Dr. Owen Bargreen

9.4

The 2011 Domaine Drouhin ‘Laurene’ is a sensational effort from this cooler vintage in Oregon. This takes on a classic Burgundian nose with forest floor, white truffle oil, red currant puree and suggestions of white pepper. I love the elegance of this wine aromatically. The mouthfeel and texture to this wine screams elegance, as it is surprising that they were able to attain this level of concentration despite the coldness of the vintage. Red cherry puree, damp earth, cran-raspberry and orange zest flavors marvelously combine. Elegant and esteemed, this is a stunning effort by Domaine Drouhin that will cellar marvelously over the next decade. Drink 2018-2028- 94 — 8 years ago

Byron Hewett

9.2

Strong effort for the vintage. A hint of brett. — 8 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.5

Dark purple plum skin color from center to the rim’s edge where some scarlet also appears. Opaque. Great fruit forward nose that grabs your attention. Notes of blackberries, ripe plums, violets, tobacco, forest floor and some crushed walnuts. Rich and silky in the mouth. Great balance and texture. Tannins perfectly integrated. Long finish. If a Cal Cab can be seductive, this is it. Still youthful but in a great zone tonight. — 8 years ago

Gretchen Rogers

9.2

Edna Valley Chardonnay at its finest.
Balanced-Smooth-mellowed acidity but still very brightest. Naturally fermented and aged in concrete. Round-luscious-rich. I'm cooking up a whole branzino in my wood Fired oven. This will pair perfectly. — 9 years ago

Ron R

9.4

Incredible, but I must say that this needs more time!
On the nose, blueberries, blackberries, and the textbook Cos Indian spice signature.
Palette is toasty, with ripe tannins. Beautiful weight and sensuality, with pristine acidity. It's immature, and therefore needs a lot of breathing space, if you pop the cork now. A super effort, with an excellent trajectory. — 10 years ago

with Anne-marie

Ron R

9.3

I really like it when I get recos from fellow oenophiles which turn out to be spot on - @Jörgen Lindström Carlvik, take a bow.

In the glass, the wine appears to be very extracted, which I find is a pleasant first indicator. The wine coats the glass, demanding your attention.

The nose is pristine, yet urgent. Cigar notes, cherries and dark fruits are perfectly integrated.

On the palette, I'm in raptures. This is a seamless example which is tight, compact and dense. It has a viscous mouthfeel, finishing with polished tannins and a touch of sweetness.

This is a brilliant effort, which is begging for bottle age. Thanks to Jorgen, I've finally found a Sangiovese which does not require me to sell my house to buy a bottle (you get my point).

Paired with my own Sheppards pie (made from scratch). Don't hate the player, hate the game! — 11 years ago

Justin Brilman

9.4

This is a wine I can get excited about. Layers and layers of depth, coombsville fruit so a little softer but this wine just wowed me. Great effort. — 11 years ago

Michael Horkay

8.9

Floral and mature. Unlike the 90 I'd drink this now as I think it's starting to head south but still should last another ten years. Soft evolved nice of spices and plums. Lovely effort. — 11 years ago

Stewart Cameron

9.5

100% whole cluster, but wonderfully balanced with savory plum and blueberry. Super complex. Great job guys. — 11 years ago

Daniel P. Drake

9.0

This Ponzi effort is nice but not up to the level of the first bottle I reported on. The nose is good with notes of strawberry, cherry and cola. The palate there is spice, black cherry, a bit on the lighter side and a medium finish. Still a nice effort. — 13 years ago

Dr. Owen Bargreen

9.5

The 2015 Cabernet Sauvignon by La Jota is a seductive blend of 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8.5% Cabernet Franc, 7.5% Merlot, 6% Malbec and 3% Petit Verdot which was aged for 22 months in 65% new French oak prior to bottling. Needing more than a two hour decant at this juncture, the wine takes on glorious creme de cassis, Turkish coffee, blueberry cordial and wild thyme aromatics. The palate shows marvelous complexly and range. Black tea, blueberry compote, mocha and blackberry pie flavors all beautifully mingle in the glass. Rich and layered, this hedonistic effort will cellar marvelously for decades. Be sure to give this at least a two hour decant if enjoying in its youth. Drink 2020-2045- 95 — 8 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.6

The nose shows nice blue floral fruits. Ripe; blackberries, dark sweet & slightly sour cherries, creamy black raspberries, strawberries and soft plum. Limestone, volcanic minerals, light vanilla, fruit tea, soft, understated fresh tobacco, caramel, milk chocolate and fresh bright red and blue flowers.

The body is medium full. Tannins soft and tarry. Ripe; blackberries, dark cherries, creamy black raspberries, strawberries and soft plum. Limestone, volcanic minerals, crushed dry rock powder, soft dark spice, light vanilla, fruit tea, soft, understated fresh tobacco, used leather, wood shavings, caramel, milk chocolate and fresh bright red and blue flowers. The acidity is beautiful. The finish has to flush out but, it’s long, balanced and delicious. This will be a great Insignia. I’ll wait 15 years plus before I open my first bottle.

Photos of; their Estate vines of their terrace, terrace tasting area, more Insignia artwork from the visitor center and their signage as you walk to their Napa facility.
— 8 years ago

Gilbert Van Hassel

9.4

2006 at home. Great effort in a tough year. Lots of red berries after 11 years. Le Moine rocks does this guy ever make a bad wine ?? — 9 years ago

Jusden Aumand

9.0

Solid effort. Shows the balance of the 2008 vintage. — 9 years ago

David Annis

9.0

This is interesting to me. I've had a few vintages of this merlot and enjoyed them all. Even though this is a Michel Rolland styled effort, it shows as an unmistakably new world merlot. Lots of plum and blueberry, very little of the restraint you'd see in a right bank Bordeaux. — 10 years ago

gregory castells

President Martine's Wines

9.7

2001 out of magnum, despite the vines being still young( they replanted in the mid 90's) this is a superb effort and at a really good place right now — 10 years ago

Michael Horkay

9.4

Wow what a wine. wORN easily for me this Bordeaux was powerful and showed those classic paullic flavors of cedar tobacco but also showed classic fruit. What An effort — 11 years ago

Doug Sayed

9.1

Highly structured but Delicious effort. Lots of structure, but with time on the glass or decanter, this is a very good wine. Give it some time and enjoy at your leisure. Tasty, but stout. — 11 years ago

Michael Horkay

9.3

Another example of extra ordinary wine RIC Forman knocks it put of the park with an amazing effort in a difficult vintage. Totally mature bit clearly can go for a few more years but drank amazing and went well with 50 day old dry shed rib eye. Yum. — 11 years ago

Lewis Chester

9.4

2003 vintage. toffee and candied fruits. Depth of concentration. Remarkably fresh for an '03. Tremendous effort for such a difficult vintage. bravo Richard. — 11 years ago

Zachery Anderson

9.0

Color: slight bricking with ruby center
Nose: cigar box, leather, cedar, black pepper
Mouth: round, tannins fully integrated, silky, baked blueberry, stewed tart cherry. 45+ second finish of dusty cigar box and blue fruit, that made my mouth water for more. — 12 years ago

with Mary

Dr. Owen Bargreen

9.3

The 2003 'Vina Tondonia' Blanco Reserva is a tremendous effort from a challenging vintage. Needing more than 30 minutes in the decanter to be fully expressive, this wine opens to aromas of beeswax, smoky oak, Bartlett pear and slight suggestions of fresh white flowers. This leads to flavors reminiscent of nutmeg, cardamom, cantaloupe, beeswax and green papaya. There is an gorgeous overall range of flavors that persist with an oily texture through the finish. Drink 2019-2030- 93 — 8 years ago

Kirk F

9.1

68% SB, 32% Sèmillon, this was a really well balanced effort. Early on the apple flavors were up front and as it warmed in the glass I was getting richly textured guava and pineapple. Glad to have a few more of these stashed away. First sentence on the back of the bottle ‘The world has plenty of Chardonnay’. While I do love Chard, i believe this to be a true statement! — 8 years ago

Rob Mullen

9.3

Not their best vintage, but well balanced and a solid effort. I should have had some steak tonight... A pleasant amount of tannin, and a healthy (?) load of tobacco on the nose. — 8 years ago

Neal Schaffer

9.1

@delectable This is a Texan, not a Californian; Texas High Plains AVA to be exact. I'm speechless after this effort... insane character and uniqueness. Has it's own definitive style without losing the soul of Sauvignon Blanc. This is straight up radiating with energy.

My girl wanted in on this review. She's got a way with words that is one in a million 😜 So, here is our combined effort:

"Now featuring: The Green Elixir. Wisps of kiwi swiftly enter the nasal passage on command. Over-ripened sweet cantaloupe charges through leaping over fresh Bosc pears. Similar to walking through a field of freshly cut grass on a midsummer Sunday morning. Upon walking through the renewed grass, you will come across loamy soil, enveloped with sandy silt. Dandelions magically pop up along the adventurous route dancing lazily in the breeze.

Taste consistently bathes, not lingers, but bathes on the palate. Anyone ever kiss a lime rind? Experience it now with The Green Elixir. Sour, yet makes you yearn for more. Granny Smith apples frolic throughout the tastebuds. Heading towards the end of our adventure, straw begins to make an appearance and wants to join in the fun. At the peak of the completion of our endeavor, a special herb comes out to play. Lemon Basil pleasantly surprises you to make sure your finale is more than grand.

*Medium-plus acidity and Medium-minus body

💚🍏🍐🍈🥝🌿🌳🥂"

@Dana Dungan You're are truly one in a million. PIC all the way.

@nakedwines @texas
— 9 years ago

with Dana

Michael Horkay

9.6

There are people who will never taste this or any other verset since his last vintage was a decade ago. This is wine... Most of what else is just rated hyped bullspit. This wine got better and better over four hours and showed the bountiful blue and black fruit the region is known for. This wine has a smoky tint to it that underpinned everything.... This is a majestic effort that will love another 20 years'm — 10 years ago

Chip Cook

9.1

Excellent example of Napa Cab. Dark purple center with short watery meniscus. Fresh cut oak plank, orange blossom, dark plumb, raisin, vanilla, tobacco and tar. Tannic plus which required 2 hours decanting. Med acidity and long finish. — 11 years ago

Zach Cherry

Account Manager Worldwide Wine & Spirits

9.4

Truly a great effort. I was shocked to see a "lowly" 9.0 from pros on this wine. I'm generally a hard mark for Napa, and I think this one of the most victorious of the vintage (2012)! If you want to convert Caymus drinkers to cult TRB styles, this is the wine. Young and undeveloped, but quite an exciting wine to pop early. Full of vibrant red and dark fruit, fig, tar, spice, cedar and subtle, sticky, sappy tannins. Comes off a bit hot, I'd guess around 15% or more ABV, no matter what the label claims. Exciting and spontaneous as youth, to be truly enjoyed hot and young. — 11 years ago

Atul Vashistha

9.0

What a nice rich surprise! 2010 vintage — 11 years ago

CK Vong

9.0

2009. Nice effort of Two Hands. Not a Syrah but rather an elegant Shiraz. Absolutely not that monster barossa nose. Round, rich not fat, red fruits r there to add decency. Spiciness comes from the alcohol not the juice. Buy. — 12 years ago