4/17/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Drunk at dinner at Via del Corso in Berkeley. Quite dark and structured for a Dolcetto, speaking to its quality and the seriousness of its production by a quality Barolo producer. Dark, medium bodied and bursting with red-black berry fruit, it had the characteristic tail-end bitterness that I associate with this grape. Fresh and lively, it paired well with a variety of foods: tuna crudo and a roast duck leg in a beautful pan sauce.

4/14/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Absolutely delicious bottle of Burgundy punching way above its weight. Lush, red-fruited with a bit of tannic bite in the finish, it’s a great foil for food.

4/12/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Red-fruited with a middling dollop of the dark cherry/kirschwasser aromas that S Rhone Grenache usually provides. Balanced, smooth, with just a little heat showing, it exemplifies what I like about CdP.

3/13/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Impatience will be my fatal flaw: I couldn’t keep my hands off my last bottle. Consumed tonight with an ersatz pasta dish of pomodoro puttanesca with Aidell’s garlic-artichoke smoked chicken sausage, peppers and onions, it was in fine form. Not the most complex Nebbiolo but an immensely satisfying one.

3/4/2024 - MLipton wrote:

A lovely, light-to-medium bodied wine. Dark cherry fruit, a touch of Brett, food-friendly acidity and a clean finish. Great now, and will probably continue for another 3-5 years.

3/3/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Dark red-purple, vivid acidity, juicy, deeply fruited with floral overtones and a slightly tannic finish. One can see why this grape may have been mistaken in an earlier era for gamay noir a jus blanc. It has light-to-medium body and enough acidity (and low enough alcohol) to pair well with food. Tasted blind, it could be mistaken for a good Cru Beaujolais.

2/25/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Agree with other notes. It has some aged Nebbiolo character but gives the impression of tiring and fading. Somewhat thin on the palate with tart acidity..

2/22/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Opened tonight with some grilled quail. The wine was perfectly open and ready to go. Velvety smooth with lush fruit, floral nose and fresh acidity. There’s no reason to wait on this one.

2/14/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Not as red-fruited as I expected, but still delicious. Dark cherries, minerals, earth and a slightly hot finish. Delicious with rabbit in mustard sauce. My only regret is that I don't have more.

2/10/2024 - MLipton wrote:

What a difference five years have made. What was once a tightly coiled wine has now opened up, revealing a richly fruited, somewhat dense, earthy and meaty expression of Pinot Noir. It still has plenty of acidity to give it a clean finish and mostly likely continue to mature for another 5-10 years.

2/8/2024 - MLipton wrote:

A joyous wine, as always. Light in color and body yet packed with flavors of strawberry and cranberry, with bright acidity and clocking in at 12.5% ABV. Great with a veggie pizza.

2/7/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Darker-fruited than the previous bottle, still with a lovely varietal nose and a light palate presence with fresh acidity. A little tail-end bitterness was the only flaw in the otherwise lively presence.

2/1/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Still quite young, but oh so delicious. Red-fruited with silky tannins, medium-bodied with depth of fruit and juicy acidity. This will go another decade at least and gain more tertiary elements, but depending on your own tastes it could be drink at any point in the intervening years.

1/30/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Bright, light, red-fruited but showing its 14.5% ABV a bit. A little tail-end tannic bite. Very nice with smoked quail.

1/25/2024 - MLipton wrote:

In a really good place, no rough edges. Lovely round fruit braced by fresh acidity, a hint of earth and lovely minerality. Hard to expect more out of a wine of this level.

1/25/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Absolutely in a good place right now, lush and fruity with some tertiary notes creeping in. For a wine of its pedigree, it punches well above its weight.

1/22/2024 - MLipton wrote:

Tasted blind, no way do I guess Gamay for this wine. Pineau d’Aunis or Poulsard from some naturaliste perhaps. Very pale, cloudy, funky and tart with little discernible fruit and a whack of VA on the nose. Recorked it and put it in the fridge, but honestly don’t expect time to heal these wounds.

12/27/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Filled with juicy red fruit and just joyous to drink.

12/20/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Meh

12/1/2023 - MLipton wrote:

In a very nice place now. The nose has a strong petrol note, but the flavors are all about white peach and citrus. Juicy acidity makes it a fine pair for food and the long, mineral finish lingers on.

11/14/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Opened tonight with rack of lamb. Absolutely gorgeous: silky texture, lush red-berry Syrah fruit, generous acidity and an animale character that added to its overall complexity. I would put this wine in league with the Verset Cornas wines I've had in the past, just simply beautiful. It no doubt will continue to evolve, but depending on your tastes it may not get much better than it is right now.

11/12/2023 - MLipton wrote:

I have had about 10 vintages of this wine. This is one of the better renditions, with more of the varietal fruit, mineral and floral character that I look for. One downside is that the alcohol sticks out a bit to my taste, perhaps just a reflection of the changing climate of the Anderson Valley.

11/10/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Very ready to drink right now. Slight bricking at the edges, a nose of bright red cherry fruit, followed through on the palate. Smooth tannins, medium bodied, vivid acidity and lush cherry fruit. A delight to drink!

11/3/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Darker colored, but light and lifted with floral notes in the nose. Very young, to be sure, but still a pleasure to drink. It has a bright future ahead of it.

10/30/2023 - MLipton wrote:

This wine will certainly make old bones, but surprisingly it is quite approachable now. A bottle last night at St John Marylebone was an outstanding example of young serine/Syrah. Medium bodied with very supple tannins, it has a solid core of red-black fruit and an interesting spice note. The acidity makes it very food friendly as well as promising a bright future. Perhaps in time the tannins will firm up before it begins its slow evolution, but you could worse than open one up right now if young Texier is your thing.

10/15/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Absolutely ready to go. Silky tannins, sweetly mature fruit with earth and sous bois and plenty of acidic structure and mid-palate presence.

9/18/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Yowza!!! Now, I will readily admit to being a Pegau fanboi, but even so this wine is hitting on all cylinders right now. The nose is classic CdP: earthy, kirschwasser, black licorice. It's medium-bodied, perfectly balanced and has a lightness on the palate that is most welcome in these days of warming conditions. This is why I drink CdP. No hurry to drink but also no reason to wait on this as I don't see it getting any better than it is today.

9/7/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Fully mature, showing bricking at the edges. Floral, dark-fruited with plenty of earth, it manages a lightness on the palate that makes it a delight to drink. Delicious with pan-seared duck breasts

8/30/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Quite dry, yet with plenty of varietal character. Yellow in color, with white peach and herbal fruit. Plenty of acidity makes it a great food wine.

8/25/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Another beautiful rendition of this wine. Upon opening, it shows it youth with juicy red fruit, almost candied. Very light upon the palate with fresh acidity, it continues to take on depth with air and in turn becomes more savory and less fruit-forward.

8/24/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Also known as Lemburger, Blaufränkisch is a rare grape to see in the US. This rendition could easily be mistaken for an Austrian Blaufränkisch from a quality producer like Moric. It is high-toned, red-fruited, medium-bodied and best served slightly chilled (65-70 F). Jim Lester has done a fabulous job with this grape.

8/17/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Bright, red-fruited, crisply acidic. Very nice with food, in this case pulled pork sandwiches.

8/9/2023 - MLipton wrote:

A drop-dead gorgeous nose of juicy Gamay fruit. On the palate, some dusty tannins, very fresh acidity but some mid-palate thinness. Perhaps too young still or beginning to close down.

7/27/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Slightly corked. There’s a very appealing Nebbiolo underneath the cork taint, which is all the more a shame.

7/24/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Lovely fruit in a package with silky texture. No rough edges at all, but still plenty of fresh acidity .

7/11/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Certainly a darker, more vivid color than many rosé Champagnes, yet it still maintains a freshness that helps its appeal. Delicious with food yet also on its own.

7/6/2023 - MLipton wrote:

We’ve had every vintage of this wine back to ‘13 or ‘14, I’d guess. This is one of the best vintages ever: light, with red cherry fruit, plenty of acidic structure and enough body to stand up to most foods. Not a complex wine, but one that imparts pleasure.

7/3/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Another great bottle from this producer. The style is quite vinous and Pinot Noir-dominant. Flavors of ripe red apples dominate, but there is very restrained yeast autolydis character. A refined mousse gives this a very refined nature.

6/28/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Pale salmon in color, light in body with a sense of restraint, it has lovely tart strawberry fruit and a slightly bitter finish that does indeed remind me of a better made Bandol rosé.

6/24/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Really a point right now, it's showing beautiful cherryish fruit, soft tannins with plenty of acidity to keep it fresh. It's bricking around the edges, but still quite lively. I would drink up over the next couple of years.

6/18/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Opened this tonight with BBQ ribs. Dark fruited but with a recognizably Gamay nose. The acidity kept it fresh and it was medium-to-lightweight on the palate. Glad I waited this wine out.

6/16/2023 - MLipton wrote:

I thought that my supply was gone… but I was mistaken. Again, opened with venison tenderloin and it once again shone: thick yet balanced, savory with lots of black olive and earth, yet underlying it all is an abundance of dark berryish fruit and plenty of acidic structure. Tannins are fine grained at this point and it’s terrific with food. For those who love the tertiary characteristics of Syrah, it’s got another five years of life ahead; if instead you value fruit and freshness, drink up soon.

6/11/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Corked, dammit

6/11/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Badly corked, which is a shame because there was lovely fruit underneath the taint

6/9/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Did I say I drank my last bottle? Apparently not, because I pulled this bottle from our cellar after my initial choice with dinner was corked. Still going strong with plenty of dark fruit, but now gaining more savory character. Plenty of meaty and earthy goodness. This has 3-5 more years of life in it, especially if it comes from a cold cellar .

6/6/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Another lovely showing for this wine, our first exposure to the most recent disgorgement. Generously fruited, yet subtle, with a very suave mouthfeel, it is both a celebratory wine and one well suited to pairing with food, in our case that being some D'Artagnan European quails that had received a light applewood smoking on the grill. This wine is both versatile and hedonistic, a great balancing act.

6/5/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Yellow in color, bone dry with an herbaceous note, it is in a good place right now. It was fantastic with jerk chicken and on its own.

6/2/2023 - MLipton wrote:

In Gorgeous shape right now: dry, but abounding with quince fruit. Zippy acidity gives this medium-bodied wine great freshness.

6/2/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Slightly oxidized, yellow color, still with appreciable Chablis character. Not overly complex.

5/25/2023 - MLipton wrote:

Crisp, bright with a refined mousse and tart citrus fruit. Toadtiness was close to our limits of tolerance