smoke, strawberry and cherry, with some sap and concentration... Rocks, graphite, a slight wet clay/wet soil aroma as well. Restrained and subtle and with softer tannins and rounded acidity. A touch of burnt matches, bonfire, compost, and a good length to the fruit and earth finish. Slightly herby and grassy. Complex, deep, restrained and balanced. This is gone from youthful and unforgiving to a lovely young wine in the space of a year and it will surely develop and unfurl the concentration and weight it has built in that time. 72-74/100
2010 Barbera d'Alba; Az. Agr. GD Vajra
chocolate, plum and a real zippy acidic spritz, nice poise and a silky sort of elegance; a good herby finish and a salty, slatey mineral note. Cherry, a touch of vanilla, very fresh. Excellent but it will need a year or so for the acid to round out. 65-69+/100
2008 Barolo "Vigne dei Fantini"; Silvano Bolmida
Lifted, tar, roses, cherry, earth, graphite and chocolate dusted plums, Round and elegant, much less spritzy than six months ago. Soft, red fruited but robust and for a delicate wine very powerful. Vibrant, lifted acidity, complex, herbs, rosemary, mint, truffle, raspberry, ripe strawberry, leaves, forest fruits. This is a simply superb wine that will be superb in 5-7 years. 73-76+/100
2010 Langhe Nebbiolo; Produttori del Barbaresco
fresh, zippy, perfumed and very elegant, poised and unbelievably fresh, minty and mineral, roses, light white truffle, soil and sandstone, clean, fresh and spritzy. A hint of wax and clay. A sort of crystalline character. 2010 will clearly be quite beautiful!! 68-71++/100
2010 Barbera d'Alba; Pio Cesare
perfume, plum, cherry, wild blackberries, a hint of grass and herbs, a touch of wood tannin. Quite subtle and long but the finish is a touch one dimensional and subdued by tannins. A bit of chocolate, but this is all about the sweet cherried fruit, nice balance and soft silky nature. A good drinking wine but nothing exciting in the sense of some. With time, hopefully it will develop and evolve. 58-61+/100
2007 Barbaresco "Serracapelli"; Poderi Elia
round, ripe and earthy, fairly modern and slightly woody, tar, roses and ripe plum, round and silky. Soft and inoffensive, with hints of cherry and hints of white truffle; a touch of meat and leather. Complex but soft and easy. Coffee and sand, saline, sappy. Whilst there is structure it lacks depth and vitality. It lacks an excitement... With age it will be a nice bottle of wine and probably fairly classic, but it just doesn't seem to have anything that makes me want to come back in a few years; drink it now and either enjoy the fruit or complain about it being too young. 61+/100
2001 Savigny-les-Beaunes 1er Cru "Les Lavières"; Domaine Jean-Jacques Girard
smoke, perfume, plum, cherry, wild raspberry and a hint of spice, deep, powerful and with an earthy, saline purity, a hint of VA/nail varnish hints at a touch of inbalance, but for now it adds a lift and vitality. Smoke and a hint of burnt match and bacon fat. Very fresh, still young and if that racy acidity calms and allows the wine to deliver its further class it will be very good. An excellent wine but there are better from this AOC. 66-68+?/100
2010 Roero Arneis "Renesio"; Az. Agr. Malvira
cream, wax, lemon, lanolin, slate, minerals, rocks, saline, clay and putty, salt water. There are really typical Arneis flavours here but it has a really strong character that you can't put your finger on, which can only be the character of the vineyard. I'd probably call it that really strong wet clay note! One of the great Arneis! If not the greatest! 73-75/100
2011 Vinho Verde Branca; Quinta das Arcas Nova
apples, lime, grass, hemp and herbs, a touch of white pepper. Light, fresh but somehow lacking in bite and zip; lacks vitality. Still a good example that hits certain spots. 59-61/100
2001 L'Etoile de Bergey; Pessac-Léognan
mushroom, plum, graphite, cassis, earth, Tarmac, tobacco, ash, pencil lead, nice redcurrant undertones and a persistent length. Classic, elegant and beautifully drinkable... Nothing extravagant but good quality Pessac, just the way you want it and with enough balance and depth to keep ageing for another 3-5 years. 67+?/100
2008 Koshu Barrel; Grace Winery; Katsunuma, Japan
grass, herbs, waxy, lanolin, poised, nice length, apple, cooked lemon, plasticine, and clay, balanced and soft, a touch of smoke, flint and salty fishy sea air. Orange, grapefruit... With the hints of wood and slight concentration and acidity, this should age for at least another 2 or 3 years. Quite loveable and much better than recent examples from this winery. 67-71+/100
2006 Chateau de Sales; Pomerol, half-bottle
smoke, dark plum, earth, herbs, mint, barley, a hint of bell pepper, almost with a wet paint, wet stone aspect, graphite, tobacco, cigarette ash, balanced and drinking nicely but with a sense that it is returning from a slumber without its vibrant warm fruit but only secondary and not yet tertiary flavours. Thyme, basil, savoury, with some inkiness. Very nice but perhaps a touch early for those who like plenty of development and a touch late for those who like more fruit. 62-65+/100
2008 Late Harvest Kerner; Grace Winery, Hokkaido
apple, lemon, grass, herbs and a sort of Pinot Gris type feel to the wine. Nice balance and poise, decent length and good freshness. It has rounded with a bit of age and has become a nice little simple desert wine. 59++/100
1997 Country Wine "Olympian"; Koshu Richness: Marquis Winery, Maruki
grape, apple, herbs, cooked lemons, salted lime, simple and pleasant but with nice length and a touch of complexity and development. Hints of smoke, some wood tannin type dryness. Nicely balanced... Koshu can age and does it well. 67-69/100
1997 Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru; Bonneau du Martray
lemons, limes and citrus butter, a bit of spice and a vibrant perfume, but with a distinct lack of fruit. Creamy but light and might-filling, herbs, grass and minerals. A touch of wood, and lifted acidity... A sense of 97 warmth and grand Cru complexity, make this rounded and plump, but with nice length, lime, apple, animal fur, fugu and white fish, salt. I think this is a super wine, but it is also not the best vintage or example of this particular wine available... Catch 22?? 68-70+/100
2001 Gevrey-Chambertin; Domaine Jean Raphet et Fils
mushroom, truffle, bramble, sandstone, mint, peppermint, cassis, plum, soft structure, nice freshness, raw strawberry, graphite and a deep mineral character. Typically Gevrey, but without the biting Comblanchien rock tastes. Soft and decayed, But still holding a huge amount of pleasure back behind a wall of structure. Raspberry, cranberry, strawberry, a touch of fruit pastel. A chameleon with very colour scales. It keeps changing and it will suddenly blossom further. Beautiful, and to think it is just a "village". 69-72+/100
2006 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru "Les Corbeaux"; Domaine Gérard Quivy
old vine restraint, perfume and depth, poised, precise and intriguing, plum, cassis, dark cherry, structured, powerful. Roses, bramble and rosebush, superb length, mineral, graphite, complex, herbs, grass, sand, salinity; a hint of the structure masks some of the beauty and a few more years will show this in a much better light but the nose is brilliant and the restraint of the old vines is excellent. Not a producer I have heard of, but I'm sure I will look for more! 67-72+/100
NV Wine Born of the Sea; Koshu; Sapporo Wine Polaire, Katsunuma, Japan
An experiment using yeasts found in the sea to start the alcoholic fermentation. The base wine being from 2007/8.
sweet, soft, lemons, grass, flint and stones, fresh, simple, slightly sweet and easy to quaff. Well made and has benefited from 2 to 3 years of hanging around in the cellar. Hemp, sweat and due to the residual sugar a fairly lengthy finish that reminds one of a Spatlese due to being fairly delicate. 52/100
2005 Barolo; Vecchia Storia (IEI)
modern, round, tar, ash, minerals, meat, mushroom, white truffle and some development. Clean, easy and well made. Not as extravagant as the 04 Barbaresco, but still nice! 56-59/100
2010 Cuvée Assemblage, Demi-Sec, Côtes de Gascogne: Famille Fezas
bold, grass, herbs, very Cahors/Madiran white esque, with some minerals and lemon/lime notes that stick out. A touch of sweetness... Butter, wax and lemon curd. Nice length but a touch simple... Loveable and intriguing but not anything more. 62+/100
2008 Barbaresco; Cascina Rosalba
cherry, plum, perfume, roses, rosebush and kirsch, a hint of tar, but with that light, white fruit note that riddles many 08s. Black pepper, spice, sandstone and wet pebbles. Mineral but a touch young and disjointed. It doesn't have the presence to do anything better than "develop" but it is a nice little wine with poise and other than a bit of heat balance. This will need time to soften and become enjoyable, but it has enough stuffing to do so. I just wander whether it will actually become better than it is... Time will tell. It is well made, and it has plenty going for it, just not yet! 58-60+?/100
2009 Cabernet Sauvignon "White Soil"; Thracian Valley: Katarzyna Estate
spice, black plum, chocolate, a hint of scorched earth, graphite and tobacco ash, some herbs. Modern and ripe but very pleasant and with good length, soft structure and poise. Decent and better than expected. 57-59+/100
2009 Ilaia Chardonnay; Dyonisos Wines: DO Valle Central
rich, waxy, lanolin, butter, lemons, lime, toast and a rich but Burgundian (in a modern way) feel. Sappy, balanced, and a lack of rich ripe fruit, a pinch of grass and dried herbs, a hint of minerality... Subtle and intriguing... Never amazing but it somehow draws you in with each sip. You can't really explain why, but you have to love it. 64-66/100
2004 Barbaresco Riserva; Vecchia Storia (IEI)
perfumed, spiced, plum, black cherry, strawberry, tar, roses and fruit pastel, pleasant and very classic, soft tannins and a rounded structure, a hint of alcohol sticks out but it isn't unpleasant or hot. It lacks a mineral or terroir buzz but it does a lot better of telling where it is from than most of the modernists. Perfectly decent, drinkable and with some white truffle, meat and mushroom development starting to emerge. 59-62+/100
2005 Langhe Rosso "Bricco Manzoni"; Podere Rocche dei Manzoni
smoke, earth, spice, tar, lemons, a touch closed but with a sandy, dusty chocolate note that lingers. Very fresh, ash, dry plum, a hint of cassis. Mushroom, earth, a touch tannic, and a sense that this is a bit subdued, herbs, and raw wild raspberry. A touch of cranberry juice and mint sauce, cooked meat and a musty, rustic perfume. Really loveable for its rusticity, but too young and structured (in need of more time) for those who like development, but perhaps not showing enough vibrant fruit for those who are not "geeks"! Still I like it for what it is and look to enjoy what it will become when it does! With air, there is more sweet spice, plum, black cherry, earth, and lift... Really lovely and getting softer and more complex with air. 67-69++/100
2002 Viña Magna Crianza; Dominio Basconcillos: Ribera del Duero
tobacco, ash, dark plum, dark cherry, a hint of minerality, but a touch simple. Green herbs, mint, and with nice length, but it feels a touch young and cumbersome. Some cassis and wood spice. Whilst it smells ready it isn't, and needs more time, however it feels a touch light to gain more complexity but the acidity makes me think it will age quite nicely. 61++/100
2006 Brut Blanc de Noirs Vielle Vigne; Champagne Michel Brocard, Celles-sur-Ource
chalk, lemons, a touch of strawberry and lanolin, apples, wax, raspberry... A hint of sand and very nice length. Not amazing, and certainly Pinot Meunier heavy but this is quite a nice wine. Sea air and red fruits... A drizzly summer afternoon on the Atlantic coast! 63/100
2007 Cuvée Misawa; Koshu, Toriibira Vineyard: Grace Wine, Katsunuma, Japan
honey, sherry, stewed apple, lemon, flint and smoke, a touch of wax and lanolin. Nice length and poise, balanced and elegant. Subtle and much in keeping with the richness of this vineyard. A touch of butter, an almost Krug-like nose. Subtle, balanced, long and still with freshness, balance and stuffing to age a touch longer perhaps. A good wine from an era before Koshu became international and generally overblown. 67-71/100
2006 Barolo "Le Brunate"; Francesco Rinaldi & Figli
smoke, earth, tar, roses and rosebush, burnt ends and beef brisket, classic, powerful, rich but absolutely traditional, but clean, crisp, balanced and surprisingly not tannin heavy. Plum, cherry, wild raspberry, herbs, rosemary, complex, concentrated, and with a saline, dusty, sandstone character. Minerals, and sea air. A touch of sulphur (more hot spring, than anything to obscure the wine). A touch of wood spice, and sweet spice. A beautiful wine that whilst maintaining that typical Brunate power, isn't in any way modern or obscured by the winemaker in the aim of "Brunate-ness". 73-76+/100
At Satou, Soba Kappou!
2010 Extra Brut Blanc de Blancs: Ajimu Winery, Oita, Japan
lemon, apple, grass, baby vomit, crisp, fresh, elegant, lovely length, balance, cooked apple, lime and line zest, delicate, creamy mousse and a bite that makes one believe it will age really nicely. Hints of nuts and salinity underly the vibrant fruit... A very different almost volcanic (talisker-esque) minerality... Well it is from Oita!! Concentrated, youthful and really lovely. 68-71/100
1996 Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru; Courtier's Selection; Maison Lou Dumont; (天地人)
a touch lifeless on the palate, but with a perfumes nose, this comes to life on the finish, long, precise and pure. Rocks, minerals, sandstone, zippy and fresh but with soft earthy development and a slightly stewed plum character married to fresh wild raspberry and wild strawberry. A Barolo-esque white (as oppose to Burgundian black) truffle, herbs, grass, soft acidity and hints of earthy tannin. What draws one in with this wine is not the nose or palate but the chameleon like ways of the finish... Hard and tannic like the wine, it unfurls beautifully on the back of the tongue, hinting at the beauty and pleasure that this will endow on those who own a few bottles... Mushroom, wild plum, earth, minerals, sweet cherry, and an intriguing dark, haunting character. All the classic perfume seems to be embedded in the finish. With time, it should infuse the nose and palate. In time it will be beautiful... Right now, it is good, but I can't work out where it is from... Perhaps a middle ranking 1er Cru or declassified vines from Mazis or Mazoyeres (near Latricieres not RN74)?? Still I like it and in a textural sense... Perfect! Very Japanese! 71-74/100
Jono Beagle's hundred point scoring system.
0-29/100 not worth bothering with
30-49/100 good wine but I wouldn't buy a case
50-59/100 very good showing grape and terroir character
60-69/100 excellent example of a wine from this country/region/grape
70-85/100 one of the very best wines that the region has to offer.
86-100/100 one of the very best wines you are ever likely to drink