Victor Hsu

9.0

1949 vintage (!!!). Very special half bottle, but more than half the volume lost to evaporation. Opened this gem at Totoraku yesterday to go with two full bottles of Chateau Lafite Rothschild, 1996 and 1952 (!!). This Temple of Beef demands special occasion wines. Cork fell apart in the bottle so we poured it all in a decanter but did not wait to sip. Pale strawberry-orange color, surprising tart fruit nose, supremely delicate taste with just a bit of fruit and life left. Not the best bottle on the table but certainly not the undrinkable. Interesting experience. Would gladly do it again in the name of science. Oldest Red Bordeaux I have ever tasted. — 6 months ago

Mike Saviage

9.9

Tasted blind. Deep purple color. Looks very young, compared to the 45 Margaux next to it. Almost opaque. Notes of black fruit, cracked walnuts, sweet fruit, raspberry and some cedar desk. Super rich in the mouth. Seems young and is firm, but tannins are softened and the mouthfeel is velvet touch. Long finish. It peacocks all night. The walnuts thing leads my guess to Latour, but can this be the 45? Is it a 61 or 82? Could be... I go with it being a 59 given how young it seems. Just an amazing bottle of wine, open for ~9 hours by the time we left, it seemed to effortlessly power along. Thanks Stan! — 2 years ago

Peter Collins

9.1

The nose was weirdly muted and indiscernible. Also a bit tight but the finish was full and nice. It’s good but for the price and time in the bottle, it just left me unimpressed — 4 years ago

Jon Shares

8.9

White Pinot!? Not bad at all. — 5 years ago

Bill Bender

9.3

After a spirited tussle between myself and the Durand vs a dry and crumbly cork I was able to double decant this and segregate away the remnants of floating debris. I was immediately struck by the bouquet which was unmistakably borne from Cabernet Franc (and I believe this blend is less than 10%). It was a positive sign. The wine is completely intact and boasts ample fruit albeit waning acidity. Simple Concord grape, bruised black plum and sweet oak flavors are holding on 2 hours in. This has some time left, but not much. This is a testament to Opus One quality in the early days (I believe this was the 3rd or 4th vintage) and while I think the ‘87-‘97 era was their best, this is an profound example of an exemplary wine at age 37! — 6 years ago

Louie Christensen

9.1

An aromatic-Cab lover's dream. Eucalyptus, tobacco, dark dark fruits, and well integrated oak. The palate matches, and the mouthfeel feels like any Napa Cab of high pedigree. — 8 years ago

Peter Coticchia

9.5

Amazing ! Perfect, no tannins left, and lots of fruit. Very smooth and perfectly aged. — 8 years ago

Charles Schneider

9.1

Showing well for the age. Texture was pure silk. Good bit of fruit still left in the old bones. Can't wait to show Jean-Louis Carbonnier. — 10 years ago

Rita Jammet

Owner La Caravelle Champagne

9.5

Beautiful surprise, balance and harmony. Thanks to @aviramturgeman at Nice Matin — 10 years ago

Nathan Renfro

9.5

Lovely wine. Nose of leather, pencil. Ruby red. Silky mouthfeel. Fruit, black, blue and red, all ripe, lush, and juicy. Tannins are silky yet full. Leaving a very long finish. Beautiful wine drinking fantastic now with lots of life left. — 6 months ago

Robert Torretti

9.4

A lovely bottle of classic Lafite Rothschild. Ordered with old friends and new at Waldhaus Sils on the fourth anniversary of my father’s death. He was biased to Cabernet Sauvignon / Left Bank Blends, and appreciated his Lafite, even if he stopped buying them as prices got out of hand. 1995 was chosen in honor of the year that I met my friend Julian, with whom I have worked at two companies across 20+ years and now count as a dear friend and peer in our industry. The bottle was in great shape, likely bought en primeur and stored in the Alpine retreat’s cellars (tour tomorrow!). Oscar, the manager and sommelier has been at the Waldhaus for 32 years, so it was purchased in his early days. The tannins were very well integrated, with some dark fruits, delicious tobacco and cedar, and a long finish. — 10 months ago

Neal Ferry

8.9

After tasting gem… great Oregon Pinot — 2 years ago

Adam Sofair-Fisch

9.3

Energetic and structured #shawnwines — 4 years ago

Geoffrey Green

9.6

Pristine cork, decanted for 5 hours: still balanced, complex, and harmonious as a 20 year old in a challenging vintage. Fruit still lively, with mellow tannins—this still has a few years left. Came out best for me in an evening of great old wines: ‘98 Corison, ‘98 Montelena Estate, plus de la Tour ‘99. Never underestimate the consistency of a great estate, year after year. Glad I have another bottle or two. — 5 years ago

David From The 504

9.2

Go to bottle of Hermitage, good price point Syrah what else to say! Plenty of time left in this. — 7 years ago

Paul Juster

9.1

Deep, dark, rich fruit, boysenberry, plum, slight vanilla, spice. Delicious!!! #JesusWine — 7 years ago

Olivia Walters

10

Like Guinness, with a mocha aftertaste. — 8 years ago

Naboth van den Broek

9.3

Drinking very nicely. Not too much longer left though. — 9 years ago

Byron C Mayes

9.7

Still really tight. Dark red purple. Classic cassis notes. Still plenty of time left. 2021 maybe? — 10 years ago

Eddy Mendez

10

Pretty darn good showing with tons of dark cab goodness and and nice structure early on but as it warmed from cellar temperature and opened the richness of the fruit started to outweigh the acidity and tannin structure. I guess it's a matter of what you want from a Cabernet. The 'Old World' Brother In Law and the rest of his loyal crew who value smoothness over all else thought it was "like buttah". I had to side with the spacewrangler. While this wine was not over the top or over extracted it left me wanting more structure. — 11 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.6

Having my annual 2002 Penfolds Bin 389 - now 3 bottles left. Definitely a beautiful mature Cabernet Shiraz from this cool vintage. Has the Penfolds DNA of. Chocolate, Mocha and Black fruits. Wonderful balance - very polished with at least 5 to 10 years in front of it. This is why one cellars Penfolds Reds. Your patience is repaid in spades with the finished product…..maturing at glacial pace. My plan is to have the next one in 2024, then 2026, then 2028. — 8 months ago

Deborah M

9.3

Another one from last night’s birthday dinner. I had a little left to revisit on day 2 and it is still amazing. What a classic. I could sit with this for a long time. The smokey, deep dark fruit/licorice, and velvety mouthfeel, all make this wine shine. This one will definitely improve with more age. Easily one of the top 5 wines of the year for me. — 2 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.6

From a great looking bottle with a fill almost into the neck. Double decanted and left in the bottle for 5 hours before attacking it. Amber color. Good weight and haunting nose. Notes of old cedar, mocha, plums, cola, dark fruit, molasses and some sweet red cherry. Early on it’s all about the amazing nose. But with time the wine gains weight and you have a gorgeous old St Estephe in front of you. Still giving its all, and although the fruit is somewhat faded, this has complexity and structure that still drives the experience. And that nose is simply stunning. Great showing. — 2 years ago

Mike Beltran

9.0

1985 vintage and in good condition. Cork was solid but brittle. Fine color defined Cabernet aromatics with more years of enjoyment. Double decanted because of the cork issue. Very good now and has another 8+ years left. Excellent Napa Cabernet.😀🍷 — 5 years ago

Pierre Gourinchas

9.2

As always, a stunner. This is a delight to drink. Balanced, fruity, light on oak. — 7 years ago

Mike Beltran

9.0

Very solid Bordeaux blend with lots of fruit flavors and balanced oak influence. Still very young and well reward cellar time over the next 5/8 years. Top rate Napa Cab at a fair price.. Nice job Bruce.... — 7 years ago

with Janelle and Joe

Omid

9.3

Still has 3-5 years left. Opened up very nicely — 8 years ago

Matthew Beckman

9.3

Lovely nose of cherry and tobacco...plenty of time left for this but approachable now. My wine of the night — 9 years ago

Ritzy R

8.9

Bought at ABC store, made from Chile — 10 years ago

Rian Monroe

9.3

TW- 5.39, sweet and refreshing — 11 years ago