Keith Lite

9.5

A big bold plumy purple bomb As dense and luscious as a wine can get in a glass. Decanted for 2 hrs and its still a baby with blackberry, dark chocolate licorice and pepper on the nose and on the palate. A long long finish and loads of tannins to sum it all up — 7 years ago

with Bruce

Allison Rich

9.4

Rich, full bodied cab. Notes of toasted oak and coffee. Great finish. Delicious just opened and even better after aerating/breathing. — 8 years ago

Matt Gaydos

9.5

Rich and creamy. Great yellow color. Fruity, vanilla oak smell. Layered flavors. Vanilla, buttery, soft spice as it finishes. — 10 years ago

Mick Foy

10

As good as it gets for my taste. Big dark full bodied red with rich flavor and smooth finish. — 10 years ago

Fred Mihm

9.3

Well done Mr. Hat. — 10 years ago

Mike Blom

9.0

Deep reddish/purple color which has me on guard relative to Pinot. Worried that darker than lighter raspberry red has had Mega Red or other manipulation but this Pinot just has concentrated character. Varietal rose petal and cherry notes in aromas. You can see the broad influence from the 3 appellations that comprise the wine. Weighty on the palate without being too over bearing for the varietal. Great accompaniment to the saffron broth salmon this evening. — 11 years ago

William Leslie

9.9

First off. You have heard about decanting.... This is a great example. Open and it tastes flat, give it time to breath and the flavors come out. The nose has a nice oak, smokey texture. Taste has a predominant black cherry flavor with nice ripe fruit flavors. Oak remains throughout the taste from start to finish with american oak flavors. An almost cigar smokiness hits immediately with a slight spice....not sure where to compare this to because it's not like a Zinfandel pepper, but more like an allspice. The overall feel is medium bodied with rich cherry flavors and well balanced for a smooth feel. This is a great introduction to Stags Leap without spending $150. — 11 years ago

Brendan Baker

9.4

Rich and layered... love Krug MV ⚡️😋 — 7 years ago

Andrea Watt

9.1

Smooth, rich cherry and smoke. — 8 years ago

Peter Keohan

9.2

Good color lovely nose rich and long clean — 9 years ago

Nick Stinnett

9.1

Smooth and rich with a great finish. — 10 years ago

Brad Pejcic

9.3

I love how in Spain you can go to a restaurant order a half bottle of Rioja and a 14 year old wine comes out aged perfectly. This is drinking great right now and can't imagine it's going to get any better. — 10 years ago

Daniel Mahdavian

Consulting Somm-Daniel Mahdavian Ventures

9.1

Dust, dried little cherries, dried figs, sharp rich tannins — 11 years ago

Shengfu Wang

9.5

Super smooth.
Light but rich flavor in depth.
Wood, leather, nuts — 11 years ago

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9.6

The 1983 Cristal is fabulous. Rich, ample and generous, the 1983 is incredibly inviting, with tons of class and personality. A wine of real volume and textural breadth, the 1983 has enough pedigree to drink well for many years. None of the elements stand out in the 1983, the whole is far greater than the sum of the parts. “Nineteen eighty-three is a different animal from some of the other wines of the decade,” Lécaillon explains. “It was a heavy crop, with a lot of fruit. There was so much wine in the cellar that the team could not get to everything in a timely fashion, and so there were some lots that started to oxidize a bit, and that, naturally, made the wine bigger.” In tasting, though, there are no off aromas or mushroomy flavors that suggest the wine is fading. If anything, the 1983 is spectacularly beautiful right now, even in the presence of other wines from more highly reputed vintages. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, December 2018) — 7 years ago

Richard Hylton

9.3

Fantastic. Rich dark berry fruit with leathery sweet nose. Really lovely paired with roasted wild ducks. — 8 years ago

Brian Duffy

Sommelier & Beverage Director The Barrymore Las Vegas

9.5

Outstanding! There is the perfect moment for a bottle to be opened and tonight was it. It was the wine equivalent of a album that you can listen to from start to finish. — 10 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

The nose on this wine is stunning baring the alcohol heat. Perfumed red florals and candied dark and lighter red fruits. While the wine is truly elegant, the alcohol is seriously burning the back of my throat. The bottle reads 14.1 but I think over 15 degrees. Maybe, they wanted to save on the higher alcohol tax. The wine starts so beautifully only to burn the back of my throat. The fruits are ripe, elegant and beautifully soft. Blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, raspberries, faint back palate of strawberries, sweet/soft leather, black licorice, violets & roses, rich delicate & sweet wet black earth, soft light baking spices, caramel, milk chocolate, figs & dates, amazingly sweet dark minerals, touch of black tar, touch of spice and a rich long elegant dark fruit liqueur finish. I would score this wine higher if it didn't punish my palate and throat with the burning alcohol finish. — 10 years ago

Hande Erfus

9.0

Deep, rich wine. The 2007 vintage was more balanced. — 11 years ago

Lewis Chester

9.5

1998 vintage. Earthy and roasted almond. Ripe lemon rind. Full bodied. Rich mouth feel. Mocha. Acidity not overbearing - touch light? Long concentrated finish. Excellent — 11 years ago