Red Wine between $75 and $100

The 2009 Tignanello is quite beautiful. Cedar, graphite, sweet herbs, licorice and leather add complexity to a core of highly expressive red fruits. The 2009 impresses for its energy, drive and focus. Today, the 2009 comes across as slightly understated relative to many recent vintages, especially 2007 and 2008. There is a silkiness and polish that is reminiscent of the 2004. Tignanello is 75% Sangiovese, 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Cabernet Franc from vineyards in San Casciano Val di Pesa, one of the most evocative hillsides in all of Italy. Anticipated maturity: 2017-2029.

Another brilliant offering is the 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Georges de Latour Private Reserve. It possesses a dense ruby/purple color along with terrific structure, lots of creme de cassis, minerality, beautiful purity of black currants and cherries, a judicious touch of oak, and a full-bodied, structural profile that is almost Bordeaux-like. This complete, rich and promising effort should be a 25-30-year wine.

2009 Jensen possesses a deep, rich garnet hue. Luscious aromas of cranberry, violets, granite, turmeric and raspberry torte mix with an alluring bouquet of peppery nutmeg and black cherry. This fascinating wine offers flavors of baking spice, ripe strawberries, rhubarb pie, chalky minerality and sweet berry wrapped around a juicy, elegant core of fine grained tannins, then trails off to a long, pleasurable finish.

This 2009 Selleck Vineyard Pinot Noir is fascinating and simply stunning. It begins with evocative flowing aromas of gardenia, red currant, cranberry, flinty minerality, pine and faint black licorice. Flavors are concentrated, intense and velvety; lingonberry, dark cherry, a whisper of cinnamon and citrus rind, and seamlessly encompass the palate with a texture that is graceful, broad and beautifully balanced, then lingers slowly on into a juicy, almost ethereal, mouthwatering finish.

Now 10 years old, the 2002 Château Canon has reached an exquisite maturity. Silky smooth and vibrant in the mouth, the graceful fruit quite literally glides over the palate, displaying notes of plums, raspberries berries, crème de cassis, with notes of freshplowed new earth and vanilla rising towards the finish. Drinking beautifully now, this wine has reached the plateau of maturity, where it will easily hold for an additional 7 to 10 years.
--Ben Giliberti, CW (June 2012)

The perfect bookend to the fully mature 2002 Château Canon, the 2008 is a great wine in the making. Although 3 to 4 years away from full maturity, its impeccable balance makes it highly approachable now. This is a wine of enormous freshness, vibrancy, and class, a symphony composed in notes of raspberry, strawberries, cassis, and gentle notes of new oak. An exceptional value in a great wine.
--Ben Giliberti, CW (June 2012)

Our friend, Bordeaux negociant Jeff Davies, introduced us to this wine several years ago, and it seems to be getting better and better. We tried this Syrah in September 2011 and couldn't believe how concentrated and incredibly intense it was. Forget the appellation and prepare yourself for an amazing treat! Here's what Robert Parker posted about this wine several months ago...

"While I was in Bordeaux, I tasted the new releases from Négly, the micro-estate in the Languedoc owned by Bordeaux wine broker Jeffrey Davies... the wine is made by Claude Gros, an increasingly influential consultant... I have been purchasing these wines since the debut vintages in the late 90s... it is not a leap of faith to say that they are probably among the finest 4-6 red wines made in the Languedoc... have been itching to taste the 2007s (a great vintage in the southern Rhone and the Languedoc)... and they are finally arriving... expensive they are, but in the pantheon of great wines, the prices are very reasonable... both the Porte de Ciel and Clos des Truffiers are 100% Syrah... I actually thought the Porte de Ciel was close to pure perfection... more developed and less broodingly backward compared to the Clos des Truffiers, the blackberry, lavender, bacon fat, and subtle smoky nuances are intense and enthralling. Both wines are very full-bodied, ...but the primary difference is the Clos des Truffiers needs 4-5 years of cellaring.. the Porte de Ciel will evolve for 20+ years, but it is so gorgeous to drink already... anyhow... I always say as I get older, I like them younger and younger... so many of you may prefer to wait on both of them... they are thrilling wines... real reference points for what the Languedoc is capable of achieving... the 1997s, which I own, are still very young wines..."