Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.3

First winery on day two in Sonoma was Donelan Family Wines in Santa Rosa with Meredith. The last Rhone varietal red was the Walker Vine Hill Syrah. Sadly we were told that this was the last vintage that will be produced. This bottling is made up of 100% Syrah and is around 40-50% whole cluster fermented then aged for 20 months in 25% new French oak. 1,025 cases produced.

Insanely dark and inky purplish ruby red, completely coats the glass. Dark berries on the start of the nose followed up by cinnamon, cocoa, blueberries and some dustiness. Medium plus tannins (7/10) with a full body. Rich and layered palate with red currants, red plums, even a touch of blue fruits and some solid minerality. Long and lingering finish. Drink till 2028. (93+)

$$$ - Tasted at the winery. Retail price is $75.00. — 8 years ago

with India

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.3

2017 Bravo - Imperial Brown Ale
Deep caramel brown with light brown head. Dark nose with caramelized brown sugar, molasses, and honey with a little heat. Can tell it's a a high alcohol level get drunk from just smelling it. A little creamy and syrupy too. Full bodied and long finish. Could easily go with some dessert. — 9 years ago

Lewis Chester

9.2

2013 vintage. At Costa Navarino, Greece. Medium lemon hue. On the nose, quite complex - lemon curd, chalky minerality, honeysuckle. On the palate, a little fat, medium acidity, medium plus concentration and fairly long finish. The mineral nature of the wine is more apparent on the mid palate. Very enjoyable. Drink now until 2023+. — 10 years ago

Rob Moose

9.3

Delicious in 375. Showing well already — 10 years ago

Randy

9.5

Surprisingly good — 11 years ago

Stephanie Losee

9.2

Aged bubble--had a bitter orange liqueur thing going on like Grand Marnier or Cognac. Gorgeous orange color with tiny pretty bead. — 11 years ago

Myra Lybarger

10

$10.99 very smooth — 9 years ago

Joy Patton

9.0

Very tasty! Could quite possibly be a new favorite... — 9 years ago

Michael Seely

8.9

Tim's birthday set — 9 years ago

with Joe

Matt Trader

9.0

Great Shiraz from Barossa with great ageing potential. Big core and good tannins, with a floral, spicy, and botanical nose. The pallet exhibits dark vibrant raspberries, black pepper, bay leaf, burnt espresso bean, and silver dollar eucalyptus toward the lingering finish. I still find the RWT to be more my style, in comparison to this beimg more lean in structure and spicy in character. It was a bit less extracted which for some is preferable, but every so often I enjoy more of a rich extracted style of wine. Overall, great effort and I would like to see this one in a few more years.

Cheers!

$51.99 — 10 years ago

Kihyun Yoon

9.2

One of the best double IPA. Only this IPA can be compared to Pliny the Elder. — 11 years ago

Michelle Liu

9.4

So oaky I like it even better when watching the grand Budapest hotel. Pairs well with Wes — 11 years ago

Puerto Rico Wine News

9.3

Really nice stuff — 13 years ago

Marcus Maroney

9.4

Subtle and amazing — 9 years ago

Roy Piper

9.3

Great suave texture with black fruit. Linear structure. Not really like a TRB wine, stylistically. Give 3-4 years. Needs a good amount of air. A really impressive first release. — 9 years ago

Joe Scanzano

10

My go to scotch. Much bolder on the finish than blue and gold. Full bodied mouth feel and robust flavor. — 10 years ago

Robert Cunningham

Wine Educator DeVinimus, Wine Workshop

9.0

Soft and elegant. Drinking nicely in 2016 though would have been better 10 years ago — 10 years ago

Kai Wright

9.2

One of my fave Zin makers. This one with dashes of carignane and petite Syrah. Intensely flavored with ripe dark fruit, pencil shavings and baking spices. Lots of acid to lift the richness. Long finish of fruit and spice. — 10 years ago

Rob Moose

9.4

2000. Side by side with Clos. This came across fresher, younger (label was pristine, as opposed to damp/stained Clos label) with more exoticism but less sheer impact and minerality. — 11 years ago

PM

9.2

Very good!
— 11 years ago