Trolley 5 Brewery

R. López de Heredia

Viña Tondonia Reserva Rioja Tempranillo Blend 2008

Dark garnet hue. Aromas of bramble, cedar, cherry, flint, graphite, leather, oak, plum, strawberry. Medium-plus body, with plus tannins and plus acidity. Integrated, rounded tannins. Drinking well now. 75% Tempranillo, 15% Garnacha, 5% Graciano, 5% Mazuelo. — 2 months ago

Dominus Estate

Dominus Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2001

#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.
— 3 months ago

Stephen, Bob and 25 others liked this
Stephen Redenbaugh

Stephen Redenbaugh Premium Badge

Brilliant owner, wine, vineyard, and wine-making…these wines age so gracefully.
Tom Casagrande

Tom Casagrande Influencer Badge

Wow! Cheers!!

Château Léoville Poyferré

Saint Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 2006

Medium deep ruby , quite narrow rim . Cedar tinged blackberry and blackcurrant fruit , truffle notes . Pencil lead , tobacco and grafite also . On the palate medium bodied with nice balanced acidity , polished tannin . Blackcurrant , cedar , truffle , mineral grafite notes . Quite classic and really enjoyable now . This can obviously go further though good now and over the next 10 , and will last a further 5-10 years. Singapore Airlines SIN- SYD — 4 months ago

Tom, Daniel and 8 others liked this

Spier

Creative Block 5 Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2020

Good body. Blackberry followed by dry forest leaves. Complex and refined. — 7 months ago

Laura liked this

Domaine du Vieux Télégraphe

La Crau Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhone Blend 2000

Capitol Region Wine Collectors Club (WCC), Chateauneuf du Pape; 5 October 2023 at Café Capriccio, Albany, NY — 8 months ago

David, Paul and 17 others liked this

Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste

Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 2011

Happy Labor Day holiday weekend in the USA!

We’re enjoying a night off from studying while sipping a lovely Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste 2011 paired with a grilled steak, baked potato, green beans, and mushroom / zucchini kabobs. Soon (and sadly) we’ll have to say “au revoir” to summer.

Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste is situated on the left bank of Bordeaux, i.e., west of the Gironde Estuary, in the commune of Pauillac. Soils here are gravel-based, and free-draining, ideal for ripening the late-ripening Cabernet Sauvignon grape, which dominates in this Bordeaux blend.

Pauillac is known for producing age-worthy, structured Cabernet Sauvignon wines due in part to the growing environment. No wonder it’s home to 3 out of 5 first growth wines in the 1855 classification, including, Château Latour, Château Lafite Rothschild, and Château Mouton Rothschild. This particular wine ranks highly, as well, as a fifth growth and understandably so.

Based on our research the 2011 vintage in Bordeaux seemed to fast-forward many typical growing processes and timelines; grapes were budding and ripening ahead of schedule with warmer temperatures early in the season followed by notably cooler temperatures in August, ahead of harvest.

It’s remarkable how variable seasonal conditions can affect a wine’s profile, especially in less consistent climates like Bordeaux where vintage variation is a serious thing… still, this wine is lovely.

It is deep ruby with a medium (+) intensity of developing aromas offering notes of ripe blackberry, cassis, black cherry, plum, black licorice, anise, violet, tobacco, leather, clove, nutmeg, cedar, pencil shavings.

On the palate, this wine is dry with medium (+) acidity, high tannins that are ripe and smooth, a medium (+) body, medium (+) intensity of flavors consistent with the notes. The finish is medium(+).

This is an excellent wine that is drinking well now and could age further.

Cheers to the beauty born in 2011 in Pauillac AOC with this Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste!
— 9 months ago

Deked1
with Deked1
Deked1, Andrew and 21 others liked this

Bodegas y Viñedos Vega Sicilia

Muestra Valbuena 5 Ribera del Duero Tempranillo Blend 2010

Black cherry, lavender, leather, blackberry, grilled meat nose. Dried violet resonance. Rich palate explodes with blackberry, black cherry, blueberry and smoke, tobacco, cedar, graphite and cinnamon, cedar, resin, and licorice.


#vegasicilia #vegasiciliawines #valbuena #riberadelduero #tempranilloblend #tempranillo #vinoespana
— 3 months ago

David, Ira and 7 others liked this

Château Pichon-Longueville Baron

Baron de Pichon-Longueville Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 1995

1995 vintage. Great fill, foil and label. Perfect cork. From a top-notch cellar. Decanted and tasted over the course of two hours. Volcanic ash-styled sed vs chunky-style. Big funk on the nose that resolved after 7-8 minutes. Wine was showing decently (in the 69-72 degree range) but lacking any tannic structure. Placed the decanter atop an ice bucket bath to drop the temp down to 60 degrees or so. Took about 20 minutes but the tannins kicked in the door to say hello. Fruit components stayed constant. Pauillac tendencies were all there. As is the case often with older BDX, the decaying matter/leaves at the onset transitioned to graphite/lead pencil and espresso flavors. This was a superior bottle in great shape. Top of this wine’s specific bell curve. Comparable bottles would look to be drinking this well for the next 5-7 years without dropoff. Out of larger format…could possibly push this into 9.4 status. 2.5.24. — 4 months ago

Ron, Jan and 17 others liked this
Ron R

Ron R Influencer Badge Premium Badge

Gonna do a “fly by” one of these days. Buckle up…
Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

@Ron R Let me know if you’re headed to SD. E-mail me at: scott@asrestaurant.com
Ron R

Ron R Influencer Badge Premium Badge

👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾

Château Haut-Brion

Pessac-Léognan Red Bordeaux Blend 2010

Wafts out of the class. Medium weight, lead pencil, cassis, dark fruit. Incredible length. Could benefit from 5 more years in bottle. Keeps intensifying. — 6 months ago

Peter, Rob and 14 others liked this

Château de Beaucastel

Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhône Blend 2006

Capitol Region Wine Collectors Club (WCC), Chateauneuf du Pape; 5 October 2023 at Café Capriccio, Albany, NY — 8 months ago

Paul, Bob and 20 others liked this

Podere le Boncie (Giovanna Morganti)

5 Toscana Ciliegiolo Blend 2020

Very nice blend from Le Boncie. Beautiful color. Some good fruit, long finish, tannins are quite balanced with excellent refreshing acid on the finish. Very enjoyable. — 9 months ago

Andrew, Lyle and 5 others liked this

Joseph Phelps Vineyards

Insignia Estate Grown Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2001

#AgedWineTuesday

Here is a fabulous 99 point wine by Robert Parker.

Dark ruby in color with a short reddish rim.

Great nose of blueberries, blackberries, black currants, plums, cooked cherries, cedar, earth, vanilla, Mediterranean spices, espresso, cola, light herbs, chocolates, tobacco and black pepper.

Full bodied, smooth and elegant, with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry and fruity on the palate with blackberries, black cherries, figs, cedar, chocolates, vanilla, licorice, spices, tobacco, herbs, light earth, cola and peppercorn.

Long finish with round tannins and tangy cherries.

This is a gorgeous Cabernet Sauvignon based Bordeaux blend from Napa Valley.

Showing nice balance and a great mouthfeel. Round and rich. Elegant and smooth.

This 22 year old still has a lot of power in it, and will continue to age nicely in the next 5 to 10 years.

Good right out of the bottle, and better after 2 hours of airtime.

So soft and powerful, with a great nose. This is a gorgeous wine right now.

A blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot and 3% Malbec. Aged in all new French oak barrels for 24 months.

13.9% alcohol by volume.

96 points.

$250.
— a year ago

Steven, Shay and 19 others liked this
"Odedi"

"Odedi" Influencer Badge

@Dawn E. very much so 🍷

Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande

Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 1986

1986 vintage. Ripped through six bottles (one corked) for a 1986 BDX dinner @ Mister A's-San Diego. All bottles appropriately aged fill and decent+ corks. Double decanted and tasted over the course of 5 hours. Mix of powdery and stubborn (non-chunky) sed amongst the 6 bottles. Light-medium body throughout. Somewhat muted experience overall. None of the bottles (with variation) shone/sung. Wine is firmly on the downside of the bell curve with best days behind it (based on the 5 + corked bottle examples). There was none of the usual P-L flavor markers but the body hung in there. Pains me to say this but drink up now unless you've got a larger format bottle. Maggie (+) would probably yield a higher score. 3.14.24. — 3 months ago

Paul, Lyle and 8 others liked this
Pinotman /// Andreas

Pinotman /// Andreas

Oh 😥. Sounds like a bust.
David T

David T Influencer Badge

While I respect, own many vintage from them, as well as, one of my favorite non 1st growth producers and love the style of 80’s Bordeaux (82, 86, 89) I don’t believe this vintage from them ever lived up to expectation or critics reviews.
Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

@David T To be fair, had a few examples of this particular wine and vintage that ticked off the 9.6 mark for me. Don’t rate anything above a 9.7. When it was at the top of the bell curve and just on either side of that summit, it didn’t suck. Life rolls on.

Marchesi Antinori

Tignanello Toscana Super Tuscan Blend 2020

A. R.
9.2

Good wine, QPR questionable. Red/black fruit, some unresolved oak, good acid, high tannin. Needs 5+ years. Great finish. Good with red meat. — 4 months ago

Hermes, Andrew and 9 others liked this

Château Pontet-Canet

Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 2008

#AgedWineTuesday

Dark ruby in color with a short reddish rim.

Full bodied with medium plus acidity.

Dry on the palate with blackberries, black currants, cooked cherries, spices, oak, vanilla, licorice, chocolates, light earth, light vegetables, herbs, tobacco leaf and black pepper.

Medium finish with grippy tannins and raspberries.

This 15 year old, Fifth Growth Bordeaux, is still young and tight. Needs 5 to 10 years in the bottle to mature properly.

I gave it 90 minutes in the decanter, but it probably was not enough.

Robert Parker 96 points. Wine Spectator 92 points.

Showing nice complexity with a nice mouthfeel. Grippy and rich.

Definitely needs food at this point, like a big piece of steak.

A blend of 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot.

13% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$125.
— 6 months ago

Paul, Joseph and 27 others liked this

Spottswoode

Family Estate Grown St. Helena Cabernet Sauvignon 2014

Graphite and pencil lead. Deep purple/garnet. Took 5 hours of decanting to open up. — 8 months ago

Felton Road

Block 5 Pinot Noir 2015

Dark cherry and briar. On the palate medium + intensity - heavy spice. No other word for it but delicious. One of the jewels of Central Otago along with Block 3. A gift from a good mate who loves new world Pinot Noir, for my 70th last year. A gorgeous wine. — 9 months ago

Daniel, Severn and 20 others liked this
David T

David T Influencer Badge

Absolutely love their craft!
Ron R

Ron R Influencer Badge Premium Badge

yessir!!!

Raymond Vineyard & Cellar

R Collection Lot No. 5 Field Blend

I had a fruity to oak/earthy experience. Fruit up front Oak to Earth on the finish.
$10.+ at Costco.
Went well with my steak-filled salad...as well as with my chocolate-covered walnuts afterwards.
— 4 years ago

Château Lynch-Bages

Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2011

Very young. Needs 3-5 years to round the tannins. High acidity. Fruit is very nice. Lots if bing cherries. Will be very good in a few years or with a long decant. — 6 years ago