| Community Tasting Notes (average 91.7 pts. and median of 92 pts. in 100 notes) - hiding notes with no text |
| | Tasted by BizzyCouple on 4/3/2024 & rated 93 points: Dry, earthy red with wonderfully subtle fruit on the palate. Aging very well! (135 views) |
| | Tasted by redz on 3/31/2024 & rated 92 points: Always a crowd pleaser, tonight being no exception. There's that guilty, chocolaty, silky flavor. Maybe 93. (165 views) |
| | Tasted by Raywilliams420 on 3/22/2024 & rated 92 points: Nice fruit notes. No where near overly fruity. Slight tannins nice finish but not lingering. Well made. Good wine. Can drink without food (195 views) |
| | Tasted by dino_mike on 8/21/2023 & rated 94 points: From magnum:
Drinks very good but has the ability to improve and hold for another 7 years...at least in magnum.
This was what 3 of us thought when we drank it a few days ago. Cherry and red berry fruit and spice with some mineral or silky tannins still around. Has the fruit and body for more aging more. (564 views) |
| | Tasted by oaxaca90049 on 5/29/2023 & rated 94 points: When in doubt this is the wine that I always turn to. It's delicious. (625 views) |
| | Tasted by dino_mike on 3/23/2023 & rated 93 points: Still drinks with intensity, youth, complexity and lovely balance for all its hugeness. Benefits from a few hour decant or wait a few years too, but its delicious now (687 views) |
| | Tasted by oaxaca90049 on 3/6/2023: delicious as always. One of my favorite wines. Always a crowd pleaser. So easy to drink. (708 views) |
| | Tasted by norsktorsk on 2/9/2023 & rated 94 points: this still has some residual tannins. looking forward to the second day. (770 views) |
| | Tasted by dino_mike on 12/25/2022 & rated 93 points: I can confirm this bottle tastes just like last months. Decidedly cherry and red berry fruits make this Optimnus on the 'brighter' side. Still is full bodied, rich mouthfeel and a slight soft edge then great finish. (589 views) |
| | Tasted by dino_mike on 11/28/2022 & rated 93 points: Very ripe, soft and advanced with the 42% Syrah dominating over the Cab and Verdot. Tons of cherry and red berry fruit, quite soft and drinking like an aged GSM that's in great shape. Lots of soft spice and pie cherry, soft cinnamon with the red berry fruits adding flavor. Hard to know what to expect in a few years but I feel like I need to drink all up in 2023 but might extend it. Heavy sediment so turn upright for a day before opening (583 views) |
| | Tasted by SLOman on 8/22/2022 & rated 95 points: Superb! (647 views) |
| | Tasted by Coachron13 on 5/6/2022 & rated 91 points: Incredibly big and burly. Still needs more time. Slow ox’d for an hour and aerated into glass, still could have used more air. Can see the goodness, will have more in a few years. (838 views) |
| | Tasted by norsktorsk on 11/29/2021 & rated 93 points: drinking right on. (1122 views) |
| | Tasted by wine4lux on 11/24/2021 & rated 92 points: Opened and decanted 3 hours before serving- needed an hour more. Still tannic and one-dimensional until it starts to open. Better with food that as a stand-alone drink. Served with brisket burgers from Whole Foods and as others have noted, the acidity and power of the 2014 Optimus made the pairing work. (997 views) |
| | Tasted by DrBad on 11/20/2021 & rated 92 points: Improved significantly from the bottle a couple of years ago. Tannins have settled out, juicy, big blue and black fruits. (1121 views) |
| | Tasted by The Wine Write on 6/15/2021: Dark fruit flavors and enough acid backbone to cut through the fat of grilled ribeyes. Life ahead, but good now. (1442 views) |
| | Tasted by kanab ram on 3/18/2020: Opened two hours before consuming but very tight. 24 hours later it is starting to open up but still a little sharp on the finish. This a big wine that should age well. I'm extending the drinking window an additoinal four years. Would highly recommend decanting before drinking. (2285 views) |
| | Tasted by cubswinws on 3/13/2020 & rated 92 points: Big and black fruited with good spice and touch of herbal aromatics. Very nice! (1855 views) |
| | Tasted by wineismylife on 2/22/2020 & rated 93 points: WIML93
Tasted non blind.
Dark garnet to purple color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of aspirin, smoke, black cherries and black raspberries. Flavors of plums, currants and cherries. Medium acidity, medium to firm tannin, full bodied. Drink over the short to medium term. (1798 views) |
| | Tasted by tedcholl on 11/4/2019 & rated 92 points: Tasty red blend of 42% Syrah, 33% Cab Sauv, and 25% Petit Verdot. Great balance and acidity. Dark fruit, oak licorice, smoke. Very enjoyable and well made. (2237 views) |
| | Tasted by silton on 7/29/2019 & rated 86 points: A hot mess. Bold fruit with depth and impact but no complexity or refinement and showing its alcohol. Paso caricature. (2149 views) |
| | Tasted by DrBad on 1/31/2019 & rated 89 points: Coravin glass, let sit for about an hour. Rather tannic as others have said, dark fruits, slightly bitter finish. Will try again in another 6 months or so with more air time. (2028 views) |
| | Tasted by mhenry on 12/30/2018: I read everyone's recommendation to allow some air time so I decanted for 3 hours. This made a big difference, and the wine opened up nicely. Paired well with NY steak. (2093 views) |
| | Tasted by Jobu on 5/28/2018 & rated 90 points: Very tight even after a couple of hours. Dark brooding tannic wine. Dark fruit and earthy spice. Would've sworn there was a little Zin in the blend. I'm not sure it's going to get better with another year or two on the shelf. I think it is what it is, which is still pretty good (2733 views) |
| | Tasted by csimm on 12/25/2017 & rated 88 points: Similar to my previous note. This needed about two hours to open up and be...well...less stubborn and boring. It kinda reminded me of a pouty little snot kid sitting by himself on a stool in some sort of silent protest over an insignificant objection. You just let him sit there in a wannabe stoic posture as you go on with your day, working around this boring little statue that sits there hoping you'll notice him enough to muster up some energy and ask, "What's wrong?"...but you don't ask...and you don't care... (4301 views) |
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