Sipping Fine Wine

9.0

Founded in 1986 by Josep-Maria Raventos, member of the Codorníu family, creating a small, quality-oriented winery standing apart from the large co-ops. A blend of 40% Xarel-lo, 36% Macabeu, 18% Parellada, 6% Monastrell. Red berry and floral aromas with fine bubbles. On the palate strawberry and cherry with mineral yeasty notes on the lingering finish, good balance. Hand harvested and secondary fermentation rests for 15 months before disgorgement. A nice bargain. Tasting Sample. — 5 years ago

Jonathan Wall

9.2

Crushed dried flowers, vegetables, and earth which somehow works and smoothly went well with turkey sandwiches. deep and good. Green Valley unique-ness sets it apart from its surrounding RRV. — 6 years ago

Brenda C

9.6

Mmmmmm! Yummy! Had at a bar, not sure the vintage 🙁. But had a little, hmm? Strawberry maybe on the middle palate. Just that something extra to set it apart from just your typical cab. — 7 years ago

Milissa Mosley

8.9

Milissa had this 7 years ago

Brian Nickerson

8.9

Very promising initially and then fell apart after a few hours — 7 years ago

Maxwell Cromwell

9.4

What an experience. Funky meat and leather transformed into pure bramble fruit with a touch of freshness and stem and tannin. It was the best of both worlds. Thanks Nate!!! — 8 years ago

with Mariah and Nathaniel

Marc Stubblefield

Wine Sales at Vino Carta and Kogod Wine Merchant

8.9

Killer minerality and a touch of funk, which sets it apart from the run of the mill Kiwi SB. Plenty of ripe tropical fruit, too. — 8 years ago

Alia Connor

9.5

Nom nom. Great acid and funk. Did it start to fall apart the longer it was open? :( bday wine #3 from Passage and my fave so far. — 9 years ago

Marty Winters

9.1

This threw me for a loop, but as I picked it apart it truly shows how well crafted this wine is put together. — 10 years ago

Jason Adams

9.7

Very nice but falling apart on day three — 10 years ago

Joslyn Mintz

9.5

Light, peppery, smell of fruit, bubblegum, cork fell apart — 11 years ago

Carsten Rudolph

9.2

Not so full as expected - Fell apart after 2 hours in the decanter — 6 years ago

Nick Ferrall

9.3

Tons of mouthwatering sea salt and energy, with a rounder / elegant finish from sitting on the lees. Best of both worlds! — 6 years ago

Tomo F

9.1

Look 10/10, smell 10/10, taste 18/20, future 8/10.
Medium body and aroma. After 15 years (and I have had it 3 times about 3-4 yrs apart), it seems like this wine is only 1-2 yrs old. No sign of browning of edges. Red berries, wood, soil and a bit of bandaid. Body is slightly closed. Lighter than expected. Have been saying for 10+ yrs that now is a great time to drink — 7 years ago

Eric Egan

9.4

Three vintages 10 years apart (1990, 2000, 2010) - 1990 and 2000 were truly excellent. 2010 was rubbish. All this soft modern winemaking wankery. Rolland and his kind (and the Parkerised drinking gaggle) should be dragged to the stocks and processed quickly and summarily. — 7 years ago

Jay Murrie

9.1

I'm mad as Fausto! Fine, otherworldly, it blows apart my bias. Signore Albanesi, you are a thoughtful, kind and uncommonly talented man. — 7 years ago

David Kline

9.3

A wall of cedar coated in turbinado crystals, sweet tea, vanilla mist, wintergreen and wildflower honey up the two-hole. Really a gorgeous array. Orange blossom honey, pine nut, rock candy, lemongrass, cocoanut, cocoa powder, soft vanilla, sweet tobacco, coffee candy, brickle notes, squash blossom, poppy flower, and the worlds most perfect raisin. As delightfully indulgent as drifting carelessly down a clean river in spring and being enveloped in an endless array of budding flora! — 8 years ago

with Courtney

Jessica Dolby

9.5

Probably the best red I've had in a while. Round, balanced fruit, deeply rich and complex. A little chocolate and smoke in the middle, but a nice hint of a peppery, acidic finish right at the front of your pallet.
The round fruit of a new world cab with the bold, earthy complexity of Italy. The best of both worlds. — 8 years ago

David Monaghan

9.0

Had to sink a bottle before this little Chianti... Pour down the sink... This is a lovely Chianti it has all the traits of a quality Chianti.... One for the house rack.... The joy it gives me when it hits the back of my throat is only rivalled by some of the worlds greatest sporting moments: Maradona, Woods,Federer,Carberry,Sexton,Tyson, Cluxton and Giggs — 9 years ago

Brett Francis

9.6

2009 vintage that was just enjoyable in hard to describe complex ways. The scents and flavors were hard for me to tease apart but the overall was great. — 10 years ago

with Andy

Tomasz Danis

9.7

Very good. Deep, long finish. Portuguese. Perfect with steak! — 11 years ago

Jay Kline

9.4

My notes on this from May of 2017 still apply. Popped and poured. Drank well over two days. Immediately this wine impresses visually. Sure, the color is an expected deep garnet but what's most striking is the fact that it's never completely opaque at the core. You can just barely get the faintest amount of light to see through it. It's quite beautiful, really. The nose is initially a bit reticent but a few minutes of air in the glass does the trick and then it really begins to show off the most lovely perfume of mixed red and dark fruit; so fresh and pure with just a flash of garrigue. No perceptible heat on the nose. On the palate it's a veritable wonder of berries, Rainier cherries, black berry liqueur, and just a touch of fine white pepper. The body is perfectly proportioned and the finish lasts for over 30 seconds. In summary, this is an incredibly balanced 2010 CdP that is already hitting its prime. Personally, I felt it was really at its very best about two hours in which leaves me to believe it should be a great pop and pour for the next couple of years and potentially has the balance to be great for longer. That being said, there is no need to decant, just pull the cork, pour and enjoy the evolution in the glass. The hard part is allowing it to last for two hours and longer. It should be noted that this is dangerously quaffable wine and it wouldn't be hard to take the whole thing to the head. Might as well drink these sooner than later as I'm always a bit wary of CdP much beyond the 10 year mark, where I tend so find many of them fall apart on the palate. Perhaps others with more experience in the long-term ageing of CdP can chime in though. Absurd value at $30.

As a side note, this paired very nicely with pan fried pork savory bacon wrapped filet mignon. — 6 years ago

David From The 504

9.2

Last bottle cork fell apart had to filter into the decanter. These 97' are truly a pleasure. Caramel light purple rim, can smell a faint aged wine with that leads into mature dark fruits. Low Alcohol with black muddy blackberries being the overall tone. Taste... wow! So nice clean, all the way through the pallet with that mild acidity. Definitely drink now as you can get a sense of the fading fruits. But overall this is a superb drink — 7 years ago

Phill Mulnick

9.3

Amazingly, it's actually better on day two. Thought it would have fallen apart. Mouthfeel has greatly improved since yesterday but has lost none of its aromatics or acidity. 9.1 yesterday. 9.3 today. — 7 years ago

Mark Villa

9.5

Absolutely smooth and delicious. I can't say that it has tremendous character, or anything that makes it stand out apart from its smoothness or deliciousness, but it is certainly a pleasure to drink, and I would NEVER turn it down! This was purchased for me as a present by dear friends for my 40th birthday. I enjoyed it tremendously! I hope that we can all enjoy this wine (regardless of vintage) together as a special treat, in good health, for many years to come. — 8 years ago

Jiga Hitorn

9.3

Hello Provence. First Rosé of 2016. Happy I found Tessier in the local cavé. Rightly seen as the worlds best Rosé. Strawberries and way more structure than the rest. — 8 years ago

Cory Bolton

9.4

Experienced this at the Peju Winery and was hooked on this blend. It's definitely the best of both worlds -- red and white (and I'm typically not a white wine fan). Very enjoyable to drink. Now a staple in our house. Remember to serve chilled. — 9 years ago

Steve Matthiasson

Owner/Winemaker Matthiasson Wines

9.8

One of my clients, but made when I was working down in Modesto, before Napa, still full of rich ripe fruit, very youthful, 1995 was a sweet spot between the greener old school style and the ripe modern style, and this wine is definitely the best of both of those worlds — 10 years ago

Beau Carufel

Winemaker/Owner Random Wine Company

9.1

Day 1: stunner. Gorgeous.
Day 2: still glorious on the nose, fell apart on the palate. — 11 years ago

Michael Landini

10

This was fabulous! Very lucky to be apart of this experience. — 11 years ago