Hug Cellars
Château de la Selve
Saint Regis Viognier 2021
With a nice tender pull this viognier leads the way into a tender working days end, stuffed with ripe honey melon, peach and brioche. It is such a comforting and sensible hug. — 2 years ago
Parigot & Richard
Parigot Crémant de Bourgogne Brut Pinot Noir Rosé
Parigot is the stuff. I was looking for the red sparkling I’d had once upon a time but was super okay to settle for this (albeit if you have a source for the red TELL ME)! Red berry blend (there are hints of it all—strawberry raspberry currant) plus watermelon freshness and this slight earthy funk that—-is there a whiff of brett on it?! Slight white pepper and some greens that are both bitter and sweet. It’s a hug and a loving smack all at once. — 5 years ago
Montevertine
Il Sodaccio Di Monte Vertine Toscano Sangioveto Canaiolo 1997
This used to be Montevertine’s “second” wine (after Pergole Torte, obviously) but the vineyard was torn out and replanted in 1998. After that, their eponymous bottling was elevated to take its place while “Pian del Ciampolo” eventually became the “third” wine. Truthfully, they are all three different expressions of Radda so don't take my numerical rankings as a hierarchy of quality (though one could certainly make arguments in terms of importance). I digress, “Il Sodaccio” is producing fruit once again however, the singular expression is now history. This bottle represents “Il Sodaccio’s” swan song.
From magnum. Opened about four hours prior to service. The 1997 “Il Sodaccio” pours a garnet color moving to a slightly orange rim. Medium viscosity with light staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is vinous but surprisingly spry given it’s a quarter century old. The fruit is more or less a mix of ripe and dried cherries, red plums, curaçao, cacao, porcini, dusty earth and some warm spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium tannins that have well integrated but still there. Acid is medium as well. Confirming the notes from the nose. The fruit is round while the finish is long and a touch savory. A lovely expression of Montevertine that extolls the virtues of the 1997 vintage with its abundant fruit and soft, friendly character. I mentioned to our guests that this bottle gave me the feeling of a warm hug from an old friend. Drinking well now and while I don’t expect further positive development, this magnum certainly has the legs for another 10 years. — a year ago
Quinta do Vesuvio (Symington)
Pombal do Vesuvio Douro Red Blend 2018
Ripe, rich and comforting, it’s a hug of a wine 🍷 — 3 years ago
Fort Ross
Fort Ross Vineyard Pinotage 2014
Fabulously surprising! This wine is one of those warm robust bear humans who wraps you in a hug that doesn’t smother you, it frees you. It’s fresh. Oodles of dark berries and plums plus vanilla and a very herbal earthy thing and something like leather. So very very good. — 5 years ago
Domaine du Nozay
Sancerre Sauvignon Blanc 2021
Straight out of the bottle, the color of Domaine du Nozay's 2021 Sancerre suggests that this is not a conventional cuvée. Certified as organic and biodynamic, followed up with minimal intervention in the winery, it has a golden appearance. It displays a rich, lightly oxidative nose of baked apples, honey and an atypical but intriguing herbal character akin to fennel. Full and silky in the mouth, there's an appealing phenolic hug on the finish. This is an attractive wine, but for those looking for classic Sancerre for quaffing on a summer's day, this is not it. (Rebecca Gibb MW, Vinous, July 2023) — a year ago
Bichi Borghesi
Chianti Colli Senesi Sangiovese Blend
Like a hug from a big Italian grandfather — 2 years ago
Frey
Organic Mendocino Cabernet Sauvignon 2019
My first sip of this wrapped my tongue in a bear hug and never let go. It was smooth, warm, and flavorful. I turned to my wife, in subtle surprise, and said, “what is this? I like it.” She said, “oh, yeah, it’s organic.” Well color me impressed and a newfound fan of this wine. — 4 years ago
Ellen Clifford
So talkative in the dried fruit realm—prunes, figs, dried cranberry and figs. The palate has a super texture, slightly grabby tannins but in the way you want to be grabbed, like at the end of a hug on a really good first date. GRAB ME tannins! These do, but politely, and you want them to because they are fine-grained if assertive. The dried fruit plays nicely with cocoa powder and freeze-dried espresso granules (smell them, you’ll see). REALLY good. It grows more herbal with time, too. — 5 months ago