Golden Hour

Château Pichon-Longueville Baron

Baron de Pichon-Longueville Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 2000

Two hour decant this 2000 Pichon Baron is exceptional! Very smooth glycerin like coating covering black and red cherries, leather, tobacco, olives and smoke simply outstanding. The finish could be a bit better though — 4 months ago

Ira, "Odedi" and 9 others liked this

Château Haut-Brion

Pessac-Léognan Red Bordeaux Blend 2007

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 . — 5 months ago

Anthony, Andrew and 6 others liked this

Château Léoville Barton

Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 1990

1990 vintage. Excellent fill and halfway saturated cork. Used a Durand but surmise a regular waiter's friend, wielded carefully, could have done the trick with the cork. Decanted and tasted after 30 mins, one hour and two hours. Some obvious sed but not troublesome or overtly noticeable. Original owner-château direct on original release. Super cold cellar because this was lagging noticeably behind other '90's and LB's. Bigger tannic structure (for a generally feminine-styled house) than anything save a Latour, Mouton, Ducru Left Bank property. Even more guts than Lynch-Bages or Pichon-Baron '90's currently stored above 55 or so degrees. Surprising but made sense. Light-medium body. Appropriate color. 3-4 years left in this stage unless larger format in play. Slight, fleeting burst of richness in the frontal palate and a tad brickish and then it just flowed on, without speed bumps. A little cocoa powder and cedar/tobacco. Suspect 750ml specimens not stored as cold/religiously will be showing more in the 9.0-9.1 range and farther down the backside of the bell curve. 10.26.24. — 9 months ago

Ira, Jan and 17 others liked this
Ron R

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Good notes, mate.
Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

@Ron R Hey there! It's been a spell.

Wayfarer

Golden Mean Fort Ross - Seaview Sonoma County Pinot Noir 2015

Really incredible wine. Not paired with any food, the wine is flavorful, quenching w/ oak flavor adding the right dryness and notes of plum & vanilla to finish - really well balanced and opened well. Bottled was empty far too quickly : ) — 4 years ago

Emily Kannan
with Emily

Bonneau du Martray

Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru Chardonnay 2005

Epic wine. Great showing of white sesame seeds, tropical fruits and toasted wood. Good acidity. Need decanting for at least 1 hour. Still very young. — 6 years ago

Hermes, P and 9 others liked this
David L

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Great bottle

Silver Oak

Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1999

I truly am not a silver oak Fan but their old stuff has some Kung pow to it. It actually evolved after being opened in the glass for an hour. I prefer it to a new vintage hands down, no questions asked. This actually surprised me and is definitely the WOTN between these two. Truly, truly surprised me. Can’t go wrong for this price point! I found this one for sale for 80 bucks. Winner, winner chicken dinner in my book! — 7 years ago

Martin, Shay and 19 others liked this
Joe Lucca

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Awesome. Totally agree @Martin G Rivard the old stuff was blue chip. Lost their way over time. 1999 is my favorite 90s vintage. Still have a bunch in the cellar.
Matt Duncan

Matt Duncan Influencer Badge

Come see the new Alexander Valley winery @Martin G Rivard @Joe Lucca Our best wines are ahead of us!

Witching Hour

Reserve California Deep Red Blend 2014

Lori K
9.4

Great dark fruit with pepper. Nice blend. Low acid, great overall dark red. — 8 years ago

Marchesi Antinori

Tignanello Toscana Super Tuscan Blend 2005

Off vintage but who cares? Tignanello is a personal favorite. Took a good hour to open up, this wine tastes surprisingly young. cherry, earthiness some mineral and a little smoke flavor as well. Very good — 8 years ago

Shay, Adam and 1 other liked this

Dunn Vineyards

Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 1992

After 1 hour harsh and rough, but after 2 - 3 hours it came around brilliantly. Complex, balanced, silky texture. A special wine. — 9 years ago

Ira, David and 1 other liked this

Joseph Phelps Vineyards

Insignia Estate Grown Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2007

1 hour decant(lots chunky/fine sediment). A gorgeous inky purplish garnet color. On the nose: dark fruit, forest floor, smoked meat, floral, cigar wrapper, pencil lead. Taste: smooth, rich, creamy mouthcoating wine with blackberry/dark cherry, dark chocolate, earth, tobacco, baking spice, and a cedar/graphite medium plus finish with some slight dusty tannins. Had this 2 years ago, and it's improved. In the beginning of its drink window at 18 years? Wow — 4 months ago

Brenda Terzich-Garland
with Brenda
Brenda, Steve and 20 others liked this
Somm David T

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Love this JP vintage!

Château Cos d'Estournel

Saint-Estèphe Red Bordeaux Blend 2014

With a four hour decant this bottle was brilliant! Notes of cedar, tobacco, cassis, dried blueberries it was an excellent accompaniment to the Matsuzaya beef — 7 months ago

Paul, Peter and 5 others liked this

Château Léoville-Las Cases

Grand Vin de Leoville du Marquis de las Cases Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 2001

Has finally entered a the period to enjoy with patience rewarded. A nice nose of earth, dark berries, and florals. Nice long finish with a bit of plum coming through. An hour decant to the benefit of the wine. — 9 months ago

Ron, Somm and 8 others liked this

La Rioja Alta

Gran Reserva 904 Rioja Tempranillo Graciano 2011

Needed at least an hour to open up. Wasn’t good until then. Great combination of savory flavors. — 3 years ago

Sagee, Joel and 7 others liked this

Kona Brewing Co.

Big Wave Golden Ale

Fruity Golden Ale — 5 years ago

Château Pontet-Canet

Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 1984

1984 vintage. Cork difficult to extract, ended up in several pieces. Beautiful deep color, little to no bricking even at this age. Seductive at one hour+ of air with black cherry, raspberry, some vanilla, green pepper, graphite. 12% ABV. From the FIL’s collection. — 5 years ago

Brouwerij Duvel Moortgat

Duvel Belgian Golden Ale

Stage 2 of #tourdefrance 2019. Finishing up our time in Belgium with a classic. Rich and creamy with full body and malty flavor. — 6 years ago

Château Mouton Rothschild

Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 1949

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. — 7 years ago

Howard HorwitzTony GarciaDavid Schachter
with Howard, Tony and 1 other
Eric, Daniel and 25 others liked this
Eric

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Damn
Shay A

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What @Eric Shanks said 👆🏼
James Forsyth

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Goodness! What a treat.

Château Latour

Premier Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 1961

Half bottle. Only breathed for a half hour and it hadn’t opened up. — 8 years ago

Taittinger

Comtes de Champagne Grand Crus Brut Blanc de Blancs 1985

1985!!! Sherry and golden raisins...amazing w/ mushrooms — 8 years ago

Château Calon-Ségur

Saint-Estèphe Red Bordeaux Blend 2004

Fantastic. Let it breathe for an hour. Drank w our two friends who own Manousakis Vineyard in Chania. Very special wine that is full bodied with soft tannins. Full of soft cherries and forest floor. It's the bomb — 10 years ago

Château Montrose

Saint-Estèphe Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 1990

Simply superb bottle! Decanted for an hour and consumed over next two with beef stew — 4 months ago

Ted, Joel and 5 others liked this

Spottswoode

Family Estate Grown St. Helena Cabernet Sauvignon 2018

2018 vintage. Decanted and tasted after 15 mins and one hour. Beautifully feminine and expressive nose leapt out of the decanter. Medium body. Nice balance of dark fruits and tannins but slightly disjointed. A bigg Napa vintage so either another decade or a three hour tour...er...decant would seem to be the ticket here. 01.31.25. — 5 months ago

Ron, Ted and 21 others liked this

Tenuta San Guido

Bolgheri Sassicaia Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Franc 2004

Lovely wine that took about an hour to really open up. Sad that this has gotten so pricy! — 7 months ago

Lauren
with Lauren
Lauren, Bob and 9 others liked this

Quilceda Creek

Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2013

Did not make it to 3rd hour of decant. Everyone drank it up quickly. Wine got better with each minute. — a year ago

Tom, Bob and 6 others liked this
Bob McDonald

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@Joe DAscoli Do you have a vintage Joe?

Krug

Grande Cuvée Brut Champagne Blend

Somm David T
9.3

Starting the long Labor Day weekend in Big Sur the right way with a little N/V Krug Grande Cuvée. @Nepenthe

Happy Labor Day weekend all! 🍾🥂

Noses reveals; heavy bruised red apple, Bosc pear, overripe pineapple, lemon meringue, tropical melons, lime zest, white spice, sea fossils, deep crisp chalkiness, grey volcanics, yeast & bread dough, nougat, baguette crust, limestone, caramel notes, cream, vanillin framed in yellow lilies, white & spring flowers & mixed greens.

The palate is, ripe, lush, fresh and lively. The mouthfeel all Krug beautiful. Bruised red & golden apple with hints of cider, Bosc pear, overripe pineapple, lemon meringue, tropical melons, white stone fruits, lime zest/candy, white spice, sea fossils, crisp chalkiness, grey volcanics, yeast & bread dough, nougat, baguette crust, limestone, caramel notes, cream, cream soda, vanillin framed in yellow lilies, spring flowers & mixed greens. The acidity is near perfect. The long, elegant, well knitted & balanced finish is gentle until the long set when you get a full presence of white spice and minerality that persists for minutes.

This bottle was composed around 2011 and is made from over 120 different wines that span over 10 years. It is 47% Pinot Noir, 36% Chardonnay & 17% Pinot Meunier.
— 5 years ago

Dawn, Eric and 33 others liked this
Rob Brobst III

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@David T On what mountain top do you live? 😜
Joshua Fisher

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My French king
Dick Schinkel

Dick Schinkel

Delicious 🥂

Dominus Estate

Dominus Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2015

Young but couldn’t wait to try it. After an hour or so decant it started to open up. This is going to be an amazing wine in years to come. — 7 years ago

Tim McCarthy
with Tim
Shay, Mark and 12 others liked this
Andrew S

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Nice!

Scarecrow

Monsieur Ètain Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon 2009

Curtis had this 7 years ago

Shay, Eric and 18 others liked this

Shafer Vineyards

Hillside Select Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon 1995

B
9.0

3L 1995 Shafer Hillside Select CS. Group dinner at Nmd. Probably should have decanted it longer than the hour we did. It was going through a really funky stage. Just very one-note and dull. — 7 years ago

leon liked this

Dom Pérignon

Brut Champagne Blend 1975

Sushi and Champagne is one of my favorite combinations. Indeed, almost all celebrations that @Cara Zimmerman and I enjoy together will include this duo. This was somewhat of a step up from our norm as Sushi Zo is a world apart from our usual delivery order of tuna and salmon rolls (with free edamame). Likewise this 1975 DP was rather more elevated than our weekly fizz.

Dark golden color with rich, brioche and mature elements. A touch too advanced but enormously attractive and retaining terrific purity and energy. Sushi and Champagne has rarely been such a treat.
— 8 years ago

Cara ZimmermanDaniel Moritz
with Cara and Daniel
Cara, Shay and 8 others liked this

Saxum Vineyards

Broken Stones Red Rhone Blend 2011

3-4 hour decant. Opened up nicely — 9 years ago

Eric, Brian and 11 others liked this
Mike R

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Howard you are killing it