Justin Hansohn

9.1

It’s pretty easy to over-do Syrah in this location. Desire Lines does a phenomenal job of keeping dessert-like pleasure and seriousness of terroir in check. Lifted and fruited like a modern northern Rhône or Cru beaujolais with a little less seriousness to boot but also this is young and booming. Held straight for 5 days. Get the feeling that this will resolve very slowly over time to show more what earthy and cool characteristics it has in its hand. This wine feels extremely stable and a kaleidoscope of possibilities lay herein. — 7 years ago

Serban Sincai

9.2

Very good balance between reductive and oxydative notes. 9,2 PM — 8 years ago

Sean Grullon

9.5

Okay - fine. It’s a good, probably great wine. Overpriced? Yes. Opus is filled with pretentious douchbags? Double yes. But this is a well-made wine bridging a gap between Napa and Boudreaux. Dusty nose with menthol, earl grey tea, tobacco, flowers, cassis, and creamy dark fruits. It has a really nice velvety finish. — 8 years ago

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.3

Second wine we tasted after our tour at Champagne Billecart-Salmon. Our tour guide was excellent and very knowledgeable about the domains history and all the wines.

Copperish pink and very lively. Layered nose with roses, strawberries, light raspberries, strawberry crème, and a little herbal. High acidity (7/10) but balanced with a slightly smooth mouthfeel. Layered with strawberries, tropical fruits, kiwi, grapefruit and melon. Very fresh and crisp. Medium to medium plus body with a long finish. Drink till 2024.

Made with a minimum of 40% Chardonnay with the remainder split between Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier of which 5 to 8% is from red wine. Aged for around 3 years on the lees.

Thanks @David L for introducing us to this stunning producer! — 9 years ago

with India

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.1

Nose of spiced plum & blueberries, perfumed flowers and baking spices. Bin 389 is often referred to as ‘Poor Man’s Grange’ or ‘Baby Grange. The Bin 389 is aged 18 months in American oak hogsheads (300 litres). There is 20–30% new, 70–80% 1- and 2-year-old oak, including barrels used for the previous vintage of Grange and Bin 707. The proportion of Cabernet Sauvignon can vary between 60 and 75 per cent depending on vintage conditions. The 92 is still holding it's own. It tastes as if it's just the other side of it's peak by 2-3 years. Still very pleasurable. The fruits show lots of black plum, plum, blueberries, olallieberries, wild blackberries, black cherry licorice, black tea, spice-box, used leather, dry stems, dry roses and fresh violets, vanilla, cinnamon, light caramel & brown sugar, gravelly dry brown earth, irony minerals and nice acidity. 13.5% alcohol but it feels higher in the back of the throat. The body is slightly lean for the grapes but that's the bottle age. The long finish is bright, elegant fruit with a touch of woodiness. A good warm up to my to Barossa Valley, Eden Valley, McLaren, Clare, Langhorne, Coonawarra, Hawke's Bay and Central Otago trip. — 10 years ago

Joe Lucca

9.3

Old world style from California central coast. The nose is redolent of Luxardo cherries and Antica Formula vermouth. On the palate, there is a battle between fruit and earth; deep, earthy forest flavors are offset by bright, tart spring cherries. Coastal botanicals play against wild fruit. Better than expected. — 10 years ago

D Gissen

9.2

So intense right now. Learned my lesson on previous bottles. Keep the cork in between pours to prevent oxidation. Tastes like drinking tang off a piece of stone. — 11 years ago

The fly

8.9

This is my local wine guy's favorite wine. He stopped stocking Caymus because it was "shit" and instead lines this with his shelves. I swear to god it looks exactly like purple kool aid. It has a big tannins and generally tastes ridiculous. A shameful varietal. — 11 years ago

JohnQ Boxler

Sales Berkeley Wine Company

8.9

Nice tension between structure, fruit, and savory notes. — 12 years ago

Erin Pooley

Owner/Winemaker Good Luck Wines

9.7

So excited to open this tonight! @between5bells thank you @jonathan_wood #apluswine — 14 years ago

Emily Kresie-Harrington

9.2

2017 vintage. Excellent tension between elegance, delicate fruit, and tightly-wound tannic structure. Floral hibiscus and violet aromas with cranberry, tart cherry, pomegranate, red plum, autumn leaves, green tea, and tree bark flavors. Great streak of acidity and tannins are still quite tight. Tasty with a very long finish. — 7 years ago

Nichole Herman

10

Nichole really enjoyed this one! — 8 years ago

Ned Gray Creed

9.3

@Bryce Wiatrak here is another one. Is there someone else at Delectable that I should bother with these updates/fixes? Desire Lines Wine Co is the producer. Cole Ranch is the vineyard. The assistant winemaker at Bedrock and his wife started this project recently. Any help possible? — 8 years ago

with Tyson

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

The 14 Almaviva Cabernet is 68% Cabernet, 22% Carménère and 8% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. The vines are 38 years of age. The wine spent 18 months in 75% new oak. The nose shows some slight funk at first. Blackberries, dark cherries, poached strawberries, black cherry cola/licorice and dark florals. The M+ tannins are soft and a little sticky. The fruits are slightly candied in style. Blackberries, black raspberries, dark chocolate, soft leather, crushed rocks, dark moist turned earth and dark fresh florals. The structure, length, tension, balance and finish are quiet beautiful. Producer history and notes...Almaviva began in 1997, as a joint venture between Baron Philippe de Rothschild and Viña Concha y Toro. With the strengths of both families pedigree, they achieved international recognition with the the launch of their very first vintage. Their goal was to create the equivalent of Bordeaux Grand Cru Classé in Chile. Patrick Leon is their Winemaker and also makes Opus One & Mouton Rothschild. Almaviva is located in the Maipo Valley in Chile's central zone. Puente Alto has ideal conditions for growing the Cabernet Sauvignon grape. Almaviva has 85 hectares. The climatic features of Puente Alto include its; stony soil, cold, rainy winters, and the hot days and cool nights of its summers. Maipo is considered Chile’s Napa Valley.
— 9 years ago

George Yasutake

9.2

Parker @ 96; WS 89 would grade it in between: rich fruity big big wine — 9 years ago

Matthew Beninati

9.4

Intense black fruit forward. Will overpower any dish that does not include MEAT.... but does just fine in its own. This may be the perfect bridge between the $20 offerings, and $150 offerings of Napa Cab. — 10 years ago

Veronica Castro

9.3

This wine came in with a lot of high hopes, and man, every one was met. Elegant, powerful, and racy. Nose full of lemon blossoms, palate teeter-tottering between acid and fruit, an exciting wine with loads of Salt, lemon, grapefruit, pineapple, ending with a zesty, salty-limey finish. Very pretty wine. — 10 years ago

Kevin Simback

9.5

15 year old rose! Great acidity and keeps getting more interesting. Sorta cross between aged Rioja and a Fino. — 11 years ago

with Tripti

Eric Gardner

9.5

In a magnum, yay bicentennial. The difference between this and the '81 is that the '81 is great but it doesn't taste old, the '76 tastes old in a good way. — 12 years ago

E & K G

9.4

So well balanced between tannin, fruit and acidity. Still fresh and even young. — 12 years ago

Erin Pooley

Owner/Winemaker Good Luck Wines

9.5

#apluswine is found between five bells — 14 years ago

Jakub Kalinowski

9.3

Highly aromatic and quite a bit crazy with fermented strawberries, a bunch of herbs, cloves & bay leaves, pickled cucumber water. Funky and as unorthodox as it gets but this shows amazing purity on the palate and a great tension between the juicy, spicy acidity and clean fruit. The tannins are soft yet persistent. Wow, this has a beautiful mouthfeel and great length. And shows very nicely now.
A great if funky Pinot! — 7 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

From magnum and paired well with three different Tri-tip steaks sources and marinades.

On the nose, sweet & sour, ripe dark cherries, cherries, blackberries, strawberries, some ripe, slightly rustic rhubarb with just a hint of blue fruits. Glycerin, touch of fruit liqueur, vanilla, dry stones, crushed rocks, hints of dry herbs, used leather, saddle-wood, dark rich soils, soft dark spice, underlying white pepper and dark red fresh and slightly withering florals with a touch of violets.

The palate is med and beautiful. The length, structure, tension and balance are at its peak harmony from magnum. Sweet & sour, ripe dark cherries, cherries, blackberries, strawberries, pomegranate, some ripe, slightly rustic rhubarb, burnt orange, with just a hint of blue fruits. Glycerin, touch of fruit liqueur, vanilla, dry river stones, crushed rocks, hints of dry herbs, used leather, saddle-wood, dark rich soils, limestone minerals, dry stems, more presence, soft dark spice, underlying white pepper and dark red fresh and slightly withering florals with a touch of violets and blue flowers. The acidity is waterfall perfect. The rich, ripe, fresh fruit, well balanced finish is simply beauty on steroids.

Photos of, Lopez de Heredia, Vat fermenters that are still in use and somewhere between 100-200 years of age (they repair them as needed to keep them tight), their cooperage and Maria José López de Heredia who now runs the family business. — 8 years ago

Eric Casias

9.5

Decanted for 4 hours. Balanced, soft and a merge between Napa and old world. Gorgeous. — 9 years ago

Richard Lewis

9.4

Light, refreshing lemon with a bit of oxidation along the lines of fino sherry. — 9 years ago

with Lynne

Gary Westby

Champagne & Sherry buyer K&L Wines

9.9

This bottle of Krug had the vine motif on the label that dates it to the "no Krug, no thanks" era. My guess is that it was based on a harvest between 1997-2000, so likely pre-LVMH. The wine was spectacular. The butterscotch and brioche nose as well as the brassy color were signs of patient, tender cellaring. Texturally, this Krug was as good as any wine I have ever had, velvety and full. The back end exploded with chalk, nuts and a complex array of dried fruit. The finish went on and on. Cellar some Grand Cuvée- you won't be disappointed. — 9 years ago

with Jim

Paul T, Missing My Beautiful Wife 24/7

9.0

Cork was great, which shows me it was stored nicely doesn't taste like modern day Stags leap a little brickish but still has legs, has that old Cabernet smell, maybe all wines tasted like this in 92? Wasn't drinking wine at that time.
I was still drinking Long Islands, Margaritas & Miami Ice's, plus a few Zombies in between. I heard Russell Bevan talk about this vintage in his 2012 Vixon block release so I figured why not, but who knows when he actually had it, could of been 10 years ago,
— 10 years ago

B

10

1998 Sassicaia. Wine #2 of the night at big group Vincenti dinner. Bigger and more masculine than the Gaja. Great wine. Toss up between this and Ornellaia as the fave red of the night. Maybe Ornellaia by a hair. — 11 years ago

Steven Wood

9.3

I know we should be storing these (2010), but it just drinks so damn well right after you uncork it. Drinks like a $80 bottle, perhaps on the smoother side for a barbaresco, and not a lot of bite, almost like a straddle between barbaresco and Barolo. Best value under $40 I know of... — 12 years ago

Alder Yarrow

Wine Blogger Vinography

9.6

Incredible balance between concentration and freshness. — 12 years ago