Score
Marcassin
Marcassin Vineyard Pinot Noir 2012
1 hour decant (some cloudy sediment). A murky medium dark garnet color. On the nose: strawberry, funky forest floor, mushroom, cinnamon, and caramel. Taste: strawberry, spice, pencil lead, minerals...leading to a raspberry medium plus finish. A soft, creamy, medium to full body wine with tannins starting to integrate but not fully resolved yet...give this some more time...a better score should evolve over time!!
Patiently (not really) waiting for the 2013 chard and pinot release — 5 years ago
Hubert Lamy
Les Frionnes Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Chardonnay 2014
If you like your white burgundy crisp fresh and mineral this is your wine. Lovely minerality with crushed stones , citrus and lime. Medium body, crisp and fresh with an elegant finish. My score 89, drink to 2023 — 6 years ago
Marchesi Antinori
Tignanello Toscana Super Tuscan Blend 2010
A delicious super Toscana from the lovely
2010 vintage, a tempting deep red color almost black, multi layered nose, rich and complex that offers a nice blend of black berries, plum, black cherries, blackcurrant ,cedar , earthy notes with a touch of vanilla, coffee and dark chocolate. The wine is full bodied and needs time to open up, the acidity is pleasant and the finish is long and chewy. My score 90. Drink to 2024 — 6 years ago
Château La Tour de Mons
Margaux Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2005
My last #wine bottle of this lovely #Margaux from the superb 2005 vintage. This beauty is at its peak, lovely balanced, with a nice blend of earth, coffee, oak, plum , blackberry, chocolate tobacco, cedar, dark fruit, blackcurrant graphite, pepper , savory, medium to full body with Nicky integrated tannins and a pleasant finish. My score 90, drink to 2020 — 6 years ago
Château Pavie Macquin
Saint-Émilion Red Bordeaux Blend 2010
Spectacular wine truly enjoyed, surprising that it was already accessible, lovely rich complex nose, lots of black fruits and chocolate, multi layered and complex, full body, rich round tannins, lots of depth, great balance and elegance with a good spice of power, a bit like a fist in a velvet glove;-) long long delicious finish. A must try and a great expression of the delicious 2010 vintage. My score 93, drink to 2032 — 8 years ago
Morlet Family Vineyards
Passionnément Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2012
15% alc.
Lots of (French) oak on both the nose and palate.
I could see this score high with certain critics based on the sheer size but I found it somewhat out of balance and have doubts it will ever "find its feet".
Still a VERY good wine but given the pedigree (and price point) I was expecting a bit more. — 8 years ago
Joseph Phelps Vineyards
Insignia Estate Grown Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2005
Been awhile since I pulled out an Insigna.
The 03 Pichon Lalande is the better wine and steak pairing. However, Napa Cabernet is the choice to finish steak and enjoy on its own after. You never want to do Napa before Bordeaux IMHO. It’s much harder to adjust from sweeter to something more earthy.
Enjoyed the 05 as my score reflects. I don’t remember it being as sweet as it was in previous tastings. Still quite good. It just tipped my sweet scale a little too much.
The body is, rich, lush & round. It’s achieved good evolution after 13 years in bottle and will continue to improve over the next 6-8 years and last another 15 years. As I mentioned, the fruit was ripe & sweet. Blackberries, black plum, black raspberries, plums, hints of blueberries and strawberries haunting the backend. Rich, dark earth, Rutherford dusty tannins and dry soils, purple cola, touch of fresh tobacco & graphite, light baking spices of; cinnamon, dash of clove, nutmeg and vanillin, anise to black licorice, saddle-wood, used leather, dry stems, some dry, crushed rocks/limestone with red, dark, purple and blue florals. The acidity round and nicely executed. The finish was similar wire to wire. It’s, lush, rich, elegant, touch too sweet, polished, well balanced & knitted with a soft, persistent, dark spice on the long set. Very enjoyable second bottle.
Photos of; Joseph Phelps Winery & sloping estate vines, inside lounge are with views of the back side, tasting terrace and front lobby/salon area upon entering past check in. — 5 years ago
Château Le Tertre Rôteboeuf
Saint-Émilion Red Bordeaux Blend 2015
The 2015 Tertre-Rôteboeuf has a sumptuous, decadent and multi-layered bouquet with
billowing black cherries, blueberry, crème de cassis and violet aromas that are hedonistic and irresistible. The palate is full-bodied with a lot of extraction: chocolate-tinged black fruit, sweet and candied with veins of peppermint toward the no-holds barred finish. A powerhouse of a Saint Émilion, I was initially prudent with my score but the manner in which it coalesces in the glass is convincing. Tasted blind at the Southwold 2015 Bordeaux tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2019) — 6 years ago
Chateau Grand Barrail Lamarzelle Figeac
Saint-Émilion Red Bordeaux Blend 2009
The #Bordeaux 2009 vintage was legendary and this lovely Saint Emilion is another example. Not a big wine, yet delicious, elegant and complex, lovely notes of : oak , tobacco ,plum , cherry cedar wood, cassis, minerals, pencil shavings, graphite, mint and bell pepper, medium to full body with lovely tannins and an elegant finish. Starting to show its full potential. My score 90, drink to 2023 — 6 years ago
Château L'Eglise-Clinet
Pomerol Red Bordeaux Blend 2014
The 2014 L’Eglise-Clinet has a gentle, understated bouquet at first that takes time to open, eventually offering black fruit, melted tar, truffle and bay leaf aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannin, rather masculine and thickset at the moment, lightly spiced towards the finish. Much like the Vieux-Château-Certan, this is a little awkward in a blind setting however, it clearly meliorates in the glass and I keep on having to up my score. Tasted blind at the annual Southwold tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, March 2018) — 7 years ago
Château Cos d'Estournel
Saint-Estèphe Red Bordeaux Blend 2008
Another visit to this lovely wine and another confirmation that 2008 was a great vintage and most probably one of the best value vintages in the last decade in Bordeaux. The wine is rich, round, elegant and smooth, already ready for drinking, with earthy notes, coffee, black current, wild berries, full round body, lovely tannins, elegant long finish. A pleasure. My score 91, drink to 2025 — 8 years ago
Duckhorn Vineyards
Napa Valley Merlot 2016
This is great, really dark and powerful with a wide range of flavours on the palate and a nice rich nose. Plenty of dark fruit, plum, vanilla, coffee and candied spice. Long smokey and fragrant finish with smooth tannins. Very enjoyable merlot, would definitely have this again. If there was a 9.25 that would be my score. — 5 years ago
Château Malescot St. Exupéry
Margaux Red Bordeaux Blend 2004
Lovely classic Bordeaux from Margaux (Ch Malescot St Exupery) a Grand Cru from the underrated 2004 vintage, lovely balanced and at its peak. Nothing great or amazing yet a very solid and elegant Bordeaux with notes of coffee, black current, prunes, earth, tobacco, tar and dry herbs. Medium to full body, with nice well integrated tannins and fine acidity. Pleasant finish. The wine is at its peak and I would not wait much more. My score 89, drink to 2020 — 6 years ago
Château Pichon-Longueville Baron
Baron de Pichon-Longueville Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 2011
Visiting again this splendid Paulliac from the 2011 vintage. 2011 vintage was labeled as mediocre in Bordeaux and this lovely wine showed that it is actually a classic vintage with some great wines, so trust the chateau not only the vintage. The nose is tempting with notes if coffee, earth, oak, cassis, black fruits and hints of chocolate, the body is full with round tannins, acidity is splendid and finish is long. My score 92, drink to 2026, perhaps longer — 6 years ago
Château La Mission Haut-Brion
La Chapelle de la Mission Haut-Brion Pessac-Léognan Red Bordeaux Blend 2008
The second label of Chateau La Mission Haut Brion. A lovely elegant and appealing blend of 56% CS, 39% Merlot, and 5% CF. Delicious and still young, another great example of the nice surprises that the 2008 vintage had to deliver. Full of cassis, earth, chocolate, cedar wood, full body, rich, firm tannins, fruity complex finish. My score 90, drink to 2025 — 7 years ago
Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste
Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 2000
Nice nose. Black currants and tree bark. Finish deprives it of a higher score. — 8 years ago
Long Shadows Vintners
Pirouette Columbia Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2014
A Bordeaux blend. Spends 22 months in 70% new 400 liter oak barrels. Nose of fragrant floral fruits of; blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, black plum. Licorice, anise, dark chocolate and fresh, dark florals. The fruits are ripe and fresh and match the nose. Black licorice, tarry notes, loamy soils, moist dark soil, lead pencil, cedar, tobacco, underbrush, great acidity and a beautiful long finish. The structure is better as is the tension and length. This bottle needs 8-10 years in bottle for a higher score but for many hard not to dry young. Photos of the view from the Long Shadows patio, another one of the glass blown floor lamps and a concrete fermentation egg...interestingly in an inverted shape I hadn't seen before, no real difference in effect. — 8 years ago
Timothy Lynch
Solidly good....and that’s as far as I can take it. (It’s not gathering character going forward so perhaps drinking earlier may have produced a higher score...that’s my guess.) — 5 years ago