David Kline

9.4

Raspberry, dried blackberry and cedar form a distinct potpourri when considered with the dried rose petal and orange bitters. There is a fleeting fruitiness that approaches strawberries dropped into a coniferous fire. Lovely, if firm tannins support a whale of a wine. Amazing depth with Roobios tea leafs, tobacco, graphite, bay leaf, bing cherry, dried black cherry and black currants on carbon paper and campfire ash, driven deep into a charred wormwood and dusty schist. This is an incredible Nebbiolo that over-delivers in every sense! #piedmontesewines #nebbiolo #nebbiololover #nebbiololife #nebbiolodalba #alba #Demarie #piedmont #babybarolo #italianred #Italianwine — 8 years ago

with Courtney

François Jung

9.4

A Superbowl touchdown. Powerful, massive : must calm down for a fistful of years but huge potential — 8 years ago

David Kline

9.0

Fresh blueberries in a blueberry reduction which includes caramel, tilled, mixed soil and clay, schist and black currant. and a nucleus of ash-fed roses. There is a grilled-fat-afire, with touches of cedar, and spruce aromatically. Monster blueberries, rosemary and caramel, big fruit tannins that hang around after hours. Connecticut wrappers, resinous tar and a licorice cameo! — 9 years ago

with Courtney

Emily Rath

9.0

Strawberry, rose petals, perfume, hint of cocoa, cranberry. A perfectly gulpable picnic or porch wine! Low tannins, med minus alcohol, med finish, med minus body. A bright, happy expression of 100% Cinsault made by Jean-Marie Rimbert in the Languedoc (St. Chinian sub region). Schist soil. Label put together by Rimbert from 1950s magazines, and named after girlfriend's cousin Oscar who is popular with ladies. Goes great with fresh cheeses like Fleur Verte or bloomy like Delice de Bourgogne, roast chicken, fresh pasta with butter and spring herbs. Plush, juicy, ripe but not too ripe, smooth, and very pretty. 100% stainless steel. Beautiful natural wine! — 9 years ago

with Cured

Roel van der Burg

Sommelier at Restaurant Entrepot

9.5

Overview tasting of the recently bottled wines of Ganevat. Whites 2013 & reds 2014. All of them showed a lot character already. My favorite today was the Julien en Billat Pinot Noir. Partly franc de pied pinot planted in 1990 and partly vieilles vignes pinot on 'schist' soil with calcarious clay on top. So alive this one! Roses, chalk, great expression and light as a feather. Wow. This is the way I want my Pinot. — 10 years ago

with Midas van der

David Kline

9.1

Climb into the brown submarine! This is subterranean and deliciously dank. Big hot, black soil notes intertwine with raw cocoa nib and smoky blackberry. Cedar and briar, leather and biomass. This is a stubble and schist wall of tannins up front, with a king-fu grip! — 10 years ago

with Courtney

Robert Lim

9.1

Strawberry gives way quickly to grapefruit peel and pith along with kind of smoky saline schist. Slightly boozy back end, a rosé for Scotch drinkers? — 10 years ago

Kyo Jin

9.3

2003. Much better. Nutty with a fistful of white flowers and citrus, and a touch of smoke. — 10 years ago

David Kline

9.1

2009 offering from Rainoldi. Amazing stuff, some of the grapes are helicopter harvested. Black coffee and tea nose with a touch of cola. Grapefruit rind, candied orange peel and clove. Medium mouthfeel with brandied bing cherry and bitter lemon.rounded out by wild dagga root, schist and cinnamon apples. Really really different, but entirely satisfying. The depth of an amarone, but light and lively on its feet! — 11 years ago

with Courtney

Seven Fifty

10

One of the best examples of Coulée de Serrant from Joly. Earthy, schist, mineral, intense. What a treat! — 11 years ago

Gene Blackley

9.7

17 years mature. Just a treat. No primary fruit left but a fistful of secondary characters — 12 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.8

Wow. This comes from Chris's estate outside his house. It's all dry farmed. Extremely low yields. It's entire yield is only 8 barrels. The fruit is so concentrated. Featured in the photos is; Chris and my wife Sofia, grapes from the property and his olive trees on his estate. His olive trees only yield one 375ml bottle per tree. This 09 is easy to drink but it's a still a baby...easily a 30 year plus wine. Words cannot describe the nuances in this wine. The elegant beauty & beast. It's mouthfeel so big and still so inviting. Luring you in layer by layer. It's starts with baked blue fruits, dark cassis, blackberries, blueberries, black cherries, black plums, layers of asian spice, spice-box, tarry notes. The tannins big yet silky. Slightly bitty but beautiful minerals from the clay, schist, quartz, and loamy top soils. The finish so good but my thoughts drifted to think about how good it's going to be in 10 more years. Chris tells me he has to spray the vines 4-6 times a year with an organic seaweed spray to hold down the acidity. I can't wait to try this wine at 20 years of age. I'm sure it will be close to a religious experience. As many great tastings that I've done, it's hard not to say this one is in the top three. Thank you Chris for sharing your time, knowledge and these amazing wines. It was an honor! — 8 years ago

Tannin Wine Bar & Kitchen KC

9.2

Extremely mineral, in a schist vein. Lovely, integrated aromas and flavors of flowers, spice, and fruit. — 8 years ago

Devin Bray

9.0

Mineral and musky on the nose - there's something furry in this bottle! ;) Sappy, savory and with a hint of blood on the palate, along with garrigue, musty closet, mushrooms, and modest peppery unripe cherry. Grown on schist soils and made using all local yeast. — 9 years ago

Anthony Lynch

9.1

Yummy Catalan rouge with a hearty dose of Mourvèdre, seasoned with epic schist. Pairs well with re-watching Soul Plane. — 10 years ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.4

Classic Meao that is intense but at the same time light on its feet. But that is what you get when you combine the great 3 main terroirs of the Meao property: schist, granite and riverside alluvial mounds. Power, grace and depth are achieved on the palate without trying hard. The wine delivers layer upon layer of flavor and complexity effortlessly. The wine is young, so the longer you can decant the better. A few hours is ideal, but open in the bottle for 1 day is better (how we had it). More black to dark red fruits, spice and the most intense depth and complexity of all the the Meao on the day.
Tasted at Quinta do Vale Meao 10/16/2015, bottle open 24 hours.
#meao #dourovalley — 10 years ago

Darren Guillaume

9.2

95% Syrah, 5% Viognier grown in shale and schist soils, aged in barrels for 1 year 30% new oak. Halcón Vineyards does their best to match a Cóte-Rôtie. This 2012 has a nice vinosity of red cherry, plum, baking spices and tobacco. Flavor of cherry, blackberry, nice round tannins, gorgeous acids that make this wine cellar worthy. Very long finish. — 10 years ago

Jo Armstrong

9.6

Stasis Pinot Noir 2010
Tasting great... Murmur Vineyard ...
A beautiful nose followed by a fistful of raspberries and as my friend said jam for days — 10 years ago

Robert Love

9.2

Pierre Gaillard produces wonderfully floral and intense wines from the schist-heavy "Viallieres" vineyard. Nose of fig, violet, and white pepper. White pepper for days in the mouth. A long, round finish. Beautiful. — 10 years ago

Brian McMahon

Sales Polaner Selections

9.2

Varietals: Gamay
Organic: Certified
Biodynamic: Practicing
Vineyard: From La Roche Pilée vineyard in the heart of the Morgon appellation at the base of the famed Cote du Py hillside (1.70 hectares).
Orientation: South facing with a slight slope.
Soil: "Decomposed granite and crumbly schist referred to regionally as "rotten rock"". Natural composting kick-starts bacterial activity in the soil that is very beneficial to the vines. "
Viticulture: 60-year-old vines with very low yields. Extensive pruning to further limit the yield; No chemical pesticides, fertilisers or herbicides used, giving a totally natural wine; all bunches are picked by hand and very carefully sorted to retain only the fully ripened whole bunches.
Vinification: No sulphur pitched for fermentation. Semi carbonic maceration for up to 12 days. Using an old vertical press, pressing is very slow and gentle, crushing only the fruit and not the seeds.
Aging: In barrels on fine lees between 5 and 13 months. The barrels are old as the aim is to allow the wine to breathe without giving it a woody taste. The end of alcoholic and malo-lactic fermentation takes place in oak barrels. Light sulphur is added after malo-lactic fermentation and at bottling to ensure the wine keeps well over time.
Notes: Bio-Vitis is the name Michel Guignier gave to this wine composed of 100% Agribio-certified fruit from La Roche Pilée, a site located at the base of the famed Cote du Py hillside in Morgon. The wine is a selection of old vines that are barrel fermented in neutral oak. It is the most structured wine in the Guignier lineup with classic red fruit character, sappiness and a seductive, round mouthfeel. — 11 years ago

MICHAEL COOPER DipWSET

Owner TomeVinos wine shops, WSET Level 3, Blogger www.spanishwinesandmore.com, blog.tomevinos.com

9.1

Surprisingly good #saintromain #whiteburgundy #chardonnay reminded me a lot of a Chablis with schist sensations — 8 years ago

Martha-Marie Kleinhans

9.2

Loved it - 11.99 on 2/17
Domaine Lafage
"Tessellae - Vieilles Vignes" Carignan 2014
92/100 - Wine Advocate
(3/26/2016) "A crazy value, the 2014 IGP Cotes Catalanes Tessellae Carignan Vieilles Vignes is one of the best examples of this variety from the Roussillon, and the fact that it sells for a song is just icing on the cake for the consumer. Coming all from schist soils and 70-year-old vines, raised 12 months in a mix of concrete tanks and demi-muids, it offers tons of black raspberry and black cherry fruit, licorice and dried spices to go with a super sexy, heady, seamless style on the palate that keeps you coming back to the glass. Drink this blockbuster over the coming 2-3 years."
— 8 years ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.8

If there were ever an archetypical Syrah, Jamet's Cote-Rotie would be a strong candidate. To me this is a pure expression of a classic Northern Rhone Syrah. It is not a single site, but a blend of terroirs, encompassing over 20 sites mostly from hard rock schist bedrock with little to no topsoil. There is NO Viognier in this wine like one might expect from most Cote-Rotie that might have 1-5% co-fermented.

Importantly, there is also a lot less of the oak character that can dominate and overwhelm many Northern Rhone wines. The oak maturation, while not short at 22 months, only uses 15% new oak with no trace of it on the palate as it is perfectly integrated. Grape bunches are whole cluster fermented and macerated for up to 3 weeks.

The 2007 we have here was drinking superbly for a young wine, showing lively and racy layers of peppercorn spice, roast beef, and warm blackberry and currant fruit from the hot 2007 vintage. While from a warm vintage, not a hair is out of place. Density and purity exude from the nose and hint at what a brilliant future this wine has. Perfect acidity and fleshy ripe tannin provide the backbone structure for father time to peel back the layers of this beauty. I will be chceking back in 5 years at the earliest. — 9 years ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.6

If you ever wanted to try a mature Port from a great producer this is in a great place from drinking enjoyment. The deep opaque core has given way to a deep crimson and brick edge to the color at the rim.
In a terrific place right now as the nose and the palate are open, complex and deeply pleasing in flavor and aroma. With mostly mature tertiary characteristics of dried fruits, sweet tobacco, a little bitter cacao and mellow spices with a beam of minerality from the heart of the schist terroir of this unbelievable property.
#vesuvio #douro #port #symington — 10 years ago

with Miguel

David Kline

9.5

Lemon and green pineapple leap from the glass but so do green apple, smoke, schist, mushroom, lemon pudding aromatics. Green apple and lemon oils draped over an iron structure of immense, polished acidity.tart lime, basil, green onion and of course, white pepper to last and last. Enormous and refined. Bright as sunlight, but nuanced. Amazing on so many levels!! What a pleasure to drink! — 10 years ago

with Courtney

Ladislav Vostarek

9.0

Yellow fruits, focused, fruity and juicy at the same time, a Riesling from the schist layer that shines! Low alcohol! 8 grams of residual sugar 10,5 % alcohol, typical summer wine — 10 years ago

Justin Smith

9.0

Really nice acid notes, lemon and lime peel. Nice little gravel, schist qualify running through. Rock with a touch of classical. — 10 years ago

Christine Havens

8.9

The Von Schubertsche Schlosskellerei Maximin Grünhäuser Herrenberg 2006 offers ample charm. Classic petrol notes give way to dried apricot, pear and clover honey. It’s a lighter style Kabinett to be sure, with some weight that can be attributed to glycerol and sweetness, the rest is pure, racy, unbridled acidity. The sort that ends in a stony embrace, with a dollop of schist, and salinity. AP No. 3 — 10 years ago

Brian McMahon

Sales Polaner Selections

9.0

Region: Beaujolais
Appellation: Beaujolais
Wine type: Red
Varietals: Gamay
Organic: Certified
Vineyard: The Beaujolais appellation spreads over 30 km between Saône Valley and Haute-Azergues and Haut-Beaujolais hills from North to South. This wine is primarily made with fruit from the Morgon sector.
Orientation: South facing with a slight slope.
Soil: Decomposed granite and crumbly schist referred to regionally as "rotten rock".
Viticulture: The vines are 40 years old; they are pruned quite extensively to limit the yield; all the bunches are picked by hand and then very carefully sorted to retain only the fully ripe, whole bunches.
Vinification: Semi carbonic maceration for up to 7 days. Traditional Vinification temperature: 22° C at the beginning of fermentation and 32° C at the end. On pressing, cooling to 22° C to retain as much aroma and flavor as possible.
Aging: In vats on the lees. All terroirs vinified and aged separately.
Production: 550 cases
Notes: Lacy and charming with a suprising amount of structure for an entry level Bojo. — 11 years ago

Andrew Lampasone

Owner Wine Watch Selections

9.4

Family not in the business of winemaking Francois was in cooking school but liked the idea of becoming winemaker and planted his first vines in 1988 then made his first wines in 1991 he makes almost all of the wines available from the north 8 appellations cote rotie condrieu them grilled which is the smallest appellation in France st Joseph coronas st perret they make sparkling therein left are crazes hermitage a hermitage lots of granite except cote rotie schist. Hermitage the soils very complex crazes very similar but not as complex too cold for Grenache in the north. Very pretty bouquet with juicy peach and apricot fruit 100% marsanne varietal this name used to be used for the varietal 20% new burgund barrels more floral and mineral this varietal very pretty white with a smooth creamy textures lovely freshness and balance with pretty floral notes through the finish excellent clementine orange zest — 11 years ago