Mike Saviage

9.4

Dark ruby, bright, doesn’t look it’s age. Awesome funky old Cal Cab nose. Notes of cherry, cranberry sauce, dirt and some balsa wood. Some steminess. Great perfume. Nice in the mouth but missing just a little bit in the mid palate. Really enjoyed this. — 8 years ago

Lewis Chester

9.6

1996 vintage. At Hotel TerraVina with my pal, Gerard Basset MW. Unfortunately we didn't get time to decant it sufficiently prior to having with lunch. Typically I would have had at least a 2 hour decant before serving. Medium garnet hue, very bright. The nose is simply stunning and evolved constantly in the glass. Blackberry, black plum, cedar wood, lots of spices, cocoa and hints of roasted coffee bean. Tertiary notes have developed but there still seems to be a bit of development to be teased out of this wine yet. The palate exhibited an enormous amount of structure - high acidity and high tannins that are ripe but chunky. There's nothing round here - more linear and angled than curvy. Almost light bodied but with a big two-step punch of a finish: there's an initial hit and then a powerful umph of additional rev's that makes your head bob up and down in joy and happiness. Though it's drinking extremely well now, this will hold for decades to come. Fabulous. — 9 years ago

Stuart Scheff

9.0

Complex perfumed Oregon — 9 years ago

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.1

Surprise bottle at the end of the tasting. A real treat. Garnet red with medium intensity and quite a bit of sediment. Layered nose with soft blackberries, soft black cherries, and a soft undertone of provenance herbs (lavender). Palate floats right across your tongue with some light red cherries, some toasted wood and a little leather. Still solid moderate tannins (5.5/10) and well integrated with the solid acidity. Medium to light bodied with great structure and texture. Moderate plus finish with a dryness to it. Drink till 2020. — 10 years ago

with Sean and India

Eric Belling

9.2

Surprisingly good — 11 years ago

Linda Hawk

9.8

Wow. The first words out of my mouth were, "This tastes expensive." The nose is full and rich as well. Plenty of layers and complexity here. This is going on the very short list of "excellent." - 2012 vintage — 11 years ago

Katie Wilson

9.3

Orange and amazing — 8 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.3

Brownish tawny. Regal, clear and almost opaque. Sweet old Bordeaux nose. Notes of cola, cranberry, plums, dried fig, earth, spice and some wood. A bit thin in the mouth at the start but with air it firms up. Decent finish. Grows nicely in volume and impact. The fragrant nose is what you remember. — 8 years ago

Craig Stanfield

9.5

Started wth a slight must on the nose, but that blew off. Opened to round and bright red and some blue fruit. Tobacco and wood (not lavish oak, maybe cedar) round it out. Fine grained tannins and a wonderful finish. Love the value of Rioja and hard to believe I just got some of these babies recently. This was the 125th vintage. — 9 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.2

Typical herbaceous brambly style from this maker with notes of geranium. Moss Wood in a lesser year but still an excellent Cabernet- one of Australia's best. — 10 years ago

Mindy Arbaugh

9.5

Lovely, smooth and rich. — 10 years ago

with Stuart

Namho Kim

9.4

So good. Slightly peaty. Well balanced — 11 years ago

Michelle Kendrick

9.2

Total Wine - $13.50 — 12 years ago

Conrad Green

9.8

A treat. Dark in color, slightly cloudy. A powerful nose with dark, very mouton fruit. Incredibly aromatic, blackcurrant, mint,graphite, dried herbs, eucalyptus. The palate is extraordinary. So dense and powerful for a wine of almost 70 years. Dark fruit with a savory undertow- leather, thyme, sour cherry, dark chocolate. Really precise flavors and long. After an hour or two in glass there’s notes of coconut and soft wood. Extraordinary. Clearly there’s a lot of age on this but the sheer quality makes for a really dynamic wine. An exceptional bottle, and a teal treat. — 8 years ago

with Howard, Tony and 1 other

Peter Radics

9.5

Oaky, fresh, and delicious! — 9 years ago

Glenn Nick

9.3

On the high chair. — 9 years ago

Rebecca Smartis

9.3

Smooth with a hint of coconut and nice full bodied berry finish. Went great with my lasagna! — 10 years ago

Vic Petroff

9.4

Disgustingly yummy! Beautiful deep red fruit, tons of life & structure. 12.5% alcohol. Touchdown! Thank you, Russ. — 10 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.0

Blackberry, black cherries, black plum, black tea, gravel, lead pencil shavings, Provence herbs, wood shavings. Disappointing opening at this stage. — 11 years ago

Colin McCartney

9.5

Deep, inky purple in the glass with generous blackberry flavors and a spicy, tannic finish. Never met a Hartford Zin I didnt like... — 11 years ago