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Staff Favorites
| If you’re going to have Robert Parker or Stephen Tanzer over for dinner, selecting a wine they’ve rated highly will be a nice choice. However, when you’re buying wines for yourself, we’d love to see you find wines that match up your unique palate and pocketbook. We have a large staff of friendly and knowledgeable wine professionals that taste hundreds of wines each week. They can put you in touch with bottles that you are likely to love, often at a much lower cost than the highly-rated gems that often see a run-up in price and frequent availability issues. Like any great group of opinionated professionals, our staff has varied tastes themselves. Often our customers will find a particular staff member with a style that corresponds to their own. That concept works extremely well in our retail stores, and this section is our effort to bring you the same online. Don’t get us wrong, we love the highly rated wines from the press and will continue to offer them, but we think you’re missing out if you’re not augmenting those selections with picks from our excellent staff. Here are their favorites. (Click on a name to see their other selections - or to drop them a line.) Cheers! |
Reviews
2021 Masseria Setteporte Etna Rosso
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
Welcome to the volcano! Mount Etna in Sicily is currently the most thrilling wine region in Italy, offering what many call "the Burgundy of the Mediterranean." The Portale family of Masseria Setteporte has been farming the southwestern slopes of Etna, near the town of Biancavilla, for generations. While most of the famous Etna estates are on the northern face, the southwestern slope offers a distinct terroir: higher sunlight hours balanced by staggering altitudes (up to 700 meters above sea level).
Winemaking here is defined by the earth beneath the vines. The soils are pure volcanic ash, pumice, and ancient lava flows. The native Nerello Mascalese grape (blended with a touch of Nerello Cappuccio) acts as a sponge for this terroir. It has the pale color and aromatic finesse of Pinot Noir, but the wild, smoky heart of Sicily.
2024 Piccolo Goccio Sangiovese
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
Sometimes, the most compelling wines come from the most humble philosophies. "Piccolo Goccio" translates to "Little Drop," a name that perfectly encapsulates the artisanal, boutique approach behind this wine. In a world where Sangiovese is often blended, heavily oaked, or polished to meet international tastes, this project is a refreshing return to the grape's unadulterated, rustic roots in central Italy.
This wine is a tribute to the rolling, sun-drenched hills of Tuscany, where Sangiovese has thrived for centuries. By sourcing fruit from small, dedicated plots and utilizing a gentle, low-intervention approach in the cellar (often leaning entirely on stainless steel or neutral vessels), the winemaking steps out of the way to let the raw terroir speak.
The result is a wine that captures the nervous, joyful energy of Sangiovese. It pours a brilliant, translucent ruby, offering immediate aromatics of crunchy red cherries, wild strawberry, and a savory hint of wild thyme. It is light on its feet, with that signature mouth-watering acidity and a dusty, earthy finish. It’s an honest, "glou-glou" style of Sangiovese that demands a spot on your picnic blanket alongside hard pecorino cheese and finocchiona salami.
2022 Planeta "La Segreta" Sicilia Rosso
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
The nose is incredibly punchy and alive, delivering a sharp, untamed hit of crushed mulberry, wild caper, and cracked black pepper. It smells like actual, sun-baked Sicilian earth, not a commercial syrup factory.
On the palate, it vibrates with the kind of nervous, "crunchy" energy you almost never find at this price point. It absolutely refuses to be sweet or heavy. It drives forward with a bright, vertical zip of acidity that completely strips away any potential flabbiness. The tannins are light but distinctly dusty and traditional, clamping down just enough to leave a mouthwatering, strictly savory snap on the finish.
2021 Planeta "Maroccoli" Menfi Syrah
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
Growing Syrah in the deep south of Sicily is usually a recipe for a baked, flabby, jammy disaster. Most of it ends up tasting like alcoholic fruit syrup. But Planeta’s Maroccoli vineyard sits at serious elevation, and the 2021 vintage completely evades the trap. This is Syrah with absolute fangs.
The nose skips the sweet blackberry compote entirely. It comes at you with a wild, feral blast of heavily cracked black pepper, smoked meat, and raw iron, all wrapped in a savory veil of sun-baked Mediterranean scrub. It smells deeply intellectual, cool, and undeniably untamed.
On the palate, it absolutely refuses to be a soft, lazy fruit bomb. It possesses serious density, but it drives straight through the mid-palate with a tense, vertical spine of acidity and pure nervous energy. The fruit is dark but fiercely "crunchy." The tannins are dusty, strict, and highly demanding, creating a rigid architectural grip rather than some plush, velvet cushion. It finishes bone-dry, propelled by a fierce, mouthwatering, and intensely meaty snap. This is an uncompromising, high-tension beast that completely resets the palate and commands a massively charred piece of lamb.
2023 Planeta Etna Rosso
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
Planeta might be a massive name in Sicily, but their operation on the northern slopes of Mount Etna is entirely focused on raw, volcanic expression. If you want a wine wrapped in commercial luxury or heavy oak, look away. This 2023 Rosso is 100% Nerello Mascalese grown in jet-black ash, and it is built strictly on tension.
The aromatics are feral and distinctly alpine. It leaps from the glass with a sharp, high-toned blast of crushed pumice, wild mountain strawberry, and a smoky, savory veil of ash and dried herbs. There is absolutely zero sweet fruit masking the terroir; it smells incredibly cool and intellectual.
On the palate, it vibrates with pure, nervous energy. It drives completely vertical, snapping tight with a razor-sharp spine of acidity and a fiercely "crunchy" core of tart red fruit. The tannins are ultra-fine but incredibly strict—dusty, volcanic, and demanding. It finishes bone-dry with an electric, saline cut that completely resets the palate. A tense, unapologetic mountain wine with serious architectural grip that demands a plate of roasted wild mushrooms or grilled lamb.
2023 Planeta Chardonnay
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
Planeta practically put modern Sicilian wine on the map with this exact bottling, and historically, it leaned hard into a rich, golden, heavily-wooded profile. But the 2023 is a completely different beast. It sheds all of that heavy, commercial luxury to deliver something fiercely coastal, wild, and alive.
Sourced from the blindingly white, chalky soils of Menfi, the nose totally bypasses lazy tropical fruit. Instead, it hits you with a sharp, untamed blast of crushed sea shells, wild fennel, green almond, and preserved lemon. There is a framing of wood here, but it reads as toasted hazelnut and crushed stone rather than anything sweet or buttery.
On the palate, it absolutely vibrates. There is undeniable texture and dry extract from the barrel fermentation, but it refuses to be wide, fat, or perfectly polite. It drives straight down the center with a tense, vertical spine of acidity and a massive, mouthwatering saline snap. It has a raw, electric nervous energy that keeps all the island richness perfectly in check. This is bone-dry, highly architectural Chardonnay that completely resets the palate and demands a massive plate of charred swordfish.
2021 Fèlsina Fontalloro Toscana
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
Fontalloro is the absolute benchmark for 100% Sangiovese straddling the border of Chianti Classico and the Colli Senesi. In a rigidly structured, classic vintage like 2021, Fèlsina has delivered a wine of staggering tension and pure, unmanipulated power. It completely rejects the modern, polished Super Tuscan playbook.
The aromatics are deeply savory and grounded. It leaps from the glass with a high-toned, intellectual mix of crushed alberese rock, dried tobacco leaf, and scorched earth, all tightly coiled around a fiercely "crunchy" core of tart red cherry and dried blood orange peel.
On the palate, it is all vertical drive and nervous energy. Rather than expanding with fleshy, sweet mid-palate weight, it drills down with a razor-sharp spine of acidity and a mouthwatering saline snap. The tannins are monumental—dusty, demanding, and unapologetically traditional—building a strict structural cage that guarantees decades of life in the cellar.
2018 Vigneti Repetto 'Evoluta'' Monleale Barbera
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
"Monleale" is the elite subzone designation for Barbera in the Colli Tortonesi, requiring longer aging and stricter yields. The 2018 "Evoluta" (Evolved) is a serious, brooding titan of a wine. It has shed its primary fruit to reveal savory layers of black plum, worn leather, dark chocolate, and a touch of balsamic. The tannins are fully resolved, leaving a wine of deep, velvety concentration. This is Barbera built for a steakhouse.
2021 Vigneti Repetto 'Sfera' Barbera Colli Tortonesi
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
The name "Sfera" speaks to the wine's shape—round, pure, and unbroken by heavy oak. This is a wine of incredible, crunchy energy. It is intensely aromatic, bursting with wild blackberry, dark cherry, and a streak of violet. The acidity is bright and motivating, making it an incredibly versatile, vibrant red that you will want to reach for every night of the week.
Price:
$19.99
2023 Vigneti Repetto "Quadro" Timorasso Derthona DOC
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Orazio Campoli | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
This is Timorasso at its most athletic and high-tension. The 2023 is electric, racing out of the glass with aromas of crushed white stone, green apple, and white flowers. On the palate, it is crystalline and savory, finishing with a sharp, lip-smacking salinity that begs for raw seafood or rich, bloomy-rind cheeses.
2025 Palmer, Margaux
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
Palmer crafted a masterful wine in 2025, one that delivers complexity, depth, and nuance. Aromatically, it hints at something almost intimidating, yet the palate is generous and suave. It has incredible density, but somehow isn’t heavy or overbearing—a difficult feat to pull off. Hints of violet and stone‑tinged aromas lead to a mouthcoating palate full of black plum and cassis, framed by incredibly fine tannins and a big, acid‑driven, fruit‑filled finish. Long, refined, and lined with a mineral‑driven texture.
It’s a wine that brings a smile to your face—what more could you ask for. This is certainly a Palmer that delivers the kind of joy people keep coming back for at this address. A wonderful 2025.
2025 Malartic-Lagravière, Pessac-Léognan
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
Malartic‑Lagravière is one of the most compelling wines in Pessac in 2025, bringing a combination of southern Médoc character with remarkable refinement and poise. Aromas of deep cassis and blackberries lead to a pure, focused, and complex palate that never feels heavy, but instead carries its black‑fruited core with ease, finishing on a subtly mineral‑tinged note. It is unmistakably Pessac, yet the way it delivers that signature character with such finesse and quiet confidence is an impressive feat.
It’s a ton of wine for the price, as is usually the case with Malartic‑Lagravière, but I think that’s even more true with this 2025, which feels especially complete and rewarding. Great work here from the Bonnie family, who continue to elevate this estate in all the right ways.
2025 Branaire-Ducru, St-Julien
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/26/2026 | Send Email
One of the most refreshing visits every year is with François‑Xavier Maroteaux of Branaire‑Ducru, an estate whose wines seem to get better with each vintage. The 2025 is another gem, with beautifully expressive aromas leading into a textured, fresh palate full of fine red fruits and supported by seamlessly integrated tannins. Remarkably harmonious already, the balance is impeccable.
When Branaire‑Ducru is firing at this level, it’s the complete package—beautifully St‑Julien, incredibly refined, deeply flavorful, and complex. Combine this quality and proven pedigree with genuinely rewarding release pricing, and the 2025 Branaire‑Ducru becomes a wine I cannot recommend highly enough.
2017 Launois "Helia" Grand Cru Brut Blanc de Blancs Champagne
By: Kerry Kennell | Review Date: 5/25/2026 | Send Email
By: Kerry Kennell | Review Date: 5/25/2026 | Send Email
A fine perlage provides a beautiful lacy texture. Crisp apple is highlighted by rich notes of frangipane, caramel-coated hazelnuts, and buttery pastry. Caramel apple and toasted almonds linger in the ether for what seems like ages. The empty glass smells heavenly, making me yearn for another pour. Let this one sleep in the cellar a while and it will dazzle all the more!
Price:
$79.99
2021 Halcon Estate Yorkville Highlands Syrah
By: Matthew Landau Hassan | Review Date: 5/22/2026 | Send Email
By: Matthew Landau Hassan | Review Date: 5/22/2026 | Send Email
A wildly expressive Syrah that feels more Northern Rhône than California sunshine bomb. The aromatics leap from the glass with cracked pepper, smoked meat, black olive, and dark blue fruit, backed by a lifted floral edge that keeps everything vibrant. On the palate, the wine is intense but beautifully controlled, balancing savory depth with piercing acidity and rocky minerality from the rugged Yorkville Highlands site. There’s a feral, windswept quality here that makes the wine feel alive and constantly evolving in the glass. Serious Syrah with real character and far more complexity than the price suggests.
2023 Ernest Sonoma Coast Chardonnay
By: Jackson Kelly | Review Date: 5/22/2026 | Send Email
By: Jackson Kelly | Review Date: 5/22/2026 | Send Email
While the last few Ernest releases have been spectacular, this Sonoma Coast Chardonnay takes it up a notch. Elegant and racy, this wine has notes of lemon zest, crunchy green apple, orange peel, and honeysuckle on the palate with a long, mineral-driven finish. An exceptional white wine for summer, I believe this Chardonnay is the best of the Ernest wines.
2025 La Gaffelière, St-Émilion
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/22/2026 | Send Email
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/22/2026 | Send Email
In 2025, the contrast between the St‑Emilion limestone plateau and the surrounding areas was unmistakable. The best terroirs had both relief from the extreme heat and the ability to handle the late‑season rain thanks to their exposure and soils. La Gaffelière is exactly that kind of site, and it’s easy to see why it stands out as one of the highlights of the vintage.
This was a wine I had a hard time putting down—remarkably seamless and elegant, with effortless concentration. Aromatically complex, with bright florals and Cab Franc lift, the palate follows through with pure deep red fruits, fine minerality, and a long, driven, layered profile that stays refreshing at every turn.
I can’t wait to taste it again on release, and at release pricing it will be all too easy to keep pulling corks over the years. A remarkable wine, and a towering value in the landscape of top‑tier St‑Emilion.
2020 Ferrero Brunello di Montalcino
By: Matthew Landau Hassan | Review Date: 5/21/2026 | Send Email
By: Matthew Landau Hassan | Review Date: 5/21/2026 | Send Email
A Brunello that overdelivers in the best possible way. The nose is classic Montalcino—dried cherry, wild herbs, cedar, and worn leather—but there’s a freshness here that keeps everything lifted and vibrant. On the palate, the wine balances ripe red fruit with savory earth, tobacco leaf, and a subtle balsamic note that adds real complexity. The tannins are firm but polished, giving structure without overwhelming the fruit. For a young Brunello, it already shows impressive harmony, with enough depth and tension to satisfy serious Sangiovese lovers while still being incredibly approachable now.
2025 Palmer, Margaux
By: Thomas Zacharia | Review Date: 5/21/2026 | Send Email
By: Thomas Zacharia | Review Date: 5/21/2026 | Send Email
This is one of the wines people throughout the week of En Primeur couldn't stop talking about, and with good reason. The aromatics are immediately captivating with gorgeous red fruits and bouquets of red florals. I found myself going back for sniff after sniff trying to capture what it was I found so entrancing, but in the end, words fail! You'll just have to buy a bottle and find out for yourself. On the palate, it's lovely and plush with a darker blue fruits creeping in alongside ample structure to tie things together. A superb Palmer that will no doubt age with grace.
2025 Angélus, St-Emilion
By: Thomas Zacharia | Review Date: 5/21/2026 | Send Email
By: Thomas Zacharia | Review Date: 5/21/2026 | Send Email
Angelus recently put their finishing touches on their gorgeous new cellar, which utilizes conical fermenters for gentler extractions. The 2025 has joyful, bright and effusive aromatic. The palate is expansive and precise, with an undertone of spice. It’s sappy and startlingly pretty, with well integrated tannins The 50% Franc shines beautifully in this vintage, adding intrigue and depth to alongside the lushness of the merlot which rounds out the other half of the blend.
2014 Ben Nevis 11 Year Old "Signatory Vintage" K&L Exclusive 2nd Fill Oloroso Sherry Butt No 3 Cask Strength Non Chillfiltered Highland Single Malt Scotch Whisky (700ml)
By: David Othenin-Girard | Review Date: 5/21/2026 | Send Email
By: David Othenin-Girard | Review Date: 5/21/2026 | Send Email
Year after year, Signatory brings us some of the best casks anywhere in the industry, and over the past two years they have recommitted to putting absolutely insane deals on the table for us. This year it’s a selection of classic Islays alongside this impeccable Ben Nevis. There was a period just a few years ago when similar casks were trading for twice this price, but here we have an absolutely perfect refill sherry butt, still very active, that simply transcends the market. There’s almost nothing anywhere in the world that’s better on the market today in this style, dollar for dollar. Here we go! This is ridiculously dark for a second fill sherry cask, a gorgeous mahogany (1.6). The nose is a huge mélange of waxy, earthy funk, pulverized rock, and sweet roasted nuts. It’s clearly holding so much at bay in its cask strength form, and air opens it into a basket of walnut brittle, loose leaf tobacco, dried cranberry, carnauba wax, old bike parts, semi dark chocolate, and dashi broth. Not at all for the faint of heart. We love an idiosyncratic Ben Nevis, but for the uninitiated we may need to take baby steps. On the palate it’s rich and oily, offering huge savory underbrush and salty nuts balanced by sweet raisin fruit and an underlying oily texture. It’s simply quintessentially, unapologetically original Ben Nevis. With water it softens and sweetens somewhat, though in this rare case I truly prefer it with air and time rather than the softening effect of water. The only complaint might come from those hoping for a Nevis in skimpier clothes, but the sherry is so well integrated and never overwhelms the density of the spirit that even the most staunch anti oak brigadier general might admit the superiority of this style. If you have only $80 to spend on malt this quarter and don’t need something peaty, this is the obvious slam dunk you’ve been looking for. I’m buying three.
Price:
$79.99
2025 Angélus, St-Emilion
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/21/2026 | Send Email
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/21/2026 | Send Email
I feel like Angélus has been chasing a style that speaks more clearly and transparently to their terroir, and in 2025 they’ve nailed it. You still get the layered black fruit and fine tannins, but it’s the balance that really grabs me—bright, focused, fully integrated. The wine builds on the palate with remarkable detail, bringing in floral notes, limestone salinity, and nuance after nuance, all carried by nearly invisible tannins.
Flavorful and complex, open and bright, it’s a wine you could all too easily enjoy right now, yet it’s poised to evolve gracefully in the cellar for years. Congratulations to the team at Angélus for what they’ve crafted in 2025.
Fallet-Dart "Heres" Brut Champagne
By: Philip Roufail | Review Date: 5/20/2026 | Send Email
By: Philip Roufail | Review Date: 5/20/2026 | Send Email
The Fallet family has been growing grapes in the far west of the Valle de la Marne since 1610 and everything in the vineyard and cellar are done in the most traditional way - by hand! The Fallet-Dart "Heres" Brut Champagne is 70% Pinot Noir, 15% Chardonnay, and 15% Meunier. Vinified in stainless steel tanks and French oak barrels, you will see "Tirage 2019" on the front label, which means it was bottled in 2019 and the base vintage is 2018, which is an EXCELLENT VINTAGE! It was hot, so the fruit is ripe but lush and balanced. Aged for 5 years on the lees, dosed at 6g/l, and was disgorged in November 2024 (which means it's ready to drink - if you know, you know!). Straw colored with a fine steady bead, this medium-bodied sparkler has aromas of ripe yellow fruits, grapefruit, peach, olive oil, lemon-lime, and brioche. On the palate, there are notes of pear, fig, Mirabelle plum, and ripe green apple with a subtle backbone of toast and vanilla.
2023 Ridge Vineyards "Pagani Ranch" Sonoma Valley Zinfandel
By: Ryan Woodhouse | Review Date: 5/20/2026 | Send Email
By: Ryan Woodhouse | Review Date: 5/20/2026 | Send Email
Pagani Ranch is one of the most historic vineyards in all of California. Planted between 1890 and 1914, these ancient vines stand alongside Highway 12 in Sonoma valley, just outside the town of Kenwood. As with many vineyards planted during that era, the blocks are field blends, with multiple varietals interplanted together. The vines are predominantly Zinfandel, but speckled with Petite Sirah, Mataro (Mourvèdre), and Alicante Bouschet. Ridge has been sourcing fruit from Pagani Ranch since the 1991 vintage and has become synonymous with this famed old-vine site.
The 2023 vintage was close to perfection for heritage vineyards like Pagani. Healthy winter rainfall set the stage for an exceptional growing season that stretched well into the fall, with remarkably moderate temperatures and an absence of dramatic heat spikes or untimely rain events. The team at Ridge was able to harvest the fruit at ideal ripeness, preserving both vibrant acidity and remarkable flavor complexity.
The wine was aged almost entirely in neutral oak, allowing the character and purity of the ancient-vine fruit to take center stage. As the staggering critical acclaim suggests, Ridge absolutely knocked it out of the park with this bottling. It’s a benchmark wine for the vintage and a vivid reminder of just how special California’s old-vine vineyards truly are. These historic sites are vinous treasures that deserve to be championed and preserved as an essential part of California’s wine story.
Despite the historical significance of the vineyard, Ridge’s impeccable winemaking, and the enormous scores and acclaim surrounding this release, the wine remains a tremendous value. Our decades-long relationship with Ridge allows us consistent allocations at highly competitive pricing. This is a very special bottle from a truly great vintage - don’t miss it.
2025 Lafite Rothschild, Pauillac
By: Andrew Shaheen | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Andrew Shaheen | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
Lafite produced a phenomenal wine in 2025. Pure balance and finesse, with an absolutely seamless texture. Floral and red fruit notes on the nose carry over to cassis, violet, and mineral notes on the palate. This is a wine of exceptional purity, refined and precise, with fine-grained tannins and a long, velvety finish. Nicely concentrated but at 12.5% alcohol, the wine is remarkably fresh and light on its feet. A stunning Lafite and highly recommended.
2025 Big Salt "PNK Salt" Oregon Rosé
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
Year to year this has been one of my favorite wineries, both Big Salt and Ovum behind them just make killer wines in Oregon. This is just really lovely bright cherry, freshly cut strawberries that you shouldn't have cut just yet, rhubarb, and some flowers. The palate is really deep and a little punchy with moderate acidity but this really juicy fruit is almost heavy on the palate for a rosé. It's both surprising and really enjoyable, giving this a really fun gravitas but making it super crushable since it could take some food but each sip is super fun just by itself, there's a little bit of hyacinth and green there but it's really integrated and gives it a little bit more complexity. I remain a big fan, which is a huge relief for me, kind of awkward otherwise.
Price:
$17.95
2025 Stoller Willamette Valley Rosé of Pinot Noir
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
Yummy yum, this just smells so good. It's got this amazing watermelon and green apple jolly rancher kind of nose, with little wisps of tropicality sneaking in around the sides. Then you take a sip, and the acidity rushes in, cleaning the palate and bringing with it a very dry sort of watermelon, crisp apple, lemon juice, and little touches of salinity. This is just an absolutely banging bottle of rose for the price, a crushable bottle of don't worry about it. This is the answer to a question you didn't ask yet, but you're gonna ask it soon as the season keeps warming up.
Price:
$14.95
2025 Marine Layer "Carina" Sonoma Coast Rose
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
This is such a really lovely kind of princess pink in the glass, it's just visually striking and like they say, we drink with our eyes first. The nose is really plush with this really bright raspberry note shining through the top, then some white strawberry, and underripe white peach. It's really lovely and makes me think of spring for some reason, even though we're really much closer to summer as of the writing of this. The palate has this really outstanding weight, with this really fresh and bright cherry on the front, turning into raspberry, and then into the underripe strawberry as the acidity pushes the fruit through your palate. Lovely, just top tier and something I could see having with some finger foods, there's too much going on here to just crush it by the pool, but you know what? Please just live your best life and do what makes you happy, how and when you crush a rosé just be joyous while doing it.
Price:
$32.95
2024 STiRM "Gimelli Vineyard" Cienega Valley Chardonnay
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
I cannot even tell you how excited I was when I saw there was a new vintage of the Stirm Gimelli Vineyard Chardonnay. My heart leapt and I heard the horns of Righteousness and Goodness echo in my ears and I knew that it was true, there was justice and wonder left to be found in this world. We will be okay. The nose is a little more subtle, but there's this whisp of jasmine swirling around the fruit, super appealing and just a little touch of the exotic. The fruit is this really ripe and perfect apple, soft pear, lemon candy, and lemon zest, with just this little touch of pith in the far back. The fruit pops on the palate with this really juicy brightness, really ripe apple drenched in lemon curd, and a little bit of white flowers and pear blossom on the finish. It's just so delicious, and it's happened again. Aaron loves it, still loves it, is going to continue to love it. I would help Ryan Stirm hide a body I like this wine so much.
Price:
$19.95
Fallet-Dart "Heres" Brut Champagne
By: Gary Westby | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Gary Westby | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
The Fallet family has been growing grapes in Drachy since at least 1611, and this long history has given them the luxury of incredible patience. This bottle has been aged for a full seven years on the lees, longer than most of the vintage releases we sell, and has the pin point bubbles, fine brioche and silky texture that only long cellaring on the lees can deliver. The style of the wine is refined, but also quite precise and dry. For the price, this wine is unbeatable. If you like fine toast, tight streamers, and great refreshment, this is one to case up on!
2025 Flowers Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir Rosé
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
When I first stuck my nose in the glass it was like I had somehow pushed my nose inside of a freshly picked strawberry, still cool from the morning. I really liked that. As I kept going, out came some of the watermelon candy, also just a little bit of lemon curd and wet stone. The palate is really exceptional, bright underripe raspberry, pie cherry, grated cranberry, and more of those kind of wet stone notes with a little hint of salinity on the lingering finish. Another rosé with really good acid, seems like a pretty good year for it overall, and it's overall got a nice depth as well, this is top tier rosé from a top tier California producer and it delivers exactly how you would hope and expect. Yum.
Price:
$34.95
2025 Anonymous Wine Collective Contra Costa County Rosé of Mourvedre
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
Good lord the nose on this is gorgeous, there's this bright red raspberry, but also really luscious and juicy white peach, some alpine strawberry, and maybe hyacinths, just this kind of light pink floral note. I love Mourvèdre so please understand this review will be very biased and subjective, just like all of the other reviews that I do. The palate is a little juicy, with watermelon rind, underripe raspberry, cherry water, and really great acidity, pushing the fruit through towards the end, with a mid-weight for a rosé. This is a quintessential porch wine, something that I want to have some nibbles with, especially some kind of goat cheese crostini with like some kind of something savory/sweet on top of the goat cheese. Yeah, I want that. Anyhow, this is a really well priced and well placed rosé that has everything you're looking for, at least that I'm looking for, I'm assuming you're just also a person of quality and taste.
Price:
$14.95
2025 Red Car Sonoma Coast Rosé of Pinot Noir
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
One thing I love about wine is how your experience can change from bottle to bottle of the very same wine. The first time I tried this rosé I wasn't the biggest fan, but I really love it today. There's this really gorgeous white peach gummy that's accompanying the watermelon candy on the nose, and then underneath that there's this kind of steeliness that I'm really digging, each inhale is this sensory treat. The palate walks that really fine line between being a little juicy and having the crispness that you sometimes really need from a rosé. This has that crisp line of acidity pushing through like a wave with little surfer fruit on the crest just doing a pipe tube or whatever. I feel like I blew it at the end, but you get it, it's rad, and really delicious and dry with this super pretty raspberry note on the palate, along with touches of the watermelon. Definitely a go to recommendation.
2025 Anonymous Wine Collective Oakville Sauvignon Blanc
By: Will Blakely | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Will Blakely | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
Sauvignon Blanc of this caliber at the same price as an entry level Napa bottling qualifies this offering as one of the best of the year. What sets this bottling apart is not the flawless fruit profile offering cara cara, calamansi, and star fruit, nor the technical acumen of the winery, which is unquestionably in the top tier for producers even in the area; it is actually the sumptuous texture provided by all the care and attention that went into it. Lip-smacking acidity is balanced effortlessly by creamy lees and mouthwatering minerals. Just like a perfectly crafted aperitif cocktail, this whets the palate and coaxes you into drinking more and more. You might burn through all of this over the course of the summer, but it will actually cellar beautifully, if you can delay gratification and hold onto a couple of bottles.
Price:
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2023 Domaine de l'Amandine Côtes-du-Rhône-Villages Séguret
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
This has such a fresh and pretty nose lots of lovely fruit on it, bruised strawberry, bright cherry, blueberry compote, and some nice white and purple flowers. The palate has a really nice line of acidity pushing through the whole thing, the mouthwatering easily beating the drying tannins. The fruit is a little further along than the nose, there's touched of dried cherry and strawberry, but ripe raspberries and blueberries mixed together, and then some earth comes in along the finish, with some barrel roundness and just a very very light touch of spice. This is just such an easy choice for this price, easy and the kind of wine that you love to open up because it's always impressive when you tell people how much you paid. Low key strutting. Enjoy it, it deserves to be enjoyed.
2018 Sportoletti "Villa Fidelia" Rosso
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
This wine surprised me a lot more than I thought it would. I always trust our buyers, they have amazing palates, and bring in some monster deals, but this one still caught me off-guard. This is a classic BDX-style blend, with really dark and intense fruit while pulling back and being just shy of full bodied. For just $15, this is a wine that really shouldn't be ignored by anyone who comes to us in part for our aforementioned monster deals. You get a lot for the price, there's a little touch of rustic barn on the nose, but right after there it gets intense quick. The fruit is dark and inky, compote of blackberries, a little stewed cherry, and a long touch of barrel spice. The palate is dark and chewy at first, but the great acidity stops it from being too much and delving too deep. More blackberry, cherry, a little bit of raspberry, dried green herbs, and then a healthy bit of chewy tar on the very finish. This is a dark and brooding wine that has a little bit of lightness its the midst of it, kind of like me after a long weekend. This is just top notch table wine, made to be had with whatever you want to have it with. I'd probably go red meat or braised meats, but I could see this working with chicken or pork with the right sauce. Fantastic value.
Price:
$14.99
2023 Tenuta San Guido "Guidalberto" Toscana
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
There's such a graceful elegance to this wine, a kind of subtleness that makes me tilt my head like a curious dog, because subtlety and nuance are my key hallmarks for true luxury. There's really soft but clean fruit on the nose, cherry, ripe raspberry, some plum skin, and an oaken roundness tying everything together and sanding off any sharp edges. The palate has a bit higher acidity than I expected, but it's so welcome, it makes the fruit a bit higher in tone, brighter cherry, riper raspberry, but there's still this understated elegance and harmony that's just really lovely. The tannins are really soft and super well integrated, this might be the best vintage of this wine that I've tried.
2021 Boroli "Villero" Barolo
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Aaron Hughes | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
This is just so joyously pretty and elegant, and just a little touch shy, when you really get in there it just unravels so gloriously. There's this whole alluring thing going on with raspberry flower, alpine strawberry, crushed rose petals, dark cherry, and just a little cranberry skin. The palate has more cherry, tart raspberry, bruised strawberry, and this gloriously long and silky finish, the tannins are soft and very integrated and even just a 5 years old I think that with the right food this would be so incredibly ready right now. Braised short rib. I kept saying this the whole tasting, half as a joke because I'm very funny but also because that just works with so many things. Fantastic, A+/10.
2009 Clos l'Eglise, Pomerol
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
It’s a real treat to find this tiny‑production Pomerol anywhere, much less with perfect provenance a decade and a half after the vintage. Clos l’Eglise has long been one of the appellation’s most characterful, quietly elite estates—an old, historic property on the plateau whose modern renaissance began under Hélène Garcin and Patrice Lévêque. The vineyard sits on prime clay‑and‑gravel soils in the heart of Pomerol, a compact parcel dominated by old‑vine Merlot with a meaningful proportion of Cabernet Franc that brings lift, spice, and structure. Despite its blue‑chip neighbors and consistently high critical praise, Clos l’Eglise has always remained a touch more grounded in price than the region’s most famous names.
The 2009 is clearly one of the estate’s all‑time signature releases, a wine that earned its place among Robert Parker’s top Pomerols in this legendary vintage. Rich, heady, and texturally luxurious, it layers dark cherry, plum, warm spice, and cocoa with the velvety tannins that define the best ’09s. There’s impressive depth and concentration, but also a sense of polish and completeness that makes it especially compelling today.
It’s singing right now, wide open and expressive, yet it will be fascinating to follow over the next decade or more. There are few better buys for celebrated, top‑tier Pomerol from the famed 2009 vintage.
2025 Langoa-Barton, St-Julien
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
Velvety and intense, the 2025 strikes me as a very serious Langoa, though perhaps not as stern as in years past. Lovely floral aromatics and a core of deep red fruit lead into a long finish framed by very fine, well‑integrated tannins.
Few labels deliver as much value—or spark as much excitement—as a well‑aged Langoa Barton, and it’s hard not to notice how the wines have continued to improve lately. The drinking window seems to be broadening on the early side without sacrificing character.
Count me in as a fan of 2025 Langoa Barton.
2025 Lafite Rothschild, Pauillac
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
Lafite’s 2025 is awesome—easily among their finest of the past decade or more. With beautiful, classic aromas, a flawless texture, and mouthwatering notes of pure black cherry and cassis, it delivers the signature Lafite length and purity in full. Delicate and graceful without sacrificing depth, it’s a perfect reminder that concentration in a wine does not require weight.
Seamless and full of flavor, driven by pure Cabernet (94%) energy, it’s an entrancing wine that reveals one layer of complexity after another. Those who tuck away a few bottles will have a masterpiece waiting for them in the years ahead.
I’ve been a fan of their evolution over the past decade, as the wines now bring so much more joy in their youth than ever before. The 2025 delivers that—and then some. What a brilliant wine.
2025 Gruaud-Larose, St-Julien
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Ryan Moses | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
What I adore about Gruaud-Larosse these days is that they've somehow managed to keep the character of the estate that has defined their age-worthy, classic style, while still evolving in a way that has made their wines more apparent in their youth. Such is the case with the 2025, celebrating its 300th anniversary. The aromas are heady here, hinting at darker fruits and florals, but on the palate is bright, with a core of St Julien red fruit, seamless texture, and a ton of depth that both demands and deserves attention in the glass. This is a wine you'll want to spend time with, and at this release pricing, it's all too easy to do so.
2025 Lafite Rothschild, Pauillac
By: Thomas Zacharia | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
By: Thomas Zacharia | Review Date: 5/19/2026 | Send Email
2025 is the final vintage Lafite produced in their historical cellar, and the wine is a fitting swan song. Beautiful dark aromatics, the palate is all silk and supple texture, with startling freshness and mineral electricity. This was really elegant and already quite entrancing even out of barrel, with superbly integrated tannin, and plenty of flesh to convince me there are even more exciting days ahead.
2025 Larcis Ducasse, St-Emilion 6-Pack in OWC
By: Scott Turnbull | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
By: Scott Turnbull | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
The 2025 Larcis-Ducasse opens with expressive aromas of black cherry, blood orange, and rhubarb, layered with nuances of crushed rock, white smoke, fresh verbena, and subtle baking spice. On the palate, it is lushly fruited yet impeccably poised, delivering a velvety mouthfeel framed by firm, finely integrated tannins. The balance is striking throughout, with vibrant freshness and mineral tension lending precision to the wine’s generous texture. Sourced from the cooler limestone-rich soils of Côte Pavie in Saint-Émilion, the wine carries both richness and restraint, marrying ripe dark fruit with savory mineral complexity and a long, refined finish.
2025 Larcis Ducasse, St-Emilion
By: Scott Turnbull | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
By: Scott Turnbull | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
The 2025 Larcis-Ducasse opens with expressive aromas of black cherry, blood orange, and rhubarb, layered with nuances of crushed rock, white smoke, fresh verbena, and subtle baking spice. On the palate, it is lushly fruited yet impeccably poised, delivering a velvety mouthfeel framed by firm, finely integrated tannins. The balance is striking throughout, with vibrant freshness and mineral tension lending precision to the wine’s generous texture. Sourced from the cooler limestone-rich soils of Côte Pavie in Saint-Émilion, the wine carries both richness and restraint, marrying ripe dark fruit with savory mineral complexity and a long, refined finish.
2023 Domaine des Aubuisieres "Cuvee Gerald" Vouvray (Demi-Sec)
By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
We don’t see nearly enough demi-sec Chenin Blanc these days, which is part of what makes this new arrival from Domaine des Aubuisières such a pleasure. One of my favorite rising stars in Vouvray, the domaine has the ability to balance richness and freshness beautifully.
Here, a touch of sweetness adds weight and texture to Chenin Blanc’s naturally bright acidity, giving the wine a rounder, more supple feel on the palate. Notes of crisp apple, fresh honey, and jasmine tea unfold effortlessly, with enough lift and energy to keep everything vibrant and refreshing.
This little star shines brightly at the table and feels tailor-made for spicy, savory, and salty dishes. Sounds like I may be ordering Thai curry alongside this one.
2023 Domaine des Aubuisieres "Cuvee de Silex" Vouvray (Sec)
By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
Vouvray remains one of the great sources for value-driven Chenin Blanc, and Domaine des Aubuisières continues to be one of the appellation’s rising stars. The “Cuvée de Silex” comes from clay and flint-rich soils, giving the wine the tension and crackling acidity that I love in this style of Chenin.
Vibrant notes of lime zest, quince, and a touch of kiwi lend the wine a bright, energetic edge, while the palate stays dry—but not overly so—retaining just enough texture to make it incredibly food-friendly. This is the kind of white that feels equally at home on its own or at the dinner table.
2024 Domaine des Remizières "Origine" Crozes-Hermitage
By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
The soft-spoken yet deeply thoughtful vigneronne Emilie Desmeures crafts some of my favorite wines from Crozes-Hermitage. “Origine” is the new name for the estate’s traditional cuvée, and since we first began working with these wines nearly a decade ago, it has remained one of my go-to bottles for sheer value from the Northern Rhône.
There has always been a generosity to Emilie’s wines. She fully destems and isn’t afraid to let the fruit speak clearly and confidently. Sweet black cherry and raspberry notes lead the way, followed by classic Rhône accents of tobacco, olive, and bay leaf. Firmly Northern Rhône in character, it still carries the lushness and approachability that many New World Syrah drinkers will immediately connect with.
2024 Domaine Tabordet Pouilly-Fumé
By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
By: Keith Mabry | Review Date: 5/18/2026 | Send Email
It’s a pleasure working with the wines of Tabordet. Since we began importing them nearly a decade ago, they’ve filled a great niche in our portfolio—top-tier vineyard holdings in Pouilly-Fumé producing wines that consistently overdeliver. Over the years, the estate has undergone both organic and biodynamic conversion, further elevating the quality and precision of the wines, while also earning increasing critical attention along the way.
This bottling remains the workhorse of the range, and thanks to our direct relationship with the domaine, we’re able to offer it at nearly 20% below the rest of the market. At a time when most bottlings from Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé have climbed comfortably above the $30 mark—a reflection of both rising costs and worldwide demand—these direct partnerships allow us to keep prices sharp while continuing to offer benchmark producers from the regions you love.
The new 2024 release is a delight. A touch more elegant than the 2023, it shows a refined expression of Sauvignon Blanc and all the hallmark qualities of this great appellation. The profile is intensely mineral and citrus-driven, with that classic strike of flint on the finish. Compared to its predecessor, the finish feels smoother and slightly more rounded, giving the wine an added sense of polish without sacrificing tension or energy.
I love this new release, and to me it’s pure proof of concept for what we aim to do—finding outstanding producers abroad and bringing them to you at prices that still make everyday enjoyment possible.
Price:
$24.99
2022 La Chablisienne Chablis 1er Cru "Les Lys"
By: Scott Beckerley | Review Date: 5/15/2026 | Send Email
By: Scott Beckerley | Review Date: 5/15/2026 | Send Email
This enticing medium-rich Chablis has fleshy yellow orchard fruit flavors with a finish of refreshing acidity and bright citrus. Yellow pear fruit, soft lemon cream, minerals. It begins with mouth-coating fruit and zips along the palate cleanly. Very appealing for those who like some weight to their Chardonnay as well as those who like the traditional acidity of classic Chablis. Lastly, the fruit from "Les Lys" is a sub-section of the famed "Vaillons" vineyards. So, you just know how high the quality is of this bottling.