Please note that our reviews are based on a variety of sources: samples sent to our team, those we purchase in store, tasting events, those tasted in restaurants and while traveling domestically and internationally.
Red Wine
Jim Jim The Down-Under Dog Shiraz 2022, Mclaren Vale, South Australia, Australia: Jim Jim The Down-Under Dog Shiraz from McLaren Vale in South Australia is a silky, full-bodied red crafted by winemaker Hugh Hamilton that delivers the generous, sun-drenched personality this celebrated region is famous for. Deep violet in the glass, it opens with a heady nose of boysenberry preserve, dried mission fig and a suggestion of salted dark chocolate, shifting into flavours of clove, dried violet and a savory thread of cured meat that adds real complexity to the long, warming finish. It is bone dry with velvety, well-rounded tannins, best served just below room temperature, and will drink beautifully through 2028. The wine carries a wonderfully sentimental story behind its name, as it was christened in honour of the Hamilton family's beloved dog Jimmy, who was a faithful companion at the winery until he passed away in 2010, making every bottle a small tribute to a very good boy. Serve it with lamb cutlets topped with roasted red pepper and creamy goat cheese, where the wine's spiced depth and jammy fruit will wrap around the richness of the dish with ease, or pour it alongside a smoky beef and black bean chili, letting its savory undertones and plush body stand up magnificently to the bold, hearty flavours. Shiraz food pairings: lamb cutlets with piperade and goat cheese, hamburgers, pizza, black bean soup, beef. Drink: 2026 - 2028 682005 14.5% XD 750 mL $23.95 Score: 90/100. May 2026. Full Review Add to Shopping Cart
White Wine
Jean Perrier & Fils Cuvée Gastronomie 2024, Abymes Savoie, Savoie A.O.P., France: Jean Perrier & Fils Cuvée Gastronomie Abymes Savoie Jacquère is a bracingly fresh and characterful mountain white from one of Savoie's most venerable family estates, founded in 1853 when Catherin Perrier established a cellar in Saint-André-les-Marches at the foot of Mont Granier and planted the first vines of what would become a seven-generation winemaking dynasty. A notable milestone came in 1947 when Jean Victor Perrier became the first producer in the area to bottle his own wine with the Savoie appellation on the label, a quiet act of regional pride that predated much of what Burgundy was doing at the time. Today the estate spans 62 hectares under the leadership of Gilles Perrier, with sustainable viticulture certified HVE, and the wines are made by hand-harvesting and fermenting exclusively in stainless steel with native yeasts, allowing the indigenous Jacquère grape to speak with unfiltered clarity. Jacquère is found virtually nowhere else in the world, thriving here on the calcium-rich limestone-clay soils of the Abymes appellation, just below the steeply terraced slopes of Apremont, where the proximity of the Alps gives the wines their signature vivid, crystalline tension. The wine pours pale gold with green glints and opens with a lifted, mountain-fresh nose of white hawthorn blossom, fresh-cut lime peel and a subtle wild herb note, with an undercurrent of damp limestone minerality. On the palate it is dry, light-bodied and electric, with lively acidity, a saline, almost chalky finish and a clean, persistent length that makes it one of the most refreshing bottles in the French Alps. Serve it well chilled alongside a grilled trout with almonds and capers, where the wine's alpine minerality and citrus freshness are a perfect foil, or pair it with a fondue Savoyarde for an authentically regional experience. Food pairings: grilled trout with almonds and capers, fondue Savoyarde, charcuterie with cornichons and fresh baguette. Drink: 2026 - 2028 944264 XD 750 mL $19.95 Score: 90/100. May 2026. Full Review Add to Shopping Cart