Aubert wine rating

Aubert Wine Ratings: The Producer’s Best Vintages

California, Collecting, Sonoma, Wineries

Mark Aubert’s winery first sprang into existence from California’s rich soils in 1999, and ever since, Aubert Chardonnay and Pinot Noir wines have been climbing steadily higher in professional and public opinion, like grapevines reaching for the sun. Of course, Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are the state’s most prolifically planted varieties. With so many other notable California producers specializing in similar wines—Peter Michael, Williams Selyem, and Donum among them—what is it about Aubert wines that merits an ever-growing waiting list just to join the winery’s mailing list?

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The best Salon Champagne vintages fetch high prices

The Best Salon Champagne Vintages in History

Champagne, France, Investing, Producers, Producers and Wineries, Wineries

There is no Champagne in the world quite like Salon’s blanc de blancs Le Mesnil cuvée. Made from top-quality Chardonnay grapes grown in just one grand cru village and from a single vintage, the wine is an outstanding expression of time and place. Every bottle of Salon is distinctive and potentially legendary⁠—the house only produces a vintage when the quality is phenomenal.

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One of the best Harlan Estate vintages is the 2001

A Guide to the Best Harlan Estate Vintages

Champagne, Napa, Producers, Producers and Wineries, Wineries

Top-quality Harlan Estate vintages impress even the most experienced and judicious of wine critics. Tasting six Harlan Estate wines in 2018, Master of Wine Jancis Robinson says many exceeded her expectations. “Only the prejudiced would reject them as too sweet and too alcoholic,” she adds. While the price of these bottles is quite high compared to most other examples of Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, Robinson says the extra cost is generally worth it. These wines are deeply fragrant, powerful, and age-worthy–a tempting combination.    

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DRC and Clos de Tart make some of the best grand cru Burgundy.

Ranking the Best Grand Cru Burgundy

Burgundy, France, Producers and Wineries, Wine Regions, Wineries

The reason it’s so hard to rank the best grand cru Burgundy is that personal taste plays a huge role. It also comes down to what you value most. Are you looking for a wine with a high quality-to-price ratio (QPR)? Is flavor complexity the most important factor? Or do you want to buy wine that you can resell for a profit? No matter which quality you value most in a wine, this guide will sort–and in some cases rank–grand cru Burgundy according to a few different criteria.

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Decanting Château d'Yquem isn't common but it can be beneficial.

Decanting Château d’Yquem: Should You or Shouldn’t You?

Bordeaux, Enjoying Wine, France, Producers, Producers and Wineries, Sauternes, Serving, Wineries

A few years ago, a wine enthusiast wrote a letter to Wine Spectator’s Dr. Vinifera asking whether it’s safe to decant Sauternes. The letter writer had just come back from a restaurant and had been surprised to see that the sommelier poured a 1995 Château d’Yquem from a decanter. Dr. Vinifera responded that decanting Château d’Yquem certainly isn’t a common practice, but it’s also not a bad idea. Like any other fine wine, some Sauternes vintages open up with a little aeration and become more expressive.

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Best DRC Vintages

Find the Best DRC Vintages for Your Cellar: Your Guide to Buying the Best Burgundy Vintages from This Top Producer

Producers, Wineries

MENTIONED IN THIS POST: -DRC -Lafite  There’s a niche group of wine collectors who only buy the best Domaine de la Romanee Conti vintages, and it’s easy to see why. DRC consistently produces some of the most collectible wine bottles in the world. Legendary, 100-point vintages sell for as much as $20,000 per bottle, on…

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margrit mondavi napa valley wine

Remembering Margrit Mondavi: How One Woman Helped Change the Perception of Napa Valley Wine

California, History, Napa, News, Producers and Wineries, Wineries

We lost a wine icon this year. Margrit Mondavi passed away from cancer on September 2, 2016, and although she is no longer with us, she leaves behind a long legacy that will ripple through California’s wine industry for decades. My father-in-law remembers the first time he met Margrit Mondavi. “She was magnanimous and sharp…

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Best Napa Valley Vintages

Hidden Gem of the Month: Looking for the Best Napa Valley Vintages? The 2013 Scarecrow Has It All

California, Napa, Producers and Wineries, Wineries

Wine critic Richard Jennings never understood the hype around California cult Cabernet. He admits that these wines are usually ultra-concentrated and flavorful, but, he says, “I also believe the great majority of wines in this category are hardly deserving of the stratospheric prices and disproportionate attention they have received over the years.” However, that was…

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Top Wine Countries in the World

Lesser-Known Regions from the Top Wine Countries in the World Are Growing Fast in Reputation and Quality

California, France, Italy, Wine Regions, Wineries

When you think of French wine, you probably picture bubbly Champagne, savory Rhone, or rare Bordeaux and Burgundy blends. However, writer Sophia Schweitzer points out that France has so much more going on for it, all hidden in the countrysides of lesser-known regions. In the past, collectors only considered French AOC wines to be worth…

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