Hot Sheets

The man behind Purple Hands is Cody Wright, son of Ken Wright, and his wines are nothing like those of his famous father. By doing his own style, Cody has established himself as one of the top-dogs of the next generation of Oregon Pinot producers. One of the most striking under 20 buck Pinots tasted so far this season, the 2012 Purple Hands is quite a charmer.

The range of quality vineyards used, the diversity of clonal material, the minimal influence of new wood (20% new) and the quality of the vintage all combine to make this one pretty and supple bottle of wine. It has fine depth of color, penetrating red cherry aromatics, nice movement of flavor and surprising depth for its modest price point. Very lovely now and will continue to drink well for another 3-4 years.

Legendary Nino Pieropan literally put the Soave region on his back and has carried it into the heights that we see today. Over 40 years and this man's enthusiasm and tireless promotion of the area still resonates within his fabulous wines. 2012 for this area delivered excellent conditions. Bursting lemon and green apple character kicks things off and then run towards mineral and rocky tones as it unfolds. Plenty of palate presence; very clean and gaining briskness, especially on the soil-driven finish. Beautiful with an array of seafood.

A quick side note: This wine used to be called Soave Classico and sell closer to 20 bucks. 100% of this fruit is from Pieropan's own vineyards within the Classico zone, but since it's bottled under screwcap, it is not entitled to Classico status. Either way, it was top-level great when it was 20 and under cork and it's still the same great quality and even more attractive at $13!!

Calvarino is the heart and soul site of the Pieropan estate and was designated as a single Cru in 1971. The average age of the vines is 30-60 years old and the wine is immaculate. It also ages well, too.

Beautiful aromatics swirl from the glass with notes of mineral, lemon, white flowers and mushroom. There is a deep level of old-vine concentration that is mouth-coating and rich yet it is bone dry, with excruciatingly refreshing citrus notes of lemon, lime, tangerine, and even more mineral with the earth lingering beneath. Maybe think of Italian Grand Cru Chablis here. This wine is a testament to old vines and beautiful craftsmanship and knowing when to let your amazing site just speak for itself. Looking for the perfect wine to have with the holiday Dungeness Crab feast, then order up some of this one. Drink now and over the next 5 years.

Moving from early-drinking Oregon Pinot then through Italian white wine royalty, we close the long-winded writing portion of this week's hot sheet with super-collectible French Pinot Noir from Burgundy!

A visit to Domaine Chauvenet is equivalent to attending Nuits-St-Georges 101, 102, the masters & the Doctorate class. Jean Chauvenet's son-in-law has been making the wines here since 1991 and tasting through his line-up is long but highly informative, these are some of the finest not only in Nuits-St-Georges but in all of Burgundy and they age stupendously. One of the great values in Nuits-St-Georges is Chauvenet's Nuits-St-Georges. Way more than mere village wine, this particular offering is derived from 5 parcels with very old vines. 2 of them are Premier Cru but with holdings too small to merit their own bottling, hence they go into this offering and give it even more substance. Saint Jacques, Les Allots, Les Lavieres, Les Charmottes, and Les Athees are the single vineyards that are blended in and are all located north of the village and offer pleasure and each brings something special to this bottling.

Devastatingly handsome. Dark cherry, plum, multi-layered white pepper and mineral scents. More and more arrive including limestone and strawberry. Dense and gripping but with a sultry core of vinous fruit. Gains backbone and focuses in on the youthfully bound finish. 2010 is a slam-dunk great vintage for red Burgundy and this for its price is so fine. Hold it until 2016 and drink through 2025+