Reviews

Vice Versa Cabernet Sauvignon BBS Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard

I've written quite a bit here already, so I won't go too in-depth specifically on this wine. This was full of depth and flavor expansion from the very beginning. Ripe and rich, but not too sweet…

Vice Versa Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard

Not as stubborn as the last time I had this wine 2.5 years ago, but still somewhat disinclined to fan out and show its full flavor potential, the 2015 VV LPV is going to be a slow burn of a wine…

Vice Versa Chardonnay Platt Vineyard

Don't worry, I speak Burgundy: A top-shelf Puligny-Montrachet that face-plants into a fresh patch of blooming Iberean white oleanders while sucking on an acid popsicle of fresh squeezed lemon juice…

Roses de Jeanne / Cédric Bouchard Champagne Blanc de Noirs Côte de Val Vilaine

This needs a wee amount of cellar time in-bottle to fully come to its happy place. The flavors didn't start to expand until the final sips after over an hour of air. Linear, with some red apple flesh…

Domaine William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Bougros Côte Bouguerots

Still pretty spun up and primary. Linear shots of green apple skin don't expand much into anything especially deep or complex. This is a high quality, pure, and refreshing wine in its current state,…

Vincent Dauvissat (René & Vincent) Petit Chablis

This punches way above its class, illustrating why the Vincent Dauvissat name is so heralded for its top-shelf Chablis. The fact that this Petit Chablis carries the levels of concentration,…

Domaine des Malandes Chablis 1er Cru Montmains Vieilles Vignes

Enjoyable, agreeable, and all that friendly handshaking kind of stuff. It's yellow, it's lemony, it's what you would expect from a base model Chardonnay. I did not find it as particularly interesting…

Three Sticks Chardonnay Origin

2019 Three Sticks Origin side-by-side with a 2018 Droin Vaudesir Grand Cru Chablis.

Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis 1er Cru Montmains

Starts out with lemon drop and lemon square succulence, but quickly becomes noticeably angular on the finish. After extended aeration, a gummy saccharine texture coats the palate. There is goodness…

B Cellars Cabernet Franc Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard

Still a hotbox of massive fruit and booze. The berry fruit is unctuous, powerful, and unfurled. The flex on this is all iron fist right now, laying a beat down to the palate; after a few sips it was…

Domaine des Malandes Chablis Cuvée Tour du Roy Vieilles Vignes

Continues to impress. For the price and its class, this little Chablis is stupid good in 2017. It's got zip and acid, lemony succulence, and enough tension and intensity to hold the whole package…

Faethm / Fingers Crossed Grenache Off The Record

If your nose is woke and you're eyes are blind, black cherry stems and kirsch you'll find. And if noble Grenache is what you guessed, you're equally smart as you are blessed. So sip my friend, and…

Faethm / Fingers Crossed Syrah Off The Record

Holy heaping heaven of heathen Syrah gloriousness. From the first pop of the cork, the nose immediately lets you know that you're in for the best beefy Syrah amazement you've ever experienced. Is…

Tusk Estates L'Orange

A beautiful wine that is performing somewhat surprisingly well given its familial linkage to its brawny Tusk Estate brethren. At home following this now-bottled L'Orange (since my last trying it in…

Domaine Pinson Frères Chablis 1er Cru La Forêt

Yellow, white, and green citrus notes, with a spunky entry of lemon-lime zest, wet white rock, unripe white peach, seafoam, and hints of vanillin oak. Worthy of its 1er cru designation, with medium…

Emmanuel Brochet Champagne Premier Cru Extra Brut (2015) Le Mont Benoit

Much less abrasive than the previous bottle. Richer, fuller, and fresher. A little more tension would be desired, but otherwise a very satisfying bottle of Champagne. Entering into a nice window now.…

Arrow & Branch Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard

Similar to my previous notes, with black cherry, cedar, spice, fresh mulch, and subtle minerality present in a medium-bodied chassis that does well to express a more controlled and classic version of…

VHR Cabernet Sauvignon Vine Hill Ranch

Young, driven, and really, really determined in its energy and thrust, this wine was off to the racetracks with a super thrilling acidic frame that was spinning its essences in the mouth with so much…

Memento Mori Cabernet Sauvignon Beckstoffer Las Piedras

I've written quite a bit on this wine already. Strikingly similar to the 2019 barrel sample we had two days earlier, the 2016 LPV from Memento Mori busts out of its seams with powerfully ripe black…

Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis Grand Cru Vaudésir

I've spat out a bunch of information on this wine already, but I continue to go back to it every time even though I know it needs time to become even more complex. Still, this is a refreshing Chablis…

Morlet Family Vineyards Cabernet Franc Force de la Nature

Hot and ripe on the first pop, but then it gets right into a nice stride, inviting another sip (and another bite of food). Plump black cherry, black and red currant, red and black licorice, and…

Morlet Family Vineyards La Proportion Dorée

A much more poised and refreshing bottle than the last visit I had with this wine. Depth and bass tone penetration is achieved successfully in part because it has the upper elevation citrus zest and…

Nicolas Maillart Champagne Premier Cru Mont Martin

A steelier showing this time around. It either didn't like the stemware it was crowded in, which disabled it from spreading its wings and offering up the depth I've come accustomed to enjoying from…

Ultramarine Sparkling Rosé Heintz Vineyard

A taut and refreshing Rose, with higher and lighter expressions of cranberry water, lemon pith, citrus spray, chalk, and Himalayan salt rock notes popping from the glass and nipping at the palate.…

MacDonald Cabernet Sauvignon

A perfect wine in the making, the 2018 Macdonald is undoubtedly going to be one of the top wines of the vintage. For those familiar with the Macdonald lineage, the 2018 will be no surprise as a…