John Greer

8.9

Consistently good everyday wine dinner — 12 days ago

"Odedi"

9.4

#AgedWineTuesday

Dark ruby in color with a reddish rim. Doesn't show much age.

Beautiful nose with red and black fruits, chocolates, tobacco leaf, vegetables, forest floor, black tea, earth, coffee, herbs, spices, black pepper and wildflowers.

Full bodied and soft with medium acidity.

Dry on the palate with blueberries, cherries, black plums, currants, oak, light chocolates, coffee, mushrooms, licorice, tobacco leaf, earth, herbs and spices.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and tangy raspberries.

This is a gorgeous 24 year old Cabernet Sauvignon based Bordeaux blend from Saint Julien. Rich and elegant. Spicy and very complex. Nicely balanced with a nice mouthfeel.

Drinking at its peak now, and will continue to drink nicely in the next 10 years.

A great sipping wine that is so much fun to drink by itself.

A blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot. Aged in (33% new) French oak barrels for 18 months.

13% alcohol by volume.

94 points.

$150. — 15 days ago

Tom Garland

9.5

+1 hour decant(decent chunky/fine sediment). A splendid medium dark ruby red color with bricking. On the nose: Tantalizing perfumed notes of stewed plum/cherry, worn leather, smoke, forest floor, stewed meat, cedar, eucalyptus. Taste: creamy, elegant, with power and depth wine...plum, currants, smokey earth, graphite, saline, dusty crushed gravel, tobacco leaf, and a nice medium plus finish. YUM!! — a month ago

with Brenda

Freddy R. Troya

9.4

Opus One 2011
Napa Valley, California, USA 🇺🇸

Overview
A Bordeaux-style blend from one of Napa’s most iconic estates, co-founded by Robert Mondavi and Baron Philippe de Rothschild. The 2011 vintage was a challenging, cool year in Napa, producing wines of lower alcohol, more restraint, and higher acidity compared to the opulent, sun-soaked vintages before and after. Blend typically centers on Cabernet Sauvignon with Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot, and Malbec.

Aromas & Flavors
Opens with blackcurrant, cassis, and dried cherry layered with graphite, violets, tobacco leaf, and hints of cedar and espresso. As it evolves in the glass, notes of leather, savory herbs, and cocoa powder emerge.

Mouthfeel
Medium-bodied compared to more powerful Opus vintages, with fresh acidity and fine-grained tannins. Elegant and balanced, showing more finesse and structure than richness. The finish lingers with red and black fruits, spice, and a touch of earth.

Winemaking Notes
Aged in French oak for 18 months. The cooler season resulted in smaller yields, but a style closer to classic Bordeaux restraint rather than plush Napa ripeness.

Food Pairing
Beautiful with herb-crusted lamb, grilled duck breast, wild mushroom risotto, or aged cheeses like Comté.

Verdict
A vintage that divided critics due to its lighter profile, but for those who enjoy elegance and classical structure, the 2011 Opus One is a refreshing outlier. Drink now, though it still has a few years of graceful life ahead. Cheers!
— 2 months ago

Ron Siegel

9.3

Elegant, floral vintage for this wine showing red & black fruits, earth, spice & rose petal, violet notes — 5 days ago

Ericsson

9.5

Classic. Just classic on the color and nose. On the palate it has finer tannins, lifted acidity, and a long, polished finish that lingers on cassis and earth. One of the oldest Lafite’s I’ve tasted and feels like in last another couple of decades. Easy. — 17 days ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

Something for my Wagyu Burger.

I do enjoy this producers style/craft. Also, enjoy the elegance of St. Julien. 2012 is a vintage Sofia & 1 worked harvest at Clerc Milon. So, the 2012 vintage will always be a special vintage for me, even if it was only one that was good to very good for the right terroirs and producers. Just wasn’t special like; 00, 05, 09, 10, 16 or 19 etc..

Having said all that, this Ducru is not the 2012 star of the region. It’s elegant but falls short on depth, character & umpf, which are things I have grown to expect and have experienced from this producer in many vintages.

The palate shows, soft, round & velvety M-M+ tannins. Ripe; blackberries, black raspberries, dark cherries, some of both plums, slightly baked strawberries & circling raspberries. Slightly dry tobacco w/ ash, soft leather, sandalwood, mid, dark, rounded spice, nutmeg, clove, some cinnamon & vanillin, dark most earth with clay & dry leaves, herbaceous notes, very soft & elegant graphite, a touch of of mid berry cola/licorice, dark withering flowers, red roses, nice acidity with nicely balance, good tension/structured, elegant finish that last nearly two minutes and long sets on rounded dark spice.

@EmiratesLoungeDubai — a day ago

Pooneet K

9.2

Thought we’d had our last bottle 4 years ago but then found this one. Probably better then, but still very nice. Definitely quite secondary, but the core of fruit and acid carries through. Wonderful pairing with dry aged strip steaks and wild mushroom risotto for our 10 year anniversary. — 18 days ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

The 2006 Bordeaux vintage. The vintage while wasn’t Bordeaux’s best, it certainly wasn’t one of its worst. It had the unenviable position of following a grand 2005 vintage. I think better than 2000, maybe 09 & 10? Jury is still out. The Bordelaise also got greedy and raised their prices from 05. That was a mistake when it came to selling the 2006 vintage and it laid another layer of bad taste in consumers minds.

I really enjoy Pichon Lalande’s style/craft. The 06 is good, not great. In fact, I enjoyed this better w/o the lamb.

The fruits are just ripe. Velvety, rounded M+ tannins. Brambly blackberries, dryish black plum, black cherries, black raspberries, strawberries, some raspberry hues, oak barrel shavings, graphite, dry soils, dry tobacco & leather, dry clay, soft but dark spice, some dry herbs, soft baking spices- clove, nutmeg, cinnamon & vanillin, light milk chocolate, caramel hues, black tea, anise, some mid berry cola, dry & withering, dark & red flowers, violets, decent, round acidity, balanced, neatly structured/tensioned with an elegant finish that lasts just over 90 seconds and falls on dry earth and soft, dark spice.

Still acceding and has 15 plus yrs of good drinking ahead. Could make a case for rounding up to 93.

Paired w/ Grilled Rack of Lamb, Served with Rosemary Jus, Fondant Potatoes and Steamed Broccoli.

@EK148 — a day ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.3

2020 vintage. Decanted and tasted after 1.5 hours. Chocolate covered cherry mixed with wet earth. Much too much too soon but still overtly delicious. 9.12.25. — a month ago