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Can't-miss rosés, Sauv Blancs, Chardonnays, & Champagne The mid-point of summer is always our favorite time to recap some of this season's most popular offerings as well as highlight a few hidden gems that can add a much needed spark of variety to get you through the "dog days" and into autumn. We've combed our inventory to bring you stellar QPR performers and high-end celebratory stunners from each of our top warm-weather categories. A pair of 2021 rosés lead the way in a superb Spanish gem (in a 1-liter format, no less!) and a "fresh and incisive" Provence beauty. Sauvignon Blanc is the ultimate summer varietal among both our staff and our customers, and the quartet below holds surefire best bets for the category, including two California standouts and a pair of Marlborough masterpieces for a steal.
What would any roster of best-selling summer wines be without Chardonnay? And in summer, the unequivocal go-to Chardonnays are the steely, mineral-driven beauties from Chablis. Finally, sometimes the best summer vibes are made by a bottle of bubbles, and Champagne can provide the goods, whether you're in budget mode or budget-breaking mode. "Our most exciting new value" in the category (per buyer Gary Westby), plus a newly released 2008 tête de cuvée from a revered house provide exceptional options for any occasion. These are but a few of the spectacular offerings still available to keep the summer soirée energy going all the way through the season.
K&L Notes: A pale pink color with aromas of red fruits and floral notes. On the palate, you will find strawberry and rose hip flavors with a hint of blood orange. Clean, and crisp with excellent acidity—harmonious and persistent. The Azul y Garanza vineyards begin in the lunar landscape of Bardenas Reales Natural Park. Founders Dani Sánchez, María Barrena and Fernando Barrena work with “landscapes”—not merely vineyards—with each of their plots enjoying as much biological diversity as this harsh climate will allow. The surrounding plants, shrubs, trees, and animal/insect life play as much a part to the success of the grapes as the vines themselves. Winemaking is quite natural, the widespread, almost exclusive use of concrete vats, natural yeasts and gentle hands.
I've already been through a few bottles of this one. No, not in one night! First of all, there's that wonderful European metric system which gives us a larger bottle. But most of all, there's the smell and taste. It has scents of rose petals, raspberries, and cherries. In the mouth, watermelon and cherry Jolly Rancher fruit with enough acidity to lead to a crisp finish. Organic, too! If you enjoy rosé wine from Provence, give this one a try.
K&L Notes: For decades now, our Kalinda private label has been providing K&L customers with awesome wines at a fraction of what they'd normally pay under the producers' mainstay labels. Naturally, no producer wants their wines on the market for less than what they'd usually sell for, so the trade-off is anonymity.
91 points Vinous: "Bright, onion-skin color. Fresh and incisive on the nose, displaying red berry, citrus fruit and floral qualities and subtle mineral and spice flourishes. Juicy and sharply focused, putting forward lithe strawberry, blood orange and honeysuckle flavors that deepen through the back half. Finishes long and silky, with the red fruit and floral notes lingering. (JR)" (06/2022) Wine Enthusiast: "Bright with ripe fruit, this is a juicy wine that exudes red berry flavors. It is lightly floral and attractively perfumed, which enhances the wine's brightness. Drink now. Organic. (RV)" (08/2021) K&L Notes: Organcically grown and certified Qualisud, Bargemone is among the foremost estates of the Coteaux d’Aix, a small fine-wine district in the larger appellation of Provence. A benchmark producer of the delicious, dry rosé for which Provence is famous, the Commanderie was founded by the Knights Templar in the 13th century and is home to a proud viticultural tradition with more than 160 acres of sustainably grown vineyards.
95 points Sam Kim: "Superbly ripe and intensely aromatic, the wine shows passionfruit, kiwifruit, feijoa and kaffir lime characters, followed by a concentrated palate delivering terrific fruit purity and persistency. Wonderfully textured and mouthfilling with a lengthy structured finish." (10/2021) 94 points Bob Campbell: "Concentrated, punchy sauvignon blanc with passionfruit, lime, grapefruit, guava and lemongrass flavours. A classic Marlborough style with a thread of delicious, mouth-watering acidity" (01/2022) 91 points Vinous: "Hailing from the richer clay slopes of Marlborough's southern valleys, the 2021 Sauvignon Blanc Auntsfield Single Vineyard offers a broader, rounder palate than comparable wines from the alluvial valley floor. And yet it has a rod of steel-like acidity, providing a sense of firmness powering through its rounded core. It is not a flamboyant expression, offering reined-in passionfruit, elderflower and snow pea flavors on the precise finish. (RG)" (01/2022)
94 points Sam Kim: "A stunning expression of the variety showing kaffir lime, crunchy apple, nectarine, oatmeal and sweet basil aromas, it's powerful and deliciously flavored in the mouth displaying excellent focus and persistency. Offering fabulous fruit purity and punchy intensity, this is upfront and splendidly drinkable. 77% Awatere, 23% Wairau; 14% barrel ferment." (12/2021) 93 points Bob Campbell: "A blend of 77% Awatere and 23% Wairau fruit. States 14% is barrel-fermented. Fresh, punchy sauvignon blanc with mouth-watering capsicum, grapefruit, ginger and passionfruit flavours and a pleasing texture." (11/2021) 91 points Vinous: "A tantalizing combination of lemon sherbet, elderflower, pear and violet aromas combine in the 2021 Sauvignon Blanc TWR. This young, zesty expression almost fizzes in its vivacity, but there's more to it than that: an element of texture has been built through the light body (14% barrel fermentation may have something to do with that), providing welcome depth and curving the edges. (RG)" (03/2022)
I've said it before and I'll say it again: Te Whare Ra is making the best wine in Marlborough. Hard stop, full stop. The TWR (Te Whare Ra) Sauvignon Blanc Marlborough is K&Ls best-selling Sauvignon Blanc not just from New Zealand, but from anywhere. Award-winning winemaker Anna Flowerday, whose husband Jason is the most in-demand viticulture expert in Marlborough, crafts the wines from the best Sauvignon Blanc vineyards in Marlborough. They are pillars of the winegrowing community in Marlborough and champions of organic viticulture. The 2021 vintage in Marlborough was small, but stunning. Frost decimated the vineyards in the early part of the growing season, but the vines recovered, putting all their energy into the small crop that survived. The results have been exceptional. Bold, ripe fruit with phenomenal cut and balance. TWR's 2021 Sauvignon Blanc is the best I've tasted from this tiny, but excellent vintage. This wine is pure elegance: passionfruit, ginger, and citrus abound with the tension of crisp acidity and profound depth. A stunning rendition of Marlborough's best Sauvignon Blanc.
If I could only drink three white wines ever again, I'd select Chardonnay, Riesling, and Sauvignon Blanc. And the Sauvignon Blancs I prefer are the kinds made by Dan Petroski at Massican. While there are plenty of easy and satisfying Sauvignons, this is a primary example of how noble this varietal is. Dan Petroski puts his heart and soul into crafting top-shelf wines inspired by his Italian heritage. This reminds me of the best bottlings of Quarz by Terlan and hints at the whites of Domaine Dagueneau. It takes some aeration to fully blossom at this young stage, but once it's there, you're greeted by a symphony of finely tuned flavors. There's sexy waxy lemon rind, green leaf, and a distant hint of tropical fruit. The wine is both taut and expressive. It's textural and shines with a complex streak of both passion fruit and honeysuckle. I'll be squirreling a few of these away in my locker and maybe a few in the home cupboard. This is world class wine.
92 points Decanter: "Bright golden hue. Expressive and appealing gourmand nose of crème fraîche and brown butter together with ripe apricots and Mirabelle plums. The palate sensation is one of real freshness, the cool slope vineyard location, refreshed daily by the breezes through the Petaluma Gap, resonating in the succulence of the acidity. The oak regime is carefully integrated on the palate and lends density rather than flavour to the structure of the wine. The fruit component is not overblown, more savoury than the aromatics suggest. The finish is long, linear, and refreshing. The wine leaves behind a perfume on the palate and an overall impression of comfortable elegance. Drinking now and the acidity will allow the wine to age well over the next five to seven years. (CT)" (09/2021) 90 points James Suckling: "Ripe aromas of cooked apple, grilled pineapple and lemon pie on the nose. Butterscotch, too. It's full-bodied with crisp acidity. Rich and flavorful." (12/2020) 90 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "The 2018 Chardonnay Estate has an open-knit nose of quince, apples and pears with honey-nut nuances. The palate is light to medium-bodied with a good concentration of savory flavors, well-woven freshness and a long finish. (EB)" (08/2020)
91 points Decanter: "Bright and exuberant ripe nectarine and melon fruit have a pleasantly refreshing edge of lemon peel. Elegantly lingering. *Silver Medal* (DWWA 2021)" (06/2022) K&L Notes: There are still treasures to be found in the Mâcon, where small producers fly under the radar, and this includes Château Vitallis. In classic Burgundian fashion, the Dutron family has been growing vines since 1835 and now owns some of the oldest and best parcels in the village of Fuissé in the Pouilly-Fuissé district. Our buyers happened upon the château during a trip to Burgundy last October, and it was quite evident upon their return that they’d found something special. Perhaps it was the haste with which the samples were chilled and opened, or the irrepressible smiles, but this was evidently a good breakthrough for our Burgundy buying team. In the glass, the wines live up to the hype: subtle, like any good white Burgundy, but complex, mineral-driven and poised. Natural yeast fermentation, aged on the lees, with 70% in stainless steel tanks and 30% in French oak.
Fragrant nose of golden apple, clean oak, and a hint of saline. In the mouth, initial bright acidity leads to plush pear, tart apple and juicy orange fruit. The finish has a nice little burst of minerals and sea salt. Delicious!
Wine Enthusiast: "With its high proportion of Meunier, this Champagne is a ripe generous wine that has rich pear and kiwi flavors that are full and tangy. (RV)" (12/2020) K&L Notes: This Champagne is composed of 70% Pinot Meunier and 30% Pinot Noir and is aged three and a half years on the lees. The exotic, pure Meunier fruit in this Champagne marries with the creamy, delicately toasty aromas and flavors. The wine has no trace of sherry-like oxidation or bruised apple malic character that Meunier-based Champagnes sometimes have. On the contrary, this is very clean and bright given the level of concentration and character in the wine. At the price, there's no reason for any Champagne fan not to try it ... unless you only drink zero dosage Blanc de Blancs!
Our most exciting new value in Champagne is here, the Emblematis from Jérôme Trudon. With more than three years of ageing on the lees, this all estate blend of 70% Meunier and 30% Pinot Noir should be more expensive ... Luckily we buy direct, and the dollar is strong! This wine has 50% reserves from older vintages and features subtle baguette toast and exotic yet elegant fruit on the nose and in the mouth. Since Jérôme does not use malolactic, this wine has great focus and a finish that I would only expect from a wine costing 50% more!
93 points Decanter: "Alain Besson's children Adrien and Camille now manage this 21ha estate. They own 5ha in Montmains with a proportion of the wine spending eight months in wood. A warm, appealing and inviting example, with mineral/flinty characters to balance the sunny fruit ripeness. A nicely chiselled example with more drive and verve than some other Montmains tasted. (AH)" (10/2020) 90 points Vinous: "The 2019 Chablis Montmains 1er Cru has a complex bouquet with scents of citrus peel, potpourri and beeswax unfolding from the glass. The saline palate is well balanced with a fine line of acidity and plenty of energy, although it is just missing a little nervosity on the finish. Still, this should age nicely in bottle. (NM)" (10/2020)
92-94 points Vinous: "The 2018 Chablis Montée de Tonnerre 1er Cru is very tight, but it was also racked just prior to this tasting, and Montée de Tonnerre is naturally a site that yields intensely mineral wines. Bright citrus, mint, chalk and white pepper open up gradually in a brisk, focused wine that needs time to show at its best. The Fèvre Montée de Tonnerre is a blend of three climats: Pied d'Aloup (east-facing), Chapelot (south-facing) and Côte de Bréchain (west-facing, vines planted in 1936). (AG)" (01/2020) 94 points Wine Enthusiast: "Subtle aromatics combine pear peel, creamy candlewax and green citrus into an alluring, fresh nose on this wine. The palate comes in with rounded ripeness. It redoubles that sense of creaminess that rests on a yeasty, billowing texture that is backed by bright lemon. The interplay between freshness, ripeness and texture creates harmony. Lovely chalkiness appears on the finish. (AK)" (12/2020) 93+ points John Gilman: "The 2018 Montée de Tonnerre from Domaine Fèvre is simply outstanding. The bouquet is flat-out gorgeous already, wafting from the glass in a blend of lime, apple, pear, citrus zest, a complex base of chalky minerality, a touch of beeswax and a topnote of apple blossoms. On the palate the wine is deep, full-bodied, complex and rock solid at the core, with great backend mineral drive, fine focus and grip and a long, lifted and perfectly balanced finish. (JG)" (01/2020) 93 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: "Meeting the optimist expirations I established a year ago, the 2018 Chablis 1er Cru Montée de Tonnerre offers up aromas of lemon oil, freshly baked bread, crisp green apple, white flowers, wet stones and oyster jus. Medium to full-bodied, satiny and incisive, it's tensile and dynamic, with tangy acids, fine depth at the core and a long, sapid finish. (WK)" (06/2020) 90-93 points Jasper Morris - Inside Burgundy: "Fat and concentrated on the palate with an attractive weight behind, opens out to a pleasing ripeness. Less acidity but that’s a little bit the style of the wine. Just a little bit of a reductive twang at the back." (05/2019) 92 points Allen Meadows - Burghound: "An elegant, pure and relatively airy nose combines plenty of Chablis typicity with notes of white orchard fruit, citrus, algae and iodine wisps. There is very good minerality and delineation to the lacy and refined yet punchy flavors that deliver sneaky good length where the intensity really builds from the mid-palate to the driving finish. This needs to develop better complexity but should be able to do so with a few years of bottle age. *Outstanding*" (10/2020) 91 points James Suckling: "A tight, minerally and fruity white with medium body and a creamy, almond-milk aftertaste." (08/2020) 91 points Wine Spectator: "Apple, grapefruit and seashore notes combine in this racy Chablis. There's an herbal accent too as this remains intense, long and focused on the finish. (BS)" (12/2020)
96 points James Suckling: "Complex and rich nose of dried apricot, lemon pith, dried pineapple, praline, hazelnut, white cocoa, chalk and nutmeg. Creamy and delicious fruit here, yet its mineral and refined with very fine, precise bubbles. Structured, with a sharp, persistent backbone of acidity. Long and very focused." (05/2022) 95 points Vinous: "The 2008 Brut Blanc de Blancs Louis Salmon (formerly the vintage Blanc de Blancs) and named after the maisons first cellar master, is fabulous. Rich and ample, the 2008 is beautifully resonant in the glass. It offers up an enticing mélange of lemon confit, marzipan, dried flowers and spice. It's a terrific 2008, especially for readers looking for a relatively affordable option to some of the super high-flyers in this celebrated vintage. (AG)" (05/2022)
This incredible 2008 is composed of only grand cru sites; 33% Cramant, 30% Chouilly, 20% Mesnil, and 17% Avize. It sees more wood fermentation than past vintages, a full third, and also one third of the total has blocked malolactic fermentation for more freshness and aging potential. The 2008 had a white gold color that still had a flash of green after 14 years and a tight bead of dancing bubbles. I found both fresh, Puligny-Montrachet like lime and generous brioche on the nose and on the palate. This has the magic of 2008 with plenty of ripeness and expression but also huge acidity and freshness. The back end is kaleidoscopic, swelling and as long as any Champagne I have ever put in my mouth. Will this be the greatest of 2008s? It is hard to say now, but I am sure it is a contender, and I am signing up right now to try it at 20, 30, 40, and even 50 years of age! Sadly, it tastes so good right now that I don't think much will be kept.
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