Wine Advocate (94)

We finished the tasting with the two Bordeaux blends. About as sexy and voluptuous as they come in the vintage, the 2011 Merlot Northridge Vineyard gives up loads of plum, violets, cassis, graphite and hints of spring flowers to go with a full-bodied, hedonistically styled profile on the palate. Possessing no hard edges, yet solid concentration and sweet tannin, it will put a smile on anyone’s face over the coming 7-82years.

James Suckling (99)

Super refined and beautiful with flowers, spices, dried fruit and hints of stones. Medium to full body with very fine tannins and a gorgeous finish. Shows great finesse and depth. Savory character, as always, but in check. Drink in 2022.

James Suckling (100)

This is the greatest Cheval des Andes ever. Discrete aromas of blackberries, flowers, stone and licorice. So perfumed. The integration of fruit, tannins and acidity is fantastic. Full-bodied, tight and solid with beautiful depth and integrity. Extremely long and exciting. Complex and compelling with such refinement and length. A blend of 62% malbec and 38% cabernet sauvignon. Available in September 2020. Better after 2024.

Wine Advocate (98)

The 2018 Cheval des Andes is a blend of 70% Malbec and 30% Cabernet Sauvignon fermented in small lots in 3,000- to 8,000-liter tanks and matured 40% in 225-liter oak barrels, 40% in 400-liter oak barrels and the remaining 20% in 2,500-liter oak vats for 13 months. Ninety percent of the oak used was French and the rest a blend of Austrian, Slovenian and German oak, 50% of it new. 2018 has been one of the best vintages in recent times in Mendoza, and the wine shows it. It's a cooler vintage, and the wine has improved in freshness and elegance without losing any clout. It's 14.5% alcohol and has a pH of 3.73. This is young, juicy, elegant and balanced and still has some herbal and toasted notes; it's medium to full-bodied, with the creamy and luxurious texture of the modern Bordeaux, ultra fine tannins and a long, dry and precise finish. It's still undeveloped and seems to have all the components and the balance between them for a long and positive development in bottle. With wines like this, I sometimes wish I had a time machine so I could see them in 20 years from now... I think this is the finest Cheval des Andes I've ever tasted. 100,000 bottles produced. It was bottled in January 2020.

Wine Advocate (98)

The 2020 Cheval des Andes was harvested from the last of February for the first time ever. It was Gabillet's second vintage at Cheval des Andes, and that year, he had to start without waiting for Pierre Olivier Clouet and Pierre Lurton from Cheval Blanc; when they arrived, they had finished picking the Malbec, which surprisingly was fresher in Las Compuertas (because of the higher percentage of clay?) than in Altamira (where the vines suffered more stress), saving the freshness. They now harvest using cold trucks (for the first time), and they also started earlier in the morning (six in the morning, impossible earlier in Mendoza...), which he reckons was very good for the precision of the wine. They used 40% 225-liter barrels, 40% 400-liter oak barrels and 20% 2,500-liter foudres, half of them new and with an élevage of 15 months on average, depending on the lots and varieties from 12 to 18 months. The final blend was 49% Cabernet Sauvignon, 29% Malbec and 2% Petit Verdot, which makes a comeback as it was not used since 2016. The key was to finish the fermentation of the Petit Verdot without skins, and that way, they have been able to use it in the blends of 2021, 2022 and 2023 in small but increasing percentages. This is slightly riper than 2019, with a little more alcohol (14.5%) and with very good structural tannins but saving the freshness, and it has the spicy side from the Petit Verdot (Gabillet talks about white pepper). The wine has the ultra sleek and polished texture and the elegance and the balance that is the signature here; the wine is very clean and precise. I see very good regularity across the three vintages I tasted next to each other—this 2020 and the 2018 and 2019. Overall, this is a triumph over the adverse conditions of the vintage. They produced their usual 100,000 bottles (since 2018), as they are renewing their vineyards and want to keep the volume stable. They produce this volume from the 36 productive hectares they have in Las Compuertas and Altamira. There are some more changes: in 2020, they went for a lighter bottle, weighing 100 grams less than the one they used in 2018 and 2019, but close to 300 grams less than the bottle from before. It's also a slimmer bottle, always thinking about the environment. They are very focused on agroecology, accelerating the regenerative viticulture and using cover crops; they have planted 1,900 trees in the last three years, creating small clusters of biodiversity for birds. They have transplanted some centenary olive trees and keep their sheep and lamas on the property. Very green-minded.

Vinous (95)

The Barolo Cannubi is absolutely gorgeous in 2017. Hot and brutally dry conditions notwithstanding, the Cannubi is creamy and sensual in the glass, with impeccable balance, soft, racy edges and tons of allure. It is easily one of the most sensual, compelling Barolos of the year. Ripe dark red/purplish fruit, spice, mint and cedar meld into the beautifully textured, resonant finish. I am so impressed with the wine's freshness. Perhaps the anti-hail netting helped keep some shade on the fruit. What a wine.

Vinous (94)

The 2018 Barolo Mosconi shows all the gravitas and natural darkness of this site, but in miniature. Black cherry, plum, gravel, smoke, crushed rocks and incense fill out the layers. There is plenty of Mosconi muscle, even if the volume of the best years isn't there.

Vinous (98)

The 2019 Barolo Mosconi is the most potent of the three Barolos in the range. It exudes Monforte darkness and virile intensity from the very first taste. Black cherry, plum, mocha, sage, tar, lavender and spice infuse the 2019 with tons of character. This is one of the most elegant wines I have ever tasted from Mosconi, a site that does not naturally lend itself to finesse.

Vinous (100)

In my opinion, the 2016 Barolo Via Nuova is the single greatest Barolo Chiara Boschis has made in her storied career. A monumental, thrilling wine, the Via Nuova captures all the best the vintage had to give. Explosive in the glass, with stunning aromatic depth, the 2016 is drop-dead gorgeous from the very first taste. Dark macerated cherry, lavender, spice, menthol and rose petal are kicked up a few notches from underlying veins of acidity and tannin that give the wine its energy and drive. The 2016 is a wine of extraordinary harmony, purity and finesse with an eternal finish. The 2016 Barolo Via Nuova is a blend of seven plots: Terlo, Liste, Paiagallo, Ravera di Monforte, Mosconi, Gabutti and Baudana.

Le Lucciole Riserva is sourced from a miniscule 0.8 hectare parcel of vines in the heart of Chiara’s holdings. 100% Sangiovese, this is a very special Italian “born-and-bred" wine of sensational quality. Perched at the lofty altitude of 350 meters, this vineyard is unique in its East-facing situation and poor soils (for anything except Sangiovese!).

Le Lucciole is an elevated version of Predappio, sourcing from the 0.8 hectare parcel of Raggio Brusa vineyard. Perched at the lofty altitude of 350 meters, this vineyard is unique in its East-facing situation and poor soils. 100% Sangiovese, this is a very special Italian born-and-bred wine of sensational quality.

The 2018 is a genuine representation of the gracefully balanced vintage. While it offers a welcoming freshness and acidity, there is also a superb concentration to support the wine to cellar in the long term. Production is ultra-limited, only 5,000 bottles were produced.

Clear bright ruby colour, the nose is driven by intense crunchy fruits together with floral aromas and the palate is characterised by silky tannins balanced with nice acidity and a long and fresh elegant finish.

Vinous (92)

Mixing both savory and sweet, floral and herbal, earthy yet packed full of bright cherry-berry fruits, the 2019 Sangiovese makes quite a first impression. This is silky in texture, yet juicy and spry with zesty, red berry fruits motivated by brilliant acidity under an air of inner violets and exotic spices. The 2019 has energy to burn, tapering off long and slightly grippy, creating a classically dry impression while also holding your attention firm with its lingering hints of licorice and candied almonds. There is so much balanced pleasure to be had from this Predappio Sangiovese.

Vinous (92+)

The 2020 Sangiovese Romagna Predappio is spicy and deep, with sweet rose and dusty black cherries accentuated by hints of ash and mint. This is undeniably elegant in feel, washing silken waves of ripe wild berries across the palate that leave a mineral staining, along with sweet inner herbal tones. It finishes with a lingering concentration and super-fine tannins as tobacco and cocoa notes slowly fade. The 2020 will require a bit more time in bottle to soften its contours, but it’s packed full of potential. It’s hard to think of this as Chaira Condello’s entry-level wine.

James Suckling (99)

Aromas of sweet berries, fresh herbs, currant bush and licorice. Terracotta. Full body, layered and soft, velvety and focused tannins. Breathtaking texture. The focus ad polished is phenomenal. Harmonious. Enticing. Fascinating and thoughtful. A blend of cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc and petit verdot. Drink or hold.

Wine Spectator (96)

Exuding cherry, strawberry, floral and tobacco aromas and flavors, this effusive, fruity style is bright and elegant, with terrific harmony and a long, mouthwatering finish that leaves a mineral impression. Very compelling. Best from 2020 through 2036.

Wine Advocate (92+)

Like the other wines I tasted from Ciacci Piccolomini d'Aragona this year, I am surprised by the soft ripeness achieved in the 2014 Brunello di Montalcino. This was a cool and soggy vintage so those dark and sweet fruit flavors are counterintuitive. However, they elevate the wine to a higher intensity threshold and a more profound flavor profile. The wine offers enough crisp acidity and tannic firmness to hold it tightly together at this young stage in its lifespan. Some 60,000 bottles were released.

James Suckling (98)

Extremely perfumed and decadent with dried flowers and spices and fresh mushrooms. Cherries,too. Full body. Solid core of fruit, yet ever so fine tannins. Goes on for minutes. Such beautifully crafted tannins. Drink after 2021.

Wine Enthusiast (97)

Red-berry, wild-rose, crushed mint and dark-spice aromas are front and center on this fragrant red. The full-bodied palate is concentrated but also boasts finesse, offering layers of raspberry jam, smooth licorice and tobacco alongside a backbone of enveloping, velvety tannins. You'll also detect the warmth of alcohol but the succulent fruit stands up to it. Drink 2024–2036.

Wine Enthusiast (97)

This delicious, bold red offers inviting aromas of fragrant blue flowers, spiced plum, forest floor and pipe tobacco. Full and enveloping in feel, it delivers a great depth of juicy black cherry, black raspberry, licorice and baking spice flavors framed in velvety tannins. Drink 2025–2032.

Kerin O'Keefe (97)

Forest berry, spice, hay and menthol aromas mingle with whiffs of new leather on this stunning, fragrant Brunello. A top-scorer vintage after vintage, the 2018 combines elegance and a full body, delivering dried cherry, blood orange, licorice and ground clove alongside firm but refined tannins. Bright acidity keeps it energized while a saline mineral note adds depth to the finish.

Wine Enthusiast (98)

Wild berry, fragrant purple flower and crushed herb aromas mingle with whiffs of tilled earth and new leather in this dazzling red. The stunning, savory palate boasts remarkable finesse combined with an ageworthy structure, offering succulent black cherry, raspberry compote, licorice and tobacco alongside taut, refined tannins. It's impeccably balanced by bright acidity. It's already tempting, but hold for even more complexity.

Wine Enthusiast (98)

Wild berry, fragrant purple flower and crushed herb aromas mingle with whiffs of tilled earth and new leather in this dazzling red. The stunning, savory palate boasts remarkable finesse combined with an ageworthy structure, offering succulent black cherry, raspberry compote, licorice and tobacco alongside taut, refined tannins. It's impeccably balanced by bright acidity. It's already tempting, but hold for even more complexity.

James Suckling (100)

Lots of ripe and rich fruit with a decadent undertone of meat and spice that turns to pure fruit and licorice. Medium to full body, refined tannins and a fresh and bright finish. All about harmony. Better after 2021.

Wine Enthusiast (98)

Aromas of red berry, camphor and tobacco meld with rose in this fragrant, full-bodied red. The smooth palate is concentrated yet elegant, featuring raspberry jam, cherry marinated in spirits, licorice and coffee bean alongside a backbone of firm, velvety tannins.

Wine Enthusiast (98)

Aromas of red berry, camphor and tobacco meld with rose in this fragrant, full-bodied red. The smooth palate is concentrated yet elegant, featuring raspberry jam, cherry marinated in spirits, licorice and coffee bean alongside a backbone of firm, velvety tannins.

Kerin O'Keefe (100)

Boasting great depth and extreme elegance, the drop-dead gorgeous Ciacci Piccolomini Pianrosso delivers crushed raspberry, succulent Morello cherry, star anise and crushed mint flavors while aromas of eucalyptus, wild rose, new leather and forest floor continuously lift out of the glass. It’s a smooth, stunning wine, with taut, fine-grained tannins and fresh acidity that lend great aging potential and energy. Absolutely stunning.

James Suckling (100)

Aromas of plums, flowers, fresh mushrooms and violets. Full body, firm and silky tannins and a long, long finish. Beautiful balance and length. Powerful tannins underneath the exquisite fruit. Great finish. Goes on for minutes. Drink or hold.