When I started receiving samples as a result of my pondering here, I honestly didn’t think much of it, nor take the time to organize them in any way. At some point, however, it became clear that I needed to have some sort of system to manage the bottles coming in for no other reason than to taste them in an orderly fashion.

As I have mentioned several times, I decided to fold the samples into my CellarTracker.com account, an online cellar management tool that I had been using for my purchased wines for several years already. While I really like the tool, and it has many nice features, it certainly requires dilligence on the part of the user; if one does not dutifully enter and remove bottles upon purchase/consumption, it can quickly get away from you.

Even though I try to keep up with it all, there are times that bottles “slip through the crack” so to speak and I end up searching for hours for a bottle that I already consumed (and forgot to record) or I find a random bottle that I neglected to enter when I acquired it.

The wines reviewed below, all received in January this year, were never entered into CellarTracker, but I knew they were there. I received the to Beringer Private Reserves for a tasting that I conducted, but ending up not needing. The three Col d’Orcia Brunellos, on the other hand were for a Zoom tasting, which I attrended, but did not open the wines at the time since tasting three Brunellos at 10 in the morning that day did not seem like it was “the move” as my son would say.

Thus, this past week, I decided to tackle all five of the bottles. After first entering them into CellarTracker, of course.

2020 Beringer Vineyards Chardonnay Private Reserve, Napa Valley, CA: Retail $48. Big. Ass. Bottle. Under cork. I have had a few vintages of this wine now and while I once thought that the wine was becoming more “modern” with the use of both lighter (marginally) bottles and a lighter influence of oak, this 2020 seems to be a backpedal in both regards. Rich, even unctuous nose, of lemon curd, lemon meringue pie, and a healthy dose of oak. The palate is much the same–this is certainly a throwback to “traditional American Chardonnay” with plenty of oak, loads of creaminess, and oak. Wait, I already mentioned the oak. Look, this is not my style of Chardonnay, but I get it, there is still an audience for this style of Chard. It may be diminishing, but it is still there. And they deserve to have the ability to drink what they like, and this is, frankly, an excellent iteration. Excellent. 91 Points.

2018 Beringer Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Private Reserve, Napa Valley, CA: Retail $175. Big. Ass. Bottle. Under cork. 98% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Cabernet Franc, 1% Petit Verdot. I requested this bottle for a tasting, but it did not work out. So, some six months later, I popped the cork on the seventh anniversary of moving out of Philly, while watching Rocky, naturally. Dark, with blackberry and plum at the forefront, black pepper, clove, and even a slight herbal note (sweet basil). The palate is pretty darned fantastic with a wonderfully balanced mélange of fruit, tartness, and soft tannins. This is absolutely gangbusters now: fruity, elegant, sophisticated, and I do think that this will improve in the short-term, but I would drink up in the next 3-10 years at the latest. Outstanding. 94 Points.

2017 Tenuta Col d’Orcia Brunello di Montalcino, Tuscany, Italy: Retail $60. 100% Sangiovese. Heavy bottle. This is now the second vintage of this wine that I have sampled and this is relatively close to the 2016. OK, it is unfair to judge this 2017 against what many believe to be one of the best vintages of all time, but, nonetheless…. Fairly dark in the glass with notes of blackberry, plum, and wet, dark earth. The palate starts off as rather austere, with only hints of fruit and considerable tartness, but the fruit presents itself on the mid-palate (if only briefly), followed by some rather grippy tannins. As I hinted, this had no hope to measure up to the 2016, but this, at least to me, is more of a “classic” vintage in Brunello which is in need of some additional cellar time. Still? This is particularly fantastic. Excellent. 91 Points.

2016 Tenuta Col d’Orcia Brunello di Montalcino Nastagio, Tuscany, Italy: Retail $80. 100% Sangiovese. I received three different bottles of Brunello from Col d’Orcia, with this being the “middle” one. It comes from a distinct five-hectare (~11.3 acres) plot on the Col d’Orcia estate, with a southern exposure, the vines roughly 17 years old. Darker than the “standard” Brunello from Col d’Orcia with equally dark aromas of blackberry, cassis, and plum. Earth also figures predominantly along with floral notes of red rose, vanilla, and cardamom. The palate is reserved, but fruit eventually comes rushing in along with dark earth and some silky tannins. Quite nice. Outstanding. 93 Points.

2015 Tenuta Col d’Orcia Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Poggio al Vento, Tuscany, Italy: Retail $160. Under cork. 100% Sangiovese. Ridiculously Big Ass Bottle. Stupid bottle aside, this is pretty much gangbusters from the get-go, but it actually gets better with time open –Day 2 was amazing. Fairly dark, even for a Sangiovese, with blackberry, cassis, and plum a go-go. Joined by some juniper, basil, and just a touch of funk (I love the funk), this is close to gangbusters on the nose. Whoa. The palate is more focused, but the fruit dominates initially, soon taken over by the tartness on the mid-palate. Whoa. That harmony continues onto the finish where present, but subtle and integrated tannins assert themselves. Outstanding now, perhaps more in the short term (3-5 years). Outstanding. 95 Points.