Tasting the Top 10 of 2021

STORIED WINES AT THE PINNACLE OF QUALITY TAKE THE STAGE

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The NYWE Top 10 tastings are a celebration of the world's most exciting wines as named by our editors in the previous year. For the class of 2021, the tastings included honoring a Burgundy leader who died too soon, and recognition of the career of a renowned Bordeaux vintner who also succeeded in Napa. The wines were poured across several seminars.

The Guigal family, long synonymous with the Northern Rhône, earned the No. 10 spot with a Southern Rhône wine: Château de Nalys Châteauneufdu-Pape 2018. Philippe Guigal explained that they bought the property, which dates to the 1600s, in 2017, making changes that included a switch to organic farming. Bolstered by nearly one-third Syrah, the Grenache blend "has the warmth and generosity of a Châteauneuf-du-Pape, but the Syrah brings a freshness and intensity," he said.

In Napa, the Salvestrin family is the steward of one of the valley's most historic vineyards, Dr. Crane in St. Helena, source of the Cabernet Sauvignon at No. 9. Owner Rich Salvestrin, who got hands-on education in viticulture at his father's side, said he and his wife decided to start their own label in 1994; they brought on winemaker Natalie Winkler in 2017 to help take it to the next level. They began a transition to organic farming and in the 2018 vintage produced a fantastic value in Napa Cabernet: a classic-scoring wine at $80.