Still detoxing from Napa & Bordeaux Cabernet.
The nose reveals; dark cassis with some currants, some tarriness, hint of savory, smoked meats, black licorice to the core of anise, blackberries, black cherries, pomegranate extract, dry cranberries, some plum & blue fruits, dark fruit cola, liqueur notes, limestone minerals, some crushed rock powder, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, light vanilla, hints of sage & bay leaf, dark rich forest floor with dry leaves, dark fresh & withering flowers with a touch of bright red florals.
The body is on the fuller and richer side of Pinot. The wine is beautifully elegant across the palate. For a wine not coming from my best storage, this has held up nicely and showing far more complexity and integration than say a year ago. The structure & tension are still firm while the length and balance are approaching its high point. Dark cassis with some currants, some tarriness, hint of savory, smoked meats, black licorice to the core of anise, blackberries, black cherries, pomegranate extract, dry cranberries, some creamy black raspberries, mashed strawberries flesh, plum & blue fruits, raisins, dark fruit cola, liqueur notes, limestone minerals, some crushed rock powder, dark, long lasting spices with some heat, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, light vanilla, hints of sage & bay leaf, dark rich forest floor with dry leaves, dark fresh & withering flowers with a touch of bright red florals. The acidity is quite nice with well balanced fruit & earth finish that is persistent for minutes.
Photos of; Hope & Grace’s Stag’s Leap Vineyard, a very old vine which, I would say is 60 plus years old, Winemaker-Charles Hendricks willing to still do the heavy lifting and one of my favorite paintings that used to be in the Hope & Grace tasting room but, now is in Charles house. — 6 years ago
My favourite house champagne at a tasting of 15. Good depth with yeasty notes — 7 years ago
On the nose, dark fruit profile of; blackberries, black cherries, black raspberries, cherries, poached strawberries, dry dark florals, dark soils with light volcanic minerals. On the palate, M-M+ tannins, black raspberries, raspberries, black cherries, blackberries, cherries, poached strawberries, black licorice, sweet lifting spices, strong; clove, nutmeg, cinnamon & vanilla, blue fruits round out the longer finish, big chalkiness, some leather & volcanic minerals. The tannins soften & fruits lean on the longer finish with good round acidity. Photos of another vista outside Queenstown, long shot of the tasting room and outside garden grounds. — 8 years ago
Very good wine from CB. Nice balance to it, lots of flavor. Had it with a nice steak. Great pairing. — 9 years ago
1997 Joseph Phelps Insignia. Second set of reds we tried at house dinner w A&C BG and MR&GR. This wine we tried alongside the '01 Dalla Valle Maya. This wine is gorgeous, but much bigger and muscular than the Maya. We always love this wine. — 9 years ago
Rumor has it that the cuttings of SH came from Inglenook, which ultimately came from DRC. Interesting theory. SH has always been an odd duck in Napa. Spring Mt Pinot, that is muscle and elegance in one package. So I'm going with it... Beautiful wine. Elegant and powerful at the same time. Loads of red currant, Asian 5 spice and rose oil. Pure aromas and fruit. Perfumed, exotic and texturally sleek. Minor alc on the finish, but I've tasted many hotter Burgs. What most new world Pinots wish to be! — 10 years ago
Good, not too bright or acidic, mild minerality
— 11 years ago
Quite delicious for its price point. I would say it slightly over delivers. Just misses 92.
Nice mousse, green apple, golden apple, lemon, lime zest, grapefruit, pineapple, guava, lychees, cream soda, bread dough, soft, moist chalkiness and powdery, soft chalkiness, jasmine, white spring flowers, nice acidity and a rich, polished and well balanced finish.
Good pair with our Brie and goats cheese.
Photos of; the House of Laurent Perrier, branded iron gates, their storage caves with bottles on A-frames and one of their Grand Cru vineyards. — 6 years ago
We were invited over to a house warming gathering for some friends and they graciously provided some Neapolitan pizzas. We brought three bottles of Ferrando Canavese. This stuff is just so delicious; so easy to enjoy and outrageous quality for the money. Tough to find so swoop it up when you see it. — 6 years ago
A new Blanc de Blancs champagne recommended to me in St Emilion @ £50-£60 and I was ms told “When the great Champagne house Salon choose not to produce a vintage, all the grapes go into Delamotte!” 😮
🏵 92-93 points
📍 Delamotte BdB Champagne 2008
🍷 Light golden straw yellow
👃 Fresh baked shortbread biscuit, saline over crushed rock minerals, baked whole lemon, green apples & creamy honey infused vanilla custard
👄 Med bodied fine bubbled mousse of citrus, grapefruit sours, green apple & dry minerals
🎯 Long sweet, sour & dry mineral filled citrus & tart green apple creamy refreshing finale
🌞 Suntastic 😎
— 7 years ago
One of my favorite Long Island wineries! — 8 years ago
Sometimes you don't want to analyze, and just enjoy. This was one of those moments. — 9 years ago
A beautiful balance of fruit, spice, tannin.. True expression of the grape & place, rather than process (a non-carbonic Gamay) — 10 years ago
Definite favourite — 11 years ago
My current FAVORITE table red. Fruity with adequate tannins and excellent finish. Pairs with everything from steaks to Italian. — 6 years ago
Delicious wine to watch a spring snow storm.
Lots of cherries. Very smooth — 6 years ago
Grabbed a bottle to close the Summer on Labor Day weekend. Blend of 40% Chardonnay and 60% Pinot Noir this wine was rich and complex. Pale yellow, vibrant bubbles, Crisp fruit aromas, apples and pears. Palate shows generous mineral and toasty oak notes integrated with the fruit. Absolute a must on your list, a true house staple for me. Great Champagne value. Overall nice summer, a tad wet back east! — 7 years ago
Very bright and jammy out of the gate, and quite tart in a pleasant way. — 7 years ago
One of the good turleys. That said had a slight acidic edge to it, that only went away after being open almost 3 hours — 8 years ago
Lovely and creamy — 8 years ago
Great value! — 9 years ago
I consider this a more full bodied wine. Typically a Cab drinker but this Merlot was quite good. Strong plum and cranberry flavors with a bit of a peppery finish. Alcohol content seems high with half glass consumed! Surprised that I am enjoying this one as much as I am. — 9 years ago
JKT
In Dublin hotel dinner brought by Hsing. Well made new world Aussie Shiraz with fruity well balanced nose of red fruits and cherry. Silky smooth texture for this style and long finish. — 6 years ago