I have been a huge fan of Michel Chapoutier's wines for decades, dating back to a major tasting of his single vineyard whites and reds from Hermitage in the northern Rhône Valley. The same passion for excellence that results in his glorious le Meal and Cuvee de l'Oree bottlings is evident in this beautiful everyday white wine. Michel has long been one of the pioneers of biodynamic winemaking – a philosophy that involves treating the vineyard as a living being so that it can be handed down to following generations healthily. The labels on his wines are even translated into...

The Falesco Vitiano, a Merlot/Cabernet Sauvignon/Sangiovese blend from Umbria, has for a long time one of my favorite everyday Italian reds. I have tasted more than ten vintages and the 2016 is an extraordinary success - I would say the best vintage ever for this tremendous "bang for the buck" red. It is medium-bodied with bright red fruit and soft tannins. Just a sensational Tuesday night pizza/hamburger wine (or any other night of the week) but it is also substantial enough for a steak on Saturday! Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate agrees, saying, "In fact, I cannot for the life...

Eben Sadie is considered one of the great preservationists and visionaries in the new generation of South African winemakers. To Eben, the vineyard and fruit are part of the story — the truest expression of his art and philosophy. The wine writer Neal Martin recently called Sadie an “outspoken, peripatetic, terroir-obsessed winemaker who has been instrumental in putting Swartland on the map. He produces a small portfolio of highly coveted wines based on Rhône varieties sourced from his seemingly never-ending search for pockets of old bush vines and unique terroirs. These are cerebral wines built to age.” And you can...

2015 is regarded as a VERY successful vintage in Tuscany and that shows in spades in the 2015 Tenuta Nozzole Chianti Classico Riserva Nozzole, $19.99. It is a dark and fruit-forward wine with a beautiful profile of ripe, succulent cherry fruit. You taste the bright Tuscan sunshine in this cheerful red. This is the kind of wine that immediately puts you in a good mood, partly thanks to the low price tag. The fruit is perfectly ripened, maintaining structure and acidity all the same. It really delivers everything you want in a moderately priced Tuscan red. Robert Parker's The Wine...

If you joined us for our Zoom tasting with Sebastian De Martino, you will be astonished that the 2018 De Martino Vigno is even more extraordinary than the 2016 we tasted that night. A dry-farmed, Carignane-based field blend from biodynamic vineyards, the 2018 De Martino Vigno Vigno is arguably one of the finest wines ever made in Chile. It is a very powerful but balanced wine and surprisingly approachable at this young age but with a long life ahead of it. It received 98 points from Robert Parker's The Wine Advocate (the highest rating ever awarded to a Chilean wine!)...