2018 Booker Fracture Syrah Paso Robles

2018 Booker Fracture Syrah Paso Robles

with No Comment $90-$100Central CoastKevin VogtPaso RoblesSyrahUSA

BOOKER

FRACTURE SYRAH
PASO ROBLES 2018

2018 Booker Fracture Syrah Paso Robles
Dedicated to growing fruit for some of the best wineries in Paso Robles, Eric Jensen farmer and winemaker at Booker Winery, gained valuable experience from neighbors Stephan Asseo of L’Aventure, and friend Justin Smith of Saxum. Fracture is one of Booker’s flagship wines, with its name paying homage to the limestone that causes the calcareous soil in the vineyard to crack.
 
Paso Robles welcomed the cooler 2018 vintage, leading to a relaxed harvest of healthy fruit and longer hang-time for the grapes, allowing them to develop more complex flavors and aromas. This 100% Syrah is made in a silky smooth style that Eric describes as “falling into a soft pillow” that is ready to drink right off of the bottling line but also has the potential to age for another 20 years or longer. 
 
BOOKER
FRACTURE SYRAH
PASO ROBLES 2018
 
Your Price: $99.99
 
 
“Another magical wine, the 2018 Fracture is based on 100% Syrah brought up in new and used French oak. Deep purple-hued, with beautiful notes of crème de cassis, blackberries, vanilla bean, toasted spices, white flowers, and a hints of charcuterie, this beauty hits the palate with full-bodied richness, perfectly integrated oak, a rounded, lush mouthfeel, and a great finish. This unabashedly Paso Robles Syrah brings loads of fruit yet stays balanced, elegant, and is simply a thrill to drink.”
98 Points
 
“Youthful purple. Heady, spice-accented aromas of blackberry, blueberry cherry liqueur and pungent flowers show excellent clarity and energetic lift. Sappy and penetrating on the palate, displaying sharply defined black/blue fruit, violet pastille, cola and exotic spice flavors that turn livelier as the wine opens up. Finishes extremely long, smoky and minerally, with powerful, spicy thrust, a repeating floral note and gently chewy, polished tannins.”
97 Points
2018 Beau Vigne Juliet Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

2018 Beau Vigne Juliet Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

with No Comment $50-$60Cabernet SauvignonKevin VogtNapaUSA

BEAU VIGNE

JULIET CABERNET SAUVIGNON
2018 NAPA VALLEY

2018 Beau Vigne Juliet Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
With over two decades of experience, Julien Fayard began making wine at his family’s winery in Provence, then spent valuable time in Bordeaux at Chateau Lafite Rothschild and Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte, and ultimately relocated to Napa Valley. Julien worked as the Director of Winemaking for Philippe Melka and now oversees small projects of his own, including Beau Vigne, whose signature style centers on Atlas Peak’s bold, multidimensional mountain fruit and Julien’s French finesse. 
 
Just like Juliet Capulet from Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, my first impression of this wine is soft-spoken and shy, setting the stage for escalating depth of character and intensity that develops into a powerful, independent core. Beau Vigne proudly produces only a few thousand cases per year, and the 2018 vintage is quickly becoming prized for its delicate complexity that will continue to develop for years to come.
 
BEAU VIGNE
JULIET CABERNET SAUVIGNON
2018 NAPA VALLEY
Retails at: $120
 
 
 
“…Juliet is a savory beauty romanced by a sonnet of cigar leaf, black pepper, and sandalwood. Plummy flavors cling to dry, chalky tannins, delivering a complex mouthfeel as notes of soy sauce and dark cherry paint the palate.”
97 Points
2018 Acumen Peak Cabernet Sauvignon Atlas Peak

2018 Acumen Peak Cabernet Sauvignon Atlas Peak

with No Comment $90-$100Atlas PeakCabernet SauvignonKevin VogtNapaUSA

ACUMEN

PEAK CABERNET SAUVIGNON
2018 ATLAS PEAK

2018 Acumen Peak Cabernet Sauvignon Atlas Peak
Acumen Estate consists of 116 organically certified acres of vines on Atlas Peak, spread across two vineyards from which a small portfolio of estate-grown wines is born. The winery bases their sought-after style of Cabernet Sauvignon on the great Cabernets of the 1960s and 70s, which helped secure Napa on the international wine map.
 
Acumen sells a large portion of their mountain-grown fruit to other fine wineries in Napa Valley, allowing Chappellet’s 30-year veteran winemaker Philip Titus to focus on his favorite small vineyard blocks. The 2018 vintage is graceful with an exquisite yet powerful structure due to a cooler than average summer with zero heat spikes, allowing the grapes to slowly develop full physiological maturity, depth of aromas and flavors, and an incredible overall balance between fruit, earth, and minerality.
 
ACUMEN
PEAK CABERNET SAUVIGNON
2018 ATLAS PEAK
Retails at: $115
 
Your Price: $99.99
 
 
“The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Peak showed nicely, with beautiful blue fruits, scorched earth, licorice, and violet aromas and flavors. With medium to full-bodied richness, it stays tight and compact on the palate, with a fresh, Bordeaux-like style in its tannins and acidity. It needs 4-5 years of bottle age but should age nicely on its purity and elegance.”
95 Points
 
“Deep garnet-purple colored, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Peak charges out of the gate with energetic scents of red and black currants, fresh blackberries and boysenberries with suggestions of camphor, cardamom, tar and new leather plus a waft of pencil shavings. Full-bodied, concentrated and decadent in the mouth, the palate has a solid foundation of firm, grainy tannins and lively freshness to support, finishing long with a pleasantly surprising floral perfume coming through at the end.”
94+ Points
2018 Bruliam Pinot Noir Soberanes Vineyard Santa Lucia Highland

220126 2018 Bruliam Pinot Noir Soberanes Vineyard Santa Lucia Highland

with No Comment $30-$40Central CoastKevin VogtMontereyPinot NoirSanta Lucia HighlandsUSA

BRULIAM

2018 PINOT NOIR
SOBERANES VINEYARD
SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS

2018 Bruliam Pinot Noir Soberanes Vineyard Santa Lucia Highland
Medical doctor-turned-winemaker Kerith Overstreet is the genius behind Bruliam, and it’s her intricate attention to detail that brings her wines energy and life. Bruliam Wines is a boutique winery producing around 1000 cases annually of single-vineyard Pinot Noir, Zinfandel, and Chardonnay from some of California’s most celebrated vineyards.
 
Kerith’s relationships with many renowned growers secure her allocations of some of the highest quality fruit in California, hence her single-vineyard Pinot Noir from Soberanes Vineyard, the latest site developed by the Pisoni & Franscioni families. The character of Soberanes shines brilliantly in this wine with its captivating, majestic balance of complex aromas and flavors; the wine is a real over-achiever at this price.
 
BRULIAM
2018 PINOT NOIR
SOBERANES VINEYARD
SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS
Retails at: $55
 
 
 
“Dark, bright-rimmed red. Spice-tinged red fruits, incense and floral qualities on the perfumed nose, along with a building mineral topnote. Juicy and energetic on the palate, offering vibrant raspberry and cherry, rose pastille and exotic spice flavors that show fine delineation and appealing sweetness. Deeply flavored but graceful as well, finishing on a gently tannic note, with strong, red-fruit- and spice-driven tenacity.”
93 Points
2019 Arietta Quartet Proprietary Red

2019 Arietta Quartet Proprietary Red

with No Comment $70-$80Kevin VogtNapaProprietary RedUSA

ARIETTA 

2019 QUARTET 
PROPRIETARY RED

2019 Arietta Quartet Proprietary Red
Arietta’s Quartet is a Bordeaux-style blend named for its ability to sing with vibrancy and greatness; Quartet is defined in the music world as four instruments or voices joining together in harmony, thus naming this harmonious four varietal blend. The winery has been family-owned since 1996 and has been honored to have the highly talented Andy Erickson as their conductor since 2006.
 
Over the last 16 years, Andy has applied the intricate knowledge and expertise he gained while making wine at some of Napa Valley’s finest estates, including Screaming Eagle, Staglin, Mayacamas, and Harlan Estate. The 2019 release is another nearly flawless vintage with the hedonistic appeal and depth of aroma and flavors very similar to the 2018 bottling but with slightly lower yields giving focused precision, concentration, and intensity.
 
ARIETTA 
2019 QUARTET 
PROPRIETARY RED
 
Your Price: $75
 
 
“This exceptional wine combines 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 39% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot into a harmonious whole after aging 20 months in French oak barrels. Sage, cedar and black currant highlight a classically structured, textured and nuanced palate of structure and graceful tannin.”
95 Points
2015 Monchiero Barolo Piedmont Italy

2015 Monchiero Barolo Piedmont Italy

with No Comment $40-$50BaroloBaroloItalyKevin VogtPiedmont

MONCHIERO

2015 BAROLO
PIEDMONT, ITALY

2015 Monchiero Barolo Piedmont Italy
The Monchiero winery was established by Vittorio Monchiero’s grandfather, who decided to stay in the Langhe after World War II to tend to his treasured land, unlike his six brothers who left Italy for the United States. Vittorio took over the winery at the end of the 1980s and began examining each plot and replanting vines as necessary, adapting his vineyards to modern agriculture, which is reflective in the balance of his wines.
 
Vittorio aims to bring modernity into the vineyards and winery without losing the traditions that helped shape the historic region and its wines for centuries. The 2015 Barolo is divine and elegant with excellent fruit concentration accented with minerality, earth, and spice, producing a quality level rarely found for less than $50.
 
MONCHIERO
2015 BAROLO
PIEDMONT, ITALY
Retails at: $50
 
Your Price: $45
 
 
“A red showing ripe-berry and chocolate character with polished tannins and a flavorful finish. Medium to full body. Intense and focused ending. Drink after 2021.” 
92 Points
2019 Morgan Twelve Clones Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir

2019 Morgan Twelve Clones Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir

with No Comment $30 and underCentral CoastKevin VogtMontereyPinot NoirSanta Lucia HighlandsUSA

MORGAN

TWELVE CLONES
SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS
2019 PINOT NOIR 

2019 Morgan Twelve Clones Santa Lucia Highlands Pinot Noir
Dan and Donna Lee founded Morgan winery in the early 1980s, focusing on sustainable farming and minimalist winemaking, becoming a leader in high-quality, value wines from California’s Central Coast. Dan produces wines that are true to the variety and vineyard location, displaying precision and balance between freshness and elegance that’s enjoyable immediately upon release.
 
The Twelve Clones Pinot Noir is the winery’s flagship wine named for the numerous clones that give this wine its wide range of complex flavors and aromas that send your senses on a wild and pleasure-filled ride. The fruit comes from some of Santa Lucia Highland’s best vineyards, including Morgan’s organically farmed Double L vineyard, which provides 67% of the grapes in this 94pt 2019 vintage.
 
MORGAN
TWELVE CLONES
SANTA LUCIA HIGHLANDS
2019 PINOT NOIR 
Retails at: $35
 
Your Price: $29.99
 
 
“Bright aromas of pomegranate, orange peel, pepper and sea salt show on the nose of this clonal combination. Zesty, energetic flavors of lemon and orange zest meet with a tart and snappy red-currant flavor on the palate, with oregano and cardamom adding complexity toward the finish.”
94 Points
 
“… Very nicely perfumed with scents of black cherry, strawberry, spice, and savory herbs. Light to mid-weight in style with a delicious core of giving strawberry, raspberry, and cherry flavors. Silky in the mouth, with appealing fitness, minimal tannins, and a compliment of barrel magic. Elegant and giving and ideal as a daily drinker.”
92 Points
2019 Castello Romitorio Super Tuscan Tuscany, Italy

2019 Castello Romitorio Super Tuscan Tuscany, Italy

with No Comment $30 and underChiantiItalyKevin VogtSyrahTuscany

CASTELLO ROMITORIO

2019 ROMITORO
SUPER TUSCAN
TUSCANY, ITALY

2019 Castello Romitorio Super Tuscan Tuscany, Italy
Castello di Romitorio’s history is extensive, beginning as a temple in Roman times with many transformations before its most recent renovation in the 1980s into a winery and art workshop by the owner and Italian artist Sandro Chia. Sandro believes the best expressions of art and wine thrive with a minimalistic approach and that natural progression should never be altered but rather enhanced.
 
The Romitoro IGT encompasses indigenous French varietals, proving that these varieties grow incredibly well in Tuscany, producing high-quality wines. The 2019 Castello di Romitorio “Romitoro” comingles Syrah and Petit Verdot, in a classic and refreshing style that scored 93 points from Robert Parker and James Suckling, offering incomparable value at $25.
 
CASTELLO ROMITORIO
2019 ROMITORO
SUPER TUSCAN
TUSCANY, ITALY
 
Your Price: $25
 
 
“The Castello Romitorio 2019 RomiTòro is a generous Tuscan blend of Petit Verdot and Syrah… This is a terrific value from a vintage that delivers excellent balance, intensity and richness. That beautiful concentration is what drives this wine, imparting dark fruit flavors, plum, spice and sweet tobacco along the way. This was a terrific vintage in both Maremma and Montalcino, the two areas where Filippo Chia makes wine.”
93 Points
 
“Plums and blackberries with black-mushroom and dark bark undertones. Full-bodied with round tannins and a delicious, juicy finish. This needs time to come together, but already so pretty. Drink or hold.”
93 Points
2018 Black Kite Pinot Noir Kite's Rest Anderson Valley

2018 Black Kite Pinot Noir Kite’s Rest Anderson Valley

with No Comment $40-$50Anderson ValleyKevin VogtMendocinoPinot NoirUSA

BLACK KITE

2018 PINOT NOIR
KITE’S REST
ANDERSON VALLEY

2018 Black Kite Pinot Noir Kite's Rest Anderson Valley
Black Kite Cellars was born out of a love for Burgundian Style Pinot Noirs after Rebecca and Tom Birdsall spent a vacation biking through the region, tasting the distinct nuances from one vineyard to the next. Rebecca and Tom were specific on the style of Pinot Noir they preferred, tasting through Anderson Valley, Sonoma Coast, Carneros, Russian River Valley, Santa, Lucia Highlands, Willamette Valley, and Burgundy to discover what they were looking for in a winemaker.
 
Jeff Gaffner joined the team in 2005 after earning fame from helping make the 1996 Chateau St. Jean Cinq Cépages, which was Wine Spectator’s #1 Wine of the Year. The Kite’s Rest Pinot Noir comes from the winery’s estate vineyard of the same name planted with Dijon 114, 115, and Pommard, giving the wine balance between the elegant aromatics of the Dijon clones and the richness and body of the Pommard clone. If you enjoy boutique, hand-crafted Pinot Noir, you really should try it. 
 
BLACK KITE
2018 PINOT NOIR
KITE’S REST
ANDERSON VALLEY
 
Your Price: $45
 
 
“Refined and precise, with hints of red licorice to the sleek assembly of cherry, dried berry and currant flavors. Loamy midpalate, with a long, crisp finish of slate and spice. Drink now through 2026.”
93 Points
 
“Lavish ripe fruit flavors meet delicious baking-spice accents in this broad, smooth and mouthfilling wine. It’s easy to love for the strawberry, and red- and black-cherry notes and the cinnamon, vanilla and cedar shadings from oak aging.” 
93 Points
2015 Corley Proprietary Red Napa Valley

2015 Corley Proprietary Red Napa Valley

with No Comment $70-$80Kevin VogtNapaOak KnollProprietary RedRutherfordSaint HelenaUSAYountville

CORLEY

PROPRIETARY RED
2015 NAPA VALLEY

2015 Corley Proprietary Red Napa Valley
The Corley family and their dedicated team are well known for creating single vineyard premium Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot from their vineyards in Rutherford, St. Helena, Yountville, and Oak Knoll. In 1990 they planted Cabernet Franc in their Oak Knoll vineyard with the vision of producing a Meritage of the three varieties.
 
The 2015 vintage is a small production of just 506 cases comprised of 34% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Cabernet Franc, and 32% Merlot, created to be approachable in its youth while also having the capability to age and can be enjoyed at every phase of its development. With over five years in the bottle, the 2015 perfect showcases Chris Corley’s winemaking ability, the strong vintage, and choice of vineyards.
 
CORLEY
PROPRIETARY RED
2015 NAPA VALLEY
 
Your Price: $75
 
 
“The 2015 Corley Proprietary Red Wine opens with lavender, cassis, freshly picked blackberries, cherry cola, cloves, and crushed volcanic rocks. The palate is intense and complex, with flavors of black plums and cocoa powder with a hint of savory black olives. This wine is simply stunning at the moment and is an excellent food wine that will age gracefully for the next decade or so.”
96 Points