This year I once again had the honor of judging alongside several of my wine biz cohorts at what has become one of my favorite weekends all year: the San Francisco International Wine Competition, held at the swanky and suave Hotel Nikko in downtown SF. The 2019 SFIWC incarnation took place November 9th through November 11th, and is now in its 39th year – an impressive testament in any industry, and probably even more so in the wine business.

Wine Comp Judging: absolutely serious business

The results of the 2019 competition are now available, and so I can share some thoughts on the big-big Best-in-Show winners. These are wines that have to make it through 1) achieving a unanimous Double Gold award from a panel of three to four seasoned competition judges; 2) selection to be sent to the sweepstakes round by that same panel; 3) surviving a super-panel tasting (consisting of the competition’s chief judges); and, finally 4) receive a plurality of votes from all judges in the final Sweepstakes rounds for its class/category, and then, ultimately for its Best-in-Show category. All tasted blind, of course, which always yields some interesting surprises (I’m looking at you, Virginia; well done!).

So… these wines are no slouches, and are well worth your time seeking out if you’re in the splurging mood, and quality is on your mind…

I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes in a “mini-review” format.
 
They are meant to be quirky, fun, and (mostly) easily-digestible reviews of (mostly) currently available wines (click here for the skinny on how to read them), and are presented links to help you find them, so that you can try them out for yourself. Cheers!

• 2017 Domaine Jean-Jacques Girard Savigny-les-Beaune (Cote de Beaune): Might be too much lemon curd for the hipper crowds, but that will just leave more for you, after all. $49 A-
• 2018 Viticultori Associati Canicatti ‘Aquilae’ Catarratto (Sicily): Flints, flowers, and… banana? Yep, all in a gulp-ably refreshing mix. $NA B
• 2018 Viticultori Associati Canicatti ‘Fileno’ Grillo (Sicily): It might be performing a Sauvignon Blanc impersonation, but it’s a damned entertaining one. $17 B
• 2018 Viticultori Associati Canicatti ‘Menamara’ (Sicily): A chewy, spicy, passito style red that’s not to be passed up, provided that opportunity presents itself. $NA B+
• NV Fratelli Lunelli Ferrari Metodo Classico Rose (Trentino-Alto Adige): Dried strawberry, rose petal, and a very soon to be very empty glass. $30 B+
• 2014 Secondo Marco Valpolicella Classico Superiore Ripasso (Veneto): A fine, balanced interplay between tangy and prune-y; just right for a just-now pasta fix. $30 B+
• 2016 Travaglino ‘Campo della Fojada’ Riesling Riserva Oltrepo Pavese (Lombardy): There’s something happening here… what it is, ain’t exactly clear… but it’s clearly very, very interesting. $NA B+
• 2017 Bonterra Vineyards Merlot (Mendocino County): Someone remembered that tangy, much to our collective delight. $14 B
• 2016 Gundlach-Bundschu Estate Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (Sonoma Valley): Just a mere cub for now, in training for its more regal lion status in a few years. $40 A-
• 2018 Two Hands Wines Angel’s Share Shiraz (McLaren Vale): A dollop of manly, a splash of feminine, and a heap of delightful. $33 A-

With tomorrow being the single most important day of the U.S. calendar year (yes, I’m talking about Thanksgiving… also, please take down your prematurely, poorly-timed Christmas decorations you noob), I thought it decent timing to train your attention on some potential holiday shopping recommendations, as culled from my cache of mostly-inedible product samples. By the way, if you came here looking for Turkey Day wine pairing ideas, you absolutely do not know me very well, as my advice for that particular chestnut of a problem hasn’t changed one iota over the last several years.

Eravino’s sure-thing (image: Amazon)

Anyway…. in this round-up case, I write “mostly-inedible” because one of them actually involves (eventually) wine that you can drink. Anyway, it’ll all make sense in a couple of minutes.

First up is the quick-hit, almost-surefire-slam-dunk gift option for wine lovers: Eravino’s simple and stylish wine decanter (about $30). There’s not much to say about this full-bottle sized beauty, apart from the fact that it’s mouth-blown crystal glass; and that simplicity is what makes this almost certainly a sure bet as a gift. The classic look and fair price combo in this case is just pretty difficult to beat…

I taste a bunch-o-wine (technical term for more than most people). So each week, I share some of my wine reviews (mostly from samples) and tasting notes in a “mini-review” format.
 
They are meant to be quirky, fun, and (mostly) easily-digestible reviews of (mostly) currently available wines (click here for the skinny on how to read them), and are presented links to help you find them, so that you can try them out for yourself. Cheers!

• 2018 Weingut Stift Klosterneuburg Hengsberg Gruner Veltliner (Wagram): Veggies, minerals, and fruit… so basically the entire garden is on display here. $24 B+
• NV Weingut Stift Klosterneuburg Klostersekt Brut (Niederosterreich): Peaches and cream, Austrian style; which means a sprinkling of austerity throughout. $NA B+
• 2017 Weingut Tom Dockner Hochschopf Pinot Noir (Niederosterreich): A raspberry flame – fine, light, transparent, wild, and intense. $NA B+
• 2017 Markus Huber Himmelreich Spatburgunder (Niederosterreich): Tea, fine meats, black cherries, all served up on shining china plates in an old European mansion. $NA B+
• 2014 Barone Pizzini Saten (Franciacorta): Sure you like ’em elegant, but how about elegant *and* yeasty? $45 A-
• 2018 Dominio del Plata Crios de Susana Balbo Torrontes (Argentina): Flowers up in your grill, just the way that it ought to be. $15 B
• 2016 Duckhorn Vineyards Merlot (Napa Valley): Spices in spades, though not all of them are playing nice together… $54 A-
• 2018 Eberle ‘Cotes-du-Robles Blanc’ (Paso Robles): When you need your roundness to be zestier, or your zesty-ness to be rounder. $26 B+
• 2017 Gundlach-Bundschu Estate Vineyard Mountain Cuvee (Sonoma Valley): Presenting juiciness as an overriding directive. $22 B+
• NV Warre’s King’s Tawny Port (Portugal): Ticking all of the main boxes – spicy, powerful, succulent. $22 B+