Ontario-based business executive Kenneth Loeb delves into five of the best wines currently on the market.
From Château Léoville Barton St. Julien to Roederer Estate Brut Anderson Valley L’Ermitage, wine connoisseur, and business executive Kenneth Loeb‘s list of this year’s greatest wine purchases ranges in price from under $40 to more than $170 per bottle and includes a combination of 2012-2017 vintages. Celebrating their mouthwatering complexity, tremendous energy, lengthy finishes, and more, Loeb beautifully showcases his top five before also giving an honorable mention to those he’s placed sixth through tenth.
Kenneth Loeb starts with his top-rated wine – Château Léoville Barton St. Julien 2016, priced, on average, at $98. “Vivid blackberry, blueberry, and plum flavors combine with a taste of bramble to create a wine that’s largely unparalleled in its mouthwatering complexity,” suggests successful business executive and realty firm chairman Loeb, speaking from his office in Ottawa, Ontario.
What’s more, he says, Château Léoville Barton St. Julien should be good to keep through 2040, making it a standout wine that can be enjoyed today, in five years’ time, or squirreled away for a decade or more to enjoy far in the future.
In second place is Mayacamas Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder, according to Kenneth Loeb – a wine which the expert says is both youthful and tightly wound. “Youthful and, yes, tightly wound, flavors of plum, blueberry, and bay leaf finish on notes of mouthwatering juniper,” he explains.
“A standout wine from 2015, Mayacamas Cabernet Sauvignon Mount Veeder will be at its best in a couple of years but, again, will age beautifully for up to two decades,” adds Loeb. The realty firm chairman and wine connoisseur’s second-place choice is priced, on average, at $125.
The third of Kenneth Loeb’s five best wines currently on the market, the Ontario-based executive next turns to San Giusto a Rentennano Chianti Classico. The best value entry on the list at just $36 per bottle on average, unusual violet flavors and mint notes provide, he says, tremendous energy. “This 2016 wine, too, should have a long life ahead,” he adds.
In fourth place, meanwhile, is Groth Cabernet Sauvignon Oakville Reserve 2016, according to Kenneth Loeb. “Cassis, raspberry, and cherry flavors finish on a tobacco note in this complex and not inexpensive tipple,” he reports.
Priced at around $150 per bottle, it’s a pick which Kenneth Loeb says will be good stored for 15 years or more or one that can, of course, be enjoyed today.
Finally, and in fifth place, comes Roederer Estate Brut Anderson Valley L’Ermitage. “This is a wine best enjoyed today,” says the expert, “and not one to stow away for the future.”
Fresh pear, hazelnut, and ginger notes, he suggests, lead to a delightful and lengthy finish. In this instance a 2012 vintage, Roederer Estate Brut Anderson Valley L’Ermitage is available from an average of around $48, Kenneth Loeb points out.
Sixth through tenth place, Kenneth Loeb says, must also receive an honorable mention. These are, according to Loeb, Château de Beaucastel Châteauneuf-du-Pape 2016, Ramey Chardonnay Napa Valley Carneros Hyde Vineyard 2016, Château Pichon Baron Pauillac 2016, Penfolds Shiraz Barossa Valley RWT Bin 798 2017, and Viña Almaviva Puente Alto 2016, priced, on average, at $107, $65, $176, $150, and $130 per bottle respectively.
