Chris England

9.4

II’ve loved all the Sandhi 2012 range of whites & this £65 S&B is superb 👍 Paired with enough curry to get a small village going regular for a week 🤣 💨 sorry I didn’t take pics of that feast 😁

📍 Sandhi Sandford & Benedict Santa Rita Hills Chardonnay 2012 @sandhiwines

🏵 94 points

🍷 Golden yellow

👃 Chopped pineapple, crushed rock mineral, lemon oil, key lime pie, honey gloop & white jasmine flowers w/ light oak, vanilla & apple

👄 Med+ body of creamy refreshing clean tropical & citrus yummyness without being overly syrupy & a hit of green apple, pineapple, honey & minerality in med acidity

🎯 Med+ fresh apple, citrus & tropical trickle w/ a dry mineral honeyed pineapple slapette — 7 years ago

Ely Cohn

9.3

An unsuspectingly forward Riesling with a watery pale hay color and shy aromas of orchard fruits, bitter apple seed, and slate. The flavors take a sharp u-turn - fully expressive with off dry but not honeyed notes of red apple and roasted lemon. It finishes cleanly with slate and wet rocks. Really excellent. — 8 years ago

Brandi Peralta

9.8

Put the kids to bed, turn the lights low, put on some jazz and enjoy this bottle alone. — 8 years ago

with Rich

Narun P

8.9

Tasted at Chateau
51% M, 39% CS, 5% CF, and 5% PV

Deep purple, no sign of age, compact rim. Youthful.

Fruit forward, dominated by red currant, underripe raspberry, red cherry. Baking spices and new wood smell.

On the palate, surprisingly approachable. Med plus tannin but softened already, med full body, dry. The midpalate really needs to fleshen out. Slightly lacking. Finish on nutty new oak.

Time will tell if this will turn out to be in line with a line up of superb recent wines from this classic house. 89+? — 9 years ago

Kevin Cahoon

9.1

Classic Chenin nose with pear, quince and lemon fruit. It has a pretty hint of hazelnut and flowers to add complexity. Round with quince and tangerine fruit tones that quickly turn to high toned mineral and floral flavors. This has a zesty, mineral driven back end. — 9 years ago

Kieran Roberts

9.2

Wine of the session at Kay brothers. Smart and vibrant winemaking, great fruit clarity and really shows how good mclaren Grenache can be. — 10 years ago

Mathew McNamara

9.2

21 years old and enticing but between destinations. Not quite developed enough and not quite generous enough. Leather and tobacco are the key drivers with some confit fruits chillin out back. Come back in a couple of years. — 10 years ago

William Schimmel

9.1

Preparing to turn 40. That, at least, is the excuse. Usual DP style. Very dry with long finish. Somewhat tight though. Probably needs 3-5 years minimum and score could go up. Paired perfectly with smoked oysters. — 11 years ago

Doug Pabst

9.3

darker-fruited than the geyserville, but just as lithe on the palate. curious to see what this vintage will turn into with age — 11 years ago

Joey Mcglumphy

10

So good and so cheep. — 12 years ago

Chris Roberts

9.2

From viva la vine — 13 years ago

Delectable Wine

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9.6

One of my all time favorites, the 1982 Cristal is magnificent. Fresh, nuanced and exceptionally beautiful, the 1982 remains one of the all-time great Cristals. Apricot, almond and chamomile nuances suggest the 1982 is just starting to turn the corner into its plateau of maturity. This bottle lacks a bit of excitement, but, then again, the 1982 Cristal is not exactly the sort of wine I get to taste on a regular basis, so it is possible this is not the best showing. Hopefully, I will get a chance to taste it again soon. Even so, well-stored bottles will drink well for another decade-plus. “In my opinion, 1982 is the first vintage of climate change in Champagne,” Lécaillon explains. “Sugars were higher than we were used to seeing. As a comparison, the 1981 Cristal is also concentrated, but it is concentrated by low yields. In 1982, we had high yields and elevated ripeness, meaning it was the sun that ripened the fruit.” (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, December 2018) — 7 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

I’m opening my last bottle of the 03 Larcis Ducasse after recently reading a couple of professional write ups about the wines fruit fading and to drink up. I did not find that to be the case w/ my last bottle. I found the wine to be around it’s peak form with another 5 years plus ahead. On the nose; menthol, eucalyptus, ripe; dark cherries, cherries, blackberries, plum, poached & candied strawberries, notes of blue fruits, black raspberries, cherry cola, touch herbaceous; sage & bay leaf, limestone & rich, moist, black, turned earth, crushed dry rocks, graphite, dry soil/clay with dry & fresh dark florals. The body is medium full. Tannins are 75-80% resolved. The length, structure, tension & balance are right where I’d expect them to be and are quite enjoyable. The palate is very similar to the nose. Menthol, eucalyptus, ripe; dark cherries, cherries, blackberries, plum, poached & candied strawberries, notes of blue fruits, black raspberries, cherry cola, touch herbaceous; sage & bay leaf, limestone & rich, moist, black, turned earth, crushed dry rocks, dry & very grippy, edgy minerals, Montecristo cigar, graphite, dry soil/clay with dry & fresh dark florals. The acidity is lovely and the long finish is well balanced with an even tug of war between fruit & earth with the dry earth dominate on the long set. Photos of; of their great southern exposed sunny hillside vineyard, the old craved stone entrance and Nicolas Thienpont & Stephane Derenoncourt. Producer notes & history...Chateau Larcis Ducasse began during the days of the ancient Romans, who valued the best hillside vineyards in the area. The early part of the modern era for Larcis Ducasse begins in 1893, when Henri Raba bought the Saint Emilion vineyard. After Henri Raba passed away in 1925, his wife and son Andre Raba continued managing Larcis Ducasse. His niece, Helene Gratiot Alphandery, inherited the property in 1941. She managed Chateau Larcis Ducasse until 1990. Then her son, Jacques-Olivier Gratiot took control of the property after she passed away and he remains in charge today. Chateau Larcis Ducasse remains the property of the Gratiot Alphandery family today. Prior to 2003, it had been years since the wines of Chateau Larcis Ducasse were prized by Bordeaux wine lovers. The wine had fallen out of favor, due to a lack of attention and effort. That changed in 2002 when they hired Saint Emilion consultants, Nicolas Thienpont and Stephane Derenoncourt to turn things around and manage the estate. One of the first improvements at the property suggested by them was to create a new drainage system. The next step was to change harvesting practices. Prior to 2002, the grapes were often picked too early and over a very short duration of 2 to 3 days. Now, the harvest takes place when the fruit is ripe and picking can take as long as 2 to 3 weeks. Starting with the 2005 vintage, all work in the vineyards moved to 100% organic farming methods. The 10.85 hectare St. Emilion vineyard of Larcis Ducasse is planted to 78% Merlot and 22% Cabernet Franc. This shows a slight change in the vineyard, as more Cabernet Franc has been added to the plantings since 2003. The vineyard is located just around the bend in the road from Chateau Pavie. In fact, their vines but up against each other. They are surrounded by more good producers. To the south, is Chateau Canon La Gaffeliere and La Gaffeliere, and as you move north, Chateau Troplong Mondot and Chateau Pavie. The terroir of Chateau Larcis Ducasse is a mixture of soils. The vines on the top of plateau and the slopes have a south facing exposure. At the higher elevations on the plateau, the terroir is limestone, clay and chalk soils. As you travel further down the slopes towards the terraces, the terroir is a blend of chalky limestone, marl, sand, silt and clay soil. At the base of the slopes, you find sand and clay soils. On average the vines are 35 years of age. While the older plantings were done at a vine density of 6,600 vines per hectare, as the vineyard continues to be slowly replanted, the vine density is increasing with each subsequent replanting. The new plantings are being done at 7,500 vines per hectare. They are also using budwood obtained through selection massale. The yields are kept low at Larcis Ducasse. In 2009, the effective yields were only 25 hectoliters per hectare.To produce the wine of Chateau Larcis Ducasse, the grapes are whole berry fermented. The fruit is transported by gravity flow into traditional, cement tanks for fermentation. Cuvaison takes between 25-28 days. There are no pump overs. Pigeages are conducted during fermentation. Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrel. The wine of Chateau Larcis Ducasse is then aged in 67% new, French oak barrels, which are mixed in size, between standard barrels and 500 liter French, oak casks. The wine is then aged for an average of 18 to 20 months in barrel before bottling. The production averages close to 4,000 cases depending on what the vintage gives. — 8 years ago

Ryan Carey

Founder Wine Confidential

9.3

Man, I love this wine. My 2nd time having the 2004, and it's just stellar. I wrote down cinnamon and sweet/pastry/tart (in a very good way)...and went to look at my old review, which said cinnamon and key lime. Well damn, how's that for consistency! — 10 years ago

George Chen

9.0

Like a country road in Loire...these make you turn your head every few minutes! — 10 years ago

Dock Hooks

9.7

A near perfect rosé at a great price. I prefer this soft fruit tempered by a light floral note all properly and proportionately positioned against a mineral intensive rocky bottom as swift waters twist and turn their way downstream leaving one's palate clean and refreshed but laced with the memory of the moment😎🌀 - buy the magnum at my favorite local Morehead City, NC hang - Promise Land Market (thx sweet Janeen and Daniel for spinning some crazy sweet tunage!)! Find this place in all its realness, and drink this wine! — 11 years ago

Matté

Manager The Wine Cellars

8.9

Wet stone & key lime pie nose, palate is linear with a taught, one dimensional green apple acidity and classy finish — 12 years ago

Sandy Shearer

9.9

Dark Star / Left Turn — 13 years ago

Matt

9.2

Gorgeous turn around since LBT. Pure, ripe, delicious orchard fruits, brioche, toasted nuts, and chalk. Still a savory/starchy underpinning but this has opened up a lot. 2/2015 disgorgement — 7 years ago

Sarah Oettel

9.0

Nice citrus notes—lemon and key lime. Petrol, rubber. Crisp acidity. Really well balanced right now. — 8 years ago

Scott Taddeo

9.1

Still very young. Orange blossom, rubber, key limes, lemon and tarragon. Medium plus acid and not quite as taught as it once was. Great producer sure, but better rieslings our there for the bucks. Like to see if this would go in a blind line up. — 8 years ago

William Fastenow

9.2

A great way to turn around a long delay. Killer. — 9 years ago

Katie Kosiboski

9.4

Sweet. Pretty lime-y. Tastes like Florida. — 9 years ago

Matt Trader

9.2

For someone known for their sweet wines from Barsac, a 94 pt critique from Wine Spectator on a Sec is awesome for them, and I almost agree in my critique. It has a very fragrant nose of white flowers, beeswax, kiwi, and lime zest. The pallet is very zesty, and bright, exhibiting notes of grapefruit, key lime, honeysuckle, vanilla, and a bright mouthwatering acidity to the finish. Lovely and refreshing, but would most certainly see some lovely age. I'd like to lay this vintage down and see what 10 years would do for it. Yum! — 9 years ago

Yarrow Beydoun

9.7

So beautiful, dark earthy notes, cigar box, smoke, turn forest floor, dark mature plums, Christmas spices. Open beautifully after 23 years. — 10 years ago

LM Segal

9.4

Superb. Powerful nose of cassis on a (finally, as these '07s turn) smooth and velvety frame of tobacco, black fruit and licorice. Every time I drink these beautys I wonder how I can justify paying 3x for the Pritchard Hills.... — 10 years ago

Erik Longabardi

9.5

This is a wine you can always rely on because it's consistently great each vintage. Save your Baudry bottles; I believe this has aging capabilities that will turn this excellent bottle into something even better down the road. Patience. — 10 years ago

Mark Buckley

8.9

An interesting Red blend from the Central Coast courtesy of Club W — 11 years ago

Rafael Landestoy

9.1

I always love this Pinot. — 12 years ago

with Ilida

Ryan Key

9.1

Excellent balance between fruit, body, and earth. Would buy again. — 13 years ago