2015 La Grange Tiphaine Nouveau Nez Montlouis-sur-Loire
Damien Delecheneau’s Montlouis-sur-Loire is fully dry, made from organic, young-vine Chenin. The wine is bottled before primary fermentation is complete to create the sparkle….
France
2017 Faury Saint Joseph Blanc
Lionel Faury’s white Saint Joseph is 60 percent Marsanne and 40 percent Roussanne, aged in a mix of tank and barrel. It’s a clear…
2018 Faury Saint Joseph Rouge
This wine is 100 percent Syrah, as required for Saint Joseph red. The robe is nearly opaque, a deep velvety garnet. The wine is…
2018 Domaine Ligier Poulsard Arbois
Ligier’s Poulsard is hand-harvested and spends a year in large vats prior to bottling. It’s a limpid garnet color with a faint orange cast…
Gosset to Ring in the New Year
On a sweeping tour of France in 2017, I had the good chance to visit Gosset at their gracious facility in Épernay, tasting their…
1974 Terrassous Vin Doux Naturel Rivesaltes
This extraordinary vintage vin doux naturel is a 50/50 blend of Grenache blanc and gris. After vinification and mutage (the addition of grape spirit…
2018 Les Vignes Oubliées Terrasses du Larzac
The vignes oubliées in question are old, head trained Grenache, Carignan, and Syrah vines, planted in small plots at 300 to 400 meters of…
2018 Château de Jau JauJau 1er Côtes du Roussillon Villages
Château de Jau occupies a 100-hectare estate founded in the 12th century CE by Cistercian monks. The site, in the fragrant, scrubby countryside just…
2018 Mas des Chimères Nuit Grave Terrasses du Larzac
This enchanting wine is a blend of 48 percent Syrah, 22 percent Mourvèdre, 20 percent Grenache, and 10 percent Carignan grown in the brushy…
2017 Domaine Faiveley Les Villeranges Rully
Faiveley’s Rully is old school but stylish, 100 percent Chardonnay (as white Rully must be), from the Villeranges lieu-dit. The fruit was pressed and…
2018 Domaine des Sanzay Saumur Champigny
Domaine des Sanzay’s Saumur-Champigny is a mercurial wine, youthful but with the stuffing to age. Made from organically farmed Cabernet Franc, it’s rich raspberry-red…
2019 Domaine de Reuilly Pinot Gris Rosé Reuilly
I love this vin gris of Pinot gris. The fruit is biodynamically grown, then pressed with sufficient skin contact to create a wine that’s…