Keint He Winery & Vineyards
Greer
Rutherford Cabernet Sauvignon 2011
Astrolabe Wines
Province Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2016
When winemaker Simon Waghorn created his own brand, he chose the name Astrolabe, which is an ancient instrument of navigation that measures the altitude of the stars. Pale straw with grassy citrus notes and floral scents. On the palate peach, tangy citrus and melon flavors with gentle acidity. Medium+ finish ending with bright mineral character. — 7 years ago
The Standish Wine Company
The Relic Shiraz Blend 2004
On the nose; a bit of a brett bomb to start. Even after 11 years in the bottle, it needed a good 2 hour decant. Stewed fruits of; huckleberry, boysenberries, blueberries, plums, black raspberries, dark & liqueured cherries. Black raspberry cola, figs & dates, black & white pepper, touch of smoke & grilled meats, menthol, used leather, dry stems, dark minerals, loamy dry top soil, right amount of baking spices, lilacs & liquid violets. The body is full, round & lush. Tannins perfectly resolved. They still have a little baby teeth. The structure, length, tension and balance are near perfect. Stewed fruits of; huckleberry, boysenberries, blueberries, plums, black raspberries, dark liqueured cherries & strawberries haunting the palate here and there. Black raspberry cola, figs & dates, black & white pepper, a touch of smoke & grilled meats, menthol, used leather, dry stems, dark minerals, loamy dry top soil, right amount & mix of baking spices, lilacs, liquid violets & red florals. The acidity is perfect and acts like a waterfall over the palate. The fruit floral, lightly spiced finish goes on and on and on. Standish does not have a U.S. importer as his wines are small productions and he has no issues selling nearly all of them down under. You can order from his mailing list but, the shipping costs from Australia are stupid. Look for bottles on the secondary markets. You’ll be glad you did. If you have or had reservations about Australian wine or Shiraz vs. Syrah, Dan’s wines will end those thoughts. We tasted with Dan at his winery in April. He is extremely knowledgeable and a very talented Winemaker. He made Torbreck for years before starting his own winery. Photos of; his Estate, Dan and his low yield vines. His yield was an extremely low half ton per acre on this vintage. — 8 years ago
Château Gruaud Larose
Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 2006
£99 Magnum that RP said "one of the most disappointing St.-Juliens I tasted 84pts" well I think he should retry the great numpty 😜 Still could do w/ 2-5yrs 👍 Great nose but palate still a little tight
🍇 63% Cab S, 25% Mer, 9% Cab F & 3% Pet V
🍷 Opaque ruby
👃 Smokey oaky earthy farmyard through shy blackcurrant & spiced plum w/ minerals, leather, musky cellar & wet leaves - fab nose 👍
👄 Med earthy mocha blackcurrant body w/ dry tannins & touch of tart cherry
🎯 Med dry earthy blackcurrant finish — 8 years ago
Château Malescot St. Exupéry
Margaux Red Bordeaux Blend 2011
Father in law casually opens this up in on a Sunday. What is he sick in the head?! Solid wine... still a baby. Give it time to mature and it'll rock your socks. So much is going on here: floral on the nose, and dark ripe berries on the palate. I can still taste it 15 mins later... — 8 years ago
Vine Hill Ranch
Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon 2014
Phenomenal way to start off our Napa trip! This is a rock star in the making and I can't say enough good things about Bruce and the wonderful job he and the crew are doing at VHR. First class operation and this was certainly one of the best wines of the trip. — 8 years ago
Château Calon-Ségur
Saint-Estèphe Red Bordeaux Blend 1996
On the nose, a touch of barnyard. Sweet & sour dark cherries, blackberries, black raspberries, baked strawberries and hues of blue fruits. Dry crushed rocks, dry stones, rich black turned, soft leather, cedar, underbrush, tobacco, light vanilla & clove, medium spice, limestone, fresh & withering dark red floral bouquet.
The body is just full. The tannins are soft, rounded, chewy & sticky and still have some teeth. The wine elegantly guides smooth over the palate...very little that pushes back. It’s still youthful but not as youthful as my expectation. Sweet & sour dark cherries, blackberries, black raspberries, baked strawberries and hues of blue fruits. Dry crushed rocks, dry stones, rich black turned, soft leather, cedar, underbrush, tobacco, some dry herbal notes, sweet tarry notes, light vanilla & clove, medium spice, powdery limestone, loamy clay & top soil, graphite, dark spice with lifting heat, fresh & withering dark red floral bouquet and haunting violets. The acidity is near perfect. The structure, tension, length are in a very place but, will still improve for another 15+ years. The long, finish is ripe, round, balanced and lasts minutes.
Photos of, the Chateau, Technical Director Vincent Millet, beautiful stainless steel tank room and their new barrel room.
Producer notes & history...historic records show that Calon Segur was in existence as far back as 1147, when it was owned by Monseigneur de Calon. He was an important Bishop in the community. This makes Chateau Calon Segur one of the very oldest properties in Saint Estephe. Eventually, the property came to be owned by Nicolas Alexandre de Segur. Hence where part of the name of the Chateau comes.
After passing through generations, the estate became the property of the famous Marquis de Segur. de Segur is an important figure in Bordeaux history, not only for his ownership of numerous top Bordeaux estates in that day but, he also owned Lafite and Latour. de Segur is credited with uttering the words that spawned the idea behind the heart shaped logo of Calon Segur. The story is that de Segur is quoted as saying: “I make my wine at Lafite and Latour, but my heart is in Calon.” This famous saying lives on the label of Chateau Calon Segur, where the drawing of a heart is prominently featured on the bottle.
Chateau Calon Segur was one of the original three Bordeaux vineyards in Saint Estephe. In 1825 Chateau Montrose was a forest without a single vine belonging to the massive Calon Segur estate. In fact, Chateau Phelan Segur was also once part of the vast Segur estate. The holdings of the Segur family were so large, they included what would later became Chateau Lafite Rothschild, Chateau Latour and Chateau Mouton Rothschild!
The more modern era by European standards began in 1894 when its Left Bank vineyards were purchased by Georges Gasqueton and Charles Hanappier. Hanappier was a large negociant at the time. The Gasqueton family managed the estate until 2012. Madame Gasqueton ran the estate until she passed away at the age of 87 in late September, 2011.
In July of 2012, Chateau Calon Segur was sold for 170 million Euros or 215 million US dollars. The buyer was a French Insurance Company, Suravenir Insurance. Jean-Pierre Moueix, the owner of Petrus and the massive negociant company Duclot also took a minority stake in Chateau Calon Segur.
Since taking over Calon Segur, they started renovating the property with the focus on the wine making facilities. They followed a trend to vinify on a parcel by parcel basis. The estate replaced their older vats with new stainless steel tanks that vary in size and number to match the size of the various vineyard parcels.
The new tanks accompany a completely new vat room as well with everything moving completely by gravity. The new tasting room was remodeled as well. The renovations were completed in 2016.
Their cellars also needed work. Immediately after closing, the new owners began an extensive replanting of the Calon Segur vineyard. There were a number of reasons they chose to do this. They needed to increase the level of vine density and add more Cabernet Sauvignon.
The extensive renovation of Chateau Calon Segur cost somewhere north of 20 Million Euros. Other changes, the new owners took full control and brought in Vincent Millet as the Technical Director.
The 55 hectares of Calon Segur are located just north of the small town of St. Estephe and are planted to 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 38% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot.
Chateau Calon Segur is one of the few walled in vineyards in the Left Bank. Calon Segur is also known as being the northern most Classified Growth in Medoc.
The terroir of Calon Segur is a blend of gravel, rocks, clay, sand and limestone soils on the surface with gravel that can be as deep as 5 meters. Underneath, you find marl, clay and limestone.
On average, the vines are 25 years of age. However, they have older vines that range in age from 45-60 years of age.
The vineyard of Chateau Calon Segur remains almost exactly the same as it did at the time of the 1855 Classification.
Since the remodel was completed, fermentation takes place in 70 conical shaped, stainless steel tanks that range in size from 25 hectoliters to 120 hectoliters. Vintages are now aged in 90% to 100% new, French oak barrels for up to 20 months.
Production of Chateau Calon Segur is around 20,000 cases per year. They also make a second wine, which was originally named Marquis de Calon. Now, the second wine is sold under the name of Le Marquis de Calon Segur.
There is also a third wine, which is sold under two names, La Chapelle de Calon, and St. Estephe de Calon Segur, which is produced from vines that mostly come from a specific plot with more limestone. — 7 years ago
Klein Constantia
Vin de Constance Natural Sweet Muscat à Petits Grains 2013
Napoleon knew what he wanted on his death bead ... the elixir! — 8 years ago
Clonakilla
Canberra District Shiraz Viognier 2015
Australia's premium Shiraz Viognier blend and Tim Kirk says this is the best one he has ever made. I have been buying since the 2001 vintage. This is a cracking cool climate Shiraz blend showing florals Spice and a hint of pepper. Palate is restrained - more the weight of Pinot than Shiraz. Intensity without weight- Fluid, beautiful finishing with fine persistent tannins- 15 years stretching ahead of it. More whole bunch than the early vintages like many Aussie Shiraz producers these days. David Le Mire MW said whole bunch serves to lower the alcohol and increase the pH. Gives a "Tea" character with Stem tannins adding to the finish. — 8 years ago
Spoto Wines
Private Reserve Oakville Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
Was introduced to Spoto Wines officially today, though @Mark Flesher has sung their praises to me for a while, and even gifted me this very same bottle. Spoto Wines is the epitome of family...all owned, operated and it very much feels that way. Really love that style. I was pleased to meet Stuart Spoto as he was pouring. Quick review of their wines:
-2015 Viognier- The best Viognier I've tasted. "Summer in a bottle" they say. Tropical notes but not super citrus like. A minty finish which I loved.
-2014 Oakville Cuvée- From the historic Oakville Station part of To-Kalon. Merlot dominant. The most "Bordeaux"-esque of the lineup to me. Balance of red fruits and earthy herbs. Spice finish.
-Godfather Part II- My favorite of the tasting based on approachability. This is pop and pour. Red and black fruit medley, cinnamon, cassis. 80/20 Merlot/Malbec
-2013 Oakville Private Reserve Cabernet- I'm stoked to have one of these out away in the cellar. Also from the Oakville Station To-Kalon Vineyard. This is age worthy but could be popped today if you give it a 1.5-2hr decant. Very black fruit dominant. Plum rush, blackcherry and mocha. — 8 years ago
Rivers-Marie
B. Thieriot Vineyard Chardonnay 2013
Very golden color. Otherwise, Galloni pretty much nailed the review. Another thing he left out, is this is some pretty good shit. PnP and I’m blown away. — 7 years ago
Caymus Vineyards
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
Nice wine, my son thought it didn’t have as sweet finish as he likes, but I liked it — 7 years ago
Château Smith Haut Lafitte
Le Petit Haut Lafitte Red Bordeaux Blend 2011
The estate dates back to the Crusades, and Scottish navigator, George Smith, the owner in the 18th century. He was followed by M. Duffour-Dubergier, Mayor of Bordeaux, and then Louis Eschenauer, a famous wine shipper. In 1990, Daniel and Florence Cathiard now own the estate. Dark plum red with dark berry fruit aromas, herb and spice from young Cab vines. On the palate complex sweet black fruit flavors and cacao notes. Firm tannins, rich and full, lingering, mineral ending, unlike the ‘10 wait a few years. — 7 years ago
Domaine Coche-Dury (J.F. Coche Dury)
Meursault Chardonnay 2012
Oops.....he did it again! THE Master — 7 years ago
Château Margaux
Premier Grand Cru Classé Margaux Red Bordeaux Blend 1996
Nowhere near showing what it's going to be in a decade. Amazing floral characteristics. Roses galore. Having next to the 2010 BRAND Napa Valley, a friend that hasn't ever had wines like this before incredibly stated, "The Margaux is the mother and the BRAND is the daughter". Wow. Couldn't have expressed it better myself. I think he has a future in wine! — 8 years ago
1 Haut Brion 96
2 Lagrange Saint-Julien 96
3 Margaux 96
4 Cos d'estournel 96
5 Latour 96
All bottles were very well stored since they have been purchase in primeur.
I remember that Margaux was good but no match versus the 2 first wines!
Dirty & Rowdy
Santa Barbara Highlands Vineyard Mourvedre 2010
Finally popped my cherry w #dirtyandrowdy. This is @Hardy Wallace when he had ONE pair of glasses. Super fresh and light w steak and green beans. — 8 years ago
The Prisoner Wine Company
The Prisoner Napa Valley Zinfandel Blend
A bit too fruity for Mike but I loved it. Bold but smooth. This was in one of the baskets he received at work. — 8 years ago
Tom Hamilton
Very good with Lamb dinner with the he Mellys — 6 years ago