Sharon B

9.1

Happy Friday! I popped open this very nice, full bodied, dark plum colored Petite Sirah. Right off the bat I smelled notes of dark fruit. A little tannic but has a nice finish with blueberry and blackberry on the tongue. I probably should have decanted but I was too anxious to open it! Cheers! — 7 years ago

Chelsey Thompson

9.4

A little lighter flavor than I expected, but very smooth. Great with steak. Would but again. — 8 years ago

David Sweeney

9.3

Carted this bad boy back from NZ in a carry on. As good as remembered. Little cherry, a little funky on the nose. Good weight for a Pinot, not too fruity. — 8 years ago

Dave Wood

9.2

Killer good. Disgorged in January of 2015 and the bubbles died s little quickly but flavor was spot on. Great fruits with a mineral punch. Loved this wine. — 9 years ago

Delectable Blue

9.0

It must be the season. It’s time for another cracking Shiraz. Again a very fruit forward style. This time with lashings of mulberry and raspberry predominating on the palate. Lacking a little mid-palate complexity, even after a 3 hour decant. Just hints of dark chocolate bitterness and black olive before the fine but drying tannins take over, driving a long finish. Not too dissimilar in style to Hannah’s Swing, just not as well composed. Nice, but not outstanding. — 9 years ago

Sumit Bhutani

9.0

A little ripe out of the gate but balanced out with some air. Decent acid, tannins in check. Youthful for 10+ year old NZ Pinot. — 9 years ago

Mason Balistreri

Sommelier, International Wine Guild; Balistreri Vineyard; Sales, Joy Wine and Spirits

9.5

Really nice, and was even better when some air got onto it. Pleasant strawberry and orange cream. Some tannins here, but the body is still lite and lifted. Cool little wine, and a perfect introduction into Orange wines. — 10 years ago

Frankie Kwong

8.9

Goes down smooths, clean flavor but a tad too light. Wish it had a little extra kick to it and more essence. Other than that, great value and easy on the pallet. — 10 years ago

Steve Goore

9.0

Would like a little more Syrah but an excellent red blend. — 10 years ago

Gordon Walker

9.1

Very nice fruit character, not too ripe or overextracted, little herbacenousness and oak. Decently integrated tannins. — 11 years ago

Jason Dunn

9.0

A little dry, tart, a little fruity. Better with food. — 8 years ago

Alton Komori

9.2

2013-luscious, fruit forward slightly heavy bouquet, nice legs and mouthfeel; medium light, slightly tannic finish; need to let it breathe; still a little young; great with tomato chunk pasta with cheese; worth revisiting. — 8 years ago

Shawn Gleason

9.9

Black cherry, plum, just a little hint of pepper. Chocolate finish. Nicely balanced tannins. One of my favorites. — 8 years ago

George Kia

9.2

The only place I find this is at Maggiano's Little Italy — 9 years ago

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

8.9

Last red from Steele Wines. Deep and dark garnet red. A little tight to start with some chalky notes as well as greenery and bell peppers. Seems to be a little old world in style with quite a bit of acidity. Moderate tannins (5.5//10) and moderate body. Seems balanced. Developed notes of red cherries. Slightly dry long finish. Best of the Steele Wines line up, definitely interested to see what else is happening in Lake County. Drink till 2026. — 9 years ago

Tamara

9.5

I tried this during a tasting at Round Barn and had to take a bottle home. It's a little something different that is perfect for holiday parties. — 9 years ago

Ashley Paige

9.4

Definitely one of my favorite everyday drinking reds. It works alone or with most foods. Rich in cherries bold in chocolate with a mild little spice. Yummy! — 10 years ago

Benjamin Temple

9.0

A little cloudyness makes me happy. Sappy on the Nose. Linear focused wild strawberries. — 10 years ago

Dave Schneider

8.9

I had this wine laying around for a while. Never thought much about so expected very little. Excellent every day wine. — 10 years ago

Mike Evans

9.4

Take the 2006 Alpine and add a little of everything. Great. — 11 years ago

Steve Matthiasson

Owner/Winemaker Matthiasson Wines

10

No question this vintage has gotten a little funky, but it fills me with joy to drink a wine like this from California soil. Cranberries, rusty iron, cinnamon, redwood bark, tangy and easy...this wine is screaming out that we're finally a wine region with cool shit to discover. — 12 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

Nose of lightly; sweet, tart and sour ripe elegant fruits of; blackberries blueberries, pouched black plum, black raspberries, cherries, strawberries, faint rich moist, black soil, light; clove, cinnamon and vanilla and bright, fresh, fragment red florals. The fruits match the nose and are ruby ripe with a shade of candied characteristics. A little more pronounced moist rich dark earth than on the nose, vanilla, light clove, gentle, soft crushed dry rock powder, fresh dark, gently perfumed red & dark fresh florals. The mouthfeel is big, rich & lush. The balance of earth and fruit is like a fine Burgundian. The length is long as is the rich finish and the acidity is perfect. Beautiful fresh wine. @ Wakatipu Grill, Central Otago — 8 years ago

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.0

Bright ruby red. Bramble berries on the nose with a little bit of black fruit and an odd not that is almost like Chilean guava. Moderate tannins (6.5/10) and medium bodied. Dark berries and woody notes. Slightly plush mid palate. Long bodied and slightly thins out. Solid drinkable cabernet. Drink till 2019. — 8 years ago

with India

Isaac Pirolo

9.3

Second night... little changed, but the tannins have subsided to a manageable level. Evocative of Graves or Margaux. Wet clay and cherry tobacco with plenty of structure. Some serious quality for Lake County. — 8 years ago

Justin Hansohn

9.2

Truly the name of the wine says it all. Drank the whole thing in an hour of paddling around a lake in a swan on a beautiful day in Copenhagen. It's not worth giving a description of the wine as I continuously find that in the concept of set and setting sometimes wines are just the magic wand in the middle of a beautiful storm. If you make this your wine, make it a great moment, it's worth it. — 9 years ago

with Taylor

Steve Goore

8.9

Enjoyed this red blend before. A little fruit forward at first but has a nice finish and pairs well. — 9 years ago

Adam Knoerzer

9.0

This is a really, really enjoyable Syrah. Such a nice change of pace in style from most down here in Australia. Fruit, earth, and a little mineral. Impressive. — 10 years ago

Cathrine Todd

9.0

This was a lovely dry Riesling from Seneca Lake, which is called the Banana Belt due to its microclimate of being a couple of degrees warmer thus producing more "tropical" fruit. Pure flavors of mandarin and mango, zest and exotic flavors with a little prickle on the palate. But what really impressed me was the fact I vacuum sealed it and five days later it was still in great shape. Impressive! Sample. Retail Price USD $15. — 10 years ago

Michael "Bucky" Buckelew

Sommelier Ristorante del Lago at The Broadmoor Hotel, Colorado Springs

8.9

Cool mix of fresh fruit and kirschwasser, and savory, herby, flowery things - a little dissolved CO2 makes for a squeaky clean finish - thanks Penny and Andy Loving! — 10 years ago

Gordon Walker

8.9

Great expression of fruit, little flabby, nice tho! — 11 years ago