Chris England

9.5

Fab 05 top Rioja @ £70-100 in a great year & a fav of mine - will keep improving but great now 😉 Awesome 2020-30 👍

📍 Marques de Murrieta Castillo Ygay Gran Reserva Especial 2005

🏵 95 points w/ 96-98 potential

🍇 89% Tempranillo & 11% Mazuelo

🍷 Deep ruby

👃 Soft oak through dark spiced berries, currants & cherry with creamy vanilla, light smoked tobacco, leather, mocha, coconut, mint & balsamic into choc cherry gateaux w/ a bit of date coming through

👄 Med+ body of deluxe silky smooth creamy stewed rich dark cherry driven fruits all perfectly balanced w/ thick cocoa cream, vanilla & balsamic touch

🎯 Long seductive oak, cocoa, balsamic & dark fruit cherry boom linger — 7 years ago

Anil Saxena

9.1

Wow! $8.99 at total wine and such a bargain!! Deep jammy nose with a wonderful aftertaste. It’s got hints of graphite, dried cherries and the feeling of a nice autumn afternoon. Yum. GO buy some of this wine. — 7 years ago

Chris England

9.4

Vega Sicilia Unico 2nd wine @ £110 delivering boom bang & boom 😍 Lovely creamy rich fruit bomb 👍

📍Valbuena 5 2009

🏵 94 points

🍇 Tempranillo w/ Merlot & Cab S

🍷 Opaque deep ruby

👃 Chewy chocolate cherry & raspberry gateaux cream cake, mineral & light oak w/ light minty herbs, damson, blackcurrant & violets

👄 Med+ creamy silky body of dark cherry, raspberry jam & gooey melted choc chips w/ a touch of violet, blackcurrant & blueberry

🎯 Long choc cherry raspberry gateaux yum linger — 7 years ago

Jay Green

9.0

Wrapping presents getting juiced up for lcd. — 8 years ago

Chris England

9.2

Great value top year Pom @ £35 drinking great but will improve 5-10yrs when tannins integrate more 👍

🍇 75% Mer & 25% Cab F

🍷 Opaque ruby

👃 Blackcurrant infused spiced smoke through broken mineral rocks w/ liquorice, mocha & chocy cherry gateaux tones

👄 Med slight sweet blackcurrant dominant dark fruit body w/ fine dry tannins, liquorice, mineral & choc cherry gateaux undertone

🎯 Med ripe blackcurrant & mineral dry red cherry liquorice finish

Recommended @ this price 😎 — 8 years ago

Justin Gilman CSW, CSS

9.4

Tremendous #Port #wine. Rich & Powerful, balanced in all facets.

Hits with strong stewed red cherry, cherry licorice. Intense. Quickly finishes light, gliding, silky finish. Clean. Superb integration. Dark ruby color. Paired with Chocolate cake, in a white choc shell. Raspberry sauce, & port wine ice cream and raspberries. Opened 2/28/17 — 9 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.6

More a trademark Grange. Better than the more lauded 1990 IMO. The 1991 probably better than either. This 92 had typical Penfolds Choc Malt with raspberry notes. Rewards of Patience says to 2018 but on this showing will go beyond that. — 9 years ago

Chris England

9.6

My favourite St Julien in great year I got @ £82 now £190+ now 😱 So hard to stop drinking as it's good young & old 😍 Given 5-15 years this will be a 98+ wine easily 👍 It’s in a lovely place now 😍 Sexylicious 💗

📍 Chateau Leoville Poyferre 2005

🏵 96+ points with bigger potential as age will help this 😉

🍇 68% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot & 6% Petit Verdot

🍷 Opaque deep ruby

👃 Heady soft alluring smokey oak through spiced rich blackcurrant & creamy dark plum w/ double choc mocha, cracked rock mineral, blueberry, herbs & liquorice - dreamy 😉

👄 Med+ bodied silky intense mouth coating blackcurrant & dark plums w/ cocoa, black tea & liquorice in fine dry mineralised tannins

🎯 Long touch dry earthy dark fruits smothered in cocoa w/ a creamed liquorice 💋, black tea 🥊 & a dry mineral 👋 — 7 years ago

Sharon B

9.1

Nice blend of Cab, Malbec & Petit Verdot. Fruity on the nose with lots of blackberry on the tongue, slightly tannic. — 7 years ago

Chris England

9.6

Fab £157 Sass now £234 😱 but life is short 😁

🍇 85% Cab S & 15% Cab F

🍷 Opaque ruby

👃 Stewed & spiced blackcurrant/berry & plum through smoked earthy dusty herbs & burnt oak w/ rocky minerals, leather, prune, liquorice & vanilla choc mocha

👄 Med smooth velvet body of herby earthy blackcurrant w/ mocha, prune & red cherry/currant tones in dry minerals & a liquorice hint

🎯 Med+ earthy dark & red fruit touch dry mocha herby earthy happiness 😍
— 8 years ago

Chris England

9.2

After the amazing 2010 I had to try the 09 @ £30! Owned by & next door to Cheval-Blanc on old Figeac land 👍 & it's a fab buy to drink now to next 5yrs

🍇 80% Merlot & 20% Cab F

🍷 Opaque deep ruby

👃 Dark plum, blackcurrant & dark cherry through rich smoked oak w/ crushed minerals & farmyard then choc cherry gateaux

👄 Med+ creamy body of ripe chewy black plums/cherries/berries w/ a warm cocoa & gravelly backbone

🎯 Med+ full fruity dark fruity creamy coating w/ a mineral & melted chocolate wallop — 8 years ago

Chris England

9.5

👊💥 £39 unbeatable QPR Pomerol & my favourite 👍 This Chateau is next door to Petrus and produces stunning wine for a fraction of the price! Perfect to drink now to next 5 yrs 😎

🍇 80% Mer & 20% Cab F

🍷 Dark ruby red w/ purple hue

👃 Dark jammy plum & blackcurrant through smokey oak, double choc mocha & minerals

👄 Med+ creamy smooth ripe dark plum & blackcurrant body with mocha infusion 💥 🥊

🎯 Long dark fruit, mineral & rich mocha linger - oh yeah 👍 — 9 years ago

Patch Manning

9.5

Fantastic wine!
Deep Ruby red. Incredibly aromatic with the nose evolving astoundingly over time. Make sure you follow its progress. Starting with lavender, dried violets and mint. Moving to a choc-mint and chutney and then cinnamon and mint. The palate also evolves with the nose. It lands with cooking chocolate, menthol and cooking spice with a full and luxurious mouth feel, surprisingly light tannins and mild acidity. It could probably pair slow cooked meets and root vegetables but I recommend you pair this wine only with good friends as an after dinner experience. — 9 years ago

Ceccherini Cristiano

9.6

Beautiful golden bright colour
Intense nose
Pear, citron
Floral, Scotch broom, jasmine too and camomile
Violet and wisteria
Honey and hay
Blonde tobacco, white choc
Macadamia, nutmeg, ginger, little pistachio as well, turmeric
The palate is pristine
Full, but easy
Heaps of mineral in the aftertaste
Extremely long
Definitely my favourite Wachau vineyard and producer
❤️❤️❤️❤️
Still ten to fifteen years ahead — 7 years ago

with francesco and Mauro

Chris England

9.2

Fab Hermy happiness @ £43 that's already great but given 5 years will be yumbags 😍

📍 Domaine Marc Sorrel Hermitage 2009

🏵 92 points

🍇 100% Syrah

🍷 Dark opaque ruby w/ purple edge

👃 Violet infused blackberry w/ a dark spiced cherry, mocha, smoke, blackcurrant, light oak, prune hint & earthy mushroom opening to choc cherry gateaux & liquorice

👄 Med body of earthy peppered creamy blackberry, red cherry & soft mocha in a sweet pie

🎯 Long summer fruits in earthy raspberry & cherry mocha infused linger — 7 years ago

Chris England

9.2

Fab St Estephe @ £63 drinking great already but will age lovely to 93-95 in 4-5yrs

🍇 41% Cab S & 59% Merlot

🍷 Opaque ruby

👃 Earthy blackcurrant & dark cherry raspberry chocolate gateaux w/ a gravelly mineral tone & plum compote splat

👄 Med body of choc cherry & blackcurrant plummy gateaux w/ a liquorice & mineral backbone

🎯 Med+ dark fruit gooey choc gateaux lickyness w/ a touch dry mineral linger — 8 years ago

David Symes

9.0

Great with choc — 8 years ago

Chris England

9.4

Warning drunken review 😁

Sexy Tig @ £60 just lovely that will make any soul dance to get up & live life 😘

🍇 80% Sangiovese, 15% Cab S, & 5% Cab F

🍷 Opaque ruby

👃 Smokey oak in chomped chewed dark cherry & black berries oozing minerals, gravel, creamy cocoa butter, cherry choc gateaux, soggy earth & new leather - OMG 😍

👄 Med+ body of dark cherry & berries through creamy chocolate

🎯 Long lingering dark fruit mineral cocoa dance ... more baby more ❤️

🎶 Man in the Mirror & Dirty Diana MJ 👑 — 8 years ago

Marilyn Elledge

9.7

When chilled, AWESOME — 9 years ago

Rachel Walden

10

Awesome best chocolate wine I have tasted — 9 years ago