Cellar Favorite: 1967 Château d’Yquem Sauternes Premier Grand Cru
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, France: Bordeaux
Jan 2021
,I have been fortunate to taste the legendary Château d’Yquem a number of times since the early 1980s but hadn’t had the opportunity to actually drink it in many years. That was until a generous friend brought a surprise bottle along to an indulgent Château Petrus vertical this fall, to be shared among a small group of wine lovers at the outstanding Peppercorn’s Grill in Hartford, Connecticut.
Cellar Favorite: 1961 Taylor’s Very Old Single Harvest Port
Portugal, cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites
Jan 2021
,After half-a-century, Taylor’s have just released a 1961 Very Old Single Harvest Port. The 1961 growing season was no write off.
Cellar Favorite: 2012 Domaine François Raveneau Chablis Blanchot Grand Cru
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, France: Burgundy
Jan 2021
,It’s always a pleasure to pull a bottle of Raveneau from the cellar. These are among my favorite wines from anywhere in the world. Of all the domaines I once covered but have since handed off to other critics at Vinous, Raveneau might very well be the one I miss visiting most, as the wines are so often transcendental.
Cellar Favorite: 1997 Marcassin Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, United States: California
Dec 2020
,Marcassin’s 1997 Pinot Noir Sonoma Coast is without a doubt one of the most compelling wines I tasted in 2020. At 23 years of age, it has aged exquisitely.
Cellar Favorite: 1998 Mastroberardino Taurasi Radici Riserva
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, Italy: Center & South
Dec 2020
,As soon as it feels like winter, when sweaters start to be worn indoors and the meals turn meatier and richer, all I want to drink is mature Barolo and Taurasi. It’s at this time of year that I pull a mixed case of the two from my storage, and stand the wines up so that all I need to do is choose, pull, decant and indulge.
Cellar Favorite: 2019 Paulus Wine Co. Chenin Blanc Bosberaad
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, South Africa
Dec 2020
,I thoroughly enjoyed Joaquin Hildago’s recent article on collectible Argentinean wines, and it got me thinking about parallels with South Africa’s own collectibles. It’s not just Bordeaux and Burgundy.
Cellar Favorite: 2012 Vietti Barbera d'Asti La Crena
Italy: Piedmont, cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites
Dec 2020
,We don’t often think of Barbera as a wine that requires a decade or more to reach peak maturity; but then again, most Barberas don’t possess the potential to even last that long. However, when they can and they do, it’s a very special thing.
Cellar Favorite: 2001 Domaine Yvon Clerget Clos Vougeot Grand Cru
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites
Nov 2020
,Following our lengthy tasting of 2018s and 2019s, Clerget opened and served blind three older bottles made by his father, Yvon.
Cellar Favorite: 2017 Domaine Didier Montchovet Bourgogne Hautes-Côtes de Beaune
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, France: Burgundy
Nov 2020
,Why a piddling Bourgogne Hautes-Côte de Whatever? What numbskull chooses to cellar such low ranking Burgundy? And who the hell is Didier Montchovet? Pull up a chair and let me explain why I chose this particular wine.
Cellar Favorite: 1999 Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley
cellar favorite, Cellar Favorites, United States: California
Nov 2020
,The 1999 Dunn Cabernet Sauvignon has earned a highly respected place in the cellars of collectors in the know, and we’re not talking about the more popular Howell Mountain bottling.