Vanessa

9.2

Honoring my marvelous father with a meal and wine he would have appreciated with gusto.  We wish he was here to share it with us, but are deeply grateful that his spiritual presence remains so strong in our hearts today and every day.  💕

This blend is predominantly (78%) Cabernet Sauvignon and 22% Merlot.  🍷 It hails from the Haut-Médoc region on the “left bank” of Bordeaux, 🇫🇷 more specifically, the Pauillac AOC.  Pauillac is a highly-regarded commune, with favorable growing conditions, known for producing some outstanding quality wines.  👌👌 This wine is no exception. 😆

🏰 Château Grad-Puy-Lacoste is a cru classé, ranked among, and a neighbor to, the region’s top estates.  It’s incredible to think the first vines planted on this property date back to the 1500s, making it one of the oldest properties in the region.

We decanted this wine for several hours, which helped it soften and release its layered aromatics.  

👁 The color is deep garnet with notable tearing.

👃 On the nose it has medium(+) intensity and concentration of developing aromas.  The aromas include ripe black fruit such as cassis, black cherry, blackberry, and plum, as well as other non-fruit notes like black licorice, pencil shavings, and violet. It has secondary notes of clove, nutmeg, allspice, cedar, also tertiary notes of wet earth, tobacco, leather, meat, fig, and mushroom.

👄 This wine is dry and its flavors on the palate are consistent with the nose.
This wine has balance, complexity, a strong structure, with firm, grippy tannins, and a long elegant finish.  👏👏

Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste, vintage 2011, ABV 13.5%.  — 5 years ago

with Deked1

Sipping Fine Wine

9.4

BV grapes were first planted back in 1900, by founder Georges de Latour. A blend of mostly Cab Sauv with a bit of Petit Verdot. Outstanding! Deep Ruby with complex berry fruit aromas adding in toasty floral spice. On the palate big full flavors of blackberry, cherry and sweet plum flavors with licorice and cacao, adding some cedar notes. Soft velvet tannins, young, long finish, well integrated and nicely balanced, a joy to drink. Will Benefit from long aging. — 6 years ago

Greg Wright

9.2

Dark red fruits, charcoal and rosemary. Tannins have melted away and acidity is well balanced. Not as deep and complex as the magnum I had a couple months back. Good but not great. Perhaps just an “off” bottle?? — 7 years ago

Ron Lear

9.1

Spectacular fruity back finish with lovely tannins. Soft and velvety throughout! — 7 years ago

Rupesh Parikh

9.2

What a great cab; structured yet fruity; minimum tanins in the back end; loved it — 8 years ago

Mark Flesher

9.3

This wine had some tobacco and earth FUNK after it was opened up. The herbaceous and tobacco ash note on the nose was almost identical to the 1980 Beringer State Lane cab. This did blow off after an hour, but the wine was less fruit than I thought it would have been. Lots of dark figgy jam. Tobacco and cigar box. I'm sure the fruit came back after I left, but this would have been 2 hours after opening and just didn't have the time to see this one though, hence the "NR" rating. Impressed by this wine, and probably one of the older Monte Bello wines I've been able to drink. — 9 years ago

with Benjamin

Eric Egan

9.2

Super-weird bottle. Mid-shoulder, crumbly cork, and the colour of freshly pressed strawberry juice - extremely pale as slightly cloudy! The immediate scent was quite off-putting but after 30 minutes it stormed back! Scents of autumn mulch, burning vine roots, sour cherries, and raspberry compote. A weird sourness and heady acidity on the front of the palette but it still keeps together well. Clearly badly kept but still really interesting to drink! A true testament to The quality of Mouton under the stewardship of the late Baron. I wonder if this is what some of the better kept bottles might be like in 100 years' time!? — 10 years ago

Nate Baker

9.1

Damn good. Heavy, sweet on the back end. Pretty awesome. — 11 years ago

Thomas Hughes

9.5

I was disappointed with my last Caymus Special Selection vintage, but this beauty brought me back to a bottle that won Wine Spectator's #1 Wine of the Year ... Twice!! Incredible fruit and balance. This can be cellared and enjoyed for years to come. Cheers!! — 11 years ago

Peter Scudamore-Smith MW

9.7

Institute of Masters of Wine Sydney Bordeaux 2010 tasting yesterday; cracking Sauternes; #acsauternes #bordeaux #dyquem #imw #drinkfrance — 11 years ago

Austin Ferrari

Wine Director Hillside Supper Club

9.6

Real wine! Lapierre takes me back to the chez days! — 12 years ago

with Aran

David Nicewicz

9.3

Birth year Bordeaux and this has been excellent. Very old school nose of copious tobacco, forest floor and dark berries. Medium bodied but gaining intensity over the course of 2 h - tannins completely melted. Bricking is apparent on first pour but the color grows darker with time. Perfect bottle that is a little past it’s prime but fun to step back in time. — 5 years ago

Wulf Losee

9.0

2016 vintage opened December 2020. Leather and minerals on the nose. Not much happening on the front—no fruit to speak of, but there are some soft tannins that follow through to the back of the palate quite nicely though. The finish is quite unique, though.Without looking at the label I suspect this was aged in American oak, which gives it some leathery hi notes and some bite as you swallow. I wouldn’t give it the scores that the pros are giving it, a 9.3, only because this wine is kind of weak on the front of the palate. But it’s very drinkable, indeed! — 5 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

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. — 6 years ago

with Christina and James

Geoff Troup

Sales Eder Brothers, Cellar Fine Wines

9.0

The most generously fruity of Ridge Zins. Black berry and stewed fruit in the front, young and opulent at first compared to their other wines. More resolved and firm in the back with a near perfect juxtaposition of acidity and tannin. White pepper in the finish. A bit hot and jumpy at this time. Great potential but needs some softening time still. — 8 years ago

Steve Haro

9.5

Hints of menthol and eucalyptus on the nose. Loads of anise and black tea flavors with portobello and grilled game. Fruit flavors taking a back seat to earth but wow, does it have life. Forrest floor and tobacco on the finish. — 9 years ago

Kyle Doucet-Walter

9.1

After 2 hour decant still kind of smelled like a bag of balloons. Put it back in the bottle and on day 2 it's singing. Woodsy black cherry, black tea, baking spices and some of that classic tar thing. — 10 years ago

Allison Muma

9.2

Loved this Zin. Hubby and I drank the bottle in one sitting. — 10 years ago

Michael Mathews

9.1

At Redstone w/Shelly. Just back from Orlando w/Rettke. #pro — 11 years ago

with Rick, Jeff and 2 others

Tom Riley

9.2

Twelve years in and this wine is so damn perky. Let me get back to you in another hour. Maybe it will be a tad less exuberant and a bit more relaxed. No matter what happens it's still gonna be delicious. These folks are so delightfully reliable. 13.0 abv — 11 years ago

c l b

9.0

First night stand (with my coravin).

This was my first love (in the wine world) shortly after popping my wine-cherry. But didn't appreciate it to its fullest till now. Maybe it just aged well, maybe my awareness of all the different characteristics got better...in any case, I fell in love all over again...

Nose: Perfectly ripe blackberries and deep ruby cherries. Nice baking spices. The 2012 Faust smells like a $5-bottle in comparison (even though it cost about the same price the times that I became proud owners of both, especially with this particular bottle back when I was a poor graduating college student). Maybe that's how 9 years of experience affects your maturity...maybe I just need to drink more wine and edumacate myself, which I don't mind.

Tongue/mouth: Even though it's 12 years old, the tannins hold on for dear life to your taste buds (hasn't really incorporated itself to the rest of the nicely developed parts of its body). Drink with something fatty (like my short rib I happened to have). Then you can really enjoy the berriness of the wine.

I'm just so purely happy that I can enjoy a taste of it without the guilt of having to commit to it fully and leave it [the bottle] feeling empty. Thank you, Cory. — 11 years ago

Jay Kline

9.1

This bottle was hand carried from the Middle East, seven years back, and my first time enjoying the 2002 since release. Cork was perfect. On the nose, some VA but nothing crazy. Notes of balsamic, teriyaki, sandalwood and charred meat. On the palate, still quite primary with dark cherries and dried dark fruits being predominate. Plenty of structure. The texture is remarkably fine and silky. Quite classy actually! Nevertheless, this isn’t the most soul stirring vintage of Musar Rouge. At nearly 19 years of age, this bottle still comes across as youthful with developing vinousity. Perhaps time will coax more out...but I suspect, as others have previously stated, that the 2002 is more of a modest wine by their standards...which is still quite delicious and enjoyable in its own right. This will easily live for another 10+ years. — 5 years ago

LM Segal

9.4

Beautiful, clear nose of pipe tobacco and rich red fruit. The tannins have finally dialled back, bringing this Dominus balance it previously lacked. Sweet oak and ripe cherries and plums, some nice secondary stuff emerging. I’d give this a few more years to play out or a long decant. — 6 years ago

with Melissa

The Geek

8.9

At it’s absolute last drinkable moment in time. Opened and decanted (for sediment), the cork crumbled and disintegrated. This wine was delicious and beautiful...for about an hour. I went back and tried what was left about an hour and a half after opening it and it had already become “vermouth”, as a server at an Italian restaurant once told me about a too-old bottle of Barolo he’d tried. Drink them now if you have them, and do it quickly!

millennialwinegeek.com — 6 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

I corvined this last weekend and put it back in storage for tonight. I had a very different experience & thoughts on this wine last weekend un-decanted. This is wine comes from a period when I loved Caymus. After 2011 when they started picking later and at higher brix’s, they lost me but, got higher Parker scores and rave words from people that like sweeter Cabernet that drinks young.

Last weekend without a decant, very dominate bright cherries and vanilla.

Tonight, the nose reveals, dark, slightly syrupy currants/cassis, blackberries, dark cherries, creamy, black raspberries, blueberries, black plum with lots of skin dominate, baked strawberries, black licorice, vanilla, some clove and a touch nutmeg, underbrush, dry crushed rocks, dry top soil, volcanic minerals, black tea, touch of black coffee expresso, liqueur/dark berry cola, used leather, hints of graphite with ruby, fresh, dark, fresh, dark, red, blue florals with violets.

The body is full, sexy, gorgeous and voluptuous. The structure, tension, length and balance are at the start of its high point with another 7-10 years of good drinking ahead. Dark, slightly syrupy currants/cassis, blackberries, dark cherries, creamy, black raspberries, blueberries, black plum with lots of skin dominating, baked strawberries, black licorice to deep anise, vanilla, some clove and a touch nutmeg, caramel, mocha, dark chocolate, dark spices with just a touch of palate heat, underbrush, used leather, dry crushed rocks, dry top soil, volcanic minerals, black tea, touch of black coffee expresso, liqueur/dark berry cola, used leather, hints of graphite with ruby, fresh, dark, fresh, dark, red, blue florals with violets. The acidity is like a needed waterfall shower. The long finish is, deep, dark, well balanced, elegant, ruby, ripe, polished and persists endlessly.

It’s been awhile and I’ve missed it. This is a very good example of why I used to adore Caymus. — 7 years ago

Carl Fischer

9.4

Back upstate and starting with a quick split and caviar to get things back on track. The softest bubbles, brioche, yeasty, toasted almonds. Yum. Great balance to the brine. Christmas Carols have switched to George Michael. Can this year please end already?!?!? — 9 years ago

Andy Wedge

9.2

all fruit, some herbal on the back, pyrazine, big tannin and acid — 11 years ago

Ryan Mullins

9.7

Fantastic bottle of classic Bordeaux in a nice spot. Leaning toward the less ripe side with serious tannin but it felt like a throw back to the 70s and 80s Bordeaux. Thank you John Rothermel! — 11 years ago

with John

Francis Plante

9.4

Wow - you know I had my biggest wine disappointment with a 1998 Beaucastel and this 2005 brings me back on why i pay so much for Grenache. It was an amazing experience and it is still so very young. I unfortunately broke my decanter with this wine but it was worth it. I am glad i still have 2 in my cellar. See you in 6 years brother. — 11 years ago

Chris Danner

9.0

loving the tapas at this place. we feel like we are back in madrid. the shafer is solid. — 11 years ago

with Cortney