Ground Breaker
Kongsgaard
The Judge Napa Valley Chardonnay 2010
My first “Judge”. Incredibly inviting and a wonderful entry and mid palate. Great weight. Mark mentioned notes of pear which I agree with, alongside a pineapple purée. Impressed at where this was 8 years in and think this probably has a few more years of prime drinking.
Bale Breaker Brewing Co.
Top Cutter India Pale Ale
Typical northwest IPA but very well done. Obviously they have the best selection of hops available given that the brewery is literally in the middle of their own hop fields. The beer has good citrusy and somewhat grassy hop nose and sweet malt. On he palate, it is well balanced with hop bitterness and slightly sweet and lightly biscuity malt. Very local, so this is an easy go-to beer for me. — 8 years ago
Higher Ground
Monterey County Pinot Noir 2014
William Hill Estate Winery
Bench Blend Napa Valley Malbec 2012
An extremely impressive effort, this Malbec is binged in a style Californian to the core, rejecting the more sharp and tangy acids of Argentina for a Cabernet like approach, with rich velvety chocolate and cherry flavors and a lingering coffee ground finish. A bit sedimented, it benefited from some time in a decanter with a punt. — 10 years ago
The Ojai Vineyard
50% Roll Ranch Vineyard 50% Bien Nacido Vineyard Syrah 2000
An opaque red/purple, the '00 Ojai Syrah '50% Roll Ranch 50% Bien Nacido' is richly scented with black raspberry, ground pepper and dark cherry notes. Powerful mouth-coating flavors of ripe black fruits with spicy cracked peppercorn accents then flood the palate. The fully-rounded and well-integrated tannins make the lingering finish lip-smackingly delicious. — 10 years ago
Edmunds St. John
Higher Ground Syrah 1997
Dog fell asleep on this beauty! — 10 years ago
Arianna Occhipinti
SP68 Bianco Terre Siciliane Albanello Muscat of Alexandria 2012
Peach jolly rancher wrapper with a hint of ground cherry. Creamy, yet bracing. Super nice! — 11 years ago
T-Vine Cellars
Hallowed Ground California Red Blend
Chocolate and cherry on the nose, lots of depth both in the glass and in this poetry reading @amysaulderby #wizardtower — 7 years ago
R. López de Heredia
Viña Tondonia Reserva Rioja Tempranillo Blend 2004
Never tire of this, really: layers of delicate & fine red fruits, integrated tannins, that bay leaf, ground tobacco leaf urgh at its base & still oodles of time to go. So fresh. — 7 years ago
Pazo de Señorans
Rías Baixas Albariño 2016
The canopy system used in the Rias Baxias region of northwest Spain provides for ample aeration and keeps the vines protected from the moist ground which breeds an environment not conducive to support healthy clusters. The Galician climate receives moisture from the Atlantic and is mostly sticky, warm and rainy with rain ☔️ most days during the year. Winters are a bit harsh and cold. The humid, salt air is what this viticultural environment is all about. The mostly white wines made here are highly acidic, with notes of tart, green apple 🍏 and white flowers. Most wines are aged in stainless steel and some see new, French oak for a few months. Then they are aged in the bottle. You can cellar them for up to 5-6 years. The Albariño grape is the most expensive and most difficult to produce in all of Spain. — 8 years ago
Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe
La Crau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhone Blend 2000
Raspberry jam nose, some musky funk. Mouth is the same, with some herbal kick and a slightly powdery, ground stone mouthfeel. — 8 years ago
Paul Jaboulet Aîné
La Chapelle Hermitage Syrah 1975
In English and French.
What a luck !
- A magnum Hermitage La Chapelle 1975 from Paul Jaboulet Aîné.
Bottle opened 24 hours before drink.
The wine is brown and trouble.
A big density, the bouquet offer lot of spicies, cinnamon, dried grappe, old cherry in alcool, date fruit.
The palate :
Full of spicies, deep. Again the cinnamon followed by date fruit and dried grappes, smooth and elegant, a long and fresh finish on the ground aromas like mushroom an old and luxury wood.
Not so old ! A great wine. Loved it.
Around 1200 - 1700 €
- Chance incroyable !
Degustation autour de ce magnum de 1975. Rare. Bouteille ouverte 24h à l'avance.
Sous sa robe usée, trouble et marron, ce vin cache une ceritable fraîcheur.
Son bouquet s'ouvre sur les épices, cannelle, fruits secs, raisins secs, cerise à l’eau de vie et dattes fraîches d'Iran.
Un grand bol de fruits secs, d'épices, de dattes, beaucoup de matière et de tendresse. Un style tout en élégance.
Une longue finale sur des notes tertiaires de mousse, champignon, et de vieux cèdre.
Très beau. J'ai beaucoup aimé.
Attention, le goût de vieux vins est toujours particulier !
Autour de 1200 - 1700 €.
À bientôt.
Florian. — 9 years ago
Domaine St Nicolas
Fiefs Vendéens Brem Pinot Noir 2013
Sommelier, International Wine Guild; Balistreri Vineyard; Sales, Joy Wine and Spirits
Beautiful and intriguing wine from off the coast of France, below Muscadet, where the vines grow mere inches off the ground from the brutal winds, and the soil is all schist rock. Dark cherries, tons of mineral notes, and also some wild game. Extremely taut acidity. — 10 years ago
Penfolds
Bin 389 South Australia Cabernet Shiraz 1998
Still rich in colour. Very dusty nose. Penfolds nose of choc/malt but becoming more ground coffee. A very good combination of plummy fruit and savoury palate. Penfolds say to 2030! They certainly build them to last! 18+. — 10 years ago
Pere Ventura
Tresor Brut Cava Trepat Rosé
Improbable combo of bright red fruit - straw bomb! - and pert minerality. They find a middle ground. Color is cranberry - thus emerging as my holiday aperitif of choice. In all seriousness, it's dry but not too dry for before d, redolent of herbs and delish red fruit, peach fuzz, and general fabulosity. *crush this for holiday* — 11 years ago
Real Companhia Vinicola do Norte de Portugal
Vintage Porto 1847
The year when Kristianstad burned down to the ground. A mind blowing wine. Room filling bouquet, vigorous, balanced and an infinite length. Decanted 2,5 h — 12 years ago
Patricia Green Cellars
Ankle Breaker Block Chehalem Mountains Pinot Noir 2012
Absolutely delicious and adding gracefully. 2012 consumed in March 2018. Plenty of life still left in this. Great minerality and cherry funk. Love it! — 7 years ago
Feudo di Santa Croce
Primitivo di Manduria 2010
Wow, what a deal at < $20 / bottle
Wine spectator says #69 of top 100 of 2014.
A burly, brambly red, underscored by tarry smoke and underbrush notes, offering flavors of blackberry coulis, herb-marinated black olive, grilled mushroom and ground spice. This shows muscle that recommends it to short-term cellaring, made accessible by integration and balance. Drink now through 2024. Tasted twice, with consistent notes. #69 – 91 points — 7 years ago
Tenuta dell'Ornellaia
Bolgheri Red Bordeaux Blend 2006
Big potent nose with notes of black cherries, dark chocolate, leather, cedarwood, licorice and forrest ground. Big body with concentrated fruit, well balanced tannins, fresh acidity and long aromatic finnish - Always a great pleasure👍 — 8 years ago
Ground Effect
Santa Ynez Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2014
Ripe fruit gives way to baking spices baking spices baking spices. Jammy but not overly so. This is a unique little number, very interesting and agreeable — 8 years ago
Azienda Agricola COS
Pithos Rosso Vittoria Nero d'Avola Frappato
Giusto hits another one outta the park. Sicilian take on new world Pinot Noir, made in clay amphorae buried in the ground, light, pure pomegranate and red berry. Love how the clay and the red earth come through. Very long. Seek this out, decant a bit. — 9 years ago
Ground Effect
Never Say Never Syrah
Thanksgiving! — 9 years ago
Pierre Gaillard
Malleval Côte-Rôtie Syrah 2009
Some of the best damn Côte Rotie I've had. Love this producer. Aromatic intensity with no shortage of ground pepper and bacon fat aromas. — 10 years ago
Hallowed Ground
Proprietary Red Blend 2014
Delicious tart cherries and vanilla finish. Love it, great sipper on its own — 10 years ago
Marcel Lapierre
Morgon Gamay 2013
Ground breaking! Thanks to one of my best buddies.. Happy Thanksgiving! — 10 years ago
Rene Rostaing
Ampodium Côte-Rôtie Syrah 2010
Whohohoooa out the gate: incredibly vivid pepper, chicken broth, dried rosemary, red currants! Man this is fabulous! Only my second Rostaing and I'm loving this. Opens into afar smoother red currant bright earthy wine after 1hr. Tantalizing, alluding to what is to come, but I can't resist alluring young ones. Already a silky fresh ground black pepper monster. — 11 years ago
Mark Flesher
Cult chard tasted alongside a 2010 Aubert Lauren Chard....this one lost by a unanimous vote (and it wasn't even a blind vote either). I think everyone WANTED the Judge to win, but there was nothing to Judge here. At least for THIS COMPARISON, in 2018, the Aubert was the winner. BUT, this Judge chard did have more acidity up front than the Aubert, and IMO this wine has more aging potential than the 2010 Lauren Chard, which was pretty much right on the top of the hill tonght. Hard to beat a wine in its prime window, but goes to show you that Aubert makes chards that will compete with this kind of opponent. Lots of acid up front. Stone ground fruit entry, mineral-rich middle. I think that I was getting more pear than anything else here, but there was a hint of youthful butter and some dates. Finishes with actually a really nice fruit/nutty/almost gritty/tannin character for about 60 seconds, which is the one thing I will say that I give advantage to the Judge. Bravo! — 7 years ago