Sipping Fine Wine

9.1

In the 17 published editions of Gambero Rosso, Italy’s acclaimed wine rating guide, this Tuscan estate has won the coveted Tre Bicchieri (Three Glasses) award 17 times. Ruby with complex berry and elegant spice aromas. On the palate rich ripe cherry and blackberry flavors with sweet spice, cedar, cacao and tobacco enhance the berry fruit. Graceful tannins, savory with good acidity balance, lingering ending with earthy mineral character. Nice! — 5 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.1

Very much an “orange “ Wine having a cloudy amber Colour. A skinnsy aroma of peaches which translates to a certain bitterness on the palate. 100% Grecanico - despite the lengthy time on Skins in a clay amphora the wine retains freshness and acid. I remember last year when my wife and I visited COS our guide said they picked the grapes at 2 different times - to get acid in the first pick and fleshiness and riper fruit in the 2nd pick a couple of weeks later. Interesting and different. — 6 years ago

Tim McCoy

9.1

Easy to drink. Smooth upon uncorking. Open up to a nice fruity finish — 6 years ago

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.5

Last wine we tasted after our tour at Champagne Billecart-Salmon. Our tour guide was excellent and very knowledgeable about the domains history and all the wines.

Bright golden yellow with tons of tiny bubbles. Thick nose with layers of honey, stone and white fruits, almonds and some lemon zest. Well rounded with high acidity (7.5/10) and medium plus to full bodied. Fresh, lively and zesty on the palate with layers of brioche, stone fruits, green apples and a touch of citrus. Long and lingering finish. Drink till 2037.

Made up of 60% Pinot Noir and 40% Chardonnay from the same plot every vintage. Only 20% is vinified in oak and also aged for 13 years on the lees. — 7 years ago

with India

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.3

Second wine we tasted after our tour at Champagne Billecart-Salmon. Our tour guide was excellent and very knowledgeable about the domains history and all the wines.

Copperish pink and very lively. Layered nose with roses, strawberries, light raspberries, strawberry crème, and a little herbal. High acidity (7/10) but balanced with a slightly smooth mouthfeel. Layered with strawberries, tropical fruits, kiwi, grapefruit and melon. Very fresh and crisp. Medium to medium plus body with a long finish. Drink till 2024.

Made with a minimum of 40% Chardonnay with the remainder split between Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier of which 5 to 8% is from red wine. Aged for around 3 years on the lees.

Thanks @David L for introducing us to this stunning producer! — 7 years ago

with India

Sam P

9.4

Great robust yet slightly muted notes that neither guide your taste buds nor leaves them unattended by any means — 7 years ago

Eric Gardner

9.3

Grandfather makes awesome wine. I love E. Pepe wine as much as I can love a wine. It is the shizzle, and for the technically inclined, the shizzle is listed somewhere between nutmeg and apricots in your somm tasting notes study guide. Weirdly, I also love Ar.Pe.Pe. wine (which is very different), and Franco Pepe pizza from Pepe in Grani and Frank Pepe pizza from New Haven CT, now that I think of it, I'm a Pepe fanatic. — 7 years ago

AgeyFixey

8.9

Picked this up a few years ago in Chile and sort of forgot about it. Blackberry, raspberry with hints of leather and pepper. Smooth all round, some tannins kicking around and medium finish. Visited the winery, and they pretty much only make this wine. Great setting and friendly, albeit hungover tour guide. — 5 years ago

Walt M Britt

9.2

Baker Lane Vineyard(Field Guide 05), Bottle Numbers 1874 and 1879, Harvested 10/02/2014. Paired with a roast Alaskan Cod with Cannellini Beans and Castelvetrano olives, Roasted Broccoli, and Chocolate Gourmet Cannoli Cupcake. The food and wine complimented each, and the strong body of the wine brought out the hidden flavors and spices of the fish. Has a strong finish. Never ever adhere to old wives’ tale that only white goes with fish, as this meal clearly disapproves any notions. — 6 years ago

Stephen Pierron

9.6

Gosh.... Lail Vineyards has to be one of my top favorite wineries. .. Melka does an outstanding job! The beautiful nose and bouquet of the wine is second to none. Very elegant and smooth with a lot of fruit forward notes. This $ 80 wine can hold its own on many $200+ wines I have had. While wine ratings serve as a guide, this is by far one of my favorites. Job well done Lail Vineyards! 2015 is excellent! !!!!! — 6 years ago

with Jen

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.1

Third wine we tasted after our tour at Champagne Billecart-Salmon. Our tour guide was excellent and very knowledgeable about the domains history and all the wines.

Light golden yellow and lively. A touch sweet on the nose with marzipan and nutty notes. Medium plus acidity (6.5/10) and medium bodied. Oak definitely felt on the palate with some nutty and cream elements. Some citrus fruits too in the long finish. Drink till 2023.

This bottling was started in 2012 and is made up of equal parts Chardonnay, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunièr. 100% of the fruit is vinified in barrel with on 7 grams of sugar. Aged for 7 years on the lees. — 7 years ago

with India

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.2

First of the wines after our tour at Champagne Billecart-Salmon. Our tour guide was excellent and very knowledgeable about the domains history and all the wines.

Bright pale yellow and lots of tiny bubbles. Very lively. Fresh and crisp on the nose with some nutty notes as well as layers of green apples. Balanced acidity (7.5/10) with a medium plus body. Lovely mouthfeel with a touch of tartiness. Layered with green apples, lemon zest, stone fruits, gravel, almonds and beautiful freshness. Long and mouthwatering finish. Drink till 2024.

Made up of 40% Pinot Meunier, 30% Pinot Noir and 30% Chardonnay. Aged for a minimum of 5 years on the lees. Disgorged in January of 2017. — 7 years ago

with India

Michael Genn

8.9

Made to drink young. More fruit forward and jammy than typical Bordeaux. Tour guide at Chateau Pichon Baron said her Sommelier brother placed this as a Napa wine in a blind tasting. — 7 years ago

Jan de Weerd

9.8

Holy smokes! What a wine. Rich, endless levels of alternating dark and red fruit. Well structured to guide you to a perfect, lingering finish. And the lamb burger on a brioche bun with a salsa of beets oranges and onions marinated in lemon, honey and olive oil. And.....drum roll, authentic Lamb Weston Alexia sweet potato fries and a touch of chipotle mustard. Did I just die and went to heaven? — 7 years ago

with Janelle and Tammy

Vasanth Balakrishnan

9.0

Our #bordeaux guide said this would pair marvelously with medium spicy Indian food. We were doubtful but she’s absolutely right. Nice heady aroma of apricot, peach, balanced acidity and starting to show some of that complexity that age brings to #sauternes. It’s pretty amazing how well it stands up to Indian food or Thai which would blow away most other wines. — 6 years ago

Hajime Kawasaki

9.0

京都のイタリアン 『ヴェーナ』でペアリング。
肉の前菜に。http://www.deeshan.com/guide/diary04/diary35.htm
チンタセネーゼ豚のプロシュート。
— 6 years ago

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

On the nose, ripe, ruby, fruits of; mulberry, blackberries, black raspberries, black plum, plum, black cherries, blueberries & creamy raspberries. Vanilla, hints of sweet tarriness, black licorice, whiff of spice, soft understated limestone minerals & crushed rock powder, fruity black tea, hint of fresh herbaceousness, rich, black turned earth, fresh dark floral bouquet and fields of lavender & violets.

The body is rich, ripe & full. The tannins are a little sticky but well softened, round and a touch chewy. The structure, tension, length, balance, tension and balance are very close to perfect and harmonious. Fruits are; mulberry, huckleberry, blackberries, black raspberries, black plum, plum, black cherries & creamy raspberries. Vanilla, hints of sweet tarriness, black licorice, whiff of spice, soft understated limestone minerals & crushed rock powder, fruity black tea, hint of fresh herbaceousness, rich, black turned earth, fresh dark floral bouquet and fields of lavender & violets. The acidity is round and rains like a waterfall perfectly over the palate. The very long, ruby, rich, well balance lasts minutes and is absolutely heavenly. Gorgeous, elegant, stunning wine.

Photos of; the vertical tasting we attended of all Hendricks Cabernets; 04, 05, 09 & 12 at the time w/ one of our favorite paintings in the background, Charles Hendricks working in the cellar, very old rootstock from the Stag’s Leap Vineyard where the fruit to make this wine normally comes from and a wide shot of the Stag’s Leap Vineyard.

Producer notes and history...Hendricks Cabernet Sauvignon is consistently sourced from a few of Napa Valley’s finest vineyards. In those near perfect vintages, Charles only makes a small production wine of around 250-300 cases. Charles only produces it when he has exception fruit. He’s made Hendricks Cabernet in; 2004, 2005, 2009, 2012 & 2014. Notice he didn’t make Hendricks Cabernet in a great vintage year like 2013. He wasn’t happy enough with his fruit in 2013 to put his name on it. That says a lot and maybe all you need to know about his standard for quality. I do know what wine his 13 fruit made as I’ve had and it’s an unbelievable wine for far less money.

Charles also makes a fantastic Pinot Noir from the Santa Lucia Highlands that is really quite amazing. Especially, if you give it 5 or 6 years in bottle. All his wines are sold exclusively through the Hope & Grace tasting room in Yountville as he is also the Hope & Grace Winemaker.

Charles graduated in 1982 from UC Davis in viticulture. He was also able to tailor his own curriculum and was one of the earliest to integrate winemaking and viticulture course work. Having knowledge of both viticulture and enology forms the basis for his well-rounded winemaking.

Over the years Charles has worked in both Napa and Sonoma Counties, gaining hands on experience in all aspects of winemaking. He has a strong reputation for excellence. In his career, he’s been a consulting winemaker for many wineries; Viader, Barnett Vineyards, Paoletti Vineyards, Regusci Winery, James Cole, T-Vine and Tamayo family Vineyard.

I asked Charles, “how does he make wines that are amazingly good in their youth but will age effortlessly for 15-20 years?” His answer was simply this, “its not that hard, you just have to know the perfect time to harvest fruit.” I would agree with that to a degree. But, you also have to know how to gently guide fruit onto it’s path into the barrel and not get in the wine’s way or overwork the process. — 6 years ago

Michael Genn

9.5

Delicious. Tour guide at Chateau Pichon Baron was surprised at how good it was tasting. Deep fruit but very balanced acidity — 7 years ago

Henrik Poulsen

9.3

The first of a great line up of wines at SingleThread Restaurant in Healdsburg (CA).

Those guys in my opinion are worthy of 3 stars when the Michelin guide will release their official US ratings next week.

As for the wine - one of the best domestic sparklers I've ever had! — 7 years ago

with Kenneth

Michael Meyer

9.3

This did NOT suck! Luscious red and blue fruit, lavender essence, brilliant energy/acidity, some exotic spicyness dissolving into some tonal smoky minerality. Moderately long finish. I was not familiar with this producer but let the somm (at a restaurant with JB chops) guide me to something that made wonderful music with a brilliant pork collar feast. 100% Carignan...perhaps my first from Chile. And still a baby...should be even more fantastic in the 2020's. — 7 years ago