Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

When it comes to my B-day, there is only one fit, an old Pichon Lalande with my Ribeye. As a lover of Bordeaux, these two are my favorite pairing. It’s a very slow walk to the finishline. A small bite of steak and a sip of 89 Pichon Lalande. Then, repeat until finished. I had some concerns about this bottle. A slightly slippery and crumbling cork. The first sip was not bad, but not what you want or are expecting. After some time in the decanter, it really started to shine. On the nose; ripe, ruby, floral cassis, blackberries, dark sweet & sour cherries, baked strawberries, blue fruit hues, dry cranberries, baked rhubarb, saddlewood, soft, used leather, bay leaf, touch of sage, hint of spearmint, eucalyptus, vanilla, cinnamon, crushed dry crushed rock powder, black turned earth, dry brown soil with clay, tobacco leaf and perfumed red florals with violets. The body is full, round and silky. Tannins are well resolved at around 80%. The texture, length, tension and length are in a sweet spot. The fruits are ripe, ruby & expressively floral. Blackberries, dark sweet & sour cherries, baked strawberries, blue fruit hues, dry cranberries, baked rhubarb, saddlewood, soft, used leather, bay leaf, touch of sage, hint of spearmint, eucalyptus, vanilla, cinnamon, crushed dry crushed rock powder, black turned earth, dry brown soil with clay, scorched earth, tobacco leaf and perfumed red florals with violets. The acidity is just a little off but still nice. The finish is divided nearly equally in fruit, earth, florals and herbaceous. It’s very enjoyable but falls just a little short in longer, lingering length. This bottle had good storage, not great. Even so, still has another three to five years ahead. A bottle with excellent storage has another five years beyond this one. Photos of; the backside of Pichon Lalande, angled terrace view of their vines right next to Latour, my steak & twice baked potato (so good) and CEO Nicolas Glumineau. — 8 years ago

Monica Halloran

9.2

Always love this wine. This vintage seems more fruit forward than other vintages with a lot of apple flavor. — 10 years ago

Doug Sayed

9.4

A huge wine, even at 10 years old. Better on day two, after much of its structure has settled down. Dark fruit palate with lengthy finish. Really great stuff. — 10 years ago

Scott Rowe

9.0

#bytheglass
12' Two Men in Mendoza Malbec
Candied cherries and toffee get you ready for sweetness then bam as savoury and Saturn like as they come. — 11 years ago

Will Pendleton

9.8

How lucky am I? Two Pappy's in one weekend. — 11 years ago

Molly Rydzel

9.6

Herb lamb is never without his dog... — 12 years ago

Carlo De Mello

9.5

This wine is drinking remarkably for a 53 year old! It evolved in the glass over two hours and had delicious notes of dried fruits and a nice finish. — 8 years ago

James Forsyth

9.3

Vaucluse is Michael White's Upper East Side French restaurant with a slight American twist. And so it is the wine list. Large sections of French wine are bookended by their US equivalents. Two pages of Burgundy are followed by a handful of Sonoma and Oregon Pinots. We stayed Old School and went for a Bordeaux. Red fruit, tar, leather, somewhat advanced beyond its decade of life. A tasty mid weight wine that was lovely with the rack of lamb and establishment atmosphere. — 9 years ago

with Cara

Eric Floyd

8.9

Bordeaux Blend. Fruity nose on opening. Stewed plums, dark cherries, slight cedar notes and old world earthiness. After decanting and breathing for two hours this wine blossomed. Elegant, perfectly balanced, with tobacco, leather, and more pronounced cedar. Good acidity mature and balanced. #bordeauxblend #bordeaux #wine — 10 years ago

Beki Mann

8.9

White peaches, light fresh flower note, toned acid, not super high, lithe and delicate with a medium weight and elegant old world structure. Had with a caprese salad, but honestly tomatoes overpower this. Try a strawberry salad with goat cheese instead. — 10 years ago

Corey Zamora, CSW

9.0

2013 vintage. Elegant new world Pinot, lots of red fruit with subtle old world influences. — 10 years ago

Kevin Craw

9.0

2011 vintage. Parker was right. Excellent wine for a good price. If I was ever having a function and wanted to save money but impress I would buy a case or two of this — 11 years ago

Andrew McPherson

9.3

Cinsault from the 135 yr old vines at bechtold vineyard — 11 years ago

Mark Flesher

9.1

REALLY impressed with this wine. This one was quite grassy and nitrogenous right upon opening. Settled down but took probably TWO HOURS. Not really expecting to open the 74 BV Latour TWO HOURS before your guests arrive, but next time I guess I will take note! This wine is made in a classic style. Though over the hill, this wine was still quite impressive and really did fit in well with wines that were 30 years younger. This wine poured a rather light Beaujolais style into the glass. There was definitely some browning/bricking present, but not as much as I had thought. The nose was a lot of raisin and was almost quite port-like. The palate had a really interesting earthy, old raspberry and grandma's closet kind of funk at first, but settled down to a nice candied nitrogenous black cherry with a chalky short finish. The best days of this wine are certainly behind it, but I was really quite amazed at how this one presented. The fruit was giving all it had (it just didn't have a whole lot left). — 8 years ago

Bruce Evans

9.5

10yrs old but still a ton of beautiful fruit in this full bodied Merlot. Consistently one of Spring Mountain's best Merlot's for last two decades! — 9 years ago

garry post

8.9

Very fine Michigan Pinot Noir. Light, complex, cherries, cola, leather, blueberries. With Coq au Vin one night and cheese and crackers two days later. — 10 years ago

Eric Hwang

9.0

Nearly two years since I last open one of these and it has definitely seen better days. It's only seven years old. Initial barnyard funk gives way to a host of aromas—leather, cured meat, musty (Brettanomyces?), teriyaki beef jerky. Loads of black fruit, soy sauce and prunes with smooth tannins. I have one more of this vintage. Drink 'em if you got 'em. I certainly will be. — 10 years ago

Ann Altman

Wine Manager Young's

9.7

Two words: Bad Ass — 10 years ago

with Jonathan

Josh Mersfelder

8.9

A great balance of Oregon fruit with some old world character. Definitely worth a try. — 11 years ago

Liz Dennis

10

Love. Old faithful. Sparks. Had two between the two of us. — 12 years ago