2021
2021
Poplar Grove 2021 Munson Mountain Vineyard Cabernet Franc
Canadian Red
Blackcurrant, cassis and vanilla appear with red cherry, blackberry and eucalyptus. The palate is rounded, with velvety tannins, bright acidity and a long, smooth finish. Cabernet Franc was hand picked and sorted, followed by a three-day cold soak. The wine matured for twenty-one months in new and older French oak and another twelve months in bottle. Alcohol is 14.9 percent.
Italo Cescon 2021 Cabernet
Italian Red
Intense ruby-red colour has violet reflections. The bouquet includes woodland, fruit, spice and herbal notes. Concentration accompanies dry tannins, fruit, oak and lively freshness. The blend contains seventy percent Cabernet Sauvignon and thirty percent Cabernet Franc from Fagarè, Vallonto and Fontanelle, where the soils are alluvial clay. Grapes are hand-harvested in late September, and the wine matures twelve months in oak followed by twelve months in bottle.
Garnet Valley Ranch 2021 Pinot Noir
Canadian Red
Clear garnet-red colour appears with lush berries, delicate flowers and earthy undertones. Raspberry, dark cocoa, anise, a silky texture and soft balance are also present. Estate-grown Pinot Noir ferments in small concrete tanks with fifty percent whole clusters. Basket pressing and ageing in neutral barriques and small concrete tanks are also used. The finish is smooth and lingering, and alcohol is 12.5 percent.
Familia Oliván-Ruiz 2021 Custero Rioja
Spanish Red
Garnacha forms sixty percent, joined by Tempranillo, Garnacha Roya and white varieties. The profile is fresh and long, with many aromatic nuances and a slightly rugged tannic texture. Grapes are hand-harvested from selection-massale vines around 600 metres, then co-fermented as whole clusters with native yeast in open-top fermenters. Ageing uses second-use barriques and concrete; sulphur is added only at bottling.
Thibaud Capellaro 2021 Pierre Taillée
French Red
Syrah comes from two massale-selected vineyards just south of Condrieu, one in Saint-Joseph and one across the river. Half the grapes are destemmed and half retained as whole clusters for fermentation. The wine is pressed into 650-litre demi-muids for an eleven-month élevage. It is classified as Vin de France and records 12.5 percent alcohol.
Brovia 2021 Roero Arneis
Italian White
Stone fruit and citrus meet a mineral spine in this dry white. Arneis comes from a 0.80-hectare, south-facing sandy vineyard in Vezza d’Alba at about 340 metres. Harvest is manual, followed by brief maceration and fermentation at controlled temperature for two to three weeks. The wine rests in stainless steel until early spring before several months of bottle ageing.
Anthonij Rupert 2021 Optima
South African Red
Fruitcake, cedar, cocoa and dried lavender define the bouquet. The palate is broad, fleshy, succulent, soft, rounded and silky, with spice, rich dark fruitcake and a lingering dry tail. Whole berries are double-sorted, then fermented dry on the skins and given extended post-fermentation maceration. Fermentation uses French oak and stainless steel, followed by malolactic fermentation and twenty months in French oak barrels, thirty percent new.
Marchesi di Grésy 2021 Martinenga Langhe Nebbiolo
Italian Red
Bright ruby colour accompanies strawberry, raspberry and black cherry. The palate is fresh, lively and balanced, with medium body and tannins. A short vinification and malolactic fermentation take place in steel. Ageing takes place mainly in cement with some tank. Floral notes accompany the red-fruit profile. Nebbiolo comes from the Martinenga vineyard in Piedmont's Langhe.
Bouchard Père & Fils 2021 Bourgogne Chardonnay
French White
Pale gold colour appears with peach, pear and creamy fruit character. Chardonnay comes from clay-limestone sites across Burgundy. Ageing lasts eight months, predominantly in stainless steel with a small portion in French oak barrels. Alcohol is 12.5 percent, residual sugar is 2.2 grams per litre and total acidity is 3.73 grams per litre. Its pH is 3.35.
Vino di Anna 2021 Palmentino Rosso
Italian Red
Bright crimson colour accompanies red cherry and wild strawberry aromas. The palate is dry and fruit-driven, with juicy ripe tannins and fresh acidity. Organically grown Nerello Mascalese comes from old bush vines on high, terraced vineyards on Etna's northern face. Half the blend is made in a traditional palmento, thirty percent in Georgian qvevri and twenty percent in a large used oak botte. Indigenous yeasts conduct spontaneous fermentation; the wine rests twelve months on fine lees and is bottled without fining or filtration.
La Miraja 2021 Ruchè di Castagnole Monferrato
Italian Red
Violet, rose, iris, jasmine, cardamom, white pepper and lychee appear with wild berries, red cherry and pomegranate. The palate has robust acidity and moderate tannins. Ruchè comes from estate vineyards at 250 metres on calcareous red-clay soils. Hand-harvested fruit is destemmed, basket pressed into stainless steel and kept on the skins for ten days during native fermentation. Malolactic fermentation is spontaneous. Maturation includes three months in cement and four months in bottle.
Howling Bluff Estate Winery 2021 Three Mile Creek Pinot Noir
Canadian Red
Sour cherry and raspberry form a tart, cool red-fruit profile with savoury and earthy notes. The vines include Pinot Noir clones 115, 667 and 777 and were twenty-two years old when reviewed. Fruit receives a two-day cold soak. After three weeks, the wine is pressed into French oak barrels and aged there for eighteen months. Further acidic fruit appears on the finish.
Mersel 2021 Lebnani Abyad Skin-Contact White 1 L
Lebanese White
Merwah forms seventy percent of the blend, with thirty percent Sauvignon Blanc. The wine is a still, skin-contact natural white with no residual sugar. Merwah comes from old vines in North Lebanon, while Sauvignon Blanc grows in the Bekaa Valley. Fermentation takes place on the skins in stainless steel. The lots undergo malolactic fermentation, are racked twice and are bottled without fining or filtration. Alcohol is eleven percent.
Markham Vineyards 2021 Napa Valley Merlot
American Red
Ripe raspberry, plum jam and caramel from oak ageing are present. Red fruit, minerality and velvety chocolate-covered cherries accompany structure, mid-palate weight and a long, round finish. The blend is ninety-one percent Merlot, seven percent Cabernet Sauvignon and two percent Malbec. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel with fifteen days of skin contact. The wine spends sixteen months in oak barrels, thirty percent new.
Domaine des Marnes Blanches Coup de Jus 2021 White Rabbit Jacquère
French White
Jacquère is sourced from Savoie and pressed as whole clusters. Natural fermentation takes place in a concrete egg. Maturation lasts ten months in concrete egg, demi-muids and barrels. The wine is lively, taut and saline, with a light spritz. Fruit comes from organically farmed vines on yellow marl. Bottling is done without fining or filtration.
The Prisoner Wine Company 2021 Saldo California Zinfandel
American Red
Zinfandel forms eighty-five percent of the blend, with Petite Sirah and Syrah composing the remainder. The wine is deep ruby-black, with licorice, cherry, baking spice and black pepper. Dark cherry, blackberry, dark plum, raspberry, vanilla and chocolate are also present. The palate is dry, rich and smooth, with soft, velvety tannins. Maturation takes place in French and American oak, twenty-five percent new.
Pierre Amadieu 2021 Les Capelets Saint-Joseph
French Red
Syrah grows on steep granite and gneiss slopes and is harvested by hand. Fermentation takes place at controlled temperature in stainless steel, followed by maturation in oak. Blackcurrant and raspberry sit with leather and liquorice, while red fruit and violet accompany mineral, cocoa and animal notes. The profile has roundness and silky tannins, and alcohol is thirteen percent by volume.
Thibaud Capellaro 2021 Ombre & Lumière
French Red
Grenache, Syrah and Viognier are vinified separately, using a mix of carbonic fermentation, skin contact and direct pressing. The wine spends nine months in barrels and older demi-muids, with no fining, filtration or added sulphur. Fruit comes from vineyards on granite and clay-limestone soils in the Rhône and Ardèche. The vineyards are farmed organically and biodynamically without certification, and alcohol is thirteen percent by volume.
La Frenz 2021 Aster Brut
Canadian Sparkling
Chardonnay makes up two thirds of the blend, with Pinot Noir accounting for one third. Toast and autolytic notes sit with singed citrus fruit. The wine has low dosage, balance and a long finish. It is made by the traditional method in the Okanagan Valley. This white sparkling wine is produced from estate-grown fruit in British Columbia.
Ferraris Agricola 2021 Clàsic Ruchè di Castagnole Monferrato DOCG
Italian Red
Black cherry, blackberry and pomegranate sit with rosemary and thyme. The wine is fresh, with dense tannins and a lingering fruit finish. The cuvée combines Ruchè from five growing areas within the seven authorized municipalities of Castagnole Monferrato. Ruby colour with bright reflections accompanies rose-petal and spice notes and a delicate tannic texture. The wine contains fifteen percent alcohol by volume.
Domaine Mosse 2021 Bisou Vin de France
French Red
Raspberry colour accompanies blackberry, cardamom and fresh fig. The wine is light and fruity, with a direct attack and a tangy finish. Grolleau Noir, Grolleau Gris, Gamay, Cabernet Franc and Chenin are vinified separately with four-to-ten-day semi-carbonic macerations. Ageing lasts eight months in foudre. Indigenous yeasts are used, and the wine is bottled unfiltered with twenty-four milligrams per litre of total sulphur.
Pepe Mendoza 2021 Pequeñas Producciones Tinaja de Padilla Velo de Flor Alicante
Spanish White
Scrubland, jasmine and night-blooming jasmine accompany a dry, chalky and saline profile. Macabeo and Merseguera each account for forty-eight percent of the blend, with four percent Moscatel. The varieties are fermented separately with native yeasts, then blended and matured for six months in small Padilla amphorae. A naturally developing layer of flor shapes four months of the ageing. Production totals 3,500 bottles.
Baia’s Wine 2021 Krakhuna Imereti
Georgian White
Apricot, persimmon, citrus peel and herbal notes accompany stone fruit, honey and spice. The wine is full-bodied, with tannin and a long, dry finish. Krakhuna is the sole grape. Vines grow at three hundred twenty-four metres on free-draining alluvial soils. Fermentation takes place in qvevri with wild yeast, and the wine is unfiltered and low in sulphites.
Casale del Giglio 2021 Faro della Guardia Biancolella Lazio IGT
Italian White
Pale yellow colour with a green tint accompanies ripe golden peach, fresh apricot and floral perfume. The palate is flinty and fresh, with citrus on a lingering fruity finish. Biancolella grows on Ponza at the base of a sea cliff near the island’s lighthouse. The wine remains on its lees for seven to eight months before bottling. The site has volcanic and calcareous soils.
Domaine Louis Jadot 2021 Monthélie Les Sous Roches
French Red
Pinot Noir grows on an east-facing, 1.16-hectare site with clay and stones at the surface. Grapes are hand-harvested into small cases, sorted by hand and destemmed. Maceration lasts three to four weeks in open wooden or stainless-steel vats, with twice-daily punching down during fermentation. Maturation lasts about eighteen months in barrel, with around one third new oak. The wine comes from a village appellation in the Côte de Beaune.
Beckham Estate 2021 Olivia’s Pinot Noir Rosé
American Rosé
Pinot Noir from a dry-farmed estate vineyard in the Chehalem Mountains is fermented in amphora and aged in neutral barrel. Pale blush colour and a light body accompany strawberry, cherry blossom and racy acidity. The terra-cotta vessels used in the cellar are made by hand in the vineyard studio. The wine is an Oregon rosé.
Koppitsch 2021 Happy Anniversary
Austrian Red
Blaufränkisch and Sankt Laurent are blended in proportions of seventy and thirty percent. Around ten percent of the stems remain in the mash before natural fermentation in stainless-steel and fibreglass vats. Pressing takes place after about ten days. The wine then spends twenty-two months on gross lees in 225-litre barriques and is bottled unfiltered, without fining or additives. Alcohol is eleven percent, and no sulfur is added.
Clos du Tue-Boeuf 2021 La Caillère Cheverny
French Red
Predominantly Pinot Noir with a smaller share of Gamay, this red comes from a 1.3-hectare parcel of silex and clay in Cheverny. The vines averaged about thirty-five years of age when documented, and the wine spends around one year in neutral 400-litre barrels. The profile is fresh, clean and aromatic, with reductive and herbaceous character.
Clos des Centenaires 2021 Luxe, Calme et Volupté IGP Pays d’Oc
French Red
Forest fruit and sweet spice shape the aromas. The palate is luscious, with fine tannins on the finish. The blend combines forty percent Cabernet Sauvignon, forty percent Petit Verdot, ten percent Merlot and ten percent Syrah. Vinification took place in concrete tanks, followed by twelve months in oak barrels previously used for one to three vintages. The site has pebbly soil and a continental climate influenced by the nearby Mediterranean Sea.
Cantine Volpi 2021 La Zerba Derthona Timorasso Colli Tortonesi
Italian White
Ripe stone fruit, chamomile, sweet spice and herbal notes accompany an exotic perfume. The wine has oily richness, ample acidity and a grassy finish. Timorasso was harvested by hand, gently pressed and fermented slowly at cool temperature in stainless steel before resting in old oak barrels. The finished wine is certified organic, sustainable and vegan. It comes from Colli Tortonesi in Piedmont.