Campillo 1996 Reserva Especial Bodegas Campillo represents the culmination of the accumulated experience of four generations of winemakers who sought a site at the heart of Rioja Alavesa, Laguardia. Strategically placed in a location in which all key factors: altitude, climate, soil and terrain are ideally suited for growing grapes and ageing their wines. Juilio Faustino Martínez always had the dream of creating a winery surrounded by vineyards, thus transforming the concept of château to the land of Rioja wine. To this end he started his project by acquiring 35 hectares of land near Laguardia in the 1980s which were later expanded to 50. After several years, in 1988, everything…
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Benziger 2005 Tribute A while ago I attended a wine tasting featuring Benziger Wines hosted by my favorite wine shop, Stew Leonard’s Wines. Kathy Benziger poured some of her Family’s wines. They were outstanding, but let me tell you something about the Benziger Winery. To begin with, Benziger’s entire portfolio of wine is certified sustainable, organic or Biodynamic. Not because they want to be known as “the green winery,” but because their experience has shown that great wine has green values, good for the earth and the vine, good for the farm worker and the farmer, and good for the customers. Benziger has been growing grapes on Sonoma Mountain for close to…
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Tenuta San Guido Guidalberto 2013 Not long ago I went to a tasting and tried the Tenuta San Guido wines. They offer three noteworthy reds, the famous Sassicaia and two additional labels; Guidalberto and LeDifese. LeDifese is a Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese blend and has been produced by the winery since 2003. LeDifese is their lowest priced wine and is an excellent offering, however today I will be commenting on the 2013 Guidalberto, their second label to Sassicaia. If Mario Incisa, creator of Sassicaia, was inspired by his great-uncle Leopoldo Incisa della Rocchetta, then his son Nicolò, director of Tenuta San Guido since forty years, has been motivated by Guidalberto…
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Errazuriz Don Maximiano Founders Reserve 2012 Don Maximiano Errazuriz founded Viña Errazuriz in 1870 in the Aconcagua Valley, north of Santiago. This valley has cool, rainy winters, hot, dry summers and moist Pacific Ocean breezes, ideal for growing grapes. Don Maximiano obtained the finest clones from France and transformed this barren land into a world-class vineyard. Today, the tradition of quality lives on with Don Maximiano’s descendant, Eduardo Chadwick, the fifth generation of his family to be involved in the wine business. Eduardo has overseen the modernization of the winemaking technology at this historic estate while maintaining a distinct identity for its wines, dedicated to producing estate grown wines of…
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Chateau d’Armailhac 2009 The existence of Château d’Armailhac dates back to the late 17th century, as evidenced in a land register from 1680 which mentions the brothers Dominique and Guilhem Armailhacq, owners of parcels of land in Pauillac. Another land register from 1750 notes that their descendants have “planted with vines” the family estate, covering 15 to 16 hectares (37-39 acres). By the end of the 18th century the estate has grown to 52 hectares (128 acres) but the brokers of the time describe its wine as “disappointingly thin”. Throughout the following century, Mouton d’Armailhacq’s owners work unceasingly to improve its quality, using techniques such as topping-up, running-off, barrel disinfection…
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Grgich Hills Estate 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Grgich Hills Estate is an iconic Napa Valley winery, consistently producing wines of the highest quality. Vintners Hall of Fame inductee Miljenko “Mike” Grgich first earned world-wide recognition when the 1973 Chateau Montelena Chardonnay he crafted won the 1976 Paris Tasting, beating the best of France and revolutionizing the wine world. Mike then partnered with Austin Hills to open their family owned and operated winery in 1977. Committed to natural winegrowing and sustainability, Grgich farms five estate vineyards without artificial pesticides or herbicides, rely on wild yeast fermentation and use passion and art to handcraft food-friendly, balanced and elegant wines. I just found this…
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Chateau Gloria 2008 Saint-Julien Created by Henri Martin, Chateau Gloria, is the only one of its kind as this 50-hectare vineyard was put together piece-by-piece over a number of years, through the purchase of plots exclusively from grands crus classified in 1855. The origin of the terroirs, the care taken over the growing and the vinification all help to explain its world-renowned quality. A vineyard covering 50 hectares, with an average vine age of 40 years, spread across three areas, in the middle of Beychevelle and then in the west and the north of the appellation (bordering Pauillac) on soil made up of Gunzian gravel covering a layer of clay…
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Frank Family Vineyards 2010 Napa Cabernet Sauvignon First constructed as the Larkmead Winery in 1884, the building was refinished with native sandstone from the nearby hills in 1906 and still stands tall today. The massive stone edifice is considered an archetype of California’s wine country; it appears on the National Register of Historical Places and is listed as a Point of Historical Interest in the state of California. The Frank Family Vineyards focuses their energies on making superb wines, producing Chardonnay, Zinfandel, Sangiovese, Pinot Noir, Petite Syrah and several distinctively different Cabernet Sauvignons. I just found this 2010 in my Cellar and thought I would pop the cork. I noticed…
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Chateau Palmer 2006 Alter Ego In 1938, four Bordeaux families – Sichel, Mähler-Besse, Ginestet, and Miailhe – all active in the Bordeaux fine wine trade – joined together to buy Palmer and restore it to the rank it deserved. Two of these families have since left the estate, leaving the Sichel and the Mähler-Besse families at the helm. Since their acquisition of Château Palmer, the families of shareholders have applied single-mindedly the key principles that contributed to the prosperity of this great wine: authenticity, quality and constancy. Originally from the Netherlands, the Mälher family were successful in the textile and the wine business. Having settled in Bordeaux with his wife…
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Stonestreet 2009 Monument Ridge Ranging in elevation from 400ft to 2400ft, Stonestreet Estate Vineyards stands as the one largest and most extensive mountain vineyards in the world. Towering high above the Alexander Valley in the Mayacamas Mountain Range, Stonestreet Estate defies all previous conceptions of winegrowing. Single vineyard blocks are aligned in every imaginable spot on the compass, with peaks, valleys and ridges creating a broad spectrum of varied facings and elevations. Monument Ridge Cabernet Sauvignon is sourced from a handful of blocks situated on the spine of the primary mountain crest that runs through the estate. These blocks are blended to personify the ridgeline, which is comprised of a…