The Black Bottle
Château Lafite Rothschild
Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 1953
From a great old looking bottle with a mid shoulder fill. Cork is fully saturated and the crud under the capsule had formed a strong seal. Slow-ox’d for a few hours, then decanted for an hour or two before taken to L’Escargot in Carmel. Amber tawny rims with a reddish tawny core. Crazy nose right from the start. Notes of sweet black cherries, tobacco leaf, plums, black pepper, ash and crusty wood, pencil shavings, some just unwrapped cigar and some menthol. Silky in the mouth with firm structure and soft but present acidity. Long and memorable finish. Outstanding performance over several hours. — 5 years ago
Shafer Vineyards
Hillside Select Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon
Velvety mouthfeel with medium tannins. Robust red and dried fruits, finish of vanilla and graphite. Quaffable af. Would pair with lamb, rabbit, pork, cheese, hummus. Versatile. Honestly not worth it's price point. An off vintage from a delicious vinyard. Would not be hard to find a bottle 1/5 of the price. — 10 years ago
The Prisoner Wine Company
The Prisoner Napa Valley Zinfandel Blend
Muddled dark cherries and blackberries, maybe currant(?), tobacco leaves, subtle licorice. Somewhat astringent/tannic, not as balanced as I’d expect. *used coravin on bottle about 2 weeks prior before opening, may have influenced* — 8 months ago
Produttori del Barbaresco
Barbaresco Nebbiolo
2016. Red and black fruit with firm tannins. More of a traditionalist style but very approachable now. Rich. A lot of body without being heavy. — 5 years ago
Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe
La Crau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhone Blend
Tons of dark fruit, roasted plum and black currant, leather and black olives — 9 years ago
Celler Cecilio
Black Slate Porrera Vi de la Vila Priorat Garnacha Blend 2010
Delicious. Full. Not overly fruity. — 13 years ago
Gnarly Head
1924 Limited Edition Double Black Lodi Red Blend 1924
Pehmee, vahva maku, ei tanniininen — 9 months ago
Château d'Yquem
Sauternes Sémillon-Sauvignon Blanc Blend 1995
Dark gold. VA. Viscous honey. Intense, nice tart balance. Hot/ SO2 finish. Half bottle. — 9 years ago
Christian Fischer
I was going through my La Chapelle section today and my eyes got stuck on this 1999 - bottle looked absolutely pristine and I decided it was a perfect age to drink. Cork was in great condition and the wine was powerful and youthful with no signs of oxidation. Could have kept the bottle for a few more years, but it was probably perfect today. All the complex leathery earthy goodness you expect from this wine was there. — 8 months ago