Wine Type | Vintage Name Variety Locale | Date Posted Score Helpful Comments More... |
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White |
2022 Domaine Cartier-Potelle Vin BlancMontérégie Chardonnay more |
5/5/2024 - DevenStephens Does not like this wine: 79 pointsQuebec still has a long way to go in winemaking. Nose is OK. Crisp lemon and grass, but on the palate is where everything falls apart. Imagine the coolest climate Chardonnay, give it a bad vintage and make it cheaply. Extremely tart, like chewing on an unripe lemon. Unbalanced, unpleasant and just not much I can say positive about it. |
White |
2019 La Granja Nuestra Señora de Remelluri Rioja BlancoWhite Blend more |
5/4/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 93 pointsGreat Rioja Blanco! Nose was closed at first so I let it decant for an hour. Light golden color. Nose of lemon, clementine, cream and oak is very noticeable here. On the palate it's rich and creamy, tons of oak but well integrated. Lemon meringue pie, vanilla, butter and some light white florals. Very well made, I'd honestly let it age quite a while longer. 93+ |
Red |
2021 Delas Frères Côte-Rôtie Seigneur de MaugironSyrah more |
4/28/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 94 points2021 is a challenging vintage and some wines have lower ABV like this one (12.5%) and they dont have the richness that 2018, 2019 and even 2020 had. |
White - Off-dry |
2022 A.J. Adam Hofberg Riesling AusleseMosel Saar Ruwer more |
4/28/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 90 pointsRich style of Auslese, light straw color. Nose of apricots and lime zest with a touch of rubber. On the palate: key lime pie, apricots, honey, salinity. Rich and sweet with decent acidity. This will age well |
White |
2020 Domaine Jacques Prieur Beaune 1er Cru Les Champs Pimont BlancChardonnay more |
4/24/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 93 points93+ Well made white Burgundy. Lovely light golden straw color. Nose of white flowers, lemon zest and a touch of herbaciousness. On the palate the oak aging shows with light cream, jasmine, lemon and a long mineral driven finish |
White - Sparkling |
NV Laurent-Perrier Champagne BrutChampagne Blend more |
4/24/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 89 pointsClassic style Champagne. Nothing that really makes it stand out against other Champagne but it is still a high quality sparkling wine. Delicate mousse. Nose of brioche and lemon zest. Granny Smith apples and citrus on the palate. |
Red |
2015 Pillitteri Estates Winery Fruttaio Riserva FamigliaNiagara-on-the-Lake VQA Corvina Blend, Corvina more |
4/24/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 94 pointsReally interesting Niagara wine, made in a appasimento style (like amarone) with Italian grape varieties planted in the Niagara region. The result is a very high quality wine with a lot of complexity. 2015 being nearly 10 years old already is showing some signs of color change. Clear red with dark orange hues. Nose is of dried red fruits, chocolate and orange peel. On the palate, red cherries, cranberries, candied orange peel, chocolate, cinnamon and nutmeg. Medium finish and very soft tannins. Less deep and bold like an Amarone would be but I'm glad that they didn't try and just replicate Amarone and made a style of their own. Very well done |
Red |
2014 Château DestieuxSt. Émilion Grand Cru Red Bordeaux Blend more |
4/24/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 93 points2014 isn't considered a very good vintage but what that sometimes does is make some bottle drinkable at a younger age and that shows on this bottle. Dark red color starting to show browning on the edges. Nose is of violets, plums and some tobacco. On the palate this is so smooth with a medium finish. Plums, blackberries, cigar box, milk chocolate and violets. Delicious wine at a good QPR right now for the vintage. Only thing keeping this from a higher score is that I doubt it'll get better and it has a shorter finish than other wines in the same price point. Other than that it's great |
Red |
2009 La Rioja Alta Rioja Gran Reserva 904Tempranillo Blend, Tempranillo more |
4/24/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 96 pointsOne of my favorite producers! Ruby red with some bricking. Nose of red cherry, vanilla, cloves and tobacco. On the palate red cherry, vanilla, cloves, chocolate, leather and cigar box. Velvety tannins with surprising acidity and a medium to long finish. Very elegant and obviously could take a long while more of cellar age. Excellent! |
Red |
2020 Alain Graillot St. JosephSyrah more |
4/21/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 93 pointsI've said it before and I'll say it again. I love Alain Graillot's wines. Blueish dark purple color. Intense aromatics with crushed stone, dark fruits and thyme. On the palate this is rich yet elegant with plums, blackberries, pepper, iron (blood). Very mineral with decent tannin. Medium finish. For around 50$ this is incredible QPR but hard to find (near me anyways) |
White |
2018 Hidden Bench Riesling Felseck VineyardBeamsville Bench VQA more |
4/15/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 88 pointsI tried most of what hidden Bench has to offer and it's easy to say that their whites are a step above the quality of their reds. I tried both Rieslings they had when I went there and I personally prefer the Roman's Block. The Felseck is good but lacks character compared to the other. Classic 10% abv Riesling with a touch of residual sugar. Fresh and clean but unimpressive. Peaches, unripe pineapple, not much minerality compared the other and no petrol. I think I payed 35$ for it and I think that 25 would make more sense. The Roman's was great tho! And the late harvest Riesling was amazing! Hidden Bench do great work and I loved my visit to the vinyard |
Red |
2019 Domaine de la Vieille Julienne Châteauneuf-du-Pape Les Trois SourcesRed Rhone Blend more |
4/12/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 94 pointsReally impressed by the level of quality here. I agree with the other note that days that this needs time but I love what I taste already. Medium red/purple color. Nose is subdued but you still get some raspberry, rosemary and kirsch. On the palate this is elegant, not a heavy jammy CdP at all. Raspberries and strawberries. Garrigue, spice and kirsch. Grippy tannins and quite a lot of them, 3 hours of decanting helped. With more time this will show incredibly and I can't wait to see it then. |
White - Fortified |
NV Emilio Lustau Jerez-Xérès-Sherry East India SoleraPalomino Fino-Pedro Ximénez Blend more |
4/10/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 93 pointsFirst experience with Sherry (solera) and I was not disappointed at all. So much depth of flavor. Brown color kinda like a clear molasses. The nose is dried raisins, dark honey and really jumps out of the glass. On the palate, dried figs, raisins, maple syrup, buckwheat honey and a long finish with roasted nuts that just keeps coming back, like a heartbeat of flavor on the tongue. For the price that this is sold this is incredible. Really helps with that sweet craving. |
Red |
2011 R. López de Heredia Rioja Reserva Viña BosconiaTempranillo Blend, Tempranillo more |
4/9/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 93 pointsHonestly a great Rioja from the famous López de Heredia winery. Ruby color with some very slight bricking. Nose is cherry, vanilla and oak. Palate is elegant but fruit forward with strawberry and red cherry taking the lead followed by vanilla, cloves, cigar box and chocolate. For the price it's great and a good mid point in between the Cubillo and the Tondonia Reserva. It can also take another 5 years easily. |
Red |
2016 Château CantemerleHaut-Médoc Red Bordeaux Blend more |
4/7/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 92 pointsIn a good place right now, it will be in an even better place in 5+ more years. Lovely ruby color. The nose is fruit forward and really pops out of the glass with cherry, blackcurrant and plums. On the palate, blackcurrant, tobacco, spice, touch of menthol. Good acidity with smooth tannins. This can easily take more cellar time. If you can get some at a reasonable price it's great but I've seen some place abuse on prices after the Château got more popularity lately. |
Red |
2020 K Vintners Syrah Motor City Kitty Oldfield-Boushey VineyardWashington more |
4/6/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 93 pointsI had the Cattle King last year and found it lackluster when comparing to other Syrah wines. This one I saw good reviews and thought I'd give Kvint another chance. At first I was worried because the nose was strong with Barnyard, Mint and Cough syrup and on the first taste it was super tight and not showing well at all. Gave it a good 3 hours in a decanter and it really helped. Dark purple and inky. Nose of blackberries and plum, barnyard and mint still but no longer as medicinal. On the palate it has a lot of dark fruits, blackberries, black cherry and plums, spice and herbs. Still funky and a tad high on the acidity. The long decant really helped smooth the mouthfeel. Overall a good experience in the end and the QPR is actually good. |
Red |
2019 Frank Cornelissen MunJebel FMTerre Siciliane Nerello Mascalese more |
4/6/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 91 pointsI went through a bunch of Frank's wines last year and had a ton of fun. Very unique style of Etna Rosso with tons to offer. This is the first of the 2019s that I've tried and honestly it was a bit of a let down. The quality feels lower than last year and the prices have gone up. Medium ruby color. Nose of strawberries, spice and some herbs. On the palate it's strawberries, raspberries, cranberries, spice, rosemary, touch of mint. It's silky with a touch of VA and has a short-medium finish. Honestly this would score better if the price was more reasonable but it's nearing 100$ in my market which is about 2x more than I would want to pay for this wine. |
Red |
2009 La Rioja Alta Rioja Viña Ardanza ReservaTempranillo Blend, Tempranillo more |
4/1/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 94 pointsStory time: This wine has a big sentimental value to me. Drank this for the first time with my wife when we married 4 years ago and it was our "splurge" wine back then. I've had all vintages since then and explored a lot more Rioja. I was so happy when I found 2 of these at auction, the same vintage me and my wife drank on our covid lockdown honeymoon. Brought the bottle as a surprise for my wife at a BYOB restaurant we love and drank it there for our 4yr anniversary. |
White |
2020 Paul Jaboulet Aîné Hermitage Blanc Chevalier de SterimbergWhite Rhone Blend more |
4/1/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 94 pointsEven though young, this is showing very well! Straw color. A beautiful nose of white peach, orange zest and some white florals. On the palate this is special with two phases. Phase one starts with high acidity, lemon, oranges, white peach, jasmine flowers. Very fresh! Phase two come after the acidity fades and is replaced by a fatty, waxy mouthfeel with honey and butter. Truly fascinating and such a long finish. I counted over 45sec. With the acidity this has I'd be really curious to give it another taste in 10+ years. Great stuff! |
Red |
2018 Alain Voge Cornas Les Vieilles VignesSyrah more |
3/30/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 95 pointsBeen a while since I've opened a Cornas. Lovely purple color. Bewitching nose of black fruits, pepper, florals and some funk. On the palate this is great. Blackberries, blueberries, black cherries, pepper and metallic funk. Violets, vanilla, black truffles. Slightly chalky tannins at first but it became very smooth after it decanted for 2hrs. Loooong finish. Very high quality, in a good spot right now but could easily take 10 more years. |
White - Sweet/Dessert |
2015 Château GuiraudSauternes Sémillon-Sauvignon Blanc Blend more |
3/30/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 94 pointsA great Sauternes showing very well already! Surprisingly showing more color darkening than my 2006s. Apricots, canned peaches, honey, candied pineapple, crème brûlé. Really great with a decent amount of acidity. This can age for a really long time still |
Red |
2016 Domaine de Beaurenard (Paul Coulon et Fils) Châteauneuf-du-Pape Gran PartitaRed Rhone Blend more |
3/29/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 95 pointsGreat Châteauneuf-du-Pape! Very aromatic with black fruits, kirsch and herbs upon opening. Let it decant a while. Very dark inky purple. Nose has kirsch, blackberries and florals. On the palate this has a lot to offer. Blackberries, plum, cassis liqueur, garrigue, duck fat, a lot of oak influence. Smooth tannins and long finish. Very high quality stuff, hard to find but worth it if you see it. 2016 is still too young for now. This is a mix of 13 grape varieties permitted in CDP aged for 24 months in oak and then a tad more in bottle. |
White |
2021 Ridge Chardonnay EstateSanta Cruz Mountains more |
3/27/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 94 pointsSeems this is really hit or miss with most people. Personally it was a hit. Light gold color. Nose of burnt popcorn, peach and orange. On the palate it's funky, buttery, orange and sweet lemon. Burnt pop-corn again, peaches and some minerality. Rich, waxy mouthfeel and a surprisingly long finish. Really fun wine and just another thing Ridge does right in my opinion |
Red - Fortified |
1975 Domaine Thunevin-Calvet MauryGrenache Blend, Grenache more |
3/25/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 94 pointsParents wedding anniversary 2024; 3/22/2024-3/25/2024: Parents anniversary supper, 8 courses, 7 wines. |
Red |
2017 E. Guigal HermitageSyrah more |
3/25/2024 - DevenStephens Likes this wine: 93 pointsParents wedding anniversary 2024; 3/22/2024-3/25/2024: Parents anniversary supper, 8 courses, 7 wines. |