Our Top Wines of 2020 - Bottles 30-21

30. 2017 Nuits-St-Georges ROUGE

On Thanksgiving this year me and my two close friends had Peking Duck and Peking Chicken (NO TURKEY) so we had to pair the perfect wines. One of which was an all-time producer, Pierre-Yves Colin-Morey (PYCM for short) - I was able to get my hands on ONE bottle of the 2017 Nuits-St-Georges ROUGE and boy was it singing with the food! Tart cherry and cranberry fruit, a hint of truffle, fresh potting soil. I'm salivating thinking about this wine. For a producer famous for their white wines, this was a very special first experience with his red.

Matthew Kaner (SOMM TV Cast Member & Host of History of Wine Podcast)

29. 2017 L’ Artishasic 'Lagier-Meredith Vineyard’ Syrah

A dear friend, Artie Johnson has been at this winemaking thing for the last 5 vintages, and his wines keep getting better and better. He is a student of producers, he is a student of vineyards, and more importantly, a pupil who keeps asking questions. This is his best Syrah, and easily one of the top 10 made in Cali right now, easily. His wines will one day, SOON, be a benchmark for Syrah in the Western Hemisphere.

DLynn Proctor (SOMM TV Cast Member)

28. 2016 Clos Electrique by Cameron

Clos Electrique by Cameron, one of our favorite Chardonnays from any continent, the apogee of craftsmanship in viticulture and winemaking, incredibly balanced yet totally alive, the holy grail to find both of those features of wine greatness in the same wine.

Steve Matthiasson (SOMM TV Cast Member)
Learn more about Chardonnay, otherwise known as, the winemaker's grape.

27. 2014 Jamet Côte Rôtie

This wine was memorable for many reasons, 1. It was delicious. 2. I got to share it with my good friend Jeff Fisher 3. He blinded me on it on camera and I nailed it (and the white if you're keeping score). The background was pretty epic too…Outside, high above Los Angeles, Air Brushed Horses Galloping in the back ground, you get the vibe. It was also a delicious redemption after the blood bath at The Oyster House with Baxter (I mean 1992 Kistler Chard and 1997 Mayacamas Merlot).

Sabato Sagaria (SOMM TV Cast Member)
Watch this blind tasting episode on SOMM TV!

26. 2001 Schramsberg

When the Glass Fire broke out, we evacuated at 4:30am and went to the Matthiassons. What started out as a stressful morning, turned into a day filled with friends and camaraderie. I'm a huge fan of sparkling wine and Steve opened this 2001 bottle he had been saving to share with the group. The wine had aged beautifully and had such depth to every sip. It was such a treasured moment in the midst of the chaos that day.

Nadine Nettmann (SOMM TV Producer & Editorial Director)
Watch Schramsberg on SOMM TV 

25. 2001 Domaine Meo-Camuzet, Echezeaux ‘Les Rouges du Bas’

Not only is Jean-Nicolas Meo one of my favorite vignerons in all of the Cote, he is a wonderful person and a good friend. I was able to share this bottle with some great friends—including the incomparable DLynn Proctor—in New York City in early March just before the world’s population found itself separated from all its friends. The wine was spectacular, but the fact that it was shared with others is what made it so memorable. Wine truly is meant to be shared.

Jonah Beer (SOMM TV Cast Member)
Share your wines with friends by playing SOMM Blinders Game

2010 Mugnier, Les Amoureuses

In February I my took first trip to Burgundy in almost 20 years. For me this was one of those wines that I will remember for a lifetime and a reminder of how magical Burgundy can be. Unbeknownst to me this would be the last international trip I would be taking for quite some time. Here’s to getting to use our passports again in 2021.

Sabato Sagaria (SOMM TV Cast Member)
Travel to Burgundy with SOMM TV

23. 1999 Bernard Levet “La Chavaroche” Côte-Rôtie

I am a huge fan of Syrah from Côte-Rôtie, but this was my first introduction to the phenomenal wines of Bernard Levet. I shared this bottle this past summer with a dear friend and co-worker from my time at République. The wine was mind-blowingly layered and stunning. We were both so bummed to not be at the restaurant working together anymore, but sharing this bottle definitely helped ease the pain!

Claire Coppi (SOMM TV Cast Member)
Learn more about Syrah on SOMM TV

22. 2008 Veuve Clicquot La Grande Dame

The first bottle I popped with a small (safe group of friends) the Saturday it was finally announced that President-Elect Biden and Vice President-Elect Kamala Harris would be taking office in January. The bottle delivered everything we needed and more. The sheer tenacity of Madame Clicquot and her story were perfect for the moment!

Shakera Jones (SOMM TV Cast Member & Host of A Glass for Every Palate Podcast)
Listen to the A Glass for Every Palate Podcast

21. 2011 Domaine Fourrier Gevrey Chambertin

These are the wines that I drank with friends the night the results of the presidential election were (finally) called. A champagne Cuvée named for a groundbreaking, trail-blazing, ceiling shattering woman, so celebrate our new Vice President-elect with a bottle of Burgundy from one of my favorite producers. Not a particularly noteworthy vintage, and just a little village wine, but so, so delicious.

Jill Zimorski (SOMM TV Cast Member & Host of Reading & Drinking Podcast)
Listen to the Reading and Drinking podcast

Want to keep reading the rest? Read about bottles 20 all the way down to Bottle number 1. Need a hint about what you're working up to? Bottle number 1 is close to 200 years old...