A Worthy List of Cellar Worthy Wines

 Bravo Oldtimer Wine Pub

The Wine Enthusiast magazine, an oldie for sure, just released its list of the Top 100 Cellar Worthy wines. A great timely list to help re-stock your cellars.

https://www.winemag.com

These are my top ten reasons why this list is a must read for today’s non-snobby, open-minded wine drinker.

  1. The list is fascinating in its choices because the wines are not the usual predictable big names. And it is not pimping (too much) to advertisers. Only the top ranked Antinori was predictable along with Biondi-Santi Brunello and, yes, Dominus. The La Jota mention may be a bone thrown to the Jackson Family.
  2. It gets you out of the cult Cabernet rut. The number 2 most cellar worthy wine is a Syrah, not Cabernet or Bordeaux. And it was Terre Rouge’s Ascent from Sierra Foothills which, BTW, I’ve been praising for years.  Betz Family Syrah is also an excellent choice.

3. Not based on price: The list includes many nicely priced wines, about half priced below $75.

4. It reminds us white wines can age:  The selections include the Tablas Creek Esprit Blanc, a Copain Anderson Valley Chardonnay, a German Riesling, and a Pinot Gris from Alsace. Another Bravo for that daring choice.

5. It lists quite a few wines from Oregon and Washington. Kudos for including a Merlot from Walla Walla, home to some of the best Merlot around. Intriguing mention of Horsepower Syrah from Walla Walla which I’ll try to find.

6. Not Napa Valley driven: It lists very few Napa wines, but does have the Heitz Martha’s Vineyard Cabernet and a Mayacamas Chardonnay.

7. A few wines are downright discoveries and bargains such as the Buty Semillon-Sauvignon from Washington for $25 and a 2017 Cahors for $24. Biggest discovery of all may be the Halcon “Esquisto” Red Yorkville Highlands.

8. Great choices of Pinot Noir from Central Otago, Alsace, and Oregon. There’s even a German Pinot Noir.

9. Sparkling wines as age-worthy? Of course, but great to see Roederer’s Hermitage from Mendocino getting full recognition along with Bollinger and Cliquot.

10. Excellent choices of 2017 Bordeaux: the Chateau Carbonnieux is the 4th best and priced at $45. Right, no Petrus, no chateau Margaux. No hyping of the latest vintage for another bravo.

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Author: robywine, norm roby

My career as a wine journalist/critic began in 1975 when my article about California Petite Sirah was published. My focus remained on California as I edited a monthly wine magazine and then moved on to The Wine Spectator in 1982. Over the following years, my column appeared under the banner of “Stormin’ Norman, and I also wrote articles about wine collectors and wine auctions. Without getting into a year by year bio, let me try to summarize here. During my time with The Spectator which I enjoyed immensely, I taught wine classes at a culinary school and at other venues in San Francisco. Before venturing into wine, teaching was my thing, English Lit and Rhetoric. After The Spectator I was the U.S. Contributor to Decanter Magazine, writing mostly about California, but also expanding into Washington State and Oregon. My Decanter years began in 1992 and after buying a summer home in France in 2000, I traveled throughout France and eventually published articles about St. Emilion, Castillon, Bergerac, Minervois, Roussillon, Luberon, Provence, and Alsace. Also, around 2000, my wife began working for Cousino-Macul in Chile, so we tasted and traveled our way through Chile and, of course, managed to fly over the Andes and explore and taste our way through Argentina. As travel lovers, we have also spent many interesting days visiting the wine regions of Spain, Italy, Portugal, Scicily, Greece, and New Zealand. And to come to a close, I was Director of Winesong, a Charity Wine Auction for 20 years, 1992-2000 that benefitted a local hospital. That brought me in contact with wine collectors and to the auction scene. And finally, I co-authored a book, The Connoisseurs’ Guide to California Wine published by Alfred A. Knopf. It went through 4 editions and sold over 500.000 copies.

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