Daniel M

9.0

Date night with my wife in my childhood's home back home without any kid or pet in sight. We are working remotely this week from Toulouse, but this definitely feels like an extension of our summer holidays 😁.
The nose is very merlot-forward with notes of cherry, leather, earthy, clay touches, cedar, beef stew and almond powder. The palate is big, bright and broad, with a nice strawberry and earthy notes that carries on all along a strong acid drive, there is width, there is matter, it's rather muscular but you peep the 15% abv on the (barely readeable) back label you start to understand why! Tannins kick in the rear but they are not harsh, they caress and come across as a gentle hug around a very nice, meaty, juicy finish that goes on for a while. Cherry and earthy notes carry on and that savoury touch comes around to crown a very nicely made right bank effort. Kudos to the winemaker, this is punching way above its 10 euro retail price category and I have had many a saint emilion in my time that would be pale in comparison. — 15 days ago

Miller Cornelius

9.0

Like a hug from a big Italian grandfather — 3 years ago

Sean Kennedy

9.0

My first sip of this wrapped my tongue in a bear hug and never let go. It was smooth, warm, and flavorful. I turned to my wife, in subtle surprise, and said, “what is this? I like it.” She said, “oh, yeah, it’s organic.” Well color me impressed and a newfound fan of this wine. — 5 years ago

Ellen Clifford

9.0

Parigot is the stuff. I was looking for the red sparkling I’d had once upon a time but was super okay to settle for this (albeit if you have a source for the red TELL ME)! Red berry blend (there are hints of it all—strawberry raspberry currant) plus watermelon freshness and this slight earthy funk that—-is there a whiff of brett on it?! Slight white pepper and some greens that are both bitter and sweet. It’s a hug and a loving smack all at once. — 6 years ago

Ira Schwartz

9.8

The nose comes at you like a firehose filled with citrus, honey, apple and almond. Crazy concentration that causes your cheeks to bulge. Insane level of acidity but it still manages to release flavors of citrus , honey and toast. A palate saturating finish . Given the bear hug structure I’m amazed how giving the palate is. — 6 months ago

Yaw Awuku

9.2

With a nice tender pull this viognier leads the way into a tender working days end, stuffed with ripe honey melon, peach and brioche. It is such a comforting and sensible hug. — 3 years ago

Jay Liddell

9.3

hug from an old friend. Andiamo! — 5 years ago

with Stefanie

Max Gottesfeld, FWS, CSW

9.0

It’s like almost every Napa chard from a high end producer. It’s good but not amazing. It reminds me of a warm hug. — 7 months ago

Jay Kline

9.2

This used to be Montevertine’s “second” wine (after Pergole Torte, obviously) but the vineyard was torn out and replanted in 1998. After that, their eponymous bottling was elevated to take its place while “Pian del Ciampolo” eventually became the “third” wine. Truthfully, they are all three different expressions of Radda so don't take my numerical rankings as a hierarchy of quality (though one could certainly make arguments in terms of importance). I digress, “Il Sodaccio” is producing fruit once again however, the singular expression is now history. This bottle represents “Il Sodaccio’s” swan song.

From magnum. Opened about four hours prior to service. The 1997 “Il Sodaccio” pours a garnet color moving to a slightly orange rim. Medium viscosity with light staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is vinous but surprisingly spry given it’s a quarter century old. The fruit is more or less a mix of ripe and dried cherries, red plums, curaçao, cacao, porcini, dusty earth and some warm spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium tannins that have well integrated but still there. Acid is medium as well. Confirming the notes from the nose. The fruit is round while the finish is long and a touch savory. A lovely expression of Montevertine that extolls the virtues of the 1997 vintage with its abundant fruit and soft, friendly character. I mentioned to our guests that this bottle gave me the feeling of a warm hug from an old friend. Drinking well now and while I don’t expect further positive development, this magnum certainly has the legs for another 10 years. — 2 years ago

Ellen Clifford

9.1

Fabulously surprising! This wine is one of those warm robust bear humans who wraps you in a hug that doesn’t smother you, it frees you. It’s fresh. Oodles of dark berries and plums plus vanilla and a very herbal earthy thing and something like leather. So very very good. — 6 years ago