Jess

9.1

Pale lemon color.
Aromas of honeysuckle, orange blossom, honeydew, lychee.
Dry. Flavors of honeydew, honeysuckle, pear, lychee, subtle grapefruit.

Intensity: 5/5
Complexity: 2/5
Balance: 4/5
Finish: 5/5 — 2 months ago

Stan Nguyen

9.3

Gorgeous floral rose. Effervescent and sharp. Pronounced VA. — 8 months ago

Byron C Mayes

8.9

This vintage is 100% Nerello Mascalese. Clear garnet red. Inviting nose of baked cherry and pomegranate. Medium bodied palate echoes the nose adding terra cotta, cherry marzipan, dusty (medium plus) tannins, and bright, food-friendly medium acidity. Finish is moderate but continues the palate which, along with the acidity and tannins, makes this the consummate food wine. Al-Cantara's higher end NM is for hearty dishes. This one is a red that can be paired with seafood (a la Frappatto) and lighter fare. And it shines in that space. I had salmon -stuffed tortellini with vodka sauce. Drink now through 2026. — 10 months ago

Stacey Emerson

9.4

Another amazing wine out of Yakima. Viognier for the win — 3 years ago

Severn Goodwin

9.2

Dried peach, moist golden raisin, faint green herbs, ripe apricot, nectarine peel, lime peel, under-ripe mango, warm slate and saccharin-like powdered sugar on the tailing ended of the nose.

Go Nahe!!!

Paired with Taiwanese Five Spice Pork (Lu Rou Fan | 卤肉饭) over Jasmin rice with lightly fried eggs from our private egg factory in the backyard. Locally raised NY pork (Highland Farm, Old Chatham, NY). — 3 years ago

Aaron Tan

9.9

One of the best evenings of wine I’ve had this year, and it was just focused on this duo. Opened as inspiration for this year’s red pick at Miao Lu (a name to remember for those reading. I’ll say it here first - some of the best Pinot’s and Chard’s in the world will be coming out of this project high up in Yunnan!), and they both gave great context to the task.

When I harvested with Klaus-Peter in 2017, the vineyards bore the scars of hail, every last one of them. The damage was manifest in what we came to call "hail berries" (misshapen berries). To my untrained palate, they tasted perfectly fine. Naturally, I asked KP why we were discarding them, and his response, while not entirely unexpected, was still astonishing (paraphrasing of course): "I don't need to know precisely what they do," he said, "but if there's even a chance they might diminish the wine by 1%, they're gone. And these? They look capable of much worse."

That unyielding spirit of his was, I must admit, my torment at Abtserde, the vineyard hit hardest by the hail. We spent an entire day sorting and picking a single row - granted, the rows were long, but the pace was glacial. The true enemy, though, wasn’t the relentless sorting, but the wasps. Those little demons made an already grueling task even more daunting, dodging their stings as we plucked berries one by one, like selecting pearls from a troubled sea. What we ended up with were, quite literally, tiny gems - "caviar" berries of purity. By day’s end, the sight was something to behold. Despite the torment, the hard work was unquestionably worth it. The 17’ Abtserde is my wine of the vintage.

I’ve had the 17’ Abtserde on numerous occasions but this takes the cake as the best (note to self: best to decant a young Abtserde hard). It is a marvel of purity and depth, with its nose evoking Meyer lemon, iodine, chalk, and flint. These aromas reappear on the palate with a nearly overwhelming intensity, blending piquant brightness and mineral-rich concentration. With more air, a floral, bittersweet herbal note very typical of the vineyard appears (smells like the place even). As the evening unfolded, the wine seemed to grow younger, each glass more lively than the last. The final sip was almost painfully austere, like drinking pure limestone, its explosive palate held together by sharp acidity and a palpable, phenolic grip. The finish seemed endless. One of my best Keller experiences this year. — a month ago

Severn Goodwin

9.2

Nose has ripe blackberry, perfect black cherry, strawberry, tanned leather, moist chocolate cake, dry leaves and a touch of alcohol.

Palate has brown sugar dusted ripe strawberries, over-ripe black cherry, dehydrated strawberry, forest moss and moist soil; medium finish. Decanted 4H at the time of notes.

Paired with Taiwanese Five Spice Pork (Lu Rou Fan | 卤肉饭) over Jasmin rice with lightly fried eggs from our private egg factory in the backyard. Locally raised NY pork (Kinderhook Farm, Valatie, NY), Columbia Co. ❤️

Inaugural vintage. This was shortly after the time Duckhorn acquired Goldeneye and started a massive diversification program, isolating the vineyards into singular bottlings. For better or worse, we only lasted a few more years on vigorous collecting before withdrawal. Pricing was really getting detached from quality IMHO. — 2 years ago

Aaron Tan

10

One of the best evenings of wine I’ve had this year, and it was just focused on this duo. Opened as inspirations for this year’s red pick at Miao Lu (a name to remember for those reading. I’ll say it here first - some of the best Pinot’s and Chard’s in the world will be coming out of this project high up in Yunnan!), they both gave great context to the task.

Gerard Potel is a true master of his craft. So much so that he rarely made bad wines in spite of vintage conditions (maybe except 83’ which many claim can be hit or miss). 1988 is by no means bad, not touted as the best but good by most accounts. My experience with the vintage, limited of course, has been a little mixed, but my feeling when drinking this wine was that it transcended the vintage. Heck, I thought it flirted with the very best I’ve tasted - an epitome of aged Burgundy beauty and a perfect example of why “all roads lead of Burgundy”.

Like all of Potel’s wines from this era, the 88’ 60 Ouvrees carries a weightless intensity, with a silky texture that glides while maintaining a sense of immense depth. Crystalline and perfumed, it offers layers of damask rose, incense, strawberries, orange zest, white peach, nutmeg, white pepper, and hints of turned earth. With air, it grows sweeter, brighter, and even more primary - its youth is renewed like an eagle’s. Absolutely insane! To me, the wine straddles this perfect balance between youthful energy and serene maturity. Incredible, and easily the best red I’ve tasted this year.
— 2 months ago

Severn Goodwin

9.3

2016 | Riesling (Kabinett)
Weingut Hermann Dönnhoff; Oberhäuser Leistenberg
Nahe; Oberhausen, Germany
APN 7 753 010 03 17
(93-94; drink 2030-36, 9H decant)

Paired with Taiwanese Five Spice Pork (Lu Rou Fan | 卤肉饭) over Jasmin rice with lightly fried eggs from our private egg factory in the backyard. Locally raised NY pork (Kinderhook Farm, Valatie, NY), Columbia Co. — 2 years ago

Emily Kresie-Harrington

8.9

2020 vintage. A little more Brett-y than I usually like or that I noticed when first tasting with the sales rep, but the fruit still shines through. Tart cherry, raspberry, cranberry, a little dusty terra cotta, dried herbs, rocks. — 3 years ago