Old School Lane

Château Gruaud Larose

Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 1985

Classic old school style of GL that was fresh showing good acidity mostly black fruits, cassis, leather, cedar, sweet & savory spices, graphite with a smoky, tarry, cigar ash on the finish. — 20 days ago

Severn, Ira and 9 others liked this

Ridge Vineyards

Old School Sonoma County Zinfandel Blend

A little sweet for my taste but delicious — 3 months ago

Château Lynch-Bages

Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 1975

Drinking well at 48 yrs. Old school style of Bordeaux from an owc showing red & black fruit, cedar, leather, savory spice & tobacco. — 4 months ago

David, Jan and 19 others liked this
"Odedi"

"Odedi" Influencer Badge

Delicious

Heitz Cellar

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1995

Old school Napa 👍🏼
Took an hour to unfurl in the glass, but once it did! Perfect with some coffee crusted New York Strip
— a month ago

Juan, David and 18 others liked this

Harney Lane

Lizzy James Vineyard Old Vine Zinfandel

A robust berry aroma is enticing and tempting. I savored every sip. I paired this delicious port of the Ol’vine with a confectionery milk chocolate or White chocolate Orange (available at your grocer) during the Christmas holiday. Thanks dear Nick. — 3 months ago

Daniel liked this

Rivella Serafino

Montestefano Barbaresco Nebbiolo 2017

Old school style of Barbaresco showing structure & finesse with lots of spice with floral & tobacco notes. — 6 months ago

Severn, Tom and 4 others liked this

Opus One

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 1997

Opened about four hours prior to service and allowed to breath. Two bottles were opened tonight from the same cellar and one of the corks showed some small signs of seepage but both wines showed equally. No formal notes. The 1997 Opus One pours a fairly youthful looking deep ruby color with moderate signs of sediment and a near opaque core. The nose exhibited powerful aromas of dark fruits, organic earth, tobacco, leather, horse blanket (brettanomyces?!), and fine baking spices. On the palate, the wine is dry and the structure remains quite firm but the texture is plush and almost chewy. The notes on the nose are confirmed and the finish is long and satisfying.

But the tasting notes only tell half the story here. This was consumed alongside a 1990 Chateau Mouton Rothschild. Had these been served together double-blind, I would have absolutely understood if someone called both as left-bank Bordeaux. Yes, the texture was plush and yes, the color was dark(er), but only just. It was just waaaay more Old World leaning to me with the earth and presence of brett. Which makes me wonder, why hasn’t brett been noted very often in other TN’s for this wine? Only (Charlie Carnes and OneFive) really address it directly and maybe this is what most are getting at when they mention “Bordeaux-like” and all the Pauillac vibes. What I can confirm is that these notes were consistent between two bottles from the same case, still in their tissue paper, so I’m reasonably confident that this is characteristic of the 1997 Opus One. I digress; I liked the wine. There, I said it. It was a bit of a one foot in Old School Napa, one foot in New School Napa, handled with an Old World touch. I liked it even better side-by-side with the ’90 Mouton, especially considering the relationship between the two. That being said, folks that can’t get down with a little brett will be turned off by this vintage of Opus. In my case, I would enjoy another opportunity to drink the 1997 some time. Great now with some air to stretch its legs and should be enjoyable through the next decade.
— 8 months ago

Peter, Jae and 11 others liked this

Williams Selyem

Olivet Lane Vineyard Pinot Noir 2021

Special evening: school related celebration — 2 months ago

Laura liked this

Neal Family Vineyards

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

2021 vintage. Old-school styled, Napa cabbage. The solitary nod to new-school is the medium-heavy body. Focused, dark fruit presence (not as much as Freemark Abbey but not far behind either). Plenty of value to be had here. Grip if you want it. Fruit if you so desire. Obvious balance. Nicely done. First Neal product visit/tasting but it won’t be the last. 1.24.24. — 2 months ago

Ted, Bob and 10 others liked this

La Rioja Alta

Viña Alberdi Reserva Rioja Tempranillo 2016

This takes me back. Very old school. Like 70s and early 80s old school. Nose comes screaming out of the glass with loads of coconutty American oak, plummy fruit, and gravel. Intense and clingy in the mouth. Tannins are youthful but soft and well managed. The only thing that distinguishes this from a 70s or 80s rendition is the peppery alcohol (14.5%) that is fairly prominent. A noticeable bitter note lingers on the finish. Still and all, a pleasurable and nostalgic wine. Could easily use another 5 years.

UPDATE: Night 2, the depth of fruit is more prominent and is silencing the peppery alcohol a bit. Upping score from 8.9 to 9.0.
— 8 months ago

Daniel, Ming and 13 others liked this