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Wine Type
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Vintage
Name
Variety
Locale
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Date
Posted
Score
Helpful
Comments
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Red
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2005 Domaine Drouhin Oregon Pinot Noir Laurène
Dundee Hills
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My first ever Oregon wine, and I loved it!
Seemed really well made, although the cork wasn't the best in the world (actually pushed into the bottle a little as I inserted the corkscrew).
A bright, crimsom color, that through the Waterford crystal did ample justice to the glass.
Lovely powerful aroma, with cherry, forest fruits and other subtler smells that beggared description.
Taste was no let down; filled the mouth and released layers of fruits and again cherry (some with a Maraschino bite to them").
Longish, but very dry finish.
Cearly too young, although I enjoyed it a lot.
Just kept wondering why I'd waited so long to discover Oregon.
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Red
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1985 Château Léoville Las Cases
St. Julien
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Tasted after a 1993 Lafite Rothschild, and it just blew it away: could asily have been a 1st Growth.
It was fresh, full of rich black fruits, and as mouth filling as a wine can be.
Deepest dark red; long, long finish and close to perfection, except it will clearly get better!
It seemed a youngster in spite of the label age; I would have sworn it was ten years younger.
It had been shaken around on SE Trains, just prior to being poured straight from the bottle, but somehow we escaped the considerable sediment which kindly adhered to the bottle.
Maybe the key was storage; has resided in my cool Transtherm Catel for many, many years (can't remember when I aquired it) and this had clearly deayed the aging process, luckily not to much harm.
The bad news - it was a singleton :(
One of the few I own.
Wonder if I can find some more?
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White - Off-dry
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1993 Weingut Reinhold Haart Piesporter Goldtröpfchen Riesling Auslese
Mosel Saar Ruwer
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I "was" an avowed disliker of German wines - too sweet.
This being the case I somehow managed to transport two bottles of Auslese twice around the world in container ships as I worked in six different countries, I wasn't planning to consume them personally, except maybe poured on strawberries.
I finally arrived in the UAE and made friends with a German, who of course loves Riesling et. al..
An opportunity I thought - give him the wine.
Last night we opened it, without any but the lowest of expectations from me.
The cork had moved about a third of the way out of the bottle although the foil was intact, as the cork proved to be (a miracle really as it wasn't that long).
The colour was a magnificent deep gold (at this stage I still expected it to taste of urine though, I've been fooled by that colour before).
Then the aroma, cherries picked up by all four of us and other flavours too nuanced to identify clearly.
And then the taste - not sweet, but somehow it was?
A mixture of sweet and dry, beautifully blended.
And a lingering succulent finish which carried on for a minute.
My friend was happy, I was amazed!
Obviously I have some work to do on Germany.
The other Auslese I have - from 1983 this time!
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Red
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1998 Château Quinault L'Enclos
St. Émilion Grand Cru
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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From first look and smell - something very special.
Colour deep, clear, brilliant.
Aroma - full and fruity, but not fruit juice - real crisp complex St Emilion nose.
Taste - even better, just perfect balance, smooth, round, mellow: good start, but even better an elongated finish.
Was surprised by how good this was; perfect now and for the next few years.
Have a further bottle which I await with anticipation.
Perhaps RP isn't wrong about Château Quinault L'Enclos!
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Red
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2000 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron
Pauillac
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Deep purplish colour, almost 'thick'. Truly outstanding bouquet with a promise of fruit, oak and power.
Sadly the taste didn't live up to the priors: rather closed and less fruit than anticipated.
Great mouthful though, with long, long finish; smooth, cedary, very satisfying; drinking well now, but hope for better in the future.
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Red
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2003 Concha y Toro Carménère Carmín de Peumo Peumo Vineyard
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vinho translated (poorly) from Babel:
"Opened with two days of antecedence and conserved in refrigerator. Elaborated for the enólogo Ignacio Recabarren. Extreme concentrate, dyes the goblet violáceos tones. Powerful, extremely intense aromas. Mature wood, black fruits, spices, coffee, tostado and coffee. Silky mouth very, almost oily of so concentrated. Pepper touchs and moscada nut. Excellent acidity, soft and very numerous tanning barks. Although to be an extreme wine, it obtains to conserve the balance and the elegance. Long, very persistent. One of the great wines of Chile. Good potential of evolution. 94+pts. Excellent."
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Red
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2000 Les Pagodes de Cos
St. Estèphe
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Deep, almost opaque purple colour.
Nose opened after some time in the glass (not decanted) fruit and oak predominant.
Lovely smooth luscious flavour, with blackcurranty and other red fruits prominent.
Pleasant but not overlong aftertaste.
Very drinkable now, but with soft tannins that will give it another 5 years or so.
One of the first of the great 2000 Bordeaux for me.
Makes me believe that Cos dEstournel will be very special.
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Red
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1995 Château Gazin Pomerol
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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A pleasant surprise, this was an odd bottle I'd collected on my travels.
Deep, clear red; fruit and a little wood on the nose; fine full bouquet and nice smooth finish.
As I wasn't expecting too much didn't take the best notes, but will now look for more 1995 Gazin to confirm this experience.
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Red
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1999 Château Batailley
Pauillac
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Second half bottle - didn't enjoy as much as the first (perhaps expectation).
Good colour, deep claret.
Little nose (maybe too cold).
Fruit modest, still tannic.
OK with food, but not a wine to savour.
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Red
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1995 Château Montrose
St. Estèphe
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Farr Xmas Tasting (Vintners Hall EC4).
Dark, clean colour - looked drinkable.
Modest nose - some fruit, a little wood.
Round mouth filling flavour, but with a little hollowness following (perhaps I missed the tannin?)
Perfect to drink now - I don't believe it will get much better.
A lovely drink, not the fruit of the '03 Pavie, nor the class of the '96 Pichon Baron - but for today a great drink.
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Red
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1996 Château Pichon-Longueville Baron
Pauillac
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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2nd wine I tried at the Farr Xmas tasting at Vintners Hall EC4 (after the 2003 Pavie).
It lived up to the previous Farr Blind Tasting 1st position - http://www.farrvintners.com/offer.php?offerid=46
Perfect drinking, but with room to improve.
Deep, clear, rich claret colour.
Fine well rounded bouquet - fruit and cedar if I'm not mistaken.
The best was the taste - perfectly rounded, mouth filling, just the right balance of tannins and fruit.
Half the price of the Pavie and right now - in my opinion - a better wine!
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Red
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2003 Château Pavie
St. Émilion Grand Cru
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Dare I disagree with Bob and Jancis?
First wine I headed for at the Farr Xmas Tasting at Vintners Hall EC4.
Decanted from a double magnum - the colour was extraordinary - deep, rich, almost impenetrable.
Bouquet of red fruit, but not the powerhouse I'd heard about.
Taste a little closed up: fine, but not extraordinary. I found the Pichon Baron 1996 every part it's equal (actually superior).
I suspect it will improve, but I'm not good at predicting the future, so on this I defer to RP.
Wasn't worth over £1000 a case in bond, which was what I really wanted to find out, but also certainly wasn't the Ribena that JR described.
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Red
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1993 Château Lafite Rothschild
Pauillac
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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My 2nd Magnum consumed, first I gave only 84 pts, thin and sad, rather than bad. Now only a few months later it tasted much better - perhaps accompanying a fine Bouef Bourginon (cooked with a Mont Redon Chateauneuf du Pape) was the secret. It followed a tasting of 1995 Latour/Mouton Rothschild/Haut Brion, so the benchmark was high. I will report with interest the next magnum (no food) later this year.
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Red
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1995 Château Haut-Brion
Pessac-Léognan
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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In my open comparison (26th Feb 2006) between Latour, Mouton Rothschild and Haut Brion 1995's, that was the order they finished in: scores 95:93:92.
Unanimous agreement with six friends on this order (although as I've said the tasting was not blind).
Latour: fuller, rounder, more luscious, with good fruit and nicely softened tannins, sweet vs the dryness, especially of the Haut Brion. Long finish. Drinking well now, but with the legs to improve.
Mouton Rothschild: soft, wood and pencil, with pleasant acidity/tannins. Maybe some chocolatey notes? Dry finish. Well and ready to drink now??
Haut Brion: alcoholic, dry and tannic, although not unpleasantly so - a little austere. I detected little fruit flavors, although others did. Felt there was room for improvement and woud drink better in 3-5 years.
All had excellent color, clarity and brightness - Latour the deepest, Haut Brion still some purple, Mouton perhaps a hint of brown.
The scoring mirrored almost exactly the prices I paid for the wines - maybe there is justice in the wine business.
Plaudits came from all attendees to a high class tasting - the tasting order was the reverse of the scores - it just got better and better.
Surprisingly I found myself believing the money I paid was worth it for all wines!
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Red
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1995 Château Mouton Rothschild
Pauillac
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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In my open comparison (26th Feb 2006) between Latour, Mouton Rothschild and Haut Brion 1995's, that was the order they finished in: scores 95:93:92.
Unanimous agreement with six friends on this order (although as I've said the tasting was not blind).
Latour: fuller, rounder, more luscious, with good fruit and nicely softened tannins, sweet vs the dryness, especially of the Haut Brion. Long finish. Drinking well now, but with the legs to improve.
Mouton Rothschild: soft, wood and pencil, with pleasant acidity/tannins. Maybe some chocolatey notes? Dry finish. Well and ready to drink now??
Haut Brion: alcoholic, dry and tannic, although not unpleasantly so - a little austere. I detected little fruit flavors, although others did. Felt there was room for improvement and woud drink better in 3-5 years.
All had excellent color, clarity and brightness - Latour the deepest, Haut Brion still some purple, Mouton perhaps a hint of brown.
The scoring mirrored almost exactly the prices I paid for the wines - maybe there is justice in the wine business.
Plaudits came from all attendees to a high class tasting - the tasting order was the reverse of the scores - it just got better and better.
Surprisingly I found myself believing the money I paid was worth it for all wines!
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Red
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1995 Château Latour Grand Vin
Pauillac
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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In my open comparison (26th Feb 2006) between Latour, Mouton Rothschild and Haut Brion 1995's, that was the order they finished in: scores 95:93:92.
Unanimous agreement with six friends on this order (although as I've said the tasting was not blind).
Latour: fuller, rounder, more luscious, with good fruit and nicely softened tannins, sweet vs the dryness, especially of the Haut Brion. Long finish. Drinking well now, but with the legs to improve.
Mouton Rothschild: soft, wood and pencil, with pleasant acidity/tannins. Maybe some chocolatey notes? Dry finish. Well and ready to drink now??
Haut Brion: alcoholic, dry and tannic, although not unpleasantly so - a little austere. I detected little fruit flavors, although others did. Felt there was room for improvement and woud drink better in 3-5 years.
All had excellent color, clarity and brightness - Latour the deepest, Haut Brion still some purple, Mouton perhaps a hint of brown.
The scoring mirrored almost exactly the prices I paid for the wines - maybe there is justice in the wine business.
Plaudits came from all attendees to a high class tasting - the tasting order was the reverse of the scores - it just got better and better.
Surprisingly I found myself believing the money I paid was worth it for all wines!
With the meal of Beouf Bourginon that followed we drank a magnum of Lafite Rothschild 1993 (this 2nd magnum was better than my previous tasting note gives credit for)
What can I try next .............
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Red
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1993 Vieux Château Certan
Pomerol
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Gorgeous color - crystal clear ruby. Little immediate bouquet (the wine was not decanted), although opened a little after 30 minutes or so, but didn't linger.
Perfectly ready to drink - succulent, smooth, just enough tannin/acidity to make it enjoyable. A little plum, or maybe slightly tart strawberry.
Not a fruit bomb by any means, but a well made Pomerol, which used it's 13 year development well.
A bargain as well, will drink the other 5 bottles over the next two years. Thanks Ballantynes for the recommendation.
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Red
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2001 Château Prieure Malesan
Bordeaux
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Just a wine for Pizza, but surprisingly pleasant. Good bright, red/purple color. Nose perfectly acceptable, although like many wines, little fruit, but nice oak.
Wine was light, but (maybe through modest tannins) very smooth. Last glass, same as the first (the ultimate test of whether you're on the right track).
I'm scoring this 1 pt above an indifferent 1993 Lafite Rothschild!
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Red
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2001 Château Petit Val
St. Émilion Grand Cru
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Light, clear, bright red color. The end of the good news!
Little bouquet, absence of fruit, maybe some wood?
Best description of taste - tart!
First experience of Petit Val (1/2 btl ex Berry Bros.) probably the last.
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Red
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1998 Château Fourcas Hosten
Listrac-Médoc
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Ruby color with a little age. Bouquet was impressive, if a little woody.
Initial reaction - smoooooooth.
But that was it - soft tannins, soft everything. Little length.
A pleasant enough wine, that just didn't improve on first impressions.
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Red
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1999 Château Batailley
Pauillac
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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1/2 bottle bought from Berry Bros at Heathrow Airport. Opened and drunk after a BBQ (USDA Sirloin): drank a modest, but pleasant Graham Beck Cab/Sav 2001 with the meal. The Batailley was noticebly more special although less fruity:
Deep red with great clarity. Nose of wood and spice. But the initial taste - what a fine surprise (I had modest expectations) - a mouth filling, glycerin sensation; medium-full bodied, so smooth, with a lovely blend of acidity, alcohol and tanin; just a little short of fruit (is this a 1999 Medoc issue?). Finish was longer than I'd expected. Saved just a drop for the next day and although some sweetness had dissipated, still had the body and texture. In fact I'm sipping the last drop now :)
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Red
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1995 Château Talbot
St. Julien
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Given that I transported this poor bottle half way around the world, to drink in the dark, at a Midddle Eastern BBQ, it emerged in surprisingly good order.
Initial reaction was - "very dry", maybe even austere, but it soon opened up in many ways; was that a touch of residual sweetness! I tried to help by using my largest, hand-blown Riedel glasses*, and although the fruit was muted there were truffles, vanilla, oak and an overall impresion of a wine who's time had arrived. Not a lot of fruit, more a woody/leathery texture, but pleasant at that. Later I looked at the color and yes it is near to closing time - a touch of russet, not quite brown.
I confess I was pleasantly surprised - I don't open what I expect to be very good wine in such surroundings.
Almost certain Mr Parker would have loathed it - certainly unlike the big fruity, hot, new world wines.
I fear I have under-rated this bottle, but have one more left - less travelled and reserve the right to mark up next time.
* I know this sounds OTT, but they really do make a difference - proved to me at a tasting in Tokyo, where only the glasses changed, the wine stayed the same, and you wouldn't believe it possible (and I have no connection to Reidel - honest).
Left a drop for the next day - I'd noticed a lot of the other reviewers doing this (never had the self control myself) - and immediately after reopening the bouquet was wonderful, but dissappeared in minutes.
The taste remained as before - I think I'll buy a few more, probably a bargain if I can find them.
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Red
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1993 Château Lafite Rothschild
Pauillac
Red Bordeaux Blend more
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Color good , nose modest, body rather thin, but with no unpleasant features.
Did not linger on the palate. Suggest drink with food: because I have 5 magnums left!
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