First Drop Wines

Château Cos d'Estournel

Saint-Estèphe Red Bordeaux Blend 2016

Pretty deep ruby , thin ruby rim . This is quite closed at first , but very focused mineral and grafite , oyster shell notes with dark blackcurrant and blackberry notes , spicy touches too . On the palate this is really focused and reserved , lots of mineral tinged black fruits , tobacco , oyster shell . Quite rich yet very good balance, fresh acidity . Ripe but gritty tannins , saline and really long finish . Accessible now , but really destined for the long term. Wait another 5-10 years , will drink well a further 20 . At Vinous Icons, Pier 60 NY, Feb 2025 — 9 months ago

Dave, Tom and 12 others liked this

Château Lynch-Bages

Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2015

Hmm. 🤔 wasn’t able to connect with this, expectingly great wine. Actually first direct out of the bottle it was promising. Strong oak notes with vibrant dark red fruit underneath it. But over the next hour, the oak flavors started to be integrated more but the acidity became very prominent and made the wine rather single note, diluted, lacking depth, acidic tasting. So needless to say. Disappointing experience. Maybe it was not the right day 🤔. — 2 years ago

Tammy de Weerd
with Tammy
Ted, Ira and 6 others liked this
Andrew McIntyre

Andrew McIntyre

Having this tonight...hope I have a better experience!

Benton-Lane

First Class Willamette Valley Pinot Noir

Deliciously decadent, yet balanced Pinot that held up nicely with a Porterhouse steak! Ample plum, black cherry and sweet earthy notes with velvety-smooth tannins — 5 years ago

Paul liked this

Georges Dubœuf

First Wine of the Harvest Beaujolais Nouveau Gamay 2020

Red berries on nose. Strawberry, blackberry, plum and leather with bright acidity and assertive tannins. Too tannic on its own, but excellent with Thanksgiving dinner — 5 years ago

Spottswoode

Family Estate Grown St. Helena Cabernet Sauvignon 1997

B
10

1997 Spottswoode Cabernet. Opened and poured. Served with burgers and homemade fries. A little flat with a sharp finish at first. Not sure if it might have been stored incorrectly. However, it opened up as we ate and all that unpleasantness blew off. Blackberries, blueberries, cassis, vanilla, leather, spices. Should have decanted before serving. — 6 years ago

Dominus Estate

Dominus Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2015

Tasting the new 2015 today, while very brooding and quiet at first pour, you can see the huge potential. I am a big fan of Dominus with age and given the makings of this 2015, I can see this joining the ranks of some of the greatest vintages of Dominus...in time, lots and lots of time. — 8 years ago

Ron liked this
James Forsyth

James Forsyth Influencer Badge

can't wait to try my bottle of this!

Domaine Jamet

Côte-Rôtie Syrah 2014

my first! superb! little young but has it all.. very unique nose of stewed berries, smoke, anchovies and spice... medium bodied and great mouth feel... not sure how to to describe it... long finish on a sweet smoky note! fantastic and it was our wine of the night!! — 9 years ago

Daniel, Keith and 10 others liked this

Gros Ventre Cellars

First Born Pinot Noir 2013

Magnum...love it! — 10 years ago

Rachel Caggiano
with Rachel
Rachel liked this

R. López de Heredia

Viña Tondonia Reserva Rioja Tempranillo Blend 2002

Crazy good paired with dipping into gamba al ajillo (emphasis added), at Napa's groovy/real Zuzu, catching a classic deeply dirty nose while still sporting sun-drenched fruit that initially reworks one's first blush front mouth with an iodine edge that morfs into red and black fruit edgy with acid/tannin slow dancing to the depths and begging for another pinch of broth soaked chewy freshly baked bread and the associated next swig of this sweet juice...rhythmically stellar by day or by night😎🌌👣🍷🌀🎼

PS hit Zuzu (friendly, delicious and real...

— 11 years ago

Joseph Phelps Vineyards

Insignia Estate Grown Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2011

First Napa wine to be given a name back in 1974 and the very first Bordeaux blend. — 11 years ago

Joseph liked this

First Press

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2010

Great wine with pork or chicken — 13 years ago

Silver Oak

Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

Buttery on the nose. Very light at first and complex and dry finish — 9 months ago

Taittinger

Comtes de Champagne Grand Crus Brut Blanc de Blancs 2013

First time with Taittinger. Crisp with overall lighter mouthfeel. Taste notes include flesh of white fruit. Maybe would be better with some age on it. — a year ago

Meghana Kaloji
with Meghana
Jan, Ira and 5 others liked this

Château Musar

Bekaa Valley Red Blend 2000

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. — 4 years ago

Anthony, Scott@Mister and 11 others liked this
Severn G

Severn G Influencer Badge Premium Badge

You bet, ultimate contemplative wine, any vintage, but older is better.
Ely Cohn

Ely Cohn Premium Badge

Totally agree. Just opened 2017. Wonderful but so much structure. So much time to smooth out

Marchesi Antinori

Tignanello Toscana Super Tuscan Blend 1981

🏅 Rating 93+/100 (4,35⭐)

Tasted from magnum.

Ruby color with tawny hue showing the age. First nose has a slight touch of iron. Fruit is ripe and sweet. Vegetable scent of tomato stems suggesting presence of Cabernet Sauvignon. Sandy tannins of Sangiovese. Amazing how bottle aging makes the wine so smooth and satin.

Mostly tertiary aromas, but very well holding the age and could last for at least 5 more years without any signs of decline

Elegant expression of famous Tignanello.

1981 was outshadowed by great 1982. It was 10th anniversary vintage and is considered a very fine one.

Key oenological data:
Average sugar content of grapes at harvest 21.00%
Average total acidity of the grapes 7.80%
Alcohol content after fermentation 13.00
Average fermentation temperature 28C
Length of fermentation 13 days
Acidity of wine after malo 5.90
Ageing in 225 litre barrels 20 months
Bottle ageing in our cellars 18 months

======
I have published the article with a story of Tignanello, the emblematic SuperTuscan wine from Antinori.

\- What were the key factors of its success?
\- What makes this wine stand out from many other wines form Tuscany?

Best enjoyed with a glass of Tignanello.

Read the full article at www.stasmedvedev.lv/wine

---
Instagram: @wine_talks_club
— 5 years ago

Severn and Ira liked this

Caymus Vineyards

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2014

When this wine was first opened it had fresh picked mint on the nose. The wine was tight on the palate. After letting it breathe the wine opened beautifully with a chalky mouth feel. Excellently balances fruit throughout. — 8 years ago

First Drop Wines

Mother's Ruin Cabernet Sauvignon 2015

Lättfotat och förföriskt vätskgodis. Omogna hallon. Småpartierna på systemet. — 8 years ago

Stag's Leap Wine Cellars

Artemis Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2012

Mike R
9.0

Road wine so ease off me please and I usually enjoy stag leap but last night so so

First off o smiled but because I drank entire bottle

Color was fine smell was aromatic but from there the other things were off

Taste was not what I expected as was too much heat and alcohol and finish was weak

Sadly I have a few and will be handing off as gifts to people I really don't know when needed - sorry to al future gift receivers
— 9 years ago

Mike, Jonathan and 38 others liked this
Weijie Shi (Jay)

Weijie Shi (Jay) Influencer Badge

Agree. Got some heat attack as well last time I tried it.

Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin

Yellow Label Brut Champagne Blend

Look what we found in our cellar and cupboards before we left. Veuve (not Grande Dame) in plastic flutes (not crystal), caviar (not Beluga), and a huge hunk of smoked salmon (not King). We're on a tight budget, but we're celebrating our RTW departure with the view of Vancouver in the background. This is the first bit of time to relax that we've had in a month and we're still trying to do it with a little style. — 10 years ago

Brian, Hermes and 7 others liked this
Dan Fredman

Dan Fredman Influencer Badge

Context is everything..

Château Mouton Rothschild

Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 1981

Um yeah... #BOOM status granted for this at the #yulwinethrowdown . 81 not the best of vintages and wines are reportedly past peak but this first growth was not. Very interesting flavour profile, certainly secondary characteristics but structurally still pretty sound. I was glad to find it still alive and in my opinion had many more years left before the big decline. Awesome privilege to have tasted. — 11 years ago

The Prisoner Wine Company

The Prisoner Napa Valley Zinfandel Blend

Needs to breathe a bit at first, but drinks well. Tastes more expensive than it is. Good red! — 13 years ago

Heitz Cellar

Martha's Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon 1991

Shay A
9.4

Anytime an older Heitz Martha’s is open, it’s a treat. I’ve tried to acquire a few random bottles over the years and they have consistently impressed (‘78 and ‘01, specifically). My first early ‘90s vintage.

Quick double decant to simply get the wine off sediment as it wouldn’t be consumed from a decanter at the location I would be at.

In my experience, the distinct and typical eucalyptus notes jump right at pop, but this bottle was a little subdued early on. After an hour with the cork out, the eucalyptus, herbs, cedar and red fruit made their entrance. Compared to the ‘91 Hartwell I opened a few months ago, this was more elegant and less dense on the mid-palate. If not for the eucalyptus, I could see this being called left bank Bordeaux with 30yrs on it. Gained some darker red/underripe black fruit notes the longer it was open. Beautiful length at the finish. Bright acidity and tannin. Not getting better, but a wonderful drinking window to enjoy now.
— 10 months ago

Paul, Paul and 28 others liked this
Ron R

Ron R Influencer Badge Premium Badge

Nice notes, @Shay A
Dawn E.

Dawn E.

@Shay A Wow nice!
Doug Powers

Doug Powers

Outstanding pull, great vintage to boot!!

Beaulieu Vineyard

Private Reserve Georges de Latour Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

1984, surprisingly tanic, acidic, and Heavy dried fruit, prunes and dried figs. over oxidized tasting at first but interesting. From producer to cellar at breakers in palm beach. Small leak out the bottle on one side of the cork. Over time it settles and the dried fruit subsides and then the lighter acidic flavors of fresh berries comes forward. — 4 years ago

Jean Foillard

Côte du Py Morgon Gamay 2011

This bottle was a lovely gift from our friend Tim who visited Omaha this past Spring. Our only instructions were to enjoy it together with food; challenge accepted! While I have experienced many wines produced by Foillard, this was my first with his “Cote du Py”. The wine pours a deep ruby color; slightly hazy in the glass. On the nose, at least initially, there are signs of some Brett giving a barnyard characteristic but that sort of blows off (or at least becomes less obvious) with cherries, earth, blackened poblano, underripe plum, and purple Sweet Tarts taking a more central role. On the palate, it’s mostly dark cherry and blackberries showing very little in the way of evolution. Medium+ acid, medium- tannin. The finish was super long. I was really impressed how young this wine was coming across; hardly an indication of anything that would indicate ten years of age. Yet more proof that Beaujolais can cellar quite gracefully. We loved how this paired with grilled rack of lamb and a light salad with tomatoes, cucumbers, garbanzo beans, mozzarella and prosciutto. Grazie Tim! — 5 years ago

Andrew, Daniel and 16 others liked this
Daniel M

Daniel M

A favorite!
Daniel M

Daniel M

A favorite!

Dunn Vineyards

Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 1993

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

Matt liked this

Screaming Eagle

Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon 2015

Delectable Wine
9.8

The 2015 Screaming Eagle is fabulous. Rich and ample on the palate, with soaring aromatics from the Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2015 is a drop-dead gorgeous beauty. Ripe red plum, pomegranate, mint, kirsch, lavender and sweet spice notes are beautifully delineated in the glass. In this tasting, the Cabernet-based Screaming Eagle is quite a bit more open and accessible than the Merlot-based The Flight. Even so, it will be years before the 2015 Screaming Eagle is ready to drink. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, March 2018) — 8 years ago

Spencer, Maria and 3 others liked this

Château Léoville Barton

Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 2006

Drank this over the course of 6 days using Coravin...still too young, but the wine really opened up by the last day. Smells and tastes like a Grand Bordeaux St. Julien wine as it should. I used to this wine to test the Coravin. It is clear that oxidation starts right after the first pour. — 10 years ago

Marcel Lapierre

Morgon Gamay 2013

Great subtle gamay. I've always loved this wine (produced organically with no added yeast). I first tried this wine around 1992. Loved it then (bought a case) and it's still great today. This family knows what's it's doing with this wine. — 10 years ago

La Rioja Alta

Reserva Viña Ardanza Rioja Tempranillo Garnacha

This 2005 is a very classic Rioja great to drink it now. In the mouth a fruit explosion and lots off 'drop' — 11 years ago

Louis Roederer

Cristal Brut Champagne 2006

First try, so delicious — 12 years ago