Left: James with a 50-year-old Port from Sandeman. | Center: the Gulf of Saint Vincent, McLaren Vale | Right: Senior Editor Zekun Shuai called the Lustau Jerez Oloroso VORS 30 Years Old a "mind-blowing sherry."

Our monthly tasting report for May comprised more than 3,000 offerings from a variety of producers across 21 countries, including outliers like Romania, Denmark and Georgia. But it was the old reliables that topped the charts once again, starting with Portugal and its rare tawny Ports. Five of our top 10 rated wines for the month were tawnies, led by the century-old (and perfect-scoring) Niepoort Port Very Old Tawny 1863.

James Suckling found during his trip to Portugal that the market for premium fortified bottles is shifting toward outstanding-quality tawnies over vintage Port, with producers like Symington Family Estates adding 50-year-old blends to their lineup of age-designated Ports. James likes the new category, which includes bottles from Graham’s, Taylor’s and Sandeman, better than the 40-year-old category because the former “show a more typical character for their age.”

Even more fortified wines came from neighboring Spain, which contributed 1,117 bottles to our monthly tastings. Right at the top was a “mind-blowing sherry,” according to Senior Editor Zekun Shuai – the Lustau Jerez Oloroso VORS 30 Years Old. This was from a selection of nine old sherry casks in a solera founded 100 years ago, bottled without any filtration. “It is awe-inspiring for the concentration and saltiness on the palate and is full of nuanced oxidative complexity,” Zekun said about it. “The intensity is almost painful on the palate, which is round and verges on being unctuous – but it rolls out a tangy yet mouthwatering and persistent finish.”

Out of Spain’s Catalonia region, Familia Torres impressed with its refined and drinkable yet serious reds. The family secret in making more gastronomic wines: “We focus on increasing the content of organic matters in the soils, such as the use of organic compost, which increases soil fertility, pushing the vigor of the vineyard so the vines are less susceptible to drought,” Josep Sabarich, the technical director of Familia Torres, told Zekun during a Zoom call. Their Torres Conca de Barberà Grans Muralles 2019 is both deep and fragrant, with racy red and blue fruit and a fantastic structure.

And the underdog Spanish variety bobal also showed well in our May tastings, with the wonderfully austere, single-vineyard Bodegas y Viñedos Ponce Bobal Manchuela La Estrecha 2021 and Bodegas y Viñedos Ponce Bobal Manchuela Pino 2021 being two great examples of how bobal showcases diverse expressions of terroir, but always with a Mediterranean flair. Another bobal to look out for is the Mikaela Bobal Tierra de Castilla La Infanta Viñas Viejas de Cuenca 2020 – a concentrated and more eclectic expression of the variety with impressive depth of dark, balsamic fruit and powdery tannins, Zekun said.

The wonderfully austere Bodegas y Viñedos Ponce Bobal Manchuela La Estrecha 2021

Senior Editor Stuart Pigott put the finishing touches on his Rhone report last month, with one of his last visits to the region also one of his best. “For us, Pierre Gonon is one of the leading winemakers of the entire region, and his Pierre Gonon St. Joseph 2020 is a near-perfect expression of syrah in the northern Rhone,” he said, adding that his tasting in the Pierre Gonon cellar was a “magical moment.”

Jean Gonon (left), who runs Pierre Gonon wines with his brother Pierre, walks Senior Editor Stuart Pigott through the cellar of the winery.

Another syrah standout was the Alain Graillot Crozes-Hermitage 2021, which Tasting Manager Kevin Davy described as having a “very pure and floral nose, with a succulent core of redcurrant and violets. “

Two more wines out of France that impressed were the Muré Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Vorbourg Clos Saint Landelin 2019, which Stuart called “truly spectacular” because of its power and massive structure, as well as Brad Pitt’s Fleur de Miraval Champagne Exclusivement Rosé 3, which James called “fantastic,” with the latest vintage showing “the most class and finesse of them all.” Check out James’ video chat (above) with the assistant winemaker, Alexis Blondel, to find out more about the wine.

Tobias Lorenz and his wife, Christine, of Weingut Lorenz, who made some great single-vineyard rieslings in 2021.

And in neighboring Germany, Stuart ran into a few young winemakers churning out some revelatory offerings. One, Simone Adams, made the “remarkable” Adams Wein Spätburgunder Rheinhessen Pares 2020, which Stuart said “was like discovering there was a top Burgundian domaine that nobody knew about!”

Another, Tobias Lorenz in the Mosel region, made the dry Lorenz Riesling Mosel Held GG 2021. “When I smelled this wine I could almost hear the bees buzzing as they collect nectar in a garden full of flowers,” Stuart said of it. “It has astonishing richness and structure for the challenging vintage.”

The third rising German star, Maximilian Knebel, is also from the Mosel and made the Weinbau Maximilian Knebel Riesling Mosel Winninger Uhlen 2021, which Stuart called “a sleek, concentrated and intensely mineral dry riesling” that “is in every sense a brilliant wine.”

Staying in Europe, Senior Editor Ned Goodwin MW uncovered some high-quality white wines during his travels in Campania, Italy – a region perhaps better known for its complex reds. Ned’s favorite was from the 2021 vintage – the straight-shooting, fresh and mineral Tenuta de Meriggio Fiano 2021. But he also found great value in the wines of Laura de Vito, a fiano specialist, whose Villa Raiano Greco di Tufo Ponte dei Santi 2021 “evinces an additional structural element following time on skins.”

Ned also visited two great wine-producing regions in his home country, Australia. The first was the geologically diverse McLaren Vale, where certified organic and biodynamic wineries and groundbreaking initiatives like a water-recycling program have lifted the viniculture and led to higher-quality wines. In addition to its “world-class” grenache, McLaren Vale’s “better expressions of nero d’avola, aglianico (check out S.C. Pannell’s), mourvedre (mataro) and solo and blended riffs on grenache blanc, gris, picpoul and other Mediterranean grapes are unequivocally among the most exciting wines in Australia,” Ned said.

The Bondar Grenache McLaren Vale Higher Springs 2022, he said, “showcases the attenuated ripening of this exceptional, Euro-styled vintage,” while the Brash Higgins Carignan McLaren Vale CRGN 2021 “is also wonderful drinking across a firm bone of tannin, saline freshness and dried Mediterranean herb, typical of carignan.”

The tasting room for Ned Goodwin MW in Australia's McLaren Vale.

In the Adelaide Hills region, Ned found a change in the stylistic patina of the wines after fires strafed the northern parts in the summer of 2019-2020. Now, he said “many parts of the region are now simply too warm” for some varieties, especially pinot noir, although gamay was better and showed real promise at ArtWine and Golding Wines. He also found a solid sauvignon blanc in the Grounded Cru Adelaide Hills Cru 2022, as well as a couple of worthy expressions of chardonnay, including Shaw + Smith’s M3 2022 and Coulter Wines’ Chardonnay Adelaide Hills C1 2022.

In Victoria, Ned found “the finest syrah in Australia, if not the New World” in the Castagna Shiraz Beechworth Genesis 2019, which he said is a reflection of Julian Castagna’s love of Cote-Rotie and his comprehension of “the greats,” while he said the Barossa Valley’s Alkina Grenache Polygon No. 3 2021 was “among the finest iterations of straight grenache in the world.”

James also dipped into some Barossa Valley wines, rating all the new releases of Torbreck Vintners and coming away “excited by the quality” of their 2021s. He had a Zoom chat (below left) with Ian Hongell, the head of the winery, who explained more about how the very cool and long vintage’s extra “hang time” for the fruit made for more balanced, refined, structured, and coolly flavorful reds.

James also tasted some standout single-vineyard pinot noirs from the state of Oregon. The wines of Rose & Arrow Estate, in Willamette Valley, come from parcels of volcanic soils that James said “seems to give the wines more structure and intensity than most pinot noirs from Oregon, with a chewy and linear tannin quality enhanced by forest floor and bark, pine and wet earth aromas and flavors. James preferred their 2019s, which came from a cooler growing season, over the hotter 2020, but try both and see.

A few of the exciting wines we tasted from Puchang Vineyard in China.

And if you’re looking for a daring and exciting Czech wine, check out the latest offerings from Gurdau winery, the most remarkable of which is the Gurdau Riesling Moravia Stára Hora 2021 – a dry riesling that Stuart said reminded him of a top Wachau wine, but with fresher acidity.

Zekun also tasted and rated a few Chinese wines during the month, with the rare Caucasian grape varieties rkatsiteli and saperavi proving superb in expressing the oasis terroir Puchang Vineyard sits on in the hot, dry and barren Turpan Valley in China’s Xinjiang region. Two of their outstanding offerings were the Puchang Vineyard Rkatsiteli Xinjiang Turpan 蒲昌酒庄白羽 2020 and Puchang Vineyard Saperavi Turpan Viaseres 蒲昌酒庄精选纱布拉维 2017.

– Vince Morkri, Managing Editor

Note: You can sort the wines below by country, vintage, score and alphabetically by winery name. You can also search for specific wines in the search bar.

Tasting Notes

Niepoort Port Very Old Tawny 1863

Country Portugal

Region Douro

Vintage 1863

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May 2023 Tasting Report: Top Tawnies, German Revelations and Digging In Down Under

Tasting Notes

Niepoort Port Very Old Tawny 1863

Douro Boys Port Very Old Tawny

Taylor’s Port Very Very Old Tawny

Graham’s Port 50 Year Old Tawny

Muré Riesling Alsace Grand Cru Vorbourg Clos Saint Landelin 2019

Pierre Gonon St.-Joseph 2020

Rose & Arrow Estate Pinot Noir Willamette Valley Eola-Amity Hills Stonecreek 2019

Taylor’s Port Very Very Old Tawny King Charles III

Adams Wein Spätburgunder Rheinhessen Pares 2020

Alkina Grenache Barossa Valley Polygon No. 3 2020

Château Beauséjour Duffau-Lagarrosse St.-Emilion 2020

Evidence Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Mount Veeder Bruadair Vineyard Evidence of the Matter 2019

Fingers Crossed Grenache California 2020

Fleur de Miraval Champagne Exclusivement Rosé 3

Frankland Estate Frankland River Olmo's Reward 2020

Graham’s Vintage Port Single Harvest Tawny 1997

Lustau Jerez Oloroso VORS 30 years old

Mount Terrible Pinot Noir Victoria 2016

Niepoort Port Very Old Tawny Port VV

Quinta do Vallado Port Tributo 1866

Rose & Arrow Estate Pinot Noir Oregon Hopewell HIlls Gathered Stones 2018

Rose & Arrow Estate Pinot Noir Willamette Valley Eola-Amity Hills Stonecreek 2016

Rose & Arrow Estate Pinot Noir Willamette Valley Eola-Amity Hills Stonecreek 2018

Sandeman Port 50 Year Old Tawny

Taylor’s Port 50 Year Old Tawny Golden Age

Torbreck Shiraz Barossa Valley The Laird 2018

Torbreck Shiraz Viognier Barossa RunRig 2020

Adams Wein Spätburgunder Rheinhessen Horn 2020

Alkina Grenache Barossa Valley Polygon No. 5 2020

Bekkers Syrah McLaren Vale Clarendon Single Vineyard Selection 2021

Castagna Shiraz Beechworth Genesis 2019

Evidence Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Coombsville Immaculate Vineyard Evidence of Divine Intervention 2019

Ferrer Bobet Priorat Selecció Especial Vinyes Velles 2019

Giant Steps Chardonnay Yarra Valley Sexton Vineyard 2022

Jim Barry Shiraz Clare Valley The Armagh 2019

Lorenz Riesling Mosel Thörnicher Ritsch Spätlese Alte Reben 2021

Mount Terrible Pinot Noir Victoria 2018

Quinta da Romaneira Port Colheita 2007

Quinta da Romaneira Vintage Port 2011

Quinta do Vallado Port Very Old Tawny

Rose & Arrow Estate Pinot Noir Oregon Hopewell HIlls Gathered Stones 2019

Rose & Arrow Estate Pinot Noir Oregon Worden Hill Red Dust 2018

Sinss Riesling Nahe Römerberg Reserve Trocken 2020

Smidge Shiraz Barossa Valley Magic Dirt Penrice 2021

Torbreck Shiraz Eden Valley The Gask 2021

Torres Penedès Reserva Real 2019

Van Zellers & Co Port Colheita White Port 1940

Yarra Yering Yarra Valley Dry Red Wine No. 1 2021

Adams Wein Spätburgunder Rheinhessen Auf dem Haun 2020

Alain Graillot Crozes-Hermitage La Guiraude 2020

Alejandro Fernández Ribera del Duero Janus Pesquera Gran Reserva 2018

Alkina McLaren Vale Ex Libris 2022

Aquilini Cabernet Sauvignon Red Mountain Eroe 2019

Attis Bodegas y Viñedos Albariño Rías Baixas Embaixador 2020

Bodegas y Viñedos Ponce Bobal Manchuela La Estrecha 2021

Bodegas y Viñedos Ponce Bobal Manchuela Pino 2021

Castagna Beechworth La Chiave 2019

Cloudy Bay Sauvignon Blanc New Zealand Te Koko 2020

Dan Sheng Di Shangri-La Sulu Heritage de L’Himalaya 誕生地 ·蘇魯 2018

Domaine Vincent Paris Cornas La Geynale 2016

Donnachiara Greco di Tufo 2009

Fingers Crossed Syrah California 2020

Frankland Estate Riesling Frankland River Alter Weg 2022

Freemark Abbey Cabernet Bosche Napa Valley Rutherford 2019

Giant Steps Chardonnay Yarra Valley Applejack Vineyard 2022

Giant Steps Pinot Noir Yarra Valley Sexton Vineyard 2022

Graham’s Vintage Port Single Harvest Tawny 1974

Graham’s Vintage Port The Stone Terraces 2021

Jorge Ordoñez Málaga Moscatel Spain Esencia N.4 2015

Kloster Eberbach Spätburgunder Rheingau Berg Schlossberg GG 2020

Koerner Riesling Clare Valley Parish 2022

Le Petit Lion St.-Julien 2020

Lorenz Riesling Mosel Held GG 2021

Losada Vinos de Finca Mencía Bierzo Altos de Losada La Bienquerida 2021

Lustau Jerez Cream VORS 30 years old

Mas de Sainte Croix Côtes-du-Rhône Villages Valréas Quintessence 2019

Moss Wood Cabernet Sauvignon Margaret River 2020

Mount Terrible Pinot Noir Victoria 2019