Tom Garland

9.2

Pop and pour. A brilliant medium gold color. On the nose: lemon, grilled pear, crushed stone, apricot, caramel, and honey. Taste: chalky, lean acid driven style with pear, steely minerality, green apple, saline, orange/lemon rind, and a medium plus finish. YUM! My favorite Napa chardonnay. — 8 months ago

with Brenda

Jarrod McCann

9.3

Nice Barolo with lots of limestone showing minerality and brightness. Still a little tight after 11 years, but it’s fantastic with a nice piece of beef. Floral on the nose with juicy choke cherry, leather, unsweetened coco, tobacco, raspberry preserves, and crushed blueberries on the palate. — a year ago

Richard Sohn

9.3

Crushed rock and so juicy — matching the dried cranberries in my salad. Love it. Perfect for slurping during the hot summer holiday! — 3 years ago

Delectable Wine

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9.9

The 2018 IX Estate is a wine of extraordinary depth and intensity. The aromatics along are positively dazzling. Crushed herbs, lavender, spice, menthol, chocolate, licorice and gravel lend tremendous power and gravitas. Just as impressive it was last year, the 2018 is positively riveting today. What a wine! (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, January 2022)
— 4 years ago

Lee Pitofsky

9.7

Always and forever one of my absolute favorite wines. 07 Reynard from the master showed just as well as the bottle I had in February. It’s deep, powerful and has a searing intensity. It’s layered with dark fruit, campfire smoke, olive tapenade, violets and a crushed rock minerality. There is superb concentration along with a firm tannic structure that is beginning to soften. It’s exceptionally well balanced and detailed with a palate saturating texture and a harmonious finish that goes on and on. An outstanding Reynard. — 5 years ago

Ron Siegel

9.2

This had nice richness & purity showing notes of citrus, green apple with saline, crushed rock & white flower — 5 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

Merry Christmas Eve-Eve everyone! 🎄🎅🤶⛄️❄️🎁🍷

On the nose, leap dark currants & cassis with bright red, dark, blue & purple florals at pop & pour. Ripe; blackberries, dark cherry kirsch, plum, mulberries, blueberries, poached & strawberries, black raspberries & raspberries. Black licorice, star anise, dark chocolate bar, volcanic & limestone, steeped fruit teas, dark cola, sweet tarry notes, black, rich, turned earth, mid, dark spices, cinnamon stick, clove, nutmeg, vanilla, barrel shavings with char, dry brush, leather, fresh tobacco, granite, some eucalyptus, mint notes, light, dry herbs with fresh & some withering red, dark, purple and blue, fresh and slightly candied florals.

The body is; round, ripe, & rich. The tension, structure, length and balance are just beginning their sweet spot. The tannins are; rounding, tarry & still chewy. Plenty of life left in the 09...8-10 years. Dark currants & cassis. Ripe; blackberries, dark cherry kirsch, plum, mulberries, blueberries, poached & strawberries, cherries, black raspberries & raspberries. Black licorice, star anise, dark chocolate bar, volcanic & limestone, dry, crushed rocks, dry stems, steeped fruit teas, dark cola, sweet tarry notes, black, rich, turned earth, mid, dark spices, cinnamon stick, clove, nutmeg, vanilla, milk chocolate, mocha, caramel, barrel shavings with char, dry brush, leather, fresh tobacco, granite, some eucalyptus, mint notes, light, dry herbs with fresh & some withering red, dark, purple and blue, fresh and slightly candied florals. The acidity is round & spot on. The ripe, rich, ruby, elegant, balanced & polished finish is splendid and persists nicely on the palate with mid, dark spice on the long set. So much better with this much age. Really delicious tonight!

A steal now at under $35 upon release at Costco.

This wine is close to its peak and will hover there 3-4 years.

Photos of; the Estate, old large oak vats and David Heitz.
— 6 years ago

Charlie C

8.9

Lime zest, green apple, crushed stones. Great acid. — 8 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

From 375ml.

A very good Rhone producer visited in 2015.

At pop & pour, the fruits almost had a mid berry bubble gum character. That toned down almost immediately. Fruits are ripe; blackberries, black raspberries, baked plums, raspberries, dark cherries, juicy strawberries, chocolate bar to fudge, grilled, smoked meats, black pepper, dark spice, nutmeg, clove, iron pan, black tea, a touch of rubber toy, slight tarriness, dry herbs, roasted chestnuts, tobacco leaf, dry crushed rocks, dry top soil, hints of mint, dark, red flowers, violet’s, nice acidity with a well balanced-structured, stiffly tensioned with a lush finish that lasts 90 seconds and lands on earthiness & spice.

Plenty of life left in this 2012, even in 375ml. — 10 months ago

Jason Keefer

9.1

Crushed stone, lime zest, lavender-like flowers. good acidity and mouthfeel. — 4 years ago

with Natasha

Tom Garland

9.2

30 min decant (decent fine/chunky sediment). A splended medium dark garnet with some bricking. On the nose: plum, sweet aged cab perfume, musky wet forest floor, eucalyptus, crushed rocks, and smoke. Taste: soft, smooth, delicate, med plus body wine with a little red fruit, leather, cedar, and a herbaceous bitter chocolate finish. What a treat!!! to drink this 12.5% alc, 32 year old wine. Still kicking, even though on the downside. Cheers! — 4 years ago

with Brenda

Mike Saviage

9.4

Light straw gold. Killer Coche nose. Notes of lemon, petroleum jelly, crushed stone, apricot and tan spice. Sharp acidity, with suitable fruit and weight to build the overall experience. A great village wine that is just finding its groove at age 20. — 5 years ago

Kristen Grimes

9.0

Lots of crushed chalk on the nose with some apple, big body and good acidity with tart lemon curd and more chalky minerals that coat the mouth. #gotm2020 — 6 years ago

Shengli Hu

9.0

Sour cherry, tart cranberry, crushed stone, rose, peony, dried herbs, game, and forest floor. Elevated acidity, medium+ intensity and finish. Medium + body. Moderate(-) tannins. 13.5% — 7 years ago

Pinotman /// Andreas

9.2

Liked the 2014 even better. This is less earthy. Lime, black forest herbs hard to describe. Raspberry, Oregano, Cherry .🍒 crushed rock - drink up! — 9 months ago

Lee Pitofsky

9.6

Not sure there are better 13 whites than Raveneau. Lafon also comes to mind. It’s an early drinking vintage (by Raveneau standards) while you wait for 12 and 14, and no Chapelot this year so it’s blended in here. A multi-hour decant has it showing superbly, wafting layers of créme fraîche, baking spice, crushed stones and a touch of botrytis influenced saffron. The palate shows immense power, concentration and depth of waxy yellow fruit chiseled with Chablisen minerality, brilliant tension and racy lemony acids. MDT always hits 🫰🏻 — a year ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.4

Slow ox for 3 hours. Deep ruby, still ruby edges. The pronounced nose was loaded with spices, olives, smoke, smoked meat, anise, clove, peppercorns, mostly tertiary dark red fruits, dried crushed violets. The palate was med+ bodied, medium grain tannin were a tad chewy and grainy, an intense but elegantly persistent palate. A long, spicy finish showed subtle fruit with the tannins showing a touch grainy/chewy and not as integrated here. Still a beauty, though not sure the tannin will resolve at this point. — a year ago

Pinotman /// Andreas

10

10! Pinot does not get better than this! My last bottle. Drink now if you have this. Cherry, Lavender, Orange Blossoms, Morello Cherry, Forest Floor. Crushed marble. Absolutely delicious. Drink within 5 - 20 minutes. No decant needed! please. Can compete with any Grand Cru - I am floored. — 4 years ago

John Willison

9.2

Lemon, lime, candies grapefruit, crushed white stone, cut hay. First 2020. Good stuff. — 5 years ago

Tom Garland

9.2

1 hour decant(decent chunky sediment). A dazzling dark ruby red color with some bricking. On the nose: bursting from the glass are dark plum, toast, stewed meat, graphite, and a sweet minty chocolate. Taste: a elegant, smooth, medium weight wine with plum, currants, tea, crushed rocks, earthy....velvety mostly resolved tannins coat the mouth with a chocolate tobacco long dry finish. — 6 years ago

with Brenda