"Odedi"

9.2

Dark ruby in color with a wide reddish rim. This 7 year old is showing a great nose now.

Dry on the palate with medium plus acidity.

Showing red and black fruits with wood, earth, herbs, spices, wild flowers, chocolates, leather, tobacco leaf, dark coffee and black pepper.

This is a delicious, yet very young, Sangiovese from Chianti. Nicely balanced, powerful and tangy.

This 2016 vintage holds great promise for aging gracefully over the next two decades. However, at present, it has yet to fully reach its full potential. Would be nice to revisit it in 5 years.

Would have been nice to have it decanted for a few hours, but it wasn't my call. I had it blind, so it is what it is.

I paired it with a Charcuterie board of meats and cheeses.

100% Sangiovese grapes.

14% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$350. — 3 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.5

Tasted blind. Deep, dark amber tinged and tawny color. Hits me immediately as a gravel-influenced Bordeaux and I’m am in Graves with my guess. Notes of tobacco, graphite, ash, earth and gravel stone. Big shoulders, and a little hot. Yet silky in the mouth. I guess 82 La Mish HB. This has plenty of life in front of it, but give it 5+ hrs of air if consuming in the near term as the provider of this wine did. — 6 years ago

Shay A

9.6

After a couple months of hiatus, the Friday City Club group was able to get back together (albeit a smaller, more spread out group) for an epic hosting by @joe leatherwood . 1 sparkler, 2 whites, 5 reds and 1 dessert wine, all served blind.

Compared to the 2012 Quella it was next to, this was much darker in style. Scorched blue and black fruit, sandalwood, plums and mocha on the nose. Copious amounts of dark chocolate and fresh squeezed dark fruits on the palate wrapped in a silky and slightly dusty profile. I called this 7-10yr old Napa cab. — 6 years ago

with Jid, joe and 3 others

Shay A

9.6

Wednesday Wine Committee from this past week. A fantastic hosting by @joe leatherwood . 1 sparkler, 2 whites, 5 reds, 1 dessert wine. All tasted blind as usual.

Possibly in its prime drinking window, and it is gorgeous. Everything about this screams high quality left bank Bordeaux (which is what I called it). It was beautifully perfumed with a mix of potpourri, dried black cherries, blackberries, graphite, saddle leather and herbs de Provence. Perfectly balanced on the palate with dark fruits enveloped in cedar and sweet pipe tobacco. There is a line of ripe purple fruits down the middle accompanied by dust and mocha which is just delicious. — 6 years ago

with Dan, joe and 2 others

Shay A

9.3

Yesterday’s Wednesday Wine Committee, hosted by @Jeff Meyer , was so educational with fantastic German & Austrian wines. 1 sparkler, 5 whites, 5 reds, 1 dessert wine. All served blind as usual.

Red of the day. Top producer and it shows. This reminded me of Oregon pinot. Plenty of herbal and earthy notes but a nice balance of fruit too. Underripe blackberries, black cherry, black tea, potpourri, bay leaf and a distinct herbal note (oregano? Thyme?). Tannic but so nicely balanced. I called this Spätburgunder. — 7 years ago

with Dan, Jeff and 1 other

"Odedi"

9.0

This is #MerlotThursday and it is time for some Merlot.

Dark ruby in color with a short purple rim.

Fruity nose with black currants, blackberries, cherries, vanilla, earth, wood, spices, pencil lead and peppercorn.

Full bodied and bold with medium acidity and long legs.

Fruity on the palate with blackberries, black currants, sweet cherries, oak, vanilla, licorice, spices, tobacco leaf, light vegetables and peppercorn.

Medium plus in finish with grippy tannins and tangy raspberries.

This is a young Right Bank Bordeaux. Fruit forward and big, with a grippy mouthfeel.

This second wine from this iconic winery, needs a couple of hours to open up properly.

This 7 year old is very young and unbalanced, but already drinking very nicely, and will be better in 5 to 10 years.

I had it at a blind tasting, called it, but missed the vintage by 2 years. Good enough for me. 😊

I paired it with light appetizers.

A blend of 85% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc and 1% Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged for 12 months in French oak barrels (100% 1 year old barrels).

14.5% alcohol by volume.

90 points.

$35. — 7 years ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.1

2008 vintage. Fresh as a daisy. Drinking more like a pinot. Feel like it needs another 3-5 years to transition into some semblance of maturity. Delicious but would have had difficulty believing this was a Syrah blind tasting it. Hasn’t developed that Côte-Rôtie balance-yet. — 4 years ago

Michael Phillips

9.7

If tasted blind would think it was 5-10 yrs old. Deep robust color with no brown edge.Rich plummy youthful Porto. Wonderful. — 5 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.5

Wine No. 5 of the 8 x 2009 Cabernets we tasted blind. Brief notes. Colour of deep crimson. Loved the nose of violet and stalky notes - the oak present but in balance. A medium to full bodied palate. Again, a long life ahead. Ranked #4 out of 8 Cabernets on the day. — 6 years ago

Shay A

9.3

After a couple months of hiatus, the Friday City Club group was able to get back together (albeit a smaller, more spread out group) for an epic hosting by @joe leatherwood . 1 sparkler, 2 whites, 5 reds and 1 dessert wine, all served blind.

A palate revitalizer after the reds! Like a shot of vitamin C to your taste buds. Apricot, ripe peach, and mango all drizzled in orange blossom honey. Didn’t have the nuttiness of Sauternes but there was really nice acidity here. I called this late harvest Cali SB/semillon. — 6 years ago

with Jid, joe and 3 others

Bob McDonald

9.6

No. 5 of 9 in the Gevrey Chambertin Grand Cru bracket. Tasted blind. Showing that Gevrey Chambertin earth and muscle (even though ended up being a Charmes which gets a little less sun than Le Chambertin to its north). My notes: Cherry, Liquorice, Tar; palate staining intensity - sweet, picked later in the season? Quantity produced down as Gevrey C hit hard by the frosts. Liked this a lot. — 6 years ago

Shay A

9.3

Yesterday’s Wednesday Wine Committee, hosted by @Jeff Meyer , was so educational with fantastic German & Austrian wines. 1 sparkler, 5 whites, 5 reds, 1 dessert wine. All served blind as usual.

So delicious. Almost Sauternes like. Plenty of orange marmalade and honeyed fruits, but there isn’t that distinct nuttiness/roasted nut characteristic. Lychee, twice baked peaches yet very light and nimble. Long finish. I actually guessed this Tokaji. — 7 years ago

with Dan, Jeff and 1 other

Shay A

9.1

Yesterday’s Wednesday Wine Committee, hosted by @Jeff Meyer , was so educational with fantastic German & Austrian wines. 1 sparkler, 5 whites, 5 reds, 1 dessert wine. All served blind as usual.

This was more mineral driven than the first red in every way. Not necessarily savory, but very herbal. Almost grassy. Sour and underripe cherry, bitter dark cocoa, medium acidity, and surprisingly tannic on the finish with too many herbs to differentiate against! Complex. I called this Spätburgunder. — 7 years ago

with Dan, Jeff and 1 other

Bob McDonald

9.5

Wine No. 4 of 5 in the Echezeax/Vougeot lineup tasted blind. Another closed nose. Perhaps a longer decant could have helped. Savoury spicy and powerful. Could happily drink this now but has a great future. A good example as to why 2015 is so highly regarded. — 7 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.5

Tasted blind, presented by Sue Bell. I picked Riesling, Australian and missed Porongurups WA. A brilliant Riesling made by Rob Diletti at Castle Rock WA. Lovely aromatics of Musk and Bath Talc. At 5 years the acid had settled and the citrus was going towards stone fruit. Really enjoyed this. — 5 years ago

Mario Vaillancourt

9.2

I miss the tastings with this semi-confinement we are still in and stole the idea of @Benoit Duhamel here, so we made one at home with my son and my wife who are both wine fanatics as I am too. We chose 6 red Burgundies Villages 2017, 3 Côtes de Beaune and 3 Côte de Nuits and we tasted these blind, each of us giving ranks and points for each wines. Tasting blind usually doesn’t lie and it can bring numerous surprises which it did in that case. All wines were fo a good level here, no bad wines and all were fun and good indiviually but the results were pretty clear cut in terms of the Côte de Beaune winning this battle.

1- Chassagne-Montrachet villages 2017 Jean-Claude Ramonet 32 pts
2- Volnay Vieilles Vignes 2017, Henri DeLaGrange 28 pts
3- Auxey-Duresses Très Vieilles Vignes 2017, Alain Gras 26 pts
4- Chambolle-Musigny Les Véroilles 2017, Bruno Clair 20 pts
5- Gevrey-Chambertin 2017, Lucien Boillot 12 pts
6- Gevrey-Chambertin 2017 Les Évocelles, Louis Boillot 8 pts

The Auxey-Duresses: gets more complex with air and extremely aromatic with dark fruit, violets, black berries. The palate has a mice medium strong bodied, some good structure, nice energy, the most balanced I believe too with this elegant power and some nice class. My no 1 but close with Ramonet. 91-92


On s’ennuie des dégustations et j’ai bien aimé l’idée de @Benoit Duhamel , merci Benoit. Alors s’en est fait une à la maison à trois (en respectant les règles bien sûr). Nous avons choisi 6 Bourgogne Villages Rouges 2017, 3 Côtes de Beaune et 3 Côtes de Nuits, nous avons dégusté à l'aveugle et accordé des points à chaque position, il n’y avait aucun mauvais vin dans le lot et tous étaient très bien si bu individuellement, mais la dégustation à l’aveugle ne ment pas et les résultats peuvent être surprenants, les vins de la Côte de Beaune ont remporté la palme facilement ici, alors pour s’amuser un peu, voici le classement que cela a donné :
1- Chassagne-Montrachet villages 2017 Jean-Claude Ramonet 32 pts
2- Volnay Vieilles Vignes 2017, Henri DeLaGrange 28 pts
3- Auxey-Duresses Très Vieilles Vignes 2017, Alain Gras 26 pts
4- Chambolle-Musigny Les Véroilles 2017, Bruno Clair 20 pts
5- Gevrey-Chambertin 2017, Lucien Boillot 12 pts
6- Gevrey-Chambertin 2017 Les Évocelles, Louis Boillot 8 pts

Auxey de Alain Gras: Nez qui évolue beaucoup avec le temps, fruits noirs, mures et violettes. Bouche avec du corps et de la structure avec une belle énergie, le plus équilibré selon moi avec cette puissance contenue et qui a de la classe. Mon no 1 mais assez près avec Ramonet. 91-92 — 6 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.2

Tasted blind. Light gold. Complex nose. Notes of honeysuckle, grass field, lemon, beeswax and some green apple. Nice fruit in the mouth. Soft and quiet acidity and structure, even after 5 hours of air. Decent juice but the nose makes you wanting more than the body provides. Was hoping for more impact. — 6 years ago

Shay A

9.6

An absolutely stunning lunch from @joe leatherwood today. 1 sparkler, 2 whites, 5 reds and 1 dessert wine. All served blind.

In. The. Zone. The first of five mind blowing reds. This, to me, epitomizes first growth version of Bordeaux. In fact, I called this Napa royalty style first growth style. It is dusty and just starting to channel some herbal and leather notes, but the density and purity/softness of the fruit (still quite dark, hint of red fruit), scream older Napa Cab. Added notes of fig, leafy tobacco, and truffled dark cocoa. Wonderful! — 7 years ago

with joe, Dan and 1 other

EatSommThings (Jimmy)

9.3

6/22/19 - blind tasting wine 5 - high tone red fruited cherry strawberry pomegranate some black plum m+ acid and tannins riper angry Barolo — 7 years ago

with Diana

"Odedi"

9.2

Time for my #MerlotThursday . Here is a beautiful one from Napa Valley.

Dark ruby in color with a short purple rim.

Fruity nose with black currants, blackberries, cherries, vanilla, earth, wood, spices, chocolates, tobacco, graphite, dark coffee and black pepper.

Full bodied and smooth with medium plus acidity and long legs.

Dry and fruity on the palate with blackberries, black currants, sweet plums, light vegetables, pencil lead, dark coffee, tobacco leaf, earth, herbs, spices and peppercorn.

Long finish with firm tannins and tangy cranberries.

This is a great Napa Merlot. Showing nice complexity with a great mouthfeel. Interesting, powerful and bold.

I had this vintage 2 years ago, and loved it just as much.

The 2012 was a great vintage, and it is showing. Would easily be 94+ points in 5 years from now, so this would be a good cellaring candidate.

Good right out of the bottle and better as it opens up.

Had it blind, and it felt like a Napa Syrah, actually.

Thanks DJ for sharing this wonderful wine with me.

Delicious and yummy. I had it all by itself.

14.8% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$60. — 7 years ago