James Forsyth

9.3

I was excited to dine at the (relatively) new Union Square Cafe. The previous venue closed some time ago and caused a bit of a ripple throughout the New York restaurant scene: Rising rents wreck regarded restaurant. I prefer the look of the new venue. High ceilings, homely yet chic furnishings, beautiful lighting and a cool mezzanine level. It looks the part. The staff could not be friendlier or more helpful. And the food is every bit as good (and goodness me so filling) as it has always been.

The wine list is terrific. There are a pages of legendary wines but plenty of values to be found and the markup is very reasonable, particularly considering that tips are included.

Take the 2014 Produttori del Barbaresco. It is just superb. Classic Nebbiolo through and through. Midweight but with grip, more powerful than the translucent coloring would imply. Delicious now but would last.

It was $90 on the list. Take off the typical 20% tip and you have $72 on any other list. I saw this in a store the other day for $40, so that's a less than 2x retail markup. Not bad and very fair.

I'm looking forward to my next visit to USC. — 7 years ago

with Cara

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

Is there any meal better than steak (Ribeye) and well aged Claret? This is another 1991 Bordeaux experiment of mine. 1991 was a vintage with horrible frosts and a less than favorable growing season, right? A vintage critically panned. This is my 3rd recent 91 from a good producer. And again, it didn’t disappoint. Like 97 and 07, it’s better with the right bottle age than young. Magic evolution happened in the bottle way down the road. This 91 is in great form with a fair amount of life ahead of it. On the nose; a little ripe fruit funk, wonderful dark & lighter red cassis, ripe blackberries, dark cherries, poached strawberries, plums, hues of blueberries, black raspberries, dry cranberries, vanilla, light cinnamon, rich, black turned earth, cedar, soft leather, dry stones, dry top soil, notes of dry herbs and fresh & dry red flowers. The body/palate is medium, round, ripe & still fresh. The tannins nearly completely resolved. Ripe, floral fruits of; blackberries, dark cherries, poached strawberries, plums, hues of blueberries, black raspberries, dry cranberries & half cooked rhubarb. Vanilla, light cinnamon, touch of clove & nutmeg, rich, black turned earth, cedar, soft leather, dry stones, dry crushed rocks, dry top soil, notes of dry herbs, a little band-aid and fresh & dry red flowers. The acidity drips over the palate and the long, well balanced, still structured, nice tension, good length finish lasts over a minute. Again, love & appreciate the 12.5% alcohol. What a beauty with and without the steak. Next time you’re in your fine wine retail shop and see a quality producers 91 that’s been well stored, buy it and have it with a Ribeye. Photos of; their exotic Estate, Chateau interior, newer barrel room and their vines as viewed from the front of the Chateau that are across the road. Producer notes and history...Cos d’Estournel has a long distinguished history in the St. Estephe. Louis Gaspard d’Estournel, gave his name to the estate after founding in 1811. It did not take long before Cos d’Estournel became famous with wine lovers and royalty all over the world. In those early days, Cos d’Estournel did not sell through Negociants. The owner preferred selling his wine directly to his customers. In fact, Cos d’Estournel was exported to numerous countries across the globe, with a large portion of the production being sold to India. It was that connection to India that inspired much of the unique, east Indian design we see at Cos d’Estournel today. Cos d’Estournel was one of the first Bordeaux Chateaux’s to bottle, label and sell their own wine. This practice continued until the death of Louis Gaspard d’Estournel in 1852. If you’re at the property, the statue on the bench in the front courtyard is of the founder, Louis Gaspard d’Estournel. The Estate was then purchased by an owner that sold their wines on the Place de Bordeaux using the negociant system. If the Chateau was not selling their wines through the negociant system, it would never have been included in the 1855 Classification. Imagine that! So, it turned out to be a fortuitous decision. Cos d’Estournel was sold to the Charmolue family owners of the neighboring Estate of Chateau Montrose. They continued to own the estate until 1917, when it was bought by Fernand Ginestet. This purchase was the beginning of the next major step in the development of Cos d’Estournel. Decades later, the grandchildren of Fernand Ginestet, Jean-Marie Prats, Yves Prats and Bruno Prats took over ownership and management of Cos d’Estournel. In 1995, Bruno Prats sold the property to the Merlaut family, owners of the Taillan Group. The next era in the development of Cos d’Estournel took place in 2000, when Cos d’Estournel was bought by the industrious and wealthy Michel Reybier, who earned his fortune in the food industry. Michel Reybier hired the son of Bruno Prats, Jean-Guillaume Prats to manage Cos d’Estournel. Things further improved with the efforts of Jean-Guillaume Prats who helped design the most modern wine making at that time. A complete renovation of Cos d’Estournel took place in not only the wine making facilities and cellars, but in parts of the Chateau as well. While the wine making facilities are completely modern with their 100% gravity design, the outward appearance retained the original design and feeling that has always been a part of Cos d’Estournel. On October 15, 2012, Jean Guillaume Prats announced he was leaving Cos d’Estournel to join LVMH (Pichon Baron). Jean Guillaume Prats was replaced by Aymeric de Gironde. Following the departure of Aymeric de Gironde in 2017, the owner, Michel Reybier took over managing the Estate. What makes the remodel special is that the cellars of Cos d’Estournel are entirely operated by gravity. There are no pumps of any kind to force the wine. The purpose is to allow a gentleness to the wine and improve its purity and allow for the expression of their terroir. It set a new benchmark for cellars not only in the Left Bank, but in all of Bordeaux. Perhaps, the most inventive part of the cellars is the four 100 hectoliter lift tanks or wine elevators that replace the pumps used in the traditional pumping over and the racking off processes, which introduce air and often destabilize the marc. From the moment the grapes arrive, everything travels by the flow of gravity. Jean Guillaume Prats called this process a “pumpless pump over.” The 91 hectare vineyard of Cos d’Estournel is planted to 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 33% Merlot, 1% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. The vineyard is located extremely close to the border between Pauillac and Saint Estephe at the southern tip of the Saint Estephe. The Estate has very old Merlot vines as well, which date back more than 100 years. Part of the terroir is situated on the hill of Cos, which is at a high elevation for the Medoc at 20 meters. They also make a second wine called Pagodes de Cos. This is a great wine to buy in very good vintages. Especially, if your budget prohibits you from purchasing their first wine. — 8 years ago

Paul H

9.5

Insignia is always a rare treat. The 2009 did not stray away from this statement. I am bias to Phelps Insignia, I admit it. But trust me if someone offers you a glass take it. It is a sinful delight. — 9 years ago

with Kim

Justin H

9.2

Has been a while since we've had the '07. It was great to find it at our small local Italian restaurant, especially for way below retail. Purchased the rest to take home to the cellar. Anyways, it is drinking very well. The 07 and 05 are our favorites and about the only Opus we purchase. — 10 years ago

Ellen Clifford

8.9

Continuing in my Napa cab education this showed up at the door for me. It is excellent winter wine. It would warm you even if chilled—at 15 % abv no doubt but the taste is coziness defined too: ripe cherries, blackberry preserves on some sort of cheese on an earthy whole whole wheat cracker. The tannins could use, say, one or two more years to fully integrate but they aren’t objectable. Holiday spices and a whiff of forest floor and a long plummy finish round it out. Take this wine to an ice skating party if such things exist in your life. — 7 years ago

Matt Trader

8.9

Very nice white wine, but not very complex at the same time. Stand alone, it is a citrus packed, high acid, crisp white similar to the way a dry Sémillon from Australia drinks. Combined with the Mediterranean spices in Greek and Med cuisine, and it is perfectly at home. Might just take a little journey through Greek wine this next month and see what I find! — 7 years ago

Jeanette Hrnyak

9.1

With Hillstone recently deciding to A). add a $15 corkage fee to their menu and B). take the Smith-Madrone Spring Mountain Cab Sauv. off their wine list (crime of the century in my opinion!), I wondered if there were any good wine finds left on their menu. I was pleased to find this one and enjoyed it thoroughly with my French Dip! Even better was the cute guy seen sitting across the bar from me! I would have gladly shared! Now, just need to curb my addiction to their creamy horseradish and all will be right in the world-well sorta.... — 8 years ago

Greg Koslosky

9.6

Forgot to take a picture last night , but a perfect time to enjoy. A fairly large scale Chambolle that had tons of extract , with good acidity still to keep it from being heavy. Serious juice. — 8 years ago

LM Segal

9.7

Top 2-3 Napa Cabs I've ever had. Magical nose, cassis, cocoa, red flowers. Rich but nicely aged mid-palate, spreading into a wide swathe of candied red and black fruit, soft but powerful. Secondary stuff in spades. Then - an explosion at the back-end of cedary fruit and fig, tobacco, dark chocolate that lasted for >60 seconds. Just a monumental wine, sadly a solo.
This is note #500 for me, grateful to so many Delectable contributors who take the time to educate and expand my wine perspectives (or, in the case of @Bill Bender...other stuff, too!). Thanks to @Anthony Lombardi @Kimberly Anderson @Jörgen Lindström Carlvik @Jeff Savigny@Ron R@Shawn R @Richard Steinberg @Martin G Rivard (who is living the dream), @Greg Gregory among so many others, not to mention @Roman Sukley with magical reach to inaccessible, iconic SQNs (and the will to pop them) and frank open perspectives from legendary winemakers like @Mike Smith and @Cathy Corison, you all make this a neat community of which I try to be a small contributor.
Finally - a renewed plea to @Antonio Galloni to return "trending" to this community, as it was stolen by the bean counters! I'm no social media expert (I do have 2 teenagers!) but I'm pretty sure that "trending" speaks to the integrity and will to contribute of an entire community...take a look! — 8 years ago

with Melissa

Isabelle Parenti

9.1

An interesting blend, very bold, needs to warm up a little bit in my opinion once you take it out of the cellar — 10 years ago

with David and Nancy

Carla Isbell

8.9

For a winemaker to take a varietal and make it have such solid notes with the blend is commendable. This was a nice surprise. — 10 years ago

Adam Wills

10

Both me and the girl enter our 40th year in 2018, so we are celebrating a couple of days early with the oldest champagne we've ever had. Special is an understatement. Tastes like I'm butt naked, face down in a seafood tower on the top of the Empire State Building, waiting on a helicopter to come take us to Waffle House to sober up before we get in a Ferrari to see a 35mm print of E.T. Endless thanks to @Christian Moses for this bottle. Will remember it for a long time to come. ❤🥂 Happy New Years Friends — 7 years ago

with Christian

Shay A

8.9

Wednesday Wine Committee. As always, wines are tasted blind. 1 sparkler, 2 whites, 4 reds, 1 dessert.

Without a doubt the first time I’ve had a vintage Italian sparkler. At first glance, this looks like champagne...bubbles are microscopic. However, there was no yeast to it. Banana peel. Very little tart fruit as well. Almost had a leather note on the finish. I was the only one in the room to guess Italian Sparkler. ✔️ — 8 years ago

Jim McCusker

9.1

Gotta love Cris Cherry's take on grenache (my favorite varietal). This one is a bit young - could probably use a year or two more in the cellar - but it still boasts great fruit on the nose (albeit a bit restrained for a Paso wine) with a nice, medium-plus bodied palate and plenty of backbone to suggest several more years of evolution. If you're opening it up now I'd suggest a 1-2 hour decant, but this is a great QPR for a Paso grenache! — 8 years ago

with Vanessa

Norman Gennaro

9.1

Howell Mtn Tasting - Tasting a lot of wines though and in the same glass so I find it unfair to take these ratings seriously. Liked the 2013 a lot better than the '14 which just needs some time. From mag — 8 years ago

Michael Morris

Wine Director The Park Café

9.1

Big cab franc. Showing big fruit with enough herbaceousness to balance it out. May take a couple years to bloom but drinks great now — 8 years ago

Ned Gray Creed

8.9

How is it? "It's Bordeaux. It will take 2 hours to open up." This one will need 4 hours. — 9 years ago

Delectable Blue

9.0

It must be the season. It’s time for another cracking Shiraz. Again a very fruit forward style. This time with lashings of mulberry and raspberry predominating on the palate. Lacking a little mid-palate complexity, even after a 3 hour decant. Just hints of dark chocolate bitterness and black olive before the fine but drying tannins take over, driving a long finish. Not too dissimilar in style to Hannah’s Swing, just not as well composed. Nice, but not outstanding. — 9 years ago

Jesse Pender

Assistant Winemaker Delicato Family Vineyards

8.9

Big and bad for this grape. Plenty of tannin, oak and fruit. Maybe a touch over the top to take it putt of balance. — 10 years ago

Brian Diffily

9.7

Fantastic Bordeaux. Lots of earth. Curious to see how it would be in 5-10 years. Tannins will prob take this gem out for several years to come. — 11 years ago