Jakub Kalinowski

9.0

Classic & savoury with black cherries, sundried tomato & tomato leaf, some earthy undertones and a herby uplifting freshness. Nicely structured with fine, juicy tannins and a refreshing acidity, the fruit playing second fiddle though with nice purity. Carries the 14%alc effortlessly. This is a very nice Nobile
w/o any unnecessary makeup. And entering the drinking window right now. — 7 years ago

Bob McDonald

8.9

100% Frappato from Vittoria. A light savoury delicious lunchtime red. I realise these tasting notes have a sameness about the but cherry earth and light spice is what many of them are about. Often the Wine plays second fiddle and is just an accompaniment to the food in Sicily and many parts of Italy. Interesting that this Frappato is 7 years old. — 9 years ago

Doug Powers

9.2

Very pretty floral aromatics, floral and red fruit flavors, nicely balanced, good acidity, medium-long finish, very nice rose!! — 9 years ago

Aaron Tan

9.1

Rich and mature. Hmmm. Makes me second guess the sponti talk on Mosel rieslings - I reckon it's probably to do with SO2. Quite a bit younger than the german rieslings in our little study the other day, but so much more advanced. Or maybe it's the sugar that helps with longevity in the german stuff.

Waxy, honeyed, floral, petrol notes, with the green apple and pear fruit playing second fiddle. Hint of aldehydes. Mineral and weighty. It was delicious! — 9 years ago

admiral von schnauzer

9.1

Ooooo. Never ever dissapoints. I sometimes think haut-brion gets a bad rap playing second fiddle to the likes of latour, Margaux, or rothschild. But seriously ive always found it quite consistent. Powerful and at this point drinking rather fabulously — 10 years ago

Dean Lapthorne

9.4

2010 purchased direct from Bea in 2013. In Montefalco. Unreal, 2010 super fit as a fiddle. Dark, deep sweet apricots on the nose trick you into thinking this is going to be high in risdual sugar! Think again, it's magnifico! 24 days skin contact!!!! Thanks Mr Bea! — 10 years ago

Shane M. Nicholson

9.4

Fiddle me this Batman.......Kathy Joseph and her eponymous Santa Rta Hills sweet spot flexing all kinda muscle. Layers of fuzzy grippy damson plum, blistered black cherry, RC Cola, candlewood, sandelwood, falsetto acidiTIE , brown spice and then a symphony of chewy woodsy funk meets anise meets clove meets youthful unripe boysenberry.....and they all had a love child. Your welcome!! — 11 years ago

Joshua Corea

9.2

Maybe the 2nd mountain but not 2nd fiddle, kiss the frog and (s)he'll turn into a prince(ss) (whatever you want). A lovely example of VA lifted Jove's blood. Chewing leather soaked in red berry juice and cured in tobacco leaves. — 11 years ago

Colin McCartney

9.0

Faint lemon peel on the nose. Steely, mineral driven palate with tart grapefruit playing second fiddle...acidity in spades. — 12 years ago

Jonathan Lipsmeyer

9.1

Tastes like baby Vosne Romanée to me! So much asphalt aroma and earth I imagine it's a baby Reignots--perhaps young replanted vines? Dark fruit is here but it plays second fiddle to the massive earthy elements. Heat sticks out on the midpalate a touch, but doesn't prevent this from being a monstrous red with an accumulative aroma that brings vinyl to mind. Curious to see where a short term aging curve would take this. Sebastien gleefully acknowledges this is his finest Bourgogne ever. Even with its flaws, Bourgogne should not be able to achieve these aromatic heights! — 12 years ago

Diane Withrow

9.2

White peach pit on the nose round and fuzzy mouth feel. Plum. Skin. A hint of grapefruit peel delightful with hearth baked pizza- meatballs, sausage, grilled eggplant is the earthy counterpoint to this summery sonnet. A toast to flowers and a sun warmed meadow. This is a clarinet or possibly a harpsichord but not a fiddle or a flute. — 7 years ago

Jeremy Pollard

9.2

A small taste of this one at a South African wine bar in NYC...it’s like settling into an old, rich, leather couch. And then leafing through and well worn leather bound tome. So soft and seductive. It’s all secondaries - and so rich! - but there’s not a sharp edge to be found. The palate plays second fiddle, a gentle minuet after the aromatic sonata. Hard to rate because it feels incomplete once tasted, but the nose alone is enough to incite wistful thoughts. — 8 years ago

Nicole N

9.1

Cambria's "Seeds of Empowerment". Dusty nose with baking spices. Great structure and balance, med. high acidity. Earthy with fruit present but playing second fiddle. Light pepper on the back end. Long finish. — 9 years ago

Gerard McDade

9.6

Initially rather acidic on first opening, but develops slowly during the evening. Day 2 the acidity plays second fiddle to the warm aromatic bouquet and rich full bodied taste: oaky vanilla, and Mellon overtures. This is reminiscent of a mature Viognier. — 10 years ago

Scott Taddeo

9.0

A tip of the hat the Southern Rhone. A touch of lifted florals to begin with some dark cherry, dried fruits, slight mescal undertones with some smart oak work playing second fiddle to the fruit. — 10 years ago

Nikki Erpelding

9.1

Best expression of the grape I have tried, tasted it along side Cade Sauvignon Blanc and Frank Family Chardonnay, although very different varietals, the Fiano sang like a fiddle, beautiful and simple. — 10 years ago

Jusden Aumand

8.9

Dark brooding color and nose for Pinot. Bigger, extracted wine with chewy black fruits.
Fair amount of structure but playing second fiddle to the dominent fruit. Done well for the style.

Santa Lucia Highlands — 11 years ago

Jusden Aumand

9.4

1995 vintage. Disgorged in 2000. Long term stored at chateau. Fruit is playing second fiddle to toasty notes, and roasted almonds. Almost a touch maderized in flavor in a very positive way. Golden color with very controlled bead. — 11 years ago

Dick Schinkel

9.6

The Sei Solo wines by Javier Zaccagnini-the founder of Aalto comes with the 2011 version for the first time on the market. Javier begins with this new project in 2007. The Sei Solo only wines with grapes from Tinto Fino (Tempranillo) with vines which between 60 and 90 years old. The old vineyard, just ' tino fino ' is located in the small village of La Horra, heart of the famous Ribera del Duero region. La Horra is known for its wealth of unique ancient vineyards, also bv. Pingus, the exclusive cult wine by Peter Sisseck comes to it. Javier makes there already for some years, but they only wanted to release top wine under its private label ' Sei Solo ' once the wines meet its high demands. The past few years, the little fruit sold to Aalto and was integral in the topcuvée ' PS ', as Javier was still not satisfied. The time has finally come! 2011 is the first official release of Sei Solo with a ' second wine ' called Preludio. Javier Zaccagnini is next to a large wine lover also hooked on classical music. His absolute favorite is Johan Sebastian Bach. As a tribute, he gives this exclusive wine the name ' Solo Sei ', to the exceptional work of J.S. Bach. SEI Solo is a set of six fiddle work. It consists of three sonatas and three Partitas. The label of Sei Solo is in the handwriting of his master j. S Bach. By Sei Solo were there in 2011, only 1000 bottles made of the Preludio 4000 bottles. — 11 years ago

Sean McKay

9.0

Villa Barbi Orvieto Classico 2012

Well balanced acidity and minerality. Crisp but plays second fiddle to food; not overbearing. Light on fruit.
— 12 years ago

Shengli Hu

8.9

Mint, dried tea leaves, peppercorn, little/no oak, and fruits playing the second fiddle here: red plum, juicy red and black cherry. A whiff of VA and smoke.. Moderate plus acidity, tight tannins, and relatively fuller bodied (13%, for Pinot).. — 8 years ago

James Gourley

9.2

Not nearly the syrupy fruit bomb you might expect from a zin. The fruit played second fiddle to a delightful earthy component, all delivered in a super smooth package. I thought it would pair well with a steak, but it ended up being better as a sipping wine after dinner. — 8 years ago

Jason and Jennie

9.3

Big tannin structure/oak component with the fruit kind of playing second fiddle. Actually gave it a higher score last Christmas (maybe more fruit?). Def a cab style merlot. Already developing secondary characteristics. Herbal notes. Somewhere between the 89 spectator score and 96 wine enthusiast score.

Next day: actually improved. Fruit showing more. — 9 years ago

Ira Schwartz

9.1

You are greeted by scents of cranberry and earth. They appear in the mouth but play second fiddle to a strong mineral and spice component. — 10 years ago

Jenny Hanniver

9.0

Toasting the fall of the republic with this nice, spritely Malbec. Might as well fiddle while Rome burns, mm? L'chaim. Wish us all luck. — 10 years ago

Justin Anthony

10

i can't even comment. 2009. cherry is present strong still. earth is subtly playing 3rd fiddle. love this — 10 years ago

with Tim

Matthew Steilen

9.0

Unfortunately my student bought me only one can. — 11 years ago

Bailey Howard

9.6

Classicly herbal cab nose with the promise of a typically American lush body. Beautifully composed on the palate with strong rosemary, thyme, and chocolate while the black cherry truly plays second fiddle. Simply superb — 11 years ago

Carl Steefel

9.5

Class, class, class here. After 20 minutes, I realized this had some substantial tannins, but these are playing second fiddle to the dark aristocratic fruit. Very assertive and powerful mid-palate attack that transforms to inner mouth perfume. This will be even better, which is saying a lot. — 11 years ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.2

Cabernet done better in SA is hard to find, PH brings it with black cherry, spice and silky-ripe tannic driven prowess. The Cabernet from what I notice plays second fiddle to the Malbec with tasters, but in many vintages the Cab shows more consistently.
— 12 years ago