Here at Wine Enthusiast, we love a good bottle of red wine. After all, the style ranked either in first place or runner up in all of our best-of-year lists, from our top Cellar Selections to the Enthusiast 100 and Best Buys.
No matter the region or specific varietal, you’re in for a treat when it comes to regal reds.
Wine Enthusiast Writer at Large Elaine Chukan Brown, who reviews wines from California and northeastern Spain, notes that “the 2021 reds from Napa Valley have been particularly exciting,” they say. “The vintage offers plenty of structure but in a way that feels poised rather than overly hard or drying and delivers detail and complexity in balance with refined structure and such satisfying length.” Among them? A 100-point red from Quintessa.
And moving across the Pacific Ocean and down to the southern hemisphere, Writer at Large Christina Pickard—who reviews wines from Australia, New Zealand, England and New York—was enamored with an affordable Aussie Shiraz from Mount Langi Ghiran’s 2021 vintage that punches well above its price.
“This bargain of a bottling comes from one of the most unique and isolated spots in Australia, wedged beneath two mountains in cool, misty, windswept conditions,” Pickard says. “2021 was a cracking vintage: steady, long ripening—this is the last Shiraz to ripen Down Under—great for acidity and texture, and emphasizing those wonderful peppery notes. Yum.”
There are plenty more excellent finds in categories that include organic wines, blends and more. Read on for the
This Article was originally published on Wine Enthusiast
