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Aphros Loureiro Reserva Bruto 2009

Aphros Loureiro Reserva Bruto 2009

Deep gold, like burnished gold leaf, the Aphros Loureiro Reserva Bruto 2009 boasts an oxidative quality that reminds me of Jacques Selosse Champagnes. Decidedly autumnal aromas of baked apple and poached pear are enlivened by a dried orange top note. In the mouth, it’s all soul and soil, sensually earthy layers and leesy wet dough […]

Aphros Loureiro 2014

Aphros Loureiro 2014

Citrusy, spritely, aromatic orange loveliness. Orange blossom, mandarin oranges, wet stones. On the palate, Aphros Loureiro 2014 is equally enchanting, softly-textured with delicate silvery mineral filaments weaving in and out of kumquat-and-lemon-pith acidity. It’s round and moderately sweet, with 4.80 g/L RS along with a surprisingly persistent finish. I could drink this all day. 11.5% […]

Falesco Vitiano Rosato 2015

Falesco Vitiano Rosato 2015

Falesco’s Vitiano Rosato 2015 is a fruit-forward, cherry-colored Umbrian blend of 30% Sangiovese, 30% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 10% Aleatico. The nose bursts with concurrent aromas of ripe watermelon, yellow-fleshed peaches, and bright pie cherries. Bright and fresh acidity on the palate that pops against fruity sweetness on the back palate fades to a […]

Brkić Žilavka Ćitluk 2014

Brkić Žilavka Ćitluk 2014

My first experience tasting a Bosnian wine, this golden-hued, lush, biodynamically farmed white from Brkić is crafted from the indigenous Žilavka grape. It’s highly aromatic, bursting with pungent notes of bruised pear, decomposing flowers, dried tarragon, iron, and Honey Nut Cheerios. Lees contact has endowed it with a lovely texture, as well as aging in […]

Barton & Guestier Côtes De Provence Passeport Rosé 2015

Barton & Guestier Côtes De Provence Passeport Rosé 2015

Guestier’s Côtes De Provence Passeport Rosé 2015 is pretty and very drinkable considering its modest price. The nose is aloft with red berries, blood oranges, wafting sea air. It’s a delicious compromise between minerally limestone tension and fruit, which translates as cantaloupe flesh and crushed raspberries followed by a mouthwatering and lengthy finish. It’s fresh, […]

Hecht & Bannier Côtes de Provence Rosé 2015

Hecht & Bannier Côtes de Provence Rosé 2015

The second 2015 rosé I’ve sampled from Hecht & Bannier, aside from admittedly loving their modern packaging, I have been impressed with both the Bandol and this Côtes de Provence in terms of quality and price. A blend of Grenache, Cinsault, Syrah, and Rolle, it’s an expressive pink. The vines flourish under the warm maritime […]

Quinta de Covela Escolha Branco 2013

Quinta de Covela Escolha Branco 2013

Tasted at Covela’s historic estate—a Renaissance manor that sits frozen in time, poised at the mouth of the Douro Valley, along a southern-facing amphitheater robed in lush greenery. The 2013 Escolha Branco is a blend of Avesso and Chardonnay, with a few years of age, offers perfumy aromas of dried honey and orange blossom. Barrel […]

Quinta do Noval Quarenta Anos 40 Year Old Tawny

Quinta do Noval Quarenta Anos 40 Year Old Tawny

Sampled at Noval’s tasting room in Porto, the Noval ‘Quarenta Anos’ 40 Year Old Tawny is translucent and brickish, replete with developed notes of dates, Dalmatia fig spread, dried apples, aged leather, and warm wicker. In the mouth it’s viscous and full, more so than Noval’s Colheita, it’s the acidity that really brings this Port […]

Domaine Lafond Roc-Epine Lirac 2014

Domaine Lafond Roc-Epine Lirac 2014

Generous, layered black fruit on opening: black cherries and blackberries held aloft by underbrush, anise and baking spice aromas. Composed of 70% Grenache and 30% Syrah, Domaine Lafond’s 2014 Lirac Roc-Epine is softly textured, a deep plunge into black fruit and velvety tannins—it’s entirely voluptuous, with no-hard edges, save for spice notes on the finish, […]

Domaine de Boède Les Grès 2009

Domaine de Boède Les Grès 2009

Succulent notes of smoky plums, marionberries, figs, and camphor with perhaps more ethereal notes of incense, iron, and game. Given the nose, one expects this Langedoc blend of Mourvedre, Grenache, Syrah, and Carignan to be big-boned and brawny on the palate—it comes across as mid-weight, a good thing, I think, tempered by a healthy of […]

CHRISTINE HAVENS
McMinnville, OR

christine@christine-havens.com