We taste up to 800 wines every week at the moment, and we compile our findings into a Weekly Tasting Report. We don’t think any other wine media organization is publishing so many new tasting notes so quickly. Many of the ratings we publish are for wines tasted just the previous day! And because so many of the wines we taste are the latest releases, often not yet available in the market, this ensures that all Premium Subscribers of JamesSuckling.com (who get access to the latest wine scores and tastings notes) are among the first to learn about the newest wines.
We are now also collating all the ratings published in a month in one large single report for your convenience, too. You can read about the wines below, and subscribers can access the scores and tasting notes in the ratings list at the bottom of this article.
We published 1,762 wine ratings in December, from 19 countries. Here’s how the tastings broke down (you can click “sort by” in the notes search engine below to search by each individual country): Argentina: 1; Australia: 97; Austria: 17; Brazil: 1; Chile: 4; China: 51; France: 667; Germany: 74; Hungary: 2; Italy: 239; Lebanon: 1; New Zealand: 20; Peru: 6; Portugal: 19; South Africa: 395; Spain: 21; Switzerland: 2; United States.: 143; Uruguay: 2.
France and South Africa featured big over the course of our December tastings, with more than half the wines we rated during the month coming from these two countries. The classic wine region of Bordeaux was a particular focus, with the JamesSuckling.com Tasting Team tapping into hundreds of bottles from the area, mostly from the 2019 vintage.
Thomas Duclos, one of the top consulting enologists in Bordeaux, said he preferred 2019 to 2018 because 2019 represented an evolution toward making “great wines more accessible in their younger years,” and James agreed, saying 2019 generally showed slightly fresher acidity and firmer tannins. But what James really liked was the “incredible transparency” of the 2019s, such as the Chateau La Conseillante Pomerol or Château Palmer Margaux. These wines “seemed wonderfully tailored and fine cut,” James said, “and clearly live up to their barrel samples, or even better.” The tastings of wines from smaller Bordeaux producers from lesser appellation, however, were slightly inconsistent.
We also tapped into some 2020 Beaujolais, including from Georges Duboeuf, although James didn’t think the 2020s had quite the same quality level as the superb 2019 and 2018, coming in with less depth and richness.
And of course with the holiday season in full swing during the past month we couldn’t help but uncork a few bottles of the bubbly. Which Champagnes excited us? Associate Editor Claire Nesbitt said the Salon Champagne Brut Blanc de Blancs 2012 reached the same levels as the structured 2008, with the 100 percent Grand Cru chardonnay a refined and layered pour, with enticing aromas of jasmine, apricots, juniper and tangerine.
Salon’s sister house, Champagne Delamotte, also delivered with their non-vintage blanc de blancs, their blanc de blancs 2014, and their non-vintage rosé. They all displayed outstanding freshness and elegance. Claire also came across an interesting 100 percent pinot noir Champagne from Billecart-Salmon called Les Rendez-Vous de Billecart-Salmon No. 2 Extra Brut. It’s a blend of mostly 2014 with some reserve wines from 2012 thrown in, and Claire talked with Billecart-Salmon CEO Mathieu Roland-Billecart about the latest release in a Zoom interview, right.
Senior Editor Stuart Pigott rated some outrageous Champagnes in a historical tasting, including a Moët & Chandon Champagne Grand Vintage Collection 1959, while James said of the Louis Roederer Champagne Cristal Vinothèque 2000 he rated that it “seems to be at its peak and is showing all the character and texture of an aged Champagne.”
Many of the South African wines we rated were pleasant and even humble in quality, but should still satisfy at their normally value-oriented price. The standouts from South Africa, though, were chenin blancs. Chenin, known as “steen” in South Africa, is the most exciting grape in the country, and can equal the best from France’s Vouvray or other parts of the Loire Valley. The three single-vineyard chenins we rated from the David & Nadia winery, including the David & Nadia Chenin Blanc Swartland Skaliekap Single Vineyard Wine 2020, ticked all the boxes for real chenin character and are not to be missed. We will be writing about all the South African wines we tasted in 2021 in an upcoming report. Stay tuned!
Out of the United States, James tasted the new releases from one of his favorite wineries, Peter Michael in Knights Valley, California. In a Zoom call he had with the Peter Michael team, they were clearly excited about the 2019 releases, from the fresh and intense Sonoma Coast pinots to the rich yet framed Napa cabernet.
“It was a mild summer and not much in the way of heat spikes,” said Peter Michael’s winemaker, Robert Fiore. “So, it helped preserve that freshness and finesse. Plus, it has a little more fruit [character] than other years. That’s why 2019 was a great year.” The Peter Michael Winery Chardonnay Sonoma County Knights Valley Ma Belle-Fille 2019 was especially impressive, showing fantastic complexity and depth, with richness and flavors as well as an underlying freshness and minerality.
James also uncovered a couple other really great reds from Northern California: the exceptional-quality Joseph Phelps Pinot Noir Sonoma County Sonoma Coast Freestone Estate Proem No.1 2018 and the fabulous Quintessa Napa Valley Rutherford 2019, which was equal in quality to its legendary 2018. You should also check out another beauty from 2018 – the Dolum Estates Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Oakville 2018, which is so true to its appellation with a richness and dense center palate alongside dry earth and tile to the ripe fruits, yet it is fresh and so drinkable already.
We also rated many wines from Virginia in the United States, and will publish a special report on those tastings this month.
If you’re looking for precision with opulence in your wine, we have the shiraz of your dreams in the Shiraz Barossa Valley The Standish, a single-vineyard marvel from 2019. Contributing Editor Nick Stock also rated a few other standouts from Australia, including a super, rarified red: the Cullen Margaret River Vanya Flower Day 2018. Its sister wine, the Cullen Margaret River Vanya Full Moon 2017, was equally fantastic – floral and ethereal and altogether different from the other Vanya bottlings to date. The Shaw + Smith Chardonnay Adelaide Hills M3 is a long-time favorite of James that Nick also rated, and the 2020 delivers fantastic quality.
From Australia’s antipodean neighbor, New Zealand, we uncovered a couple compelling pinot noirs in the Greystone Pinot Noir Waipara Valley Vineyard Ferment 2019, which Claire found “vibrant and wild,” as well as Prophet’s Rock Pinot Noir Central Otago Cuvée Aux Antipodes 2019, which has a nice combination of Central Otago character with Burgundy’s Côte de Nuits.
And our monthly tasting wouldn’t be complete if we didn’t delve into some Sicilian wines, and we found a very pure and attractive offering from the Etna region in the Nicolò Grippaldi Nero d’Avola Sicilia Salvatore Grippaldi 2019, which comes from a hand-manicured, biodynamic vineyard. Tasting Editor Jo Cooke also tasted some “fun” sparkling Italian wines from the region of Lake Garda, Lugana, including the Perla del Garda Lugana Millesimato 12 Brut Nature 2012, which he described as “crisp and fresh with some complexity.” And it’s made from trebbiano!
There were also a few Brunello di Montalcino 2017s and Riserva 2016s that stood out in our Italian tastings, with the highlight being the Castello Romitorio Brunello di Montalcino Filo di Seta Riserva 2016, which was one of the most powerfully structured Brunellos from the 2016 James encountered all year – a barrel selection of the best production from a unique vineyard.
Meanwhile, Stuart also touted the 2019 dry whites from Fritz Wassmer in the German wine region of Baden, saying the three chardonnays he rated from there were “game-changing wines for this grape in Germany.” Stuart also highly rated the Günther Steinmetz Riesling Mosel Dhroner Grosser Hengelberg Monopollage Reservé 2020, which is one of the best ever from an underrated vineyard that Stuart admires.
Finally, Associate Editor Zekun Shuai tasted the Long Dai Qiushan 瓏岱丘山 2019 out of China’s Shandong Peninsula, saying it was a “complete wine” with slightly riper and richer tannins and more fruit than the fantastic 2018.
There were also bottles from Brazil, Hungary, Lebanon, Peru and Uruguay that we rated. There are at least a few keepers among them, but read the tasting notes on each to find the ones that are right for your wine list. With that, we turn to 2022…
– Vincent Morkri
Note: You can sort the wines below by country, vintage, score, and alphabetically by winery name, and can search for specific wines in the search bar.
