

Fantastic 95 Super Tuscan. Nose had hints of vanilla, soft earth a light spice. On open was smooth if a touch flat then after 45 minutes it opened to let dark fruit notes of blackberries and cassis come out. Sublime. — 10 years ago
Unique / Bordeaux style wine. Needs time to open and despite the age, would improve with decanting this wine. Old world nose, well balanced on mid palate with forest notes and wild berries. Medium finish — 10 years ago
Needed about 2.5 hours in decanter to open up. Could use more time in bottle. A classic big, bold, chewy California Cab. — 11 years ago
Big quality fruit bomb - 2006 - drinking softly now, open 2 hours. Would like to see if the fruit resolves over the next few years. — 11 years ago
No formal notes . Medium deep ruby . This seems a bit more advanced . This is a bit harder and more structured on the palate , more tannin , less velvety and a bit more astringent . More spicy , drier on the palate . This needed more time to open . This was quite difficult to judge , I wasn’t 100% convinced about this bottle as it just seemed a little oxidative, however it did actually seemed to come together better after an hour or so , but still quite hard and astringent in comparison to the others (especially La Mission) . Showed a touch more mineral and grafite on the finish too after a while. This needed time , and I would imagine another bottle might tell a different story . — a year ago
2003 vintage. Decently respectable Pauillac nose. Solid color still. Wine open for three hours. Leanest body I've ever had with a P-L and lacking the complexity usually associated with this wine. Tight and not giving up much at the 3 hr mark. Nice but disappointing given the producer/vintage combo. Wish I'd had 6 hrs to wait hand and foot on this...perhaps it would have totally revealed the expected P-L charms by then. — 4 years ago
Dark inky black almost. Black fruit. First bottle of the Howell Mtn in a while. Just a quick open bottle decant, drinking incredible. Super smooth fine tannins. Lovely balance of ripe black fruit, black cherry. Toblerone. Great mouthfeel and lovely finish. The ‘14s are starting to hit their stride. Really good. — 4 years ago
Violets and peppercorns on the nose, it needs some air to open up, dark wood and some earth on the background. — 9 years ago
This cannot be cold. This time left out for 3 hours and 1 hour open and it is spectacular. — 9 years ago
Grand cru raveneau is awesome and I'm fortunate to try this. 2003 was a hit ripe year in burgundy and most producers made wine that was too over the top. There is a ton of lees contact and the wine took three hours to open. For raveneau virgins.... You can't pop and poor this wine. Ok back on target... Glorious meyer lemon and minerality with classic only raveneau can mimic. This is amazing soulful wine. — 10 years ago
2004 vintage from Clape. Deep ruby hue. Violet and floral, very plummy - dark fruits. Hints of sweet spice, nutmeg and cardoman, smokey notes. On the palate, medium plus body, high acidity - integrated and refreshing. Medium plus, plush and ripe tannins. Long finish. The plums to the fore. Still quite primary and youthful. Should develop nicely over the next 15 years. Open in 2025. — 11 years ago
This bottle of 1976 Chateau Lafite Rothschild was cellared in a wine cave part of its life and a modern cellar the more recent part of its life. The fill for this bottle was mid-shoulder and the label had been tattered from back when it was in the cave. Using a Durand, I was able to pull the cork intact and it was saturated but seemed to have done its job. The color was good and the wine was sound; in fact, it was very much alive and full of character! Opened about four hours prior to service and decanted for sediment (of which there was plenty). No formal notes. At this stage in its life, the 1976 Lafite pours a garnet color with an orange rim. The nose is straight up old-money. Classy aromas of desiccated red cherries & red currants, dried tobacco leaf, graphite, a mix of organic and inorganic earth, leather and dried baking spices. On the palate, the structure was still quite palpable with tannins till present and acid doing its job with aplomb. Confirming the notes on the nose. The finish is long and graceful with some nice stoney minerals. Drink now but well cellared examples could hold longer if you wanted…but if you’re even thinking about it, just open it! — 3 years ago
Wife wanted date night. Pulled this. Not great, very good. Needed a short time to open up. — 4 years ago
Having had the coveted 2005 vintage just a few months ago, ‘04 is far more open and rewarding today. So seductive and captivating. Smoked meats, black fruits, balsamic glaze and hints of roasted sage leaves and tobacco. The tannins are integrated beautifully and the finish shows wonderful finesse, elegance and length. Gorgeous now but will continue to improve over the next 8-10 years. — 6 years ago
A fantastic pairing with grilled rib eye! Needs time to open up... 2009 vintage - opened on April 1, 2018 — 8 years ago
Just enough fizz to open it without a corkscrew. Hint of almond and green, still holding a good amount of acid. — 9 years ago
I bought a case of this delicious Barolo a while ago and am delighted every time I open a bottle. Texturally this is a wonderfully attractive wine. Both ripe and floral, it lingers powerfully and yet with lightness. One of two Vietti wines enjoyed at Antique Garage's original location is Soho (having enjoyed some haloumi the week prior at the new location, I was back for more). — 9 years ago
Very powerful, extracted. Will still improve, as it took over an hour to open up. Good with food, but I clearly see why I drink less and less Bordeaux. — 10 years ago
Very expressive after about one hour open. Classic Chinon aromas with stuffing on the palate. Very pure, some perfectly ripe bing cherry and pleasant earth notes. (Need roast chicken now!) — 11 years ago
Alexander Valley 1984. Brown brick red, still enough tannin for another 5-10 yrs. Beautiful cedary dust and fruit. Needed 1 - 1 1/2 hrs to open up. Harmonious, medium build. — 11 years ago
1947. Can't actually believe I have rated this in my lifetime. Although it had a significant amount of leakage and oxidisation, it was still bright, still had bags of fruit, tannins, acidity. What am incredibly generous wine to open to celebrate our new little company. Thx guys xxx — 12 years ago
Andrew Cullimore
Pretty deep garnet ruby , garnet rim . This is pretty open and aromatic, with smoky creme de cassis , grafite , blackberry and cedar , light herbal touches , really quite classic and noble . On the palate this has good balance and density , good freshness also . Ripe , very fine but perceptible tannins . Dark fruits , grafite , tobacco , long and detailed slightly mineral notes on the good length finish . Really elegant , though quite serious and traditional, not easy to pull off. This is drinking perfectly now (Coravin might have helped here , I would certainly decant if I had a full bottle) , though still quite fruit driven with some tertiary complexity coming through . Really harmonious and complex . From now and over the next 15 years, maybe more . At Doppo Restaurant, Soho . — a year ago