White wine in winter is a great combination.

White Wine in Winter: The Best Varieties for Chilly Weather

When temperatures dip, many people want to cozy up by the fireplace with a bold, full-bodied red wine like Cabernet Sauvignon or Syrah. These rich wines are comforting this time of the year and often pair beautifully with hearty winter meals. But full-bodied red wines aren’t the only beverage of choice for the chilliest winter months. Opulent and creamy white wine can be just as warm and comforting in the cold seasons. In fact, bolder white wines like Chardonnay, Viognier, Champagne, and Sauternes pair even better with some traditional winter foods than red wines do. 

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Louis Latour makes some of the best Burgundy under $200.

The Best Burgundy Under $200: From Louis Latour to Domaine Faiveley

Some of the most expensive and collectible wines in the world are made in Burgundy by estates like Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (DRC) and Domaine Georges Roumier, and these wines are becoming even more expensive year after year. Average wine prices in Burgundy are rising due to increased demand for these bottles on the secondary market. Yet not every bottle of Burgundy has to cost thousands of dollars. You can still find many Burgundy wines of exceptional quality that sell for less than $200 per bottle and taste incredibly complex for the price. Whether you’re on a limited budget or you’d like to invest in a few affordable bottles while you wait for your more expensive wines to mature, this guide to the best Burgundy under $200 will help you build a high-quality collection for a reasonable cost.

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One of the most famous Sonoma wine appellations is Los Carneros

Your Guide to Sonoma Wine Appellations

Sonoma Valley in California has earned a stellar reputation for producing some of the most fascinating wines in the New World. An incredible array of wines is made here, from refined and elegant Pinot Noir that dances delicately on the palate to robust and hedonistic Zinfandel that’s full of unctuous fruit flavors. What makes this region so diverse? More than a dozen microclimates and terroirs are packed into this small county. There are 18 Sonoma wine appellations (called American Viticultural Areas, or AVAs for short), each producing different styles of wine. No two appellations are exactly alike. 

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One of the top five wines from Spain is the 2004 Artadi Viña El Pison Reserva.

The Top Five Wines from Spain

Spain is home to many passionate producers that pride themselves on crafting opulent styles of wine with impressive aging potential. From the concentrated and oaked wines of Rioja to the aromatic and polished wines of Ribera del Duero, Spain has so much to offer. Vinfolio’s resident Master of Wine Adam Lapierre says that more collectors should get excited about Spanish wines, as many wines from this country are growing more valuable and delicious every year. 

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The 2019 Burgundy vintage is ripe and concentrated

Your 2019 Burgundy Vintage Report: A Year of Concentrated Yet Balanced Wines

Now that producers in Burgundy have brought in the last of their 2019 crop, spirits are high across the region. Extremely warm weather and uneven flowering early in the season reduced yields, but the quality of the surviving fruit is exceptional. Early reports show that the grapes are deeply concentrated and intense this year—a quality that could signify great aging potential and value in the future. In this 2019 Burgundy vintage report, we highlight the wines we believe will have the greatest complexity and value this year so that you can make the most informed decisions about how to invest when the vintage is released. 

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Chateau Margaux and Chateau Latour are two of the first-growth Bordeaux wine producers.

First-Growth Bordeaux Wine: A Guide to the Best Labels

To say first-growth Bordeaux wine is high in quality is an understatement. There are only five first-growth estates in Bordeaux, and each of them crafts some of the most elegant, prestigious, and valuable wines in the world. Wines with official first-growth classifications are often worth hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars more than their lesser-ranked peers and are considered by many to be the cornerstone of any serious French wine collection. 

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The 2019 Bordeaux harvest was very successful

The 2019 Bordeaux Harvest: A Deeply Concentrated, Promising Vintage

The 2019 Bordeaux harvest is complete, the last of the grapes have been plucked from the vine, and winemakers and professional critics are very optimistic about the quality of 2019 Bordeaux. Although it’s still very early, they’re seeing firm tannins, rich coloration, and high sugar content balanced by high acidity. The fruit is also strongly aromatic (much like it was during the successful 2018 Bordeaux harvest). In other words, this vintage will be powerful and concentrated—a vintage worth laying down. In this guide to the 2019 Bordeaux harvest, we’ll discuss which grape varieties and areas of Bordeaux had the most success this year so that you can prepare your investments when en primeur season rolls around. 

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Our guide to Rioja wine discusses the role of cask aging.

A Detailed Guide to Rioja Wine

Rioja wine is changing rapidly. Just a few years ago, the Spanish winegrowing region was known for producing easy-drinking Tempranillo and Garnacha (Grenache) blends. While these wines were pleasant—filled with sweet strawberry flavors and the scent of baking spices—most weren’t particularly complex or valuable. However, in 2017 the region’s governing body introduced a new classification system that sets Rioja’s finest wines apart from its table wines. The wines in the highest classifications are intense, tannic, and multidimensional, a far cry from the region’s softer, more simplistic offerings. 

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2001 Masseto is one of the top ten wines in Tuscany

The Top Ten Wines from Tuscany for Collectors

To help you explore the region’s most complex and age-worthy wines, we’ve created a list of the top ten wines from Tuscany that are perfect for serious wine enthusiasts and collectors. While Tuscany has many other top-quality wines to offer, these ten are among the best on the market today. They are enthralling, complex, valuable, and have great aging potential, making them a wise choice for almost any collection. 

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The Russian River Valley wine region has an unusual climate.

Your Guide to the Russian River Valley Wine Region

If you were to rank the best American Viticultural Areas (AVAs) in the United States, the Russian River Valley wine region would be near the top of the list. This California AVA located in Sonoma is tremendously well-respected among wine experts, who consider it one of the greatest regions in the world for growing complex Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. Many of the wines made here are acidic, elegant, and multilayered. These are luscious wines that every collector should experience at least once in a lifetime. 

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2016 Pichon Baron is one of the best Bordeaux under $200.

The Best Bordeaux Under $200 for Serious Collectors

Master of Wine Jancis Robinson says, “I am always banging on about how price is no absolute guide to quality and I believe this is particularly true of Bordeaux.” She goes on to say that although most first growths sell for hundreds or thousands of dollars per bottle, there are plenty of high-quality petits châteaux wines available for a fraction of that price. In fact, it’s possible to find many top-quality and age-worthy wines for less than $200 per bottle. This guide to the best Bordeaux under $200 will help you discover fine red and white wines that have some of the highest quality-to-price ratios on the market.

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One of the best vintages of Château Latour is the 1982

The Best Vintages of Château Latour for Collectors

The best vintages of Château Latour are among the longest-lived wines in the world. While certain wines like fine port and Tokaji are known to age for 100 years or more, it’s rare to find a red Bordeaux blend with the same aging potential. Château Latour is one of these extraordinary wines. For instance, the 1961 vintage—considered one of the greatest in the estate’s history—continues to develop in complexity even to this day. When Master of Wine Jancis Robinson tried the 1961 vintage a few years ago, she said, “I can hardly believe the drinking dates I am suggesting for this wine! Drink through 2040.”

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