Neil Valenzuela

9.0

Deep ruby color. Aromas of black cherry, cigar box and baking spices. Black fruit juices, tobacco and black tea finish. High tannins, loads of sediment. Make your teeth purple. — 4 years ago

Jeremy Shanker

Sommelier at RN74

9.1

Old school style of CDP. Reminds me of Burgundy. — 5 years ago

Skip Smyser

9.2

Best of the Zion’s here — 5 years ago

Frank Chen

9.3

Only 2nd example of Cote route I’ve had...enticing baked fruit notes...solid concentration dark/red fruit green shah driven herbs and old school meaty undertone ...I need more!! Extremely well balanced — 6 years ago

Hernan Hernandez

9.0

Really good Zin. Went perfect with grilled food. — 7 years ago

Colin Nuckolls

9.4

Prototypical old school cote rotie. Drinking well. — 8 years ago

Hendy

9.5

Old school Napa Cab at its best in the hand of Steve Matthiasson. — 8 years ago

Ron Siegel

9.2

Classic old school style of Las Cases that is fully mature showing red & black fruits, currant, cedar, leather, dried herbs & tobacco. Not the power or length of the 82 & 86 but very enjoyable. — 4 years ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.5

So damn good. There is so much elite wine in St. Joseph. Nose is stunning, layered and complex. Like if Sozet made St. Joseph. Olive, gamey meats, mint, dead fresh leaves. Red and black berry fruit. So complex. Deep and ethereal. Amazing fruit intensity. Lipstick like intensity. Palate is masterful. Gorgeous purity, texture and balance. So so juicy and terrific finesse. Just so loosey goosey on the palate. So juicy. Wow. Awesome velvety tannins. Showing youthful, accessible exuberance. Just so good. To be classic, old school, playful and accessible is something. So so precise. This always gets better with air. 9.5 for now. As this airs it gets more structured and the tannins become more prominent but so does the freshness. Concentrated and so so sappy. — 4 years ago

Dawn E.

9.2

This wine is really nice and represents more of an "old school" style of CS. Dark berry fruit is present but not the star! Earth and minerals mingle nicely...pencil lead..eucalyptus..leather..
Cola..Bakers chocolate..oak.& cherry compote!
90 min decant. — 5 years ago

Spencer Spetnagel

9.3

Dark fruit spectrum. Herbal and spice. Earth is developing nicely. Lively acidity and velvet tannins provide a lush and generous finish. — 7 years ago

Robert Rothfield

9.4

Beautiful old school cab.....perfectly balanced, velvety smooth — 7 years ago

Tom Casagrande

9.0

Old school! Nose is SweeTart cherry, dry gravel, and a dried floral note. Lean and crisp in the mouth, so cleansing with food. Long pure clingy finish.

Fuck McConnell, the Human Turtle. — 8 years ago

David Nicewicz

9.3

Birth year Bordeaux and this has been excellent. Very old school nose of copious tobacco, forest floor and dark berries. Medium bodied but gaining intensity over the course of 2 h - tannins completely melted. Bricking is apparent on first pour but the color grows darker with time. Perfect bottle that is a little past it’s prime but fun to step back in time. — 4 years ago

Doug Griffin

9.2

Old school in style with some age on it. Cassis, oak, dusty and some green pepper. — 5 years ago

Dan R

8.9

One of the best BDX QPR killers, never disappoints. The 2012 isn't quite there yet, quite linear and still tight, but the cassis / blackberry backbone is there, as well as an herbal scrub midpalate and pencil lead finish. Maybe not the deepest or broadest vintage, but quite enjoyable nonetheless, and at less than €20, tough to find a better true expression of old school BDX. Give it a year or two before checking back in, this won't have the legs of a classic vintage, but should provide great pleasure relatively soon. — 5 years ago

Jo Anne B

9.2

It’s been so long I forgot how good this is. Also great at continuing to numb the tattoo pain in your leg. 🔪💉🔪💉 — 6 years ago

Ron Siegel

9.3

Old school styled Bordeaux that is lighter in weight & has a silky texture showing black fruits, earth, cedar, dried herbs, licorice, mineral, graphite & cigar ash. — 7 years ago

Pinotman /// Andreas

9.4

Stunning 90% Sangiovese! Not a super tuscan like many other reviews tell you! This is an awesome old school producer who bailed out of the Italian system. Hence he cannot call his wines Chianti. Very elegant and plenty of cherry 🍒 notes left. To bad it cost so much. From Max Kogod in North San Diego county. — 8 years ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.3

Old school...talk about label wear!

"1989...the number, another summer...get down...
Sound of the funky drummer!"

Still in the driver seat, this is gorgeous and yes it's old but the wine blossomed after 30 minutes and now at 2 hours open its singing and going strong.

1989 Joseph Phelps "Insignia", Napa Valley

Ruby-garnet edges, a deep core of red color.

The nose started out super funky, but blew off to a nose of mature cedar, forest floor, dried red cherry and cassis. The palate is old, but like the nose gained strength with air, it gained depth and concentration. Mulled spices, red fruits, plum, cedar and red fruit skin.
#josephphelps #insignia #napavalley — 8 years ago