David Brodati, DipWSET
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Reviews (619)
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Reviews
Masi Campolongo Di Torbe Amarone Della Valpolicella Classico 2012, Docg Veneto
Italy$129.95
98 Points! Fabulous Amarone. Intensity: check, concentration: check, complexity: check, balance: check, typicity: check, length: check. Violet florals, stewed dark cherry and plum fruit, cigar box, baking spice, roasted coffee, vanillin, cedar, soy, black tea, sanguine minerality and a hint of balsamic VA . Tannins are soft but still present and ripe and dusty. Juicy acidity enlivens the sheer volume of this wine. 16% abv is integrated and lovingly warming. The depth is outstanding and length is marathon-like. Drinking beautifully now but has the stuffing for another two decades. Jan. 2022.
5.0 Stars
(0)V
Bachelder Wismer Foxcroft "Nord" Chardonnay 2019, VQA Twenty Mile Bench
Ontario, Canada$47.95
I could deconstruct this wine using the WSET or CMS tasting grid but why bother, it's simply delicious, nuf said. I will say though, the aroma and flavour intensity is notable and there's lovely notes of pear, apple, citrus, creme brulee, toast, sanguine minerality and an herbal tinge. The palate is viscous and creamy, with vibrant acidity and outstanding length. Not the warmest vintage nor location on the escarpment yet it clocks in at 14% abv (and a touch hot on the throat making my score a notch below outstanding). Great stuff overall. March 2024
5.0 Stars
(0)
Bachelder Grimsby Hillside "North Slope, Starry Skies" Chardonnay 2019, VQA Lincoln Lakeshore
Ontario, Canada$44.95
Can a wine be boisterous and yet elegant? Well Thomas' effort from the 2019 vintage of Grimsby Hillside fruit seems to embrace this contradiction. Complexity abounds with yellow apple, pear, lemon drop, toasted marzipan, ginger spice, but reigned in by flinty minerality and bright acidity. Mouthfeel is lovely showing malo's effect and perhaps lees contact. The14% abv is well integrated and the finish is very long. Yum. March 2025.
5.0 Stars
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Ridge Vineyards Monte Bello 2012, Santa Cruz Mountains
California, Usa$190.95
This review is for the 375 ml bottle. Entering prime drinking now. Lovely complex flavours of raspberry, black cherry, blackberry and cassis (in the dried and almost prune-like realm), with a beguiling herbal note, clove, cigar box, leather, chocolate, vanillin and a hint of volatile acidity. Tannins are ripe and softening and the acidity is vibrantly juicy. Complex, concentrated, harmonious and very, very long. Jan. 2022.
5.0 Stars
(0)V
Hamilton Russel Vineyard Pinot Noir 2016
South Africa$59.95
Wine is as much about place, experience, stories and emotions as it is about taste, flavour, chemistry, biology, winemaking skill, standard assessment tools and numeric or other rating systems. For me, this wine is about emotions. The roller coaster ride from gleeful anticipation, to joyous fulfillment, to sadness and disappointment that I finished my only bottle of this wonderful Pinot. Post Partum depression? Lovely pure raspberry and beet, nutmeg, black pepper, minerality, iron, cedar. Balanced, smooth with ripe and resolved tannin, juicy acidity, and excellent length. Ahhh....July 2019.
5.0 Stars
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Marchesi De' Frescobaldi Castello Di Pomino Vin Santo 2008, Doc Pomino Vinsanto
Tuscany, Italy$42.95
Excellent Vin Santo from the tiny DOC of Pomino in the northeast of Toscana. Pomino is one of 4 wine areas of Tuscany delineated by the Bando (edict) of Cosimo III de Medici in 1716. Vin Santo is a passito specialty typically made with Trebbianno Toscana and/or Malvasia Bianca Lunga. Here the dominant player in Pomino, the venerable Frescobaldi house, has crafted a delicious dessert wine that stays this side of too sweet, with balancing acidity. Complex, with apricots, marmalade, honey, fig and candied fruit. Excellent length. Very pretty indeed. Well worth the price. Dec. 2017.
5.0 Stars
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Guilhem & Jean Hugues Goisot La Ronce 2018, Bourgogne Côtes D'auxerre
Burgundy, France$52.80
A beautiful Bourgogne Pinot, displaying quite intense aromas and flavours of roses, sour cherry, raspberry, earthy beetroot, spicy nutmeg and cinnamon, and oaky vanillin and cedar. The frame is medium bodied with fairly soft ripe tannins and juicy vibrant acidity. Scores on complexity, balance, concentration and a lovely long finish. Wish I'd bought more bottles. Oct. 2022.
4.5 Stars
(0)
Estate Argyros Assyrtiko 2020, P.D.O.
Santorini, Greece$45.00
Beautiful texture and mouthfeel on this Santorini Assyrtiko. Lemony citrus, saline tangy minerality and spice dominate the flavours. Full bodied with 14.5% abv showing weight and the slightest hint of anise. Lovely balance, very vibrant and outstanding length. Pair this with lemon drenched calamari, village salad featuring briny olives and souvlaki.
4.5 Stars
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Latium Campo Leòn Amarone Della Valpolicella 2008, Doc
Veneto, Italy$34.75
A deep, darky, brooding Amarone. Raisiny, chalky, hot, medicinal, rich, thick, dense, big, bold, complex, unabashed and boisterous. Definitely has an "A" type personality. Tannins are in check, and acidity is detected, but this guy derives his structure primarily from alcohol. Mr. Lawrason's wine writer technical term sums it up best - wowser! Enjoy with the darkest of chocolate or blue cheese or parmigiano nibbles topped with a drop of honey. Feb. 2014.
4.5 Stars
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J. Moreau & Fils Fourchaume Chablis 1er Cru 2018, Ac
Burgundy, France$55.95
Everything you want in a 1er Cru Chablis. Flavour intensity, balance, length of finish and typical minerality. Lemon lime citrus pops then minerality takes over, then a savoury herb like quality, then the ride starts all over again. Oak is judicious and integrated as it should be for a Chablis Cru. Acidity is mouthwatering but not at all harsh. And lees contact adds a nice texture to the mouthfeel. This paired nicely with sage roasted chicken in a garlic wine sauce and latkes (potato pancakes), with the fresh acidity being a great foil to the greasy garnish. Tasted Dec. 2022.
4.5 Stars
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