Popular Wines

As magical and enigmatic as the world of wine can be, it’s not always easy to find your way around. Every day, inexperienced wine enthusiasts try to explore new blends and end up with a shopping list that their budget simply cannot support. Every high-quality wine is a unique, important experience, one that opens a person’s taste palate to a whole new world of flavor and pleasure. Something primal awakens within, urging you to find new and more compelling aromas and textures. But with so much to choose from, where do you begin?
When it comes to wine, popular blends are relatively common for a reason. They serve as an excellent entry point into the world of fine wine, and studying them lets you understand more obscure, complicated wines out there. A collection has to start somewhere, and these blends are often easier to get and help you develop your taste. Imagine bonding with your friends and family over a brand you’re all familiar with and able to appreciate to its fullest. Good wine offers something new, yet vaguely familiar with each glass, as your mouth picks up on subtleties in the liquid that tempt you further and inspire thought and introspection, uncorking new conversation topics and improving the mood no matter the situation.
If you’re looking for safe picks, you want to set your sights on quality brands from Italy, France, and Spain. A glass of sultry Sangiovese or Trebbiano Toscano can liven up a family meal and impress even the stuffiest guests while being a perfect partner to any traditional Italian dish you can think of. One taste of a Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay is enough to let France stand out as a breeding ground of divine, elegant elixirs that can fit the taste of any enthusiast. Meanwhile, Spain offers powerful blends such as Garnacha, Bobal, or Tempranillo, helping you create memorable moments out of even the most ordinary evening. And this is only scratching the surface.
Our goal is to introduce you to popular, tested brands the same way we would introduce you to a potential soulmate. With the right mood and some good timing, you can develop a healthy, pleasurable relationship with wine that lasts a lifetime.
When it comes to wine, popular blends are relatively common for a reason. They serve as an excellent entry point into the world of fine wine, and studying them lets you understand more obscure, complicated wines out there. A collection has to start somewhere, and these blends are often easier to get and help you develop your taste. Imagine bonding with your friends and family over a brand you’re all familiar with and able to appreciate to its fullest. Good wine offers something new, yet vaguely familiar with each glass, as your mouth picks up on subtleties in the liquid that tempt you further and inspire thought and introspection, uncorking new conversation topics and improving the mood no matter the situation.
If you’re looking for safe picks, you want to set your sights on quality brands from Italy, France, and Spain. A glass of sultry Sangiovese or Trebbiano Toscano can liven up a family meal and impress even the stuffiest guests while being a perfect partner to any traditional Italian dish you can think of. One taste of a Cabernet Sauvignon or Chardonnay is enough to let France stand out as a breeding ground of divine, elegant elixirs that can fit the taste of any enthusiast. Meanwhile, Spain offers powerful blends such as Garnacha, Bobal, or Tempranillo, helping you create memorable moments out of even the most ordinary evening. And this is only scratching the surface.
Our goal is to introduce you to popular, tested brands the same way we would introduce you to a potential soulmate. With the right mood and some good timing, you can develop a healthy, pleasurable relationship with wine that lasts a lifetime.
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1982 Calon Segur94+RPLike Certan de May, I bought this in both half and 750 ml bottles. Only recently have the half bottles reached full maturity, and the 750 ml remains a massive, backward wine for lo..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $425.00
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1982 Canon97JSThis wine shows fabulous aromas of stones and flowers with dried fruits and spices. It’s subtle yet full with ultra-fine tannins and a gorgeous, long finish. Drink now.James ..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $450.00
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1982 Gaja Barbaresco95DECMost 1982 Barbarescos are over the hill now, but not Gaja's. Even the colour is scarcely evolved. The nose has great purity of fruit, with ripe, intense raspberry aromas. Sleek and..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $420.00
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1982 Montrose96DECUnder the ownership of Jean-Louis Charmolüe (who remained in place from 1960 until 2006 and who just died in January of this year). Gorgeous, brick-edged, soft brambled fruit,..." Learn MoreAs low as $489.00
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1985 Palmer90RP-NMTasted at the Château Palmer vertical in London, the 1985 Château Palmer was clearly a favourite amongst the participants in the tasting, although here I actually concu..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $400.00
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1988 Leoville Las Cases96DEC(Château Léoville-Las Cases, St-Julien, Red) This 1988 is still youthful with chewy tannins and a menthol send off. It's full of rich, concentrated spice, cloves and c..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $415.00
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1988 Prunotto Barolo Bussia90RPThis firm has been making spectacular wines recently. Their 1988s are excellent, and their 1989s potentially superb. This difference in vintages is well-displayed in Prunotto's Bar..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $400.00
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1989 Pichon Baron95JG(Château Pichon-Baron) The 1989 vintage remains the single greatest wine I have ever tasted from Château Pichon-Baron, and this most recent bottle was flat out spectacu..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $490.00
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1990 Cos D'Estournel95VMThe 1990 Cos d’Estournel is a vintage that I have not tasted for several years. I have always had a soft spot for the 1990. It does not disappoint with gorgeous scents of clo..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $425.00
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1990 Leoville Poyferre97RPAbsolutely spectacular, the1990 Leoville Poyferre is much more evolved than either of its two Leoville neighbors. Its opaque plum/garnet color is accompanied by a gorgeous bouquet ..." Learn MoreAs low as $499.00
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1990 Troplong Mondot98RPA fabulous example, the 1990 Troplong Mondot is only equaled by such recent vintages as 2000, 2005, and 2008. The inky/garnet/plum/purple-colored 1990 exhibits notes of coffee, bla..." Learn MoreAs low as $499.00
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1990 Vieux Chateau Certan94RPThis was a very strong vintage for Vieux Chateau Certan. The 1990 reveals a deep garnet color to the rim along with a sweet bouquet of charcoal, licorice, roasted herbs, forest flo..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $415.00
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1994 L'Angelus93RPIn the new classification of St.-Emilion, justice was certainly served with the elevation of Angelus to premier grand cru classe status. No Bordeaux estate has been making as conce..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $415.00
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1995 Araujo Eisele Cabernet Sauvignon98RPI believe the 1995 is the finest produced under the Araujo regime. It is close to perfection. The wine combines extraordinary power and richness with remarkable complexity and fine..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $429.00
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1995 La Mission Haut Brion95+RPThis vintage is aging at a glacial pace and the tannins are currently more significant than their counterbalancing components of fruit and glycerin. While the word “potential..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $479.00
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1995 Palmer97DECThe wild strawberry sweetness and curling floral aromatics of a great older Margaux is starting to creep in at this point, along with clear white pepper spice, iris flowers and gen..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $459.00
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1996 Gaja Sperss Barolo97AGThe 1996 Sperss is arguably the most backward of these 1996s from Gaja. Still very young and tightly wound, the 1996 is going to need at least a few years to truly blossom. Even so..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $455.00
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1996 Guigal Cote Rotie La Landonne93RPThe 1996 Cote Rotie La Landonne was herbaceous early in life, but is now revealing a black olive/tapenade, melted asphalt character in its smoky, earthy, animal, blackberry, leathe..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $445.00
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1996 L'Angelus92WSComplex and intense aromas of forest floor, wild berries and dried flowers. Full-bodied, with ultrasilky tannins and a long, long finish. Racy and classy. Wonderful now but has a l..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $485.00
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1996 Leoville Las Cases98RPHaving previously rated it nearly perfect, I was apprehensive of a letdown about tasting the 1996 Leoville Las Cases once it had been bottled, but that concern was quickly dismisse..." Learn MoreAs low as $475.00
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1996 Palmer91RPThis wine, a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot, and 5% Petit Verdot, is performing well after its July, 1998 bottling. It boasts an impressively saturated purple color, i..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $445.00
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1996 Pichon Lalande96RPThe 1996 Pichon-Lalande is just as awesome from bottle as it was from multiple cask tastings. For Pichon-Lalande, the percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon is atypically high. This wine..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $499.00
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1997 Gaja Barbaresco95WSDark ruby red. Lots of blackberry and cherry aromas. Full-bodied, with chewy tannins and a superfresh palate. It is still mouthpuckering, with layers of ripe and powerful tannins. ..." Learn MoreFormats Available:As low as $480.00