Weekly Tasting Report (June 8-14, 2021): Domaine Weinbach’s Riesling Strikes Again, Pahlmeyer’s Napa Finesse, and Unmissable Chardonnays

The top wine from our tastings over the past week comes from the same single-vineyard bottling of the pristine Alsace winery of Domaine Weinbach – the Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Schlossberg Cuvée Ste. Catherine – that was our French Wine of the Year in 2020. It was the 2018 that took the kudos that year, but in this report it’s the 2019.

The Faller family has been making great wines for decades, and I have been following and drinking their wines since I fell in love with them in the 1980s when I was living in Paris. Their vineyards today are all biodynamically farmed and Demeter-certified, which adds wonderful value to their wines and their soils.

“We do the best we can to maintain the unique character of our terroirs,” said Catherine Faller, who heads the family estate. It’s this custodial philosophy that shines through in the Fallers’ wines, particularly their parcel of the grand cru from the Schlossberg. Senior Editor Stuart Pigott rated and commented on this wine in a tasting in his office in Germany.

I was equally elated with the most recent release of the reds from Napa Valley’s Pahlmeyer, which is now under the ownership of the Gallo family. Many of the wines I tasted were finished by their new winemaker, Katie Vogt, and I was incredibly impressed with their finesse and beauty. They seem to have a touch more precision to them, especially the Pahlmeyer Napa Valley Proprietary Red 2018.

Vogt said that they used a higher percentage of grapes from the vineyards of Stagecoach, which are majority-owned by the Gallos, and it gave the wines an unprecedented structure and depth. She also said that the great 2018 vintage played into the more balanced style of the Pahlmeyer reds of that vintage.

“This wine has the highest percentage of Stagecoach that we have ever seen in the Proprietary Red,” Vogt said, although she was not involved in the winemaking then and only started with blending the 2019. “And from my perspective that is really promising.”

Two other 2018 Napa reds to check out in this report are the Beaulieu Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Georges de Latour Private Reserve 2018 and the Hewitt Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Rutherford Double Plus 2018. These are two wines from the stable of Treasury Wine Estates, and they are fantastic examples of the benchmark 2018 vintage in Napa. They show depth and intensity to complement the balance in the wines.

Contributing Editor Nick Stock tasted a range of wines from Oregon’s Domaine Serene for this report and he was equally impressed with their wines from 2018. They are deep and plush, showing the ripeness of the vintage as well as the framing with juicy tannins. There are more Oregon tasting results to come.

I found a couple of chardonnays that I don’t want you to miss, and they serve as two examples to consider in the future. One is Chablis from William Fèvre from the 2019 vintage. The year was small production with a hot and dry growing season, yet the wines show an uncanny freshness and intensity. If more 2019s turn out to be like this, the vintage could be better than the 2018 but not quite at the level of the 2017, which had incredibly structured and intense wines. The William Fèvre Chablis Grand Cru Les Clos 2019 is sensational quality, as it should be, considering its pedigree.

The second chardonnay to check out is the William Hill Chardonnay Napa Valley Benchmark 2019. This is the second year I have been really impressed with the chardonnays from this producer, and I suggest you have a taste if you get the chance.

Two special Barolos that will soon be released by the Pio Cesare winery to celebrate its 140th anniversary are also must-haves: the Pio Cesare Barolo Riserva 2000 and Pio Cesare Barolo del Comune di Serralunga d’Alba 2017. The latter is the first and last time they have bottled a blended Barolo from the commune around the village of Serralunga d’Alba, while the Riserva 2000 comes from the family’s private reserve (only 500 bottles). They plan to find other treasures to release in the coming years.

There are even a few old Bordeaux in this report that say something about the great first-growth Château Lafite-Rothschilds and the good-but-not-great 2006 vintage. The Lafites included the 2006, 1988 and 1985, which were part of a masterclass on the estate that I hosted on Friday afternoon for a dozen or so wine lovers. They are drinking beautifully, especially the 1985, which was the favorite of the tasting. We also tasted the 2016, 2010, and 1996. The 2006 is what visitors to the property are first shown, because the Rothschilds believe it is a wonderful example of a typical Lafite to drink and emphasizes the special character of the wines of the property – showing balance, harmony and strength.

The dozen or so 2006 Bordeaux noted here were also part of a small horizontal masterclass looking at the vintage 15 years after the harvest. The year was a difficult one with rains in August as well as during the harvest. It made less ripe wines, and some were slightly diluted, although the wines we reviewed showed surprising character and drinkability. I suggest drinking most 2006s now, and they need very limited or no decanting.

There’s plenty to buy and drink in this report. Hope you enjoy it.

– James Suckling, Chairman/Editor

The list of wines below is comprised of bottles tasted and rated during the previous week by James and 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. 

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