Jay Kline

9.2

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of two days. Best on Day 2. The 2019 pours a pale garnet color with a transparent core; medium+ viscosity with no staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of Morello cherries, red roses, tangerine, pomegranate, talcum powder, dried sage, truffle, and dried stony earth. On the palate, the wine is bone dry with high tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long and savory. A lovely expression of 2019 Barbaresco. Drink now with patience and through 2049. — 9 months ago

Lee Pitofsky

9.8

(Disgorged 2/15)- Always and forever my number 1 Lieux-Dits and without question one of the very best Blanc de Blancs Champagnes on the planet, tonight it is extra special with its coveted 2008 base and 2015 disgorgement. Always with imposing power, drive and crazy depth to its layers, it unfurls in a Burgundy glass to reveal its complex core of rich orchard fruit, roasted nuts, gun smoke, toasty oak and candied white flowers, all with seamless integration and balance. The palate is generous and detailed, with ripping citrusy acids, waves of saline laced chalky Le Mesnil minerals and a finish that just keeps going. For me, a BdB benchmark. — 2 years ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Opened to celebrate my son’s 15th birthday and poured alongside the 2006 Eagle’s Trace “Latitude 38”. The 2006 Seavey Caravina pours a deep garnet color with a completely opaque core. No obvious signs of age in the glass. Medium+ viscosity. On the nose, medium+ intensity, with strong pipe tobacco notes, currants, black cherry, figs, some green bell pepper and leather. On the palate dark fruits dominate with black cherry, black currants and blackberries. The tobacco and leather is also there accompanied by semi-sweet baking chocolate, baking spice and some anise. The wine finishes dry with medium tannins, most of which are well integrated at this point. Medium+ acid. Medium plus alcohol. The finish is long. Another very lovely vintage of Caravina, aging gracefully.
— 4 years ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.1

Had a bottle 6 mos ago. Blend of 95% Cab Sauv, 4% Merlot, rest Petit Verdot, Malbec & Cab Franc, blended then aged for 24 mos in 50% new & 50% once-used American oak. Deep Ruby, youthful aromas of black fruit, sweet cacao & complex spice. Palate shows flavors of rich ripe juicy berries & cherries, core of sweet fruit with oak & vanilla notes. Nicely integrated firm, graceful tannins, long finish, displays primary fruits on ending, just beginning to develop some secondary aging, approachable now. Excellent. — 5 years ago

Shay A

9.3

A few fun 4th Friday wines from tonight.

A bigger and more rich style of GL than I’m accustomed to, but in a good way. This powerhouse vintage is evident in this wine with so much concentration and complexity. Classical Bordeaux traits of herbs de Provence, leather, cedar and graphite. The core here is deep and dark with ripe black fruits, currant, potpourri and a finish showing sweet tannins. This will cruise for a while, but it’s very good now. — 5 years ago

with Dan

Al Shikoh

9.4

Medium ruby red core with bricking at the rim. Complex aromas of dark berries, flowers, tobacco, truffles, and earth. Round and elegant in the mouth with soft tannins and good persistence. Has definitely entered its mature phase but with plenty of pleasurable drinking ahead. A second wine from one of Bordeaux’s “super seconds”. 13% ABV. — 7 years ago

Dimitri Fedotov, C.S.

Sommelier Osteria 177

9.2

Gorgeous. Complex. Nice tannin trap at the end. — 8 years ago

George Chen

9.1

A little bready now but still sweet core and melted tannins. Cork was dry though but wine seemed fine. — 8 years ago

LM Segal

9.4

Great breeding trumps a below-average vintage. Blind, the nose alone gives away the DNA of this phenomenal wine. This Merlot-dominated Cheval has a beautiful core of cocoa powder, prune and plums. Structure from sweet oak and cab franc skins come through on the finish. Excellent, but a world away from the 2000 that's a palate-reference for me. Don't wait on this one, this well-stored bottle felt past its apex. — 9 years ago

Alexandre Calvi

9.5

#epic #vintage that will require patience to enjoy it's full potential, deep dark purple core, ripping acidity, full body, just ripe black and blue fruit. 💯💥💥💥 — 9 years ago

Neil Johnston

9.0

Nice big balance of berries, earth and velvet finish. — 11 years ago

Delectable Wine

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9.3

The 2022 Pinot Noir Dundee Hills wafts up a delicately spicy blend of dusty black cherries, ground cloves and dried roses. It is round and supple yet lifted in feel, with crisp red berry fruits elevated by a core of zesty acidity as hints of sour citrus add cheek-puckering tension. This tapers off long and perfumed with a bed of crunchy tannins that frames the experience remarkably well. I would never guess that the 2022 hails from a warm vintage. (Eric Guido, Vinous, August 2024)
— 9 months ago

Bob McDonald

9.5

Cassis and oak - the latter quite noticeable. From a ripe year where the fruit should be apparent but at the moment the oak dominates - mocha notes, but then again still has a huge future. Amazing what a solid core of self contained full body this has for 16 years of age, but still of profound intensity - dark chocolate and black currant. Will go on for literally decades - only have 2 left. Penfolds “Rewards of Patience “ say through to 2050! That is not as crazy as it sounds. This wine is close to immortal Next one in 10 years. — 10 months ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.1

Bright Ruby with aromas of red/black fruits, floral and sweet notes. On the palate flavors of ripe blackberry, cherry, and currants with notes of licorice and sweet figs. Fine dusty tannins, medium+ finish ending with fruit and toasty mineral character. — 3 years ago

Delectable Wine

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9.8

The 2005 Palmer has been absolutely magical both times I have tasted it recently. Still wonderfully deep to the core, the 2005 is dense, packed to the core and luxuriously opulent. Even with all of that intensity, the 2005 remains vibrant. Lush red/purplish berry fruit, rose petal, lavender and sweet spice build into the towering finish. The 2005 is an epic wine that will have no problem reaching its fiftieth birthday. It is a rich, dramatic Margaux that checks all the boxes, and then some. I rated a second bottle even higher. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, April 2021)
— 4 years ago

John A

9.4

Amazing. Pristine after 15 years in the bottle and has at least 10 more years of life. The balanced core of this wine with peaches and sublime minerality. — 5 years ago

Gobindjit S. Dhaliwal

9.4

Elegant and extremely perfumed, a nice juicy red fruit core featuring ripe cherries, raspberries, and strawberries, followed by dried lavender, meaty beef jus, orange peel, undergrowth, sweet tobacco, charcoal, and intense black pepper. Delicious sweet red fruit flavors on entry with some dried apricots that lead to a umami rich midpalate filled with meaty notes, iron, and a slightly saline minerality that intermingles with intense peppery notes that linger for some time. Incredible silky mouth feel on this midbodied red, very light in structure but intense in flavors. — 7 years ago

Ron Siegel

9.4

Classic styled old school Bordeaux with a Sweet core of black & red fruits, cedar, leather, graphite & cigar ash. — 7 years ago

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.2

Second of the blind wines and gifted to us by @TheSkip. Thanks Steve!

Deep ruby red core and a tad lighter on the edges with a touch of sediment. Layered nose but not overpowering at all like other Bevans, notes of sweet spices, cinnamon and dark berries. Medium plus to heavy integrated tannins (7/10) with a touch of heat. Some jammy black fruits on the palate with some anise and a little vegetal. Full attack but thinned out before the finish. Vegetal notes took some time but blew off being some more dark berries to the palate. Medium to medium plus bodied with a long finish. Solid work in a touch vintage. Drink till 2021. — 8 years ago

with Sean and India

Eric Egan

9.5

Another level... Still dense at the core, with steady, attractive bricking: Wonderfully dense nose of blackcurrents, pencil shavings, fine tanned leather, and a hint of woodland floor (fine moss, leaves, and fresh soil after an autumn shower). Velvety tannins and great acidity. Along with the '66 this is one of my all-time favourite Bordeaux vintages. Seems to be keeping up better than the '61s I've had over the last few years!

We drank half of it from the coravin before waxing the top in case the cork had lost too much elasticity to self-seal. I'll have the rest with my brother in a few weeks' time! — 9 years ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.5

Regrettably the one Bodega I missed from a stomach bug on my trip last week, though I still love love you Spain and look forward to going back. Now back to the wine....
A beautiful ruby core with some orange and pink at the edges.
The nose is elegantly fruited, with dry flowers, cherry and American oak notes of coconut, dill and toast.
The palate is elegant, refined, while masterfully complex and persistent at the same time. The finish is long and crazy silky. One of the few GR from a very older producer that uses only proprietary fruit.

— 10 years ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.5

Medium ruby garnet core , garnet rim . More dusty cassis , spicy blackberry , tobacco , sea spray, hot bricks. On the palate refreshing acidity and more gritty tannin , cassis , blackberry, mineral and tobacco notes . Slightly more linear on the mid palate with good balance and excellent length with mineral tobacco hints . This is drinking well now with time in the decanter , but will continue to improve over the next 5-10 years and last well a further 10-15 years. Really benefited from time in the decanter . — 9 months ago

Jay Kline

9.4

It was Father’s Day and I had decided on grilled rack of lamb for dinner so I selected this bottle of 2011 Chateau Musar rouge from our cellar. According to Musar’s records, the 2011 vintage was one of the most challenging since the early 1990’s. It was ultimately a late-maturing vintage with harvest taking place on October 13th, the latest since the 1983 vintage!

I decanted this bottle about eight hours prior to dinner. It should be noted that immediately upon opening, the bouquet was strikingly gorgeous with powerful aromatics that were obvious from several feet away and this trait carried through until dinner time.

In the glass, the wine presents a deep garnet color. Slightly turbid with a near opaque core. On the nose, black plums, blackberries, cassis, tobacco, organic earth, exotic spices, leather, spiced meat, and pomegranate. I detect a touch of VA as well. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannins and medium+ acid. Confirming the nose with an added bit of red rope licorice. Lovely, long, savory…amazing. This was a brilliant compliment to the lamb (which was served with beets and goat cheese and fattoush) and everything I wanted in a Musar tonight. Drinking well now with a hefty decant and I expect well cellared examples to drink well past 2035. — 2 years ago

Mark Grammer

9.4

Delicious. Fruit well balanced with a bit of earth and mocha. Tannins soft on this 08. — 4 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.7

From a great old looking bottle with a mid shoulder fill. Cork is fully saturated and the crud under the capsule had formed a strong seal. Slow-ox’d for a few hours, then decanted for an hour or two before taken to L’Escargot in Carmel. Amber tawny rims with a reddish tawny core. Crazy nose right from the start. Notes of sweet black cherries, tobacco leaf, plums, black pepper, ash and crusty wood, pencil shavings, some just unwrapped cigar and some menthol. Silky in the mouth with firm structure and soft but present acidity. Long and memorable finish. Outstanding performance over several hours. — 5 years ago

Bill Bender

9.6

Fine integrated tannins combined with a plush core of blackberry fruit, lead pencil, coffee grounds and sweet licorice. This was truly phenomenal. Not fading in the least. Powerful and dense with a velvet smooth sexy finish. — 7 years ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.5

Ruby red core , light ruby rim, almost touch of pink . Lots of black berry , black plum , sweet black fruits . Floral also , mineral laced. There is real volume on the palate,, a lot of the black berry , plum fruit, long finish, excellent balance. Tannin velvety but present , lovely vibrant acidity. Alcohol totally in balance. A great wine , still young really , will last and improve over many years . — 8 years ago

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.3

Deep garnet red with ruby core. Tasted blind. Very tight and dark on the nose with dark cocoa, dark spices and soft dark berries. Heavy tannins (8/10) and full bodied. Very dark palate as well with black cherries, cassis, black currants, dark cocoa and a little woody. Long and lingering finish. Thought this was a bit older than a 2013 but powerful, needs some time to fully develop. Drink till 2032. (93+) — 8 years ago

with Sean and India

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.3

Dark and deep ruby red with a purplish core. Dark brooding fruits on the nose with notes of sweet tobacco and baking spices. A bit of dark cherries too. Moderate tannins (6.5/10) and medium plus bodied. Needs some time to beef up and integrate a bit further. Lots of dark chocolate, a little savory, and tons of baking spices like vanilla extract and cinnamon. Some darker berries on the palate too. Long and lingering finish. Drink from 2018 till 2030. (93+) — 8 years ago

with Sean and India

Daron Watson

9.6

nose of suede, mushroom, cigar box and a hint of incense ~ vibrant juicy black cherry core finishes with eucalyptus and faintest hint of butterscotch ~ amazing — 10 years ago

with Aaron