#AgedWineTuesday
Dark golden/ brownish in color.
Sweet nose with lots of flower notes, over ripen apples and spices.
Full-bodied with high acidity.
Sweet on the palate with pears, overripe citrus fruits, spices, apricots, tropical fruits, earth and bitter herbs.
Tangy finish, but too earthy for my taste.
This 34 year old is delicious, but a touch unbalanced, with too many earth notes for the fruits.
I've had a few vintages of this gorgeous wine, but none of them were this old.
I let it breathe for an hour, but it still wasn't as good as I hoped. It could just be this specific bottle, though.
A blend of 80% Sémillon and 20% Sauvignon Blanc. Drank from a 375ml bottle.
13.5% alcohol by volume.
92 points.
$500. — 3 months ago
Opened the evening prior at 7pm and double-decanted; the bottle was left at room temp with the cork pressed lightly back into the neck until service. The 2000 pours a deep garnet color with a near opaque core and a slightly water rim; medium+ viscosity with moderate staining of the tears and some sediment. On the nose, the wine is vinous and showing some real power with a compelling combination of ripe and desiccated fruit: dark brambles, cassis, leather, dill, olives, spiced meat, tobacco and soft baking spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannins and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long and whoa is it ever delicious. This has to be one of the wines of the vintage. Drink now through 2040. — 4 months ago
Thanks Jack! — 5 months ago
A proprietary blend, made by Founder and Winemaker Dave Phinney, from Chardonnay, Roussanne, Viognier, Chenin Blanc, Muscat, and Vermentino from California. Golden yellow color with aromas of tropical and citrus fruit and melons, aged, 25% in new oak, 60% neutral & 15% stainless for 10 months. On the palate flavors of melons, citrus, and pears, hints of cinnamon spice and toasty oak. Long finish, lively acidity, good balance ending with fruit and mineral character. — 7 months ago
Color of deep purple with lighter shades on the rim. Nice tears. Nose of ample fragrance of currants. minty, vanilla, oaky, sweet note, and some more dark fruits. Taste is mouthful and chewy, quite sweet mixed with some spice, acidity, tart, strawberry, and some more vanilla. Aftertaste shows more strawberry, tangy, and a bit marginal tannin. On par. Like all the Freakshow wine, a bit too sweet for me. — 9 months ago
Yeah, what can I say. Nice wine for sure, but for some reason when I see the Silver Oak label my expectations rise. Realizing this is the Alexander Valley version. But 2011! Thirteen years old. Still rather single note, strong oak tannins still overshadowed what maybe underneath it. A bit disappointed I am afraid. We pulled it out with my first ever Tomahawk ribeye… so yeah. — 9 months ago
Great wine, great memories — 2 years ago
Opened 24 hours prior and decanted for sediment before returning to the bottle; enjoyed over the course of two days. The 1981 pours a deep garnet color with a near opaque core; medium viscosity with moderate staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is vinous with notes of tart brambles and plums, green bell pepper, tobacco, leather, all of the decomposing earth and soft baking spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium, mostly integrated tannins with medium+ acid, borderline high. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium. Overall, a wine that is a reflection upon the vintage and at 43 years of age, that’s a big compliment. The 1981 is very much alive and will likely live for a very long time. However, it is backward, rustic, and somewhat tough to love unless you’re an old-school masochist. But I’m guilty and this wine is charming despite all of its green character. Drink now and over the next 30 years probably. — 3 months ago
1989 vintage. Last tasted 3.28.24, 5.5.23, 4.4.23 and 12.9.22. Solid fill and cork. Recommended decanting but was denied. Mmkay. Eventually got clearance to decant after the bottle had been open for 1.25 hrs. Tasted after being open 5 mins, 45 mins and 2 hrs. Light-medium body throughout. Wine was funky and super tight initially. Had to talk a few of the “participants” down from their “this wine ain’t nothing” perch by telling them it needed at least an hour in the glass (since it hadn’t been decanted at that point). Wine threw expected sed on the decant. Started to loosen up at the 45 mins open stage and fairly exploded at the 2 hrs open (45 mins decanted) point. Dude that didn’t want to decant it gave me a wistful, regretful look at that point (since it blew the other 4 reds at the table away and was getting better) and it took waay too much willpower on my end not to say “Congrats on minimizing a fantastic wine experience, bro.” It wasn’t the best 1989 P-L specimen tasted semi-recently but feel this coulda delved into the 9.4 range without the unnecessary power trip from someone that didn’t even bring this wine to the shindig. Hopefully, this individual learned their lesson. 7.6.24. — 4 months ago
2019 vintage. A nice blend. Dry and dark enough for my taste with a complex and interesting palette — 6 months ago
Full bodied cherry tobacco . We had at the West Bank Grill Jackson hole — 8 months ago
Sweet all the way throughout. Can actually taste the bourbon finish. Lots of rich dark fruit. — 9 months ago
Had the steak 945 at the W in Fort Lauderdale. Smooth and robust. Easy and enjoyable to drink. No strong aftertaste. Pairs great with a steak. — 9 months ago
Pop and pour yesterday. Notes from day 2 open. On the nose: soft smoke and chalk, apple, lemon, a hint of reduction...lovely nose. On the palate: chalk, sour apple, lemon, loads of wet stone...fantastic acidity and good density...maybe my favorite incarnation of this wine so far... — 3 years ago
Like the flavor of this wine just for kicking back and relaxing. Smooth and enjoyable. — 10 years ago
Beautiful wine. Slightly prefer the 1999, which I had last night. The ‘99 was musty and tasted lots of mushrooms. The ‘01 is still earthy, but fruitier. Dark fruits, with a bit of tobacco and cedar. — 3 months ago
Bottle was a little bit off but still an excellent wine in an underrated vintage. The better crust like Ducru Beaucaillou have done much better in 2001 than in 2000. This is so evident these days. Classical vintage and starting to get accessible now. — 4 months ago
Thoroughly integrated tannins in an aged wine that has started its decline. Dark fruit, vanilla oak and cedar on the palette. Classic Bordeaux on the nose. — 6 months ago
At our second special Caymus dinner on Sky Princess serving this wine. I’ve had lots of Caymus wines over the years. This is in line with the brand, but not what I remember from the wines from the late 70’s. As the price increased, I lost interest. It’s ok, but I feel there are better wines at the price point for the Cabernet Sauvignon. — 7 months ago
#AgedWineTuesday
This is a fabulous Cabernet Sauvignon blend from Napa Valley.
Dark ruby in color with a brick rim.
Full bodied and smooth.
Dry and fruity on the palate with medium acidity.
Showing blackberries, black currants, plums, cooked cherries, cedar, leather, vanilla, licorice, spices, chocolates, tobacco, herbs, earth, light vegetables, coffee and black pepper.
Long finish with fine grained tannins and tangy raspberries.
This 23 year old is elegant and powerful. Rich and extracted, with a nice mouthfeel.
Good by itself as a sipping wine. Well balanced with great complexity. I just love these Napa Bordeaux blends.
Robert Parker 98 points. Wine Enthusiasts 94 points.
A great quality wine that will continue to age nicely in the next 10 to 15 years.
A blend of of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot and 3% Petit Verdot.
14.1% alcohol by volume.
96 points.
$400. — 8 months ago
Flight #1 of our 1997 Retrospective. Presented single-blind; no formal notes. This had a really compelling mix of fruit and non-fruit notes; multifaceted, balanced. Superb structure. Bordeaux-like. Called this “Insignia”. This was my favorite of the flight and the most complete wine in the line-up. Drinking well now and should hold that way well through 2027. — 9 months ago
Very deep ruby , ruby rim, shockingly young . Very closed still , mineral , creme de cassis , dark and meaty , grafite , chestnut . On the palate very tight and young , cassis with dark blackcurrant , cedar , tobacco and granite . Concentrated but balanced at the same time , gritty tannins , balanced acidity. Long and complex on the finish , with mineral , grafite notes . A great wine surely , this is so young and with huge potential. I suppose more impressive than enjoyable at this stage. This needs time in bottle, maybe come back in 5 years and will last a further 20-30 . — 9 months ago
Ridiculously smooth and full of dark berry notes like Blackberry and Blueberry with some pepper tossed in for good measure. A subtly dry wood cask finish rounds out the body. Best friends with steak or a nice dark chocolate. Smooth and dreamy. — 8 years ago
Jay Kline
Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of two days. Best on Day 2. The 2019 pours a pale garnet color with a transparent core; medium+ viscosity with no staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of Morello cherries, red roses, tangerine, pomegranate, talcum powder, dried sage, truffle, and dried stony earth. On the palate, the wine is bone dry with high tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long and savory. A lovely expression of 2019 Barbaresco. Drink now with patience and through 2049. — 3 months ago