Updated 04/27/13

Collector’s Room

Here we’ll list a selection of highly-rated, hard to find wines that would serve as excellent additions to your home collection.

Poderi Luigi Einaudi Costa Grimaldi Barolo 2008
“The 2008 Barolo Costa Grimaldi reveals lovely freshness and vibrancy in its floral bouquet and delineated, nuanced fruit. Mint, licorice and sweet spices add lift and brightness throughout. The Costa Grimaldi is a bit on the delicate, feminine side in this vintage, but the balance remains compelling. In particular, the wine’s focus and clarity on the finish show the qualities that make 2008 such a terrific vintage. Costa Grimaldi is made from the Via Nuova vineyard in Barolo, a cold site that does best in warmer years. In 2008, a cold year, the Costa Grimaldi comes across as compact and unyielding. If the wine fleshes out in bottle it could merit a higher score. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2028. ”
– 92 points, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate

$97.99 / 750 ml

Arietta Quartet 2009
“The 2009 Quartet caresses the palate with silky red berries, flowers, licorice and spices. This is a mid-weight, radiant Quartet loaded with class and personality. In 2009 the blend is 62% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Cabernet Franc, 17% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2019..” — 91 points, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
$46.99 / 750 ml

Andrew Will Sorella 2008
“Impressive for its intensity and elegance, packed with black cherry, cherry, plum and spice flavors, hinting at roasted red pepper and a tarry minerality as the finish glides smoothly over refined tannins. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. Best from 2012 through 2020. 973 cases made. “–HS — 95 points, The Wine Spectator- Rank 32 in Spectator Top 100
$74.99 / 750 ml

Verget Chassagne Montrachet “Morgeot”  2009
“Pale yellow.  White peach and flowers on the nose.  Moderately intense and spicy, with a saline quality contributing to the impression of dusty, tactile grip on the back end.  Not at all a sweet style.  In fact, there’s something Chablis-like about this wine, which will probably be best consumed on the young side.”
$69.99 / 750 ml

Casanova di Neri Tenuta Nuova 2007
“This is not the perfect 100-point 2006, but damn close. Loads of black cherries and spices on the nose. Full-bodied, with a beautiful core of fruit. Long and gorgeous finish. This is so long and beautiful to taste. Lasts for minutes.” — 97 points, James Suckling

“A “Wow!” wine on every level. This is a lovely, dark, smooth and rich expression that is packed tight with intensity and personality. The biggest, boldest wine by far from Montalcino’s 2006 vintage, this bottle will age nicely and add value to your cellar collection.” –97 points, Wine Enthusiast
$109.99 / 750 ml

L’Aventure Cote a Cote 2009
“.The 2009 Cote a Cote emerges from the glass with dark black cherries, plums, cassis, spices and white flowers. Sweet, silky tannins frame the exceptionally long, polished finish. This is another superb, totally elegant wine from L’Aventure. The blend is 42% Grenache, 33% Syrah and 25% Mourvedre, with a total of 50% new French oak. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2019. ”
– 95 points, Robert Parker’s The Wine Advocate
$84.99 / 750 ml

Seghesio Rockpile Zinfandel 2010
“The 2010 exhibits classic Rockpile briary mountain fruit and spicy black cherry, with undertones of crushed rocks, sage, and pepper, enveloped in layers of creamy vanilla and toasty oak spices. This is full-bodied, rich, and powerful, with the acid and tannin structure suited for a pairing with grilled meats, stews, or braises.”
$39.99 / 750 ml

Rochioli Pinot Noir RRV  2010
“The 2010 Pinot Noir Estate is a huge wine bursting with dark cherries, menthol, licorice and tar. It is an especially large-scaled entry-level Pinot that combines massive richness in its fruit with fabulous acidity and structure. In short, this is magnificent wine, but it is big, and should not be bought by the timid. Readers who can’t source the vineyard designates in 2010 will find plenty of pleasure here. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2020. ”
– 92points, The Wine Advocate
$84.99 / 750 ml

K Syrah Morrison Lane  2009
“Black fruit, dark earth undergrowth, liquid smoke, condensed and saturating with luxurious texture. A true classic from the oldest syrah vineyard in Walla Walla. “
$47.99 / 750 ml

H&B Faugeres 2009
“Around 60% Syrah, 30% Mourvedre, and the rest Carignan and Cinsault, Hecht and Bannier’s 2009 Faugeres – tasted as a pre-assemblage – is dominated by very ripe yet fresh blackberry, purple plum, and dark cherry. Seamlessly sweet and finely polished – almost creamy – I concur with Hecht when he claims that “even though in many instances it’s the other way around, here we have much riper tannins than in 2007.” Crushed stone, iodine, peat, dark chocolate, resinous herbs, red meat juices, and saline, savory pan drippings make for a complex, layered yet dynamic and utterly mouthwatering performance. This demonstration of its appellation’s profound potential is yet another Hecht & Bannier triumph in the context of its vintage! I would anticipate a decade of fascination and sensual satisfaction.”
– 94 points, The Wine Advocate
$37.99 / 750 ml

Chateau D’ Aiguilhe Cotes de Castillon 2009
“Tiny yields of 20 hectoliters per hectare have produced a wine with terrific fruit intensity, a moderately tannic structure, and hints of chocolate, cedar, spice box, and earth. Although not as big as I expected given the vintage, it is well-made and impressively endowed. Enjoy it over the next 12 years.”
– 92 points, The Wine Advocate
$55.99 / 750 ml

Zenato Amarone della Valpolicella Classico 2006
“A massive, towering wine bursting with black cherries, dried flowers, herbs and leather. The wine’s sheer concentration and richness have been achieved while maintaining considerable grace, even if this isn’t the most subtle Amarone readers will come across. Still, it’s impossible to deny the wine’s personality and class.” — 95 points, The Wine Advocate
$79.99 / 750 ml

Il Brovia Barolo “Rocche” 2003
“The 2003 Barolo Rocche presents a fresher color than the normale, with sweet candied cherries, spices and menthol that open in the glass. It possesses outstanding depth, precision and vibrancy in a tightly-wound style that will require at least a few years of patience. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2018.” — 91 points, The Wine Advocate
$57.99 / 750 ml

Domino do Bibei LaLama Ribiera Sacra 2007
“The 2007 Lalama offers a similar aromatic profile but on the palate is richer and more layered while cannily combining elegance and power. Its finish is long and velvety.”
– 94 points, The Wine Advocate
$34.99/ 750 ml

Zind Humbrecht Heimbourg  2009
“An aromatic and attractive Riesling, with lightly honeyed notes of apricot, stony mineral, yellow apple, tarragon and orchard blossoms. It’s just off-dry, but enlivened and kept very fresh by firm, zesty acidity. Hints of smoke and ground spices build through the wine and give a push on the long, juicy finish. Drink now through 2029. 500 cases made –AN.”
– 93 points, The Wine Spectator
$54.99 / 750 ml

Pingus Flor de Pingus 2005
The 2005 Flor de Pingus remains deep purple in color with a beautiful perfume of sandalwood, Asian spices, incense, black cherry, and blackberry. This leads to a powerful, intense, harmonious wine with layers of savory fruit and the structure to evolve for another 6-8 years. It offers a drinking window extending from 2016 to 2030. ”
– 95 points, The Wine Advocate
$109.99 / 750 ml

Raveneau “Les Clos” Grand Cru Chablis 2003
“Pale yellow. Superripe aromas of white peach, spearmint and powdered stone. Fat, sweet, lush and full; a step up in volume from the premier crus. Thick and silky but lively, with a dominant flavor of wet stone.”
– 92 points, Stephen Tanzer
$169.99 / 750 ml

Darioush Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley 2009
“Robust and potent, offering ripe, dense blackberry, licorice, lead pencil, cedar and roasted herb flavors that are full-bodied and concentrated, all the while holding onto a tight focus and ending with a long, chewy, persistent finish. Best from 2013 through 2023.”
$115.99 / 750 ml

Paolo Scavino “Bricco Ambrogio”  2006
“A powerful Barolo, firm and muscular, this is full of sweet cherry, plum, menthol and licorice flavors. Shows terrific balance between the fruit and tannins, as well as a lot of character. Best from 2014 through 2032. 200 cases imported. –BS” — 93 points, The Wine Spectator
$83.99 / 750 ml