Ladron del Palacio

The powers behind Bodegas Lo Nuevo are crucial to the modern success of Spanish wine, especially wines from the Levante, the Africa-facing south. Here the Almansa region grows Garnacha, among other traditional Spanish red grapes, but unlike the oxidized, alcoholic wines of yore, the new wines are bright and sunny with all the original fruits from the grape preserved. Bodegas Lo Nuevo would be the first to insist that their success is conditioned upon old vines grown at high altitudes. Here the Garnacha is at nearly 3500 feet, where the otherwise relentlessly warm temperatures see nighttime cooling into the 40s.

Lafage Miraflors Rose

Dry rose is the flavor of the moment, and southern France is the style's birthplace and homeland. A refreshing blend of Mourvedre and Grenache Gris, more complex than most any dry rose you've ever had.

Larme en Rose

If you stick around the wine business long enough, you’ll have seen it all. Where once wine coolers were cooler than Liebfraumilch, now hard seltzer is hot (served cold). White Zin was once de rigeur, though it was never French; it was from the good ol’ US of A. But then that became too sweet and the category died. Or seemed to. Because then rosé rose up like a zombie eager for fresh meat, though the current iteration of the pink stuff is more often French than not. Provence is the epicenter of it and the French have figured out how we like it: dry, pale pink, light and refreshing.

Le Cabas Sauvignon Blanc

Gascony ain't just the Three Muskateers, though they have a place in our hearts as well. More than anything, Gascony is foie gras, delicious plums and apricots, rich dinners with Armagnac to follow. But the white grapes grown here are not just for great brandy, they have always been consumed as wine too and the last decade or so has seen an embrace of clean, cold winemaking to preserve the aromas of otherwise neutral grapes like Ugni Blanc or Folle Blanche. It's also seen new plantings of Sauvignon Blanc, a grape that requires no heroic measures to reveal its aromatic riches. Whats fun here is that these same winemaking methods generate something bright and vibrant but without much resemblance to other such Sauvignon Blancs (I'm looking at you, New Zealand), many of which have begun to seem like self-caricature. This one is comfortably itself, needing only an ice bucket and a big glass.

L'Ermitage Clos de Davet Blanc

Mas de Corasado

A blend of Cabernet, Grenache, Syrah, Monastrell and Carignan, this wine is aged for 18 months in French Oak barrels and then bottled in what may be the heaviest piece of glass in all of winedom :)

Mata'Or

Among the diverse operations the Vellas family manages on their estates in Languedoc and Roussillon is an equestrian center and a “Manades” or farm where they breed Camargue bulls, bred solely for the "course camarguaise" (Camargue style of bullfighting). It’s not the bloody affair that we associate with bullfighting (at least, that’s the goal). In the arena, the bull gives chase with a dozen “razeteurs” (Camargue bullfighters) who try to remove a cockade that has been attached between its horns with strings. Not for the faint of heart. The wine too is a big, bold blend from the highly regarded Costiere de Nimes AOP – horns not included.

Mazet de Palombiere

Nicolas Vellas is one of the old-line guys who has been buying selected sites to grow his Les Naturels de Nicolas Vellas wine portfolio. For four generations his family has collected great but forgotten vineyards. It’s time people started paying attention – that’s easy because at these prices, they’re easy to notice.

Meiomi Pinot Noir

This is what we like to call Pinot for Cab drinkers. Large and in charge this is the Pinot packs more punch than many Pinot's that are twice as expensive. Don't worry about the screw cap...these people know what they are doing.

Orlaida

Bodegas Lo Nuevo's success has allowed them to spread their wings to other prestigious regions. Their Montsant projects have brought them perhaps even more fame than in Jumilla. Orlaida could become a benchmark for the potential of Montsant. The vineyards for their Garnacha are at 2,000 ft. in altitude in the area of Cornudella de Montsant, with Priorat like slate soils. Cariñena vineyards in Darmós and Masrig are on clay soils, and the Syrah vines are located on limestone.