Paul J

9.0

45+ decant but needed closer to 2 hours. Dark purple in color. Nose was all over the place - US, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy. Wine had minimal fruit, plenty of wood, and lots of Portuguese elements. Would have guessed California or Portugal if having blind. Depth was medium as well as the finish. Ample tannins. Expected more from the label and vintage. — 6 years ago

with Brooke

Serena Peters

9.2

@pacific standard time in chicago. Best orange I’ve had in a while, oxidized on the nose, immediately salty in the palette almost like a pecorino cheese and then a smooth sweet finish like apple cider. Infinitely complex and interesting. Love — 7 years ago

Rick Baraff

9.1

That’s some nice drinkin’ stuff (circa 2017). Thanks to the local somm, Steve, at our Whole Foods for the recom... it was their last bottle and he sacrificed. — 7 years ago

Katie Wilson

9.3

Orange and amazing — 8 years ago

Frank Kuo

9.4

Color of gray purple, just a bit hazy. Nose of nice cherry, plenty of tobacco leaves, and beautiful mix of these two fragrance. Taste is similar with nice acidity, cherry, some dried fruits, supple and lush, some raisins, a touch of vanilla and oak, anise and thyme, and really just silky and tasty. Aftertaste of some citrusy peel, almost no tannins, residual acidity. Very good. — 9 years ago

Manchester Sheldon

9.3

Violets and peppercorns on the nose, it needs some air to open up, dark wood and some earth on the background. — 9 years ago

Glenn Nick

9.3

On the high chair. — 10 years ago

Greg Ballington

Co-Founder of Millennial Drinkers Wine Blog

9.1

Surprise bottle at the end of the tasting. A real treat. Garnet red with medium intensity and quite a bit of sediment. Layered nose with soft blackberries, soft black cherries, and a soft undertone of provenance herbs (lavender). Palate floats right across your tongue with some light red cherries, some toasted wood and a little leather. Still solid moderate tannins (5.5/10) and well integrated with the solid acidity. Medium to light bodied with great structure and texture. Moderate plus finish with a dryness to it. Drink till 2020. — 10 years ago

with Sean and India

Ashley Miano

9.2

Weird nose in an awesome way smells like sulfur and candied apricots. Creamy texture on the palate paired with a field of rotting flowers — 11 years ago

Eddie Welker

9.4

Really like this, pleasant aroma, and a really nice taste. — 13 years ago

with Alissa

Mike Saviage

9.7

From a great old looking bottle with a mid shoulder fill. Cork is fully saturated and the crud under the capsule had formed a strong seal. Slow-ox’d for a few hours, then decanted for an hour or two before taken to L’Escargot in Carmel. Amber tawny rims with a reddish tawny core. Crazy nose right from the start. Notes of sweet black cherries, tobacco leaf, plums, black pepper, ash and crusty wood, pencil shavings, some just unwrapped cigar and some menthol. Silky in the mouth with firm structure and soft but present acidity. Long and memorable finish. Outstanding performance over several hours. — 6 years ago

Bart van Wijngaarden

8.9

Classic with very well integrated wood. A solid effort exhibiting nice secondary aromas but with a good life span still ahead of it. Nice one. — 7 years ago

Andrew Lohse

9.4

Still showing plenty of youth // blackberry, dried red and black cherry, some light tobacco and wood, some green notes // rich, densely concentrated, direct, and big - while still retaining a mouth-filling juiciness — 8 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.3

Brownish tawny. Regal, clear and almost opaque. Sweet old Bordeaux nose. Notes of cola, cranberry, plums, dried fig, earth, spice and some wood. A bit thin in the mouth at the start but with air it firms up. Decent finish. Grows nicely in volume and impact. The fragrant nose is what you remember. — 8 years ago

Kristin the Wine Girl

9.3

Buttery yumminess. Tropical fruits including pineapple and golden apples. Tropical honey buttery nose. Fun big white. Love. — 9 years ago

Craig Stanfield

9.5

Started wth a slight must on the nose, but that blew off. Opened to round and bright red and some blue fruit. Tobacco and wood (not lavish oak, maybe cedar) round it out. Fine grained tannins and a wonderful finish. Love the value of Rioja and hard to believe I just got some of these babies recently. This was the 125th vintage. — 10 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.2

Typical herbaceous brambly style from this maker with notes of geranium. Moss Wood in a lesser year but still an excellent Cabernet- one of Australia's best. — 10 years ago

Vic Petroff

9.4

Disgustingly yummy! Beautiful deep red fruit, tons of life & structure. 12.5% alcohol. Touchdown! Thank you, Russ. — 11 years ago

Namho Kim

9.4

So good. Slightly peaty. Well balanced — 11 years ago

Sarah Keith

9.0

Really nice reasonably priced cab. Very smooth, full bodied. — 14 years ago

with Richard

Scott Petrus

9.2

This natty Willamette Pinot is Burgundian in style and better than most. Austere and earthy this baby has enough zip to hold the finish. — 6 years ago

Erin Joyce

9.2

Waited a few years to drink the 2017 and it’s even better than I remembered. In times like these it’s important to savor the floral bouquet and stone fruit deliciousness of this wine and essentials like Clorox bleach. — 7 years ago

with Sandra

Mike Saviage

9.4

Dark ruby, bright, doesn’t look it’s age. Awesome funky old Cal Cab nose. Notes of cherry, cranberry sauce, dirt and some balsa wood. Some steminess. Great perfume. Nice in the mouth but missing just a little bit in the mid palate. Really enjoyed this. — 8 years ago

Alex Steinberg

9.2

A sweeter Chardonnay but great in the heat — 8 years ago

with Jack and Adam

Matt Mason

9.5

Oakton wine. Enjoyed with baked salmon. C light ruby with burnt tint; a lot of cherry, cinnamon, forest. — 9 years ago

Stuart Scheff

9.0

Complex perfumed Oregon — 10 years ago

Christina Watts

9.5

Very good, tannic without being overwhelming. — 10 years ago

Adam Jesberger

10

I was so nervous about proposing recently that I forgot my two birthyear wines I had saved for almost a year. Happy Belated to ME! Still celebrating the engagement too. A lot to celebrate! To those who are wondering if 86s are approachable yet, they are. This wine had been solid as a rock forever, but today it was seamless. Dank and pretty, intense cassis and black currant and blackberry reduction. Somehow fresh cut floral notes like lavender and cherry blossom. Fresh earth tone to it with an endless iron steel like mineral finish. Complimented by a rich wood tone. Perfectly softened tannins. This bottle was a milestone for me. — 10 years ago

with Jenelle

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.0

Blackberry, black cherries, black plum, black tea, gravel, lead pencil shavings, Provence herbs, wood shavings. Disappointing opening at this stage. — 11 years ago

Colin McCartney

9.5

Deep, inky purple in the glass with generous blackberry flavors and a spicy, tannic finish. Never met a Hartford Zin I didnt like... — 12 years ago