Spencer Spetnagel

9.3

Dark fruit spectrum. Herbal and spice. Earth is developing nicely. Lively acidity and velvet tannins provide a lush and generous finish. — 7 years ago

Erik Longabardi

9.5

So fresh, lean and floral. Not grassy. Pure joy — 8 years ago

Hendy

9.5

Old school Napa Cab at its best in the hand of Steve Matthiasson. — 8 years ago

Kim Stanbro

9.0

Excellent GSM!!! — 9 years ago

with Amy, Dave and 1 other

Spinning_spins

9.6

This red took a full 2 hours to open up, but the cedar, spice, raspberry and young leather aromas are growing, gradually, in intensity. Now (2 hrs later) the spice and vivacity are off the freakin chart! Very youthful, well-balanced, nuanced. Old school Bordeaux-like, but seems higher in acidity. However, while the acidity is medium+, it is tempered by full, red fruit, 13.5% abv, present but non-intrusive tannins, and a medium-bodied texture with excellent length (over 1 minute). The other factor is the one that says "Wow!", and that is definitely true here. Memorable and unique, I must get more for the wine fridge. — 9 years ago

Sarah Knoefler

8.9

Breaking out all the old ridge. Still pretty fresh with lots of blackberry and spice. — 9 years ago

Ladykat

9.3

Quintessential Rioja . Old school. Crianza so 6-12mo in barrel. Lopez de Heredia age in HUGE barrels. Only American oak. Super vibrant n fresh . Built to age. Gran reserva by any other standard. Their reserva is a 2002. 65%tempranillo 15%garnacho the rest Mazuelo & Gracianp — 10 years ago

Jörgen Lindström Carlvik

Owner, Brix Wine Consultants

9.3

Impressive stuff; lovely old school aromatics highlighted by pan fried herbs, dusty tannins, nice acidity, pure cassis fruit and a great "Tuscan" feel. Truly well made and grafted to age gracefully. — 10 years ago

P A

9.2

Always a good bet — 11 years ago

Rob Parsons

8.9

Look for other central coast Chardonnays — 12 years ago

Hernan Hernandez

9.0

Really good Zin. Went perfect with grilled food. — 7 years ago

Robert Rothfield

9.4

Beautiful old school cab.....perfectly balanced, velvety smooth — 7 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.1

On the nose, dark fruit profile of; blackberries, black cherries, black raspberries, cherries, poached strawberries, dry dark florals, dark soils with light volcanic minerals. On the palate, M-M+ tannins, black raspberries, raspberries, black cherries, blackberries, cherries, poached strawberries, black licorice, sweet lifting spices, strong; clove, nutmeg, cinnamon & vanilla, blue fruits round out the longer finish, big chalkiness, some leather & volcanic minerals. The tannins soften & fruits lean on the longer finish with good round acidity. Photos of another vista outside Queenstown, long shot of the tasting room and outside garden grounds. — 8 years ago

Chris LoRusso

9.5

Very special Chardonnay from Spring Mountain with a perfect balance of Oak and acidity. — 9 years ago

Alexander Vadas

9.3

Old school - charming - took a moment to show — 9 years ago

Richard Lewis

9.4

Sometimes you don't want to analyze, and just enjoy. This was one of those moments. — 9 years ago

with Lynne

Josh Luhn

Luhn Wine Consulting Owner, Luhn Family Wines

9.1

Old school. — 10 years ago

Matt Kalaycio

10

What a value! Full bodied, balanced, wonderful. — 10 years ago

Lorie Perrone

9.0

Great #Merlot from @HopeFamilyWines at the $15 and under price point. — 10 years ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.1

In a great drinking window now with an easy 5 more years to go. Old school aromas and flavors of stems, peppercorns, meat, and crushed blueberries with a good old school funk. #pegau #chateuneuf — 11 years ago

with Javier and TJ

Ron Siegel

9.3

Old school styled Bordeaux that is lighter in weight & has a silky texture showing black fruits, earth, cedar, dried herbs, licorice, mineral, graphite & cigar ash. — 7 years ago

Richard Lewis

9.3

Red currant and black raspberry, plus some raspberry leaf (greenness and tannin). Good acid, could still age a bit longer. — 8 years ago

with Lynne

Tom Kobylarz

9.3

Old school...talk about label wear!

"1989...the number, another summer...get down...
Sound of the funky drummer!"

Still in the driver seat, this is gorgeous and yes it's old but the wine blossomed after 30 minutes and now at 2 hours open its singing and going strong.

1989 Joseph Phelps "Insignia", Napa Valley

Ruby-garnet edges, a deep core of red color.

The nose started out super funky, but blew off to a nose of mature cedar, forest floor, dried red cherry and cassis. The palate is old, but like the nose gained strength with air, it gained depth and concentration. Mulled spices, red fruits, plum, cedar and red fruit skin.
#josephphelps #insignia #napavalley — 8 years ago

Jen Mussari

9.3

Crisp and tart, interesting enough to have alone as dessert with a little dark chocolate. My favorite rose so far — 9 years ago

Lewis Chester

9.2

2004 vintage. From Jay. 2004 Bartolo Mascarello - Brief Note from Galloni Historical Retrospective Held in London April 26, 2016. Dark ruby colour. Fresh violets on the nose together with cherries. A little tobacco wrapper. Cracked cloves. Nice fruit on the pallet and very silky. This is both elegant and old school in all the right ways. 92+/100. Drink 2017 to 2028+ — 9 years ago

Ravinder Kingra

9.3

For the price it was great. — 9 years ago

Alex Powell

9.1

This is indeed quite a lovely old school rioja, the nose awash with savoury leafy tones, tobacco and warm earth, dried plums and unfortunately the coconut dill of american wood....very refined palate, mid-sized, fluent and sweet n sour throughout, delicious peat moss and mud tones, plenty of dried fruit, however a creaminess to the texture and a splash of cedar on the finish detracts from its otherwise unmistakable beauty. I just can't help but feel this would be so much better without the american oak. I can only wait for the day all top riojan wines cast aside the shadow of their past, and believe wholesomely in the grandeur of their unique terroir. — 10 years ago

Jason Hemming

8.9

Nice old school Rioja. Bright cherry, dried tobacco and dill. Great acidity — 10 years ago

Kell Mc

8.9

Smooth, slightly dry finish — 11 years ago

Josh Bernstein

8.9

This a fantastic bottle from a local vineyard. It has flavored of Chocolate but finishes like a nice light Pinot — 12 years ago