Wine educator Ian Todd Blackburn recently shared a social media post on Facebook asking people what the best bottle of wine they ever had was. I saved the post to possibly answer it later. I lingered, pondered and began to stress over it. I simply could not even attempt to narrow down the best wine I’d had because, as a wine writer/educator/judge, I’ve had the most amazing tasting opportunities stateside and abroad, with winemakers and vintners, and of course with good friends that happen to have amazing cellars.
Fast forward to this article. What I did was I shared Ian’s post to my Eve’s Wine 101 Facebook group to see what members might say. (Here’s the link if you want to comment too.) And from that – with some of the answers making my mouth water – I decided that readers of this blog might like to see a list of wines that they could possibly shop for. So, here goes, my comments – if any – are in parenthesis:
1974 Silver Oak North Coast Cabernet Sauvignon. (The first favorite for a long time wine lover. I used to love the different vineyards Silver Oak chose for their Cabs in the 80s and 90s.)
Domaine De La Romanee-Conti Echezeaux – drank with the owner of a local wine shop.
Austrian Gruner Veltliner – while traveling in Austria. (Always great to have locally produced wine when traveling!)
Beaulieu Vineyard Clone 4 Cabernet Sauvignon. (No vintage year was given but I’m betting it was at least 10-20 years or more old. For me, depending on how the wine tastes when I buy it, I generally age my California Cabs 10 or more years.)
Chateau Latour 1959. Ezra Webb Selections sold entire inventory to Trader Joe’s around 1980. I bought it for under $100.00 and drank it with my then boss Daniel Bobroff of Sunrise Spirits & Food Co. (What a great deal!) TJ’s had many killer French wine deals. Champagne too. Good old days of my wine tasting education. (I still recommend TJ wine for larger parties and have met clients there where we would meet up with whoever was in charge of the wine selections as they did taste through them frequently.)
Opus One, Jordan and Silver Oak for reds and my all-time favorite Chardonnay is Rombauer. (These are very popular choices!)
From a winemaker: my 2016 La Crosse (He also said he never duplicated the experience).
From a former wine shop owner: 1953 Chateau Petrus. (I’ve never tasted a Petrus, if anyone is offering!)
1969 Heitz Martha’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon.
Marlène Soria, Domaine Peyre Rose – Cuvée Syrah Lèone. Was lucky enough to be introduced while dating the Château Haut Brion winemaker. We sat in a rustic Saint Emilion cave and had some of the best wines of a lifetime. (Well, she beat me on this one, I’ve never dated a French winemaker!)
1967 Chateau D’Yquem for my 40th birthday and 1970 Ridge Monte Bello for a Millenium dinner. (If you are not a sweet wine lover, D’Yquem will make you one.)
85 Salon on y2k. (Year 2000 was supposed to bring a huge breakdown from computers that wouldn’t shift from 1999 to 2000. And from Wine Searcher, “The 1985 Salon Cuvée ‘S’ Le Mesnil Blanc de Blancs Brut is a legendary, rare vintage champagne made entirely from Chardonnay grapes in the Grand Cru village of Le Mesnil-sur-Oger.”
One long list from a pal, a wine salesman, edited for space:
2001 and 2003 Paul Hobbs Michael Black Vineyard Merlot. One of my first discoveries of how wonderful Merlot can be and I learnt that Paul Hobbs is a ridiculously good winemaker.
2009 Stanton Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon and 2009 Stanton Saint Helena Petite Sirah.
A boutique special project that Dave Phinney was doing for Doug Stanton.
Underscored by every critic but picked as the event favorite by many buyers over the likes of Screaming Eagle, Bond, and Harlan at the buyers Oakville Wine Tasting Event.
The Petite Sirah was just as special in that it presents itself as an inky dark monstrous PS with the big fruit, pepper spice, and tannins. Without the residual sugar too many big PS wines exhibit. (Screaming Eagle, Bond, and Harlan are “cult” wines that have skyrocketed in price due to popularity and scarcity.)
2001 Clos de Cailou “Les Quartz” Chateauneuf du Pape. My introduction as to how spectacular a CdP wine can be. A Robert Parker 99-100 Pt wine.
1998 Joseph Phelps Insignia. Dumped by retailers after a bad 98 vintage review. This wine was absolutely stunning 20 years later after buying a case at $39.99 a bottle steal of a price.
2007 Numanthia Termes Toro. Not the most expensive Numanthia Tempranillo but certainly among my favorite discoveries of the varietal from Spain.
2007 Ruffino Modus.
2008 Alban Reva Estate Syrah.
2007 Tensley Colson Canyon Syrah.
NV Penfolds “Grandfather” Tawny Port. The Aussie’s brag about the greatness of their tawny ports and my tasting of this gem showed me they can deliver on their bragging.
2001 Chateau Climens, Sudairaut, Doisy Daene, and Gillette Sauternes. Took a chance on a preorder getting 6 pack of each and discovered why Sauternes carry their storied reputation!
1988 Santino -Renwood TBA Dry Berry Select and Ice wine.
Eve Bushman has a Level Two Intermediate Certification from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET), a “certification in the first globally-recognized course” as an American Wine Specialist ® from the North American Sommelier Association (NASA), Level 1 Sake Award from WSET, was the subject of a 60-minute Wine Immersion video (over 16k views), authored “Wine Etiquette for Everyone” and has served as a judge for the Proof Awards since 2022 (submit via https://proofawards.com) Cellarmasters, LA Wine Competition, Long Beach Grand Cru and the Global Wine Awards. You can email Eve@EveWine101.com to ask a question about wine or spirits. Follow on Instagram and Facebook.
