Night 1 of the Fall WNH event in San Antonio. What a killer start to the extended weekend, all courtesy to Shawn and Jennifer for hosting! Tonight was Italian wines.
Another in the running for WOTN. Maple and rich! Cherry and vanilla tobacco on the nose with herbal spice and a strawberry tart finish. Young and acidic! There is a very underripe red fruit dominant profile here. Crazy how young it tastes for 23yrs old. Bravo @Shawn R ! — 8 years ago
Fruity and supple. Some tobacco and a touch of spice. Very accessible. What more is there to say? Consistent, a go to for the price. — 9 years ago
This was a beautiful wine that kept getting better, even with the impressive talent that was arrayed alongside it. Red berries, some olives and cedar on the nose, it opens with lovely spice notes, a layered richness that became ever more evident as it opened. The Lafite elegance was on prominent display at the mid palate, the fruit at the core of this wine has lovely perfume and still luscious appeal. This impressive wine continued to gain depth and kept blossoming as the night wore on. — 10 years ago
2000 Ridge Monte Bello Cabernet Sauvignon:
From Jay. Dark ruby red in color. A preponderance of black forest fruits on the nose mixed with cedar and some menthol and a touch of spice. Rich blackcurrant, black cherries and traces of vanilla on the palette. This is a solid effort from Ridge and although it does not have the makings of an epic wine it will certainly improve with time. Drink 2017 to 2030. 91/100
— 11 years ago
Rich...thick...wood & spice...this wine warms my toes! — 11 years ago
Great. Rich. Complex. Perfect balance of spice, fruit, and mineral. — 13 years ago
3 yrs in oak,
C: garnacha, med in
A: strawberry, spice, coffee, mocha smoke, vanillin
Aroma int high, complex aroma,
P: at med +int, smooth tannins, med + finish, good bal, — 7 years ago
Full red fruit and spice with smoke and woody honey. Smooth as silk. — 8 years ago
If there were ever an archetypical Syrah, Jamet's Cote-Rotie would be a strong candidate. To me this is a pure expression of a classic Northern Rhone Syrah. It is not a single site, but a blend of terroirs, encompassing over 20 sites mostly from hard rock schist bedrock with little to no topsoil. There is NO Viognier in this wine like one might expect from most Cote-Rotie that might have 1-5% co-fermented.
Importantly, there is also a lot less of the oak character that can dominate and overwhelm many Northern Rhone wines. The oak maturation, while not short at 22 months, only uses 15% new oak with no trace of it on the palate as it is perfectly integrated. Grape bunches are whole cluster fermented and macerated for up to 3 weeks.
The 2007 we have here was drinking superbly for a young wine, showing lively and racy layers of peppercorn spice, roast beef, and warm blackberry and currant fruit from the hot 2007 vintage. While from a warm vintage, not a hair is out of place. Density and purity exude from the nose and hint at what a brilliant future this wine has. Perfect acidity and fleshy ripe tannin provide the backbone structure for father time to peel back the layers of this beauty. I will be chceking back in 5 years at the earliest. — 9 years ago
2011: all varieties. Meaty, lavender, garden herbs, smoky, but still very vibrant red fruit. Lovely vibrancy of red fruit and all Mouvedre and Grenache aromatics. Sweet fruit, juicy acidity, hot indian spice and liquorice. Plum, cherry, spiced. Quite ready now. — 11 years ago
Amazing taste! Perfect color, perfect structure, great spice, love the fruit! Enjoy with my mochi ice cream dessert — 11 years ago
Shimmering ruby. Expansive aromas of fresh dark berries, cherry cola, potpourri and exotic spices; vanilla and espresso notes emerge as the wine opens up. Sweet, fleshy and seamless in texture, offering palate-staining black raspberry, cherry liqueur, vanilla and spicecake flavors and a sexy violet pastille nuance. Velvety tannins build slowly on the finish, which hangs on with impressive, floral- and spice-dominated persistence. (60% new French oak) (Josh Raynolds, Vinous, June 2019) — 7 years ago
Easy drinking cab. Shared with Mom in SoHo — 9 years ago
Charming, textbook mature Chinon with freshly ground black pepper and barely ripe raspberry. With air, a more exotic spice profile unfurls alongside earthy and floral flourishes. Fresh and lively in the mouth, with lightly gripping tannins promising another decade of aging potential. A compact wine, but complex, and complete from nose to finish. Imported by Louis Dressner, this vintage was purchased recently at Wine Warehouse in Charlottesville, VA. — 9 years ago
Strong but not too strong. So at first but then smooth. Full of flavor. Fruity with a touch of spice. — 10 years ago
2012 vintage. Spice, berry, and mineral driven flavors come together to create a juicy, full bodied wine with well integrated notes of oak. Bright nose with perfumed aromas of blackberry and cherry. Great balance of fruit, oak and tannins. I'll be adding this wine to my rotation. This wine is a real gem for the price and is comparable to pricier Spanish wines in my opinion. Cheers! — 11 years ago
Very nice pinot noir but not traditional by pinot standards. Very clean and complex. Layers of great berry fruit and spice. Interesting textures. Very pleasant finish. — 11 years ago
Jesse d
Favorite red blend — 6 years ago