This Champagne-less mix of sparkling wines includes some Crémant de Limoux from Faire La Fête, which have a refreshing 6 g/l dosage and a bright appeal. Although they lack doughy, biscuity depth, they’re balanced, lively and offer a lot of complexity for the price. Gloria Ferrer offers a solid vintage sparkler from California, and Cava makes an appearance as well.
For reds, I recent tasted some widely-available, yummy Malbecs from Argentina, and a big, bold Montepulciano d’Abruzzo as well.
These wines were received as trade samples and tasted sighted.
Bubbles & White Wines
N.V. Faire La Fête Crémant de Limoux Brut – France, Languedoc Roussillon, Languedoc, Crémant de Limoux
SRP: $19
Medium yellow color. Aromas show tangy lemon and green apple, with chalk, bread dough, biscuits, notes of verbena and white pepper. Crisp and bright on the palate, fine bubbles, nice salty kick with almonds, chalk, crushed shells. Green apples, lemon peel, lime and grapefruit, tossed with some slight honey and bread dough. Bright, light style, but solid depth, especially considering the price. Chardonnay, Chenin Blanc, Pinot Noir and Mauzac, aged 15 months on the lees. (88 points)
N.V. Faire La Fête Crémant de Limoux Brut Rosé – France, Languedoc Roussillon, Languedoc, Crémant de Limoux
SRP: $19
Medium salmon color. Nose is crisp and floral, with white cherries, wild strawberries, red McIntosh apple peel. Tangy and zippy on the palate, a light style with bright bubbles, white cherries, red apple. Notes of white pepper, baby’s breath, verbena, and a nice salty minerality that lifts it up. Solid bargain. 65% Chardonnay, 20% Chenin Blanc, 15% Pinot Noir, aged 15 months on the lees. (87 points)
N.V. Segura Viudas Cava Brut Reserva Heredad – Spain, Cava
SRP: $30
Light gold color with fine bubbles. Bready, doughy on the nose with salty, honeyed, floral combinations over peach and lemon. Crisp acidity frames the wine well, there’s some nice bready qualities to accent the lemon and green melon fruit. Sea salt and white flowers on top of nougat, hazelnut elements, it all comes together quite well to offer a more complex but vibrant Cava. Macabeo and Parellada, aged 30 months on the lees. (88 points)
N.V. A to Z Wineworks Bubbles – USA, Oregon
SRP: $20/4, 250ml cans
Aromas of crisp red apples, raspberries and lemon, with white pepper, floral perfume, some cinnamon candies. Juicy cherry and strawberry appeal on the palate, with crisp acidity, and spritzy bubbles. Fun, fresh, with rhubarb, sea salt and sugarcane notes. Easy-drinking, crowd-pleasing stuff, this could be a big hit for summertime treks. Offers a lot more than other canned wines I’ve tasted. Carbonated Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. (85 points)
2011 Gloria Ferrer Anniversary Cuvée – USA, California, Napa, Carneros
SRP: $45
Rich yellow color. The aromas show deep, doughy, biscuity notes, with honey, almond cake, but also brighter notes of chalk, sea spray and honeysuckle. Nice depth on the palate, generous texture with some richness and sugar, but also brisk acidity, which keeps things in line well. Yellow apples, papaya, lime, with deep tones of bread dough, almond brittle, honeycomb, and elements of saline, crushed limestone and chalk. Quite a bit of depth and balance here. 2/3 Pinot, 1/3 Chardonnay, 12 g/l dosage, aged 5 years on the lees. (90 points)
2018 Schloss Johannisberg Riesling Gelblack feinherb - Germany, Rheingau
SRP: $25
Pale lemon color. Bright and inviting on the nose with lime, quince, apricot, some white flowers and crushed rocks. Pleasantly plump on the palate, the bright acidity jives well with the off-dry sugar, so this tastes balanced and vibrant. Lemon, green melon and white peach fruit, tossed with chalky, floral, crushed rock elements. Lovely freshness, balance, and depth but also fun, early-drinking style. 2018 German Rieslings have a lot to offer. (89 points)
Reds
2018 Domaine Jean Bousquet Gaia - Argentina, Mendoza, Valle de Uco, Tupungato
SRP: $20
Deep purple. Bountiful nose of sweet black cherries, blackberries, along with a pleasantly floral, herbal mix (violets, mint, eucalyptus), with cocoa and vanilla. Smooth and suave on the palate, dusty tannins, fresh acidity, supported by plenty of juicy black cherry and dark plum fruit. A lot of floral and spice elements (violets, pepper, sage), with nuanced coffee and vanilla notes. 50% Malbec, 45% Syrah, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, aged 10 months in French oak. (89 points)
2018 Alamos Malbec – Argentina, Mendoza
SRP: $13
Light purple color. Lively nose of sweet plums and cherries, along with roses, cocoa and vanilla. Smooth and velvety on the palate, fresh acidity, framed nicely with plums, raspberry and cherry fruit. Notes of cocoa powder, earth, vanilla, but there’s also some deeper, more complex notes of earth and graphite, too. Balanced, fresh, lively, I continue to find this a solid, widely-available, value-driven Malbec. (88 points)
SRP: $52
Bright purple color. Deep aromatics of floral tea, violets with loamy, charcoal, incense sticks and clove. Full-bodied with solid grip to the tannins, but moderate acidity keeps it fresh. A tart, deep core of blackberry and plum. Lots of pencil lead, earth, tar, anise, coffee, cedar. Complex, floral, deep, this is a beauty of a Montepulciano, and while it has a lot of density, it also shows a nuance and balance, and an underlying stony minerality. This deserves three to four years in the cellar or a good decant. Aged 15 months in French oak and then six months in stainless steel. (91 points)
This post first appeared on the daily wine blog Terroirist.
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