Friday, April 28, 2023

Old-School Returns: Refined, Delicious New White Bourgogne. $29

After three consecutive hot, dry vintages in Burgundy, Mother Nature decided to mix in a changeup, throwing just about every possible malady at the long-suffering winemakers of the Côte d’Or. An April frost devastated much of France, with some producers losing as much as 90% of their crop in just two nights. Then the summer turned wet and humid, causing high risk of oidium, rot, and mildew. Harvest in the second half of September was soggy and small.

Wednesday, April 26, 2023

Dark, Fresh, Delicious $19 Organic Côtes du Rhône

If we were to pick one thing we look for above all else when evaluating a wine, it would be balance. No matter the grape or region, style or price, a wine with all its elements in at the correct levels succeeds. Achieving balance between ripeness and freshness has become harder in recent hot, dry […]

Tuesday, April 25, 2023

“Round and Elegant”: New Grüner Veltliner on Another Level

The Salomon-Undhof estate dates to 1792, and is currently on its 7th and 8th generation winemakers, father and son Bert and Bert Salomon. Their terraced vines overlooking the Danube have long been an excellent source, with the country’s foremost wine guide calling them a “figurehead of Austrian wine history.”

Sunday, April 23, 2023

An Old Favorite $22 Gulpable Sangiovese Returns

Back in 2018, winemaker Pierro Lanza of the Fattoria Poggerino said goodbye to his “Labirinto” cuvée. The young vines used for this cuvée had finally grown up, gone to college, and moved out of the house. (More accurately they became old enough for inclusion in his base Chianti Classico cuvée.) We were sad to see Labirinto disappear, but happy to see our Classico allocation increase.

Thursday, April 20, 2023

Crackling, Vibrant, Springtime Loire Cabernet Franc. $22

Some wine writers will tell you that we’re living in the golden age of Loire Valley Cabernet Franc. Twenty years ago winemakers would struggle to ripen their grapes, and as anyone who’s had one will agree, underripe Cabernet Franc is a particular sort of unappealing. Twenty years from now, if warmer summers and earlier harvests continue, the wines may become unrecognizable. Rejoice, they say, in this window of perfect weather.

Wednesday, April 19, 2023

Remarkable 12-Year-Old Vintage Grower Champagne under $100

Over the weekend we celebrated Oysterfest at our warehouse in Newton. It was a smashing success: our diligent visitors put away over 600 oysters in just four hours, not to mention polishing off a few cases of Champagne, Chablis, Muscadet, Sancerre and more.

Tuesday, April 18, 2023

Delicious $32 Left-Bank Bordeaux for Grilling Season

There’s something irresistible about the combination of well-browned, juicy steak and a glass of red wine. For subtler meats like duck or tenderloin, we love Burgundy; for lamb or anything spicy, send us Côte Rôtie. But for something hearty – a ribeye perhaps – our pick is usually Bordeaux.

Sunday, April 16, 2023

Pure, Refreshing, Delicious 2020 Red Burgundy from Pommard

We spent a lovely morning tasting with Sofie Bohrmann last month in Meursault. She’s warm and welcoming, quick with a smile, and very friendly – by the end of the tasting she was talking us into staying for a beer (she is Belgian, after all). Her wines also happen to be outstanding. Together with her […]

Friday, April 14, 2023

Crisp, Refreshing, Delicious New Rosé. $22

We’d bet that many readers have garages bigger than the Domaine Malmont’s winemaking space. We work with some small-production winemakers, but even by our standards Malmont’s winery is tiny. The space attached to winemaker Nicolas Haeni’s house in Séguret looks more like a large tool shed than a winemaking operation.

Wednesday, April 12, 2023

Bold, Muscular, Delicious 2019 Red Burgundy

New winemakers in Burgundy are hard to come by. It’s a tiny region, and between small harvests, ever increasing demand, and well-established importers, it can seem there’s nothing new to discover. Which makes us even gladder of our most recent Burgundian find: the Domaine Boursot in Chambolle-Musigny. Neal Martin of Vinous writes of a “foundation […]

Tuesday, April 11, 2023

Lightweight, Delicious, Bone-Dry Muscadet. $22

With baseball here, the thermometer pushing 70, and the Marathon around the corner, it’s finally starting to feel like spring here in Boston. (This is New England, of course, and even typing those words probably risks an April snow storm.) But we’ve turned over the season in our minds and cellars, and eventually Mother Nature will catch up.

Saturday, April 8, 2023

“Vibrant” 2020 Red Burgundy from Michel Gros. $35

Burgundian harvest dates in August were unthinkable only decades ago, but they’re quickly becoming common. In many locations, early harvests make it far more difficult to produce balanced wines; but in parts of Burgundy, at least, there are silver linings.

Wednesday, April 5, 2023

Classy, Smooth 2020 White Burgundy from St-Aubin

St-Aubin may not be the secret source for white Burgundy it once was, but it’s not because of the quality. Soaring prices for Burgundy from its famous neighboring towns of Puligny, Chassagne, and Meursault mean that the spillover demand has nudged prices for St-Aubin well. But the quality has more than kept pace, and despite the demise of its anonymity, it’s still a source for exceptional value.

Wednesday, April 5, 2023

“Delicious, Plump and Juicy:” Serious, Delicious Springtime Red Burgundy

The 2019 vintage is a terrific red Burgundy vintage, producing wines with extraordinary balance between ripe fruit, acidity, and tannin. As Neal Martin puts it, “they unexpectedly offer freshness and richness that were once thought to be mutually exclusive.”

Tuesday, April 4, 2023

Small-Batch, Delicious, Everyday Grower Champagne. $49

The Côtes des Bar and Chablis have a lot in common. They’re both satellite appellations of their respective areas (Champagne and Burgundy), and both produce wines of a slightly different style than their parent region. Chablis is a steelier, stonier, less-oaked version of Burgundy; the Côtes des Bar is a more Pinot Noir-focused Champagne, from more clay-rich soils. And though historically both have suffered a bit from their location off center stage, these days they’re both enjoying a moment in the spotlight.