Published in April 2006

Wines, Spirits and Beers published in the April 2006 issue of Wine Enthusiast Magazine.

Sort By:

Terra Valentine 2002 Wurtele Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon (Spring Mountain)

Editors' Choice

Price $50

This single-vineyard bottling is great. It’s a huge, deep wine, brilliant in black currant, green olive and cocoa flavors, yet packed in big-time mountain tannins that pretty much shut it down on the finish. If you buy a case, begin popping corks in 2008. If you have a single bottle, it should be great in ten years, if cellared properly. — S.H. (4/1/2006)

points

Casanova di Neri 2000 Cerretalto Sangiovese (Brunello di Montalcino)

Price $130

Bravo Giacomo Neri! This wine raises the bar on modern Brunello and offers a peek view into the future and potential of this incredibly expressive wine. Super concentrated and intense, whiffs of roasted espresso bean, tannery, summer-ripe black cherries, and porcini mushrooms peel back layer after layer. A firmly tannic touch is there to remind you to drink this… — W.E. (4/1/2006)

96-100

points

Highland Park 30-Year-Old Orkneys Single Malt Whisky

Best Buy

Price $350

The nose offers subtle aromas of unsweetened coconut, bacon fat, and dark toffee with additional toasty scents of apple crisp, dates and oak. The palate entry is rich and fresh; the midpalate features flavors of bacon fat, dark honey, fudge, and bitterswe — P.P. (4/1/2006)

96-100

points

Auchentoshan Limited Edition 17-Year-Old Bordeaux Wine Cask Finished Lowlan

Price $120

The wonderful, multilayered bouquet offers scents of pine needles and moss and deeper aromas of black tea, sawdust and coffee grounds. The palate entry is initially sharply spirity before turning sweet and cocoa-like; at midpalate a remarkable caramel-lik — P.P. (4/1/2006)

96-100

points

Auchentoshan 1973 Limited Edition 32-Year-Old, Sherry Cask Finished Lowland

Price $740

The aroma includes saddle leather, pork rind, black pepper, sausages, pine, blue cheese, candle wax, and a hint of rancio. The palate entry is meaty and intensely spirity; at midpalate, with a dash of mineral water added, the taste turns chocolaty, silky — P.P. (4/1/2006)

96-100

points

The Balvenie 1971 Single Cask, Barrel #8935 Bottle #29 of 219 total bottles

Price $599

The elegant bouquet includes fragrances of pear, tangerine and nectarine with foundational aromas of oak, soft cheese, honey and leather. The palate entry finds tastes of vanilla-like oak and sautéed butter; at midpalate the toffee-caramel-honeyed tastes — P.P. (4/1/2006)

points

Etude 2002 Merlot (Napa Valley)

Editors' Choice

Price $48

It’s hard to imagine a more voluptuous wine, but it’s also powerful and complex, offering up endlessly changing palate impressions. The primary flavor is ripe, juicy blackberries, while fine oak does its thing. The tannins are wonderfully soft and refined. With no Cabernet Sauvignon, and just a little Cab Franc and Petit Verdot, this wine restores my belief in… — S.H. (4/1/2006)

points

Morgan 2004 Rosella’s Vineyard Chardonnay (Santa Lucia Highlands)

Editors' Choice

Price $35

I liked Morgan’s Double L Chard for its Chablis-like character. This wine is more so. It’s drier, more acidic and more elegant, but there’s nothing lean about the power of its core of tropical fruit, which detonates on the palate and doesn’t stop. There’s fascination with every sip, as the wine slowly changes in the glass. This is a great wine and showcases the… — S.H. (4/1/2006)

2010 Pence Ranch Westslope

This is sourced from the winery's steepest and most wind-exposed blocks…

(Sponsored)