web bond

9.0

Taut and high toned. I do not love the elevage imprint, but the fruit character is classic. — 6 years ago

roland benedetti

9.3

Willamette valley pinot like I like them (hell no they are not all like this...)

Light and fruit forward, but also wild, spicy and smokey. Oak elevage just at the right balance. Not too marked.

Yum, can drink a lot of this! — 6 years ago

Matt

9.0

BTG Compline, dusty, mushroom, dried flowers, dried herbs, nervy red fruit and racing acid. Love the tension this has given its extended elevage. — 7 years ago

Erik Nordman

9.3

Killer Chablis 1er Cru. An absolute lightning bolt of a wine, linear and acid-driven to be sure. Drinking awesome right now, the fruit is still quite primary but has obviously integrated a bit into the whole of the wine. Still has quite a life ahead of it tbh; I would have thought it was only a few years old rather than almost 8 if I hadn’t known beforehand. Bracing and mineral as you’d expect, with a great textural balance between cut and fleshiness.

- Color: bright, medium (-)/medium intensity straw-gold hue
- Nose: just-ripe starfruit, ripe green and yellow apple, an almost smoky crushed stone and chalk mineral character, lemon curd, oyster shell salinity, hard cheese rind leesiness, creme fraiche
- Palate: ripe green apple, ripe starfruit, lemon and grapefruit pulp, wet stone minerality and oyster shell salinity, hard cheese rind, creme fraiche
- Acid: high
- RS: bone dry
- Alcohol: medium/medium (+), not intrusive
- Body: medium (-) body; supple, oily texture from the sur lie elevage
— 8 years ago

with Cassie

Erik Nordman

9.1

Solid, textbook Chablis Premier Cru. Incredible tension and focus while still having a touch of richness from ML, partial neutral oak elevage, and lees action. If drinking now, decant, and preferably wait a couple years; this stuff needs a bit of air and/or time to unwind and right now it shows a little too reductively right out of the gate. Also, the acid is a bit intense even for an acid freak like me. Pours a medium (-) straw-gold hue. Nose of tart Granny Smith apple, lemon curd, smoky crushed chalk and sea spray, slightly underripe starfruit, and a hard cheese rind leesy character. On the palate, it's incredibly linear and with laser sharp focus; with more lemon curd, crushed chalk and oyster shell, underripe starfruit, Granny Smith apple skin, and hard cheese rind lees notes abound. Absolutely screamin' acid and bone dry with medium (-) body that is offered a bit of oily, soft texture from elevage on fine lees with partial neutral oak. Nice length. Intense wine; begs for oysters on the half shell or a bright seafood dish like a scallop crudo or something. — 9 years ago

Loren Gesinsky

9.2

Ouille Elevage comparator at 2/28/17 Rouge Tomate Salon Series on A Natural History of Wine — 9 years ago

Erik Nordman

9.3

Awesome Kabinett from the Pfalz. Great finesse and wonderful purity. Nose of mandarin and just-ripe green apple, pure, river stone minerality, jasmine and honeysuckle, and a subtle cardamom-y spice. A bit of petrol and a citrusy sorrel herbaciousness show up as well after it gets some air. Palate echoes the nose, channeled through bracing acidity and just a touch of perceptible RS; less than your average Kabinett but better for it in this case. Great balance. Medium (-) body with nice supple oily texture, guessing there's some elevage on fine lees here but not entirely sure. Have to keep myself from chugging it practically; it's so tasty and quenching. — 9 years ago

Dr. Owen Bargreen

9.2

A blend of mainly Merlot (73%) with smaller portions Cabernet Sauvignon, and Petit Verdot, the 2017 ‘Elevage’ was aged for eighteen months in 100% new French oak prior to bottling. Pretty red cherry aromatics connect with shades of cocoa powder and tar that all take shape in the glass. The mouthfeel and silky texture of the wine is truly outstanding. Layers of espresso bean and creosote connect with the bright red fruits and minerals that keep this wine shiningly brightly. The long dark fruit and mineral-driven finish lingers. Drink 2020-2035- 92
— 6 years ago

Fredrik Finn

9.0

A souvenir brought from the interesting project Bodegas Licinia in Madrid. With some imagination you’ll find some Super Tuscany resemblance with a ripe dark fruit and floral profile with a good energy and well placed portion of oak. Hefty on the alcohol, but well embedded on the palate, with a solid intensity of ripe, yet fresh fruit, and a nice developing persistence on the palate. Good stamina throughout a solid finish.
With Cabernet Sauvignon the intension is to provide structure to the blend and yes it works; 50% Temperanillo 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Syrah and 5% Merlot. Elevage in french oak Barrique oak barriques. — 7 years ago

Benoit Duhamel

8.9

Loin du typique Chambolle en finesse. C’est du sérieux ce vin.... fruits noirs, encore austère et un elevage encore présent. Je dirais qu’il faut attendre mais pas certain qu’il sera meilleur... — 8 years ago

Alessandro Dalle Carbonare

9.2

Lovely creamy blend. Great elevage. Dégorg 2/15. — 9 years ago

Aaron Tan

9.7

Gonon's spinning some seriously unreal Syrah! Youthful, but showing so much after a quick 30 minute decant. Lively dark berries, olive tapenade, lavender, meat, herbs, black pepper, anise, mushroom. Dense, owing to the vintage, with grainy tannins and a remarkably solid acid drive. I could drink a lot of this wine 😍

Note (from CWS): While still considered within the Saint Joseph appellation, the brothers choose to bottle this younger vine syrah separately from their flagship cuvée because the vineyard location on flatland close to the bank of the Rhône does not possess the same granite base as is typical of their more historic hillside sites. Vinified with about 80% of fruit de-stemmed and undergoing a shorter elevage of 12-14 months in 600 Litre demi-muids casks. — 9 years ago

with Michelle

Erik Nordman

9.3

Stupid good single-site Riesling from the Chehalem Mountains. Impeccable balance. Could totally see calling this as a high-quality Nahe kabinett if blinded on it but at the same time it still has a distinctly Oregonian aura about it. Nose of ripe nectarine, key lime, and honeydew, pure, slate-y wet stone minerality, cherry blossom, subtle cardamom and nutmeg spice, and just a touch of petrol starting to show. Palate echoes the nose, channeled through bracing high acid and an extra layer of flinty mineral focus. Moderate concentration, medium (-) body but with great texture from neutral oak fermentation and elevage and possibly some lees influence as well. As referenced above, sweetness is comparable to some of the less sweet German kabinett wines; delightfully off-dry. Deliciously quenching. Gonna hoard a couple bottles of this because I'd love to see how this fares with a bit more development in bottle. — 9 years ago

Fredrik Finn

9.2

Well well well, isn’t that something! Envinate Lousas Vinos de Aldea. Give it some time in the glass to unwind and expose its inner complexity, a vibrant red fruit profile, lavender and capsicum is accompanied by a pronounced savoriness with crushed rocks, soil and white pepper. A fresh spine runs through the palate with solid but fine grained grip from the tannins. Ribeira Sacra. Mostly Mencia with some other stuff thrown in (field blend), whole cluster ferment in cement tank followed by elevage in neutral barrel. A privilege to have these unicorn wines available! — 6 years ago

Matt Sterr

9.3

Stunningly good cool climate SB. Crystalline and pure, zippy and intense minerality. Great weight, styled like a classic Sancerre or Pouilly Fume. Long elevage. Chestnut and acacia. Vineyards sit on the slopes above apple orchards. Very steep terrain. Phoenollically ripe. Delicious. — 7 years ago

web bond

8.9

Elevage is seemingly heavy handed, forced. Great fruit concentration, but not seamlessly coupled, integrated, with oak. — 8 years ago

Matt Sanders

9.1

Open me up and crush me! Fucking delicious, juicy goodness — 8 years ago

with James

Tom Kobylarz

9.2

60% Cabernet Sauvignon 40% Merlot
Vintage elevage can vary, but is mostly 6-8 year old French oak barrels, with a small percentage of new French oak. The team at Sasaacaia do not look at Guidalberto as a second wine, specific plots are destined for this wine from the 10-24 year old Cabernet Sauvignon vines. Merlot does not even make it into #Sassicaia. The nose is serious, with pronounced complexity and density, focused and showing varietal nuances. Excellent grip and structure, fleshier fruit notes turn darker with deeper cherry, red raspberry and cassis fruit, sweet blue and violet floral notes. A sweet core of ripe and velvety tannin, while juicy acidity amps up the the fruit presence, while adding freshness and spine. This is a smart buy almost every vintage and 2015 is no exception. — 9 years ago

Lee Lightfoot

9.2

Like old vine amador zin. Huge dried fruit with dusty leathery character. Really mature probably due to 36 month elevage. — 9 years ago

web bond

8.9

Pleasurable, elegant, stylish, but not a stunner. Fruit is receding, and elevage stamp still present. Many Sangiovese Grosso wines outperform this bottle for half the price. — 9 years ago