Freddy R. Troya

9.4

Piaggia Carmignano Riserva 2021
Carmignano DOCG – Tuscany – Italy 🇮🇹

Overview
A compelling Tuscan blend composed primarily of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Cabernet Franc, crafted by Piaggia, one of Carmignano’s benchmark estates, recognized for low yields, concentration, and precision-driven winemaking while preserving regional identity. The 2021 vintage beautifully captures the structured, terroir-focused soul of Carmignano without leaning into excessive ripeness or modern exaggeration.

Aromas & Flavors
Black cherry, ripe plum, dried herbs, tobacco leaf, cedar, earthy undertones, and subtle graphite unfold with remarkable balance and restraint. Dark fruit remains fresh and vibrant rather than jammy, allowing savory and mineral nuances to shine through.

Mouthfeel
Medium+ bodied with elevated tension, polished yet firm tannins, and beautifully integrated acidity. Structured and intentional, carrying both power and elegance through a long, refined finish.

Food Pairings
Excellent with bistecca alla Fiorentina, grilled lamb chops, wild boar ragù, roasted meats, or aged cheeses such as Pecorino Toscano or Parmigiano Reggiano.

Verdict
A serious and historically compelling Tuscan red that feels refreshingly authentic in a world often dominated by overhyped “Super Tuscans.” Piaggia delivers structure, terroir expression, and sophistication without sacrificing regional character. This is Tuscany speaking fluently through discipline and balance rather than sheer opulence.

Did You Know?
Long before the “Super Tuscan” movement emerged, Carmignano producers were already legally blending Sangiovese with Cabernet Sauvignon as far back as the 1700s, after Cabernet vines were introduced to Tuscany under the Medici family. In many ways, Carmignano quietly pioneered the concept centuries earlier.

🍷 Personal Pick
This is exactly the kind of under-the-radar Tuscan wine that rewards drinkers looking beyond prestige labels and chasing authenticity, structure, and historical soul instead. Cheers! — 13 days ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.0

Blend of 45% Cab Sauv, 45% Monastrell & 10% Syrah, a blend from vines averaging 50 years old, aged for 12 months in French and American oak barrels separately before blending. Deep Ruby with aromas of red/black fruit and spicy notes. On the palate flavors of cherry and black currants, espresso and smoky oak notes. Firm ripe tannins, medium finish ending with fruit, oak and earthy spice. Good value! — 3 years ago

Christopher Taylor

9.6

Virtasant/Antica Terra wine blending — 5 years ago

Julia Indik

9.3

Dark and inky strands blending chocolate, coffee, fig, blackberries, and cedar. Dry tannins in a long finish. 77% cabernet franc, 17% merlot, 6% Cabernet Sauvignon — 5 years ago

with Robert

Freddy R. Troya

9.3

Penfolds Bin 389 Cabernet Shiraz 2023
South Australia 🇦🇺

Overview
A more tightly wound and concentrated expression of Bin 389, showcasing the same Cabernet-Shiraz framework (Cabernet for backbone, Shiraz for richness) but delivered with greater tension, density, and youthful drive. This vintage leans more serious and structured than 2022, highlighting the fascinating impact vintage conditions have on balance, ripeness, and extraction in agricultural wines.

Aromas & Flavors
Intense blackcurrant, crushed blackberry, dark cherry, and graphite dominate the aromatics, layered with fresh cedar, cocoa nib, and subtle minty spice. The palate is compact and powerful, showing darker fruit concentration, savory spice, and tightly coiled oak structure that promises excellent evolution with time.

Mouthfeel
Full-bodied and more compact than the 2022. Tannins are firmer and more youthful, giving a punchier, more linear profile. The wine feels energetic and focused, with impressive density and length, clearly built for further integration.

Food Pairings
Char-grilled steak or venison. Slow-braised beef cheeks. Pepper-crusted lamb. Smoked meats and firm aged cheeses.

Verdict
A bolder, more muscular Bin 389 that trades immediate plushness for intensity and aging potential. A striking reminder of how vintage variation shapes personality, same blueprint, very different expression.

Did You Know?
Penfolds sources fruit for Bin 389 from multiple South Australian regions, blending different terroirs and climates to build complexity, consistency, and layered structure across vintages.

🍷 Personal Pick
If you enjoy tracking wine evolution, this is a fantastic candidate for short-to-mid-term cellaring, revisit in a few years to watch the structure melt into harmony. Also check my previous 2022 review!
— 4 months ago

William Douglas

9.6

2014 vintage. 3 hour decant.
3/6.5/9.5 = 19 out of 100 say 96.
High quality Barossa Shiraz with an awesome bouquet apparent as soon as it’s released from the bottle (though I always think blending Viognier is cheating in that regard). Still a strong tannin/acid structure so still not at its peak - say 5 years more at least. High alcohol content but integrated perfectly - didn’t even notice. Really pleasant long linger. Standish is an artist so you must collect and try. My next move is to try back to back with a Yarra Yering Dry Red No. 2 — 2 years ago

Byron C Mayes

8.9

Clear dark ruby. Inviting nose of black cherry and cranberry. Medium full palate echoes the nose adding red apple peel and on the finish, a hint of vanilla and a touch of balsam. Medium tannins that assert on the finish as well. Mouthwatering medium plus acidity wraps it all up. A classic Willamette PN blending New World fruit with Old World style and structure. A universal red that’s ready for nearly any cuisine. Drink now through 2028 with some minor development. — 4 years ago

Vin d’Ottawa

9.2

A beautifully elegant fruit forward wine using the grapes from Stanners’ own vineyard & blending them with the grapes from Devil’s Wishbone. The first taste is restrained & austere before the fruit bursts forward.

Prince Edward County remains the best spot in Canada for show stopping Pinot Noir. — 4 months ago

with Gillian

David White

9.3

Deep ruby colour with aromatic notes on nose with berry flavours with hints of chassis and tobacco on palate well balanced although still some acidity as under screw cap but sure to develop and mellow further.
An excellent example of Margaret River Bordeaux blending. — a year ago

Paul T, Missing My Beautiful Wife 24/7

9.5

A steal on auction
I wouldn’t consider it a 🥩 wine but great with charcuterie
Web info
Chateau Valandraud is represented by the passion of a couple: Jean-Luc Thunevin and Murielle Andraud. Following the great success with the wine merchant business in Saint Emilion, they opened their own vineyard to produce their own wine.
In 1989, they bought a small parcel of 0.6 hectare (1.48 acres) located in a small valley near Saint Emilion between Pavie-Macquin and La Clotte. The origin of the wine name is as much geographic (Val: Vallon de Fongaban), as sentimental (Andraud: Murielle’s maiden name). Thus Chateau Valandraud was born.
Little by little, Jean-Luc and his wife purchased several other parcels of vines, and now, the domain represents a total surface of 10 hectares (24.71 acres), located in various areas of Saint Emilion. The diversity of soils and varietals permit the production of 6 different wines: Chateau Valandraud, Chateau Valandraud Casher, Virginie de Valandraud and the 3 de Valandraud (the second wine of Chateau Valandraud and Virginie de Valandraud), Blanc de Valandraud N° 1 and N° 2.
The final blending of the various parcels occurs in the month of March, following a blind tasting with the help of the world famous oenologist, Michel Rolland. — 3 years ago