Turd Ferguson

9.3

The most atypical Lambrusco. Basically a brut Rose champagne. Fire. — 2 months ago

Jeroen Koenen

9.2

Quite funky, almost Jura-like in its presentation.
Don’t know if this is an atypical white burgundy. Or maybe it’s already showing some evolution.
Like it nonetheless. — a year ago

Conrad Green

9.5

Quite ripe for Rav. Peach, melon honey, chalk. A touch more exotic than the others. Atypical but very good. Balanced — 3 years ago

with BOT, Tony and 3 others

John W

9.2

Reddish brown coloration. Some transparency. On the nose, black cherry and some forest floor. On the palate, medium mouthfeel, initially, then a rich black cherry with vanilla takes over through a medium to longer finish of same. $79.99 at B-21. Somewhat atypical amarone. — 4 years ago

Tom Casagrande

9.2

Intense but way softer and fruitier than expected, likely due to vintage conditions. Intensely mineral on the nose but vying for primacy with copious amount of deep orchard fruit (greengage?). Rich and intense in the mouth. Lowish acids. Very very good but seemingly atypical (or maybe this is global warming typical). — 6 months ago

with Rebecca and Angelo

Pinotman /// Andreas

9.3

A little VA which blows off. Then a cherry freak show which calms down. Dark and morello cherries. Chalky. 13.5%. Quite rich and a little atypical for E&M. Needs more time to resolve fruit (3-5 years). — a year ago

Ming L

9.0

A producer I’ve always wanted to try. And this is certainly atypical. I mean where can you find a chard with 12.2% abv nowadays.

Expressive nose of peach, lemony citrus, subtle pineapple, and hint of elderflower. The palate is surprisingly round and textured, balanced by fresh medium acidity. Almost oily but remains nimble. The finish is crisp and lightly saline. — 3 years ago

Tom Casagrande

9.0

Another big boi from this producer. Obviously uses at least a significant proportion of partially dried grapes. Fairly saturated color. Nose is rather subdued, reluctantly giving up scents of leather, underbrush, crushed rock, and dark cherry underneath all of that non-fruit stuff. In the mouth, it’s big, with initial slightly bitter, extracted notes. Tannic. Dissimilar from straight Valpos in its size and austerity. Dissimilar from Ripasso-style Valpos in that the fruit is not especially ripe or sweetish. It will go well with our stuffed shells in red sauce, but is a little challenging on its own. It occurs to me that this might fit in well in a tasting of 2017s from the left bank in Bordeaux. In other words, very atypical for a Valpo. Still, it’s pretty good, as long as you don’t harbor any expectations of typicity.

UPDATE: two nights later (using a vacuum closure), this has actually improved. Kind of amazing for a Valpo of this age. The fruit has moved closer to front-and-center, and it seem a bit more Calpo-like, though it’s still pretty large-framed. Upping score from 8.8 to 9.0. — 9 months ago

Michael Walsh

9.3

Fantastic atypical Bordeaux that provides the right level of intrigue — a year ago

John Bratincevic

8.9

Nose: White grape juice, pineapple, perhaps a dash of guava (?), orange blossom, caramel, yogurt, gentle flowers (white, fruity flowers), white tea, honeycomb, graham crackers. Smooth, much less acid than expected. Honestly just tastes like a sweet white wine. I am less impressed than I expected. Good, not superb. Tastes like honey, pear, pineapple, marshmallow (vanilla), gentle acidity, a little bitterness, short finish. Kind of disappointed, I love Sauternes. This is atypical. — 4 years ago