Adam Beasley

9.4

So incredibly rich and complex, this is one of the best whites I have had in a while. Jasmine, orange blossom, lemon pith, tangerine, sawdust, white pepper, and a blue cheese thing on the nose. Heavy bodied and oily in the mouth with piercing acidity and a saline finish. — 6 years ago

Severn G

9.1

Nose has dehydrated cherry, fresh raspberry, slightly smokey oak, old cedar closet, dried strawberry, over wintered mint, dried eucalyptus and dried blackberry.

Palate has delicate cherry + raspberry, semi-dried blueberry, fresh strawberry, cedar sawdust with still notable tannins.

Being hesitant, we only decanted about 20m before dinner, needs much more time in the decanter/glass, as after an hour it's finally starting to show it's worth. — 6 years ago

Jakub Kalinowski

8.9

Dark, burly and still very & surprisingly youthful. Slowly starts opening only after 2h in decanter & glass with black currant compote, green bell peppers, coffee and pencil shavings. There’s an uplifting whiff of menthol, too.
On the palate this comes across as very young, with big & chewy tannins. But what great quality these tannins have - fine as sawdust, juicy, polished. Add to this fresh acidity and good focus & precision plus nice length.
No fireworks but this is a v. nice classic Bordeaux.
Retasted after 4 years, will wait with the other bottles at least another 4. — 6 years ago

Ted

9.5

Sawdust. Weird right?? That was my first impression. Still closed a bit after opening 3 hours ago. Blueberries, coffee. Liking it — 7 years ago

with Jeni

Andrew Lohse

9.0

Dark berry fruit, some herbaceousness. Medium style with some nice acid and alcohol heat on the back end. Cedar, sawdust, light chocolate. Some oak presence. — 8 years ago

Rachel Bovard

9.5

All tertiary aromas. Hay, leather, shoe polish, sawdust and cedar, rounded out with a subtle note of still-present fresh raspberry and chalky tannin. Drinking beautifully. — 8 years ago

kasimir bujak

9.0

nose gives olive oil, garrigue, jammy plums and cherries, sawdust, a little dried mint, charcuterie...this is opulent. beautiful tightrope between rich fruit and earthy garrigue. — 9 years ago

Severn G

9.4

We recently pulled some cases out of storage, which haven't seen the light of day for nearly 15 years, so I'll have some fun posts in the next several months.

Nose has dried vanilla bean, dehydrated cherry, oak sawdust, mashed blackberry, used coffee grounds, dried strawberry and dried blueberry.

Palate has tanned leather, very dried cherry, over-ripe plum, plum skin, hardwood charcoal, dried raspberry with a mildly tannic grip remaining.

This bottle is in its sweet spot, likely will hold here (in proper storage) for another 5-8 years before decline. Don't ever count out Chilean wines for longevity!

Paired with a beautiful merlot steak from a local farmer in Columbia Co. NY (Kinderhook Farm), boiled then smashed red potatoes finished with a compound herb butter and fresh, local asparagus. I'm finally grilling, and it's barely May!

(Also a stellar pairing with dark chocolate peanut butter cups!) — 6 years ago

Tree Kilpatrick

9.2

Cool label. It’s terroir art apparently. Smells complex and strange. Blood orange peel? Sawdust from pine or fir? Flavors are strange. Pine needles and red/purple fruits. Complex and fresh even 10 years later. Licorice and fruit skins. It’s tart, chewy, woody, and inky. Deep and dense. Last long. It’s muy delicioso. — 6 years ago

Rob Pendell

9.0

Wonderful soft palate with notes of plum and blackberry. Some cherry on the front end with a hint of asphalt. Full mouthful of peach and grapefruit with undertones of almond, tobacco, pine, licorice, cardamom, red velvet, turmeric, oatmeal, cayenne, newspaper, Oreos, bicycle chain, chitlins, camembert, burnt umber, huckleberry, Ripple, plain yogurt, lemongrass, kohlrabe, anise, eggplant, kohlrabi, everything bagel, paczki, aspartame, caramel, coconut, latte, beef carpaccio, pine nuts, Wonder Bread, calamari, watermelon radish Jolly Rancher, aglet, sawdust, gnocchi and red grape. Finish is definitely Bruno Kirby. Pretty complex. — 7 years ago

Christian Gray

9.3

Lush fruit. Plum and black currant. Pipe tobacco. Multi-colored peppercorns. My gut tells me this was aged in American oak because I am finding sandalwood and/or sawdust notes. Stellar wine!! — 8 years ago

Matt Miller

9.2

Sawdust and old chalkboard on the nose. Light and subtle with the first taste then builds through the middle that is bold, but without the fresh fruit notes from new world wines. The finish has a distinct minerality that accents the age of the wine. — 8 years ago

Ryan Vento

9.3

Menthol, earth, and sawdust on the nose. On the palate plenty of rustic, old world earth and ripe red fruits with tobacco and black pepper. — 9 years ago

with Krystal

Ryan Guillen

9.1

Nose is blackberry, sawdust. Tastes tobacco, cherry, smokey, charcoal. Flavor forward and not long lasting. A good wine to drink with friends. — 9 years ago

Adam Beasley

9.1

Old vine Cinsault with a splash of Pais. This was unexpectedly awesome. Roses and bright,, dusty raspberries really jump out of the glass along with some sawdust and cherry taffy. Low tannin, med acid, and racy in the mouth. Tart, pure fruit and a rusticity that’s appealing. Cool wine. — 6 years ago

James Webb

9.6

Dsgd 12/1/17 - how does one put this wine into words... it’s sheer complexity and unrivaled structural perfection. Its nose has caramel, mahogany, citrus, berries, flowers all packed into so many layers. The wine changes with air and temperature revealing all things interesting. They attack is so well balanced, as is the entire wine. It’s a black LBD of a wine with sequins all over. Not gigantic but also fully expressive, it sits on a throne of champagne royalty. — 6 years ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

Nose is relatively mute initially. But then each aroma reveals itself. Beautiful cherry, like stunning and detailed cherry like you will not believe. Holy shit. Sawdust. Like wood shop, end of class, 8th grade sawdust. So pure. Spice. Some roses. Heavenly nose. Palate is exquisite. Amazing ripe tannins intermingled with dynamic fresh and super deep cherry fruit. Palate is elegant. No hard edges. Superb power and concentration. Dense yet lithe. Superb sap and length. Amazing build on the finish. One of those finishes when you think it ends it really is just beginning. Wow. After like 15 minutes this nose goes into overdrive. Just an insane perfume that leaps out of the glass. — 6 years ago

with Matthew

Bryce Wiatrak

9.3

The family-run Avinyó estate remains a beacon of artisan tradition for Cava wines, and their Brut Nature remains one of my favorites from their seamless portfolio. Resinous and leesy, the Xarello driven cuvée is rather giving for the Brut Nature category. Never thin or austere, the wine instead broadens on the palate to flavors of yellow apple, sawdust, pie crust, and mushroom. This is a Cava that can convert a Champagne diehard. — 8 years ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.3

This guy is like the Jacky Truchot of Alto Piemonte. Light color, yet amazing finesse and delicacy along with a brilliant texture. Gorgeous nose. Cherries, spice, sawdust, Rainer cherries as well, some lurid feral aromas as well. So complex, delicate and detailed. Palate is beautifully fruited with lovely elegant tannin and gorgeous bright cherries rule the day. Dusty elegant tannin and sappy fruit finish it off. Needs maybe 1 hour to turn into the lace monster it becomes. — 8 years ago

Eric

9.4

Props to @Ron R for gifting me this awesome bottle. Wonderfully layered and complex. Nose of blue fruit, pie crust, savory spice, and a whiff of cedar sawdust. Palate of red and blue fruit and tobacco. Mid palate trades off between sweet and tart flavors. Balanced, elegant, and refined. Needs every bit of the 3 hours of air Ron recommended. This is pro shit. Thank you so much my friend! — 9 years ago