Tom Casagrande

9.1

The ‘22 of this wine is a worthy successor to the surprisingly excellent ‘21. Deep, bright iodine-laced mountain berries on the nose, with dark florals and spice. In the mouth it’s a little more angular and as-yet disjointed than the ‘21, but I think a year or so will pull it together. Acids, tannin, extract, moderate alcohol (14.5%) are all there, but they haven’t made friends yet. They will. Very nice. — 9 hours ago

Tom Casagrande

9.1

110-year old vines. More mid-palate depth than many 21 Bojos I’ve had. Fantastic nose blasts out crunchy ripe dark cherry fruit and pungent deep-toned rock dust. A nice red floral/red licorice note too. Deep flavors are ripped with acids, leading to a crisp, almost austere-feeling, minerally finish. Finish is a tad clipped, but still really nice. — 7 days ago

Tom Casagrande

9.3

This is really good. Pairing it with Polpettone alla Toscana. Color is surprisingly youthful for a 10-year old. Very complex nose has rich dark cherry, loads of iodine-rich dark minerality, a little clove, old leather, “rich mahogany” a la Ron Burgundy. In other words, primary, secondary, and tertiary all in play. Tight, almost austere in the mouth, still tannic. Evolving quite slowly. Wonderful concentration and length. It needs the rich food. — 10 days ago

Tom Casagrande

8.8

From one of the smaller, lesser known sectors that comprise the Chianti Classico area (Barberino Tavarnelle), this is a rather rustic version, but with nice character. The color is a bit evolved, showing a fair amount of amber at the rim. Nose has lots of ripe/sour cherry, and quite a bit of gravelly loamy earth. Some leathery notes already present. Full-flavored in the mouth, with a big whack of fruit initially, freighted on some rustic, slightly coarse tannin. The finish dries out a bit, but it’s no doubt a nice weeknight dinner companion. Not confident about aging this one much longer, so enjoy soon. — 12 days ago

Tom Casagrande

9.2

This is the white, not the red. Nice mineral freshness. Nose also has some somewhat brothy apple-pear fruit. Deeply flavored in the mouth. Really fine value (for a white burg). — 2 days ago

Tom Casagrande

9.4

Holy cow this is really good. A bit too young, but drinking great anyway. Gorgeously deep, luminous ruby color. Upon a quick double decant, the nose is cookin’, showing deep, ripe cassis and dark juicy plum. There’s also a deep wet clay/mineral component. A little smoky cigar box note. On the palate, yes, the structure is tight, but despite the youthful tannins and surprising acids, the flavors are already singing. Deep, concentrated, focused rich fruit, but with zero jamminess. Very elegant structure. This is supposedly the second wine of Chateau Clos de Sarpe. Can’t imagine how good the grand vin is. — 5 days ago

Tom Casagrande

9.4

A bit young but oh so good. Wonderfully complex nose has bright black raspberry fruit, fragrant stony gravel, high-toned backing spice, mid-purple florals. A little youthfully angular in the mouth, but with brightness and fruit and concentration and length. The purity of fruit is ridiculous. In 3 or 4 more years this will be even more amazing. — 10 days ago

Tom Casagrande

9.3

This is 42% Grenache, 33% Mourvèdre, and 25% Petite Sirah. Purchased at the winery last August. The nose is so bright and alive, with jumpy dark berries, lots of bright, crushed stone dust, a rich floral note, and a dusting of spice. On the palate it’s got concentrated, mouthfilling flavors, but beautiful balance. Nice balance of fruit and mineral components. Soft tannins, nice, integrated acids, long finish. Complete. Delicious now but has at least a couple of years of improvement ahead. 9.3 — 3 days ago

Tom Casagrande

9.1

Prior notes from 6 months ago still seem accurate. Thanks to my brother for this delicious lighter red. It’s almost as though making a lighter, food-friendly, warm-weather friendly red is becoming a lost art. They won’t get the high critic points, but there are so many circumstances where this is what works, but so few choices in this category. — 9 days ago

Tom Casagrande

9.1

Sort of an old school Willamette style, bridging the gap between old-timey Cali Chardonnay and white burgundy. Fair amount of toasty oak on the nose, but it’s kind of elegant nonetheless. Butter, lactic creamy notes. And lemony fruit. Tart acids, but not too tart zing along the big flavors on the palate. As with lots of new world Chardonnay, I get the feeling that this winery really really wants this wine to be Meursault or Puligny or Chassagne, and so the winery works super hard to put on the right amount of makeup, fussing over the wine in the mirror for hours till it’s just right. But white burgundy just feels like it pulls it off without trying. And I feel that difference in a lot of new world Chardonnay. All that said, it’s a tasty and fun wine. — 11 days ago