Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

Happy Spring! It’s one of our favorite points in the year. More; daylight, a little warmer in CA and everything starts to bloom which, means a long summer of gardening and being outdoors every day/night is not far off.

Since it was such a great day and basically most Californians are shut-Ins, the voluntary self quarantining was getting to me. I did the landscaping and got an afternoon of fresh air today. A breath of fresh air...ahhh! Wow, was it needed after Gavin’s Newsom’s estimate of 25.5 million Californians would be infected with Coronavirus over 8 weeks yesterday.

So, a good night to celebrate another day of being virus free with my 2nd favorite N/V Rosé Champagne.

All my numerous previous notes apply.

Stay safe everyone and remember the new terminology of the new decade...social distancing! Cheers! 🍾🥂

Photos of; Spring in our backyard & a Billecart Grand Cru Vineyard.

— 5 years ago

M. Christopher Roebuck

8.9

Single vineyard pinot noir from Coastal California. Very deep purple for the grape. Viscous. Medium plus bodied. Perfume, floral nose notes but to me they are a bit overrun by oak. Belle Glos website says that this wine boasts bright acidity, but I would disagree. In the palate there is a ton of red fruit, almost candy, and very little acidity. Some residual sugar, and low to medium tannins. This is a good wine, but an odd Pinot. To me, it's almost like someone delivered Pinot Noir grapes to Ravenswood for processing as a Zinfandel.

PS it's giving me a headache.

DAY2 UPDATE: So I don't throw out wine, I'm giving it another whirl tonight. Done with dinner. If I wasn't on the Keto diet I'd slam this with a big 2 slices of cheesecake and I bet it would be perfect. The point is-- besides the fact that I miss cheesecake--this is a way over the top Pinot Noir, residual sugar and it's still at 14.6% abv!!! I'm adding the plus because I believe this was made with purpose, just not what I'm looking for.

89+ points — 6 years ago

Chris England

9.3

Magnum for £70 - great buy 😉

The 904 always hits the spot on quality to value but out of the magnum I thought the 05 had more depth 👍

Alas we killed 8 bottles last night between 4 of us so notes not taken 🤣

It had a typical oaky, smokey, balsamic spiced cherry & vanilla nose with a med creamy cherry balsamic smooth body & a long finish of the same 😁 — 7 years ago

Matt Perlman

9.6

Happy place. All the Burgundy and Nebbiolo comparisons are apt, but this has a feral quality, a sense of animalistic earthiness that walks the line between elegance and wildness like nothing else I've experienced. I drink one of these almost every year for my birthday and lucky enough so far not to have experienced the bottle variation others have. (This one had a 2012 cork). Eventually they will run out of these library releases and I will be 🙁 — 8 years ago

with Steven

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

On the nose, warm, leaner, stewed fruits of; blackberries, dark cherries, spiced plum, poached strawberries, black raspberries, cherries, black licorice anise, spice-box, cigar, vanilla, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, rich dark loamy soils & fresh/dry dark florals. The palate is lean, well resolved tannins, heated, darker spice-box, blackberries, dark cherries, spiced plum, poached strawberries, black raspberries, cherries, black licorice anise, cola, spice-box, cigar, vanilla, cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, caramel, dark chocolate, mocha, rich dark loamy soils & fresh/dry dark florals. Acidity pours over the palate. The finish is smooth, lean, pure elegant fruit with spice. It's lasts over a minute. The 94 is just starting to trend down but still the best vintage of Caymus Special Select I can remember. So if you own, time to enjoy it over the next two years. Enjoyed this at a private dinner/tasting at the Ritz Carlton Half Moon Bay a number of years ago with Chuck and his son Joseph who makes the Bella Clos. Brings me right back to the fire pit closing out the night with this wine & the great group of clients we entertained. First time tasting this vintage with my wife Sofia. Photos of; the Special Select vineyard, estate grounds, beautiful Caymus fruit and the legendary Chuck Wagner-Owner & Winemaker. Another recent pristine bottle from my friend Alex @ "No Limit Wines." — 8 years ago

Alex Slutzky

9.0

$13
BEST WINE SO FAR 2/12/16 — 9 years ago

Jordan Cools

10

So good. Probably my favorite Cabernet so far. — 10 years ago

Kara Rose Kalivoda

10

Outstanding! Intense berries and a hint of chocolate. So smooth with amazing legs! — 10 years ago

Maddy Jimerson

9.6

Fennel, spearmint, cheese cloth, chocolate and rich berries. Completely changed after a couple hours. Worth the wait :) So good with the VT creamery aged goat cheese which brought out the earthiness funk. — 10 years ago

Jenna Congdon

Sales Wine Wise/The Vienna Wine Co.

10

fave pink of the season so far — 11 years ago

Daniel P. Drake

9.5

Christmas-Eve we had family over so it was time to enjoy some nice wine. Out of my wine room I started us out with this gem the 2008 Château Pontet-Canet a beautiful expression of Pauillac on the Left Bank. Totally a reason why I have come to love Bordeaux.

On the nose there is black cherry, red raspberry, black currant, licorice, chocolate, some pencil lead and earth.

The palate is still very expressive with black cherry, raspberry, black currant, green bell pepper, graphite, soft oak notes, cassis and earth.

This is a medium to full bodied wine with a smooth velvety mouthfeel, medium + acidity and medium + polished smooth tannins that lead right into a long dark fruit finish. What a lovely wine this is from the 2008 vintage. Happy Holidays to everyone, enjoy your time off with loved ones and stay safe. Nostrovia! 🍷🍷🍷🍷 — 6 years ago

Shay A

9.2

BBQ & Zin night!

This was served too warm for my liking, especially alongside the hot TX BBQ, so it was tough to get everything out of it, but it was still youthful and powerful. Mainly red and black fruits here, with some sweet oak. Not quite jammy but not quite peppery. Good balance. — 6 years ago

with Dan, Weston and 1 other

Shay A

9.4

Our monthly 4th Friday event at the storage facility. No requirements, just wine you want to share with others! Always an enjoyable time.

Special place in my heart for this winery. A few months ago, I had an '88 go celebrate my birth year. It was STELLAR. This is pushing forward easily...after an hour of air, the fruit and secondary earth and funk notes came out. So good! Thanks Walter! — 8 years ago

with Mark

Mark Grammer

9.3

Nose had some funk with leather, mineral and a hint of red liquorice. Evolved nicely with fruit coming out after an hour or so. Blackberry, blueberry were present after the earthy start. — 8 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

Of all the 14's so far, this is singing to me the best. Ripe and round juicy, leaner blackberries, dark cherries, cherries, strawberries, blackberry cola, steeped tea, soft fine minerals, roses, perfect acidity and sexy finish. — 8 years ago

Michael Horkay

9.5

I wish my name was Robert Parker.... If so this wine would be rated and sold out fetching near 200 a pop. I thought it was an 03 but it was an 01 and delicious. This wine was impeccably balanced and just now hitting drinking maturity. Nothing stood out add a dominant flavour but this wine had just enough of everything and wow this wine over delivered.... Please buy other shit and leave this stuff for me. — 9 years ago

Lewis Chester

9.5

1958 Giacomo Conterno Monfortino: from Jay. This was the Ying to the Mascarello's Yang. Lovely rich ruby colour with virtually no bricking on the edge. The nose developed over the course of 15 to 20 mins in the glass. Unlike the Mascarello that was shedding perfume from the moment it hit the glass, the Monfortino needed more air before becoming less brooding. Dark fruits on the nose. Purple plums, black cherries, some forest floor, light tobacco as well as some floral elements prevailed. The palette was a reflection of the nose so no surprises. The fruit was far from dried out and this particular bottle still had plenty of life left in it but from my recent experience this is the exception rather than the rule. I have had around 10 bottles of old Monfortino ('55 / '58 / and '61) over the last year and the bottle variation, as you would expect, is tremendous with the majority of them past their prime. The finish was strong and in keeping with the rest of the package with reasonable length and quality. Drink now. 95/100.

— 10 years ago

Jeffrey Lew

9.8

We went 2/2 tonight. This bottle was a testament to perfect storage. Cork was perfect, and the wine was dark ruby with ever so slight bricking at the rim. Awesome. More approachable than the 90 and makes you wanna curl up with it for a long time. Better than the bottle I had at the Montrose vertical a month ago. Blind I would guess 10 yrs newer. For this price point and quality it's a must add. Edged out the Margaux. — 10 years ago

Patrick Knöfler

9.7

We poured the wine into a decanter and followed its development over a couple of hours. It was dark ruby in colour and offered violet, dark berries, cherry, ripe plum, cabbage, chocolate, cocoa, espresso, spices and vanilla on the nose. On the palate the wine showed red and dark berries, cherry, blueberry, blackberry, plum, chocolate, cocoa, coffee, spices and vanilla, paired with medium to medium-plus acidity, medium-plus fine tannin and incredible length. I really loved the intriguing cocoa note that lingered for quite some time. The plush, medium-bodied wine seemed restrained and elegant despite of its ripeness. It was smooth, and balanced except for the creamy oak that became more and more pronounced as time passed. The wine was very young and might well turn into something special with mid-term cellaring, the main issue being that it already is so delicious that it might turn out to be difficult to keep one’s hands off the bottles… A great wine; 93 points for the time being. — 11 years ago

Nik Kannan

9.4

2009 - best year as told, great taste couldn’t leave it, so easy choice. Paired well mostly with out medium heavy, but can imagine it as a stand alone bottle empty need another.. lol 🔥😁 — 6 years ago

Paul T HB

9.7

I’ll stick with my last score, it’s mellowed since my last bottle. So this might not be a long distance runner just as @David L said — 6 years ago

Anthony Pro

9.0

It’s going to be good... It’s a Caymus. But man, for the price, there’s so much better out there. An abundance of fruit. Perhaps too much. The birthday boy isn’t even drinking wine...

Update: just realized this was my 100th California wine. — 6 years ago

jesus g

Hospitality Schramsberg Vineyards

9.6

I’m really beginning to see this transition where the 2013s-16s of Rhône and Burgundy are already so drinkable and showing ripe fruit. Like they are making them to drink now, this winemaking style is showing a little more fruit extraction and from what I’ve seen here in Napa, you’re sacrificing the ability to age there for the early drinkability. Hopefully I’m wrong and these are all just warmer vintages. I just wanna see these wines reach their potential 10/20 years out — 7 years ago

Carl Fischer

9.5

Renegade Wine dinner series at Rebelle NYC presented by sommelier Patrick Cappiello. Focus was on Cab Franc: 15 wines paired with 5 courses. Posting a few favorites.

This was WOTN for me. First thing I noticed - and could hardly believe - was how bright red the wine still was being 38 years old. There was some funk on the nose but a ton of fruit as well. The fruit stood out on the palate - and the wine had a brightness to it I couldn't believe. Flavors of raspberries and gravel and still had a great acidity. The somm did note that there is a lot of bottle variation. He opened the same vintage recently and it was all mushrooms and little fruit - so he felt his bottle was a little atypical. But that worked for me. Paired well with Comte. — 8 years ago

Chris England

9.9

🇬🇧 Vivino London Dinner - 01 Apr 🇬🇧

Wine 1️⃣1️⃣

d'Yquem 99 from Mami

📝 What a perfect sexual climax to a stunning meal with fab folks 😍

Mami generously brought a 75cl bottle of this god nectar to wash down the cheeses 🧀 I died & went to heaven when I had this with blue Stilton cheese 😍

I think I had more than my fair share of this silky sweet seductive love juice 😎

Too busy enjoying for notes so check out others reviews 😜

Thank you Mami for sharing this superb treat 👍😘 — 8 years ago

Jacob Robinson

9.8

One of the best I've had so far, smooth, full bodied, an favorite. — 9 years ago

Gyzylgul Soyunova

10

My favorite one so far❤️ — 10 years ago

Justin Ennis

10

This is the 1985 Napa Cab and was tasted out of 5 liter. This wine was excellent! Herbal notes with a touch of saddle. I was so surprised by how much red fruit was on the pallet with a wine this old! Amazing! — 10 years ago

Bryan Garcia

Sales Grand Cru Selections

9.2

So much 🐴🍂✏️🚬 ! Nice to have an "off vintage" in pristine condition. Far from a blockbuster but delicious, soft, and very easy to drink. #birthyear — 10 years ago

Jason Horger

9.2

Excellent even out if the bottle; better I imagine if decanted for an hour or so. Had it with a flatiron with bone marrow and a rosemary butter sauce. Stellar, chocolately, nice tannins. Better still in a few years, I imagine.
— 11 years ago