Table of contents for November 15, 2024 in Wine Spectator

The Green Mountain State is blessed with both climate and culture, representing great potential for producing world-class cheeses. Its cheesemakers have long exhibited technical mastery, a penchant for artistry and just plain hard work. Four distinct seasons, punctuated by freezing cold winters and muddy springs, present challenges but also provide lush green summer pastures for its dairy animals to feast upon. On the human side, there’s a history of small-scale family farming, artisan manufacturing and an indomitable spirit of entrepreneurship. With conditions similar to the Jura in east-central France—home to the likes of Comté and gruyère—it’s no surprise that Vermont’s top cheese producers have succeeded admirably with Alpine types. (See “Alpine Style, American Mastery,” Oct. 15, 2019.) And with their antecedents coming mostly from England, success with Cheddars also follows.…

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED 95 BERGSTRÖM Pinot Noir Ribbon Ridge La Spirale Vineyard 2022 $100 OREGON A dynamic red, with a fleshy texture that wraps around an elegantly complex core, showing fragrant raspberry and strawberry flavors accented by notes of rose petal, dusky spices and forest floor that build richness and polish on the luscious finish. COLLECTIBLE 97 LOUIS LATOUR Corton Château Corton Grancey 2022 $240 FRANCE Rich and spicy, this red features ample cherry, raspberry, rose hip and stony mineral flavors. Silky, yet with a fine underpinning of refined tannins, ending in a resonant aftertaste, with terrific harmony, structure and length. SMART BUY 92 CHALONE Chardonnay Chalone 2022 $30 CALIFORNIA Very pretty and refined, showing juicy citrus and stone fruit flavors that are fresh and concentrated, with seamless, elegant notes of Honey-crisp…

The Napa Valley winemaking scene remains dynamic and forward-looking, with new projects emerging each year while established estates make notable shifts in their operations. Here are some of the most exciting investments, advances and revivals in the world of Napa Cabernet. Almacerro Few new family-owned Napa Cabernet brands have as much history as Almacerro and its Howell Mountain estate vineyard, some of it planted in the late 1800s. Following Prohibition, the estate was inherited by the Hess family, and in the 1970s Bill and Joan Smith purchased and developed four parcels for their La Jota wines. When the Smiths moved on to a namesake Pinot Noir project, the La Jota brand (and three of the parcels) passed to new owners, first to Markham and then to Jackson Family Wines, where…

The issue’s most impressive wines. Includes top-scorers and wines that represent optimal purchases based on their combination of score, price and availability. 97 Spottswoode Cabernet Sauvignon St. Helena 2021 $285 CALIFORNIA This offers a gorgeous display of pure, unadulterated mulberry, boysenberry and plum fruit puree flavors that glisten as they move along, throwing off light accents of anise, violet and hibiscus along the way. Inlaid with an underlying fine-grained structure in the form of sleek threads of iron and alder, this shows tensile strength while extending through the long, refined finish. Drink now through 2045. 3,739 cases made.—J.M. 96 DVO Napa Valley 2021 $275 CALIFORNIA This is distinctive from the start, with notes of roasted apple wood, cedar, warm earth, baker’s chocolate and sweet tobacco leading off, followed by a deep well…

In my July 31 editor’s letter, I shared with you my experience tasting two very special California Cabernets: 1941 Inglenook estate-bottled Cabernet Sauvignon and 1958 Beaulieu Vineyard. I opened these rare wines on the occasion of a visit from Christian Moueix, an icon of both Bordeaux and Napa Valley, home to his Dominus Estate. As I promised then, the time has come to share the fascinating conversation that preceded our tasting of these wines. My sit-down with Moueix represents the latest in a series of interviews I have conducted with friends who are living legends of wine. As Moueix is considered by many to be a very private individual, I was impressed with his candor. Our discussion, spanning his early years stewarding Pétrus to his ambitious adventures in Napa, was…

Milan-based Campari Group has been drawn into the battle for Château Miraval. Operated by Brad Pitt and the Châteauneuf-du-Pape–based Perrin family, the winery entered into an exclusive distribution agreement with Campari in September 2023 aimed at marketing Miraval rosés as a pre-dinner aperitif. Yet Nouvel, Jolie’s former company, wants to know how, amid a legal dispute with Pitt and his partners, Campari was permitted to secure the rights to become the sole distributor. Campari isn’t the first company to be pulled into the former spouses’ feud over the 1,300-acre Provence estate they purchased in 2012. Pitt filed a lawsuit against Jolie in 2022 for selling her share of Miraval to Stoli Group, owned by businessman Yuri Shefler, without Pitt’s knowledge or consent. Nouvel countersued for $250 million, claiming that Pitt…

Southern Italy’s Puglia produces a range of wines from dozens of varieties and a long list of denominations. Primitivo is probably most familiar for Americans, perhaps due to the 1990s debate around the genetic relationship between Primitivo and America’s Zinfandel. Ultimately, testing proved both grapes are biotypes of Croatia’s Crljenak Kaštelanski. The furor died down, and producers everywhere pursued their own interpretations. “I think Primitivo is [Puglia’s] most successful grape, commercially,” says Vito Palumbo, CEO of Tormaresca winery. “But there are many different expressions, and not always at the same level of quality.” Quality-oriented producers such as Tormaresca, an Antinori outpost established in 1998, are moving more of Puglia’s still-robust production away from the quantity-driven mentality of the late 20th century. Unlike the rest of Italy, Puglia is relatively flat,…

Barbaresco has long existed in the shadow of its famous neighbor Barolo. Even the reputation of the Gaja wines did not seem to put Barbaresco in the same light, perhaps because from the 1996 vintage until 2012, Gaja’s wines bore the Langhe Rosso appellation, not Barbaresco. Part of the explanation also lies in sheer volume of wines. Barolo is three times the size of Barbaresco; I typically blind-taste nearly three times more Barolos than Barbarescos each year. Furthermore, vintages in the two regions are often similar, with much of the excitement reserved for wines of Barolo, released one year later than those of Barbaresco. However, in 2014, the weather conditions resulted in a distinct advantage to Barbaresco—specifically, less rainfall. The vintage conditions were such that, despite challenges, the Produttori del…

Wines that will improve most from additional bottle age and that show the greatest potential to gain in value. 99 MacDonald Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville 2021 $225 CALIFORNIA This seamless, driven, coiled red manages to marry lush notes of black currant, blackberry and fig reduction with burlier accents of walnut, tobacco and warm gravel. Shows an undeniable inner tension but needs considerable time to unfurl. Just when you think you’ve got this figured out, a bolt of cast iron emerges, adding a vibrato echo of terroir that stamps the superlong finish. This is a special wine. Drink now through 2050. 525 cases made.—J.M. 98 Schrader Cellars Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley RBS Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard 2021 $525 CALIFORNIA So packed and dense with blackberry, black currant and boysenberry compote flavors that this seems…

Wines with solid scores, modest prices and wide distribution. 88 Chateau Ste. Michelle Syrah Columbia Valley 2021 $15 WASHINGTON Juicy and easy-going, with appealing flavors of cherry, toasty cinnamon and pepper that zip along the sleek finish. Drink now through 2028. 18,000 cases made.—T.F. 85 The Atom Cabernet Sauvignon California 2022 $15 CALIFORNIA Soft and friendly, offering modest notes of cherry and strawberry laced with a touch of singed vanilla. Drink now. 10,390 cases made.—J.M.…

CALIFORNIA Cabernet Franc & Blends 96 To Kalon Vineyard Company Elizas’s Oakville 2021 $225 This version shows lovely range, as sweet tobacco, dried violet and warm paving stone hints all smolder underneath a vivid, pure and polished core of black currant and black cherry puree. Still youthfully taut, as the structure is prominent, this just requires patience to unwind fully. When it does, this will feel really suave. Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. Best from 2027 through 2045. 475 cases made.—J.M. 94 Favia La Magdalena Napa Valley 2021 $250 This is solidly built, with a core of dark cherry and cassis wrapped in notes of tobacco, singed alder and warm loam. Shows freshness, too, with light iron and savory notes darting through on the structured finish. Cabernet Franc and Cabernet…

Dynamic Duo Oregon’s Willamette Valley may be known for Pinot Noir, but don’t overlook the region’s other star, Chardonnay. As this group proves, Willamette Valley Chardonnays offer both quality and value, especially when it comes to versions from the Eola-Amity Hills AVA. BIG TABLE FARM Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 2022 (94, $50) Polished, expressive; raspberry, tart cherry, forest floor, dusky spices, orange peel RÉSONANCE Chardonnay Willamette Valley 2022 (94, $40) Asian pear, nectarine, lemon zest; sleek, luxurious DOMAINE ROY & FILS Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 2022 (93, $44) Delicate, vibrant; cherry, cranberry, orange peel, mineral, savory tea DROUHIN OREGON ROSEROCK Chardonnay Eola-Amity Hills 2022 (93, $42) Apricot blossoms, Asian pear, spiced cinnamon; steely, supple EVENING LAND Chardonnay Eola-Amity Hills Seven Springs 2022 (93, $40) Lush, enticing, silky; apple, pear, honey blossoms, apricot BIG TABLE…

“I was born here in Mendoza, and as such, I maintain a profound connection with the Andes mountains. Bodegas Terrazas de los Andes has always been part of my dream to craft fine mountain wines,” says Lucas Löwi, estate director for the winery. Löwi began his wine career at Terrazas in a junior position in 2007; however, unexpectedly, fulfilling his dream started by leaving Mendoza in 2015. Löwi had been chosen by Moët Hennessy (which owns Terrazas) to become estate director at Bodega Numanthia (also owned by Moët Hennessy) in Spain’s Toro region. Löwi says that while he valued his experience at Numanthia, he was never far from Terrazas, returning to Mendoza every year to visit family and meet with the winemaking team. During his ninevintage tenure in Spain, Numanthia achieved…

More than once, I’ve heard a critical refrain about Napa Cabernet—that the wines don’t age. But that isn’t really the problem. The problem is that many consumers typically don’t give the wines a chance to age, because they’re so delicious out of the gate. But the top bottlings, primarily from Napa but accompanied by a handful of others from outside the valley, begin to reveal additional range and nuance as they complete their first decade. Patience is a virtue. My annual “Ten Years After” tasting this year focuses on the 2014 vintage. As with last year’s tasting of the 2013s (Nov. 15, 2023), I invited a select number of wineries to submit specific wines for a retrospective tasting. The selections were made based on a combination of factors, including the…

This Buying Guide contains ratings of new releases from around the world. Complete tasting notes are provided for new releases scoring 85 or more points (on the Wine Spectator 100-point scale, explained below). Hundreds of additional reviews appear each month on our website, www.winespectator.com. Each review carries the initials of the Wine Spectator editor who blind-tasted and scored the wine and wrote the review, based on the regional specializations indicated below. Bruce Sanderson Burgundy, Piedmont, Tuscany James Molesworth California Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir, Bordeaux, Port MaryAnn Worobiec California Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, Australia, New Zealand Alison Napjus Spain, Italy, Champagne, South Africa Tim Fish California Zinfandel and Merlot, Oregon, Washington, U.S. sparkling wines Aaron Romano Argentina, Chile Kristen Bieler Rhône Valley and other France, Germany, Austria How We Do…

ARGENTINA Red 95 Viña Cobos Malbec Mendoza Cobos 2021 $400 An engaging version that opens with elegant, spicy floral, dried cardamom and orange peel notes before revealing a concentrated yet polished core of crushed raspberry and morello cherry. A nice mineral freshness arrives, bringing herbal and tea leaf notes and lifting the flavors onto the lingering finish around fine-structured tannins. Elegant yet structured and defined. Drink now through 2040. 580 cases made.—A.R. 93 Viña Cobos Malbec Mendoza Villa Bastías Zingaretti Estate 2021 $100 This medium-bodied red is sneakily complex. Opening notes of olive, loam and brambly berries lead to an engaging core of apple wood–accented plum and berry flavors, with a twinge of acidity lifting the flavors and carrying them onto the broad finish around hints of kirsch and toasted cocoa…

Burgundy’s wines are not cheap, and inventories are carefully monitored. Last year, the team at Maison Albert Bichot began to notice bottles were disappearing from their Beaune cellar. Somehow the wine was walking out the cellar door without anyone noticing—a few bottles here, a few bottles there, like a slow, sporadic drip. So they installed hidden security cameras. On the morning of Feb. 8 they watched as a trusted, middle-aged maintenance worker purloined two bottles of Nuit-St.-Georges premiers crus and two bottles of Chambolle-Musigny, worth a total of about 522 euros. This event set in motion an investigation that led to the Dijon Tribunal. On Aug. 6, the 56-year-old worker was found guilty of stealing nearly 1,500 bottles, worth roughly 600,000 euros, from three wineries over a period of seven…