—but the harmony and precision it’s showing right now make it irresistible. It’s luxurious without excess, precise without austerity, and absolutely one of the signature achievements of this unforgettable vintage. And the kicker: we’re delivering it direct from Bordeaux at a genuinely stunning price. For collectors, it’s one of the smartest buys in top‑tier Margaux. Absolutely superb.

Price: $129.99

2014 Braeval 11 Year Old "Redacted Bros." (Thompson/Dornoch) Single Oloroso Hogshead Cask Strength Speyside Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)

By: David Othenin-Girard | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

This gorgeous barrel of Braeval probably won’t strike a chord with the distillery’s devoted fans because, well, there really aren’t many Braeval fans. That’s not to say we haven’t sold plenty of excellent examples over the years, but the complete absence of official distillery bottlings and lingering confusion around the name, originally Braes of Glenlivet, have kept this excellent little malt off almost everyone’s radar. It doesn’t help that much of the spirit is destined for blending and often filled into less-than-inspiring cask stock, which may explain why only the oldest Braevals have historically achieved true greatness. But take this lovely Highland malt and place it in a fresh Oloroso hogshead, and you have a recipe for something wonderful. Here we go. The beautiful color tells us we’re firmly in sherry-bomb territory, a healthy auburn (1.4). The nose is explosive, with baking spices, roasted almonds, tinned stone fruit, and complex aromas of dark-roasted coffee. The palate is dense and chewy, offering surprising depth of roasted malt and zesty orange oil alongside rich, sweet dried fruit. It’s a classical, if not entirely unexpected, style. We might have assumed that enthusiasm for dense, dark, sherried malt would have faded decades after aficionados first embraced it, but drinkers both new and old still adore this profile. It may never have gone out of fashion, but it has certainly become far more expensive. For sherry lovers, this is the deal of the year. Hands down.

Price: $64.99

2020 Le Murmure de Larcis-Ducasse, St-Emilion

By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

Larcis Ducasse is making some of Bordeaux’s finest wines, and that includes this under‑the‑radar gem, Murmure de Larcis Ducasse—made all the more compelling in the brilliant 2020 vintage. With multiple recent 100‑point reviews and relatively limited production, these are wines that could easily command multiples of their current price, but that’s part of the charm for those who have the inside track on the modern era of this estate. As with the Grand Vin, Murmure clearly conveys the limestone terroir that shines through every layer of the wine, offering real depth of fruit, striking elegance, and a purity that would impress even in many first wines. It’s a cuvée that’s often overlooked for reasons I can’t quite explain, because nearly every bottle I’ve opened leaves a deep impression on everyone in the room. I can’t wait to follow it over time, but it’s already brilliant today. Either way, it’s a big‑time winner from one of Bordeaux’s top estates.

Price: $34.99

JS: 93

VN: 92

JD: 91

2021 Vineyard 36 "The Black Aces" Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon

By: Ryan Woodhouse | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

It's definitely not every day that you can combine a great Napa Valley vintage, high-end Beckstoffer GIII Vineyard fruit from Rutherford, and a winemaker with multiple 100-point wines to his name, and still sell the bottle for under $50! In fact, that pretty much never happens! But once again, we've managed to lock in some incredible pricing on The Black Aces Rutherford Cabernet. We offered this wine once before, and it was a huge hit, selling out fast. Black Aces is crafted by Keith Emerson of Vineyard 29 fame. This reserve-tier Cabernet combines predominantly Beckstoffer GIII fruit with the neighboring Renteria 360 Vineyard to produce a rocking, luxury Rutherford Cab that can stand tall alongside bottles costing $150-$200! The wine is packed with ripe, exotic, deeply concentrated fruit, with layers of baking spice, cassis, black cherry, baker's chocolate, pencil lead, and dusty stone. It's beautifully polished, with plush, palate-coating, fine-grained tannins and suave, sophisticated notes of toasty oak. There's serious depth, richness, and refinement here, yet the wine remains wonderfully approachable and downright delicious. This is a wine that smells and tastes expensive...but thanks to our Insider's Advantage pricing program, it isn't! At under $50, this is an extraordinary opportunity to enjoy some of Rutherford's most prized vineyard fruit, crafted by one of Napa's top winemakers, for a fraction of what you'd normally expect to pay. Don't miss out on this one!

Price: Hidden

JD: 94

TWI: 94

Maison Laudacius "Laudacius" Brut Nature Montlouis Methode Traditionnelle

By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

It’s been a couple of years now, but I still remember when the Laudacius first crossed my desk. I personally love good sparkling Chenin Blanc, and the drier the better. Montlouis lies just across the Loire River from Vouvray, the more esteemed appellation, but there are some outstanding wines coming from this slightly more obscure region. The “Laudacius” is dry but never austere. Aromas of roasted apple, pear nectar and freshly baked biscuits emerge from the glass, with plenty of freshness keeping everything lively. When I first tried it, I was so excited by what was in the glass that I pulled in half a dozen of my colleagues just to make sure I wasn’t hallucinating. They all agreed—this was a startlingly good bottle of bubbles! Once we factored in the price, it quickly became one of the biggest no-brainers in our Direct Import program. We’ve now gone through a few batches, and the Laudacius hasn’t lost a step. Every time I come back to it, I’m still impressed by how much character it delivers for the money. It remains one of the best additions we’ve made to our sparkling wine Direct Import program—and I don’t see that changing anytime soon.

Price: $18.99

DC: 97

WE: 92

2016 Barde-Haut, St-Emilion

By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

The 2016 Barde‑Haut is all about precision and poise—a wine that seems to know exactly what it wants to be. From the first swirl, there’s an almost crystalline clarity to the aromatics: lifted notes of blueberry compote, cassis, and a touch of graphite that signal a vintage built on purity rather than power. It’s immediately inviting, yet there’s a quiet confidence underneath that hints at the structure to come. The palate follows through beautifully. Juicy black and blue fruits glide across a frame that feels remarkably refined, with tannins so seamless and weightless they almost disappear into the fruit. Everything is clean, fresh, and impeccably detailed, the kind of balance that makes you stop for a moment just to appreciate how dialed‑in the winemaking has become here. What’s especially compelling is how this fits into the broader arc of the estate. We’ve been fans of Barde‑Haut for a long time at K&L—through vintages that impressed on release and others that blossomed with age—but the recent evolution in style is genuinely exciting. There’s more nuance now, more definition, more of that quiet sophistication that separates very good wines from truly memorable ones. And with this parcel arriving a decade past the vintage, carrying perfect provenance and offered at below‑market pricing, the value proposition becomes almost absurd. The 2016 is a beautifully composed, deeply satisfying St‑Émilion that will reward patience, but it’s already showing the kind of class that makes cellaring feel like a bonus rather than a requirement.

Price: $39.99

2015 Barde-Haut, St-Émilion

By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

Usually one of the top high‑end values in Bordeaux, Barde‑Haut’s 2015 takes things to another level entirely. It’s the kind of bottle that reminds you why the estate has become such a quiet favorite among people who actually follow St‑Émilion closely. The aromatics are incredibly intriguing—nuanced, layered, and constantly shifting. At its core, it’s classic St‑Émilion, but there’s this wild blue‑fruit streak that keeps flashing through, giving the wine a dynamic edge you don’t always see here. On the palate, the focus and balance are terrific. It’s dialed back from the more flamboyant, high‑octane styles of 2009 or 2010, yet the quality absolutely belongs in the same conversation. A bright burst of acidity carries deep red fruits, subtle earth and mineral tones, and mouth‑coating tannins that feel both serious and inviting. The 20% Cabernet Franc makes itself known on the finish in a wonderfully engaging way—lifted, aromatic, and just a touch savory. And the real advantage here: we’re delivering this a full decade past the vintage, with perfect provenance and at pricing that sits comfortably below current market levels. That combination—mature stock, pristine condition, and genuine value—almost never lines up for wines of this caliber. It’s a lot of wine for the money, full stop, and a bottle that will thrill Bordeaux fans of every persuasion over the next 15–20 years.

Price: $39.99

2009 Barde-Haut, St-Emilion

By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

Not surprisingly, Hélène Garcin crafted an exceptional Barde‑Haut in 2009—a wine that has proved itself again and again over the years. But this vintage is a gem for another reason as well: painfully low yields cut production by more than half, making it an even rarer treat. Carrying all the charm and luxury of the 2009 vintage, Barde‑Haut is undeniably delicious, yet also complex and nuanced. Deep plum, currant, and black cherry drive a palate that is long, layered, wonderfully textured, and impressively persistent. There’s a touch of evolution, as expected after a decade and a half, but the wine remains fresh and vibrant in all the best ways. Easy to recommend for a special occasion this holiday season—or for the cellar over the next decade plus—everything that makes Barde‑Haut so cherished is here in abundance in the 2009.

Price: $69.99

2023 Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape

By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

Any visit to Beaucastel is a highlight of my travels through the Rhône. After several years of major renovation, the estate now stands as one of the most efficiently run and fully carbon-neutral wineries in the region. I was fortunate to see the project at various stages of construction, though I have yet to walk through the finished cellar itself. Why does that matter for the 2023 vintage? Because it offers one more clear demonstration of the care, foresight, and long-term stewardship the Perrin family brings to these vineyards year after year. A cold cellar with a deep library is a luxury; a cellar naturally cooled by a cistern, powered in large part by the mistral winds that sweep across the plateau, is emblematic of a philosophy that places sustainability and precision at the heart of this estate' ethos. The 2023 growing season was dry and warm. I remember the heat clearly when I was there in June, with a splash of rain arriving only after I had returned home. In some years, such conditions can create excessive hydric stress, but Beaucastel’s old vines—rooted deeply into the galets roulés—proved their resilience once again, delivering fruit of remarkable balance and depth. The resulting wine is stupendous. Ripe cherry and strawberry confiture lead the way, followed by crushed herbs, licorice root, and savory tobacco, all carried through on a long, resonant finish. This is another classic Beaucastel—one that may strike the intense tone of 2007 with the length and structure of 2010. It is already a great Beaucastel today, and it should be a great one for decades to come.

Price: $99.99

2022 Coudoulet de Beaucastel Côtes-du-Rhône

By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

The Coudoulet has often been referred to as “Baby Beaucastel,” and for good reason. The vineyards sit just outside the boundaries of Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but if we were talking about this wine a century ago, before the appellation lines were officially drawn, these vines would have contributed to the classic Beaucastel Chateauneuf. That has always made what seems like a humble Côtes-du-Rhône all the more special. Just recently, I poured the Coudoulet alongside Beaucastel for our sales teams when I was visiting each of the California store locations, and it was a great comparison. It has all that sumptuous fruit you would expect from such a great terroir—roasted raspberry, blackberry, potpourri, fig jam and a touch of dried tobacco. In its youth, it shows some of the character you might have to wait several years to unlock from its bigger brother. That doesn’t make Coudoulet simply a lesser version of Beaucastel. This is a wine that stands firmly on its own and comes from one of the great producers of the Southern Rhône. And there is one more consideration: we have this at the sharpest price I’ve seen in many years. For this level of pedigree and quality, Coudoulet doesn’t feel like such a “Baby” anymore, making this a particularly compelling offer right now.

Price: $29.99

2019 Forman Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (Library Release)

By: Ryan Woodhouse | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

Despite the season being slightly cooler than average, the 2019 Forman Cab is a bold, forward expression of this site. The palate is bursting with rich crème de cassis, blackberry, dark chocolate, new leather, exotic spice, and mountain herbs. The lush fruit is nicely delineated by fine, polished tannins, giving the wine wonderful clarity and purity. This is such an attractive, expressive wine. It can be enjoyed now with a 30-minute decant but also has a decade of upside in the cellar, perhaps more. A suave and sophisticated Forman with a touch more polish than I typically see from this rugged mountain estate.

Price: Hidden

VN: 97

JD: 96

2018 Forman Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon (Library Release)

By: Ryan Woodhouse | Review Date: 9/21/2026 | Send Email

The 2018 Forman is a wine for the ages. This is classic Forman—powerful mountain structure, tons of varietal character, and a wonderful interplay of Vaca Mountain chaparral and liquid-rock minerality. Lavender, mountain sage, and tobacco leaf mingle with huckleberry, briary blackberry, graphite, cedar, and subtle leather. Firm mountain tannins hold the fruit tightly, with complex cigar box and camphor notes just starting to emerge as the wine slowly evolves. This is a wonderful bottle to enjoy over the next decade-plus, probably 15-20 years in a cold cellar. A great candidate for a standing rib roasts this holiday season.

Price: Hidden

VN: 96

JD: 94

WS: 93

2022 Grand Corbin-Despagne, St-Emilion

By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 9/19/2026 | Send Email

Coming from the northern reaches of St-Emilion, not far from Pomerol, this under-the-radar gem does a wonderful job of borrowing from both regions, combining the depth of its clay-rich soils with a healthy proportion of Cabernet Franc that brings lift, perfume, and definition. It is a compelling expression of this corner of the Right Bank, where richness and structure come together with real finesse. Their 2022 is another screaming success in this heralded vintage, displaying the inherent richness of the year but with terrific lift and detail throughout. Deep plum and dark berry fruit mingle with fine, mineral-rich tannins, a wonderfully polished texture, and a long, entrancing finish that keeps unfolding in the glass. It is a luxurious but refined wine, with the structure and balance to age beautifully, but nearly irresistible as it is today.

Price: $39.99

2022 Le "C" des Carmes Haut-Brion, Pessac-Léognan

By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 9/19/2026 | Send Email

Le “C” des Carmes Haut-Brion is quickly becoming one of the greatest second wines in the region. For me, the perfect recipe is a mix of pedigree, house character, and a rewarding price—something this 2022 delivers in spades. The Grand Vin for this vintage notched three 100-point scores, making it clear that the team made the most of the growing season, but even this wine benefits from grand-vin-quality press, for what it’s worth. I also believe the secret lies in the estate’s boutique scale and relatively limited production, which lends a hand-crafted quality that shines through in “C” des Carmes. It’s this no-compromise approach that makes Guillaume Pouthier’s wines feel so genuine and distinctive across the board. While most of the Cabernet Franc goes into the Grand Vin, Cabernet Sauvignon steals the show in “C” des Carmes, though the fresh, lively character of the estate still provides an unmistakable signature. For those looking to experience the magic happening at this property, I can’t recommend the 2022 “C” des Carmes Haut-Brion enough—a remarkable buy already, and one that I suspect will reward those with bottles in their cellar for many years to come.

Price: $49.99

2022 Le "C" des Carmes Haut-Brion, Pessac-Léognan

By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 9/19/2026 | Send Email

Le “C” des Carmes Haut-Brion is quickly becoming one of the greatest second wines in the region. For me, the perfect recipe is a mix of pedigree, house character, and a rewarding price—something this 2022 delivers in spades. The Grand Vin for this vintage notched three 100-point scores, making it clear that the team made the most of the growing season, but even this wine benefits from grand-vin-quality press, for what it’s worth. I also believe the secret lies in the estate’s boutique scale and relatively limited production, which lends a hand-crafted quality that shines through in “C” des Carmes. It’s this no-compromise approach that makes Guillaume Pouthier’s wines feel so genuine and distinctive across the board. While most of the Cabernet Franc goes into the Grand Vin, Cabernet Sauvignon steals the show in “C” des Carmes, though the fresh, lively character of the estate still provides an unmistakable signature. For those looking to experience the magic happening at this property, I can’t recommend the 2022 “C” des Carmes Haut-Brion enough—a remarkable buy already, and one that I suspect will reward those with bottles in their cellar for many years to come.

Price: $49.99

2022 Louis M. Martini Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

By: Kerry Kennell | Review Date: 9/18/2026 | Send Email

Even at full price, the 2022 Louis M. Martini Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon is a good value. But at half-price, it’s a screaming deal. A Friday night Cab at a daily-drinking price? Count me in! Yes, this is your grandpa’s Napa Cab from days of old, before Cab started juicing and getting all swole, chasing points and acclaim. This is not red-carpet celebrity Cab. This is not brag-to-your-friends-on-the-golf-course Cab. This is a thoroughly enjoyable table Cab that plays well with steak, roasted meats, or a charcuterie board. It’s grab-a-book-and-some-snacks Cab. It’s park-it-on-the-couch-with-your-cat-in-your-lap-and-cancel-your-plans-for-the-evening Cab. It’s a tick-all-the-boxes reminder of how Napa Cab used to be and should return to again Cab. And yes, you can find Louis M. Martini at grocery stores, where it’s usually a top-shelf item. But it never fails to deliver quality time and time again. No surprises here. Easy entry, like sliding into an old leather booth at your parents’ favorite steakhouse. They’re paying for dinner tonight. After all, you’re just a kid. Bobby Darin is playing. Crisp white tablecloth. The whole nine yards. What I wouldn’t give to go back to the place in time this wine is taking me. Plum and cassis cascade into leather, dried summer bramble, and red earth. Tastes like harvest time and crush. The finish brings more plum and soft, well-integrated notes of vanilla and whispers of baking spice. “Somewhere, beyond the sea…”

Price: Hidden

Yellowstone "Recollection" Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey

By: David Othenin-Girard | Review Date: 9/18/2026 | Send Email

This exceptional release is exactly what I want to see when brands are resurrected from the dead. It’s not enough to just release a fun, authentic, old-looking bottle—although I’m ABSOLUTELY in love with the look and feel of this release. You need to put exceptional whisky in that bottle and charge a fair price. We’ve always loved the Yellowstone stuff and have supported them by doing single barrels and buying as many of the Limited Editions as they can put our way, but I’ve NEVER had a whisky from them that was this delicious. I don’t know exactly what they put in here, but they list a minimum age (always a good sign) and likely included some much older whiskey to round out the blend. We grabbed every bottle we could snag, and that was before I tasted it. Now that I’ve finally popped a bottle, I wish we could have gotten more. Let’s have at it. A classic auburn (1.4). The nose is absolutely stunningly sweet, with zero grainy character and piles of melted caramel butter, warm cherry compote, graham cracker, wild honey, sarsaparilla bark, candied apple, and roasted oak. The palate is sweet and spicy, extremely balanced, and gives the perfect little hug at 110 proof. It’s simply perfect going down. Big red fruit, cinnamon, clove, candied ginger, and burnt orange peel. It’s classic, but somehow feels like an extremely fresh and refreshing take. It’s simply a coup that we were able to grab enough of this to be talking about it here, because it really won’t last long once people start to taste it. Grab a few, as you’ll feel bad filling this beautiful bottle back up just to keep it on the back bar—and you’ll probably have trouble finding better juice for less, anyway.

Price: $69.99

Billecart-Salmon "Le Rosé" Champagne

By: Gary Westby | Review Date: 9/17/2026 | Send Email

This is the benchmark in rose Champagne, and it deserves every bit of its fame. I find it elegant and balanced every time that I have it, and the blushing pink color is always perfect. The supply of this wine is strictly limited by the amount of old, massal selected Pinot Noir in one village- Mareuil-sur-Ay, that Billecart has access to. It is this tiny villages best produce that makes the red wine that gives this nectar its color, bouquet and timeless elegance. I like the wine best as an aperitif, the only thing it need to pair with is a good glass.

Price: $94.99

2025 Domaine les Pins "L'Instant" Bourgueil Rosé

By: Kerry Kennell | Review Date: 9/17/2026 | Send Email

This is the perfect shade of pale ballet-slipper pink and everything you would hope a Cabernet Franc rosé from the Loire would taste like. The 2025 Domaine Les Pins “L’Instant” Bourgueil Rosé is fresh and lively without tiptoeing into tipsy pink silliness. Lively wild strawberry and red cherry notes mingle with hints of zesty lime and a subtle stoniness that no doubt comes from the sand and gravel soils where the vines are planted. Yes, all day, every day. It makes me daydream about sharing a bottle and a roasted chicken with friends. Don’t get too fussy. Just enjoy this rosé as these honest, hardworking winemakers intended—for pleasure and refreshment.

Price: $13.99

2024 Font de Courtedune Côtes-du-Rhône Blanc Vieilles Vignes

By: Kerry Kennell | Review Date: 9/16/2026 | Send Email

The 2024 Font de Courtedune Côtes-du-Rhône Blanc Vieilles Vignes is tight and serious in a tweed sports coat with leather elbow patches. Sans ascot, though. This blanc is no dandy. It’s muscular. It hunts, and its aim is true. Composed of 45% Grenache Blanc, 45% Roussanne, and 10% Viognier, this wine was fermented with native yeast and aged in concrete tank. It needs food. The romantic in me yearns for it with game like wild boar, duck, or pheasant. The realist in me will settle for a thick-cut, bone-in pork chop or a roasted Cornish game hen. The pessimist in me can imagine that pork rinds or lukewarm, deep-fried chicken tenders from the grocery store would shine with this wine. It’s old-vine alright. It keeps its cards close to its neatly tailored waistcoat. Crunchy pear, faint notions of caramelized sugar with negative-one-level sweetness, fresh fennel fronds, wet stones, and a sensation of licking the gnarled trunk of an old vine. Think dry, fine dust and delicate bark impressions. One sip will place you in the vineyard where it grew. The absence of oak preserves freshness and a sense of place. Winemaker Caroline Charrier let the vines do the talking. I like that.

Price: $19.99

Gilbert Jacquesson "Cuvée Eugénie" Brut Rosé Champagne

By: Gary Westby | Review Date: 9/16/2026 | Send Email

This isn't just a great deal in grower rosé champagne, it is a great bottle of wine period. This 100% Meunier is vinified with an addition of 10% red wine from old massal selected vines from the 1960's that JB Jacquesson farms like a garden plot. This wine is a full 50% reserves from past vintages, and has not only beautiful wild strawberry aromas and flavors from the top class red wine, but also a clean, dry and surprisingly mineral and long finish. If you like rosé, don't miss this one.

Price: $34.99

Gilbert Jacquesson "Cuvée Tradition" Blanc de Noirs Brut Champagne

By: Gary Westby | Review Date: 9/16/2026 | Send Email

This 100% estate grown, 100% Meunier bottling has to be tasted to be believed. No short cuts have been taken- the vines are painstakingly looked after by JB Jacquesson and the wine aged for three years on the lees with 50% reserves from the four previous years. What is the catch? There is none... We buy this direct from JB and then sell it to you. The wine is clean, full of pastry crust aromas and has a long finish that is dry but not austere. Why drink sparkling when you can drink great grower champagne?

Price: $29.99

2024 TWR (Te Whare Ra) Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough

By: Kirk Walker | Review Date: 9/16/2026 | Send Email

This is a wine that always stands apart from its peers. This is unmistakably New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc, but it is not stereotypical. It has those tropical, gooseberry, and citrus fruits tones that are backed by fresh green notes. But rather than being juicy and overt, this is a wine of concentration and focus. Mouthwatering acid drives the wine with a mineral tone that accents the fruit on the finish. This is always one of my favorite Sauvignon Blancs in the shop, regardless of price.

Price: $19.99

2022 Domaine les Pins "Les Clos" Bourgueil

By: Kerry Kennell | Review Date: 9/16/2026 | Send Email

Made from 100% Cabernet Franc, or “Breton” as the grape is locally known, the 2022 Domaine Les Pins “Les Clos” Bourgueil comes from a three-acre, south-facing walled vineyard planted to 40- to 45-year-old vines on silt-clay soils. It’s fermented in stainless steel and concrete and aged for eight months in stainless steel, allowing the character of the fruit and site to take center stage. Blackberries, violets to brighten shorter days, and freshly fallen autumn leaves are all enrobed in plush, grippy tannins. Black plum, graphite, and soft, subtle hints of vanilla and aniseed round out the finish. Full disclosure: I’m a Domaine Les Pins fangirl. Their wines consistently over-deliver, offering the combination of value, honesty, and regional typicity that I admire. This is another bottle that makes a good case for keeping a few Bourgueils around for cozy days ahead.

Price: $17.99

WE: 93

2023 Font de Courtedune Côtes-du-Rhône Vieilles Vignes

By: Rachael Ryan | Review Date: 9/16/2026 | Send Email

This is everything I want in a weeknight wine: easygoing red fruit notes, a spicy layer underneath adding intrigue, refreshing acidity, and supple tannins that make it a great pairing with a wide array of foods – everything from a simple roast chicken to woodfired pizza. Those ripe red fruit notes of plum, currant and juicy strawberry are balanced perfectly with a slightly grippy texture on the palate. And at just $17.99 per bottle, this is an incredible value that really punches above its weight class. I’d suggest picking this one up by the case.

Price: $17.99

2024 TWR (Te Whare Ra) Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough

By: Rachael Ryan | Review Date: 9/16/2026 | Send Email

We’ve been working with Te Whare Ra for well over a decade now, shipping the wines directly from the winery to our warehouse in California, making them one of K&L’s most longstanding relationships. There is one simple reason for this: they remain one of those rare producers that consistently overdelivers at every level possible. The 2024 Sauvignon Blanc is another example in a long line of releases that demonstrates the incredible value TWR offers, year after year. Classic Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc notes of freshly squeezed grapefruit juice, lime zest, tart passionfruit and tender green herbs are balanced by a remarkably mineral-driven, saline edge. There’s also an extra degree of texture and complexity that sets TWR far above apart from the sea of inexpensive New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc. Bright, focused acidity gives the wine plenty of energy, while a small portion of barrel fermentation adds a lovely roundness and palate weight without obscuring the vibrant fruit. The finish is long, mouthwatering and remarkably polished, with lingering minerality that is almost reminiscent of its Old World counterparts. This wine is bright, crisp and refreshing as you’d expect, yet substantial enough to pair with a wide variety of foods. And at $19.99, the value is almost impossible to beat. If you’re looking for one of the very best Sauvignon Blancs you can buy for around $20, this should be at the top of your list.

Price: $19.99

2024 Anonymous Wine Collective Willow Creek District Paso Robles Rhône Blend

By: Ryan Woodhouse | Review Date: 9/16/2026 | Send Email

The Anonymous Willow Creek bottling captures all of the best elements of Paso Robles without any of the pit falls. The wine is wonderfully balanced with an explosive brambly nose, tons of rich, expressive fruit, a silky suave texture on the palate, and balances all that power with great lift and freshness from the limestone soils. The wine shows ripe, brambly red and black berry fruits, baking spice, hints of cracked pepper, violets, rock dust, a subtle flourish of toasty oak. Medium to full bodied, lush and velvety on the palate with sublime purity and polish. I'm so stoked on how this Anonymous bottling came out, it's undeniably delicious and such a remarkable value given the quality of the wine.

Price: $21.95

JD: 94 - 95

2022 La Gaffelière, St-Émilion

By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 9/16/2026 | Send Email

Is this one of the best buys in all of fine wine? It’s hard to argue otherwise. The 2022 La Gaffelière brings together an epic vintage, a singular limestone‑rich terroir, and a pair of legitimate 99‑point scores, all while landing under $90. That combination borders on surreal. This is elite, top‑tier St‑Émilion at a price that feels almost out of step with the quality in the bottle. La Gaffelière has long been a favorite of ours at K&L, a château we’ve championed for years, and one whose reputation has only grown as they’ve leaned more intentionally into their hillside, Ausone‑adjacent parcels for the Grand Vin. These slopes give the wine its unmistakable identity—brightness, lift, and that limestone‑driven minerality that separates the great from the merely very good. In 2022, they managed to capture all the luxurious depth and textural generosity of the vintage while still preserving the tension and definition that make the estate’s best wines so thrilling. Achieving that balance is a feat; achieving it at this price point is something else entirely. Layered, expressive, and genuinely unputdownable, the 2022 La Gaffelière is a triumph—one of the most compelling sweet‑spot collectible buys in modern Bordeaux.

Price: $89.99

Chateau de Beaulon VSOP "Folle Blanche" Single Estate Cognac (750ml)

By: David Othenin-Girard | Review Date: 9/16/2026 | Send Email

The Cognac category is in a strange place. Once the absolute top dog of the spirits business, today the major houses are playing defense. The big brands are hurting, and the sad truth is that their struggles also hurt the small estates that support those giant operations. But if you care about the little guy, K&L has always offered access to great independent producers who would otherwise remain off most people’s radar. While the romance of small producers is undeniable, the real reason we sell these Cognacs over those from the big houses is that the price-to-quality ratio is simply astounding. This famous estate near the Gironde is situated in a unique little section of the Fins Bois around the town of Mirambeau, an island of higher-quality soils carved out of the less-regarded Bons Bois. As we have noted many times over the years, soil quality has less to do with the potential to make delicious Cognac than with the likelihood of distilling exceptionally age-worthy eau-de-vie. For that reason, we have often preferred younger spirits from the Fins Bois and Bons Bois to similarly aged examples from the highly prized Grande and Petite Champagne crus. But this special estate does not merely possess exceptional soils. It seems to be doing everything right, yet almost no one stateside has heard of it. Its old-vine vineyards are among the most picturesque in all of Cognac, while the château and cellars are second to none. Nevertheless, here we are selling a seven-year-old VSOP, which would have qualified as XO before the regulations changed in 2018, distilled from old-vine Folle Blanche for just $65. It seems that few people are listening to the Cognacais, but if you open your mind to the extraordinary value these products provide, you may discover that Cognac is ready to become one of the world’s great spirits categories once again. Let’s taste this special treat. The color is a radiant auburn. The nose delivers an absurdly ripe bouquet that seems decades beyond its stated age. Perhaps the magicians at Beaulon are blending some significantly older stock into this beautiful Folle Blanche. Aromas of sweet caramel sauce, apricot jam, roasted oak, Seville orange peel, cubeb, ajwain, and saffron leap from the glass. The palate is exceptionally well balanced and rounded without becoming syrupy or excessively caramel-driven. Instead, a vivid burst of baking spice cuts through the opulence and dries the mid-palate. Medium-bodied and impressively persistent, though not interminable, it occupies a beautiful middle ground, offering some of the aromatic depth of very old, rare Cognac while retaining plenty of zesty verve on the palate. Perhaps it is the Folle Blanche that creates this thrilling dichotomy, but at this price, it is simply a steal.

Price: $65.00

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$56.99

2023 Cerbaiona Rosso di Montalcino

By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 9/15/2026 | Send Email

Calling this a "Rosso" is honestly a disservice. In the hands of a legendary estate like Cerbaiona, this is essentially a baby Brunello that just happens to be accessible a few years earlier. It completely shatters the ceiling of the category and offers a brilliant, high-definition snapshot of their terroir. The 2023 is all about vibrant, electric tension. The nose doesn't try to fake weight or hide behind oak; it explodes with pure, unmanipulated Sangiovese character. This is of the best deal in Sangiovese if not Italy, period.

Price: $59.99

JD: 94

2021 Cerbaiona Brunello di Montalcino

By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 9/15/2026 | Send Email

Let’s talk about Cerbaiona. This estate is the absolute high temple of traditional Sangiovese. When you combine this mythical terroir with a vibrating, classically structured vintage like 2021, the result is nothing short of a masterpiece. If you want to understand the soul of Montalcino, this is the bottle, and this is the vintage you absolutely must secure. The 2021 completely bypasses the heavy, baked notes that plague lesser estates in the region. The nose is a soaring, high-toned masterclass in precision. It delivers an intoxicating wave of crushed wild rose, sour cherry, and dried blood orange peel, all wrapped around a profound, cooling core of camphor and wet stone minerality. On the palate, it drives forward with a vertical, electric spine. It possesses that "crunchy," nervous energy that keeps the immense concentration of the 2021 vintage feeling completely weightless. The tannins are ultra-fine, chalky, and demanding. What a wine

Price: $164.99

JD: 99

RP: 97

VN: 95

2019 Brane-Cantenac, Margaux

By: Walden Pemantle | Review Date: 9/15/2026 | Send Email

I'm glad I gave this time to come out of its shell. It was a bit shy at first, but 3 hours later, it's showing a very pretty nose of red cherry, cassis, sandalwood, cedar, cigar ash, potpourri, and bay leaf. The tannins are fine and elegant, and crisp acidity lends it a bright, harmonious finish. Overall, quite delicate and perfumed, particularly among the 2019s. This is an absolutely killer value for lovers of Margaux's hallmark aromatics. Drink now with a decant and revisit over the next 15-20 years.

Price: $99.99

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