Hong Kong Homecoming, Napa’s Heavy Hitters, and 40 Years Of Vega Sicilia Unico
Winter is coming? Not quite, but what does loom on the horizon is our highly anticipated Great Wines of the World Hong Kong 2022 Grand Tasting at the Four Seasons Hotel on Oct. 6 and 7. That’s just two weeks away, which is still plenty of time to get your tickets for the gathering, but it does tend to sell out early each year so you might want to commit to this awesome party now.
It’s also going to be a great chance to tap into some of the best wines the world has to offer, as well as to see James, who will be back in Hong Kong for the first time since February. The event showcases 280 wines from some of the top producers around the globe, with three two-hour sessions each day as well as a special tasting party each night. We can’t wait to see you all there…
If you want to get your tasting chops properly prepared for the confab, there’s no better warm-up than taking a look at our latest Weekly Tasting Report and getting your wine love on with some of the sterling bottles we rated over the past week. Several of these were from Napa Valley’s great 2019 vintage, which is known for its focused and fruity reds, with gorgeous depth and intensity.
Andy Erickson made one of the top wines from the vintage with his Favia Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Coombsville 2019 – an extraordinary young cabernet showcasing purity and freshness while also highlighting the growing popularity of Coombsville in recent vintages. Another wine to try is Erickson’s perfect-scoring To Kalon Vineyard Co. Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Oakville H.W.C. To Kalon Vineyard 2019, which, according to James, is “ the essence of Napa cabernet.”
And a special tasting of Vega Sicila’s Ribera del Duero Unico wines dating back to 1960 clearly demonstrated Unico’s ability to age with grace for well over half a century. Associate Editor Claire Nesbitt wrote all about it in her report on the tasting, which was held at the three-star Michelin restaurant Mas Marroch in Girona, Spain, earlier this month. The tasting featured 40 magnums of vintages from way back, and the only thing that was clear was the consistency in greatness, with all the wines of Unico produced since the mid-1980s rated at 95 points or above.
Some of the top younger vintages were 2000, 2004, 2006, and 2009 to 2014, with 2010 standing out for its intense spiciness that lasted for minutes, while some of the highlights of the older vintages included the deep and sensual 1968, 1962, which was showing incredible energy and life 60 years on, and 1970, which clearly stood out for its youthfulness. For even more wine goodness, please read on…
NAPA HEAVYWEIGHTS COME ON STRONG WITH 2019: WEEKLY TASTING REPORT (SEPT 14-20)
Some of Napa Valley’s greatest producers dominate this weekly report of 743 wines, and rightly so, considering the possibilities for sterling reds in the 2019 vintage from America’s most famous wine region.
GREAT WINES OF THE WORLD 2022 HONG KONG GRAND TASTING
Join us in Hong Kong on Oct. 6 and 7 for a brand-new edition of our global wine showcase “GREAT WINES OF THE WORLD,” brought to you with an all-new exciting lineup of featured producers and their current market releases.
GREAT WINES OF ITALY USA SEES RECORD-BREAKING CROWD EMBRACE ITS VINO AMORE
One of the biggest Great Wines of Italy New York to date saw more than 1,800 industry members and wine lovers in attendance. Click here to see the event highlights.
Our tastings of more than 4,500 American wines over the past year reinforced our belief that chardonnay is the most exciting grape in America, from California to Oregon to Virginia’s Shenandoah.
Incredible champagnes highlight our top wines from France in 2021, with Beaujolais, Alsace and Burgundy adding superlative bottles to the mix.
TOP 100 WINES OF CHILE 2021
You probably expected our No. 1 wine from Chile this year to be one of the highly coveted icon wines, but we decided instead to honor a wine that highlights the country’s growing interest in organic and biodynamic viticulture.
