Browse using the new Vinous website now. Launch →
All Change: New Zealand Reds
New Zealand, featured
, Apr 2023
New Zealand has experienced a summer of upheaval: an unforeseen Prime Ministerial resignation, historic flooding, landslides, a cyclone and an egg shortage. The country’s wine industry is also in a state of flux.
New Zealand Whites: The Great Divide
New Zealand, featured
, Apr 2023
Fault lines score New Zealand, but it isn’t a seismic activity that’s splitting a once united wine community. The divide between small, quality-conscious producers and volume-driven players is widening. The results of the tricky 2022 vintage highlight the country’s divergence.
Sancerre Sees Red
France: Loire, featured
, Dec 2022
Prices of red Burgundy seem to show no sign of easing. In the search for an alternative, wine lovers may head east toward Germany or further afield to New Zealand and Oregon. However, a mere two-hour drive from the Côte de Nuits lies an often-overlooked Pinot Noir region, sitting on coveted ground.
Chenin Blanc: Wait a Sec
France: Loire, featured
, Sep 2022
No two seasons are alike in the Loire these days. In addition, the reality is that dry wines are far easier to sell today than off-dry and sweet wines. Looking at 2020 and 2021 in the context of current trends, the question remains: while the market clamours for dry Loire Chenin Blanc, is the move towards drier styles in the wines’ best interests?
Sancerre: Finding Its Place
France: Loire, featured
, Aug 2022
Forget the grape behind Sancerre, local producers are increasingly keen to push their individual vineyards. With records showing the Sancerrois were using the term “climat” before the Burgundians and with hundreds of individual sites today, it’s important to acknowledge their history, but I wonder if the world demands such detail from Sancerre, or if its winemakers are trying to push wine uphill.
Loire Cabernet Franc: Who Do You Think You Are?
France: Loire, featured
, Aug 2022
Over the past two decades the quality of Loire Valley Cabernet Franc has soared. The very best wines are inimitable, elegant, terroir-driven and sensitively handled. They deserve to be discovered, in their own right, as superlative Loire reds, not a fresher alternative to Bordeaux Right Bank nor an affordable offering for Burgundy drinkers. Following four visits to the Loire in the first half of 2021, I was left wondering why Loire Cabernet wasn’t enough, why did it have to be benchmarked against other French wine regions that don’t make single varietal Cabernet Franc?
New Zealand Reds: Treading Lightly
New Zealand, featured
, Apr 2022
It’s hard to believe that just over 40 years ago, New Zealand’s South Island was considered too cool to plant grapevines, let alone make fine red wines. In a single generation, this notion has been turned on its head. There have inevitably been growing pains as the vines sought out their rightful places and the grape growers and winemakers made their mistakes, but it seems that there is now a coming of age as mature vines meet mature – and increasingly sensitive – winemakers.
Desperately Seeking Sauvignon
New Zealand, featured
, Mar 2022
A small 2021 vintage sent international wine buyers scrabbling to secure their New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc supply, but what the wines lack in quantity, they’ve made up for in quality, while Chardonnay continues to make a strong case as New Zealand’s finest white variety.
Muscadet: A Region in Crus Control
France: Loire, featured
, Nov 2021
Life has not been kind to Muscadet producers in recent decades, but with the advent of a cru system, focusing on local terroir and extensive lees ageing, there are reasons for optimism. In my report, I ask if this is the rocket fuel this under-appreciated region needs to revive its fortunes or is it a case of Mission Impossible?
Cabernet Franc: The Dark Days Are Over
France: Loire, featured
, Oct 2021
Loire Cabernet Franc is not what it used to be. The days of green flavors and rustic tannins have been consigned to history. Not only do the most recent vintages display a riper expression, they reveal a greater understanding of what it takes to make refined Cabernet Franc.