Orders are available for pick-up at Restaurant Nicholas at 160 Route 35 South Red Bank, NJ 07701 during the following times:
Monday: 9:30-3:30; Tuesday – Friday: 9:15am – 9:00pm; Saturday: 11:00am – 9:00pm; Sunday: Closed
$28.00 $25.00
This past week, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate covered Spanish wines. This is what expert, Luis Gutierrez had to say: “Let me start with a bang: I haven’t been so excited about Rioja in many, many years! And what has happened?
Why is their Spanish wine expert so excited? Because of all the new blood and new boutique projects that are launching.
He then highlighted Exopto, the newish project from Frenchman Tom Puyaubert and his group of friends who have been transforming the entire region with their use of biodynamics – even teaching their neighbors how to transform their vineyards.
Exopto has become a force throughout Spain in a short amount of time. Pyaubert has several vineyards that he’s been improving in the region focused on Tempranillo and Garnacha. Each year it seems like he adds a new element to his winemaking, consistently tinkering to find the freshest, purest version of Rioja he can, expertly slicing and dicing the vineyards for his blends.
His ‘Horizonte de Expoto’ is probably the most exciting in the lineup in terms of both exceptional quality and price. The wine is a combination of grapes from Abalos and San Vicente de la Sonsierra and is a traditional blend of 80% Tempranillo with 10% each of Garnacha and Graciano. The wine is made in concrete vats with indeigenous yeasts and then matured in 600-liter demi-muids and 225-liter barriques for a year. Needless to say, when the wine comes out, it is rich with nuance and incredible depth.
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93 Points, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
A traditional red blend of 80% Tempranillo with 10% each Garnacha and Graciano, the 2020 Horizonte de Exopto combines grapes from Ábalos and, since 2016, also San Vicente de la Sonsierra, as he cannot produce village wines from there as his winery is in Laguardia! This year he also added the new plots from Baños de Ebro that represent 15% of the blend and which he feels add fresh red fruit notes and silky tannins. It showcases the Sonsierra zone with fresher Tempranillo with balance, length and the chalky sensation from the limestone soils. It fermented in concrete vats with indigenous yeasts and matured 50/50 in 600-liter demi-muids and 225-liter barriques for 12 months. It follows the path of 2019 but with a little more freshness.
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#3 Wine Spectator Top 100 Wines of 2021
96 Points, Parker’s Wine Advocate – 95 Points, Wine Spectator
We are one of the very few folks who have Wine Spectator’s #3 Wine of the Year. This is definitely not one to miss. The 2016 vintage showcases this prized vineyard in all its glory; notes of wild black fruit, thyme, mint, eucalyptus, and bay are lifted and enjoyed with the polished tannin and mouthwatering freshness of this wine. Regarded as one of the best vintages in the last few decades, the 2016 Martha’s Vineyard has been aged to perfection for immediate enjoyment at release and will continue to reward for the next 20+ years.
Winemaker Pascal Sirat consistently puts out some of the best value Bordeaux in the region but he may have outdone himself in what was a stellar 2019 vintage throughout the region. Just south of Pomerol, the vines at Panchille borrow deep in the soil. The resulting wines are ripe but fresh, with an aromatic complexity and stony finish usually reserved for wine twice the price. Daniel Boulud tells me it’s been the hottest bottle of wine at Bar Boulud for over a month, so I figured I’d better hurry up and secure my allocation! Don’t miss it.
91 Points, Wine Enthusiast
Always the one with the most personality of the bunch, this is what Wine Enthusiast had to say about the 2021 release: “This extremely ripe and bold style of Pinot Noir will please those seeking such lushness. Dark in the glass, it begins with black cherry, toasty caramel and cola milk shake aromas.” The cool, coastal days and abundance of sunshine lines up perfectly for a wine that has a good natural acidic backbone, with bold fruit-forward flavors. In an easy 2021 vintage, Joe Wagner had a field day with this single-vineyard beauty.
In the 2020 vintage in Gevrey-Chambertin, yields were super low and temperatures were hotter than most Burgundian winemakers are accustomed. Many picked too late when the sugars were high and the fruit really ripe, but that was not the play. Still, Ann remained as cool in those hot temps as she did so many years ago in Napa, concentrating more on acid levels than sugars and picking at just the right time. This wine is absolutely singing – it’s an age-worthy beauty that should be even better in 4-7 years.
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