2019 Bodegas LAN Rioja 'D-12'
Most of you don't know about Bodegas LAN's "employee cuvee." Otherwise known as their "Rioja D-12," this deliciousness is an assemblage of barrels that LAN's entire team (everyone - from vineyard management, to...
Inventory Arrives 11/28/23
2019 Fattoria Felsina Chianti Classico Riserva
Back when I started at PRIMA, some 30 years ago, the so-called new wave of wines from Chianti Classico could be summed up in ‘Three F’s,’ Felsina, Fontodi and...
Whether I’m travelling in Piemonte speaking with actual people or lurking on various social media sites where the local wine cognoscenti gather, I always have my radar engaged to hear what wines people are most talking about. There are a lot of...
As the 2019 harvest in the Langhe has progressed from harvest, through its winemaking and aging stages and now, to finished products, the vintage’s reputation has done nothing but gain momentum. The winemakers themselves have always been fans...
2016 Rocche Costamagna Barolo Rocche dell’Annunziata Riserva ‘Bricco Francesco’
A few weeks ago I had the opportunity to try a horizontal of 2016 Barolo Riservae from a variety of producers from a variety of locales and came away...
I am not going to tell you this is the second coming of Chateau Haut Brion for $20, but this is a very authentic, savory and quite delicious taste of what makes Graves one of the most distinctive appellations of the Left Bank of the Gironde. This...
This Gaiole-in-Chianti producer is one of the real benchmark wineries in Chianti. An ancient property renovated in the early 1970s, Castello di Ama was one of the first wineries to really push the envelope to raise quality in the region by farming...
No! That’s not a typo! This is indeed an eight-year old bottling of this Aussie classic- just hittin’ its stride! As we’ve note here before, just because the market for Australian wine has been in shambles for the past...
I’ve been bumping up against the wines of Enzo Boglietti for many years- the first time being, I think, back around 2001 or ‘02 when several appeared in a blind tasting of nearly 300 Barolos and Barbarescos done over three days in Alba. ...
Dark ruby red in color with red fruit aromas and roasted, smoky notes on the nose. The palate is rich and oily with good structure and a perfect balance between finesse and strength. The silky tannins give this wine a harmonious mouthfeel. **
Deep ruby red hue with an intense and complex nose characterized by red fruits, toast and subtle roasted notes. The palate is rich and round with a firm structure and direct tannins. This remarkably powerful wine offers a silky mouthfeel and exceptional...
vineyard in Monforte d’Alba • Average vine age is 50 years • 370 meters above sea level • South-facing exposure • Fermentation for 14 days • Aged in lightly toasted French oak (1/3 new, 1/3 second...
(53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Syrah, 12% Merlot) When wine lovers think of South Africa, they probably imagine Rust en Vrede, even if they’ve never actually heard the name. Here is the gorgeous white Cape Dutch architecture set in...
2019 Baker & Hamilton Cabernet Sauvignon, Oakville
It’s rare that we get so excited about new Napa Valley Cabernet projects with price tags north of $100, but thanks to our deep and abiding love for winemaker Françoise Pechon (as...
2019 Le Cinciole Petresco IGT Toscana $74.99 with shipping included on 6 bottles
From the heart of Panzano-in-Chianti’s Conca d’Oro, the sun-bathed amphitheater in the heart of the Chianti Classico region, comes this bellwether of the Super...
You’ve probably already read a lot about vintage 2019 in the Barolo and Barbaresco zones, it’s the first of a stunning triumvirate of harvests that will eventually include 2020 and 2021. That’s some tough company in which to stand...
With a Tuscan-centric wine list in our old restaurant and a wine store traditionally loaded with Brunello di Montalcino and the like, you could say a lot of Sangiovese Grosso has flowed under the bridge here at PRIMA over our 45 years in the biz...
Wine Enthusiast: A new edition to the winery’s already impressive lineup, the gorgeous Produttori del Barbaresco 2016 Don Fiorino Riserva stuns with its impeccable class, structure and youthful tension. Made with 50% grapes from the...
Tasting Notes: Cherry, raspberry and dried herb aromas laced with hints of vanilla and tobacco. The palate has a charming weight and velvety texture filled with intense flavors of black cherries and blackberries, all elevated by a lovely backbone...
2016 Siro Pacenti Brunello di Montalcino Pelagrilli
Wine Spectator: A pure and focused version, with cherry, strawberry and currant fruit shaded by mineral and tobacco accents. Vibrant and harmonious, this is all about the fruit, with a...
2016 San Felice Campogiovanni Brunello di Montalcino
Wine Spectator: This red is intense, featuring incisive aromas of macerated cherry and plum, leather, earth and juniper flavors. A tad rustic, burly tannins line the finish, yet stay fresh and...
This wine showcases an intense, deep garnet color with alluring violet highlights. The nose reveals a harmonious blend of depth, concentration, complexity, and finesse. You'll be delighted by the enticing aromas of red and black fruits like...
61% Syrah, 38% Grenache, 1% Viognier Dry, hot eastern Washington State was, some thirty years ago, considered to be the next Promised Land (after the Napa Valley) for Cabernet Sauvignon and its brethren in America and, it’s true, the Columbia...
Reports of the demise of the great Australian Shiraz are premature. The best are still among the best wines in the world and this McLaren Vale classic costs the same now as it did 20 years ago!
I first visited Colin Kay at Kay Brothers back...
Generous high-toned raspberry and red cherry fruits, violet-floral, candied plums, creamy oak, sweet appeal. Palate – Sweet and creamy cherry fruit, gentle tannins, medium body, gravelly earth, an approachable wine with long finish.
Harvest...
The 2015 Valpolicella Classico Superiore lifts up with unprecedented freshness as a beautiful mix of fresh cherries, cloves and cedar is complemented by rosy florals. This is a model of purity, slightly salty in character, with crisp red fruits and...
Most people don’t associate Cabernet Franc with South Africa but it has been in the ground here for centuries. The Raats family of Stellenbosch has made the grape their raison d’etre (along with some excellent cuvees of Chenin Blanc) as...
A claret sort of blend, with 20% merlot meshed to even parts cab and cab franc, dried in the traditional fashion for nigh on two months. A wine of latent power, the tannic mettle serving to compress prune, alpine amaro scents, licorice root and camphor...
2019 Ostatu Ecobal, Rioja Alavesa
Growers for a large part of their 250-year history, it was husband and wife, Doroteo and Maria Asuncio Saenz, who initiated the push toward estate-bottled wines back in the 1970s at Ostatu. The winery also...
When Paul Hobbs set out to create a value-priced stable of wines to balance out his high-priced estate and single-vineyard offerings, he approached the project with the same single-minded intensity and meticulousness that have made the Hobbs label one of...
Our search for Napa Valley Cabernets at good prices has taken us down yet another enticing rabbit hole. This time we popped out at the doorstep of Master Sommelier Ian Cauble who you might remember for his featured roles in the Somm and Into the...
2019 Giulia Negri Barolo Tartufaia
OK. The 2018 vintage of the Negri Barolo Tartufaia was PRIMA’s Wine of the Year in 2022- a magnificent achievement that made the best of a challenging vintage and combined gorgeous aromatics,...
2019 Vietti Barolo Ravera
Vinous Media: The 2019 Barolo Ravera is the most intensely mineral and saline of the Barolos. Crushed rocks, white pepper, flowers, orange zest, red berry fruit and bright acids all run through this finely sculpted,...
Is Barolo going to the dogs?????
One of the pioneers of organic viticulture in Piemonte, Pietro Berutti’s La Spinona is probably one of the best producers of Barbaresco and Barolo you’ve never heard of. But with one of the...
I remember when the wines of Tikal first hit the marketplace some years ago, creating quite a stir with their glamorous wines, distinctive packaging and attractive pricing. Tikal also has a connection to the most famous producer in all of...
The Cabernet Sauvignon (Millen Vineyard) and Merlot (Pyaleh Vineyard) were grown organically by Shaunt and Diego, classmates of Sonoe’s at UC Davis, who are converting conventionally grown small vineyards into healthy organic ones throughout the...
2015 Paolo Scavino Barolo Rocche dell'Annunziata Riserva Pre-Arrival $229.99, $249.99 in stock price
The amazing 2019 Barolos are arriving soon! Fasten your seatbelts because it’s a fabulous and unique vintage; one that, paradoxically,...
2019 Paolo Scavino Barolo Prapo Pre-Arrival $79.99, $84.99 in stock price
The amazing 2019 Barolos are arriving soon! Fasten your seatbelts because it’s a fabulous and unique vintage; one that, paradoxically, will appeal to both lovers...
2019 Paolo Scavino Barolo Ravera Pre-Arrival $79.99, $84.99 in stock price
The amazing 2019 Barolos are arriving soon! Fasten your seatbelts because it’s a fabulous and unique vintage; one that, paradoxically, will appeal to both lovers...
2019 Paolo Scavino Barolo Monvigliero Pre-Arrival $79.99, $84.99 in stock price
The amazing 2019 Barolos are arriving soon! Fasten your seatbelts because it’s a fabulous and unique vintage; one that, paradoxically, will...
2019 Paolo Scavino Barolo Bric de Fiasc Pre-Arrival $99.99, $104.99 in stock price
The amazing 2019 Barolos are arriving soon! Fasten your seatbelts because it’s a fabulous and unique vintage; one that, paradoxically, will...
2019 Paolo Scavino Barolo DOCG
The amazing 2019 Barolos are arriving soon! Fasten your seatbelts because it’s a fabulous and unique vintage; one that, paradoxically, will appeal to both lovers of cooler, more classic harvests and fans...
The southern DOC known as Montepulciano d’Abruzzo is one of the most confusing to newcomers to Italian wine, starting with the grape variety itself. Montepulciano is very often confused with the town in Tuscany of the same name and the wine made...
Large and in charge, Matteo Ascheri is one of those people you meet in Barolo who are just Piemontese to their very core and he’s revered enough locally to be serve as the president of the Barolo-Barbaresco Consorzio. They’ve been in the...
Blend: 43% Caberbet Sauvignon, 31% Merlot, 21% Cabernet Franc, 5% Petit Verdot
The Follies stay in the the Southern Hemisphere with the delicious Meerlust Red Blend from South Africa with a wine that is essentially the second label of their iconic...
Winery Notes: Two Squared wines are designed to be approachable in both flavor and price. Opulent, fruit-driven and generous, with a backbone of acidity and elegance, these wines are produced by masterful blending across terroirs evocative of Napa...
Friday Follies Case Special $222/$18.50
The Villa Calcinaia Chianti Classico, comes from an estate in Tuscany that dates back even further than the Meerlust featured above. The property is part of land gift that dates back to 1524, a group of...
100% Chenin Blanc
Whew! Is there any white wine made anywhere in the world more scintillating than a bone-dry Chenin Blanc from the Loire Valley? The best are just packed with personality and offer up not only amazing, concentrated fruit...