Château Villa Bel Air

Château Bel Air

Lussac-St. Émilion Red Bordeaux Blend 2020

Really nice St. Emilion satellite wine. After 30 min the palate is ripe with red and black fruit and vegetation. The tannic bite on the back end is soft and smooth. Great QPR — 9 months ago

Château Cos d'Estournel

Saint-Estèphe Red Bordeaux Blend 1989

Le nez prend un peu de temps à se placer, nez assez classique de rive-gauche par la suite, ne montre aucune fatigue, superbe texture, une finale longue et savoureuse, très beau. 92-93

The nose needs some air, the cork was wet with some aromas of wet cardboard at first but things got for the better after with no apparent defect and a classic left bank nose. Gorgeous balanced Cos, not the most powerful at this point but gracious, showing no fatigue also with a long delicious finish.

— 4 years ago

Juan, Brent and 24 others liked this

Château de Beaucastel

Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhône Blend

Held up well over the 21 years. Complex red and dark fruits, smoke, white pepper. A little Brett that eased with air and ended up adding to the complexity. — 5 years ago

Château Villa Bel-Air

Graves Red Bordeaux Blend

What a great find! Received the 2000 vintage bottle via an exchange in the Bay Area & couldn’t be more thrilled. Usually a North snob, this Product of the Boudreaux region is simply a treat. Not too many in the states left where I shop, so I was able to savior this special number 🙏🌎 — 6 years ago

Domaine François Raveneau

Butteaux Chablis 1er Cru Chardonnay 1996

Straw gold with great weight and heaviness in the glass. Killer nose. Notes of apricot, tan spice, apple cinnamon and sweet honey dew. Impactful in the mouth with lots of acidity and a lasting finish. With 5 hours of air this was singing. — 6 years ago

Alex, Conrad and 16 others liked this

Clos Ste. Magdeleine

Bel-Arme Cassis Blanc Marsanne 2017

One of three new wines from Clos Sainte Magdeleine. Oh my. Nothing in the world like standing in that vineyard, then tasting their lineup, then going for a swim in that cove afterward. What a day. — 6 years ago

Iwan, Keith and 1 other liked this

Château Villa Bel-Air

Graves White Bordeaux Blend 2015

Honey and flowers. Well-integrated oak. Rather lovely. — 7 years ago

Alsu Shakirova
with Alsu
Keith, David and 1 other liked this

R. López de Heredia

Viña Tondonia Reserva Rioja Tempranillo Blend 2012

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of 90 minutes. The 2012 pours a deep ruby/purple with a near opaque core; medium viscosity with moderate staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of Montmorency cherry, blackberry, dill, toasted coconut, olive, zatar, and a touch of vanilla. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long. This only got better with air and might be my favorite young Tondonia since I first drank the 2006 vintage. Really good stuff already! Drink now with some patience and through 2042. — 9 months ago

Daniel, Peter and 12 others liked this

Domaine Jean-Louis Chave

Hermitage Syrah 1983

Reddish tawny. Youthful nose. Notes of black currants, blackberries, herbs and spices and some menthol. Silky in the mouth, although at first it comes off as delicate. With more air, some spice and white pepper notes develop, and this goes full on Chave and Hermitage power on you... Not bad for Syrah that's pushing 40 years in age! — 4 years ago

Alex, Severn and 19 others liked this
Doug Powers

Doug Powers

@Mike Saviage, is this a Kermit import, or the old east coast distributor (Warren S??) — asking because I think I have 1-2 remaining bottles of this purchased back when I lived in NYC (so not Kermit import as some of my later 1980s bottles are). Thanks.
Mike Saviage

Mike Saviage Influencer Badge Premium Badge

@Doug Powers Hey Doug. Not KL. It was an HDH acquisition awhile ago, with the bottles showing the importer as Heritage Wines out of Niles IL.

Alice et Olivier De Moor

Bel Air et Clardy Chablis Chardonnay 2018

2020 spring / summer. Really nice - I hadn’t had any de Moor in a while but this was at least as good as I remembered. Honeyed and savory, lots of chalky minerals — 5 years ago

Bel Colle

Monvigliero Barolo Nebbiolo 2010

Truly special! — 6 years ago

Trent, Lyle and 1 other liked this

Château Gruaud Larose

Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 1999

More power w air. — 6 years ago

Peter, Shay and 4 others liked this

Bow and Arrow

Air Guitar Cabernet Franc Cabernet Sauvignon 2017

This was perfect with dinner at Olympia provisions. Such an awesome blend that drinks well on its own but is magical with food. Beaujolais meets Loire meets Portland. So good! — 6 years ago

Bonneau du Martray

Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru Chardonnay 1986

Deep yellow gold, heavy in the glass. Great leesy old white burg nose. . Notes of sweet lemon, apricot cardamom spice, more lemon peel and some river stone. Rich in the mouth. Tons of structure and acidity. Needed 5 hrs of air to really come on. — 7 years ago

Greg, David and 18 others liked this
Alan Weinberg

Alan Weinberg

This and 85 are unmatched twin titans. Always great.

Dominus Estate

Dominus Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2003

Served alongside beef short rib, xo sauce, pickled mustard seed, cumin stir-fried asparagus. Yes, the 2003 Dominus is big. However, it is also balanced and showing classic Napa typicity with beautifully ripe and some slightly wizened black and red fruit, tobacco, cocoa, some purple flowers and baking spices. I found this to be quite balanced after all the air it saw. Wonderful structure for continued aging as well. Drink now through 2043. — a year ago

Ira, Jan and 18 others liked this

Domaine François Raveneau

Montée de Tonnerre Chablis 1er Cru Chardonnay 2013

MDT side by side I’ve always wanted to do! 😍

François Raveneau “Montée de Tonnerre” 2013- Now for Raveneau’s MDT where the Domaine has always particularly excelled. Similarly floral and elegant in its bouquet, it is more powerful than the Dauvissat, and there is additional emphasis on its freshness, salinity and crushed oyster shell minerality. The palate shows excellent depth, texture and waxy yellow fruit that’s driven home by a racy citrus inflicted acidity that leads to its long and vibrant finish.

This was a much closer “race” than I anticipated, and only a slight overall edge goes to Raveneau for its power, vibrancy, depth and texture. The Dauvissat is more open, requiring less time to show all that it can be, but that wasn’t a surprise so the Raveneau was given a bit more air. The Dauvissat may even be a bit more complex at this stage in its life but the Raveneau seemingly will be longer lived. (Although still an early drinking vintage especially by Raveneau standards). Most importantly it was a great side by side that I hope to do again! 🙌🏻
— 4 years ago

Andrew, Charles and 8 others liked this
Charles York

Charles York

I love this idea. Gonna do it as well. Brilliant

Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé

Cuvée Vieilles Vignes Musigny Grand Cru Pinot Noir 1990

Tasted blind. Reddish tawny. Nose is closed and not yielding much. I get cranberries, some cherries, iron and stones, some wood. Has a high pitched character to it. Has some pucker in it yet. Tight with ample acidity. I guess 97 Vogue Bonnes Mares. In my experience this wine has had some variations in its performance. Today it was better than most, but suffered by not getting ample air before it was served. — 5 years ago

Martin, Tom and 20 others liked this
Alan Weinberg

Alan Weinberg

too Cabernet-like. Not a fan past 30 years.
Mike Saviage

Mike Saviage Influencer Badge Premium Badge

@Alan Weinberg Try the 98... Their harvest was well timed that year and the juice is great

Domaine du Bel Air

les Vingt lieux dits Bourgueil Cabernet Franc 2017

Wine club selection October 2019, tastes like a crisp cold fall day - nice tannin, rich with a light peppery dark fruit taste — 6 years ago

Marchesi Antinori

Tignanello Toscana Super Tuscan Blend 2012

Grazie mille! Nice vintage. A little young and could have used some more air. With roasted chicken legs and greens. — 6 years ago

P liked this

Château Lynch-Bages

Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 1995

Paul J
9.0

Pretty much over the hill, which was disappointing. Decanted for an hour plus and definitely needed much more. While it is past its peak it got significantly better with more air. Whatever you are going to decant it for, double it. Nose had cherry and tar, which resembled a wine from years past. Wine lacked depth, strength, and flavor. Over time it expressed cherry elements. Minimal finish. Oh well, it was a ‘95 and it’s Easter! — 7 years ago

Brooke Weaver Jakubowski
with Brooke
Shay, Mike and 4 others liked this