Notes of clay and apple on the nose and palate. Menium bead with decent acidity. Simple, with a short finish.

Apple and clay notes. There's a dirty qualilty on the palate at first, followed by apple and orchard fruit qualities with bright acidity. I guessed Chablis.

Opens with a smoky quality, very Kalin-esque, along with orchard fruit and lanolin. Develops floral notes as it sits. Flavors of quince, smoke and spice. Decent finish, if just a bit short. I guessed Semillon.

Pale color with notes of lemongrass, smoky white fruit and jalapeno. Good acidity on the palate with flavors of jalapeno and grass. Guessed Sauv Blanc.

Notes of melon and apple fruit with flavors of melon, lanolin and tropical fruit. Turns tinny on the short finish. Guessed low end Italian Pinot Grigio.

Opens with notes of melon, citrus and grassy qualities with a toasty undertone. Has a slight tinny quality too. White fruit and lemongrass on the palate. Guessed Bordeaux.

Just a little bit of bricking here, with aromas of tobacco, plum, cedar and violets. Integrated tannins with good fruit on the palate. Tobacco, currants, plum and dried fruit flavors with a long finish. I, and the rest of the group, were thinking Bordeaux right from the start.however when it came time to discuss and unveil the wine, the fruit was so bright and forward that it had me thinking that it could have been California...something along the lines of a Dominus or Forman. I went back to this with dinner about two hours later and only then was I able to find the iodine notes that give away this wine's true origin.

Corked.

Notes of dried plum, dark fruit and potpourri. Currants and dark fruit on the palate with medium tannins, a little acidity and a lengthy finish. A very nice Napa Cab Sauv.

Opens with dark fruit and dill aromas that follow through on the palate. It has decent balance with acid, structure and fruit, but right now it's just a bit one dimensional. I think it's a good Napa Cab Sauv, but on the young side and perhaps in a bit of an awkward phase right now.

I was surprised when this was unveiled and I realized it was an '02. This bottle was put in the lineup when S thought her '97 Mondavi might be flawed, so this didn't have as much time to wake up as it may have needed, but then again should it have needed much time in the first place? Glad to have a data point as I have a bottle of this tucked away in the cellar and I just might leave it for another couple of years to see what happens.

Cooked/stewed; bouillon. One taster said he liked this and why not have it with burgers or pizza? I said why ruin burgers or pizza with a bad bottle of wine?

We opened a second bottle in case the first did not improve with air and they ended up next to one another in the first flight. This had currant and red fruit notes with a hint of the stewed/bouillony quality underneath. Vastly superior compared to the first bottle which was undrinkable, but still not what it should have been.

Beware the '92 Beringer PR at Schaefer's in Skokie- two out of two bottles were off. This is the first time I can recall having issues with bottles from them so to be clear, it is a wine to avoid, not a shop to avoid.

Opens with a grapey quality, turning to plum and black fruit, incense and roasted game. Initially this reminds me of a big CA syrah. Loads of fruit on the palate, but it is also a bit hot and shows its alcohol. Despite the heat, there's a lot of great fruit and structure here. Young, and in need of some time to come together.

Very subtle. Notes of red and dark fruit but that's about it. It's structured, and there's come nice fruit along with spice and vanilla qualities. I get the sense that this is a good wine, but it's shut down right now. Guessed Napa Cabernet Sauvignon.

Aromas of sour red fruit dominate and follow through on the palate. This develops a candied red fruit quality as well. No guess as to what this was, and based on the wine's reputation, I'm assuming this was not a representative example.

Opens with notes of dark fruit and herbs with a nice smoky undertone. Full-bodied and balanced, with good structure, tannin, dark fruit and plum. Develops an interesting asphalt/tar note. Finishes with good length and plenty of fruit. I was surprised to see this unveiled as the 2004 Don Melchor as I have had the 2004 as well as other vintages quite a few times and I don't recall ever having gotten a tar note. 93+ pts.

This opened with a note of mint, followed by black fruit, eucalyptus and plum. A few in the group detected TCA from the start, but I wasn't sure. A few minutes later, yes, there was a definite streak of TCA. A few minutes later and the TCA was gone again and the wine seemed fine again. Definitely flawed, but drinkable depending upon one's sensitivity to TCA.

Aromas of plum and red fruit. On the palate this is tannic and monolithic. I knew this was ours as it was the last wine to be unveiled but I couldn't believe how hard it shut down. Most of the group thought Cab Sauv.

We had double decanted this off its sediment about three hours before the flight was poured. When we decanted it, there was an explosive bouquet of dark fruit. There's potential here, and I may pick up another bottle or two to see what happens as it ages.

Nonblind with lamb chops, this continues to show well and is at peak IMO. Aromas of tapenade, black fruit and plum with a nice wild, feral quality. Flavors of black fruit and olives, well-integrated with a long finish.

Popped & poured wit the lamb chops. Notes of cherry, plum and chocolate on the nose and palate. Decent finish.

Popped and poured. Notes of violets, black currants, plum and dark fruit. Fine tannins with nice dark fruit and violet qualities with a long finish.

Tapenade and dark fruit aromas. Full-bodied with medium tannins and flavors of pepper, tapenade, black fruit and cherry.