Stefan Dolhain

9.7

2020 vintage. A class act, impeccably balanced, layered, concentrated and very elegant, with silky tannins and an impressive finish. — 5 months ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.3

Medium lemon yellow . Quite young appearance still quite a bit of oak on the nose , then lemon rind , touch of honey , wax , slightly herbal touch. Intense on the palate with lemon rind , wax and honied notes . Quite rich palate , but with good balancing acidity and grip, balanced alcohol . Medium length , slightly toasty finish . Still young , drinkable now and over the 10 years. — 2 years ago

Tom Casagrande

9.2

Delicious aperitif Riesling. Beautifully pure appley fruit just hinting at peach. Clean subtle stony minerality. Nice acids balancing out the slight fruity sweetness on the palate. — 2 years ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.4

Pretty deep colour . Still quite deep fruited , mint blackcurrant , spice , violet . Nice weight on the palate with nice detailed black fruits. Really nice definition with a touch of spice , dried herbs. Nice balancing acidity , with rounded tannins just still noticeable. Good length, really balanced and incredibly enjoyable. Enjoyed over 2 and half hours with no oxidation . This is at it’s peak now , if you have them open the bottles ! — 3 years ago

Kyle Davidson

9.5

Truly special wine, balancing assertive acidity w perfect ripeness, red fruits and earth/savory notes mingle and harmonize along a very lengthy well structured finish. Despite its technical perfection it is wild and free. — 4 years ago

Byron C Mayes

9.1

Deep gold. Nose and palate yield candied apricot, honey, white flowers, baked peach, and pineapple birthday cake. Perfect balancing acidity. Lingering finish extends the palate. Geez! And this isn’t even a Premier Cru. Drink now through forever. — 5 years ago

Carter Pelham

9.4

Ripe fruits, black cherry, cherry cola, raspberry, blackberry
Salty, smoky, cured meat savoriness, slight herbal character
Medium to full bodied with balancing acidity, the palate has a refreshing tart red cherry note. Long finish.
A really nice Sonoma coast PN, if a bit bigger than I personally like — 5 years ago

with Linh and Larry

Freddy R. Troya

9.0

Macchia – Delicious Barbera 2023
Lodi, California – USA 🇺🇸

Overview
Barbera may be native to Italy, but in Lodi it thrives in the warm days and cool nights, producing generous, fruit-driven wines. Macchia has built a reputation for crafting some of the most expressive New World Barberas, with a track record of winning international medals (including Gold at the International Barbera Competition in Italy for earlier vintages). This 2023 vintage keeps that pedigree alive with a vibrant, approachable style.

Aromas & Flavors
Explodes with blackberry, ripe plum, and dark cherry layered with chocolate, spice, and hints of licorice. There’s an intensity of fruit without losing freshness, showing why Barbera adapts so beautifully outside its homeland.

Mouthfeel
Juicy, full of energy, with supple tannins and balancing acidity. Medium-plus body with a long, fruit-forward finish dusted with cocoa and spice.

Food Pairing
Pairs effortlessly with rich tomato pasta, grilled lamb chops, or a hearty sausage pizza. Also excellent with strong cheeses that complement its ripe fruit core.

The Verdict
Macchia delivers again with a Barbera that’s as delicious as its name. The 2023 vintage stands out as a casual yet compelling New World take on an Old World classic—backed by a winery whose style already carries international pedigree.

✨ Personal highlight: This wine style has pedigree from past events, but the 2023 is very much its own statement. It’s “delicious” in every sense and shows how consistent Macchia has been across vintages. Cheers! — 9 months ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.1

Medium to light ruby , wide ruby garnet rim . Spiced red cherries , with raspberry jam , menthol , grafite , liquorice touches. On the palate juicy spiced sweet red fruits with those liquorice notes and dried herbs. Good balancing acidity and velvety but grippy tannins and slightly noticeable alcohol. Good length with a liquorice, cherry tinged finish. Enjoyable now though will age well over the next 10 years or so . — 2 years ago

Vanessa

9.1

This wine has a deep ruby hue with medium(+) intensity of ripe and supple black plum, red plum, fig, black cherry, blackcurrant, blackberry, violet, licorice, leather, sweet tobacco, cedar box, nutmeg, cardamom, coconut, and dill notes.

On the palate, this wine is dry with medium(+) acidity balancing smooth medium(+) tannins and the ripeness of aroma and flavor characteristics. It is delicious!!! And complex. It has runway for further aging in bottle. — 3 years ago

with Deked1

Stefan Dolhain

9.3

2017 vintage. Lemon confit, roasted pineapple, quince, honey and a hint of fresh mint leaves. Very elegant with bright mouthwatering acidity balancing the layered sweetness. Long almondy finish. Reasonably priced for this quality. Highly recommended. — 4 years ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.3

2018 vintage. Rich, seductive nose. Supple medium-heavy chassis. Youthful but fairly showy with sumptuous baby fat, blue fruit and lavender/dill comprising the final act. Would love to taste this again in 7–10 years. — 5 years ago

Cathy Corison

Owner/Winemaker Corison Winery

8.9

Leather, blackberries, earth, spice, lavender. Black cherries. Long. Balancing bitterness. — 5 years ago

Conrad Green

9.6

Loads of extract and zip. Quite ripe but with brilliant balancing acidity. Intense and long. Delicious — a year ago

with Chris, Matt and 2 others

Andrew Formi

9.0

Tough 2nd act after S/O Serbia 21 — 2 years ago

Ian Hamel

9.4

2023/4 holidays. Classic and wonderful - hugely aromatic, hints of flor / salinity but lots of nutty, caramel and dried fruit character give a sense of sweetness though the wine is dry, making it a great partner for aged hard cheeses. Good balancing acidity too. — 2 years ago

Stefan Dolhain

9.7

2019 vintage. An extraordinary wine, a blend of 88% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc. Beautiful nose with roses, strawberries, amarena cherries, and subtle vanilla. A class act with wonderful elegance, depth, precision, and an amazingly long,mineral finish. Abv. 14,5%. — 3 years ago

Lyn Farmer

9.1

Very elegant with Medium intensity aromas and flavors of apple, pineapple, apricot, white peach, nectarine, elderflower, brioche, clove, vanilla and smoke.
Hint of dried apricot and honey.
Very good quality, balancing aromatics with a hint of oak. Interesting style with batonnage, 18% new French oak — 3 years ago

Aaron Tan

8.9

"You didn't know Krug's oxidative?"

While I've had my fair share of Krug over the years, I've never found any as oxidative as this 06' (save for a few suspect bottles), which led me to proclaim that the bottle was less-than-pristine. Normally this would not have been strange given the abysmal state of cold chain in Malaysia, but GL was quick to rebut with the statement above.

He's had far more Krug than I have you see - decades, instead of years - so he may well be right here. It could have been the vintage, or my palate, or just needed more air to blossom - whatever the case, this certainly fell below expectations. Sure it was dense and quite linear, and Krug does indeed lie in the school of oxidative champagnes, but this just lacked the balancing freshness that one would expect from a producer of this caliber. The straw that broke the camel's back for me was a distinct musky note that I see so often in ill-stored whites, and abhor. So the real question is - was GL right? Is this a typical Krug 06'? I believe another specimen is required to draw proper judgement. — 4 years ago

Aaron Rankin

9.2

Nose is multidimensional which consistently reveals the tasting profile. Rich, creamy foundation with Meyer lemon, pineapple, and apricot poking through. Structurally matches with nice acid balancing the richness. This is rounder and softer than I expected for a young Peay. Drinking very well already. — 5 years ago