Wines

93 Points! Ripe stone fruits, chamomile, toast, and a beautiful sense of crushed stone-like minerality all emerge from the 2023 Châteauneuf Du Pape Blanc, a vibrant, medium-bodied white from this estate that has integrated acidity, terrific balance, and outstanding length. It has a kiss of almost Burgundian-like reduction right on opening, and this classy white is going to drink nicely for a solid decade, if not longer. Give it a year if you can. The blend is 30% Grenache Blanc, 30% Clairette, 25% Roussanne, and 15% Bourboulenc, and it was brought up in a combination of stainless steel, concrete, and old and new barrels. - Jeb Dunnuck

94 Points! A more modern-styled cuvée from 100% galets roulés terroir, the 2023 Châteauneuf Du Pape Barberini is based on 60% Grenache, 25% Syrah, and 15% Mourvèdre. It was partially destemmed, vinified in concrete, and aged 15 months in 60% new French oak, 20% foudre, and 20% concrete. It brings more intensity in its notes of bright blackberries, Provençal garrigue, spicy wood, and pepper. This beautifully balanced, medium to full-bodied, elegant 2023 has ripe, polished tannins, no hard edges, and a gorgeous finish. With 416 cases produced, it will benefit from just a few years of bottle age and keep for 10-15 years in cold cellars. - Jeb Dunnuck

93 Points! A juicy, open version, with impressive purity and style. Fine-grained tannins keep a firm grip on the notes of wild raspberry, strappy cherry and apple wood smoke, while focused mineral density stretches from beginning to end. Grenache, Mourvèdre and Syrah. - Wine Spectator

94 Points! Always one of the most singular wines in a vintage, the 2023 Châteauneuf Du Pape Vin De La Solitude comes from the la Solitude lieu-dit on 50% galets roulés and 50% sandy safre soils. Based on 25% Grenache, 22% Syrah, 20% each Mourvèdre and Counoise, 7% Cinsault, 2% Clairette Rose, and 4% other permitted varieties, it was vinified with whole clusters in truncated tanks and aged 15 months entirely in neutral barrels. It offers meaty black cherries, black olives, roasted garrigue, and Provençal spice, reminding me of a street market in the south of France with its meaty, complex, incredibly Provençal style. Medium to full-bodied, it has building tannins and outstanding length. With 233 cases produced, give it a year or two and drink over the following 10-12 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

94 Points! A supple and perfumy version, with an expressive mix of red plum, rooibos tea and sandalwood smoke. Salty, sanguine tones move in, and everything is grounded by wet paving stone and graphite. The tannins are glossy, with just a hint of graininess on the bitter-edged finish. Finessed and delicious. Counoise, Grenache, Syrah, Mourvèdre, Cinsaut, Clairette, Bourboulenc, Roussanne and Roussanne. - Wine Spectator

Insider alert! This is the domaine of Anne Ramonet's family. Anne is the ex-wife of Jean-Claude Ramonet, and Anne and Jean-Claude's daughters make the wines at both spots! Some of the original plantings from 1872 may be in THIS wine with an average vine age of over 90+ years!

From the importer: An even blend of Syrah and Grenache, La Tour Vieille’s rosé from the seaport town of Collioure shows some of the structure and complexity we love in our rosés from the south of France while retaining a freshness and elegance that makes it a great pairing for grilled fish or mushroom pasta.

Bernard Clement was one of the founders of the Menetou-Salon appellation in 1959. His daughter, Laurence de la Farge, and her husband, Geraud, continued a legacy in winemaking, and in 2003, the family established Domaine de l’Ermitage. Today, their children, Antoine and Sophie, continue to run the estate.

Kimmeridgian limestone vineyards covering 6.5 hectares. Bunching, systematic and repeated tillage under and between rows, trimming, harvest in green, and partial leafing. Harvest done by hand. Slight maceration before cold fermentation. Winemaking under temperature control. Ageing in stainless steel vats on fine lees, and final assembly of all the harvest.

A long time Kermit Lynch winery that has alwasy brght the goods. 100% Loire Valley Sauvignon Blanc from clay and Kimmeridgian limestone soils.

92 Points! Dynamic and fresh, with brisk apple, lemon blossom and kiwi flavors that speed along the sleek finish. Drink now. - Wine Spectator

93 Points! A friendly, rounded and generous wine with ripe apple and pear flavors and light baking spice accents. Balancing acidity adds some lift on the palate, enhancing mineral and saline accents. Drink now. - JamesSuckling.com

92 Points! The Roserock balances the ripeness of this wine with a great mineral freshness. From the Drouhin, Oregon founded Eola-Amity estate, balanced between oak and stainless steel, its aromas of sweet lemon pulp and flinty crushed stone. The palate continues with lithe green mangoes, sea salt and thirst-slaking lemon pith. - Decanter Magazine

Les Déserts is steep, sun-drecnhed vineyard overlooking Bué that borders Chavignol. This cuvée is a selection of about one third of the one-hectare holding— vines were planted in the 1990s on clay-limestone, "Terres Blanches" from the Kimmeridgian geological stage, rich in fossilized seashells. Manual harvest with strict sorting of clusters or parts of clusters altered or insufficiently ripe, 20% is vinified in medium-aged oak barrels of a wine, 80% is vinified in vats at a low temperature, indigenous yeasts and the lees are suspended regularly to feed the wine until spring. Bottling takes place in late-spring after a light filtration.

93 Points! The 2023 Saint-Romain Sous la Velle offers aromas of grapefruit, pear and white peach framed by a deft touch of smoky reduction. Medium- to full-bodied, ample and textural, with plenty of chalky extract, it’s laden with racy acids and concludes with a long, saline, lemon-tinged finish. As ever, it derives from the estate’s largest plot—two hectares of 60-year-old vines rooted in shallow soil. - Kristaps Karklins, robertparker.com

93 Points! The 2023 Saint-Romain Sous le Château has turned out beautifully, offering aromas of tangerine, pear, grapefruit zest and dried white flowers. Medium- to full-bodied, ample and layered, underpinned by racy acidity and chalky extract, it concludes with a long, saline finish. It comes from a sunny, south-facing site that the Buisson brothers typically harvest among the first. - Kristaps Karklins, robertparker.com

96 Points! One of the great dry white wines of the Loire. This dry chenin blanc is rich and concentrated, but also graceful and delicate. Full-bodied but so elegant and precise, with a wet stone minerality that builds in a spectacular manner in the very long, refined finish. From biodynamically grown grapes. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! The 2023 Vouvray Sec Le Mont is precise, upright and flinty. It's less immediately charming than the styles we've seen in recent warmer vintages, but it was only tasted three weeks after bottling—this is one to revisit. There's just the right amount of juicy, peachy flesh within this light-bodied yet concentrated wine. It has the potential to charm but does so without showing off. Flinty and tightly sewn together, it has curves in the right places, but you're just going to have to wait for it to take shape. - Rebecca Gibb MW, Vinous Media

91 Points! Lots of red and black berries, pepper, graphite, and spicy garrigue emerge from the 2023 Vacqueyras Tradition, a blend of 47% Grenache, 37% Syrah, and 16% Mourvèdre that was aged 35% in concrete eggs and 65% in barrels. It's medium-bodied and has a concentrated, focused, nicely structured mouthfeel with notable purity and outstanding length. This will keep for a solid 8-10 years in cold cellars. - Jeb Dunnuck

François has two impressive plots in the renowned 1er Cru Les Vergers, one which was planted in 1987, and the other was planted in the 1950s. Both plots are located in the northwest corner of the Cru, totaling 0.46 ha, and border the 1er Cru sites of “Les Chaumées” and “Clos Saint-Jean.” Lequin’s Vergers is his most taut, vertical wine in the Premier Cru range; marked more by structure and acidity than fullness and creaminess. The Domaine Lequin Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru Les Vergers 2023 was aged for 12 months in French oak (20% new) followed by 3 months in stainless steel to harmonize.

There are 19 climats which make up Morgeot and François’ rows are in “Tête du Clos” and “Les Grands Clos,” directly in the mid-slope and center of Morgeot. His rows in “Les Grands Clos” are directly opposite the Abbey ruins, across the small vineyard street, in the climat “Morgeot.” The vines in “Tête du Clos” were planted in 1971 and the vines in “Les Grands Clos” were planted in 1987. The Domaine Lequin Chassagne Montrachet 1er Cru Morgeot 2023 is spicier than Lequin’s Vergers and it has a broader palate as well. It displays a velvety texture and impressive length. This wine was aged 12 months in French oak (10% new) also followed by 3 months in stainless steel prior to bottling.

92+ Points! The regular Branco has been renamed to 2023 Vila Romana Branco, which has a different blend, 82% Encruzado and 18% Cerceal and Bical; it no longer has Malvasia Fina, which was uprooted. It fermented in different materials and also for the aging, part in oak, part without. It has a clean and fresh nose, with notes of white flowers and fruit, with faint spice and smoke. It comes in at 13% alcohol, with a pH of 3.43 and 5.42 grams of acidity, and it's fresh and balanced, sapid and with a salty twist in the finish. - Luis Gutierrez, robertparker.com

Dominique Gruhier is oneof the greatest red winemakers in Epineuil, an area 10 miles north of Chablis that has traditionally been suited exclusively to Chardonnay! But climate change has provided Gruhier a 'helping hand' and now his reds from old vines on these steep kimmeridigian soil slopes produce some of the most compelling Pinot Noir north of the Cote d'Or. Amazing value here...

The vines for Cuvée Juliette were planted in 1978 on the Côte de Grisey, on a steep southeast-facing slope (45% grade), shallow clay-limestone Kimmeridgian soil.

100% whole cluster, ambient yeast fermentation with pump-overs, aged for 12 months in barrels (30% new), SO2 added a few months before bottling, approx. 25-30 ppm total at bottling.

100 Points! The 2023 Dominus is a blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 4% Petit Verdot. Opaque purple-black in color, it slowly unfurls to reveal a powerful core of blackcurrant jelly, ripe black plums, and fresh blueberries, followed by hints of menthol, crushed rocks, dried sage, black truffles, and black olives. The full-bodied palate is both generous and energetic, displaying an impressive array of savory and earthy nuances among the dense black fruit layers and a rock-solid frame of grainy tannins and beautiful tension, finishing with epic length. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, MW

99 Points! Black currant, pencil shaving, subtle sandalwood, wet earth, forest floor and violet aromas follow through to a medium- to full-bodied palate with ultra-fine tannins that integrate perfectly at the end. A polished and caressing texture that goes on for minutes. The balance and drinkability of this Dominus is terrific, and it will age beautifully. A blend of 87% cabernet sauvignon, 9% cabernet franc and 4% petit verdot. From organically grown grapes. Very drinkable now, but will age beautifully. - JamesSuckling.com

97 Points! Aromas of blueberries, ash and stones with hints of blackberries, orange peel and chocolate. It’s medium-bodied with medium-round tannins that are polished and velvety but always in check. Cedar and baking spices like nutmeg on the palate. Lovely soft and silky texture with a long finish. Enchanting and delicious. 92% cabernet sauvginon, 4% cabernet franc and 4% petit verdot. From organically grown grapes. Drink now or hold. - JamesSuckling.com