2014 Bernardus Marinus Carmel Valley

2014 Bernardus Marinus Carmel Valley

with No Comment $40-$50Kevin VogtMontereyProprietary RedUSA

BERNARDUS

2014 MARINUS
CARMEL VALLEY

2014 Bernardus Marinus Carmel Valley
Designed for flattering your senses while simultaneously stimulating thoughts of Bordeaux and the serene Carmel Valley, Marinus is Bernardus’s proprietor’s instrument to achieve their goal of producing a red wine that can equal Bordeaux’s most refined. Maestro of sustainable farming, Mark Shea farms each block of Marinus separately, without compromise, in his pursuit of showcasing the vineyard’s most significant potential. The 2014 vintage is, as Vinous writes, “Highly Expressive,” and with a discount of $26 per bottle, a single case may not be enough. 
 
French-trained winemaker Dean DeKorth spent years at Olivier Leflaive, Comte Lafon, and Pierre Morey before coming home to Monterey and making wine at Morgan, David Bruce, and Talbott. He creates Marinus using Bordeaux varietals; Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Petit Verdot, blending them with the impetus to be the best expression of the vineyard’s remarkable terroir. 
 
Dean employs traditional Bordeaux winemaking techniques like; fermenting in small individual fermenters, gentle pressing and handling of the fruit, long fermentation with regular punch-downs, and aging in French oak barrels. The resulting wine is very complex, well-balanced, a joy to drink, with a Bordeaux-like style.
 
BERNARDUS
2014 MARINUS
CARMEL VALLEY
Retails at: $75
 
Your Price: $49
 
 
“Opaque ruby. Highly expressive aromas of ripe cherry, red and black currant, candied flowers and pipe tobacco, along with vanilla and oak spice nuances. Sweet and expansive in the mouth, offering concentrated cassis, cherry-vanilla and licorice flavors that show no rough edges. Closes very long and spicy, with a hint of smokiness and rounded, even tannins that add gentle grip.”
93 Points
 
“Candied lilac and boysenberry-juice aromas make for a very fresh, floral and fruity entry to the nose of this blend of all five Bordeaux red varieties. The purple-flower flavors show on the sip too, mixed with açai, and the structure is still tightly woven six years into aging.”
92 Points, Editors’ Choice
2016 Anthem Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder

2016 Anthem Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder

with No Comment $60-$70Cabernet SauvignonKevin VogtMt VeederNapaUSA

ANTHEM 

CABERNET SAUVIGNON 
2016 MOUNT VEEDER

2016 Anthem Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder
Steadfast on creating superior quality Cabernets from distinctive Mountain AVA’s in Napa Valley, Anthem winery assembled a powerful team led by highly-respected viticulturist John Truchard and winemaker Jeff Ames. The winery’s production team is free to vinify without regard for cost, making every decision solely on its impact on the quality of their wine. All of this is present in their wines, and the 2016 release is their best yet. 
 
Mount Veeder arose from an ancient seabed, and the soils at Anthem Estate are excessively well-drained and derived from sedimentary rock. Their vines yield just 1.9 tons per acre of super-concentrated berries that powerfully reflect their site-specific terroir.
 
Jeff crafts Anthem’s Cabernet Sauvignon to showcase the power and restraint, as well as a stunning level of depth and persistent intensity. The 2016 vintage produced an even richer version, and after 18 months in barrel and three years in the bottle, this wine rocks.
 
ANTHEM 
CABERNET SAUVIGNON 
2016 MOUNT VEEDER
Retails at: $125
 
 
 
“Made by Winemaker Jeff Ames, this Cabernet Sauvignon includes 7% Cabernet Franc and 7% Petit Verdot. Aged in 100% new French oak, it offers a seamless core of cassis, raspberry and dark cherry, with velvety richness forming a concentrated bond on the palate.”
94 Points
 
“…Deep garnet-purple in color, is offers up scents of crème de cassis, blueberry compote and Christmas cake with an undercurrent of plum preserves, camphor and cigar box. Big, rich and full-bodied on the palate, it delivers impactful, maturing black fruit and spicy flavors, supported by firm, grainy tannins and just enough freshness, finishing with great length.”
93 Points
 
“Lush and well-fruited, with lots of boysenberry, blackberry and plum flavors rolling through, laced with apple wood, anise, violet and sweet tobacco notes. Shows a tarry edge on the finish but the fruit keeps pace easily. Solidly built. Best from 2021 through 2032.”
93 Points
2016 Bodegas Burgo Viejo Licenciado Rioja Reserva

2016 Bodegas Burgo Viejo Licenciado Rioja Reserva

with No Comment $30 and underKevin VogtRiojaSpainTempranillo

BODEGAS BURGO VIEJO

2016 LICENCIADO 
RIOJA RESERVA

2016 Bodegas Burgo Viejo Licenciado Rioja Reserva
A guiding principle at Bodegas Burgo Viejo is that only the best wines will gain complexity during contact with oak. To achieve this, they source their Licenciado Reserva from a single vineyard that also produces Gran Reserva wine. The 35-year-old vines yield powerful Tempranillo fruit capable of gaining complexity over the 18 months in French and American oak barrels, and the results are brilliant. Decanter calls it “beautifully balanced, very classy, effortless,” and with a 95 point score and $25 price point, don’t miss it. 
 
Bodegas Burgo Viejo embodies the pride of old-world tradition and enhances it with innovation. Six farming families founded this property, and they work together to ensure they harvest the fruit at the pinnacle of ripeness. 
 
Licenciado blends 100% Tempranillo, which is Spain’s signature grape. At the winery, the grapes are destemmed and lightly crushed and fermented in concrete tanks. The wine spends 18 months in French and American oak before bottling, resulting in a balanced wine with power, depth, and intriguing complexity.
 
BODEGAS BURGO VIEJO
2016 LICENCIADO 
RIOJA RESERVA
 
Your Price: $25
 
 
“Bodegas Burgo Viejo is the property of six farming families and comprises more than 200ha of vineyards in the Rioja Oriental region, from where the more full-bodied styles of Rioja are produced )…. Sarah Jane Evans MW: Distinctly pure, vivid reserva, precise style: limpid fruit, brisk acidity, notable but well balanced oak. Classic. Simon Field MW: Intense colour, powerful aromas of tar and blue fruit; minty savoury, rich, lifted and long; an impressive reserva statement of intent. Pierre Mansour: Classy, spicy black fruit, full, round, generous – depth yet beautifully balanced, very classy, effortless. Drinking Window 2020 – 2026.”
95 Points
2015 Chateaux De Barbe Bordeaux Cotes De Bourg

2015 Chateaux De Barbe Bordeaux Cotes De Bourg

with No Comment $30 and underBordeauxBordeauxFranceKevin Vogt

CHATEAU DE BARBE

2015 BORDEAUX
COTES DE BOURG 

2015 Chateaux De Barbe Bordeaux Cotes De Bourg
Château de Barbe is where land overlooking the Gironde River converges with some of Bordeaux’s top talent, including renowned consultant Eric Boissenet. Revered for his ability to unearth a wine’s vitality, Eric’s clients include Châteaux Lafite, Latour, Margaux, and Mouton Rothschild. Winemaker François Clauzel and agricultural engineer Thomas Levet reduced yields, revealing each plot’s identity, resulting in a wine with linear focus and impeccable balance. 
 
Cotes de Bourg is an Appellation d’Origine Contrôlée, or AOC, located on the Right Bank of the Gironde River across from Margaux and in the Northern part of Bordeaux. Château de Barbe’s vines grown in chalky-clay soils go through rigorous pruning, encouraging lower yields and increased flavor intensity. 
 
Right Bank wines are predominantly Merlot-based, offering richer and more supple fruits with lower tannin and acid than the neighboring Left Bank. François combined 80% Merlot with equal parts Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec when he created Château de Barbe’s 2015 Cotes de Bourg. The wine is an incredible value from one of the regions’ best vintages.
 
CHATEAU DE BARBE
2015 BORDEAUX
COTES DE BOURG
Retails at: $30
 
Your Price: $25
 
 
“Wood spice aromas are an indication this wine that has had serious oak aging. Along with the dense tannins and wood, there is, happily, some fruit that will develop as the structure softens. Drink this powerful wine with its rich berry fruit from 2021.”
90 Points, Cellar Selection
2018 Westwood Legend Proprietary Red

2018 Westwood Legend Proprietary Red

with No Comment $40-$50Kevin VogtProprietary RedSonomaSonoma MountainUSA

WESTWOOD

2018 LEGEND
PROPRIETARY RED

2018 Westwood Legend Proprietary Red
Legends of biodynamic viticulture, Westwood spares no expense raising the highest quality wines possible from their Estate. Their vineyard is one of a handful of Demeter-certified Biodynamic vineyards in North America. Westwood’s winemaker is Philippe Melka, named by the Wine Advocate as “one of the Top 10 Winemakers in the World,” and whose vast experience includes winemaking at Bryant Family, Quintessa, Hundred Acre, Mastery, and Dominus. Jeb Dunnuck writes, this wine has a “notable sense of class and balance,” and simply put, you don’t want to miss it. 
 
Westwood Legend arose from the cool, wind-swept Annadel Gap Vineyard, located between Mt. Hood and Sonoma Mountain, and includes specially sourced organic grapes from Sonoma and Napa Valleys. Formatted to bring out the best qualities of the Estate, the 2018 blend is exquisite.
 
Meticulously made, Philippe and his winemaking team harvest each clone at the pinnacle of ripeness before being carefully sorted by hand and fermented in individual lots. The wine was gravity-fed into French oak barrels, where it spent the next 20 months. The result is stunning.
 
WESTWOOD
2018 LEGEND
PROPRIETARY RED
Retails at: $65
 
Your Price: $49.99
 
 
“The 2018 Legend Proprietary Red is an interesting blend of 45% Syrah, 29% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Mourvèdre, and the rest Cabernet Franc, Tannat, and a splash of Petit Verdot. Its deep ruby/purple color is followed by loads of blackberry and blueberries fruit intermixed with plenty of peppery herbs, menthol, and graphite. This rich, full-bodied effort has a delicious juiciness, polished tannins, and a notable sense of class and balance.”
92 Points
2018 Peter Paul Pinot Noir Mille Freres Sonoma Coast

2018 Peter Paul Pinot Noir Mille Freres Sonoma Coast

with No Comment $30-$40Kevin VogtPinot NoirSonomaSonoma CoastUSA

PETER PAUL

2018 PINOT NOIR
MILLE FRERES
SONOMA COAST

2018 Peter Paul Pinot Noir Mille Freres Sonoma Coast
Performing an equilibrium of New World luxurious fruit and refined Old World heritage, Peter Paul Pinot Noir strikes a counterpoise of ripeness, structure, density, and richness that manifests in the virtuosity of their team led by Master of Wine Martin Reyes. Their flagship Mille Freres Pinot Noir comes from Terra de Promissio Vineyard, a site frequented by prestigious producers Kistler, Hanzell, Gary Ferrell, Williams-Selyem, and Kosta Browne. At around $40, don’t miss out on this pedigreed Pinot Noir. 
 
Embraced by some of California’s best producers, Terra de Promissio is the most vineyard-designated Pinot Noir plot in Sonoma County, most famously playing a significant role in Kosta Browne’s 2009 Sonoma Coast Pinot, which ranked as the #1 Wine of the year in 2011. 
 
Earning an overall vintage rating of 93-96 Points in 2018, Mother Nature issued “Nearly perfect conditions; full-flavored wines backed by crisp acidity, especially from coastal vineyards,” as noted by the Wine Spectator.
 
PETER PAUL
2018 PINOT NOIR
MILLE FRERES
SONOMA COAST
Retails at: $48
 
Your Price: $36
 
 
“Mille Freres commands attention the way luxury Pinot Noir should, with heavenly red and black fruits, knee-weakening florals, savory yumminess, and an underlying warming spice note, a bit like a glorious Christmas celebration. Richly textured, this wine plays like a symphony on the palate with pure flavors of red berry preserve, sweet fresh herbs, hints of mushroom & licorice, perfectly framed by mouth-coating tannins that remain pliant even in their persistence. Fans of the 2016 vintage character will be especially pleased. This is a chiseled, compelling, and (yes) age-worthy Pinot Noir.”
2017 Leto Cellars Proprietary Red Napa Valley

2017 Leto Cellars Proprietary Red Napa Valley

with No Comment $30-$40Kevin VogtNapaProprietary RedSaint HelenaUSA

LETO CELLARS

PROPRIETARY RED
2017 NAPA VALLEY

2017 Leto Cellars Proprietary Red Napa Valley
Brad Warner’s half-century of winemaking experience is compounded by each successful vintage and tuned with the trials and tribulations encountered along the way, resulting in expertly balanced, story-telling wines of palpable quality. Calling on his vast experience, Brad created this union of Mountain and valley floor fruit that balances power and grace, and simply put, tastes like it should be at least double the price. 
 
Combining Mount Veeder’s power with the refined complexity of Saint Helena fruit, Brad’s decades in the wine industry allowed him access to some remarkable vineyards. He sourced the Merlot and some of the Cabernet from a steep hillside vineyard, which he balanced with Cabernet Sauvignon from dry-farmed vines in St Helena’s center. 
 
Blending 35%Merlot with 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, the Merlot softens the Cabernet’s tannins, providing supple fruits that balance Cabernet Sauvignon’s structure. After developing for 22 months in oak and two years in the bottle, this wine is gorgeous now and will gracefully age for another decade.
 
LETO CELLARS
PROPRIETARY RED
2017 NAPA VALLEY
Retails at: $55
 
 
 
“The 2017 Leto Red Blend is a striking blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, giving it the right balance to drink beautifully now and for many years to come. It begins with a compelling nose of red currants, mountain berries, fresh florals, green sage, and savory, earthy spices. The palate is rich with ripe Burgundy plums, wild currants, hints of vanilla, and subtle spice. It is beautifully concentrated with penetrating fruit that carries the balanced flavors for a long finish, and I highly recommend trying some.” 
94 Points
2018 Sor Ugo Super Tuscan Bolgheri Rosso Superiore

2018 Sor Ugo Super Tuscan Bolgheri Rosso Superiore

with No Comment $30-$40Cabernet SauvignonKevin VogtSangioveseUSA

SOR UGO

2018 SUPER TUSCAN
BOLGHERI ROSSO SUPERIORE
AIA VECCHIA WINERY

2018 Sor Ugo Super Tuscan Bolgheri Rosso Superiore
Aia Vecchia’s determination to express the most natural characteristics of their land, along with their undeterred attention to detail, manifests profoundly in their wines. The wine’s commanding intensity, supreme richness, and arrant focus effortlessly combine, making it feel like the only wine in the room. Vinous writes, “the purity of the flavors is striking,” and with a 94 point score and price far lower than what you’d expect from Bolgheri, it’s easy to see why this is our most popular Tuscan wine year after year. 
 
Sor Ugo boldly reflects Castagneto Carducci terroir and the Estate’s proximity to the Tyrrhenian coast. A blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, embellished with Merlot, Cabernet Franc, and Petite Verdot, the 2018 vintage is super-concentrated with crystalline focus enriched with minerality and divinely saturating intensity. 
 
Aia Vecchia’s winemaking team has a precisely detailed approach; Meticulously hand-sorting each berry, vinifying, fermenting and aging each varietal separately before creating the blend, which spends a year in the bottle before release.
 
SOR UGO
2018 SUPER TUSCAN
BOLGHERI ROSSO SUPERIORE
AIA VECCHIA WINERY
 
Your Price: $39.99
 
 

“The 2018 Sor Ugo is a superb Bolgheri red. Pliant, succulent and so expressive, the 2018 offers plenty of richness, but with terrific energy, too. Black cherry, mocha, spice, licorice and chocolate all build as the 2018 fills out over time. The purity of the flavors is striking.” 

94 Points

2018 Joseph Jewell Pinot Noir Russian River Valley

2018 Joseph Jewell Pinot Noir Russian River Valley

with No Comment $30 and underKevin VogtPinot NoirRussian River ValleySonomaUSA

JOSEPH JEWELL

2018 PINOT NOIR
RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY

2018 Joseph Jewell Pinot Noir Russian River Valley
Striking a delicate balance of character and approachability, Joseph Jewell’s Russian Valley Pinot Noir embodies the region’s spirit, calling on the best qualities of three renowned vineyards. This wine is winemaker Adrian Jewell’s best representation of the Russian River Valley, mindfully created from a barrel selection of Bucher, Starscape, and Hallberg Vineyards. The wine is a perennial favorite that will make you wonder how a Pinot Noir can be this good for this low of a price. 
 
Gaining lush fruits and earthy undertones from Bucher, brighter red fruit and supple tannins from Starscape, and structure with darker berries from Hallberg, Joseph Jewell’s Russian River Pinot Noir is a complete wine of charisma and balance. 
 
This intriguing release is ebullient and beautifully knit with a flirtatious mix of red and black fruits, wild rose, and classic cola and spice characteristics. Like the previous vintages, the fleshy, rich textures are sublime and are a hallmark of this brand. 
 
JOSEPH JEWELL
2018 PINOT NOIR
RUSSIAN RIVER VALLEY
Retails at: $40
 
 
 
“Luscious and inviting, with aromas of bing cherry, cola, and orange blossom, this wine follows fast with striking aromatics of candied cherries, vanilla, fresh mint, and hibiscus. On the palate, the medley of fresh cherries, cranberries, and red plum is accented with an elegant herbaceousness and a lasting floral finish. Soft tannins support a lush mouthfeel that will keep you coming back for more.”
2017 Tyros Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

2017 Tyros Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

with No Comment $30 and underCabernet SauvignonCarnerosKevin VogtNapaOak KnollSaint HelenaUSA

TYROS

CABERNET SAUVIGNON
2017 NAPA VALLEY

2017 Tyros Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
Encapsulating the breadth of Napa Valley terroir, Tyros Cabernet Sauvignon orchestrates from vineyards spanning the length of Napa Valley, created to be a mindful expression of its varietal, region, and vintage. The makers of Tyros, Silenus winery’s vineyard was a walnut orchard, converted to Cabernet vines in 1968; the family sold fruit for years to Silver Oak, Robert Mondavi, and Inglenook, often being a component in their reserve wines. With triple 90-point reviews and priced at $30, you can’t go wrong with a case.  
 
The winemaking team crafted Tyros around a tapestry of meticulously chosen vineyards, including; Silenus Oak Knoll Estate and surrounding sites, St Helena, Pope Valley, and Carneros. 23% Merlot contributes suppleness, a softer texture, and cherry fruit, balancing the Cabernet’s tannins. 
 
They then aged Tyros for 22 months in 50% new French oak and 10% new American oak Barrels, perfectly balancing the fruit’s lushness and natural tannins. The resulting wine is gracefully balanced, long, and expressive, and at $30, it’s impressive at this price level. 
 
TYROS
CABERNET SAUVIGNON
2017 NAPA VALLEY
Retails at: $35
 
Your Price: $29.99
 
 
“This is an enjoyable and approachable Cabernet that is blended with 23% Merlot. Black cherry, cassis and mocha highlight a soft, supple palate. It has a hint of dried herb on the finish.”
90 Points “Editors’ Choice”
 
“Quite bold and ripe, this teeters a bit, with a prune note amid the cherry, raspberry and plum confiture flavors. Features pretty spice accents, a relatively silky feel and a lingering mesquite element for added range. For fans of the style.”
90 Points
 
“Earthy, black and blue fruit aromas over a very lovely, juicy palate showing cassis, currants, cocoa and coffee.”
90 Points