Nathan Wegener

9.3

Stunning fruit filled flavour. Good depth and joyous with BBQ pork ribs + apple sweet potato bake! — 8 years ago

Erik Helms

Sommelier/Wine & Beer Buyer Whole Foods Oakland

9.1

This 100 degree heat wave called for a Txakolina flight! Freshly cut, pungent lime, aromatic lime peel, lemon flowers, and the familiar bite of Txakolina's mouthwatering acidity. Slight effervescence and salinity pairs it perfectly with a Cordobes cheese recommendation from @Lauren Vance! — 9 years ago

Frank Kuo

9.2

Translucent burgundy color with just a tiny bit of haze on the rim and slow flowing legs. Nose of nice cranberry, herbs, a touch of soy sauce, a bit of salty mineral, baking spice, and dressed with powerful alcohol. Taste of bright and sharp acidity, with sweetness comes at the second wave, peppery and a bit zesty like grapefruit zest, cherries and cranberries, and baking spice. Aftertaste is zesty and sweet, medium finish with peppery note lingering on the base of tongue. A nice flavorful and refreshing Pinot. — 9 years ago

Gae Saccoccio - NdC

9.6

Really complicated on these so suspect days, expose themselves with concepts such as: tradition, terroir, identity without falling into the most sinister rhetoric if not sounds just trite and hypocritical as the counterfeit currency with which even large-scale industries - supported by marketing - pays back its inattentive mass audience riding the wave of the country of origin or protected typicality. A diabolical mechanism this one for which even the most noble ideas probably the right practices and good experiences completed in the scale of centuries to human measure and not on massive industrial scale, are trivialized by sleazy slogan, emptied of meaning to be more or less surreptitious thanks to barbaric persuasion techniques and brain-washing propaganda.
Yet with the Valentini's Trebbiano you may not groped to summarize in words if not by drawing on terms so appropriate to express it. Now concerning this iconic label we've got behind it a local grape variety, a real family and a great wine that collect in a bottle the past and present story of a side of Abruzzo who claims to defeats victories and sacrifices to dominate the abuses (on and of) nature, miseries and splendours of agricultural seasons. Places, people, vision, wines such as Valentini are here to remind us how each bottle stay so proudly standing as non-reproducible beauty and fermented goodness expressing all its artisanal uniqueness and authenticity which are just that suspect to industrial wine production in manufacturing chains on standardized quantities; wines that are all equal to themselves even though wine itself is not much left at the end of the day/cycle. Trebbiano d'Abruzzo Valentini 1998 is what we have to rate right now: rusticity with class; style, purity and glory of a local grape recognized by many admirers from all over the world: act local think global this is another slogan-cliché which in this specific Valentini's wine exemple could sounds a little less false and more effective. — 9 years ago

with Alberto and Giovanni

SV

9.0

A liter of this is how to handle a mid August heat wave. Bright and floral, with a saline finish. At 11.5%, maybe the perfect Sunday afternoon wine. — 10 years ago

Alexis Pomush

8.9

Great summer wine, sweet but delicious on a hot summer night — 10 years ago

Mary Miller

9.6

Excellent taste! — 10 years ago

Kendall Johnson

10

Deep, rich, full of berries -- LOVED it!! — 10 years ago

Christy Frank

9.3

Excellent example of new wave Aussie Chardonnay. Mac nails it this vintage. Racy (natural) acidity, some matchstick flintiness and a sneaky richness that keeps it from being severe. Most heard comment at the in-store (from peeps used to the Cali version): this is really Chardonnay? — 11 years ago

Steve Bachmann

9.5

Very dry initial impression with pleasant hints of strawberry and raspberry in second wave. Pale pink color. Well worth it for low $50s retail. — 11 years ago

Lauren Rosillo

9.2

Mineral, fresh and very drinkable now. One of my favourite new wave producer — 8 years ago

Jack Cranley, Backroads Wine Club & Cascadia Premium Wines

9.6

Absolutely terrific wine. Bound to uplift even the most doomy-gloomy mood. As such, it pairs well with political discourse and the prospect of "President Trump." Go ahead, drink those sorrows away. You deserve it.

Beautiful, shimmering golden color. I believe it's actually already deepening with age. (2012 vintage consumed in mid-2016)

On the nose, apricot fruit and unrefined honey dominate but is accompanied with a menagerie of rare and precious aromatics. The result is a feeling of having something truly exotic in your glass. This is a world-class wine for which there could never be any argument over its worthiness. You will be taken by this wine and there's really no way to over-hype it and set the expectation bar too high because this wine will meet it every time.

As we dig in deeper past the obvious top notes, we discover a treasure chest filled with persimmon, sandalwood, white flower, and vanilla bean.

Upon first entry in the mouth you are met with a zippy liveliness but then that melts gently across your palate to really give you a fine, pervasive coating that excites the taste buds in every corner of your mouth. This is a POWERHOUSE of assertive flavor. This wine will stage a veritable coup d'etat upon your complacent palate. There will be an ouster of your resident ennui. No incumbent sense of boredom will be safe from this wave of populist essence. There will be a complete and total transition of power in the halls of your mind's parliament leading to a peaceful but efficacious revolution. With your personal Congress in shambles, this fresh new confederacy shall draft a Constitution that will usher in a new era of utopian cooperation and transcendental civic euphoria!

Sorry, maybe for a little carried away there. For reals though. Drink this wine when you're feeling down and feel the BURN! Well, not really - because the alcohol is really well-integrated. ;) — 9 years ago

Stephen Becker

8.9

Pearls, vintage Chris Craft, night time ride across the lake, low moon flashes behind the trees, underwear in your pocket this time. The green flash of the aurora borealis comes out of nowhere, a slow serpentine sine-wave pulsing across the Milky Way. — 9 years ago

Jörgen Lindström Carlvik

Owner, Brix Wine Consultants

9.5

Stunning! Great purity and a strong sense of minerality lift this un-evolved to considerable heights. Juicy citrus, cool herbs, chalk and perfectly judged oak treatment with piercing acidity, this is built for the long haul, it has more in common with Friuli's greatest wines than high end Bdx. New wave stuff! — 10 years ago

Rob Guimaraes

9.2

Fantastic structure (big acid, firm medium tannin) on this wine; has plenty of years to develop. Jumps out with a tart red berry wave before the sun-dried tomato profile rises from underneath. Savory, sweet herbs throughout. Lovely. — 10 years ago

with Jiby

Daron Watson

9.2

powerful cherry & cranberry w baking spices, licorice & leather, and a subtle wave of purple flowers ~ built to last too! — 10 years ago

Todd Trzaskos

8.9

Rich big cherry floral and barrel sweet tobacco
Loves air time, big mouthful, no angles, red fruit wave that dissolves to dried cherry and raisin. — 10 years ago

Jim Denham

9.5

We really enjoyed it. Bottle itself is heavy duty. — 10 years ago

jams jerfy

8.9

more SAT rider. easy. — 11 years ago

Eric Lovalvo

9.6

Surprisingly phenomenal — 8 years ago

Frank Kuo

9.4

Deep inky purple color almost like Syrah. Noses are simply intense and beautiful, characterized by smoky oaks and dark fruits like cherries. Taste is silky and powerful. Flavors of cherries, oaky notes come in first wave, while acidity and graphite notes come in second. Layers of flavors mix really well. Aftertaste is long and enjoyable, with graphite on the back of the tongue, oaky notes all around, and string tannins reminding you that the wine had the ability to age. If price is right stock them up. — 9 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

Consistly one of the top values in Bordeaux. This 01 is over delivering the vintage and my expectation. Rich dark cassis. Ripe blackberries, blueberries, strawberries paint the background. Rich wet dark earth, black tea, velvety leather, nice baking spices and a long rich elegant finish. It's hit it's stride with even better evolution ahead. Just got a wave of warm chocolate fudge brownie with raspberries. — 9 years ago

Matt Sterr

9.0

60 corn 35 Rye 5 Malted barley. Light and spicy with a hint of brandy flavor. Merlot and Chardonnay cask finish. — 9 years ago

Justin Hansohn

9.2

I don't feel like there is much more to say other than if you haven't tried this Fleurie you are really missing out on a new wave expression here. So in balance and unique for the terroir. — 10 years ago

Aileen Maher

9.0

With Nigel and Helena , Nov 2015, Farnane — 10 years ago

Mary Christoph

9.9

Absolutely one of the best Chardonnays under $20; this wine was perfect; everything you love about oaky Chardonnay without being too much. Buttery, but balanced! — 10 years ago

Jessica Hapeman

9.8

Very smooth. One of the best cabs I've had in a while! — 10 years ago

Matt Sterr

8.9

Light, fresh and tasty. A style that lends itself to what Sam Adams seems to do well. — 10 years ago

Jay Green

9.7

God bless leftovers from @jams jerfy 's rider. 2010. Delicious. — 11 years ago

jams jerfy

8.9

backstage rider at SAT, montreal! the red. ooka killing it. — 11 years ago