2019 Vilarfonte Seriously Old Dirt South Africa Red

2019 Vilarfonte Seriously Old Dirt South Africa Red

with No Comment $30-$40Kevin VogtProprietary RedSouth Africa

VILAFONTE

SERIOUSLY OLD DIRT
SOUTH AFRICA RED 2019

2019 Vilarfonte Seriously Old Dirt South Africa Red
Vilafonté Winery, named after the ancient Vilafontes soils of the region, is located on the bench of the Simonsberg Mountains in South Africa. Their vineyards contain one of the oldest soil types in the world, with healthy, nutrient-deficient topsoils that have not been disturbed for millennia. Vilafonte’s expert team includes Dr. Phil Freese, who spent 13 years as Robert Mondavi’s VP of Wine Growing and was instrumental in designing the first Opus One Vineyards.
 
Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Malbec are planted at a high density on the estate, encouraging smaller vines with smaller yields of highly concentrated fruit. The 2019 Seriously Old Dirt is a Cabernet Sauvignon-dominated blend matured in used French oak barrels allowing the characteristics of the Vilafontes soils and the regional terroir to speak through the wine.
 
VILAFONTE
SERIOUSLY OLD DIRT
SOUTH AFRICA RED 2019
 
 
 
“Aromas of redcurrants and dark earth follow through to a full body with plenty of dark-cherry and berry flavors and a long, flavorful finish. Creamy and round tannins, yet tight and focused. Bark and berry aftertaste. Drink or hold.”
93 Points
2019 Westwood Legend Proprietary Red Sonoma County

2019 Westwood Legend Proprietary Red Sonoma County

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

WESTWOOD

LEGEND PROPRIETARY RED
SONOMA COUNTY 2019

2019 Westwood Legend Proprietary Red Sonoma County
Sustainability is the heart and soul of Westwood’s philosophy, centered around sourcing fruit from vineyards farmed organically or biodynamically, becoming one of just a few Demeter-certified Biodynamic vineyards in North America. Famed winemakers Philippe Melka and Maayan Koschitzky are the vintner team at the helm of Westwood wines, bringing forth their knowledge and experience gained at top wineries, including Bryant Family, Quintessa, Hundred Acre, Screaming Eagle, and Dalla Valle.
 
Like the three previous releases, the 2019 Proprietary Red Wine Legend blends the biodynamically farmed Westwood Estate Annadel Gap Vineyard fruit with specially selected organic, sustainable fruit from Sonoma County and Napa Valley. This rich, sultry red wine is 60% Cabernet Sauvignon enhanced with Syrah and with small amounts of Counoise, Grenache, and Tannat that spent twenty months in French oak, giving a divine drinking pleasure for at least the next seven to eight years.
 
WESTWOOD
LEGEND PROPRIETARY RED
SONOMA COUNTY 2019
Retails at: $55
 
 
 
“With 66% Cabernet Sauvignon and 35% Syrah, this 20-month French oak barrel-aged blend has a dep, opaque purple hue. Notes of spiced blackberry, licorice, and new leather. Creamy, with heather and soy sauce – it’s penetrating and concentrated – but generous in its juicy, floral nature. Dark chocolate lingers on the juicy finish.”
95 Points
2016 Chateau Musar Lebanon Rouge Bekaa Valley

2016 Chateau Musar Lebanon Rouge Bekaa Valley

with No Comment $60-$70Kevin VogtProprietary Red

CHATEAU MUSAR

LEBANON ROUGE
BEKAA VALLEY 2016

2016 Chateau Musar Lebanon Rouge Bekaa Valley
Gaston Hochar planted his first vineyards in Bekka Valley, Lebanon, in 1930 after returning from Bordeaux. He named his new winery after an Arabic word that translates to “a place of extraordinary beauty.” Just over ten years later, Major Ronald Barton of Château Langoa-Barton and Leoville-Barton was stationed in Lebanon and befriended Gaston, giving him the insight and knowledge that has driven Musar’s Bordeaux-styled wines for several decades.
 
Chateau Musar’s Rouge blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault, and Carignan changes slightly year after year to reflect the growing season of that vintage. The wines are fermented in concrete, aged for at least 12 months in a small percentage of French oak, and blended and bottled at the end of the third year following the harvest. The bottles matured in deep, stone cellars for an additional four years, released in their seventh year, and have a reputation worldwide for drinking for up to 20 years or more. 
 
CHATEAU MUSAR
LEBANON ROUGE
BEKAA VALLEY 2016
 
 
 
“The 2016 Chateau Musar Rouge opens with a kaleidoscope of aromas such as violets, forest floor, red cherries, truffle, baking spices, and cigar box. On the palate, the wine has firm yet gentle tannins, like rounded corners, that glide into flavors of dried red fruits, nutmeg, earthy spice, and vanilla. The finish is long, dynamic, and mesmerizing. This wine has the structure to age in the cellar but has already reached a very sophisticated level of drinkability that’s just sublime.”
96-97 Points
2019 Justin Isosceles Red Blend Paso Robles

2019 Justin Isosceles Red Blend Paso Robles

with No Comment $50-$60Central CoastKevin VogtPaso RoblesProprietary RedUSA

JUSTIN

ISOSCELES RED BLEND
PASO ROBLES 2019 

2019 Justin Isosceles Red Blend Paso Robles
Justin Winery’s founders planted their first vineyard in 1981, releasing the first commercial vintage in 1987, a richly layered, intense Bordeaux-styled blend predicated on the fossilized limestone soils in Paso Robles. These unique soils are also found in Bordeaux and are a part of the terroir of many of the world’s most distinct and memorable wines. 
 
For over 30 years, Isosceles has been the flagship wine of Justin and shows exactly why this little part of the world has massive potential for viticulture. The 2019 Isosceles comprises nearly 80% Cabernet Sauvignon married with Cabernet Franc and Merlot, aged in new French oak for 21 months, resulting in a full-bodied red wine with a seductively long finish. 
 
JUSTIN
ISOSCELES RED BLEND
PASO ROBLES 2019 
Retails at: $85
 
 
 
“Deep ruby/purple core with black secondary color, lighter toward the rim with moderate plus viscosity and slow forming, moderately stained tears. Very aromatic and complex with ripe black cherry and cassis fruit, vanilla, cinnamon and licorice spice with sweet tobacco, cedar, leather and camphor notes.  Full-bodied with ripe black cherry and blackcurrant fruit complemented with baking spice and oak notes on entry. Sustained fruit and spice are joined by savory autumn leaf, cedar and leather on the mid-palate with mouth filling, fine tannins that lead into a long, complex and balanced finish with attractive fruit, spice, cedar and subtle camphor notes.”
2018 Pirouette Proprietary Red Columbia Valley

2018 Pirouette Proprietary Red Columbia Valley

with No Comment $60-$70Columbia ValleyKevin VogtProprietary RedUSAWashington State

PIROUETTE

PROPRIETARY RED
COLUMBIA VALLEY 2018

2018 Pirouette Proprietary Red Columbia Valley
Nine of the world’s top winemakers make up the Long Shadows brand that Allen Shoup created after decades of building the Chateau Ste Michelle brand and its affiliate wineries to international recognition. Allen retired from Chateau Ste Michelle in 2002 to focus on his newest endeavor to promote Washington wines by bringing in celebrated international winemakers.
 
Allen hired Gilles Nicault as the Director of Winemaking because of his expertise, flexibility, and eagerness to merge his winemaking skills with each vintner who joined the team as a co-owner of their wine. Philippe Melka and Agustin Huneeus, Sr worked as a team to create the 2018 Pirouette by combining Old-World winemaking and New World technology elements to make this Bordeaux style blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Petit Verdot, aged 22 months in French oak. The resulting wine is, as Decanter proclaims, “Hauntingly good.”
 
PIROUETTE
PROPRIETARY RED
COLUMBIA VALLEY 2018
 
 
 
“Hauntingly good, this a stunning new bottling by Philippe Melka. Dense and chewy, once in the month, this takes on a glorious range of flavours from sagebrush and pipe tobacco to blackcurrant jelly and chocolate cake. The vibrant sense of tension and silky tannins both add to the enjoyment, as this has a long way to go in the cellar.”
96 Points
2020 S. Delafont Mosaique Rouge Languedoc-Roussillon

2020 S. Delafont Mosaique Rouge Languedoc-Roussillon

with No Comment $30 and underFranceKevin VogtProprietary Red

S. DELAFONT

MOSAIQUE ROUGE 2020
LANGUEDOC-ROUSSILLON

2020 S. Delafont Mosaique Rouge Languedoc-Roussillon
Samuel Delafont founded Maison S. Delafont in 2010, bringing innovative environmental biodiversity and the invention of the stainless steel barrel to produce and celebrate Languedoc wines. Samuel believes that respecting a balanced ecosystem is the best approach to growing vines with healthy fruit that naturally represent the nuances of their particular terroir.
 
The stainless steel barrels provide an ideal curved shape that enhances lees contact, preserves freshness, and reinforces the volume and complexity of the wine. Languedoc red wines combine Carignan, Syrah, Mourvèdre, and Grenache and can offer tremendous value. Samuel’s 2020 release highlights purity from a marriage of varieties and terroirs using his cutting-edge stainless steel barrels.
 
S. DELAFONT
MOSAIQUE ROUGE 2020
LANGUEDOC-ROUSSILLON
 
 
 
“A fine-grained yet grippy wine with a peppery leanness that evolves over time in the glass. Earthiness evolves into savoury herbs and dried spices which open into surprisingly juicy and multilayered black fruits with lovely refreshing acidity. Really intriguing and palatable.”
95 Points
2019 The Crane Assembly Disciples Red Blend Napa Valley

2019 The Crane Assembly Disciples Red Blend Napa Valley

with No Comment $40-$50Kevin VogtNapaProprietary RedUSA

THE CRANE ASSEMBLY

DISCIPLES RED BLEND
NAPA VALLEY 2019

2019 The Crane Assembly Disciples Red Blend Napa Valley
George Beldon Crane planted the historic eight-acre GB Crane Vineyard South of St. Helena in 1885, making it one of the first vineyards planted in Napa Valley. Fast forward nearly 140 years, and the site still produces remarkable fruit. Crane initially planted the vineyard as a traditional field blend with Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Carignan, Alicante Bouschet, Mourvèdre, and Valdiguie, which was common during that era. 
 
With a few new plantings of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot added to the mix, the Disciples Red Blend represents a uniquely-American style of red wine. The blend for the 2019 vintage consists of Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Charbono, Merlot, Syrah, Grenache, and Cabernet Sauvignon, presented in a bold, rich, and memorable style. 
 
THE CRANE ASSEMBLY
DISCIPLES RED BLEND
NAPA VALLEY 2019
 
Your Price: $49.99
 
 
“Pouring a vivid cardinal into the glass, the 2019 Disciples is replete with aromas of cranberry compote, Rainier cherry, Staedtler graphite pencil and Mendocino forest floor – the combination of redwoods, sorels, sun and ocean spray. Upon entry, the wine exudes a bright and lively character with notes of ripe raspberry, red fruits and subtle toasted aok. The wine closes at length with soft fine tannins and an inviting hint of vanilla.
2021 AXR Proprietary Red Napa Valley

2021 AXR Proprietary Red Napa Valley

with No Comment $40-$50Kevin VogtNapaProprietary RedUSA

AXR

PROPRIETARY RED
NAPA VALLEY 2021

2021 AXR Proprietary Red Napa Valley
AXR’s estate is a historic property founded over 130 years ago that has been a brewery, restaurant, inn, winery, and saloon, and it today once again a winery that celebrates its decorated past. Sitting at the base of the Mayacamas range, the sedimentary soils in the vineyards are the result of thousands of years of runoff that provides wines with incredible depth and character.
 
Winemaker Jean Hoefliger draws on his experience working in the cellars at Chateau Carbonnieux and Chateau Lynch-Bages in Bordeaux, bringing a Grand Cru Classé style to his Napa Valley wines. The 2021 Proprietary Red Blend is a classic Left Bank style with Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petit Verdot that is rich, juicy, and approachable and will improve with time in the bottle.
 
AXR
PROPRIETARY RED
NAPA VALLEY 2021
Retails at: $65
 
Your Price: $48
 
 
“The AXR 2021 Napa Valley Proprietary Red is powerful, with concentrated aromas of black cherry, plum, cassis, allspice, and cedar. On the palate, the wine has rich flavors of blackberry, blueberry yogurt, and black tea leaves with chewy tannins and fresh acidity. This wine is youthful and vibrant, and with a few more years in the bottle, it will begin to unfold its inner layers of complexity.”
95 Points
2019 Eco Terreno Cuvee Tierra Red Blend Alexander Valley

2019 Eco Terreno Cuvee Tierra Red Blend Alexander Valley

with No Comment $30 and underAlexander ValleyKevin VogtProprietary RedSonomaUSA

ECO TERRENO

CUVEE TIERRA RED BLEND  
ALEXANDER VALLEY 2019

2019 Eco Terreno Cuvee Tierra Red Blend Alexander Valley
Eco Terreno Wines are at the forefront of sustainable farming and a leader in biodynamics, placing a high importance on the health of the vineyard and the environment to grow the highest quality fruit. Founder and winemaker Mark Lyon, the former lead winemaker at Sebastiani Vineyards, draws from his years of experience with Alexander Valley fruit and focus on finding harmony with nature.
 
The winery is located within a small hamlet of the Russian River in Alexander Valley, experiencing coastal fog from the Petaluma Gap, blanketing the vineyards each morning, preserving acidity and freshness. The ideal growing season in 2019 allowed Mark to dial into each plot for the Cuvée Tierra blend consisting of 36% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Cabernet Franc, 24% Merlot, and 10% Petit Verdot that delivers serious quality for this value price.
 
ECO TERRENO
CUVEE TIERRA RED BLEND  
ALEXANDER VALLEY 2019
 
Your Price: $27
 
 
“The Eco Terreno 2019 Cuvée Tierra Alexander Valley Red Blend opens with violets, earth, dried herbs, chocolate-covered strawberries, black cherries, and cloves. On the palate, the wine has ripe, chalky tannins and beautifully balanced flavors of blackberries, red plums, cinnamon, vanilla bean, savory spice, and black olives. The wine has a soft texture that is easy to drink right now with enough intensity to age a few years in the cellar.”
94-95 Points
2020 Harvey & Harriet Red Blend San Luis Obispo

2020 Harvey & Harriet Red Blend San Luis Obispo

with No Comment $30-$40Central CoastKevin VogtProprietary RedUSA

HARVEY & HARRIET

RED BLEND 2020
SAN LUIS OBISPO

2020 Harvey & Harriet Red Blend San Luis Obispo
Eric Jensen’s My Favorite Neighbor and Harvey & Harriett brands spotlight the vast potential for high-quality, memorable wines from San Luis Obispo, making many friends along the way with their value prices. Eric’s ambition and ingenuity led him to find an ideal balance of brightness, intensity, and richness, designed to capture higher-end wine’s most striking characteristics but with a value price.
 
Eric created this delightful, friendly, cult-style wine in honor of his hardworking parents, Harvey and Harriet, who most likely wouldn’t be able to afford today’s top-end wines. Harvey and Harriet is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Petite Sirah, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, and Malbec from select vineyard sites in San Luis Obispo and is a strong competitor against similar styles that cost two or three times as much.
 
HARVEY & HARRIET
RED BLEND 2020
SAN LUIS OBISPO
 
Your Price: $32
 
 
“Nice herbs, olives with a hint of savory anchovies, blackcurrants and tobacco to the nose. Juicy and bright with fine, present tannins on a medium- to full-bodied palate. Nicely flattering and fruit-forward, too. Drink or hold.”
93 Points