We are pleased to announce Spec’s TOP WINE PICKS OF 2019! Our wine experts have traveled to Spain, Napa Valley, and everywhere in between this year tasting thousands of different wines to better serve our customers (and to enjoy some great wine too).
These will be great for a Holiday gift or a dinner for two. We hope you enjoy trying these amazing wines!
Blue Rock ‘Best Barrels’ Cabernet Franc 2016
Alexander Valley, California
- The ‘Best Barrel’ program for Blue Rock is an intensive progress where the best barrels from each vintage are kept off to the side to produce the ‘Best’ of what this winery has to offer. It was aged in 35% New French oak (the rest in 1-2 year old barrique) for 20 months.
- The wine is 95% Cabernet Franc with a plash of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon all from the sustainably farmed Estate in Alexander Valley.
- Deep and deliciously aromatic, this Franc offers exuberant flavors of red raspberry and strawberry that explode on the palate with whiffs of dried herbs showing medium tannins and acids.
- The finish is long and tantalizing with whiffs of cedar, vanillin and exotic spice.
J. Moss Cabernet Sauvignon 2014
Rutherford, California
- Cabernet Sauvignon was aged in 100% New French Oak for 28 months.
- Succulent, silky black and red fruits flow through velvet tannins. Notes of mocha, tobacco and toasted spice layer beautifully through nuances of creamy vanilla and dark chocolate.
Rizzi Barbaresco (Nebbiolo) 2016
Barbaresco, Italy
- Wine maker Enrico Dellapiana produces clean and ‘pretty’ wines that are approachable in their youth, but age accordingly.
- Flavors of strawberry and violets flow easily into the palate with medium plus acidity.
- The wine is fresh and clean with a plush mid palate that is somewhat surprising considering the wine is 100% Nebbiolo.
- Notes of tealeaf are prevalent throughout the finish with touches of spice.
Brooks ‘Janus’ Pinot Noir 2015
Willamette Valley, Oregon
- This winery is fully sustainable with most being organic or biodynamic. They are also one of the first wineries in the United States to partner with 1% for the Earth. One Percent of all their sales goes straight back into making our Earth a better place.
- Striking flavors of bright cherry compote and pomegranate sinew into whiffs of chocolate macaroon and rhubarb. The mid palate offers medium plus acidity with notes of lavender, cola, and root beer.
- The finish is pure and clean with hints of porcini, cinnamon and raspberry tea.
Webster ‘Left Bank’ Red Blend 2012
Napa Valley, California
- The wine is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 15% Petite Verdot and 5% Cabernet Franc aged in French oak.
- Robust flavors of cassis and blackberry deftly flow through dense, yet integrated tannins.
- The mid palate offers layers of boysenberry and black cherry with subtle notes of dried tobacco and cigar box.
- The finish is balanced and complex with touches of cedar, vanilla, and herbs.
Waris Hubert ‘Albescent’ Blanc de Blanc Grand Cru
Champagne, France
- The wine is 100% first press Chardonnay (Blanc de Blancs) from the Grand Cru villages of Cramant and Avize. It was aged for 3 years on the lees and bottled with a dosage of 7 g/l (.7).
- The term Albescent come from the ‘Albe’ in Latin meaning white.
- Tight, clean bubbles weave through flavors of Granny Smith apples and freshly squeezed lemon with a vivacious backbone of minerality.
- Hints of brioche and granary toast sneak into whiffs of white flowers, wet stone and tickles of honey.
- Stunningly clean and complex.
Ch. Pontac Lynch Red Blend 2015
Margaux, France
- This sustainably farmed wine is a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot with touches of Cabernet Franc and Petite Verdot.
- The wine was aged in new and used French oak for 12 months. Pontac Lynch is young but quite approachable right now. Flavors of black raspberry and black cherry dance into nuanced acids and lively tannins.
- Notes of currant, cigar box and leather play through the mid palate with tinges of cedar and sandalwood.
- The finish offers hints of mocha, vanilla bean and vibrant fruits that lead into a long, lingering finish.
Calcareous ‘Tres Violet’ Red Blend 2017
Paso Robles, California
- This is a blend of Grenache, Mourvedre, and Syrah that sung from start to finish.
- Gracious flavors of raspberry, violets and smoked game lifted into the palate with medium tannins and acids. The mid palate screams blueberry through a plush, creamy core.
- The finish is long and integrated with dancing hints of clove and cinnamon.
Domaine de Cabasse ‘Cuvee Juncunditas’ Red Blend 2016
Gigondas, France
- The wine is a blend of 70% Grenache/15% Syrah/15% Mourvedre grown at 1,300 feet above sea level.
- The wine is supple and inviting from the 1st taste. Flavors of ripe plum and roasted dates fling effortlessly into the palate with medium intensity followed by candied cherries.
- Notes of licorice and black raspberry flow into hints of cracked black pepper with touches of garrigue. Get this wine while you can!
Castello di Ama Chianti Classico Gran Selezione 2015
Tuscany, Italy
- Divine flavors of wild red cherries and fresh strawberries play into the palate with medium plus acidity and medium tannins.
- Notes of red clay, tobacco leaf and leather sinew through the mid palate with touches of thyme, blackberry and just a whiff of orange blossom.
- The finish shows a silky complexity offering graham crackers and hints of milk chocolate. This is easily one of the best offerings in all of Chianti Classico.
Bodegas La Horra ‘Corimbo’ Tempranillo 2013
Ribera Del Duero, Spain
- The wine is fermented in large oak and stainless steel then aged for 12 months in 80% French/20% American oak with 20% of that being new oak.
- The color of the wine is pristine with little to no signs of aging which shows that this wine will have a long life if you so choose.
- The wine offers delicious flavors of black cherry and cassis that are enveloped with medium plus tannins and acids.
- The mid palate offers a soft, approachable plushness that sinks into a long, lingering finish with kisses of vanilla, cedar and spice.
Matthiasson Dry Rose 2018
Napa Valley, California
- This wonderfully Dry Rose is a blend of Grenache, Syrah, Mourvedre, and Counoise sourced from two vineyards (Dunnigan in Yolo and Hurley in Napa).
- The wine has a delightful citrus and red fruit component that begs to be paired with food.
- Notes of lemon citrus combine with fresh rose petals, wild flowers and raspberry that flow into refreshing acids.
- The finish is pure and refreshing with whiffs of white pepper, wet rock and gardenias.
TOP PICK OF 2019:
Barnett Cabernet Sauvignon 2016
Spring Mountain, California
- This all estate wine is 76% Cabernet Sauvignon/11% Petite Verdot/9% Merlot/4% Cabernet Franc that was aged for 22 months in 65% new and 35% 2 yr French oak.
- The 2016 vintage in Napa was a return to normalcy with decent rainfall in the winter months, followed by a warm spring and a moderately hot summer with warm days and cool nights.
- Barnett shows great intensity and a dark core from the start with blueberry pie and blackberry jam cobbler flowing into a silky mouthfeel that belies its excellent structure.
- It is definitive mountain fruit with depth and concentration while offering velvet notes of dark plum ensconced by clove, tobacco and dark, rich milk chocolate. The finish is extremely long with beautiful notes of vanilla, minerals, and dusty wood floor.
- This wine will age gracefully for next 10-15 years. Layered, complex, complete.
