2015 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage La Maison Bleue, France, Rhone, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2015
Score: 
93
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$65.00USD

This was the first vintage of this wine as it replaced the La Petit Chapelle bottling.  It seems to be a bottling made for more immediate drinking than the La Chapelle bottling.  It is a very classic Hermitage nevertheless and at age 8, this seems to be just settling in.  Purple in color with ruby hues, opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, black olives, and smoked herbs.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, black raspberries with a slight floral (violet?) note and smoke.  Great acidity.  Long finish.  This is drinking well and should easily go another ten years.  Ni

2019 Yann Chave Hermitage, France, Rhone, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2019
Score: 
95
Grade: 
A

Inky purple in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, clay, black pepper and char.  Full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, this is deep and youthful.  Delicious.  Black raspberries, roasted herbs and black pepper  Long finish.  This is a big wine that will benefit from another five to ten years in the cellar.  It will drink well for twenty years, but if drinking soon, then give it a few hours in a decanter.  It will work with bigger foods.  Roasted duck should work nicely.

2020 Tardieu-Laurent Hermitage, France, Rhone, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2020
Score: 
93
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$79.00USD

Purple/ruby in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is initially quite spicy.  With air, there is also black raspberries, black pepper, slight bacon fat and slight roasted herbs.  Medium to full bodied.  A nice backbone of  acidity. On the palate, black cherries, black raspberries, and black pepper with underlying char.  Nice finish.  This is drinking well already and quite open.  Drink over the next eight to ten years.  Very nice on its own, this would be great with a Braised Lamb stew.  

2011 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage La Chapelle, France, Rhone, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2011
Score: 
94
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$175.00USD

This is one of the superstar wines from Hermitage.  The vintage is good but not great and the wines are maturing perhaps a bit sooner.  That said, what a treat to drink a mature bottle of this wine.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, a bit of chocolate, black pepper, cloves and slight bacon fat.  Full bodied.  Tannins mostly resolved.  Good balance.  On the palate, there is a nice complexity.  Layers of black raspberries, roasted herbs, and black pepper.  Moderately long finish.  This is delicious and at or close to peak.  No hurry

2017 J.L. Chave Sélection Hermitage Blanche, France, Rhone, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2017
Score: 
95
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$80.00USD

Just a great showing for this wine.  It can be difficult to know when to open a white Hermitage with age on it.  The wines are mysterious, shutting down and opening up on their own schedule.  This bottle seemed old at first but kept getting "younger" as it opened.  Golden in color (darker than expected), clear and bright.  The nose is interesting with pears, slight orange peel, hints of wax and maybe a bit of a floral tone.  Full bodied.  On the palate, at first this seemed a bit oxidized but not shot.  With air, those flavors disappeared to be followed by pears, slight citrus and char.  Go

2020 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage Blanc Chevalier de Sterimberg, France, Rhone, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2020
Score: 
92
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$65.00USD

A white wine from one of the top producers of Hermitage, Paul Jaboulet.  A 60/40 blend of Marsanne and Rousanne.  It seems to  be a bit "lighter" in style but that works very well.  Light golden in color, clear and bright.  The nose is great.  It has a fresh air quality along with slight pineapple, a bit of wax, and some apricot.  Medium to full bodied.  On the palate, red apples and slight citrus.  Long finish.  This is tasty on its own and will work well with sea food or fowl.   Drink over the next ten years.  

2018 E. Guigal Hermitage Blanc, France, Rhone, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2018
Score: 
93
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$72.00USD

Guigal makes a lot of wine and just about all of it is excellent and priced fairly.  This wine is no exception.  It is 95% Marsanne with 5% Roussanne.  It sees 2 years in second year oak barrels.  Light golden in color, clear and bright.  The nose is waxy with red apples.  Oily texture.  Full bodied.  On the palate, apples with a bit of spice.  Crisp-ish.  Good finish.  This is delicious and a wonderful wine.  Great on its own, this will be food friendly with sea food, ham or fowl.  Drink over the next eight to ten years.

2022 Sans Liege Cotes du Coast, USA, California, Paso Robles, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2022
Score: 
91
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$23.00USD

This is a white blend using Rhone varietals and made in Tin City, Paso Robles, California.  It is a blend of 48% Viognier, 19% Marsanne, 13% Roussanne, 11% Grenache Blanc and 9% Clairette.  My first time trying this wine and producer and it is delightful.  Light golden in color with some green hues.  Clear and bright.  The nose has a whiff of fruit but then is dominated by wax, sea air and spice.  With air a bit more pineapple emerges.  Lovely slightly oily texture.  Drying tannins.  On the palate, more pineapple with some lime notes on the finish.  13.7%abv.  It is so hard to say how this

2019 Dr. Loosen Erdener Treppchen Riesling Großes Gewächs Alte Reben, Germany, mosel, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2019
Score: 
96
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$53.00USD

This is a dry Riesling from Germany.  For those who "dislike" Riesling because it is sweet, this is a nice surprise.  Golden in color, clear and bright.  The nose is about minerality with "wet rocks" and some lemons and slight peach.  Full bodied.  Crisp but a slightly viscous texture.  On the palate, lemons and minerals.  Long finish.  This is incredibly food friendly but a great choice would be Thai food.  Drink over the next fifteen to twenty years.  

2019 Domaine des Roches Neuves Saumur Blanc L'Echelier, France, Loire Valley, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2019
Score: 
92
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$68.00USD

This is 100% Chenin Blanc from 70 year old vines in the Loire Valley.  Light golden in color, clear and bright.  The nose has loads of minerality with a touch of lemon peel.  Slightly viscous texture.  Concentrated.  Lots of energy.  On the palate, this is clean and tasty with a lot of minerality.  Slight lemon note.  Long finish. This is very young but drinking well.  It should continue to drink well for another ten to fifteen years (at least).  A great match for grilled trout or other sea food.  This is expensive so shop around for pricing.  

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