Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.6

Every major holiday demands a celebratory wine. This Saturday Labor Day weekend, it’s a 1986 Leoville Las Cases.

The other weekend, we had Ribcap’s with a good Bordeaux & Napa Cabernet but, it was not what I was looking for with an Allen Brothers Ribcap. Allen Brothers steaks are the top 1% of beef in the country.

This 86 Leoville Las Cases started slow but, in short order excelled. The cork (not from my storage) made me hesitate to an extended decant. Even with the Durand corkscrew, it was a little tricky to remove the cork. However, the wine was still sound.

My favorite pairing is a Ribcap & an old Bordeaux. For me, no meal is slower or better. I grew up the youngest in a family of seven...raised by a single mother. My father passed away while I was four months conceived. So, we ate fast and fought for every scrap.

The nose reveals classic Bordeaux notes & style. Ripe, funky barnyard fruits of; cooked; blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, strawberries, black plum, dark cherries, slight dry cranberries, pomegranate, blueberries & rhubarb. Steeped tea, cola/red licorice, anise, golden brown to slightly burnt pie crust, dark, rich, turned earth, dry stones, limestone, cedar notes, old tobacco, underbrush, graphite, dry crushed rocks, dry top soil, bay leaf, hints of eucalyptus/mint, old, soft leather, touch of mushrooms, just a hint of band-aid/va, with bright, fresh & withering; dark, red, blue, purple flowers framed is soft violets.

The palate is; smooth, elegant, ripe and juicy. The 86 still shows some baby, slightly tarry & teethe tannins. The structure, tension, balance and length are incredible. This 86 has years of life ahead of it if you enjoy them at this age and older as I do. Ripe, funky barnyard fruits of; cooked; blackberries, dark cherries, black, strawberries, black plum, dark cherries, slight dry cranberries, pomegranate, blueberries, faint raspberries notes, & rhubarb. Steeped tea, cola/red licorice, anise, golden brown to slightly burnt pie crust, crispy toast, dark, rich, turned earth, dry river stones, charcoal w/ ash, limestone/sandstone, dry clay, cedar notes, old tobacco with ash, underbrush, graphite, dry crushed rocks, dry top soil, bay leaf, some vegetal characteristics, hints of eucalyptus/mint, old, soft leather, touch of mushrooms, used expresso grounds, dark chocolate, caramel, mocha powder, hints of band-aid/va, with bright, fresh & withering; dark, red, blue, purple flowers framed is soft violets. The acidity is a gentle rain shower and perfect. The long finish defines elegance, balance in fruit & earth, well knitted and goes on for several minutes in perfect harmony ending with dry earth & juiciness over the top.

What a treat it is to drink Bordeaux of this age & older. I love the style of 80’s Bordeaux and really appreciate the 12-13% ABV of that decade. Wish that never changed.

Not sure this makes it to 2060 but, there is still plenty of life in it. Don’t be afraid to decant it 1-2 hours without question on well stored bottles.

Photos of; Chateau Leoville Las Cases, old large wood vats, their archway you see as you enter the property from the D2 & staff working their Estate vines. — 5 years ago

Patrick Derdeyn

9.2

Another last of its kind wine as the San Mateo moved to Alesia label after this vintage. This young blend is really singing right now with bright red fruit and cedar spice and well balanced acidity. A candidate for short term aging, but the freshness of the fruit really shines now. — 6 years ago

WC Fields

9.3

Young and delicious. Happy I opened. Thankful. Life is too short to drink bad wine or to wait for good wine that is great today. Be thankful and love your cellar for the enjoyment it gives now, not in 20 years. — 6 years ago

Michał Ptaszek

9.0

After oly, 17 mile bike ride and a short run! — 7 years ago

Sean Lyons

9.0

Lovely highland single malt. Just a bit of sweetness in the form of caramel. No sourness. Smoke is mild and pleasant. The finish is just a bit too simple and short for my liking. — 8 years ago

Ruben

9.0

Best served chilled ,very fresh ,loved the floral notes. is great on its own best and consumed within a short time frame. — 8 years ago

Joseph LaPanna

8.9

Ruby in color. The nose had hints of cherries, rhubarb and hint of barnyard. Medium bodied with sweet cherries, black raspberries and ripe plum. The finish was a bit short but laced with bitters and black pepper. — 5 years ago

Kirsten Christiansen

9.3

Aromas: fresh cut grass and pink grapefruit. Tastes: citrus, grass, and almost ripe peaches. Clean, short finish. — 6 years ago

Jay Kline

9.2

The results are in and I’m happy to share that the 2015 McHenry is a banger; a fabulous effort by this tiny producer. Some VA on the nose but it’s perfectly charming. A darker core of fruit but more like compote, falling well short of stewed. Some pine tree and leather. Fantastic acid. Maybe a touch hot but that’s hardly taking anything away from this. Delicious with food and over time, seemed to take on some similar characteristics to the 1995 LdH Gran Reserva that we drank after. — 6 years ago

"Odedi"

9.1

Dark ruby in color with a short reddish rim.

Fruity nose with cherries, plums, blueberries, black currants, vanilla, spices, cedar, earth, light vegetables, chocolates, mocha, tobacco, peppercorn and light alcohol.

Full-bodied and bold with medium plus acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with black currants, blueberries, cherries, raspberries, leather, smoke, vegetables, vanilla, earth, tobacco, cola, oak, herbs, spices, dark chocolates, vinaigrette and peppercorn. Very nice complexity.

Medium plus on the finish with soft tannins and tangy cranberries.

This is a very enjoyable Petit Verdot from California. Brings in a great mouthfeel with nice complexity and the tangy finish makes it interesting.

Has a lot of alcohol so watch out as it is very easy drinking.

Needs 30 minutes of airtime to open up properly and remove some of the acidity. Will age nicely in the next 5 years.

Good by itself or with food. I paired it with cheeses, nuts and olives.

14.8% alcohol by volume.

91 points.

$38. — 6 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

When it comes to my B-day, there is only one fit, an old Pichon Lalande with my Ribeye. As a lover of Bordeaux, these two are my favorite pairing. It’s a very slow walk to the finishline. A small bite of steak and a sip of 89 Pichon Lalande. Then, repeat until finished. I had some concerns about this bottle. A slightly slippery and crumbling cork. The first sip was not bad, but not what you want or are expecting. After some time in the decanter, it really started to shine. On the nose; ripe, ruby, floral cassis, blackberries, dark sweet & sour cherries, baked strawberries, blue fruit hues, dry cranberries, baked rhubarb, saddlewood, soft, used leather, bay leaf, touch of sage, hint of spearmint, eucalyptus, vanilla, cinnamon, crushed dry crushed rock powder, black turned earth, dry brown soil with clay, tobacco leaf and perfumed red florals with violets. The body is full, round and silky. Tannins are well resolved at around 80%. The texture, length, tension and length are in a sweet spot. The fruits are ripe, ruby & expressively floral. Blackberries, dark sweet & sour cherries, baked strawberries, blue fruit hues, dry cranberries, baked rhubarb, saddlewood, soft, used leather, bay leaf, touch of sage, hint of spearmint, eucalyptus, vanilla, cinnamon, crushed dry crushed rock powder, black turned earth, dry brown soil with clay, scorched earth, tobacco leaf and perfumed red florals with violets. The acidity is just a little off but still nice. The finish is divided nearly equally in fruit, earth, florals and herbaceous. It’s very enjoyable but falls just a little short in longer, lingering length. This bottle had good storage, not great. Even so, still has another three to five years ahead. A bottle with excellent storage has another five years beyond this one. Photos of; the backside of Pichon Lalande, angled terrace view of their vines right next to Latour, my steak & twice baked potato (so good) and CEO Nicolas Glumineau. — 7 years ago

Jon Fine

9.3

One of the better California chardonnays I've ever had. Which is definitely "tallest short person" territory, but this was grand and complex and subtle--really great. — 8 years ago

Marcelo

9.0

Fruity, apple scent, fresh and smooth wine. Easy to drink. — 8 years ago

Joelle Peach

9.0

Well balanced. Plums. Blueberries. Vanilla on the finish. Excellent pairing with beef short ribs. — 5 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.6

Happy Valentines Day!

If you have not looked for this wine on WineSearcher.com or other, you should. Dan Standish has no American Importer. However, you can mail order off his list. Good luck with the Australian/United States import costs. Very prohibited.

Most quality Barossa wines take 15 years in bottle to show their ultimate beauty. Dan’s wines are no different. His Estate vines are 100 years old and produce 500 pounds of fruit per acre...very concentrated. Contrast that to extremely expensive & high quality Napa fruit, those Napa producers are at 2,000-2,500 pounds per acre.

We visited Standish in April 2017. We found Dan to be extremely talented & definitely marches to his own drum. He is salt of the earth and has traveled & worked in many of the world wine regions honing his craft and landing as Torbreck’s Winemaker in Barossa before starting, “The Standish Wine Company.”

As good as the 04 is tonight, it has 15 years of good life ahead...properly stored of course.

The nose is very intoxicating. It is a nice blend of purple, black & blue fruits. Mulberries, olallieberries, boysenberries, black plums, plums, blackberries, dark cherries, deeply extracted raspberries, some baked strawberries, black licorice to anise, dark fruit cola, black olive skin, medium dark spice, black pepper, charcoal, graphite, dry tobacco & underbrush, some bay leaf, alluvial soils, grey volcanic minerals/limestone with fresh & only slightly withering, purple, dark, blue florals framed in violets & lavender.

The body is full, rich, ripe, lush and creamy on the palate after a two-hour plus decant. The structure, tension, length and balance are a little short of its peak and will hold there for 5-8 years. It’s a glorious glide on the palate. The fruits are ripe & lightly baked. Mulberries, olallieberries, boysenberries, black plums, plums, blackberries, dark cherries, deeply extracted raspberries, some baked strawberries, cherry kirsch, red & black licorice to anise, dark fruit cola, black olive skin, the dark spices are heavier on the palate & bring just the right amount of heat, sweet, dark tarriness, black pepper, used, dark expresso roast grounds, charcoal, graphite, dry tobacco & underbrush, some bay leaf, alluvial soils, grey volcanic minerals/limestone, moist clay, with fresh & only slightly withering, purple, dark, blue florals framed in violets & lavender. The acidity is round, flush & perfect. The long finish is a unique even balance of; lush fruits, spice, herbs and earth that persists on the palate for minutes.

Photo on the left of Sofia’s 2 dozen long stems. Love you so much!

@Oswald — 5 years ago

Erica Smith

8.9

Had the 2003 for Christmas dinner. From magnum. It was beautiful though perhaps past its prime. Velvety and full, the finish was short and thin. Smelled beautifully of leather and tobacco and black brambly fruit. — 6 years ago

Paul J

9.2

Nose of tar and marijuana! Palate features cigarettes, mild fruit, and subtle spice. Short finish. Wine seems off versus other bottles. It's also hard following the 2009 Inglenook Cab. Not bad by any means, but not the wine I rated so high in the past. — 7 years ago

with Brooke

Patrick McKee

9.2

Murky medium garnet with thin orange rim. Fresh blackberry, bay leaf and licorice, band-aid, VA. High alcohol balanced by intense bitterness on finish, some powdery tannin, medium minus acid. Slightest spritz? Citrus peel in mouth. Surprisingly light body and short finish. 14.2%. Day 2: more complex nose, raspberry jam, dried flower, maybe butterscotch. — 7 years ago

with Kim

Mark Morgan

9.0

Complex and drinking well -- just needed a short decant — 8 years ago

Flavio Menezes

8.9

Pretty but well below what I expected. Simple, aromatic but lacks a bit of acidity and mid-palate and finish is relatively short. Perhaps a less than perfect bottle or just young vines... — 8 years ago