Tasting Notes 607 found

Good wine (185 views)

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This is excellent - fully mature and very enjoyable (109 views)

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pale golden color
med aroma intensity of peaches and nuts following by a long buttery-creamy-oaky finish of gently acidity, hints of toast and citrus.
dry, full-bodied, med abv, good complexity, new world style with a focus on rich, buttery flavors and pronounced oak.
enjoyable and easy to drink now - will age well for another 5 - 8 years. (360 views)

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Took to La Maison with the Caldwells. The wine was amazing. It was light, acidic and contained wonderful notes of meyer lemon, pineapple (104 views)

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The top (together with Sycra Chardonnay and Katzerin Chardonnay) white Israeli white wine 🥂👏🥂

Intermediate intensity strow clear bright yellow color with shades of gold, lovely👏

Medium body. High acidity. Mineral. Crispy👏

Beautifully aromatic, citrus, green tree fruits, flowers... and... the smell of honey 👏

Amazing on the palate, almost addicting, citrus, lemon, honey, stone, salt, apple, pear, butter, vanilla and so much more... in a balanced and harmonic way👏

Simply a waaaaawoooooooooooooo 🥂👏🥂👏🥂 (117 views)

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Shockingly youthful still. Light gold color. Gorgeous bouquet of dry honey and melon. Fresh ripe fruit flavors of melon, peach, dry honey, mineral, and some citrus. Much more Burgundian in style then recent images. Fully return from the expressive but it can last a lot longer. I don't think it's worth anything as long as possible because sooner or later it will fall off but I don't think it's going anywhere fast. But I also don't think it's going to get any better. I could be wrong. Meaning it could get better. Excellent qpr. Sadly current vintages are not stylistically the same to me (463 views)

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Far better showing than the last time - must have been an off bottle. tons of violets, softer hearty herbs (sage, thyme, tarragon), dark fruits and mosses. Maybe some strawberry on the nose, tomato vine.
70% CS, 25% merlot, 5% petit Verdot.
Only gets a knock because the finish ends shorter than you'd expect. (219 views)

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Plum light tasting clove jammy (232 views)

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This one may be very controversial to some. It is an overload of butter and Oak but it still tastes good and is very enjoyable. I miss the days when they made more Burgundian style several years ago. This is much more new world and in your face. Like gold color. Explicit bouquet of butter with some hint of oak. On the pallet it is concentrated with loads of butter, oak, hints of toast and citrus. Very accessible now. Likely best to be drunk and the first 5 to 8 years of life. (458 views)

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Still heavy with tannins. (278 views)

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This had a cork that was well intact drive out and it makes me wonder if that explains the condition of the wine or if it's just the age of the wine. It definitely had some smell and some Taste of oxidation yet there was also some fruit and minerality on the pallet. I will definitely need to retry this soon. If this is typical it is definitely time to drink up ASAP (486 views)

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Our hearts remain with our brethren in Israel, and never more than on Shabbat, when our prayers intensify, and the ability of our Nations's "shemirat Shabbat" contains its own majestic and historic power. Continuing our focus on buying and promoting Israel's wines, and eating Shabbat dinner with a lifelong friend celebrating a special birthday, the time was appropriate to open and taste the (very young) Domaine du Castel, Grand Vin, Haute-Judée, 2020.

The story of Domaine du Castel יקב קסטל is thoroughly Israeli. A combination of fortitude, and a duality ancient and classic, while thoroughly modern. Eli-Gilbert Ben-Zaken, in 1988 just a novice and following jobs in agriculture and in the restaurant business, aimed not to create "wine," but to create world class wine to rival the great houses of Bordeaux. Ben-Zaken was imbued with the panache and chutzpah which motivates those with an entrepreneurial spirit to rise to great heights. Born in Alexandria, Egypt, Ben-Zaken's family immigrated to Israel from Milan in the 1970s, and Eli set forth with the shared gruff spirit of the Israeli start-up nation.

Just four years after planting his vineyard in 1988, the first harvest was realized via the impassioned labor of family and friends - a shared story with many winery's first harvests, and Ben-Zaken would crush the first Cabernet and Merlot in an empty stable next to the chicken shed.

By 1995, and after being aged for two years in Seguin Moreau new French oak barrels (which Ben-Zaken brought to Israel by hand), the first 600 bottles were produced. The name? Grand Vin du Castel. Hardly shy but demanding a tone of excellence from the outset.

More than a quarter century later, Eli has achieved his dream of working the Land of Israel while integrating wine into his family's future, as his children are now fully invested into the estate. Ariel, Eytan, and Ilana all serve the winery as CEO, winemaker, and Director of Export & Procurement. Today, Domaine du Castel is truly a family estate winery.

Sitting at an average altitude of 700m, and mostly facing northward towards the Mediterranean (and not more typically south as in the northern hemisphere), the vineyards are planted on terra rossa, clay and limestone with good drainage, and the climate shows large diurnal range.

Today, Castel grows Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, and Chardonnay. The Grand Vin 2020 is a blend of 60% Cab, 30% Merlot, and 10% Petit Verdot, aged 20 months in new French oak. Unfined and unfiltered.

In the glass, dark purple to ruby on the edges. The nose is of dark ripe fruit, blackcurrant, blackberry, plum, oak, coffee, vanilla, and a little smoke. On the palate, full bodied, with medium plus acidity and round, smooth tannins. Nice structure with good length. A big wine, and not cheap certainly, but a very good wine. Very approachable now but should age nicely and gain complexity. Drink 2025-2035.

$110, 14.5% ABV, non-mevushal (829 views)

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Still quite good! needs a few hours decanted to start singing, but far better than the 2009s (258 views)

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Výborné. Kralsné Bordeaux blend. Vyvážené a hezké. Málo třislovin ale hezky vybalancované. Otázka je trvanlivost. (478 views)

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I was sure that I already rated this wine... after all, it is my 3rd 2018 bottle out of 8. Better late than never & it only got better (the winery states that it will reach its peak within 3 to 5 years... I guess they know 😊).

Bright dark red color, with shades of purple.

Medium plus body, medium acidity, soft but still present tanines. Nice structure👏

Mildly but very nicely aromatic, mixture of black & red fruits, barrel & spices👏

Same mixture on the palate, in a very balanced & enjoyable way.

Nice wine🍷 (539 views)

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