Complex bouquet of orange and lemon zest, tropical fruits as well as a sprinkling of vanilla and fennel. Solid backbone with a flinty, mouth watering acidity and a well integrated oaky touch adding some complexity. This is a beautifully concentrated, intense wine with a lingering finish.

97 points / Platinum Award - Decanter World Wine Awards 2018

Rainoldi's Sfursat Ca' Rizzieri is simply a stunning wine with great structure yet elegant at the same time. A rich and complex nose with plentiful dark fruit aromas, hints of coffee, cocoa and roasted hazelnut. On the palate, there is a lovely tension between sweet, dried fruits and a much juicier, firm cherry character. A wine of high alcohol content, it's intense and mouth-filling with a sheen of tannin. Finishes with remarkable length - absolutely mesmerizing. If you are a fan of Barolo, you will love this wine.

Tre Bicchieri - Gambero Rosso 2019

4 out of 4 - Vitae Guide 2019

"The 2015 Sfursat di Valtellina Fruttaio Ca' Rizzieri is made from a special selection of Chiavennasca (or Nebbiolo) grapes that are air-dried on mats in the traditional fruttaio Ca' Rizzieri building located 500 meters above sea level. Mountain breezes fuel steady ventilation and keep the clusters healthy. The wine is fermented in barrique and aged in new oak for up to 18 months with an additional year in bottle. This is a mid-weight wine that offers loads of power (with 15.5% alcohol) that spreads clear over the palate. It shows dried berry aromas of cassis and cranberry with subtle tones of bacon fat and campfire ash at the back. This is the proverbial après-ski wine to warm your bones after a long day outdoors in the snow."

94 points - Monica Larner, Wine Advocate, Dec 2018

"Deep ruby. A deeply perfumed bouquet evokes fresh dark berries, violet, olive paste and smoky minerals, with a suave floral topnote. Offers densely packed black and blue fruit, floral pastille and spicecake flavors that stretch out slowly as the wine opens up. Displays excellent definition on a very long, lively finish that's given shape by chewy, building tannins. (JR) "

94 points - Vinous, April 2018

"The 2015 Côte Rôtie Reserve is brilliant stuff. I was able to taste this from two separate bottles and it never failed to impress. Coming from all the estate terroirs, and including some seriously top juice, its deep purple color is followed by a beautiful perfume of black raspberries, spiced meats, and incense, with an undeniable mineral/dried earth character developing with time in the glass. With full-bodied richness, ripe, yet present tannin, good mid-palate depth, and a great finish, it needs 2-3 years of bottle age and will cruise for 10-15 years. 93+"

 93 points - Jeb Dunnuck, Jan 2018

"The 2015 Cote Rotie Reserve is rich, velvety-textured and long. Raspberries and herbal notes are joined by hints of cured meat in this medium to full-bodied wine. It should drink well for up to 15 years. (JC)"

93 points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, Dec 2017

Deep opaque purple in colour, the Rutherford Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon is an alluring wine, with scents of coffee, cocoa, blackberries and cedar. The wine has a wonderfully velvety texture and length, with added flavours of black liquorice, red currants and a hint of cinnamon.

"The 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon Rutherford Reserve is 91% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Petite Verdot, and the rest Cabernet Franc and Merlot. It is a terrific example of Rutherford viticulture, with loads of kirsch liqueur, crème de cassis, dusty, loamy soil undertones, spice box and Christmas fruitcake. It is dense ruby/purple in colour and full-bodied, with sweet, supple tannins. Among all the Reserves from Frank Family Vineyards, this seems to be the most precocious and easiest to drink at present. It certainly has 20 years of upside to it. This is a beauty and another impressive offering."

94 points, Robert Parker - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

"The finest vintage of this cuvée to date, there's a scant four barrels of the 2015 Côte Rôtie Lancement, which comes from a site high up on the slope in the Côte Blonde end of the appellation. Completely destemmed and brought up all in new oak, it has the classic perfume this cuvée always shows yet is inky colored, deep, incredibly concentrated, and long. Exotic flowers, black cherries, hints of cassis, olive tapenade and peppery, gamey notes all soar from this full-bodied, seamless, straight up awesome Côte Rôtie that reminds me of what the 1978 Guigal La Mouline must have tasted like on release. With sweet, sweet tannin, no hard edges, and a grand, majestic personality, drink it anytime over the coming 20-25 years."

100 point, Jeb Dunnuck - Jan 2018

"My top pick among Ogier’s 2015s is his 2015 Cote Rotie Lancement. It shows wonderful smoky, herbal and bacony complexity on the nose, then follows that up with a concentrated, medium to full-bodied wine that stays light on its feet through a nearly endless finish. A really spectacular effort, worth the search. Stephane Ogier grins from ear to ear when talking about his recently completed winery. He feels like it’s enabled him to raise the quality of his wines. Plus, it’s just plain cool. Ogier is also smiling about the last three vintages, which have all been excellent. We didn’t speak much about the 2017s, which had just gone to barrel, but Ogier told me he likes the charm of the 2016s. And of the 2015s, he said, 'Even if it’s a sunny-type vintage--it’s powerful and rich--we worked hard to keep the freshness and balance.' He considers the raw materials 'at the level of 2010, 2005 and 1999.' (JC)"

98 points, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate - Dec 2017

"Saturated ruby. Intense, mineral-tinged aromas of ripe red and blue fruits, smoked meat, incense and pungent flowers are accented by exotic Asian spice flourishes. Sappy and deeply concentrated yet lively on the palate, offering impressively focused boysenberry, raspberry, olive paste and floral pastille flavors that are underscored by a vibrant mineral quality. Smooth, gently gripping tannins build stealthily a floral-driven finish, which hangs on with outstanding tenacity and resonating spiciness. (JR)"

97 points, Vinous - April 2018

"One of the wines of the vintage, the 2015 Côte Rôtie Belle Helene is up there with the handful of greatest young Syrahs I've ever been lucky enough to taste. Coming all from the Côte Rozier lieu-dit in the northern portion of the appellation, just above Guigal's la Landonne lieu-dit, this majestic wine offers incredible blue fruits, liquid violets, olive tapenade, and aged meats. Full-bodied, ultra-fine, deep, concentrated, and as seamless and pure as it gets. It's already approachable (which is rare for this cuvée) due to its perfectly ripe tannin, yet will need 7-8 years of bottle age and keep for 2-3 decades. I was able to taste the 2015s from the incredibly talented Stéphane Ogier twice, once during my visit at the estate, which was just after bottling, and then again from bottles shipped to my office in Colorado. These are ripe, polished, sexy wines from Stéphane that show the purity as well as the opulence of this great, great vintage. The 2016 vintage was compared to 2006 by Ogier, which was a solid, under the radar vintage from the northern Rhône. The barrel samples all showed terrific purity of fruit and balanced styles, and should check in near the top of the vintage. This estate is certainly at the top of its game and readers looking for some of the most profound Côte Rôties out there are advised to get on this estate’s bandwagon."

100 points, Jeb Dunnuck - Jan 2018

"Waves of dark fruit on a plentiful nose. The palate booms with classy red fruits, and a rocky crunch. Ace balance. Drinking Window 2021 - 2048. (JLL)"

97 points, Decanter - Feb 2017

"The 2015 Cote Rotie La Belle Helene is smoky, dark and brooding, almost fruitcake-like in its density and complexity. It flirts with surmaturité and dried-fruit notes yet stays just this side of over-ripeness. It’s not as aromatically complex or as elegant as the Lancement but may be longer-lived. Stephane Ogier grins from ear to ear when talking about his recently completed winery. He feels like it’s enabled him to raise the quality of his wines. Plus, it’s just plain cool. Ogier is also smiling about the last three vintages, which have all been excellent. We didn’t speak much about the 2017s, which had just gone to barrel, but Ogier told me he likes the charm of the 2016s. And of the 2015s, he said, “Even if it’s a sunny-type vintage—it’s powerful and rich—we worked hard to keep the freshness and balance.” He considers the raw materials “at the level of 2010, 2005 and 1999.” (JC) "

96 points, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate - Dec 2017

"Dark violet color. Heady, mineral- and smoke-accented dark berry liqueur, licorice and candied flowers on the deeply perfumed nose, along with a hint of cracked pepper that adds complexity and spicy lift. Offers sweet, densely packed cherry and black raspberry flavors that are braced by an undercurrent of smoky minerality, which provides back-end cut and lift. Shows a very suave floral nuance on the wonderfully finish, which is shaped by smooth, harmonious tannins. This is a distinctly elegant rendition of this bottling. (JR)"

96 points, Vinous - April 2018

"The first vintage for this cuvée and from relatively younger vines planted in 2010, the 2015 Côte Rôtie Côte Blonde is another gorgeous wine from this young superstar winemaker. Offering beautiful notes of black raspberries, black currants, spring flowers, violets, and incense, with more minerality and deep Syrah meatiness with air, this full-bodied, beautifully concentrated, finesse-driven Côte Rôtie has sweet tannin and a layered, seamless texture that just keeps on giving. Due to its purity of fruit and incredible tannin quality, it's already hard to resist, but do your best to give bottles 4-5 years. It's going to be a 20-to 30-year wine."

97 points, Jeb Dunnuck - Jan 2018

"In its first year to return as a single-vineyard bottling, Ogier’s tiny 2015 Cote Rotie La Cote Blonde is a sure hit. Floral, raspberry aromas speak to its elegance, while it’s also concentrated and rich, with a silky finish that lasts minutes. (JC)"

95 points, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate - Dec 2017

"Inky ruby. Intensely perfumed aromas of ripe red/blue fruits, potpourri and smoked meat show excellent clarity and spicy lift. Offers deeply concentrated boysenberry, black raspberry, spicecake and violet pastille flavors. Hints of candied licorice and cracked pepper build on the back half. Finishes on a suave, alluringly sweet note of blue fruit liqueur, with slowly emerging tannins and outstanding focus. (JR)"

94 points, Vinous - April 2018