Vinopolis Newsletter 2-26-2025 PM

 

 
 
Italy

 

“Il Marroneto remains at the top of their game and at the head of the pack.” -Ian D’Agata
 
In a region like Brunello, which is crowded with amazing producers such as Biondi Santi, Sassetti, and Pian Dell’Orino, Il Marroneto proves there is still room at the top.
 
These immaculate wines have built a near cult-like following over the decades, and while devotees like Antonio Galloni and and Kerin O’Keefe have been singing its praise for years now, it has done a good job of keeping below the radar; a fact that no doubt only adds to its appeal.
 

 
Il Marroneto Brunello Di Montalcino 2020 750ml $129 special, 18 bottles arriving
James Suckling 97 Points “A restrained wine that’s complex and deep, with aromas of cherry stones, butter, fresh violets, orange peel and prunes. Firm tannins with a grainy texture, yet it has a sweet finish, super-energetic acidity and a full body. Flavors of blood oranges and violets. Perfect balance and incredible aging potential. A super classic. Drink or hold.”
Decanter 96 Points “Definitely among the vintage’s anomalies, Il Marroneto’s 2020 is more overtly structured than its 2019 counterpart. While the latter verges on dainty and ethereal, the 2020 is steelier in resolve and almost austere by comparison. Proprietor Alessandro Mori also felt it needed longer in wood, so this saw a total of 45 months in Slavonian oak casks. Subtle and sweet to start, it flits with strawberry and cherry blossom before taking on earthier tones. Elegantly weighted but still tight, the palate is built around pure red cherry and raspberry, embedded with nutmeg and incense. Chalky and layered, the tannins sport an assertive bite. Give it a couple of years.”
 
Il Marroneto Brunello Madonna Delle Grazie 2020 750ml $449 special, 3 bottles arriving
James Suckling 99 Points “An exquisite mix of elegant aromas dominates the nose, with notes of Parma violets, orange peel, Earl Grey tea, dried cherries, smoky woodland and earthy minerality. Full-bodied, it shows significant tannins, but it’s velvety, sweet and full of aging potential. The flavors are enhanced by energetic, slightly lifted acidity and a super-long, austere finish. It will last for decades. Try after 2025.”
Monica Larner-Wine Advocate 98 Points “The Il Marroneto 2020 Brunello di Montalcino Madonna delle Grazie (tasted once in the winery and again in my office) is another classical expression of Sangiovese from vintner Alessandro Mori and his son Iacopo. This vintage is best described as more charming compared to the stacked 2019 vintage or the powerful 2016 edition. This is a very pretty wine, elegant and finessed, with pretty floral highlights of rose and violet that lean into a subtle menthol note. There is caramelized sugar and candied orange. The wine lives in oak for 46 months with just a brief time in steel before going into bottle (at the end of July 2024). This vintage is a little closed or tight in terms of mouthfeel, which suggests it needs more time in bottle to spread its wings.”
 
…need your Il Marroneto sooner? We also have a few bottles of 2019 bottles available right now:
 
Il Marroneto Brunello di Montalcino 2019 750ml $119 special, 5 bottles available
Monica Larner-Wine Advocate 97 Points “Alessandro Mori’s wines are easy to spot in a blind tasting thanks to the soaring intensity and vibrant Sangiovese aromas they display. They are truly one of a kind. A wine that sees a relatively short and hot fermentation, the Il Marroneto 2019 Brunello di Montalcino respects local winemaking tradition and remains true in spirit. The steep verticality of the bouquet evokes almost-carbonic or lifted aromas of bright cherry, strawberry shortcake, lilac and heritage rose. You get straight to the heart of Sangiovese. The tannins are extremely fine and powdery and the freshness of the fruit is beautifully intact. This wine really pops in 2019. Drink: 2025-2048.”

 
 
Oregon
 

 

If you haven’t tried Purple Hands wines yet, now is your perfect opportunity.
 
Founded in 2005, Purple Hands has emerged from the rest of the Willamette pack as one of the region’s hottest producers. This entry level offering is a great representation of their house style: sophisticated and complex, with a touch of indulgence. These wines have proved to be real crowd pleasers—this wine won’t last long on our shelves!
 
 staff pick  Purple Hands Pinot Noir Lone Oak Ranch 2022 750ml $28 special, 12 bottles available
Int’l Wine Review 93 Points “The 2022 Lone Oak Ranch Pinot Noir from Purple Hands is a cuvée from seven premier vineyards from five Willamette Valley AVAs: Dundee Hills, Yamhill-Carlton, Ribbon Ridge, Eola-Amity, and Mount Pisgah. This elegant Pinot Noir includes fruit from all of their vineyard designates and spent 10 months in 5% New French Oak, 45% Neutral French Oak, and 50% Stainless Steel tanks. Medium-bodied with lovely notes of dried Bing cherries, lavender, watermelon rind, purple flowers, wet stones, and bitter herbs, it ends with sweet crunchy tannins and racy acidity.”
James Suckling 93 Points “Bright and vivid pinot with notes of cherries, raspberries, dried hibiscus and potpourri. Medium-bodied, juicy and fresh, with fine tannins and delicious red fruit character. Chalk and minerals in the finish. Drink now or hold.”
 

 
 hot deal  Cameron Winery Pinot Noir Willamette Valley 2023 750ml $24 special, 36+ bottles available
VinopolNote: This is one of the best wines we’ve had from the 2023 vintage yet! Enticing tart cherries on the nose, with a deeply satisfying savory character on the palette. This is yet another elegant, approachable entry level wine from Cameron. Simply delicious and an unbeatable value from our beloved Willamette valley.
Winery Notes: “This blend has fruit from Abbey Ridge, Clos Electrique, La Colina and La Sierra. Classic Dundee Hills Pinot Noir aromatics and flavors, velvety texture and beautiful fruit. C’mon now, our pinots smell and taste like how many different things? It’s delicious. Buy this wine!”
 
 
Italy
 

 
“Giusto Occhipinti of COS is a benchmark producer in the Vittoria appellation of Sicily, and certainly one of the most important, influential, producers in all of Sicily if not Italy as a whole. The winery was founded in 1980 by three friends, Giambattista Cilia, Giusto Occhipinti, and Cirino Strano. The initials of their last names form the winery’s name.” –Polaner Imports
 
COS Frappato Terre Siciliane 2023 750ml $34.50 special, 12 bottles available
Wine Enthusiast 92 Points ” The nose is earthy and umami, with aromas of damp soil, mushrooms and graphite, while undertones of flowers and plums provide a hint of sweetness. Juicy figs, plums and mixed berries flood the palate, dusted with a sophisticated pinch of salt and pepper and lifted by acid that positively shines above flexible tannins.”
 
 
France
 
Bagnol Cassis Rose 2023 750ml $26.50 special, 31 bottles available
Wine Spectator 92 Points “A smoky rosé, with an alluring mix of fruit and earth notes. Shows a lot of presence, depth and complexity, with a streak of saline in tandem with red currant, and clementine-laced acidity. A characterful wine that vibrates with energy and harmony. Grenache, Cinsault and Mourvèdre. Drink now through 2027.”
Importer Note “While offering appealing notes of citrus, it is the crystalline and saline aspects that mark this wine’s profound expression of Cassis’s terroir and mediterranean essence. A wine that offers quintessential pairings with the traditional cuisine of Provence.”
 
 
Spain

 

“We were working in a category that didn’t exist, working to produce an ambitious wine to ensure the survival of these stubborn vines. It has not been easy, but we succeeded.m Today, Cebreros is an international category and our Barrancos de Pizarra and Granito, are the pure expression of this extreme and distinctive place.” –Telmo Rodríguez
 
Telmo Rodriguez’s winery, Pegaso, began as all wineries in Sierra de Gredos seem to: with a long hike. Decades ago, he and his father were crossing the iconic mountain range and young Telmo was so enamored by the peaceful and simple beauty of the land that he vowed to make wine there some day. In 1999, he did just that, purchasing vineyard land in Cebreros, an old village outside of Avila­–  finally a chance to make something all his own.
 
Pegaso releases wines based on the two soil types in his vineyards: Pizarra (brown slate) and Granito (granite). Zeta, his newest wine, is a blend from both slate and granite soils and an excellent introduction to Telmo’s style. Featuring 60 year old vines then spontaneously fermented and aged in a combo of neutral oak, stainless steel, and amphorae, then fined with egg whites, this is a complex and vivacious wine with a unique sense of place.

Telmo Rodriguez Pegaso Granito 2018 750ml $54.50 special, 18 bottles available
Luis Gutiérrez-Wine Advocate 95 Points “The 2019 Pegaso Granito ripened thoroughly and has 15% alcohol, a little higher than the Pegaso Pizarra from slate soils, but keeping a low pH of 3.35. The grapes from the vines at 800 meters in altitude fermented in stainless steel and oak vats with indigenous yeasts and matured in 500- and 600-liter French oak barrels for 18 months. It feels like this wine behaves better in less warm years, when it ripens slowly. This is tasty and effervescent, with grainy granite tannins. 2,693 bottles were filled in July 2021.”
 
Telmo Rodriguez Pegaso Granito 2019 750ml $64.50 special, 12 bottles available
Luis Gutiérrez-Wine Advocate 94 Points “The 2019 Pegaso Granito ripened thoroughly and has 15% alcohol, a little higher than the Pegaso Pizarra from slate soils, but keeping a low pH of 3.35. The grapes from the vines at 800 meters in altitude fermented in stainless steel and oak vats with indigenous yeasts and matured in 500- and 600-liter French oak barrels for 18 months. It feels like this wine behaves better in less warm years, when it ripens slowly. This is tasty and effervescent, with grainy granite tannins. 2,693 bottles were filled in July 2021.”
 
 
Germany

 
Donnhoff Oberhauser Brucke Auslese Gold Capsule 2023 750ml $99 special, 12 bottles available
Anne Krebiehl MW-Vinous 96 Points “The 2023 Riesling Oberhäuser Brücke Auslese is made from mostly highly ripe grapes with around 10-15% of botrytized fruit, all pressed in a basket press, slowly, over hours, drip by drip is extracted, without rupturing the grape skins. The tender nose is not obvious; it shows distant notions of iced Reine Claude compote with an overtone of passion fruit foliage; all is lemony and tender. The palate is sweet, bright and concentrated, but it has a slender, taut footprint. Extreme elegance is the name of the game, and the tenor is still of fresh lemon juice and zest. Restraint and elegance are exemplified here. (Sweet).”
 
 
New Zealand
 
Te Mata Estate Hawke’s Bay Sauvignon Blanc 2022 750ml $21.90 special, 36 bottles available
Erin Larkin-Wine Advocate 92 Points “The 2022 Estate Vineyards Sauvignon Blanc has been fully tank fermented, no solids, but it was left on the lees post-ferment for texture. There are notes of cheesecloth, pineapple lumps, Pink Lady apples and saline acidity. It’s fleshy, with preserved citrus, juicy acidity and plenty of brine, then sugar snap peas, Nashi pears and a hint of guava/lychee. The fruit was sourced totally from the estate vineyards in Hawkes Bay; Havelock Hills, Gimblett Gravels and Dartmoor. 12.7% alcohol.”
James Suckliing 92 Points “An inviting nose of green apples, pears, lime and dragon fruit. Medium-bodied with supple texture. Elegant and refined with an array of fresh apple and citrus fruit and a succinct finish. Sustainable. Drink now. Screw cap.”

 

Christian Madl is making revolutionary Sekt that dazzles the senses, offering a refreshingly unique take on champagne-method wines.
 
These are all vintage-dated Estate wines, featuring hand harvested fruit only. Then, they only use the first part of the must, ensuring focus and purity. The wines are then bottle aged in his Cellar and hand riddled for up to 8 years before disgorgment. His wines, obviously take their inspiration Champagne, but they tell an Austrian story featuring grapes like Gruner Veltliner and Riesling in addition to more traditional grapes like Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.
 
It is no surprise then that Falstaff, Austria’s most trusted Wine Journal, has voted Madl ‘Best of Austria’ on five occasions!
 
WAS $49
Madl Brut Nature, Weinviertel, Austria 2018 750ml $44.50 special, 3 bottles available
Falstaff Magazine 92 Points “Light greenish yellow with silver reflections and a delicate, fine bubbly mousse. A hint of tobacco underpins aromas of yellow apple and pear fruit, meadow herbs and lime zest. Medium complexity on the palate, with green apple and some pineapple fruit, fresh acidity, a fine minerality and a lemony touch on the finish. Typical Grüner Veltliner nuances and a pleasant aperitif.”
Winery Note “Unsulfured! For lovers of a puristic style, smells like a fluffy brioche, rustic, markedly dry, bready on the palate. 100% Grüner Veltliner on lees since 2019.”
 

Lowest Listed Price on the West Coast

 
WAS $59
Madl Cuvee Special Brut, Niederosterreich, Austria 2015 750ml $49 special, 5 bottles available
Falstaff Magazine 93 Points “Pale green yellow, silver reflections, lively, fine mousse. Yellow tropical fruit, zest, some baked goods, nuances of red berries, a hint of currants, a multi-faceted bouquet. Juicy, good complexity and mineral nuances, delicately fruity, saline nuances, balanced, delicate sweetness on the finish, has length and development, certain ageing potential.”
Winery Note “White bread and brioche, rich and corpulent with depth, fine mousseux, creamy with a straight substance. Méthode Traditionnelle. Chardonnay 53 % & Pinot Noir 47 % on lees since 2016.”
 

Only Listing in the USA!

 
WAS $69
Madl Onothek ‘Von den Weissen’ Sekt Brut, Niederosterreich, Austria 2014 750ml $59 special, 6 bottles available
A blend of Welschriesling, Grüner Veltliner, Riesling with over 60 months en tirage.
Review is for the early release version of this wine, not the extended tirage:
Falstaff Magazine 93 Points “Light yellow green, silver reflections. Lively, fine mousse, delicate yeasty note, white fruit nuances of peach and fresh apple, some blossom, and backed by lime zest. Taut, tightly meshed, fine sweet fruit, integrated acidity, finely radiant and very youthful, with a mineral finish. It is a stimulating aperitif.”
 

Only Listing in the USA!

 
WAS $49
Madl ‘Von den Weissen’, Niederosterreich, Austria 2016 750ml $44.50 special, 3 bottles available
Winery Note “Fine-aromatic hay flowers meet elegant pear. Méthode Traditionnelle. Welschriesling, Grüner Veltliner & Riesling on lees since 2017.”
 

Only Listing in the USA!