Blog

2018 was a great year. We sold $125M of wine, set 2150 World Records and passed $1 Billion in lifetime auction sales. I like hearing the sound of that again and again lol. As far as this year’s revenue, it only took me 141 flights and over 300,000 miles in the air, no big deal ; ) It was also an amazing year of drinking wine accordingly, where I more than tripled my top wines of the year from 2017, those wines that achieve the elusive 99 point score. This year, I had nineteen of them, although five of the wines on my list made it twice, theoretically making it a Top 24. I think last year it was only eight? Am I drinking better, or getting easier in my old age? Well, considering my 97 point wines and up more than doubled this year, and how many wines it took for me to taste to get to those nineteen (I would guestimate at least 1500-2000), I think I am drinking better! Now that’s a resolution to which I think we can all stick.

For those of you that forgot, or don’t even know, I never rate a wine 100 points. 99 is as good as it gets, although every once in a (long) while, a wine makes me go 99+. I believe in the pursuit of perfection, but not perfection itself. So, let the countdown begin, here are my top wines of 2018:

#19) 1989 Haut Brion – This is a perennial guest on my top wines of the year, certainly the greatest ‘young’ claret I have ever had, and nothing has topped it since, at least in my book.

The 1989 Haut Brion was near perfect, as always. There were deep black fruits with a nutty glaze, and while heavy, it had an effortless finish. It was gritty and zippy with regal acidity and length. It lasted so long on the palate yet was still utterly stylish. It is still the greatest Bordeaux made over the past thirty years, along with the 1989 Petrus.(99pts)

The 1989 Haut Brion was perfect AS EVER. I have gotten lazy with taking notes for this wine, as I have it fairly regularly, and it is always 98 or 99 points. Wine life can be so mundane.(99)

#18) 1989 Petrus – Right behind, or in front of, the 1989 Haut Brion is usually the 1989 Petrus. It is also my first 99 point wine of 2019, I am off to a good start ; ) I can never have enough of this wine, I recommend buying four cases so you can have it at least once or twice a year for the next 20-30 years!

I consider there to be few greater wines ever made in Bordeaux than the 1989 Petrus, and it showed why once again. It basically crushed the La Taches, no contest. It was clearly the best wine of the night. Rich and decadent, its saucy and syrupy chocolate and purple fruit oozed out of the glass. You almost had to squeeze it as if it was in a toothpaste tube. Its finish was vim city meets smack that, and its palate wasn’t just rich – it was wealthy. It is an anytime, anywhere wine.(99)

Some of the words I can still recognize are intense, chocolate, exotic, molasses and ‘as always.’ The 1989 Petrus is, along with the 1989 Haut Brion, the greatest Bordeaux(s) made in the last thirty years.(99pts)

#17) 2010 Comte Liger-Belair La Romanee – I will never forget this bonus bottle (thanks to BJ) on a Jayer night, because it came out at the end of the night, after all these great Jayers, Rougets and Meos, and it just exceeded everything else. Has the pupil become the master? Hell, yeah!

This was another spectacular, WOW wine with superb aromatics of pure fruit, great menthol and extraordinary spice. BJ and I were blown away, and we both decided rather quickly that this was wine of the night. Its acidity and length were both endless and effortless. ‘BEST wine’ was in my notes in that exact manner. When you have a consensus amongst JK and BJ, it becomes official, although I am sure most wine drinkers would rather have an official BJ than an official JK. That joke will never grow old lol.(99)

#16) 1996 DRC Montrachet – I had this wine at least three times in 2018, but this bottle took the top prize. It remains of the greatest modern day expressions of this legendary wine, which we will be seeing again soon in this article. You will notice that the wines also start to get older in this article, too. Yes, older is always better, except when it is too old lol.

The French Paradox found it to be a ‘laser.’ This had a great, regal yet shy nose at first with nice citrus aromas, but it was muted overall. The palate, however, was explosive and absolutely ‘insane,’ I wrote. Its acidity was great, its finish long and its flavors nice and icy. This was a graceful wine with great fireplace action and awesome minerality. It doesn’t get much better.(99)

#15) 1979 Krug Clos du Mesnil – The first vintage of this single vineyard Champagne is still one of its best. Truth be told, there isn’t a bad vintage of Clos du Mesnil, which isn’t made every year. Every bottle of Clos du Mesnil is a special occasion; it is the true Romanee Conti of Champagne.

The 1979 Krug Clos du Mesnil was Montrachet-like with its buttery butter bomb of a personality. This was a little oakier at first, but it turned into woodsy goodness. WOW, this wine had the intensity and sweetness of a DRC Montrachet. This was an ‘epic’ Champagne, roasted and reminiscent of ‘toasted apricots’ per the French Paradox. While starting to mellow and ‘not so fizzy like the others’ per the Comte, make no mistake about it: this was a stone-cold stunner.(99)

#14) 1991 Henri Jayer Vosne Romanee Cros Parantoux – I used to think that the 1978 Jayers were as good as it gets, but perhaps the sweet spot for Jayer is moving into the decade thereafter. There are few producers who get people to spend $500,000 on a case of wine, so it is only fitting that a bottle of it made my Top Wines of the Year.

It was so good, it was like being wine horny. It was deep, dark and even better than I remember it from last year, and that bottle was pretty damn great, too! This was rich, decadent, creamy and oily, so large and in charge, so young but just starting to show some mature nuances. ‘Mint’ and ‘camphor’ came from the crowd. This was as good as it gets.(99)

#13) 1961 Latour in Magnum – The first magnum makes its way onto my list, and it was a near-perfect magnum of 1961 Latour. This was an experience that lived up to the greatest wines of the century hype, although I have found bottles to be inconsistently spectacular. Always great, but not always spectacular. This magnum was certainly spectacular.

A spectacular magnum of 1961 Chateau Latour finished the night in fine fashion and was one of the best experiences I have ever had with this wine, if not the best. This was a classic claret in every which way and kept gaining and gaining and gaining in the glass.(99M)

#12) 1959 Lafite Rothschild – Certainly the greatest Lafite ever made for me, the 1959 always delivers an amazing experience, even when hunting truffles in Piedmont, which is where I had another glorious ’59 this Fall.

The 1959 Chateau Lafite-Rothschild had a great nose with cedar, carob, caramel and, oddly, more of that Mouton mint. This was delicious and full of super aromatic fruit. The finish was gritty with great balance and expressiveness. The French Paradox noted the wine’s great ‘length.’(99)

#11) 1990 DRC La Tache in Magnum – The magnums are coming, the magnums are coming! This was an incredible magnum of this wine. While bottles can sometimes be inconsistent with the ’90 LT, similar to the ’61 Latour, I could see both the pleasure and the potential intertwined here like fine wine genetics. This will be a vintage to celebrate for DRC for the next 30+ years.

Big Boy immediately found ‘spice box’ on the 1990 DRC La Tache magnum. This had all the cedar any forest would need. It was a soupy, sexy city, still so young but oh so good. It was much, much better than a recently had bottle. There was so much spice it made me sneeze. It was a truly great magnum, as good a wine as there is. So young, so long and so good kept reappearing in my notes.(99M)

#10) 1991 Chave Ermitage Cuvee Cathelin – There were some tough decisions to get here, but finally here is the Top Ten! This bottle of Cathelin was courtesy of the personal cellars of Jean-Louis Chave, and we drank it about five minutes from the Domaine. There is definitely some truth that it often tastes better when you are there, wherever there may be, but I have a feeling this vintage of Cathelin will be 99 points no matter where I have it.

While by no means mature, the additional nuances and style of the 1991 Cathelin obviously showed more development than the 2003, but it still felt like a very young wine. What amazed me about the 1991 was its silky personality. This was not a bomb like the 2003, and I could see even more Jean-Louis’ insistence that Cathelin was a different wine and expression of a given vintage. Its fruit was again on the black side, with more purple and light ink edges. Smoked meats and fireplace crackles of the God of War mixed with violets and wildflowers from the Goddess of Love. It had a long, sensual finish, unfurling slowly, surely and sexily. It was creamy but not heavy; there was a grace and elegance to the 1991, and it danced like a ballerina on my palate. It also was dripping with diamonds, sparkling in every which (and rich) way. I just realized I totally forgot about this wine in my Top Wines of the Year article in 2017! Those auction tasters are impossible for me to keep track…but I won’t forget it again.(99pts)

#9) 1978 DRC Montrachet – I will never forget a dinner at Georges V, just Aubert de Villaine, Bipin Desai Wolfgang Grunewald and I, when Wolfgang served this wine to Aubert. Aubert was visibly touched, not only by Wolfgang’s gesture, but also by the wine itself. He remarked how it was the greatest of DRC Montrachets, at least in his book at that time. It was nice to see the wine holding up so well over fifteen years later.

There was one great bottle of 1978 DRC Montrachet out of two served, and thankfully I got the great one. There was definitely some rumbling and grumbling because one bottle was served to half the room and the other to the other half. Since most wines were one bottle each, everyone could have tasted the first bottle and then tried the second etc. Just trying to help all of your future dinner parties ; ) White cocoa jumped out of its nose. This was a rich, decadent and divine glass of wine. ‘Great great great,’ I wrote. The sun was just setting for the wine, but this sun was still full and blazing, lighting up the sky. There was some gamy goodness with white chocolate and great smoke flavors. Its finish was super smoky, in fact, and there was still great acid remaining here to go with tertiary coffee flavors. Wow.(99)

#8) 1959 Latour in Bottle and Magnum – Any bottle that can hit 99 points out of bottle and magnum definitely is a winner lol. I have always adored the 1959 Latour, usually enjoying it slightly more than the 1961. There is a sweetness to the ’59 that is tough to beat, and on two separate occasions in 2018, it proved my point.

The Good Doctor set a high bar when he said that the 1959 Latour was ‘one of the best bottles of Latour I’ve ever tasted.’ He was absolutely right; I seconded that emotion! This was a perfect bottle that was so sweet (in the right way) and so rich with loads of great spice. Dusty, long, thick and smooth, the crowd cooed ‘chocolate’ and ‘cassis.’ This was a gritty and exciting wine. I often say that I usually prefer the ’59 Latour these days to the ’61, and this bottle was Exhibit A-Z.(99)

The 1959 Latour in magnum was rich and decadent with great spice, cedar and cassis flavors. This was a classic in every which way of the word; it is tough to find a better Bordeaux to drink right now, especially out of magnum.(99M).

#7) TIE 1993 Rousseau Chambertin in Bottle and Magnum, 1993 Rousseau Chambertin Clos de Beze in bottle – If there is one producer that has catapulted into Burgundy lovers’ hearts deeper and faster over the last handful of years, I do not know it. Well, that’s not true. The wines of Comte Liger-Belair, as well, for sure. But this is Rousseau’s turn to shine, and this magnum did just that. This is another wine whose evolution I will enjoy following for another three decades. I will also note that a bottle of Beze hit the magical 99 point score at our massive 40+ vintage of Beze. There were many 98 pointers but only one 99 for me, and that was the 1993, which says a lot for this vintage for Rousseau.

The 1993 Rousseau Chambertin is one of the greatest Burgs ever made, as a recent lunch in LA also confirmed. The red fruits, the Asian spices, it wasn’t too rich or too sweet and perfect in each of those regards. It was like an elegant jackhammer.(99M)

The 1993 Rousseau Chambertin Clos de Beze had more of that super structure. This was a fantastic, sexy beast of a wine, with sea breeze and deep red fruit. This was so rich and so great. It lingered endlessly a bit like a holiday weekend where you took Tuesday off as well. It was so muscular yet so graceful. Super, super stuff.(99)

#6) 1992 Ramonet Montrachet in Jeroboam – What could be better than a perfect magnum of an aged, world-class wine? Yup, a jeroboam. This was not only a jeroboam; it was a perfect jeroboam purchased upon release and never moved by its original owner. The Germans know how to keep their white wines lol. A crisp Fall afternoon in Northern Germany was the perfect setting for this amazing bottle, which six to eight of us guzzled down in a couple of hours.

This was a perfect bottle. Its color glittered in the sunlight like a small fortune. Its nose was full of a sexy corn/butter glaze with a touch of signature mint. It had that wintry, icy character that was in perfect balance with great spice, black forest, and great minerality. This had none of the 1992 over-ripeness from which many whites of this vintage can suffer. It was still tight, but it continued to open and was in a really good spot after my fourth glass of it. There were true grit and expensive earth on its finish. It was nice to see that even out of Jeroboam, the 1992 Ramonet Montrachet is still one of the greatest white wines ever made.(99J)

#5) 1978 Ramonet Montrachet – So I like white wines, you got a problem with that? It was a Ramonet year for JK and Acker, and there are at least five other guys who know what I am talking about lol. The 1978 Ramonet is a legend, and deservedly so. It marks the beginning of decades of greatness for this elite producer of white Burgundy.

The 1978 Ramonet Montrachet had a fabulous nose that was so creamy, so rich and so lush. It was nutty and reductive, quite gamy in a great way and full of cocoa butter. The acid was blindingly bright, this was a WOW wine all the way and then some. One of the best white wines I have ever had, make that wines period.(99)

#4) 1961 Lafleur – I have another Bipin memory, having this bottle with him at one of his legendary LA weekends. There was this flight of four 1961 Pomerols: Petrus, Lafleur, L’Evangile and Trotanoy, and they were all 99 point wines. It was one of the greatest flights of my life. Bottles of this nectar have become increasingly rare, so it was a thrill to have another great bottle of this wine at our Top 100 weekend in Hong Kong after so many years.

It is extremely difficult to find a good bottle of this wine, but when you do, it is incredible. It had a deep nose that was so plummy, chocolaty and full of royal garden aromas. This was a rich and sumptuous bottle, tangy and intense with amazing texture and incredible acid. This was a perfect bottle, truly incredible. It smacked lips and asses.(99)

#3) 1945 Rayas Chateauneuf du Pape – There is Chateauneuf du Pape, and there is Chateau Rayas, one of the truly unique, great wines of the world. I was fortunate enough to visit there this year (thanks Martine!), and a deeper explanation would require a whole article. Suffice it to say that it is a special place with special soil. Old Rayases (prior to 1978) are impossible to find, so when they show up, grab them if you can. A 1945 from the cellar of Wilf Jaeger was an absolute thrill.

This was one of those unforgettable wines, made all the more so by the fact that I will probably never see it again. I have to thank Mr. Wilf Jaeger for this spectacular bottle from his spectacular collection, and yes, timing is everything. This savory red was full of pepper yet ‘Burgundian in the nose’ per the Zen Master. The Iceman noted ‘licorice.’ There was some scintillating sea breeze to it, but it was dominated by its rich, decadent strawberry fruit flavors. This kept me smacking my lips and showed that more great winemakers need to be making Grenache.(99)

#2) 1959 DRC Romanee Conti in Magnum – This incredibly rare artifact was shared with about thirty people on a snowy night in New York this Fall. But this wasn’t just any snowy night, it was the first snow of the season, and it threw the city into absolute chaos. I came a long way to get there, actually from Europe, and it took me – no lie – four and a half hours to get from JFK to Legacy Records. I was bouncing off the walls in that Uber. Just watching my 730pm arrival time go to 8pm…to 830pm…to 9pm…I think I got there just after 10, and I needed fifteen drinks. I had come to the right place lol. It was one of the most spectacular dinners we have ever hosted, and the agony of my commute went away with one sip of the 1959 RC. The ’59 La Tache after dinner was pretty spectacular, too.

The 1959 Domaine de la Romanee-Conti Romanee-Conti was spectacular with incredible richness. This had ‘weight yet elegance’ per Jetski, and Arvid thought that it only got better on the palate. The wine tasted like Christmas for a Burgundy lover, both literally and figuratively. It was like walking through a royal garden on the highest quality slate path, wearing hot red pants, Louis Michel style lol. This was red, red wine as God must have intended.(99M)

#1) 1945 Mouton Rothschild – Yes, I love the 1945 vintage, and yes, I think it is the greatest universal vintage of all-time. I was fortunate to have two practically perfect bottles of this all-time legend, including one bottle that sucked out that extra, elusive plus out of me! If you want to create the dinner party of a lifetime, start right here. We have done that ourselves for two consecutive Top 100 weekends, and both years this wine was at the top. It’s like the Alabama of fine and rare wine, or should I say Clemson? Either way, that’s impressive!

The 1945 Mouton Rothschild had that mint and eucalyptus sweetness that is such a trademark for this wine in this era. It was kinky, flamboyant and exotic. There was some ‘spicy pepper’ per the Comte, and I got the Shishito. I also got the pork luau with a touch of pineapple. I told you it was exotic! Toffee and animal led us all into a round of ‘jungle boogie,’ followed quickly by an ‘electric shock.’ This was the wakeup call that the Comte would desperately need tomorrow lol.(99+)

There was one perfect bottle, or as close as it gets since I don’t believe in perfection. The 1945 Mouton Rothschild once again proved to be one of the greatest wines of all time. The mint, the eucalyptus, the soy, the tea leaves…there was a log going on. Someone found ‘hoisin,’ and without question, this was the heaviest and most concentrated wine of the night. This was, indeed, flamboyant, so exotic, practically ‘medieval’ per one. If you wanted to argue that this was the best wine ever made, it would be tough to argue otherwise, although I might have 3-4 recommendations, and they all start with DRC or Petrus.(99)

But wait! This article isn’t over! Well the article is, but the list of the rest of the greatest wines that I had this year isn’t. So anything I rate 97 points or higher I consider to be one of the greatest wines I have ever had. It’s the ne plus ultra category. Have you had an outstanding wine recently? Sorry, that’s 95-96 points only. It was excellent? That’s 93-94 points. Very good, you say? 90-92 points, buddy. We’re talking Top Wines of the Year! And here they are, in vintage order from oldest to youngest per score:

One last explanatory paragraph here. When a wine was tasted multiple times, I left the highest score in. Sometimes multiple tasting notes render the same score, some times slightly different. Sometimes a 97+ wine can be a 98 point wine on a different day etc., but every wine listed above when tasted on multiple occasions was at least 97 points. I also listed the wine again if it was 99 points and in the Top Wines of the Year but tasted again when it didn’t achieve 99 points. And lastly, I missed one 99 point wine, the 1999 DRC La Tache. It was at Hollywood Jef’s birthday party, and I didn’t take a tasting note, it was DRC pandemonium, and I am not re-writing this article for the fourth time, so deal with it lol. So Twenty Top Wines and twenty-five 99 point experiences in 2018, that’s my final story, and I am sticking with it!

So that’s my Top Wines of 2018. 198 wines that I would consider ‘best wines of my life’ category, not bad, not bad. I cracked 100 this year by a wide margin, 2018 mission accomplished! And I am sure I missed at least ten or more, somehow, some way. Well, I know how – I didn’t write it down, or I lost the notes, or my R&D team was drinking too much getting me the data. They all happen lol.

Let’s make 2019 an even better vintage together!!! Grande Fete de Bourgogne here we come!!!