BEST BUY; Fresh and fragrant raspberry notes infuse this light Chassagne. It’s bright, with hints of green spice and lasting, clean red fruit. A lovely red for roast fish. – J.G.
Laurent Pillot blends this from five parcels in Volnay, ranging in age from 18 to 57 years old, including two 1er Cru parcels. Their fruit comes together in a heady, mineral-inflected wine, its buxom complexities modulating between satin softness and firmer, potent tannic structure. Those elements integrate with air, lasting through a gracious finish. – J.G.
Guyon farms 2.8 acres in Les Cras, producing this roseate Chambolle. There’s plenty of substance behind that delicate aroma, the wine living mostly in the power of its silken tannins... the rose scent and smoky complexity continues to gain with air as the wine remains tight and elegant. – J.G.
With its brisk structure tightly dressed in red fruit, this wine has more juicy generosity than you might expect from Corton. It’s sunny, bright, clean and fresh, then lasts on tense, floral earthiness. Guyon farms 2.1 acres in this grand cru. – J.G.
This wine’s sour-cherry flavors carry a floral perfume, hinting at lilies and buttercups, with a delicate bitterness that adds tension to a savory finish. It grows at the domaine’s 6.4 acres within La Justice, the fruit destemmed, the wine gaining richness with air as it darkens to blueberry and pine. – J.G.
Patience and time in a decanter will take this wine... toward a brighter tone. The earthiness develops into green notes of cilantro, the fruit juicy and soft to the touch. – J.G.
YEAR'S BEST LOIRE SAUVIGNON BLANCS; While the Saget family has expanded throughout the Loire, with six estates and a total of 890 acres of vines, they make this wine at their original home base in Pouilly-sur-Loire, where they farm 25 acres of sauvignon for this classical white. Fermented in stainless steel without added yeasts, then aged on the lees for six months, this wine shares toasty richness over floral lime and grapefruit flavors. It’s tensely mineral before expanding in the finish, adding fleshiness to the fruit and notes of marzipan. Enjoy it with a creamy oyster pan roast. – J.G.
On a steep hill directly behind the château, this parcel sustains vines that range from 50 to 115 years old. The fruit ferments spontaneously in a traditional Burgundy style, then the wine ages in foudres. It presents a dark and fragrant Brouilly with substantial tannins... Above those tannins, the wine is bright and juicy, with lively freshness that will last. – J.G.
Delicious intensity and focus to this red here with fresh dark cherries, licorice, tea leaves and some eucalyptus. Round and juicy but grainy and suave, this delivers solid, crunchy cherries, across a wealth of sturdy tannins. Full-bodied and medium-chewy on the finish. Drink now. - J.S.
A pale-colored vermentino that shows pithy lemons, green apples and chamomile. Medium-bodied with bright acidity and lively stone fruit. Fruity on the finish, but shows some complexity and weight. Drink now. - J.S.
From a hill of sandy clay and silt, this is a densely concentrated wine packed with flavors of black cherry, licorice and dried thyme. Aging in barriques and larger casks burnished the tannins and imparted notes of sweet spice. —S.J.
YEAR'S BEST CHIANTI CLASSICO; Verrazzano owns 105 vineyard acres in the Greve commune, where the limestone-rich soils yielded a concentrated Riserva in 2015. The wine rested in new French oak barrels for two years, developing dark spice notes that deepen its cherry flavors, and firm tannins that call for braised pork or grilled game. - S.J.
BEST BUY; YEAR'S BEST BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO; Brisk acidity brings clarity to this wine’s black-cherry flavors and picks up notes of cranberry and orange blossom. That brightness is offset by notes of tobacco and damp leaves; raspy tannins pull the flavors together. - S.J.
Beautiful albariño here with freshly squeezed nectarines and citrus. Medium-bodied and precise on the palate, which plays to a mineral tune and whips up loads of zesty, citrus character throughout. Drink now. - J.S.
WWA SILVER AWARD; Youthful white stone fruit with lemon peel, fresh grass and savoury complexity in the nose. Zesty and saline in the palate.
EDITOR'S CHOICE; Initial smoky notes of reduction make way for a pervasive, subtle but luminous lemon freshness on the nose of this wine. The palate shows exquisite concentration in lemon freshness. It’s bone dry, vivid and fresh. Drink until 2045. —A.K.
