Donald Williams

9.0

Holding up very well. Magnum helps. Keeps getting better with time. Not even beginning to fade. Wine Tasting at Andy and Elaine’s. — 6 years ago

with Bonnie

Alexandre Pagliano

9.5

Dark ruby robe, very fine nose of blackcurrant and delicate secondary notes, very polished tannins and really long in the mouth, with the typical development of Haut Brion in the really good years. Outstanding now but will be even better in 3 to 5 years. — 8 years ago

with Adriana

Andrew Schirmer

9.1

Is there a better wine for roast chicken than Loire cabernet franc? Rhetorical question, of course. 2011 so tight, even after two hour decant. It slowly unveils its charms, like Jo Fiennes unwinds Gwen Paltrow in the otherwise forgettable "Shakespeare in Love". Unlike that film, this has staying power. Stash away a case, it will develop beautifully over the next three decades. — 9 years ago

with Alsu

Matt Austin

Owner/Winemaker, Grosgrain Vineyards, Walla Walla, WA

9.0

From 375 ml. Pretty ripe, even for CDP. Good, but not great. Drink now. — 9 years ago

Amanda Henry Godino

9.4

Really delicious. Even better as it opened up. — 10 years ago

Rob Guimaraes

9.3

A phenomenal intensity even after 14 years. The structure may not be what it was in youth, but this evolves in the glass even still. Char, smoke, dark berries, ash, and a medley of attractive brett qualities. Wonderful length. — 10 years ago

with Todd

Kathy Morgan

9.5

Surprising power and fruit - even better than the 64 — 11 years ago

Dave Schneider

8.9

Quite the funk bomb. Needed time to open but when it did it became much softer and even balanced. tasted like a classic older Bordeaux. — 11 years ago

Marc Stubblefield

Wine Sales at Vino Carta and Kogod Wine Merchant

9.2

In a beautiful place for a young LS. Everything in harmony, if a little reserved. You could even call it elegant if you have it with barbecued pork tenderloin. — 11 years ago

Ezra Cohen

9.2

Drank the 1986 in 11/2014. Wine was delicious out of the bottle and even better after being in the decanter for over an hour. Wine is holding nicely. Drink soon. — 11 years ago

Kai Chang

9.2

Clear deep purple colour with watery rim. Clean medium intensity aroma with minty black cherry and black currant with hint of oak smokiness and vanilla. Dry on the palate full bodied medium alcohol with medium acidity and high but smooth velvety tannin. Flavours of earthy black currant, black cherry, and vanilla. Flavours last through into its long pleasant finish. Very good quality, drink now but can age for another 3 to 5 years for a even more balanced complexity. — 12 years ago

Max Einhorn

9.0

Smooth but flavors have switched a lot to non fruit even at that age — 7 years ago

Matt

9.1

Mature, elegant, harmonious wine that has aged well. Distinctive tertiary notes in the wine give this a definite Old World personality despite having that classic core of fruit even restrained wines take on in Napa. I bet this was singing on its 20th Birthday. — 8 years ago

Barbie Fiallo

9.0

Even at this super young age you can taste the greatness!!! We decanted for an hour or so as we were dying to try one from the lot. We will be aging these. — 9 years ago

with Jonathan

Jeff D.

9.3

From a magnum...for a '90 there seems to be no color progression on it at all, even at the edges. There is a minty, herbaceous note to it but it has great blackberry flavors and nice firm tannins on the finish. Really incredible how well this is holding up and an outstanding expression of Napa Valley Cab! — 9 years ago

Brandon Boesch

9.0

It was too young and overall very tight even with 5 hours of decanting. I think we opened this at an awkward time in its evolution. — 10 years ago

r c

10

had it for our anniversary dinner. paid corkage fee at great restaurant. even impressed sommelier one of best wines we have ever had. — 10 years ago

Joe Rice

9.1

By the glass at the winery. Dark fruit, not stewed, plenty of oak spice, even more to the forefront than the 890. A bit more time to integrate. — 11 years ago

Konrad Michels

9.9

This is some seriously good Cabernet. Even though it is 10 years old, and eminently drinkable straight out of the bottle, it improves by at least an order of magnitude of you let it breathe for an hour or two. Highly recommended. — 11 years ago

George Chen

8.9

Magnum drank with big dry-aged steaks. Perfect match as this was big powerful wine that show good penetration and focus even with the steaks! — 11 years ago

James Jordan

9.6

Slightly sweet, full flavoured, berry notes, velvety smooth. Goes very well with red meats or even a berry themed dessert. Excellent value for the money. — 11 years ago

Christina Rumayor

10

Yum! 1999 in napa was a great year, did t even need To aerate it that long
— 12 years ago

Mark Geylikman

9.2

Exceptional. Price value ratio, outstanding. Anyone who knows these wines knows that they are traditional, old school style riojas with that extra layer of finesse that sets them apart, but many of the other vineyard bottlings require extensive aging beyond even what the winery sometimes deems appropriate. This, on the other hand, has many of those characteristics we all love, but with the freshness and lift that makes it so drinkable and food friendly today. Having had 2008 and 2009, the 2010 is truly a cut above. — 7 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

When it comes to my B-day, there is only one fit, an old Pichon Lalande with my Ribeye. As a lover of Bordeaux, these two are my favorite pairing. It’s a very slow walk to the finishline. A small bite of steak and a sip of 89 Pichon Lalande. Then, repeat until finished. I had some concerns about this bottle. A slightly slippery and crumbling cork. The first sip was not bad, but not what you want or are expecting. After some time in the decanter, it really started to shine. On the nose; ripe, ruby, floral cassis, blackberries, dark sweet & sour cherries, baked strawberries, blue fruit hues, dry cranberries, baked rhubarb, saddlewood, soft, used leather, bay leaf, touch of sage, hint of spearmint, eucalyptus, vanilla, cinnamon, crushed dry crushed rock powder, black turned earth, dry brown soil with clay, tobacco leaf and perfumed red florals with violets. The body is full, round and silky. Tannins are well resolved at around 80%. The texture, length, tension and length are in a sweet spot. The fruits are ripe, ruby & expressively floral. Blackberries, dark sweet & sour cherries, baked strawberries, blue fruit hues, dry cranberries, baked rhubarb, saddlewood, soft, used leather, bay leaf, touch of sage, hint of spearmint, eucalyptus, vanilla, cinnamon, crushed dry crushed rock powder, black turned earth, dry brown soil with clay, scorched earth, tobacco leaf and perfumed red florals with violets. The acidity is just a little off but still nice. The finish is divided nearly equally in fruit, earth, florals and herbaceous. It’s very enjoyable but falls just a little short in longer, lingering length. This bottle had good storage, not great. Even so, still has another three to five years ahead. A bottle with excellent storage has another five years beyond this one. Photos of; the backside of Pichon Lalande, angled terrace view of their vines right next to Latour, my steak & twice baked potato (so good) and CEO Nicolas Glumineau. — 8 years ago

Matt Brock

9.3

I've had this bottle in the cellar for a LONG time (probably past peak)...waiting for the right occasion. Here is to ten eventful years of Builders Bargain. Jammy, delicate flavor. 13 years of aging has given this a very earthy quality. Decanted for 90 minutes but should get even more spectacular through the evening. Cheers! — 9 years ago

with Jennifer

Ron R

9.1

On the nose, it comes across as a tightly wound coil , with tart cherries, minerals and exotic spices.

On the palette, the wine stands firm and bold. Tannins are far from resolved (even a touch gritty, perhaps), which was a surprise. It's a strong example which was dense, layered and compact. We popped n poured, to which I plead guilty. — 10 years ago

Francesca Filippini

9.4

Perfectly balanced, well integrated, and pairs best with good conversation. Even for an Italian, this Tempranillo gives any Nebbiolo a run for its money. — 11 years ago

Jeffrey Bencus

Head Sommelier Julian Serrano, Las Vegas

9.5

Still very alive. Great focused acidity and a surprising amount of gas even if it does look like rosé at this point. Delicious! — 11 years ago

Brandon Luckett

9.0

Very nice! Even better as it opens. — 11 years ago

Moreno Luis

9.4

An ICON. Superb, even belonging to a big big corporation. — 12 years ago