Wine Reviews

90

Spasso 2023 Pinot Grigio, Delle Venezie, Italy ($12)

This $12 PG offers more aroma, flavor, and palate weight than most of its counterparts costing half again as much, along with open fruit flavors, fine acidic balance, and even a hint of the pleasant bitterness in the finish that offsets the wine’s natural fruit sweetness.

91

Summit Cabernet Sauvignon, Boxed Wine, 3L ($19)

Housed in 100% recyclable, SFI Certified packaging. Aromas of chocolate raspberry are mirrored on the palate. Sweet tobacco, blackberry, and roasted coffee bean show a complexity that proves this wine’s value.

89

Sunny with a Chance of Flowers 2023 Chardonnay, California ($17)

Like this brand’s 2024 Pinot Grigio, this includes just 9% alcohol and no sugar, but this offers more palate weight and pleasing peach fruit flavor. A touch of vanilla lends varietal authenticity, and though it remains light by comparison to standard-issue Chardonnays, it is much more convincing than any of the dozens of zero alcohol renditions of the grape that I’ve tried.

89

Sunny with a Chance of Flowers 2024 Pinot Grigio, California ($17)

With 9% alcohol and no sugar, this offers a compromise between “regular” wine and several types of virtually zero alcohol alternatives. By comparison almost all bottlings in the latter category, this is significantly more satisfying. The grapes were ripened fully and fermented to dryness before a portion of the alcohol was removed. Light but not watery, with simple but pure flavors, this is a success.

92

Tenshen 2022 Cabernet Sauvignon, Paso Robles ($25)

Ripe, with vivid notes of Mulberry, cinnamon, and red licorice. Holiday spices surround cherry jam and pastry. Fulfilling and juicy, with supple tannins and an overall dynamic presence.

89

The Barber & Son 2021 Red Wine Blend, California ($20)

Ripe, sweetly fruited, and with a punch of spice down the spine, this blend of Zinfandel, Petit Verdot, Tempranillo, Merlot, Petite Sirah, Pinot Noir, and Teroldego is plummy and spicy, with chocolate-coated cherries and a finishing sweep of vanilla, cinnamon, and kirsch. Pair with saucy barbecue.

93

The Four Graces 2023 Pinot Gris, Willamette Valley, OR ($35)

Aromas of honeyed pears, fig, and nutmeg draw you in to a well-defined white ensconced on a platform of minerality, honeycomb, and white peach. It brings to mind liquid sunshine spiced with candied ginger, honeysuckle, and a pinch of white pepper.

93

The Four Graces 2023 Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley, OR ($35)

Delicate notes of jasmine and rose petals, with a veil of white raspberry and cinnamon-lathered red beets. Stony soil notes are subtle and ignites a balanced acidity, freshening the palate.