Mark Flesher

9.3

Nice, aged Cabernet. Debated opening this one. This started more on the plum and raisin side and a little muted. 15 minutes later? Fig and mushroom with basil and oregano, but not a whole lot of fruit. 30 minutes after that? Dirty black cherry, plums, seemed to find itself after a 31 year sleep. Rather substantial weight in the middle. Finishes with a gritty note. Tannins are definitely dropping here and this one is showing all it has. Good time to drink now! — 7 years ago

with Dan, Shay and 1 other

Stuart Pollack

9.3

Smells of Summer. Nose is fresh fruit, peach and white fruit. Flavor starts with vanilla and white fruit, and finishes with lemon. — 8 years ago

Anthony Lombardi

9.5

Youthful Grenache wild berries & a sultry smoky aromatic note balance the grippy tannins & concentrated darker fruit which emerge on the back of the palate. This feels like it will cellar beautifully and drinks classically. — 9 years ago

Conrad Green

9.2

Lovely focused dark fruit. Sharp and clear. A touch of wild. Long and juicy — 9 years ago

with Lindsay and Major-General

Laurel Lynn

9.8

So red it's almost purple. Clear, crystal halo. Strong legs. stone fruit, green pepper & nutmeg on the nose. SMOOTH!!!!! First taste, full mouth feel, and did I mention smooth! Having it with surf & turf, 2013. Can easily handle a few more years. — 9 years ago

Gabe Sasso

9.3

A.Rafanelli has been hitting it out of the park for decades. Their 2012 Cabernet is no exception. It's a bit reticent at first, but just a few minutes of air make all the difference. Wild strawberry, red cherry and wisps of vanilla are present on the nose. The palate is marked by impeccable balance and purity of fruit along with a significant spice component. The long, even finish show off continued red fruits and spice along with black tea and bits of earth that will increase with bottle age. There are a handful of producers in Dry Creek Valley that routinely nail Cabernet Sauvignon cold. Rafanelli is among their number. — 10 years ago

Tim Herrmann

9.4

This was one of those wines that you could drink like punch or ponder like old Bordeaux--each time I took a sip it seemed to change! No mistake, this is a savory wine with barnyard and wild herbs and chalk going on. Even though it was aromatic and open from the start, the flavors developed more complexity over a couple of hours and revealed some nice raspberry fruit. I've always liked Nero d'avola--I'd love to stash some of this away and watch what happens. — 10 years ago

Zachary Price

8.9

Picked up at Total Wine. Produced and bottled Lompac, CA. Snagged this one on a lark, cuz I dig Santa Rita Hill Pinots. Good wine but drink it now! | ~$35 | #sanford #pinotnoir

On the eyes:
Deep, Bright Ruby with Pink Rim. Med/Med+ legs, stained. No Gas/Floc.

On the nose:
Moderate, slightly Vinous Red Fruit. Jammy and Herbal notes, yielding to Mineralty. Med/Med+ alcohol. New French Oak.

On the tongue:
Sweet, Med+ Tannin, Med+ Acid, Med Alcohol, Full body. Raspberry-Cherry jam, touch of tartness. Floral, mushroom character. Good balance, Moderate Complexity. — 11 years ago

Gordon Walker

9.2

Kinda green for a zin, lots of fruit, pepper, pretty awesome for the price point — 12 years ago

Douglas Braun

9.0

This is a 2013 Mondeuse lotta fun funkiness coming out wild fruit and spice — 7 years ago

Greg Koslosky

9.7

Elegant vineyard driven with excellent minerality, red and blue fruit wild flowers complex and long really opened up with aeration superb! — 8 years ago

Kevin Cahoon

9.1

From magnum, this was a bit muted and restrained with a shy nose of red cherry, blackberry, allspice and mint notes. Lively entry with Sangiovese’s austere tannins. Red cherry, cranberry and cassis fruit in the mouth. Lacked the density I expected. Paired really well with the wild boar ragu and pappardelle. — 8 years ago

Kristin Marcou

10

Black cherry, wild berry fruit, and notes of chocolate and oak. Rich texture lingers long with a bright, fresh finish — 9 years ago

Michael Malpiedi

9.1

Big red fruit in a soft delicate wrapper. Understated oak and hints of smoky cedar. Balance and delight! — 9 years ago

James P Grover

9.3

Tropical fruit and melon, balanced by just the right amount of oak and almost-soft acidity. A complex wine that works well with foods on the more robust end of the white wine spectrum. — 9 years ago

Devon Broglie

9.5

Bright fruit. More fresh than expected. Great, exciting find for the $. — 10 years ago

Steve Haro

9.2

The initial smoked meat nose transitions smoothly into forward flavors that include roasted mushroom and wild game with flinty earth and blackberry compote nuances taking over the back palette. The finish still has a lot of fruit left with well rounded tannins that linger. Fantastic for 15 years!! — 10 years ago

David L

9.4

86' Bottle fill & cork where perfect. Harder to find with a Bordeaux that old. Medium body wine. Tannins, acidity, fruit or so unbelievable . Plush & elegant. It wasn't very complexed or long. Many years left in it's prime. Another crowd pleasing wine. — 10 years ago

Neil Cornish

9.0

Crazy as always. White pepper screaming through. Big red juicy fruit. Wild fruit. Brambley. — 11 years ago

Rob Lateiner

10

Chocolate, a little green bell pepper twang that reminds me of VA but It definitely is not. Some heat though the wine is definitely too warm. Lighter bodied, less textural refinement compared to the 08 which is silk but everything could change with air. The wine was just popped and put on ice. Showing much better cooler but still needs lots of air. Unless the fantastic 2008 is still to shut down, this shows tremendous longevity. Fully ripe, fully loaded tannins, this is the most structured Vintage of Clos Rougeard I have tasted yet. Wine gets too cold and the oak becomes more prominent. Gets to the ideal temp and the oak comes across nicely and balanced, if not significantly so. Seems like a classic mid/mid-plus toast. Not the char of vosne nor the low coconutty temps of chambolle. The importance of oak matching fruit can hardly be overstated and is perfectly executed here. Could even be perceived as a touch heavy for some purists but that would be too nitpicky for me. Almost a gamey side to the great oak that plays in here, it's like the nuttyness and the char of the oak that seems to contribute this. Comes across more Vosne like when temp is cooler. Reminds a bit of Grivot actually. Black currant fruit here to the slightly lighter shades in the 08. Some black cherry in a more intense way than burgundy. Unfortunately no decanter but as the wine opens up after an hour and a half, the fruit comes out a whole lot more. The initial green, lighter body is gone and the profile is dark fruit with a little touch of ash momentarily evolving into incredible deep cigar tobacco with gorgeous blackberry notes. Not decanting this wine for an hour was probably one of the bigger mistakes I have made in wine consumption. This blackberry and cigar is the true nature of the wine as it has filled out. Always a humbling experience to see a wine change so incredibly like this. Unbelievable and beautiful. Texture will get there I imagine but isn't wildly seductive yet like the '08. The last sip is some incredible wild maine blueberry syrup/all those wild dark berries from around New Foundland, with a wild savory quality. Not at all sweet in an excessive way, just in the purest flavors of perfectly ripe and highly concentrated fruit. Probably the most dynamic shift in a wine I have seen other than Barolo. One of the better wines I've had though tannin and texture suppleness is not there yet. Jesus. — 11 years ago

Swii Yii Lim

9.2

Quite mentholated, with wild thyme, Sicilian oregano, and winter savoury over the earthy fruit. Coming out of the sulky teenager phase, but needs another 5 years to fully open up. Evolving well from what it was upon release. — 7 years ago

M Gandalf

9.0

Very nice cab, good fruit flavor. Has some good complexity, and a fairly decent finish. Good value at $25-$30 if you can find it. For my taste though, it is a bit on the raisin side, with a touch of smokeyness in the finish. — 8 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

Nearly 12 years later and I'm smiling with near laughter as to how good the 05 is tonight vs. the price I paid for this in 07/08. I think around $28. The wine is singing. The nose is macerated sour dark and mid red fruit with dry dark perfumed florals. The fruits on the palate are; dark cherries, cherries, ripe blackberries, black raspberries, huckleberries, pouched strawberries, ripe/juicy spiced black plum and are ridiculously elegant & beautiful. Followed by; soft spice-box, caramel, vanilla, black cherry cola, sweetened black tea, rich, semi-sweet black earth w/wet crushed rocks, brambly, relaxed volcanic minerals, a puff of smokiness, suede soft leather, violets & wild dark florals. The balance is perfect as is the length. The structure and tannins are perfectly resolved and the acidity pours over the palate. The finish is elegant and delicate. It's right around it's peak. Such a steal when you hold a well made $28 wine and nearly 12 years later it's better than a $75-$100 bought today and enjoyed within its first 5 years. The take away is you don't always need to spend $100 plus on a bottle of wine for it to be good. You just need to exercise some patience. 👍 — 9 years ago

Meredith Cornell

9.0

Fruit bomb in a good way — 9 years ago

Justin Martin

9.0

A very alluring mix of wintery wood smoke, slight Bourbon vanilla and fallen oak leaves crushed underfoot frames restrained notes of red fruit. — 10 years ago

Alejandro Castillo

8.9

Dried tamarind preserved red fruit medium body find tannins good length on the back end still holding up pretty well for a fruit driven 1997 — 10 years ago

Kapyrick Wine

9.5

V11. Beautiful! Earthy bouquet. Juicy dark cherry and black pepper fruit. Slightly spicy finish . Nice food wine. — 10 years ago

David Blutenthal

9.2

Great structure, strong tannins with bright light fruit. Had with lamb chops and wild mushroom ravioli with Marsala creme sauce and it was a perfect — 11 years ago

Greg Stobbe

9.2

This is a beauty already. Rich dark fruit, earthiness, and blackberry fill the senses. Lingering notes of leather, spice, black cherry. This is the new "E ticket" on Howell Mountain. But if you can find! — 11 years ago

Andrew Lampasone

Owner Wine Watch Selections

9.3

This is from the northern part of Beaujolais whose reputation has been harmed by the nouveau crap that is half made wine. The crus of this part of burgundy are making some of the best values in France. Kermit has also helped put beajolaise on the map with his group of 4. Moulin a vent one of the longest lived of all the crus along with Morgon. A nice peppery spice to the wild strawberry jam like fruit a bit of barnyard like quality and some green notes but very balanced. Very rich and layered on the palate very well built with wonderful concentration of red and black berry fruit excellent — 12 years ago