Every January we look back on the previous year and the wines that we have tasted, from rich & racy Chardonnays to shinning Burgundies. From our extensive tasting notes we compile our favorite 21 wines. The list below reflects both great quality and great value, and sometimes a nice bit of both.
Most are available so enjoy the reviews and Happy New Year.

#21: 2014 Babcock Chardonnay Sta. Rita Hills $23.50 We begin the coutndown with a rip-roaring, mouth-watering Chardonnay from Brian Babcock. Lots of big apple, honeysuckle, brioche. It's has nice balance and richness and is a very impressive wine for the price. Brian's best SRH Chardonnay to date.

#20: 2013 Cadence Bel Canto Cara Mia Vineyard $60 A funny something happened along the way... As the sales rep was getting ready to open this wine, we noticed it was from Columbia Valley in Washington State. We mentioned that we rarely carried wines from Washington State and that he didn't have to open the bottle just for us but he was unperturbed. He poured, we swirled, sniffed, tasted, were quiet for a few moments, then smiled, "We'll take a case!" 75% Cabernet Franc, 25% Merlot. On the nose there's spice, incense, dried flowers, currants. It's fresh, pure, complex, layered, and frankly, fabulous. It goes to show you (well...us), that until you taste, you never know.

#19: 2014 Valsangiacomo Bobal de San Juan $14.50 The importer Ferran sure does have a great palate, but when he brought us three wines made from Bobal, a grape we've never tasted before, we thought it might be a difficult sell. Well, we tasted all three wines. LOVED all three wines, and chose this one as our #19 not only because of the great value it represents, but how interesting and well-made it is. Try it with grilled steak!

#18: 2013 Donnafugata Ben Rye Passito di Pantelleria $40 / 375ml Probably the most unique wine on our list. From Sicily and yet, not exactly from Sicily but from the island of Pantelleria which is closer to the coast of Tunisia than Sicily. A sweet wine made from the Zibbibo grape otherwise known as Muscat of Alexandria. This is incredible dessert wine. A clean nose, with aromas of apricot, orange zest, ginger, carmel, clove, cinnamon. Lots of acid keeps this wine from feeling heavy. An amazingly long finish. Minutes!

#17: 2015 Chateau Saint Cyrgues Costieres-de-Nimes $12 There's Marselan in my wine! No, Marselan is not a dietary fiber but rather a cross between Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache. A refreshing medium to light bodied, clean GSM blend (only the M is a different M) with notes of violets, rose petals and an array of plums, berries, allspice. Neatly complex, suave finish, and a steal for the price.

#16: 2014 Li Veli Susumaniello $22 Way down on the coast of Puglia, in Salento, we find one of the rarest grapes in the world: Susumaniello. It is a grape, up until recently, that was blended away in cheap, inexpensive wines. But a few more serious wineries such as Li Veli, began to produce high-quality wines from these vines. The color shimmers in the glass; red ruby, violets. On the nose you might almost believe it was some oddly satisfying Pinot Noir except that besides the raspberry, cherry, notes, you discover rhubarb, blackcurrant, and notes of Italian Countryside Spice. This is elegance with distinct power. And one of our top selling red wines in 2015.

#15: 2013 Potek Grenache Demetria Vineyard $38 David Potter of Potek is 2 bocks away, so we've spent quite sometime at his facility talking, tasting, eating plates of charcuterie. This wine, this incredibly beautiful wine, grabbed our attention immediately. There's almost something not-California-Grenache about it. First of all it's so vibrant and light, but not light. There's good weight on the palate, and plenty of richness and depth, and soul. This biodynamic baby has elegance, luscious red fruit, silky tannins, and bright acidity. We could go on and on.

#14: 2014 Chateau Lacapelle Cabanac Prestige Cahors $18 It's all about organic with these two. Thierry Simon & Philippe Verax gave up their Parisian life and moved to Cahors in order to make wine in an ancient winery. First task was to convert to organic. And the rest was easy. This is prestigious wine. Great texture and depth, easily one of the best Malbecs we've tasted in years. Dark red fruits, plum, apricot pit, cherries, subtle hints of freshly tilled earth. Wonderful with cassoulet, duck confit, or venision.

#13: 2014 Catherine et Pierre Breton Bourgueil Nuits d'Ivresse $34 Yet another stunningly beautiful biodynamic wine. This one is 100 % Caberent Franc from the Loire Valley. Nuits d'Ivresse or "drucken night" is the name of this special cuvee with vines planted on clay and limestone. Black currant, plum, chocolate, powerful structure, complex and ever-changing. This wine does not see one drop of sulphur added to it. It's #13 on out list because it is so incredibly interesting but, alas, it may not be for everyone.

#12: 2014 Paul Lato Pinot Noir 'The Contender' Drum Canyon Vineyard $75 It's always a great day when Paul strolls in to our shop. He has wine. We have wine. We taste. We chat. It is very clear we both love our jobs. A few months ago he was in with this wine. A seriously good (even better than the 2013) Pinot from Swan and Calera clones. Great structure with a tannic edge before dark berry fruits, red plum, underbrush, and spice emerge. As much as we liked his entire 2014s, this was the star.

#11: Braida Barbera d'Asti 'Montebruna' $28.50 It's amazing for a winery that makes such great wines (one of theirs was featured in that 1001 Wines book), that almost no one has heard of them. Braida is routinely named as one of the top Barbera producers and yet, we had never sold the wines until last year. And we will never stop. This is sophisticated Barbera. All class. It's edgy yet smooth. Playful but with serious stuffing. A frame of dark cherry, a hint of Slovenian oak, then a mineral feeling that's a nod to Burgundy. Balanced out with something akin to roasted chestnuts. Quiet a delight. .