Michael Meyer

9.0

My last bottle (of 4 that I bought 9 years ago) of an odd Syrah. The funk has finally started to mellow. — 6 years ago

Mark Flesher

9.4

Enjoyed for Christmas. This one should have been popped after the kids opened presents and enjoyed 9 hours later. Really, what this one needs is about 7 to 10 more years in bottle. Took 30 minutes for funk to blow off. After that there was a blackberry core and some truffle, earthier middle, very tannic and peppery finish. Still on the muted side. This rating is halfway between my experience yesterday and the expectations of this one 7 years down the road. Still has a LOT of life left. — 7 years ago

Isaac Pirolo

9.3

The Fiddlestix Vineyard is located at mile marker 7.28 on Santa Rosa Road in Lompoc, California, which is situated in the Sta. Rita Hills AVA. In the mid-90's Kathy Joseph of Fiddlehead Cellars, along with the viticultural icon Taz Steinhauer, acquired the 133-acre, former flower farm, across Santa Rosa Road from the Sanford & Benedict Vineyard, and in 1998 they planted 100 acres of Pinot Noir. Aside from the small amount earmarked for Fiddlehead's own production, much of the vineyard is contracted to other producers, including Ampelos, Ancien, Anglim, Arcadian, Bonaccorsi, Dragonette, Jonata, Ken Brown, Hartley-Ostini Hitching Post, Gainey, Ortman, Pali, Paul Lato, Prodigal, RN Estate, Rusack, Summerland, Tyler, Vogelzang, Wedell , and TAZ, not to mention Etude.

Opens with an austere earth note in a tone reminiscent of Barbaresco, and in the words of Miles Raymond, it's "tighter than a nun's ass." 45 minutes later, though, and it's singing and juicy. Black cherry, but not overripe, leads this medium bodied, pungent thinker, while a virtual greenhouse of floral shades help twist and shape its direction. Secondary dusty earth and walnut skin reveal the source of its austerity. True to its terroir, there's a tertiary layer of spice and rocks that provides the depth needed to go from good to great. — 8 years ago

Erik Longabardi

9.3

Post 9 mile run hydration. Yep, drank it — 9 years ago

David Smisek

8.9

9/25/15 @ 15.99. Tasted (robin). Buttery nice aged oak. — 10 years ago

Pamara Chang

9.7

SOOOOOO good !! Very thick and smooth. — 11 years ago

Timothy Lynch

9.0

A HUGE CC that is nowhere near approachable. Brooding and clearly looking to get in your face. An easy potential for 9+ down the road but leave this one alone for at least another 3 to 5 years. — 7 years ago

VC

9.0

Crisp and zesty green apple, beautiful soft bubbles and a creamy body. Happily have this as a regular or celebration bubbly. :) — 7 years ago

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.0

Excellent tasting with Chris!

Mix of ruby and garnet red. Elegant nose with cinnamon, purple flowers, roses and darker berries. Strong acidity and warm mouthfeel. Medium tannins (6.5/10) and medium plus bodied. Darker on the palate than the nose with notes of blackcurrants, cassis, and nutmeg. Medium plus finish. Made of 100% Grenache. Fruit comes from 9 coastal vineyards. Drink from 2018 till 2024. — 8 years ago

with India

Georgina McDonald

9.2

Bobby pulling out the big guns for our second last night. The nose proves to be slightly more complex than the palate but above a 9 all the same. Smells of road after rain and squashed dates. Flavors of singed apple skins and stewed raspberries. Soft tannins. Maybe more punch on the palate with some light cellaring? — 8 years ago

with Hugh

jason carey DipWSET

9.1

Grippy tannins, lovely black fruits. Good now, Better in 9-12 months. — 9 years ago

with Cynthia

Sandie Tilbury

9.3

Bought on sale @lcbo $15.95. Same or not quite as good as Inniskillin Late Autumn Riesling which is cheaper. — 9 years ago

Randy Hawks

9.2

Great Pinot. 9 out of 10 — 11 years ago

Steve Cooper

9.4

Vanilla and berry nose. Cassis and rhubarb followed by green peppery finish. Pleasantly tannic, not overly fruity. — 12 years ago

David Barnes-Trujillo

9.2

Jeff 9 me 9.7 — 7 years ago

with Jeffrey

Jake Rubash

9.1

First of our 16's, gave it a 3hr decant and I feel like it needed more time. I think these just need to sit in bottle a bit longer to get up to the level of the '15 which we loved about 9-12 months after release. Still a lovely, juicy wine but missing the exotic spices element at the moment. — 7 years ago

Eric Gardner

9.0

Watching football and drinking champs with KFC. Bereche is the bomb. I love opening it and waiting and hour or two to drink it, to let it balance out. I like to wait on all champagnes especially Bereche. After getting some air, you get such a nice mix of tart and sweet, like hard candy (Green apple jolly ranchers?), but you get the sophistication of a traditional 3 grape blend with a decent amount of reserve, plus some funkiness from all the naturalness of the process that they use to make it. It is a really smart wine that offers something for everyone without sacrificing anything or making compromises. I like this a lot more than a 9, but I have to save some digits for the Emidio Pepe '85s or the Pol Roger Winston Churchill '88s of the world. If you look at my scores, you see a lot of 9s but that's because I rarely write about wine I don't like. I don't want to be one of those yelpers who only bitch, especially when I know how much sacrifice goes into making great wine. I want to celebrate the Bereches of the world who go that extra mile to touch greatness, even though wine economics resist it. — 8 years ago

Henrik Poulsen

9.2

13.7% alc.
9 barrels made. $90/btl.

From AR note sheet:
"33 year old vines grown in Franciscan shale and sandy loam over limestone at 2200' in the Santa Cruz Mountains at the top of Montebello Road above Cupertino. Fermented 30% whole cluster with native yeast, and basket pressed to 30% new French oak barrels for 22 months." — 9 years ago

with Kurt-Inge

Marshall Todd Herron DPM

9.8

The color is black and opaque. The legs last a good 9 seconds and are absolutely beautiful. The boquet is that of rasberries and chocolate. Initial palate is green apple at first then after 10 minutes of opening up, it becomes a beautiful chocolate velvety blackberry cobler yet not sweet but mildly tart. The toungue has a small sensation on the edges on the mid region. It is dry but not too much. lt is perfection and its a syrah!!!!!!! I will definately buy this by the case!
— 10 years ago

Brenna Gray

9.8

Mellow and smooth. Smokey plums. — 11 years ago