Anthony Lombardi

9.3

The nose has an herbal anise note which follows to the palate. This wine is really all about textural complexity. Fresh & crisp with a tense, saline character. Some honeyed melon notes emerge as it opens. Beautiful stuff. — 5 years ago

David Shaw

9.1

Fairly dense red, moderately extracted pigment. Black cherry, black currant, mint and butter aromas. Fairly ripe flavors of cherry, blackberry, black currant in mouth, rounded mouthfeel, slightly tart blackberry and cranberry on finish with seed bitterness and mild skin astringency. Lactic aftertaste. After an hour, white pepper and then, 90 minutes later, cocoa emerges in the finish and aftertaste. After two hours, barrel smoke emerges. Great fruit, nothing too fancy on the winemaking end (perhaps deceptively so) but exactly what I’d want from a Lodi Italian varietal like Barbera, especially if you can decant an hour or two and wait for that white pepper and cocoa to emerge. — 6 years ago

David Shaw

9.0

Different vintage - 2016. Pale yellow white, excellent clarity. Funk and white floral notes in nose. Faint honey and lactic notes in mouth, dry, long neutral finish, more creamy than mineral, slightly crisp. A hint of spice in aftertaste. Moderate fine-grained skin astringency, noticeable but complementary in context. Needs time to develop. Some wood gradually emerges in nose and mouth, while Riesling varietal flavors (perfumed, slightly bitter) emerge after 45 minutes. — 7 years ago

James Forsyth

9.6

Next up was the 1968 from Periera D'Oliveira, which was bottled in 1996. And wow. Dark amber. Spice cake on the nose with dried apricots too, which carry on in the flavors on the palate. Initially spices are most distinct, but through the long finish the pitted fruit elements emerge. It is midweight and beautifully balanced. The orange peel at the end of the finish adds freshness, and the acidity gives a youthfulness to it. I think this wine is still in the market. If not too expensive, I might pick up a bottle and start my Madeira collection... — 7 years ago

Bret Barker

9.7

Barolo and white truffle goes together like peanut butter and jelly. What a wine, so much dark fruit even at age ten. Still tightly wound I️t needed a good hour of decanting before some of the floral notes started to emerge with the usual tar and rose characteristics. This has a few decades left in I️t. If you are looking for top quality Barolo conterno francia is a great choice. — 8 years ago

Matt Yaeger

9.2

Crushed strawberries, and a definite dill note on the finish. Structured too: noticeable acidity and integrated tannins. Tertiary flavors starting to emerge. A classy wine. — 9 years ago

Wes Hagen

9.4

Light garnet with brick emerging on edge. Dried cherry and savory with tomato skin and hints of dried raspberry that has faded with age. Fascinating and purely new world, not a Burgundian clone. That said, a bit of tar and violet emerge as if to challenge my assertion, and in the mouth the wine is complex, earthy, tarry but still nerves with structure. A gorgeous testament to great farming and a light, masterful touch in the cellar. — 10 years ago

Scotti Wilson

8.9

A nice dry red — 10 years ago

Adam Jesberger

9.6

Super delicious. Unusual in its red fruit, cranberry, pomegranate and bacon fat emerge on the nose with black pepper and olives. The palate has a slight salinity and a vinegar note that compliments the berries and meat on the palate. Nice purple flowers intertwined in it all. Fantastic and drinking perfectly NOW. Cedary lengthy finish. Great Northern Rhone just slightly atypical. — 10 years ago

Steven Weisler

9.3

Firm for the first hour. Then an incipient roundness begins to emerge. You can see the light at the end of the tunnel... — 11 years ago

Josh Morgenthau

9.4

This is killer. Slow to reveal its perfume, really needs a decant or slow ox actually. But berry liqueur and violets emerge, some baking spice, then palate has supple texture, super fine and gentle tannins, really nice acid. Truly a wine of pleasure. This wine, like the best from the vintage, combines perfect ripeness with classic elegance and lift. — 5 years ago

Jeroen Koenen

9.4

Intoxicating mineral nose of diesel, smoke, rocks, incense and seaweed.
After an hour, mature fruit notes emerge.
Fabulous...
APnr 11-06 — 6 years ago

Greg Wright

9.2

Reticent and austere at the beginning but then started to open up. Dark red fruits, savory notes, violets emerge. It has good acidity and tannin balance but the austerity is going to require more patience. — 6 years ago

David Shaw

9.1

Retasting eight months later, my last bottle. Ruby red, very good clarity. Black currant and red berry fruit leather notes in nose. Blackberry and cherry flavors initially. Mild skin astringency in finish, with white pepper emerging after 15 minutes. Black currant, plum, mint and a touch of cola and earthiness emerge an hour after opening. Complex flavor profile. Chewy tannins too emerge, so best decant a couple of hours. A little more acidic brightness wouldn’t hurt though. Maybe Tempranillo can be a Pacific Northwest thing... — 7 years ago

Sipping Fine Wine

9.0

Got another ‘08 to try. Dark red color, black fruit aromas, notes of sweet savory spice. On the palate blackberry and cherry flavors emerge, not as jammy as previous tasting showed, with oak, leather and some cacao. Good balance and integration of Tannins and acidity. This full body wine finished very smooth. Drink up, it's a gem. — 8 years ago

Gordon L

9.2

Classic claret. 89 and humming. Still needs years for tertiary flavors to emerge. Can't beat it with a rare prime rib in the background. — 8 years ago

Anthony Lombardi

9.1

Savory nose with hints of dark fruit, countered by an explosive blackberry & black pepper palate. Tannins emerge with air & add textural nuance. Always a favorite. — 9 years ago

Tim Herrmann

9.2

This was classic with ripe red cherry, rose, and irony earth. With several hours' air some tar started to emerge, so this is quite tightly wound, even if enjoyable for those who like tannic wines. Rating for now; with the flavor intensity and structure in 10-20 years this wine should be shooting for the moon! — 10 years ago

with Rajiv

Mason Balistreri

Sommelier, International Wine Guild; Balistreri Vineyard; Sales, Joy Wine and Spirits

9.2

 Excellent and powerful nose with lots of flower stems and black flowers. Tightly wound, with fruit just beginning to emerge. Only 5 barrels produced — 11 years ago

Weibo Jiang

9.7

Tight, reserve yet polished upon opening. 很女性很温柔的感觉。After 15 min in the glass emerge with cherry liqueur, perfume, rose petal, gaining a bit more weight, expansive on palate and solid yet delicate finish. 非常柔亮，有10年清冷坚实的结构。 — 13 years ago

with Laury, Yonan and 3 others

Sipping Fine Wine

9.2

Had this a year+ ago, tried a new batch, noticed label color changed. A big fan of Tawny Ports, especially the 20 year blends are a Fav. Fonseca Port was founded in 1822 and successive generations of the Guimaraens family have upheld the Company’s reputation. Medium amber color with aromas of honey and pronounced nutty notes. On the palate ripe dried fruits with sweet cinnamon spice and oak emerge from the glass. Soft tannins long smooth finish ending with a sweet nutty character. Very nice. — 5 years ago

Delectable Wine

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9.4

Shimmering ruby. Expansive aromas of fresh dark berries, cherry cola, potpourri and exotic spices; vanilla and espresso notes emerge as the wine opens up. Sweet, fleshy and seamless in texture, offering palate-staining black raspberry, cherry liqueur, vanilla and spicecake flavors and a sexy violet pastille nuance. Velvety tannins build slowly on the finish, which hangs on with impressive, floral- and spice-dominated persistence. (60% new French oak) (Josh Raynolds, Vinous, June 2019) — 6 years ago

AJ Gubser

9.3

Interesting, complex aromatics. Some brettanomyces funk at first and then fig, pomegranate, allspice, clove, pepper, and smoke comes out. As it gets some O2, some tomato and iron notes emerge.

Palate opens with cherry and raspberry leaning to the dried side of things. Figs and dates come to mind as well. The allspice, pepper and black tea notes finish things out. Acidity is medium and tannins are still pretty burley and course, especially given its age.

Another tasty wine from a producer I really like. The purity of fruit, spice complexities, and robust tannin structure seem to be their signature. — 6 years ago

Delectable Wine

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9.0

Herb-accented aromas of green fig, tomato leaf and white flowers emerge from the glass. Bright floral and white pepper notes add lift to the lively but simple citrus fruit flavors. A subtle herbal nuance lends complexity on the long finish. $25.00 (Ian D'Agata, Vinous, December 2018) — 7 years ago

Joe Gillies

9.4

Very good and is slowly evolving from primary fruits to secondary flavors.
Dark fruits,and grilled meats with leather and tobacco flavors starting to emerge.
Still is youthful and has many more years to go. — 8 years ago

Alex Lallos

Owner No Limit Fine Wines, Private Wine Consultant

9.0

90 points like everything on delectable! Actually delicious wine from a decent vintage. Drinking excellent right now. Pretty Magenta color. Complete CdP nose with pepper, rose petals, garrigue, strawberry and spice. Soft and supple. Just a great wine. Blackberry, sage and fresh green tobacco emerge over time — 9 years ago

Julia Indik

9.4

Floral aroma then early flavors of cherries and plums but after it opens then deeper flavors emerge along with an undercurrent of leather with a brisk finish — 10 years ago

Eric Urbani

8.9

Needs several hours of air to emerge, wasn't able to last that long so my rating is an estimate !
— 10 years ago

Ed Merrison

9.4

Slowly unfurling Syrah with secrets worth hanging around for. Takes a wee while to emerge from the fog of 100% whole bunch, but when it does there's such a range on display; violet florals, black cherries, pepper, beef jus and gravel. The palate is silky and all these notes churn through it.; deep, satisfying and long. — 10 years ago

Mason Balistreri

Sommelier, International Wine Guild; Balistreri Vineyard; Sales, Joy Wine and Spirits

8.9

The nose shows lots of stewed berries with a touch of bramble happening in the background. Raspberry and chocolate flavors emerge on the palate, with short pleasurable tannins. — 11 years ago