Alexander Bastian Nielsen

9.3

A well balanced wine offering ripe apples, pear juice, yellow cherries, lemon peel, roasted and grinded hazelnuts, sourdough, cream, butter, white roses, white tea with jasmine and a complex mix of mushroom, earth and stemmed ginger. Super delicious — 9 months ago

Vanessa

9.1

What a beautiful spring day in Minnesota!

The glorious, golden sunshine called us outdoors and inspired us to crack into this 2012 Arnot-Roberts “Amphora” Ribolla Gialla.

We had the pleasure of blind tasting the 2010 vintage when we visited Arnot-Roberts last year. Check out my IG post (@Sips_Ensemble) from June 9, 2022 for more details on that magical visit!

This wine is made from the Ribolla Gailla variety, an ancient and rare grape grown most notably in the Friuli region of northeastern Italy and neighboring Goriška Brda region of Slovenia (where it’s called Rebulla).

Here is a lovely Napa expression coming from the Vare Vineyard in Napa’s Oak Knoll District, which is farmed organically by the esteemed Steve Matthiasson. Growing Ribolla in the Vare Vineyard dates back to 2001, when cuttings were brought over from Friuli, Italy for planting.

Settled at the base of the bottle we can see the lees (fine particles from the yeast), an indication this wine was likely unfiltered (or minimally filtered), lending richness and texture while also helping to preserve the wine.

It’s justifiably showing some signs of age with its deep golden hue and honeyed, nutty notes; yet it still offers round primary notes of yellow apple, bosc pear, quince, orange peel, grapefruit pith, cantaloupe, honeysuckle, white blossom, and wet slate, with a notable creaminess.

Cheers to sipping delicious wine on a delicious day! — 2 years ago

with Deked1

Joe Christenson

8.9

Very very light and diluted straw color. Lemon & honeysuckle on the nose. Palate is a bit heavier than I anticipated. Plenty of lemon citrus, white peach, nectarine, some green melon, underripe green pear, and some mineral notes. Tart, but lingers on the palate. I dislike using this word but it’s very quaffable, as they say 🙃. A crowd pleaser. — 4 years ago

Jennifer Haralson

9.1

Classic California Chardonnay fruit tones of pear and green apple with a creamy nectarine finish. Elegant like the label. Look forward to seeing how it opens up. Very nice🥰 — 5 years ago

Michael Seely

8.9

Bit of pear and melon. Finish had some sharp bitterness that did not compliment the entire palette. Temp was better than 56, thus smoke time to reduce these edges that didn’t completely happen. Otherwise approachable Chardonnay. — 7 years ago

with Jeff and Joe

David Price

9.1

Very good. Crisp, smooth, good amount of acidity. Fruits of pear, apricot and a hint of apple. — 7 years ago

Sean Lillibridge

9.5

This was a bit of a shocker. For $26 I expected some passable sparkling wine, on the order of J Cuvee 20. What we got was a gorgeous nose that leapt from the bottle with grilled pear. Creamy bubbles nearing what a fine champagne can do, a perfect, full but not syrupy mouth feel, and a finish that lasts about a minute, taking you on a tour of the grapes that went into the bottle. Stood up to bacon, mild cheddar, smoked Gouda and brie, and loved her bed goat cheese and manchego. This is damn good wine. — 9 years ago

James Bube

9.1

Wild at four days open. Bruised Pear in spades, saffron, wool, honey. — 10 years ago

Morgan Thompson

9.0

Slightly bubbly on opening. Moderate sweetness, rich tropical fruit flavors. Perfect with spicy Asian stir fry. — 10 years ago

Paul Weil

9.5

Bright apple flavors, not too sweet with a light cirrus bite at the end. Perfect accompaniment to spicy Asian food but goes well with Ethiopian or Jamaican also. — 12 years ago

Tom Garland

9.3

Pop and pour from MAG. A splendid light gold color. On the nose: apple, honeydew melon, banana, crushed stone, floral. Taste: still young at 11 years. Fresh, chalky, with depth and character. Notes of pear, nectarine, lemon & lime, and a white pepper minerally long lean finish. YUM! — 10 months ago

with Brenda

Matt Perlman

9.3

This Freddy’s ready. Deep straw gold color, nose has classic petrol, lemon, pear, apricot, quince bouquet, palate is bone dry, stony and racy — 2 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.0

Something different - a pear cider from Normandy produced from pear trees estimated to be about 300 years old. Poire Granit had 25 to 50 grams of sugar per litre yet it doesn’t taste particularly sweet. The nose and palate are nothing more complex than pear juice with a slight effervescent bubble. Very refreshing and only 6% ABV. I bought 2 other Cuvées from Eric Bordelet - one had zero ABV. Had a 2nd bottle 21 weeks later on 3rd January 2023 with consistent notes. Refreshing, tasty and uncomplicated. — 3 years ago

Joshua Hudson

9.2

Nice light, floral bouquet. Some may take this wine as one dimensional due to the prominent pear. But definitely has notes of almond and vanilla with pineapple in the aftertaste. Crisp, with medium acidity. Great by itself, excellent with seafood. — 5 years ago

Erica Gamble

9.3

Fresh lemon, grass, pear, dry, crisp. Delicious. — 6 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.6

Pale light yellow gold. Lively constant tiny bubbles. Deep round nose with high pitched fruit. Notes of pear, grapefruit, chalk and limestone. With more air you find some citrus and honeysuckle. Chewy in the mouth with great mouthfeel. Coats the entire mouth. Long finish lingers a minute or more. Velvet. Killer juice. Was inspired to open one of these after seeing a friend’s TN this weekend. Glad I did. — 7 years ago

Mike Fifer

Writer The Wine Monologues

9.0

Lemon and lime peel on nose. Palate of citrus and great pear at the back end. Delightful acidity. Great #QPR — 10 years ago

markus gould

9.0

quite frankly it's not an insider tip to present helmut / cornelius dönnhoff's jewels, but this (in austria) quite underrated wine may be one of the best of the kabinett vintage 2013! the acidity vibrantly merges with the 40g plus residual sugar (43,9 to be very precise); presenting stone fruit, touch of exotic fruits as melon and mango, citrus cest, white blossoms and salty finish - easy going and for contemplation at the same time. you wanna DRINK it - touché!

the recommendation for asian / fruit and herb driven cuisine is obvious... — 10 years ago

Rob Toups

9.8

Smooth, pear, pineapple....wonderful citrus finish. 2012 vintage, great bottle of wine — 11 years ago

Lee Pfannerstill

9.0

Fine bubbles pear apple — a year ago

with Peg

Ryan Guy

9.6

Fresh apricot, glazed almond, nutmeg, and cardamon spice. Layered with honeysuckle, pear, and green apple. There is a short crust, pear tart character on the nose. Still so grab and lively on the palate. Stone fruit, orchard fruit, toasted almonds, and Danish butter cookies. Linear acidity with bright, zesty finish with pithy lemon notes and tart apple. Lingering finish with a touch of warm spice. Waited a while to pop this one - it was well worth the wait! — 2 years ago

S T

9.2

Aromatic pear and apple, crisp, fresh acidity. — 3 years ago

Marissa

9.2

Crisp, lots of large bubbles, anjou pear with a light kumquat finish. A great everyday champagne. — 3 years ago

Weston Konishi

9.3

V18 disgorged 4/20, so still a young wine that shows that way. Still, very intriguing. Almost no bubbles and is quite dry, almost like an extra brut. There is pencil like minerality that overshadows the subtle pear and apricot finish. This style probably isn’t for everyone but it’s a serious wine with great potential. — 4 years ago

KDU

9.5

Great strong fruit aroma--I notice pear and pineapple. Creamy and super buttery. The buttery mouthfeel and taste is taken to crazy levels with a creamy pasta...preferred over sipping without food as sensations became dulled. Finish is wonderfully long and exactly what you want if you're looking for a buttery chardonnay. Good value...priced perfectly for taking to a dinner with friends...I loved it and can also see it being appreciated by people "not really into wine" — 5 years ago

with KDU

Anna Sangiacomo

9.1

Bruised pear and over ripe pineapple flavors. — 7 years ago

Severn Goodwin

9.0

Only Randall could imagine this unique combination. — 8 years ago

Matt Perlman

9.2

Pale greenish straw color, looks (and is) extremely youthful. Almond / marzipan nose, some butter, baked pear and melon. Crazy young and still tightly wound. Ethereal. Going to be great if not already. — 10 years ago

Andrew Lampasone

Owner Wine Watch Selections

9.5

This wine spends 9 years on the lees 70/30 Pinot noir and Chardonnay. This is all grand cru. A good amount of nutty a character with rich tree fruit. A big and rich wine with a good amount of pear and a host of nutty any yeasty character. Finish 50+. Most excellent+ — 10 years ago

Mark Lindzy

9.1

Fresh pear skin and chalky minerality, bright acid made it a winner to finish the night with. — 11 years ago