That’s good! — 5 months ago
When TRB started this label, I thought a primarily Cabernet Winemaker is going to make Pinot Noir? I wondered how his first vintage would be and while it wasn’t bad by any means, it wasn’t what this 2014 Silver Eagle is at this point. TRB has/is honed/honing his craft. This 2014 will likely continue to improve a bit going forward over the next three years for sure & maybe five. This 14 Silver Eagle is definitely hitting its stride. The nose shows the blue & purple fruits I enjoy on the Pinots I prefer to drink.
The nose reveals nicely ripe blackberries, black raspberries, plum, baked cherries & strawberries, blueberries, mulberries, dry cranberry & raspberries hues on the glass edges. Mid berry cola/licorice, soft baking spices-clove, some nutmeg & vanillin, dark, Asian/Indian spice mix, light mix of fresh & dry herbs, dark rich soil w/ dry leaves, limestone, dry top soil with fresh & withering dark, red, blue florals framed in a fresh violet field.
The palate shows good mouthfeel & wire to wire consistency. Juicy, ripe; blackberries, black raspberries, plum, baked cherries & strawberries, blueberry & mulberry tones, pomegranate, cranberry & raspberries hues. Mid berry cola/licorice, soft baking spices-clove, some nutmeg & vanillin, warm caramel, toast, steeped fruit tea, dark, Asian/Indian spice mix with deep palate penetration & heat, light mix of fresh & dry herbs, dark rich soil w/ dry leaves, dry brush, sandalwood, grey volcanics. wet clay, sandstone & limestone powder, dry top soil with fresh & withering dark, red, blue florals framed in a fresh violet field. The acidity is excellent with a long, elegant, well; balanced, tensioned & structured finish that lasts minutes and lands nicely on dark spice as it sets.
I really enjoy this vineyard and some of the Winemakers that make Pinot from it.
Plenty of life left in this one. 8-10 years well stored.
Photos of, Rivers-Marie facility (2), Owner/Winemaker-Thomas Rivers Brown & beautiful prime Pinot clusters ready for harvest. — 8 months ago
Fruit throughout with notes of cinnamon — 5 years ago
Nose has maraschino cherry, sliced pear, wet chalk, mashed raspberry and dry minerals.
Palate has chalky ripe cherry, granite pebbles, fresh blood orange pith, fresh raspberry and light strawberry-raspberry jam. Wow, long finish, we're both smiling a lot on this bottle.
More cherry fruit than most Crémant de Bourgogne rosés we have enjoyed, just amazed! At $32, it's hard to find a better saignee of Pinot Noir brut rosé than what is in this glass, QPR delivered! — 6 years ago
Deep ruby color with nose of cassis, blackberries, violets, cedar, and vanilla. Very acidic and tart on first sip, but as it opens up the depth comes. This is a big wine with solid fruit and firm tannins. Give it a few years and I imagine those tannins will soften a bit. Enjoyed with some friends while we prayed for our kids. — 4 months ago
2023 vintage. Maan, do I feel old reviewing this! Sourced from some eminently notable vineyards. Wine rolls up and down and back up again throughout the palate...almost as if you are tasting each vineyard source as stages vs a blend. Def interesting. Light-medium body. May hafta pick this up as a list placement as it is drinking nicely. Absolutely blowing through Oregon pinot tho. Resto pricing at $19 btg (waay too low) and woulda jumped on it but have another CA pinot currently btg that's an even better deal. 11.27.24. — 5 months ago
Lush, succulent Pinot…dark ruby on pour, dark fruits rise out of the glass setting the stage for an enjoyable first sip…no noticeable tannins…lingering finish…this vintage is in a really good place today — 3 years ago
**If interested, I’ve posted more pics of this visit and trip on my Instagram account - check me out @sips_ensemble**
We also had the pleasure to visit Champagne Paul Bara, another family-owned and -managed winery with only 8 employees! 💪 💪
It is a small but high-quality operation, producing approximately 100,000 bottles per year made exclusively from the free run juice. ✨✨✨ Thanks to the likes of @kermitlynchwine , the U.S. is a major exporting market for this wine. 🙌🙌
Paul Bara’s wines are sustainably farmed on numerous vineyard plots located throughout Bouzy, a Grand Cru village within the Montagne de Reims region of Champagne. 🏔 🏔
Bouzy is known especially for its Pinot Noir-driven Champagnes and also for its still red wines, a specialty of the region, called Coteaux Champenois. 🍇🍇
Paul Bara uses mostly stainless steel vessels for its vinification, designed to accentuate the purity of the fruit. They also use subterranean concrete vessels for the Pinot Noir used in rosé blends and for the Coteaux Champenois (still reds). 🥂
On our tour it was fascinating to see bottles being disgorged, dosaged, corked, capped, and caged on a machine in seconds — these are some of the last stages of the Méthode Champenoise. 🤓
We also learned that Paul Bara is a member of the ‘Club Trésors de Champagne’ an association of 28 vignerons formed to promote quality wine growing and winemaking practices and to highlight the beauty of terroir, demonstrating the excellence achievable outside of the major houses whose names are globally renown such as Veuve Cliquot and Moët & Chandon. 👏
Our favorite wine of the tasting was the 2010 Brut Comtesse Marie de France 🇫🇷 made exclusively from Pinot Noir grapes 🍇 It had a richness and abundance of orchard fruit, including baked yellow apple, also toast, bread dough, yeast, and dried white blossom notes, still offering finesse and precision, retaining incredible vibrancy.
We are grateful for our visit to Paul Bara and we look forward to visiting again the future! 🙏❤️ — 4 years ago
Leather and dark fruits, a little bit savory, Ned-light and super smooth, blueberry strawberry pepper, great full back palate— kind of chuggable too! — 5 years ago
2022 vintage. Dark red, much deeper colour than usual for this estate. Marie-Laure Lurton seems to have gone for a bit more extraction in this exceptional vintage. More powerful than usual, with a fresh black fruit personality,embedded in a tight, ripe tannic structure. Serious length too. Decanting recommended,as it showed better the next day. Ab. 14%. — 7 months ago
NV | Champagne
(100% Pinot Noir)
Marie Demets; Tradition
Extra Brut-Blanc de Noirs
Côte des Bar; Gyé-sur-Seine, France
Tirage 5 March 2022 / Disgorged 7 June 2023
Lot No. T-22/2
(90-92; Drink 2024-30)
On the Lawn at Tanglewood this afternoon with the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra (the overly talented youth!). Our conductor Andris Nelsons is leading IVES (Three Places in New England, Orchestral Set No. 1), BEETHOVEN (Piano Concerto No. 3 in C Minor, Opus 37) and STRAUSS (Also sprach Zarathustra, Opus 30...aka 2001: A Space Odyssey, Stanley Kubrick❤️).
One of our local treasures, Emanuel Ax on piano for the Beethoven Concerto! — 10 months ago
Light, floral, beautiful wine — 4 years ago
Beautiful bottle great acidity giving it backbone balanced with a long finish — 5 years ago
Jeremy Shanker
Sommelier at RN74
Incredible. Still a baby. — 3 months ago