Winemakers

All of the following 2021 Saint Emilion wines were tasted in my home office in non-blind tasting conditions. Please note that due to the size of the 2021 St. Emilion Wine Guide, (With over 150 wines reviewed) this report has been published in 3 parts. This is Part 2. For the other articles 2021 St.

2021 St. Estephe as an appellation was reasonably consistent. While not at the level of other recent vintages, 2022, 2020, 2019 and 2018. across the board, there are some quite nice wines, especially considering the vintage. There is an argument to be made that Saint Estephe is perhaps the most homogenous appellation in the Left

2021 Pauillac clearly turned out better than expected for vignerons and for me. The vintage had issues right from the start of the growing season. It was a wet, dreary year indeed as close to 700mm soaked 2021 Pauillac even before it began. The vintage kicked off with a cold, soaking wet January. February was

2021 Saint Julien wines proved to be much better,, and more interesting than I originally expected, especially when you consider what the vines, and the growers needed to contend with during the growing season. The 2021 St. Julien vintage did not begin life easily. And it got worse from there with excessive rain, frosts, mildew,

Margaux is always a difficult appellation to get a handle on, due to its large size, and dizzying arrays of terroirs. 2021 Margaux is no exception to that rule. The 2021 vintage was shaped by a myriad of challenges including devastating frosts that struck on April 7 and April 8. Several growers reported varying levels

By this time you’ve started reading our report on 2021 Saint Emilion, it is likely that you have already heard more than you need to know about the 2021 Bordeaux vintage. But, for those of you wanting to know more about the Right Bank, and 2021 Saint Emilion, these are the high points of the

2021 Pessac Leognan produced several outstanding white wines as well as high quality red wines. But, clearly, it is not a year where you can purchase wines blindly. It is a vintage where terroir, and producer mattered. With Pessac Leognan, there are vintages when the red wine grapes are much better than the white Bordeaux

All of the following 2021 Cotes de Bordeaux wines were tasted in non-blind tasting conditions in my home office. 2021 Ad Francos – Bordeaux Côtes de Francs – Black raspberries, mint leaf, flowers and red plums pop in the nose. On the palate, the wine is medium-bodied, soft, fresh, forward and bright, with a high-toned,

Like all of 2021 Bordeaux, 2021 Pomerol was not an easy vintage. In fact, growers were not sure what they were going to come up with until later in the growing season. That being said, while 2021 Pomerol is heterogenous, some of the most compelling wines of the vintage came from Pomerol! 2021 Pomerol, the

All of the following 2021 St. Emilion Satellite Appellation wines were tasted in my home office in non-blind tasting conditions. 2021 Barbe Blanche – Lussac-St. Émilion – Earthy, with a touch of mint and spice that sits on top of its cherries. The wine is medium-bodied, crunchy and crisp, with a vibrant edge to its

All of the following 2021 Lalande de Pomerol Appellation wines were tasted in my home office in non-blind tasting conditions. 2021 Bertineau St.-Vincent – Lalande de Pomerol – Chocolate covered nuts, espresso, flowers and cherries shine in the nose. The palate is even better with all of its round, black cherries, dark chocolate and mint.

2021 Bordeaux is perhaps at its most difficult in the diverse array of terroirs found in the massive Haut Medoc appellation. There are producers that did manage to create up some fine wines with character, that will be enjoyable on release, and in their youth. The wines are not long-term agers. Instead, they are soft-textured,

2021 Chateauneuf du Pape wines are not the product of an easy vintage. Yet, the end results turned out an array of charming wines that can be enjoyed in their youth. In fact, as you can see, most 2021 Southern Rhone wines are going to be delicious on release! Having tasted so many 2021 Chateauneuf

The 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape report and wine buying guide is published in 3 parts. Part 1 also includes an overview of the vintage with a look at the growing season and the harvest. Part 1, covers 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape Guide Wines A-C — 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape Guide Part 3, Wines M-Z You

The 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape report and wine buying guide is published in 3 parts. For a detailed overview of the vintage, and the harvest, please read Part 1 which includes tasting notes for 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape Guide to the best wines Wines A-C – 2021 Chateauneuf du Pape Guide Part 2, Wines D-L

2023 has been a great year to enjoy wine. I was fortunate to be able to taste several wonderful, mature wines over the past 12 months. Plus, I was also fortunate to be able to experience countless young wines, especially from Bordeaux. I tasted a wealth of 2020 wines in bottle. And, this was followed

2022 Saint Emilion with 162 wine tasting notes is published in 3 separate articles because of its extraordinary length and coverage. As can see, we tasted an incredible range and array of wines so you will know what to buy. Part 1 covers wines A-E, Part 2 features F-L and Part 3 finishes up with

One of the key components to a great vintage is when the petit chateaux and value wines make superb wines, which is what happened with 2022 Bordeaux. While it is clear that not ever wine from every appellation is great, there are countless stellar, value wines from numerous appellations from the Left Bank and the

For a full, detailed overview and analysis of the 2022 Bordeaux vintage and harvest with producer quotes… 2022 Bordeaux Vintage, Harvest Report All of the following 2022 Bordeaux Superieur wines were tasted in Bordeaux in April. Most of the wines were tasted at Negociants, Consultants or with trade groups. Whenever possible the wines were tasted

2022 Dry White Bordeaux Wine Report… Every vintage tells a story. There are vintages which favor red wines. There are years that are better for white Bordeaux wine and there are vintages when both, red Bordeaux and white Bordeaux hit all the right notes. 2022 Bordeaux is clearly a year for red wines. Of course,

2022 Sauternes, Barsac Report… 2022 Sauternes at their best are exciting, even thrilling sweet-treats! The 2022 Bordeaux vintage for sweet wines allowed for the development of Botrytis, though the much-needed noble-rot did not come until late in the growing season. The dates of harvest mattered as vignerons that picked early produced bright, fresh, sweet wines

2022 St. Emilion Satellite Appellations, 2022 Lussac, 2022 Montagne, 2022 Puisseguin and 2022 St. Georges are as you might expect variable. But if you know where to look, there are several solid wines. Located adjacent to St. Emilion, in 2022, the Saint Emilion satellite appellations provide some very fine wine Right Bank wine values from

2022 Bordeaux generic AOC wines are anything but generic. There are numerous reasons why wines fit in this category. They could be produced from grapes not allowed in the appellation, more often than not, this is when growers plant white wine grape varieties when the AOC laws only permit red wine grape production. It is

2022 Pomerol wines are gorgeous. At their best, they are aromatic, opulent, concentrated, flamboyant, elegant, and most importantly, vibrant with freshness. Their unique character is due to the unusual coupling of high sugar levels meshed with a low pH. While you have it in spades with 2022 Pomerol, not is not something you see often.

2022 Lalande de Pomerol wine buying guide. For a complete, detailed overview and analysis of the 2022 Bordeaux vintage and harvest with producer quotes… 2022 Bordeaux Vintage, Harvest Report All of the following 2022 Lalande de Pomerol wines were tasted in Bordeaux in April. Most of the wines were tasted at Negociants, Consultants or with

2022 Margaux Vintage Report and Wine Buying Guide 2022 Margaux is not a completely homogenous vintage, due in large part to massive size of the appellation and its landscape of varying terroirs each of which offer different abilities to deal with the high temperatures and lack of rain. Add to that consideration that with 2022

2022 Pessac Leognan Wine Guide, Vintage and Harvest Report… 2022 Pessac Leognan was challenging from start to finish. There were more difficulties here than in much of Bordeaux. Pessac Leognan received less water during the growing season than all of the other major appellations. It is also obvious today that climate change concerns more than

2022 Bordeaux is a clear candidate for future legendary status. There are numerous characteristic that go into calling a vintage great. One of key components is when there are really fine wines from every appellation and more importantly, at all price ranges. While 2022 Haut Medoc can never be homogenous, because the appellation is so

2022 Saint Julien wines are beautiful expressions of what the appellation does best. The wines are elegant, finesse in style, with symmetry, purity, length, character and vibrancy. Though, due to the extreme hot and dry conditions the vineyards experienced for much of the 2022 Bordeaux growing season, many vignerons were worried about how the wines

2022 Pauillac Complete Wine Guide and Vintage/Harvest Report… 2022 Pauillac wines are stunning! 2022 Pauillac is the appellation of the vintage. For the first time, I rated 4 wines with the potential to score 100 Pts. And a few wines came within a point of triple digits. So, that is really saying something. Across the