Introduction to Wine Access

We taste thousands of the world’s best bottles every year in search of wines that exceed the expectations defined by their price. We’ve created this introductory set to make it easy for you to explore a range of wines that we believe represent what we do best: deliver extraordinary wines at every budget. 

Introduction to Wine Access Set Includes: 

2015 Arbalest Red Bordeaux | Wine Access - 92 Points 

Eight-time 100-point winemaker Benoit Touquette moved from Bordeaux to Napa Valley in 2004 and enjoyed a residency at Screaming Eagle under winemaker Andy Erickson, who himself has five 100-point wines in the last three years. Benoit teamed up with Kimberly Jones, who has red carpet access to unprecedented fruit sources of superior quality, for the inaugural release of Arbalest —  a modern-styled red Bordeaux blend offered at a value price.

2014 Nichols Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford Napa Valley | Wine Access - 93 points

Tasted in a lineup of Rutherford heavyweights with higher profiles and much higher price tags, Britt’s 2014 holds its own. That’s because it’s made from the same heavyweight fruit — a historic vineyard just a stone’s throw from Caymus and Staglin. As Britt told us, “Cabernet bottlings from this estate reach $125...easily.”

2015 Domaine des Entrefaux Crozes-Hermitage | Wine Access - 91 points

Perhaps our only problem with the Northern Rhône is that most of its wine stays local, to be served at legendary culinary meccas like Paul Bocuse, La Pyramide, and Troisgros. 96-99 points from Wine Spectator calling the 2015 vintage “rich in both fruit and terroir” and “looks to rival 2010, 1990 and 1961” we’re circling the wagons now on the 2015 Northern Rhône vintage and buying everything we can. The 2015 Entrefaux is one of the finest values we’ve ever tasted for domaine-bottled Crozes-Hermitage.

2014 Lagier Meredith Syrah Mt Veeder | Wine Access - 94 points

Had Steve Lagier, a winemaker at Robert Mondavi, and Carole Meredith, a professor of viticulture and enology at UC Davis, planted Cabernet Sauvignon on their coveted hillside site atop Mt. Veeder and produced a wine of this quality, it would easily fetch $90+. Instead, in 2014, they eked out just 450 cases of some of the valley’s richest, most structured Syrah. This is a chance to see why Robert Parker calls Lagier Meredith “one of the classics of Northern California.”