Wine & Spirits - Summer 2023 - 50

wines from Domaine
Maire. They make
all the styles of wine
from the Jura, from
Vin Jaune to pinot
noir. This year, they
scored with the
2020 En Geillon
Poulsard, a rosy and
delicately fl oral yet
lasting and intense
red, as well as their
rich, fi nely oaked
2018 Vignes de
Sorbief Chardonnay.
➤Domaine
Montrose
LANGUEDOC
WINEMAKERS: Olivier
and Bernard Coste
YEAR FOUNDED: 1701
ANNUAL PRODUCTION:
125,000 cases
VINEYARD ACRES
OWNED: 370
FARMING
CERTIFICATIONS: HVE3
+ Carbon Neutral
VALUE HITS: 3
AVG SCORE: 89
AVG PRICE: $17.33
TOP SCORE: 90
Cream Wine Co.,
Chicago, IL
You might feel
the power of the
Occitan sun in
these clean, intense
wines from an
estate located just
outside Pézenas, a
few miles from the
sea. These are not
minor-league wines
of the Languedoc.
Instead, they stand
apart for their
seductive power, like
their Salamandre,
suff used with fl avors
of earthy loam and
currant jam. Or look
for the 2021 Prestige
Rosé this summer; it
scored the same 90
points.
➤Château
du Trignon
RHÔNE VALLEY
WINEMAKERS:
Famille Quiot
FOUNDED: 1748
ANNUAL PRODUCTION:
1,000 cases
VINEYARD ACRES
OWNED: Famille Quiot
owns 700
FARMING CERTIFICATION:
HVE since 2021
VALUE HITS: 3
AVG SCORE: 89
AVG PRICE: $22.33
TOP SCORE: 93
David Milligan Selections,
Ridgefi eld, CT
It's said that the
name " Plan de
Dieu " (Plain of God)
dates back to the
Middle Ages, and
was instructive-with
numerous bandits
in the area, crossing
the plain meant
putting your life in
God's hands. The
Quiot family has
owned and managed
this château since
2006, and there are
no bandits here. If
anything, their 2017
Côtes-du-Rhône
Villages-Plan de Dieu
is a steal of a value,
with sweet-tart redraspberry
fl avor over
a fi eld of herbal,
spicy, stony savor.
➤Teliani Valley
WINEMAKER:
Mikheil Khmelidze
FOUNDED: 1997
ANNUAL PRODUCTION:
340,000 cases
VINEYARD ACRES
OWNED: 1,730
VALUE HITS: 3
AVG SCORE: 89.33
AVG PRICE: $18.33
TOP SCORE: 91
Georgian Wine
House, Beltsville, MD
Founded in 1997
on the site of a
19th-century cellar
in Teliani, this winery
provides a welcome
entry-point for the
Caucasus-curious.
Their wines-and
they make plenty
of them, over two
million bottles
per year-tend to
have elements of
recognizable styles
with Georgian fl air,
like their 2020
Kakheti Saperavi
Selection with its
South-of-France
licorice, cherry and
chocolate approach
while the tannins
in the fi nish are
fi rm, bright and
undeniably saperavi.
➤Domaine
Papagiannákos
ATTICA
WINEMAKER: Vassílis
Papagiannákos
FOUNDED: 1919
ANNUAL PRODUCTION:
30,000 cases
VINEYARD ACRES
OWNED: 37
VALUE HITS: 5
AVG SCORE: 90.8
AVG PRICE: $20.60
TOP SCORE: 93
Winebow, NY
Vassílis
Papagiannákos has
put the time and
care into developing
savatianó's game,
elevating it from the
Greek farm team
for Retsína to the
major leagues in
his central-Greek
region of Attica. The
grape oſt en gives
soſt , fat wines that,
like a power hitter
reaching for more
grip, yearn for the
bite of the pine resin
they're destined to
receive as Retsínas.
Papagiannákos,
working with old
vines over limestone
(and without pine
resin), hits with the
2019 Markópoulo
Single Vineyard
Vientzí Savatianó,
a rich but balanced
savatianó of
elegance and class.
➤Zachariás
PELOPONNESE
WINEMAKER:
Elias Zachariás
FOUNDED: 1962
VINEYARD ACRES
OWNED: 99
ANNUAL PRODUCTION:
83,000 cases
FARMING
CERTIFICATIONS: ISO,
HACCP
VALUE HITS: 6
AVG SCORE: 87.7
AVG PRICE: $20
TOP SCORE: 88
Stellar Importing,
Whitestone, NY
Based in the
Pelopónnesos
(southern mainland
Greece), Zachariás
has invested in both
off ense and defense.
Their wines made
from agiorgítiko and
moschofílero are
ready to score runs
for native varieties,
while plantings of
chardonnay, syrah
and sauvignon
blanc are capable
of fi elding requests
for those easierto-spell
grapes.
" Carafe-able, " in the
words of critic Tara
Q. Thomas, whether
you go for the
2020 Peloponnese
Agiorgitiko or the
Chardonnay.
➤Cirelli
ABRUZZO
WINEMAKER/OWNER:
Francesco Cirelli
FOUNDED: 2003
ACRES OF VINEYARDS
OWNED: 54
# OF VALUE RECS: 3
AVG VALUE SCORE: 89.7
TOP SCORE: 91
AVG PRICE: $21
FARMING CERTIFICATION:
Organic (IMC)
Zev Rovine Selections,
Brooklyn, NY
Proving that even
small estates can
be heavy hitters
in the value game,
Francesco Cirelli
scores with a
trio of delicious
trebbianos from
his biodynamically
farmed vines. He
ages most of the
Trebbiano d'Abruzzo
in stainless steel
for maximum
refreshment value,
and then there's his
fragrant and chewy
2019 Anfora, which is
an absolute steal.
50
WINE & SPIR IT S
SUMMER 2023
Wine & Spirits - Summer 2023

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