Andrew Cullimore

9.4

Medium ruby garnet terracotta rim, slightly wider than the Lynch. This is cooler and slightly sterner in character than the Lynch. More mineral , with ash , cedar and grafite in character , cassis , blackberry , dark cherry fruits. On the palate this is denser with more tannin , and balanced acidity . Grafite , cassis , herbal cedar , menthol touch . Long fresh but densely fruited, grafite finish . This is younger and more serious than the Lynch, more austere . Probably deserves a little time in decanter, though this is probably in the middle of its drinking window . Certainly no rush here , can go on well for the next 10 if not more years . This shows a really good mix of St Estephe austerity , seriousness and the ripeness and generosity of 1990. A great bottle , showing very well. — 8 months 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! — 10 months ago

Delectable Wine

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9.6

The 2019 Barolo is a potent, layered wine, within the super-classic style that is the house signature. Dark cherry, plum, spice, leather, licorice and menthol add to an impression of brooding intensity. There's real weight and substance here that needs time to emerge. Dried herbs, sage, mint, tobacco and cedar linger on the vibrant, tense finish. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, January 2024)
— 3 years ago

Alexandre Pagliano

9.7

Dark rubi robe, very compelling nose of flowers, top soil and spices, with a hint of blackcurrant. In the mouth its elegant, long, balanced and fresh, oh so good. This is terrific, with 60 minutes decanting. Among the very best and finest we had in a long time. The real deal in bordeaux, in a great vintage. This is enthusiastically recommended !!!! — 5 years ago

with Adriana and Jose

Fredrik Finn

9.2

As the summer is slipping out of our hands, its time to to pop those complex reds that we’ve been lastning for. Produttori del Barbaresco is considered one of the best cooperatives in the world and its 2016 Barbaresco is a solid proof of that statement.
Restrained at first and needs a couple of hours in the decanter to reach its climax. True to its provenance its clasically crafted, and puts up complex profile of red cherries, rose hip, strawberries, spice, bitter orange and a volatile dried floral lift over a canvas of wet soil.
An offensive approach on the palate with a high acidity and a generous portion of mouth coating tannins that is well accompanied by a pronounced fruit profile with an evolving finish. Very good indeed, but is a couple of level behind to reach the higher tiers. — 6 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

When in doubt, a sure bet is a well aged, good vintage Heitz. @Eric Shanks

I intended to grab an 06 but, mistakenly grabbed an 07. I’ve not had one of my 06’s yet...next weekend.

The one thing I do every time I open one of my ten year or older Heitz Napa Cabernet’s is smile & think, this was sub $35 at Costco. It’s the wine feeling/definition of stealing candy from babies.

The nose is a beautiful harmony of fruit, earth and florals. Steeped, somewhat stewed, candied fruits of; dark currants/cassis, blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, mix of purple fruits; boysenberries, ollieberries, & mulberries. Dark, sweet tarriness, anise to black licorice, touch of incense, fire ambers, dark spices with violets palate heat, chocolate pudding, vanilla, light; cinnamon, clove & nutmeg, dark chocolate, caramel, sweet, soft, dark spice, dark berry cola, dark cherry kirsch, dark, rich earth, limestone, crushed, dry rocks, dry top soil, moist clay, understated herbs & dry brush, brewed coffee, mint, some sage & bay leaf, tobacco, dry, old leather with amazing, fresh & slightly withering & candied; dark, red, blue, purple with a violet & lavender frame. The acidity is splendid. The long, ripe, ruby, lush, elegant, well crafted balance of fruit & earth is delicious and persists endlessly with a dark spice on the long set.

The body is; delightful, ripe, rich, lush & full. The structure, tension, length and balance are woven in a perfect tapestry. This 07 has another 10-15 years easily. The tannins are rounded, smooth but, still have a dark, chewy, tarriness with baby teeth. The beauty of the vintage is on full display. Steeped, somewhat stewed, candied fruits of; dark currants/cassis, blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, mix of purple fruits; boysenberries, ollieberries, & mulberries. Dark, sweet tarriness, anise to black licorice, touch of incense, fire ambers, chocolate pudding, vanilla, light; cinnamon, clove & nutmeg, dark & milk chocolate, caramel, sweet, soft, dark spice, dark berry cola, dark cherry kirsch, dark, rich earth, limestone, crushed, dry rocks, dry top soil, moist clay & dry brush, brewed coffee, mint, tobacco, dry, old leather with amazing, fresh & slightly withering & candied ; dark, red, blue, purple with a violet & lavender frame. The acidity is perfect. The finish is; rich, ripe, ruby, candied, well balanced fruit & earth, elegant and long sets into velvety, round tannins and mid dark spices.

Photos of; the winery, tasting patio, old basket press and wide shot of the winery & Estate vines. — 7 years ago

Skip Smyser

9.1

After drinking the '02,'04,&'05 this is a baby that has yet to come into its potential. I have been tasting thru my Chateau Montelena holdings and can only say a 10 year wait is worth it. The '12 is currently a fruit bomb, needs time🍷🍷🍷🍷 — 9 years ago

Jeff Choy

9.0

Still a lot of life left despite the vintage. After decanting for an hour it is hard to find any flaw with it. — 10 years ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.8

If there were ever an archetypical Syrah, Jamet's Cote-Rotie would be a strong candidate. To me this is a pure expression of a classic Northern Rhone Syrah. It is not a single site, but a blend of terroirs, encompassing over 20 sites mostly from hard rock schist bedrock with little to no topsoil. There is NO Viognier in this wine like one might expect from most Cote-Rotie that might have 1-5% co-fermented.

Importantly, there is also a lot less of the oak character that can dominate and overwhelm many Northern Rhone wines. The oak maturation, while not short at 22 months, only uses 15% new oak with no trace of it on the palate as it is perfectly integrated. Grape bunches are whole cluster fermented and macerated for up to 3 weeks.

The 2007 we have here was drinking superbly for a young wine, showing lively and racy layers of peppercorn spice, roast beef, and warm blackberry and currant fruit from the hot 2007 vintage. While from a warm vintage, not a hair is out of place. Density and purity exude from the nose and hint at what a brilliant future this wine has. Perfect acidity and fleshy ripe tannin provide the backbone structure for father time to peel back the layers of this beauty. I will be chceking back in 5 years at the earliest. — 10 years ago

Tina Termsomket

9.6

Carried this back 8 years ago when i visited Bodega the first time. This wine is traditional classic old school Rioja- earthy and fully developed primary nose, soft acid n tannin, haunting finish... 🍷💃 — 12 years ago

with Jon

Andrew Cullimore

9.3

Medium deep garnet ruby , quite thin garnet terracotta rim . This is quite classic and more austere on the nose after the 1990s , grafite , cedar, sweet spice , earthiness and mint. More dry and four square on the palate compared to the 1990s but enough stuffing to fill out. Cassis , plum and blackberry , coffee , grafite . Refreshing acidity , slightly grippy drier tannin. Sous bois , grafite , herbal character with good length and earthy cassis finish . This got better with time in the glass and probably should have been decanted . This shows there is some upside , from now , with time in the glass, and over the next 10 years. The wine that improved the most during the dinner , quite impressive . — 8 months ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.0

No formal notes . Medium deep ruby . This seems a bit more advanced . This is a bit harder and more structured on the palate , more tannin , less velvety and a bit more astringent . More spicy , drier on the palate . This needed more time to open . This was quite difficult to judge , I wasn’t 100% convinced about this bottle as it just seemed a little oxidative, however it did actually seemed to come together better after an hour or so , but still quite hard and astringent in comparison to the others (especially La Mission) . Showed a touch more mineral and grafite on the finish too after a while. This needed time , and I would imagine another bottle might tell a different story . — a year ago

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9.5

The 2005 Ducru-Beaucaillou, tasted a dozen times since en primeur, was picked 21 September to 6 October, matured in 90% new oak for 18 months. It delivers a wall of black fruit on the nose that gradually opens up with aeration, touches of incense and wild mint, cedar coming through with time. But these aromatics remain very backward. The palate is medium-bodied with firm grippy tannins, fine acidity, solid and focused. Tremendously and uncompromisingly backward, this is a seriously fine Ducru-Beaucaillou that is just not yet ready, so go back to the cellar and leave it there for another five years. Tasted at the Ducru Beaucaillou vertical at the château. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2022)
— 4 years ago

Austin Hohnke

9.4

Second time I’ve had the pleasure of tasting this. The 2000 is in the pocket right now, firing on all cylinders. Complex, layered, and eye opening. Was fun to watch the reactions of those who were tasting Musar for the first time. Talk about a wine that gets the gears turning. Outstanding. — 5 years ago

Mono Head

9.1

Wax was hard to get off. Essentially scrapped it off. Before cork even came out I could start smelling the wine. I thought it would be corked. Cork melted off even with an ah so. First sip just had a little bit of funk but overall very drinkable. Much like a French Bordeaux. Fruit is muted, dry. Dark fruit finish. Smell definitely is dry and has an older funk, herbal, medicinal - not in a negative way. Would have loved to seen how it would have done decanted but had no time. — 6 years ago

Will Stanley

9.4

Wow. I’ve waited a long time to try my first Tondonia (surely this is a milestone for any budding wine collector, no?), having held onto this 2002 for a while and having a case or two of Heredia’s more recent vintages downstairs.

Such was the anticipation for trying this Rioja stalwart that I was almost nervous that it wouldn’t live up to it - especially with 2002 being such a rotten vintage for Spain’s flagship wine region. But this was staggeringly youthful, piercingly savoury with a gentle balance of tannin & acidity but all the supple features of an old school, aged Rioja. This is really special stuff. — 7 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

On the nose, stewed fruits of; black plum, blackberries, dark cherries, plum and blueberries. Mocha, chocolate, mixed berry cola, sweet spice, cinnamon, nutmeg, caramel, loamy mineral soils and dry dark florals. The mouthfeel is less concentrated than other vintages of Corison but that's indicative of the 10 Napa vintage generally. The tannins are nicely resolved with another 5-8 years before they are completely resolve. The fruits are; dark cherries, black plum, plum, black raspberries, blackberries with strawberries that dance around the rest of the fruit. There's nice barrel toast, vanilla, nutmeg, light clove, cinnamon, touch of wood shavings, liqueur notes, caramel, mocha chocolate, mix berry cola, loamy soils, dry crushed rocks, bramble, dry stems with nice soft round acidity. The finish is a little lean but tasty. Good balance of fruit and earth with long, rich elegance. Cathy slightly overachieved the 10 vintage as a whole. Photos of; her estate building, Cathy in her vineyard, grapes coming in at night (better to harvest when the fruit is cooler) and her estate vineyard in all it's glory. Producer notes and history...Cathy Corison grew up in Riverside, California. She studied biology at Pomona College and was on their men's diving team, because the school didn't have a women's team. In 1972, she had to take an extracurricular class. She signed up for a trampoline class, but changed her mind upon seeing a sign-up sheet for a wine tasting class. This class was the catalyst that sparked her interest in winemaking. After graduation in 1975, she moved to Napa Valley in California. She received her Master's degree in Enology from University of California, Davis. Upon moving to Napa, she started working in the tasting room at Sterling Vineyards and at a wine shop. During this time, she was getting her Master's degree at the University of California, Davis. She was told by her professor that she would not get a job in Napa Valley because of being a woman. However, if she wasn't the first Napa Valley female Winemaker, she was certainly one of the first. She tried to get a job at Freemark Abbey and was denied because they believed she could not work in the cellar. She almost took a job at Christian Brothers in the enology lab. However, she decided not to take the job and in 1978 she became an intern at Freemark Abbey and eventually became their Winemaker. She joined Chappellet in 1983 and was their Winemaker for nearly ten years. She founded Corison Winery, in 1987. The winery is located in St. Helena, California in a barn built by her husband, William Martin. Corison makes Cabernet and Gewürztraminer. They produce about 3,500 cases a year depending on the vintage. The winery makes a Kronos Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon and as well as a Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon. The Kronos is an estate wine that is made from organic grapes. The vineyard is dry farmed. The grapes come from one of the oldest vineyards in Napa Valley. The Napa Valley Cabernet comes from Rutherford. The Gewürztraminer is called Corazón and comes from the Anderson Valley. — 9 years ago

Anthony Lombardi

9.2

The beauty of great producers in great regions is how the wines wear the vintages & tell the story of that place & time. 2014's story & soul lie transparently in the texture. High toned, fresh red fruit with an acidic core which seems to brighten the wine as it breathes. The aromatics are never far from the palate here, as that is where the power lies. Undeniable floral & strawberry perfume overtake the senses as the glass is raised. Call me crazy, but this was a star alongside chicken Marsala. White in the sauce, red in the glass. — 10 years ago

Mitchell Bennett

9.5

The Prisoner from Napa Valley is excellent--second time tasting, but first time with the bottle. Delicious both times. — 13 years ago

Conrad Green

9.8

Both intense and haunting at the same time. Lovely clear complex fruit with raspberry, deep cherry, a hint of orange rind. Spice and brooding dark gnarly fruit underneath but still light and deft. This is so complex and beautiful — 9 months ago

with Matt

Andrew Cullimore

9.4

Medium light lemon straw colour , very fine constant bubbles . Quite restrained and mineral on the nose , with some light toasty notes , white flowers , lemon oil . Quite closed . On the palate this is really quite intense and mineral , oyster shell , chalky , limestone hints . Some lemon pith and a lightly toasty with a saline hint , fresh acidity , long and detailed , refined and very balanced . Really young still , needs time to open and will be long lived . Better in 5- 10 years and will last well a further 5-10 years — 9 months ago

GaryWEdwards

9.4

Time has been mind to this Antinori Tuscan. Timidity of three years ago has passed and this baby is entering adulthood. — 4 years ago

with Logan

Jay Kline

9.4

The first of my small tranche of 2019 Cuvée Reservée’s and I figured it would be fun to share with the Tasting Group. Popped and poured and presented double-blind. The wine pours a translucent, deep ruby with magenta rim, near opaque core, medium+ viscosity. On the nose, the wine was clean with macerated raspberry, cranberry, and pomegranate fruits. There were purple flowers, some black pepper and rocky minerality along with a slightly gamey note which was quite charming. Both the fruit and non-fruit characteristics were confirmed on the palate. The wine finishes dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. There’s a compelling sense of power and energy in this wine. Everyone was in the Rhône but most were in the North; from Saint Joseph to Cornas, citing that they believed this was Syrah. However, two in the group called Châteauneuf du Pape and one actually called producer (!!) but missed on vintage (2016). Universally, the wine was fawned over and the dude who called Pagaü thought he actually favored the 2019 over the 2016 he had a while back. While I’m not sure I would go that far, the 2019 is truly quite stunning already and seems to have the guts to see a very long and wonderful life ahead. These are currently enjoying their customary early drinking window however, that window will likely close within a year or so and then I could see this shutting down pretty hard until 2025 — 4 years ago

Philip Deibel

9.3

Home alone for 24 hrs! The perfect time to open something older. Fully mature Bordeaux... I mean Napa! Dried fruit and tobacco, there is still a frame of tannins but they are well integrated and slightly chalky in texture. Enjoyable but more mature than I prefer. — 6 years ago

Brett Rogosin

9.0

Beautiful even color. Nose of ripe red plum, plum skin, leather, wet cinnamon bark, wood bark and some vanilla. Stay ok some grippy tannins with acidity that hits the tip of the tongue and slowly expands around the outside of the mouth. Palate transfers through with some dark chocolate and blackberry. This can use time, but is quite tasty right now. — 6 years ago

Keith Fisher

9.4

This vintage is showing better as time passes. Could this end up aging better than 2002 which was more highly acclaimed? I liked this a little better than the last 2002 that I had. — 8 years ago

Bill Bender

9.3

After a spirited tussle between myself and the Durand vs a dry and crumbly cork I was able to double decant this and segregate away the remnants of floating debris. I was immediately struck by the bouquet which was unmistakably borne from Cabernet Franc (and I believe this blend is less than 10%). It was a positive sign. The wine is completely intact and boasts ample fruit albeit waning acidity. Simple Concord grape, bruised black plum and sweet oak flavors are holding on 2 hours in. This has some time left, but not much. This is a testament to Opus One quality in the early days (I believe this was the 3rd or 4th vintage) and while I think the ‘87-‘97 era was their best, this is an profound example of an exemplary wine at age 37! — 8 years ago

"Odedi"

9.7

Time to celebrate. Here's a wonderful wine for the occasion.

Deep inky in color with no rim whatsoever.

Beautiful nose of vanilla, soaked cherries, blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, figs, oak, leather, smoke, spices, wildflowers, candy corn and white pepper.

Full-bodied and bold, with a great mouthfeel, smooth and elegant, with medium acidity and great looking legs.

Fruity and dry on the palate, with blackberries, blueberries, figs, raisins, red licorice, tobacco, smoke, beef jerky, cloves, spices, earth and peppercorn.

Long finish with firm, yet smooth, tannins and cherries.

This is a wonderful Cabernet Sauvignon from the house of the Wagner family. Very enjoyable by itself as a sipping wine, on the porch, or with a big piece of steak.

Smooth and elegant with a great mouthfeel. Chewy and jammy, balanced and approachable. Will drink nicely in the next decade or more. Great wine, great vintage.

Needed two hours in a decanter to open up properly.

14.9% alcohol by volume. — 9 years ago

Winemoments

9.0

First time tasting #chateaudebeaucastel. Elegantly perfumed, balanced and almost totally integrated structure with retreating blackpepper notes. I believe the wine is ready to drink. Enjoyed quite much in new year's eve dinner. Looking forward to taste the more acclaimed 2009. — 11 years ago

Justin Ennis

10

I have never had a bad bottle of this vintage!Every time I have this vintage of Insignia it is amazing. — 11 years ago