As our community continues to grow, we were thrilled to discover some exceptional wines/producers posted by our CorkRules community in 2023. Check out these fabulous white and red wines:

White Wines:

1) <a href="https://www.klwines.com/p/2021-dyquem-y-bordeaux-blanc/1697735?searchId=863411e7-c495-4eba-ac28-33c1288da6e7&amp;searchServiceName=klwines-prod-productsearch&amp;searchRank=15">Y D&#39;Yquem Bordeaux Blanc:</a> This luxurious French wine is truly a gem. It presents an intoxicatingly rich aroma of honey, apricot, and vanilla. The color is medium gold which reflects its age and oak maturation. On tasting, it&#39;s opulent yet perfectly balanced - dry but with luscious fruit sweetness complemented by vibrant acidity. Its full body envelops your palate while maintaining elegance throughout. Renowned critic Robert Parker described it as &quot;liquid gold.&quot;

<a href="https://www.aowinery.com/product/Chardonnay-Napa-Valley-2020">2) Alpha Omega Chardonnay:</a> From Napa Valley comes this elegant Chardonnay offering soft aromas of citrus blossom mixed with tropical fruits like pineapple &amp; mango &ndash; very inviting! The color is light golden reflecting its youthfulness &amp; varietal character well. Taste-wise, it leans towards high acid coupled with moderate alcohol levels &ndash; crisp yet smooth without being overly buttery or oaky as some California Chardonnays can be.

<a href="https://www.gramercywine.com/wines/Paolo-Bea-Santa-Chiara-2018-w8496386e5">3) Santa Chiara Paolo Bea:</a> An Italian natural wine that&#39;s unlike any other! With medium intensity aromas of ripe stone fruits like peaches mixed with wild herbs and flowers; it&#39;s complex yet intriguing to the nose. A deep golden hue gives away its extended skin contact during fermentation (a characteristic of orange wines). Taste-wise, it straddles between dryness &amp; acidity offering a unique textural experience due to its tannin presence - rare for whites!

<a href="https://commonvines.square.site/product/Dalia-Maris-B-Bianco/3732">4) Dalia Maris B Bianco: </a>Hailing from Italy, this white has a soft floral bouquet intermingled with hints of green apple and pear aromas &ndash; fresh and inviting! Its light straw color suggests youthfulness and vitality. The taste profile leans towards high acid with subtle mineral undertones &ndash; refreshing without being overly sharp or austere. Medium-bodied at most, it pairs beautifully with seafood dishes.

Red Wines: 

<a href="https://www.plummarket.com/store/2021-tenuta-dell-ornellaia-le-volte-toscana-igt.html">1) Le Volte Dell&#39;ornellaia: </a>This Tuscan blend boasts rich dark fruit aromas underscored by notes of tobacco leaf &amp; spice box- truly seductive. The color is a deep ruby, indicative of its concentration and structure. On the palate, it offers high tannins balanced by good acidity &amp; alcohol levels &ndash; a medium to full-bodied wine with complexity and length.

<a href="https://www.grapesthewineco.com/wines/Joseph-Phelps-Insignia-Napa-Valley-2019-w49786770k">2) Insignia: </a>A Napa Valley classic! This Cabernet Sauvignon-dominant blend exhibits rich cassis, blackberry jam aromas coupled with vanilla undertones from oak aging. Its color is an intense deep purple reflecting its power and depth. Taste-wise, it&#39;s dry with robust tannins that are well-integrated into the wine&#39;s full body &ndash; a hallmark of quality winemaking.

<a href="https://www.ungraftedsf.com/store/p/chappellet-cabernet-sauvignon-pritchard-hill-napa-valley-2019">3) Pritchard Hill Cabernet Sauvignon:</a> Another stellar offering from Napa Valley! With opulent dark fruit aromas laced with graphite notes - this wine captivates your senses right away. It sports a deep garnet color denoting its intensity and age-worthiness. On tasting, you&#39;ll find firm tannins supporting ripe fruit flavors along with high alcohol giving it great structure - undeniably full-bodied!

<a href="https://www.totalwine.com/wine/red-wine/cabernet-sauvignon/pine-ridge-cabernet-napa-valley/p/105424750?s=1501&amp;igrules=true">4) Pine Ridge Vineyards:</a> Known for their Cabernet Sauvignons; this particular one didn&#39;t disappoint either! Medium intensity blackcurrant &amp; cherry aromas intermingled with cedar hints make up the nose profile here while its medium-deep ruby hue reflects both varietal character &amp; vinification techniques used (like oak maturation). The taste reveals moderate tannin levels paired well against refreshing acidity- making it more approachable in comparison to others on this list yet still retaining good body.

Thank you to our community, these wine posts were terrific! Keep them coming! Wishing you all the best in 2024.

Cheers! #drinkwhatyoulove

As our community continues to grow, we were thrilled to discover some exceptional wines/producers posted by our CorkRules community. Check out these fabulous white and red wines:

CorkRules App Users Top Wine Posts of 2023

Wines from grapes grown in higher altitude areas with cooler climate has become quite the trend recently. This specific growing environment gives intense flavor but elegance and freshness to the final wines. To highlight and champion these conditions more and more winemakers are starting to use alto as a marketing and labelling term to show their grapes were grown in high altitude vineyards.

Decoding the wine label: Alto

Brut is a word often seen on labels for different kinds of sparkling wine. As you may have discovered when drinking these wines, it indicates that the wine is dry, meaning there is no perceived sweetness in the wine. But how about Extra Brut or Dry, what do they mean and are they the same as Brut?

Decoding the wine label: Brut

Semi-sweet Riesling, a type of wine falling out of style. It’s a shame, since these wines are perfect to pair with flavorful cuisines like Asian or Mexican, or simply drink as they come under the summer sun. The higher level of sugar left in the wine also means that the alcoholic fermentation was stopped before finishing, providing a wine with lower alcohol level and therefor easier grabbing a second glass of.

Decoding the wine label: Spätlese

Have you ever heard the word Xinomavro? Most have not. It is however a word on many sommeliers’ lips today, as it happens to be considered the grape variety with the highest quality in Greece, and one that is trending at the moment. The fact that Greece have been making wine for a long time comes as no surprise, but they have never exported an amount to make sure wine lovers around the globe tried it. With the growing wine tourism many have discovered these wines and are serving them in wine bars and restaurants in many countries today.

Decoding the wine label: Xinomavro

Chianti Classico, Valpolicella Classico, Soave Classico… Why do all these Italian wine regions have the Classico addendum and what does it mean? What is the difference for wines labeled as Classico?

Classico is a wine term in Italy seen on a few wine labels and it indicates that the wine’s from the historic center of the region, the heart. Using Chianti and Chianti Classico and their Sangiovese-based red wines as an example, Chianti is a rather large wine district within the Tuscany region. Chianti Classico is located withing Chianti as the central part and the one that originally existed. Back then this smaller region was actually called Chianti, but as the region grew the quality of the wine plummeted and the well-known characteristics of these red wines were watered down. The reputation took a hit and sales diminished. Eventually this led to the creation of Chianti Classico, which would be drawn from the original Chianti borders to recover the typicity of these wines. Today the quality of both Chianti and Chianti Classico have risen a lot due to modern techniques and knowledge about pruning, planting and temperature control in the winery.

Decoding the wine label: Classico

In the rarefied world of fine wine, where bottles can command prices equivalent to luxury cars, authenticity is everything. Laurent Ponsot's gripping memoir "FBI: Fake Bottle Investigation" reads more like a high-stakes thriller than a traditional wine book, chronicling his relentless pursuit of one of the wine world's most infamous counterfeiters, Rudy Kurniawan.

From Burgundy's Vineyards to the FBI's Most Wanted: A Winemaker's Quest for Justice

Chablis – one of the more popular styles of wine today and a region known by many. Most are familiar with the word Chablis and the light, fresh white wine with a touch of minerality it brings. Even though it’s a renowned wine, few knows what it really is.

Decoding the wine label: Chablis

Many grape varieties around the world of wine have names local to the region or country they’re grown in, even though they’re exactly the same. The most famous example would be Syrah in France where the same grape is named Shiraz in Australia. Another variety with two names is Pinot Grigio, or Pinot Gris.

Decoding the wine label: Pinot Grigio

Have you ever seen the term sur lie on a wine label? It’s not a grape and not a wine region, but a winemaking method used to give certain styles of white wine a rounder texture and a more complex flavor profile.

Decoding the wine label: Sur lie

Wally's

Tina Johansson, WSET Diploma Graduate and Michelin restaurant sommelier, and Robert Tas review the wine list at Wally’s in Santa Monica

Wine List Review of Wally's, Santa Monica

Tina Johansson

Cork Rules Script

Wally&rsquo;s Santa Monica

&nbsp;

RT: Hello and Welcome to CorkRules!

I&rsquo;m your host Robert Tas along with Tina Johansson, WSET Diploma Graduate and Michelin restaurant sommelier.

&nbsp;

Hi Tina, thanks for being back with us on another episode of CorkRules, - a podcast where we help simplify and demystify the wine lists at some of your favorite restaurants. We talk with certified sommeliers and wine professionals who point out interesting bottles, classic food and wine pairings, hidden gems, value wines, or splurge wines that will take your dining experience over the top.

&nbsp;

TJ: Thank you Robert! Happy to be back and dive into the wines of Wally&rsquo;s in Santa Monica, California. It&rsquo;s one of three locations, the other two being in Las Vegas and Beverly Hills. Wally&rsquo;s is quite the special place since they offer everything from lunch, brunch and dinner to exclusive caviar events, a gourmet shop selling cheese and chocolate and even a bar with rare spirits.

&nbsp;

RT: Yes, it&rsquo;s a real versatile restaurant and so is their menu. Plenty of choices, and all sounds fantastic. How about grilled octopus with chorizo, artichoke hummus or braised rabbit with chantarelles? I wouldn&rsquo;t say no to any of those right now.

&nbsp;

TJ: Yes, and besides the big and very tasty menu they also offer over 100 wines by the glass! Perfect place to visit if you are a somm in the making or don&rsquo;t know exactly what you&rsquo;re in the mood for. I&rsquo;m equally excited about the food as I am for the wine!

&nbsp;

RT: Yes, I love restaurants with plenty of choices by the glass. So what about the list by the bottle then? Is it equally big?

&nbsp;

TJ: It is! So much to choose from, I don&rsquo;t even know where to start. Maybe with something sparkling? I&rsquo;m a big fan of champagne and since they&rsquo;re often listed at the start of the wine list I don&rsquo;t always make it past those pages. They have a lot of the big names like Krug, Salon and Dom Perignon, but my personal choice would be the 2014 Vilmart &amp; Cie Coeur de Cuvee made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir. It&rsquo;s both fresh and creamy at the same time which I love.

&nbsp;

RT: I agree, that makes a champagne a lot more food friendly. Great bottle! So I see the starters here at Wally&rsquo;s hold a lot of seasonal vegetables like grilled asparagus and Moroccan cauliflower, would you pair that with a nice white perhaps?

&nbsp;

TJ: I would! In a place like this they carry a lot of the best names in classic regions like Burgundy, but I see one of my favourite labels from Spain on the list. It&rsquo;s the 2017 Veronica Ortega CAL, a beautiful Godello from Bierzo in the north western part of Spain. It&rsquo;s a fresh but intense wine from a very up and coming female winemaker. That&rsquo;s what I would drink with the food here!

&nbsp;

RT: Well it&rsquo;s always fun to try something new! And a white from Spain, maybe not the most common pick. It really is an emerging wine category at the moment.

&nbsp;

TJ: No I know, Spain have a lot of big reds but the whites are not as well know yet!

&nbsp;

RT: Ok so for our last bottle, what do you think Tina? Could you recommend a special bottle of red perhaps as a cherry on top of the other great wines you&rsquo;ve recommended so far?

&nbsp;

TJ: Of course, if you&rsquo;re here for a celebration they have numerous bottles for a great night! Maybe something more classic that you can&rsquo;t always get a hold of. I&rsquo;d have the 2017 Burlotto Monvigliero, a very delicate and floral Barolo. It&rsquo;s very elegant and perfumed, but so intense. It&rsquo;s the kind of bottle that is equally nice to sniff on as it is to drink. Just fabulous

&nbsp;

RT: Wow, now I can&rsquo;t wait to go to Wally&rsquo;s for a great night. Thank you for being back with us Tina.

To our audience, thank you all for joining us here on CorkRules.

&nbsp;

If you would like us to review one of your favorite restaurants, please send us email to:

Info@CorkRules.Com or visit our web website where we have a request form available and we will do our best to get it in the queue as quickly as possible.

&nbsp;

We are looking forward to being with you on another CorkRules episode soon. In the meantime, please check out our website for other episodes of your favorite restaurant wine lists wherever you get your podcasts.

&nbsp;

And finally, drink what you love and please make sure you drink responsibly.

&nbsp;

END

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CorkRules application allows you to discover wines at your favorite restaurants, learn with friends and be confident with price transparency. Order wine with confidence at restaurants and retailers. Get personalized recommendations. #DrinkWhatYouLove

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