Weekly Tasting Report (Nov 16-22, 2021): Aubert’s Supreme Chards, a Sensational Kiwi Pinot and Awesome Amarones

Last week our team tasted some extraordinary chardonnays from California, including a range of releases from Aubert – one of which was No. 5 on our recently posted list of the Top 100 Wines of 2021 (out of almost 25,000 wines we reviewed over the last 12 months). You probably already know what the wine is: Aubert Chardonnay Napa Valley Sugar Shack Estate Vineyard 2019.

There are eight other single-vineyard Aubert Chardonnays to check out from the 2019 vintage, and they are stunning. Try to get some because they are in high demand, as you can imagine. What’s interesting is how consistent in quality Mark Aubert and his team are in producing world-class chardonnay. It seems every year, no matter the weather pattern, they make some of the very best of the United States.

James has been to the Aubert winery a number of times over the last five years, and the mindset is all about precision in viticulture and winemaking. Mark notes that everything is done at the right time and to an almost by-the-minute schedule. They also made some high-scoring pinot noirs as well.

This report includes numerous other wines from Sonoma as well as Anderson Valley. The latter is an overlooked region for many keen wine lovers and it produces some excellent chardonnay and pinot noir. You may not be familiar with all the producers here but they are worth looking at. Also, check out the scores for the sparkling wines from Anderson Valley. They are at the same quality level as many excellent Champagnes.

We would expect more people to know Cain, which is a classic winery making refined and focused reds from mountain-grown fruit. The winery heartbreakingly lost its cellar and 2019 and 2020 harvests to the 2020 fire around St. Helena, but Chris Howell, the winemaker and manager, said in a Zoom interview (below) with James that they still have their current releases.

These include the 2016 and 2017 Cain Napa Valley Spring Mountain District Five as well as a re-release of the 2008. All the wines have a traditional character, focusing on complexity and freshness and not overpowering tannins or fruit like so many other mountain-grown reds in Napa.

A number of other Napa reds are rated in this report and worth noting, including those from Arietta, axr and Clos du Val. The Sloan Napa Valley Rutherford 2018 was clearly the best of the last week and is a top red from here with terrific balance and intensity.

READ MORE: OUR TOP WINES OF 2021

NEW ZEALAND, GERMANY AND MORE

Another producer to check out is Ata Rangi from Martinborough, New Zealand. Its pinot is always among the best of the island nation and you will want to stock up on some since they are from the excellent 2019 vintage.

The Top 100 Wines of New Zealand 2021 report will be coming out soon. The regular bottling of Ata Rangi’s pinot in 2019 was our No. 71 wine in this year’s Top 100. Meanwhile, Senior Editor Stuart Pigott is still banging out tasting notes of German and Austrian wines from his office near Frankfurt. This report includes what may be the highest-rated sparkling wine from Germany: Aldinger Sekt Württemberg Brut Nature 2014. Württemberg has a long history with pinot noir and this obviously helps Aldinger make such a spectacular sparkler, which Stuart said “reminds me of some of the greatest Prestige Cuvée Champagnes.”

CLASSIC NAPA REDS:  James talks with Cain Vineyard & Winery's Kathryn Lazar and Chris Howell about their latest releases.

Tasting Editor Jo Cooke tasted more Italian wines, including a few Amarones and Brunellos. The Zeni Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Nino Zeni 2015 was “linear and long” with “well-judged balance,” while Le Ginestre Barolo Sottocastello di Novello 2017 had an “enticing nose of dried wild strawberries and notes of sous-bois and preserved rose petals.” Those are just two examples – check out many others in the list below.

Please note that almost 50 wines were rated less than 90 points. This means that they didn’t meet the minimum standard required to be designated as outstanding quality. But that’s part of our jobs as wine critics – to call it like it is. We look forward to reviewing more wine in the coming week, including hundreds of bottles from South Africa.

– James Durston, Executive Editor

The list of wines below is comprised of bottles tasted and rated during the past week by James Suckling and the other tasters at JamesSuckling.com. They include many latest releases not yet available on the market, but which will be available soon. Some will be included in upcoming tasting reports.

Note: You can sort the wines below by country, vintage, score and alphabetically by winery name. You can also search for specific wines in the search bar.