2/19/2024 - Matt Neel wrote:

Straw, green meniscus. Grassy, SB nose, some cat piss though not dominant. Palate has moderate weight and intensity; zero Sancerre character: no smoke, no minerals, no salinity; nothing to tell you "Sancerre." Short. This is a hard no. This is a bottle of SB from anywhere with agreeable soil, not worth $.01 for the pedigree, There are many, many better Sancerres available for this money.

11/20/2023 - Matt Neel wrote:

Golden straw. Lovely, pure nose of yellow peach, saline oyster shells, and slate; no smoke. Very round on the palate, decent/good acidity, but not at all a steely, mineral, structured Sancerre in any way; much more yellow peach, apricot fresh and dried; very generous fruit. Nice finish, but lacking verve and lift; this is more of a rich, plush cocktail wine than a bracing, vigorous counterpoint for food. Overall, I'd label this: lacking focus and Sancerre identity; disappointing.

11/19/2023 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Perfect blood. Nose is deep and mineral, lots of blood and viscera; turned soil; above that is kirsch and creosote, and higher yet is a wispy, constantly vanishing but haunting rose floral note. Gorgeous, but there is certainly a touch of heat; oy, Garnacha. Round and moderately dense on the palate; celery and celery seed, cherry meat and pit. Quite good balance on the finish with a defining edge of bitterness; less heat than on the nose, but plenty of ripe, ripe liqueur character and overall a very richly textured wine. Delicious wine, but it demands duck or fatty lamb; it's not a daily house wine. (Listed as 14.5% abv, but I'd guess it's more like 15%.)

11/9/2023 - Matt Neel wrote:

Pale straw. Generic Sauv Blanc nose; some cat piss, salinity, cut grass. Without real presence on the palate, same as the nose plus a pleasing note of smoke. Flat, short finish. A pleasant enough NO.

11/9/2023 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Palest straw. This pops with the most captivating, smoky, herbal, and saline nose one could hope for, just gorgeous. The palate is calm, balanced, and lying crisply in wait for morels, cream, or tarragon in any combination with proteins; food wine. Lovely, lifted balance on the finish. Yes, please to this beautiful little Sancerre.
P.S. Later: it's now clashing with my Trader Joe's mint+dark chocolate candy. So don't push things too far lol...

11/8/2023 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Green gold. Focused but reticent, primary nose; smoky flint and steel; an almost delicate florality is encased in ultra-expensive, tight-grained oak that is beginning to merge with the fruit. Very (very) rich on the palate, flinty, primary, and beautiful; peaches and apricots from Jesus' own orchards are awaiting delivery in the next life of this beauty. Absolutely, and literally, mouthwatering and comically long finish. The scent from the empty glass is just mesmerizing. Wowzers and holy shit is this thing SINGING. (Open 24-36 hours)
Edited to add: I'd say this is nearing the end of youth. A solid 20 years of improvement is ahead to reach full maturity. It will keep -- and probably improve in marginal, ineffably wonderful ways -- after that for longer than most of us will be alive.

10/16/2023 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Gold straw. Blocky, primary nose of Chard; medium grip of new oak/honeyed butter; Meursault hazelnuts for sure; steel shavings, foundry smoke; rustic, with no pretty florality in there at all; it's stern on the nose. The fruit is there, but the winemaking is strong. The palate is unlike the nose: round, generous, primary yet (so young), a bit blocky with oak and winemaking but that will definitely integrate. Decent length, but without nuance or seduction. My only caveat is the wine evinces no charm, no joy — it's all structure and form, at least for now. It's a sound, muscular Meursault that is not my style but certainly will be for others (my preference runs to finesse and beauty, and this is a bigger, tougher wine than that). Its pedigree shows.

10/15/2023 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

2012 Nathalie Falmet Champagne Cuvée Le Val Cornet
Luminous, golden straw. The nose positively erupts with cinnamon (!), bread dough, Champagne yeast, and egg yolk; in time, that mess integrates into brioche and oxidative notes evoking baking spices (nutmeg, ginger), crème brûlée, and focusing orange-peel oil. Gorgeous, and more than a little heady without any heat at all. Exquisitely poised on the palate, with a mellow bead; gentle cream and brioche (eggs, yeast, bread), fleshy yellow pit-fruits, with calmly assertive acidity framing the fruit. Wonderful length, and though I wouldn't age this because it's so delicious now, its pinpoint balance will carry it for a decade or two, effortlessly, and likely to good effect. It would be hard to overstate how much this wine grew on me… Scrumptious, it's a portrait of finesse, breed, and balance.
(From the back label: Disgorged 20 Sep 2017; 12% ABV; "Pinot Noir et Pinot Meunier").

10/9/2023 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Saturated blood. Fascinating, deep nose of creosote, singed herbs (thyme for sure, oregano?), raw meat, and almost overwhelming salinity, like seawater; crazy complexity. On the tongue, it's similarly complex: saline, raw oysters (!), steak tartare with full egg yolk richness and funk, + capers, and then plum and pure, sweet, high-note blackberry, while also slightly bitter, bringing focus to the sweetness. Most intriguing. Exceptionally finely knit and long; perfectly balanced as an artifact of couture: art, realized. This is not a wheelhouse wine for me, being a little dense and rich for my palate, but damn -- it's really, really good. Drink nowish, I think. I don't know where this has to go that's any better than where it is now. Splendid.

10/9/2023 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Blood ruby. Gorgeous creosote and cherry nose; smoked meats; amazingly savory. Palate is sweet, rich, and boldly tannic; strawberry jam, charcuterie, and fireplace embers; positively bursting with fruit. Gorgeous and perfect. Heavenly young Nebbiolo. You could forget it in the cellar for a couple of years, but why wouldn't you just drink it? Perfection in its class. Oh, how I do love Vajra's touch...

8/17/2023 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Unbalanced is the overwhelming read, here. But not the wine -- me.

Limpid blood ruby. The nose is a ravashing sexpot of spiced, wild mountain strawberries (those tiny berries from the Cascades in July/August); tender, pure, and ephemeral beyond the utility of words to express. The palate brings us back to Earth, literally: still plenty of spicy wild strawberry, with lots of lift, but tannin and acidity frame the fruit in lovely, couture balance as bassnote themes of turned soil recall the vineyard. Good length, but not better than that, with velvet Nebbiolo tannins framing the tender, inherently fleeting redberry (strawberry!) fruitkiss goodbye. Gorgeous.

A glorious young Barolo. Not one for long cellaring, in my view, because how could any mature form be more pleasing, more rewarding, than this youthful explosion of beauty?

6/10/2022 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Saturated Nebbiolo red with an opaque blood core. Primary, textbook (lol) nose of licorice, cherry jam, sandalwood, expensive leather, and a little creosote; quite generous, actually. The palate is dense and tannic but with plenty of young fruit, very firm but absolutely beautifully balanced. Fantastic tannic length; clean as a whistle with no distinguishable oak — it’s in there but deftly integrated. I don’t see this taking forever to open, though its impeccable balance will underwrite a long, long evolution. A splendid wine, full stop. (Popped and poured. Thanks, Tim!)

6/10/2022 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Thoroughly saturated blood/ruby still with a violet meniscus, but you can see the earliest makings of brick being hinted. A big, bountiful nose just inhabits the glass, a grizzly in its den, primary yet and powerful with violets, red and black cherry, stiff minerality, and a hint of thyme. The palate is intense, tannic, and dense, even a bit dusty, but it is definitely beginning to round out, and the fruit is so copious it requires every last bit of that frame of tannin and acid. Exceedingly long, though that element is still stoutly tannic and primary, strict even. A heroic, patrician wine, every bit a 2005, but beginning to show a little leg. There isn’t much in the way of charm, and it remains to be seen if there ever will be, but I’m optimistic. It was certainly enjoyable — which not many 2005s are, in my opinion. (Popped and poured and then given lots of time (ultimately overnight) to oxygenate. My wine.)

6/10/2022 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Rich, golden straw with a hint of green on the meniscus (still!). The nose is like a very large thing crammed down into the glass, swelling with butter toffee, cream(sicle), lemon confit, a subtle herbal note, and a powerful, almost smokey steel-foundry minerality — heady stuff, just this side of hot. The palate is dense with the glycerin of the vintage, of crystalline purity etched in filigree acidity, and fills every bit of one’s mouth with sumptuous balance, restating the flavor profile of the nose. Briefly, I even called this “hard,” as it was so youthful, but that mellowed. The wine is exactly à point, youthful and fresh yet mellowed, suave, and expansive. The finish lingers like a new lover. There is certainly oak present but it has integrated with effortless finesse. Spectacular wine, of grand cru quality if anything short of Chevalier-Montrachet can be. It’s been a long time since I’ve had a white Burgundy this good. (Thanks, Seth!)

5/3/2020 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

V pale straw. Aggressive, initially stern nose of creosote, fireplace embers, melting metal, and then, miraculously, an interweaving of lacy elderflower, honeysuckle, and peachskin ethereality with a lemonoil singularity providing gravity. Mouthwatering. As good as the nose is, the palate is nothing short of stunning: dense and broad, yet crisp; luscious white tree-pitfruits drench the palate, demanding attention; and yet, other than a wispy lychee note, this is as far from tropical as the Alps could imply… It is stern, steely, mineral, and boldly acidic; a Matterhorn — covered foot to crest with wildflowers. This is not a light wine but it doesn’t tire, either — quite the opposite: it has effortlessly persistent, and delicious, length. Honestly, a stunning wine. Preposterously good for the money. Wow!

As an aside, this is the kind of wine that shows how ridiculous a numerical rating system is in general application. This is a perfect wine in the sense that I cannot imagine it being a better version of what it is. Case closed...

4/11/2020 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Well bricked but still with a pretty stunningly dark, opaque core of blood fading red through brick. Iron and steel, graphite — immediately all minerals on nose, but mmm very deep, stick your nose in! Blood iron and castle gates behind murky moats of thyme; a little Louis Vuitton leather, pencils in a rich kid's case; then, with coaxing (and gifted insight from Sam) deeep plum: the last remainder of the big basket of fruit this once carried. The palate tends Napoleonic; Pauillac austerity and authoritarianism: couture cotton cases on military pillows. At first luxurious in its resolved calm, so very regal with elitist balance. But in truth: we’re fully on the back edge of a very good wine. Nice length, iron, graphite, minerals, black plum skins are here, but some cherry charm, any charm, would be nice. It’s all discipline now. Delicious with lamb steaks on Easter. Drink up.
(Popped and poured as a backup. It opened nicely for quite a while. I've had this bottle since I was in college, '88 or '89. Perfect time to open it up and enjoy it with Sam. The cork was wet to the last 1/16". Interesting. EDIT: the cork was so wet and heavy that I weighed it. 10 grams.)

3/29/2018 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Ruby, dense but transparent and pretty. Lovely, though moderately reserved, nose of classic Nebbiolo fruit: red roses, strawberry, pie cherry, baking spices, and, down below those, a rich, tarry substrate. No apparent oak, much to my surprise and delight. The palate was beautifully balanced and just perfectly expresses Nebbiolo elegance. Though the wine is showing signs of softening, it is structually fairly primary, still, with crisp acidity and firm tannins, but that structure supports a wealth of lifted and bright fresh, sweet, red berry fruit. Broadly textured and fullish bodied, this is not a "big" wine by any means. Again, no oak apparent. Good length though not especially long at this youthful stage. This will improve for many more years but is utterly delicious now (at least with food). Quite a surprise tonight, this "modernist" Ceretto, and I couldn't have been more pleased. (Double decanted about 6 hours before consumption.)

3/10/2011 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

First day: Very deep lava red, the only bricking is from being Nebbiolo. Clenched and surly, fvck you!, on opening. 1/2 a glass, soily, dirty bench at the bus stop; no tickets pal. Wait for day two.

Day two: Whoa. Yes. Here's the ticket. Gorgeous, reserved, licorice, fennel, and forever depth on the nose; massively proportioned; fennel seed and antique furniture polish; wafts of celery and parsnip, strawberry; camphor; cinnamon. Waiting to become great and getting there. No roses, but that’s just because the mail is sitting in the mailbox, unopened. On the palate the wine is hugely medium bodied, coating the tongue in flavor and length and tannin, but with a bewitchingly light touch. Quite hard to describe, that; rather like the Burgundian “power without weight.” This beauty gushes with licorice, fennel, caramel, rivers of snappy cherry, and a perfumed, feminine, floral haunt that won't leave me (praise Jeebus). Spectacular balance, with a sternly acidic and tannic structure framing impeccable fruit. Long, very, very long. Glorious. Not yet ready (but awfully nice!), try in 5 years, or maybe 3. Extremely elegant -- do not read this effusive note as saying this is a big wine, despite its undeniable power. If “perfect” wines exist then this is amongst that coterie because it just couldn’t be any better.

4/12/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Pretty deep straw. Deeeep and earthy nose; creamy lemon curd; and a distinct herbal note of tarragon, which I love (both the herb and in this wine)... Just a gorgeous nose. The palate is impossibly well-balanced, creamy and more of that mouth-watering lemon curd; and then Chicago iron, steel; mineral. An haute-couture mousse: sex on the tongue. Nice sweetness (be aware, this has a noticeable dosage, which I personally love). Excellent length. My observation on this bottle is it has very mellow acidity, so I don't think this will make old bones (or should, or is intended to), but boy almighty -- it's exquisite now! I'd actually say drink now, and make your own decisions about longevity.

(Thanks, Josh, it was so good it made me hunt for something to write a note on it, anything... Fortunately not a 5-Guys napkin... You're generosity is so appreciated; thanks. I don't get to have this kind of stuff very often...)

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): (Mystery wine at the end of a lot of wines...) Blood, some brick. Nose immediately breathed bubblegum on me, like a cute waitress on roller-skates, with her clove and vanilla; subtle menthol. Palate is firmly tannic but also soft(ening) and definitely approachable; good, deep cherry, sweet and long; a radar-ping of saline soy. Delicious! Years to go, but certainly good now -- don't hesitate to enjoy this. (My guess was an Aldo Conterno '89; classic but refined and approachable.) Great wine.

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): Beautiful ruby, lightest bricking. The nose reminds me of the '89 Ovello in its reserve and breed; red apple skins; ripe bing cherries; nascent baking spices; concentrated rose perfume and red cherry liqueur. Lovely, and, frankly, perfect. The palate has gorgeous, tongue-enveloping sweetness; exceedingly refined and well textured... wow! classic, pure cherry velvet. Incredible balance, incredible length. Will run forever, roughly, but is certainly more than enjoyable now. Great wine.

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel wrote:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): Ruby, bricking. Nose shows baking spices, oxidation, petrichor. Palate is much the same, sweet, soft; spices and caramel. OK-ish length. A little tired, this poor bottle. Tasty, but: drink up.

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): Blood ruby, bricking. This has a big, billowing nose, albeit a little oxidized; red apple skins, café latte, and stony-dusty petrichor. Palate has a big hit of leather, quite tannic leather, recently tanned; bitter chocolate, Christmas spices (lots of those, everything you can think of); balsamic, adding a little volatility to the oxidation on the nose. Good+ length. Ready to go, at least from this bottle. Delicious, but good to go.

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): Deep ruby, barely bricking. Nose shows an immediate whiff of oxidation; then cherry, cola, horse piss. The palate is sweet and ready, more of the oxidation. Delicious, but underwhelming in the context of this lineup. Decent length, not better. Go ahead and drink (if this bottle if typical).

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): Blood ruby, bricking. Classic cherry nose, licorice; unevolved. Palate, again, is classic and unevolved: cherry and licorice. Needs a whole lot more time for my palate. Good balance and fine tannic, primary length -- but that's about all you get right now. Hold for a bare minimum of 5 years. A final note: super well balanced. Great wine.

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): Blood ruby, light bricking. Wow! Huge nose -- sweet (my note might say sweat, but I think it's sweet; maybe both lol), leather, mint, seashells; and cherry compote spiked with clove and nutmeg and cinnamon. Immediately tannic and very young on the palate, extremely primary, an infant. Firm, primary cherry and licorice. Good, persistent length but again primary, and tannic, so not amenable to a rhapsody on length just yet. Hold, not ready, but spectacular. And a final comment, perhaps in contrast to the foregoing: flamboyant and fun. Loved this wine.

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): Very pretty ruby, bricking. Lovely, detailed nose, not grabbing your attention, but rather subtle and shifting like fruit fields and orchards carried on a fresh breeze. Very classic cherry and rose. Again a sweet palate attack; then dusty tannin and firm acidity; really dense and finely-grained velvet fruit, both black and red cherry. Terrific length. Great wine. Wow, is it ever long on the palate! Just barely entering maturity, so enjoyable, but I'd say keep it another 5-10 for the fruit to mature a little more.

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): Bricking blood ruby. Super deep, stony nose; very classic; bright red cherry; quarry dust. Sweet attack on palate, then dry and lacking a little intensity. Classic cherry and licorice on the medium-length finish. Good, but the nose was the wine.

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): Bricking pure ruby. Big, gorgeous nose; stony, dusty; classic cherry, rose. Big and gutsy on the palate attack, stern yet, tannic; rosy inner-palate with lovely fruit. Good length. Needs time yet. Showing really well; good balance, good though simple/monolithic length. Terrific.

10/27/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

1989 Produttori del Barbaresco with Chambers Street Wines (Maialino, NYC): Tasted double blind. Somewhat pale, transparent ruby; some bricking. For sure this smells of Pinot Noir, or perhaps Gamay with a couple of years on it. Rosy fresh; also maybe Dolcetto with some age? Doesn't taste like PN, though. The palate is dry; stony; cherry pits, slate. Good length. Hard to ID. Austere. Excellent. Needs a few years.

12/9/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

2014 Acker BYO at TriBeCa Grill (TriBeCa Grill, NYC): Very deep ruby. Exactly typical Leroy on the nose: sucrosity, like candied, powdered cherry skins and red rose petals; lots of spice from whole clusters/stems. A bodacious nose, but still pretty primary. Huge. The palate is also primary, sternly tannic, but chock-a-block with pure, rosy cherry fruit; dense and full-bodied. Velvety with fruit, but there's a load of acid there, too, keeping things honest. Impressive length, for sure. Fantastic. Needs 5-10 years, at least, to reach an early peak. (One of three WOTN, for me)

12/9/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

2014 Acker BYO at TriBeCa Grill (TriBeCa Grill, NYC): Pretty, bricking ruby. Rosy, fresh, very 1985 nose: billowing, smoky cheery red cherry, raspberry, and a little spice; but especially red roses. Not necessarily complex, but truly pure and lovely. The palate, too, is very fresh and pure, roses, candied tangerine peel; very elegant and cool. Still a welcome bite of tannin but well resolved with good, focusing acidity. Good but not great length. No more upside, at least from this bottle. Delicious but drink. (my wine)

12/9/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

2014 Acker BYO at TriBeCa Grill (TriBeCa Grill, NYC): Opaque blood, incredibly deep, but also a little cloudy with sediment (not too bad, though). Bitter chocolate and macerated cherries on nose; huge nose!; floral, candied cherry-tar notes; sauvage: herbs and leather. Wow! Huge and sweet on palate, coffee/café au lait; cherry compote. Incredible! Stunning wine. Very, VERY long. Outstanding. Flat-out GREAT wine. Wow! It just keeps getting better and more interesting the more time I spend with it. Massive fruit on the eternal finish. (One of three WOTN, for me)

12/9/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

2014 Acker BYO at TriBeCa Grill (TriBeCa Grill, NYC): Straw; impossibly young-looking. Not a big wine, but superbly precise; banana, ginger, and a pervasive, powerful steely substratum of beeswax infused with spring flowers. Subtle and beautiful. The palate bursts with flavor: white chocolate, lemon confit, French toast (custard), and caramelized gingerbread. Incredibly long. A spectacular wine, tremendous. Ageless -- I'm sure this will be as good or better in 25 years. (One of three WOTN, for me).

12/9/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

2014 Acker BYO at TriBeCa Grill (TriBeCa Grill, NYC): Golden straw. Big, tense nose showing oak and almost tropical fruit, but then fully classic salinity and seashell. The palate is pretty awesome and mouthwatering: cream, hazelnut, and a bit of lemony, tangy-sweet pineapple; fine balance of fruit and acid. Resolved and lovely. The length you'd expect. Drink though, I don't see much evolution ahead. Yum.

12/9/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

2014 Acker BYO at TriBeCa Grill (TriBeCa Grill, NYC): Pale straw, tinge of rose on the meniscus. Clean, clear nose of fresh fruit; no malo, no cream or brioche; creamsicle and orange peel and some gingerbread (h/t Seth). Palate is very tangy with acid, balancing a rather sweet fruit profile (9 grams dosage, yum); very primary. Easy mousse, nice length. Good wine, I like it. Drink or keep a good while, I would think, given the firm acidity.

12/9/2014 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

2014 Acker BYO at TriBeCa Grill (TriBeCa Grill, NYC): Pale straw. Intense yeasty, mineral nose; wafts of light oxidation; briny seashell, seaweed. Palate is also intense and tongue-coating, yeast, cream; highly saline. A very fine-grained mousse leads through to a beautifully long, lingering finish. Really delicious, probably the first Selosses I've ever really enjoyed for my palate (as opposed to appreciated/admired). Terrific. (disgorged 12/2010)

3/14/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Dinner with good friends at I Trulli (I Trulli, Flatiron, NYC): Opaque blood, barely bricked. How is this so young -- I've had it since release, 25+ years! Austere but spicy nose, cardamom seed, barely ripe cherry. Palate is >100% 1988; austere, very tannic. Will it ever come totally around? Tight; needs at least 10 years from this bottle, anyway. Good but very tannic length. Cripes! (I gave this a good 2 hours of air in the open bottle. I was just stunned by how backwards it still is. I can't imagine how hard a grand cru from this stable would be...)

3/14/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Dinner with good friends at I Trulli (I Trulli, Flatiron, NYC): Opaque black, reddening meniscus. Fairly blank, licorice nose, fresh wheat bread (yeast); there's a lot of nose here, but it's vague and hard to read. Palate is textbook CS black currants, blackberry; great fruit, excellent balance; tannin and ripeness in good control, this is on the classic end of the scale. This will age a very long time, yet. Very, very long. Wow, I'm impressed. This is an excellent wine that I'd never expect to like...! (13.5% ABV)

3/14/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Dinner with good friends at I Trulli (I Trulli, Flatiron, NYC): Perfect ruby, a little, tiny bit bricked. Immediately spectacular, blooming, gorgeous, earthy, rosy nose of purest Barolo Nebbiolo; crotchy, earthy, petrichor/geosmin; just becoming ready. An infant on the palate, wow! Wagonloads of fruit, aggressive tannin, purifying acidity. More rose but no tar, well, maybe a little tar. Perfect. This is great and long; just becoming sweet and ready. Delicious wine!

3/14/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Dinner with good friends at I Trulli (I Trulli, Flatiron, NYC): Lightly bricked opaque blood. Closed, vitamin nose; the purity is there but this need 6 hours open, at least. Now, opening a bit, deep and dark, black cherry, crotchy, licorice; no spice, but it's coming. Increasingly as the wine breathed it showed oxidation, and as a flaw not a pleasing complexity in an aging Nebbiolo; this would very much concern me if I owned some of this. The palate has silky, terrific balance. Cherry skins. Unready, tannic. Good, tannic length, chewy. Hold, but due to '82 fat it is pretty terrific with food, even now. But keep an eye on that oxidative note...

3/14/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Dinner with good friends at I Trulli (I Trulli, Flatiron, NYC): Ruby, barely bricking; had a fill way up into the neck to just below the cork. The nose is infinitely funky; at first it smelled exactly like a boat full of freshly harvested oysters, saline, seaweed, shells; now, it smells like shit, literally, like an unpumped septic tank; shit like a septic tank at an abandoned elementary school in Chernobyl. Whoa...! Also lanolin, like an unshaved sheep's ass. Incredibly vivid and alive. The palate is tannic, simpler than the nose by far; rosy leather. Really good, though simple, length. Wow! A great experience and a darn fun bottle of wine.

3/14/2015 - Matt Neel wrote:

Dinner with good friends at I Trulli (I Trulli, Flatiron, NYC): Shot bottle, no fruit. A second bottle was better, but not enough to take a note on.

3/14/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Dinner with good friends at I Trulli (I Trulli, Flatiron, NYC): Deep blood, a little bricking. Deep and spicy on the nose, licorice, spice cake, molasses - blackstrap, really. Yummy, and gained a significant florality with more air. The palate is tannic tannic, brutally; it has fruit, and loads of acidity, but this is many years from resolving. Good, dense length displays its fundamentally sound balance. Wait... I wouldn't even try this for another 10 years, personally.

3/14/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Dinner with good friends at I Trulli (I Trulli, Flatiron, NYC): Deep straw. The nose is lemon meringue pie served on a steel plate; fabulous and perfect. The palate is the same, piercing acidity, lovely, lean lemony fruit. Nice length. Delicious wine.

3/14/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Dinner with good friends at I Trulli (I Trulli, Flatiron, NYC): Cloudy, gold straw. Wow! What a nose: it just explodes with fennel, matchsticks, lemon zest, and a deep metallic note -- minerals, aluminum foil (?). Tons of savage yeastiness, not unlike a gueuze. Big, bold Chard on the palate with great framing acidity; it shows a little heat on the palate (not at all on the nose, though, fortunately) but that's OK -- after all, it wants to be bold, young California Chardonnay. More lemon, here curd, with a dollop of butter. Extremely long. This is just a great, great wine. I wouldn't keep it forever, but now? Wowza! (15.3% ABV)

3/26/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Wines and friends with lovely little Adira, and Seth and Keshet; chez them: Well-bricked blood. There was an initial ferocious, snagglepuss, volatility on the nose that was killing me and needed to blow off, godawful -- then it did. Now quite perfumed (and it became more>more>more perfumed the longer it stayed open; glorious, huge tobacco gorgeousness!) with mulberry compote, tar, licorice. Really freaking nice, wow... The palate is resolved, sweet, lovely; candied, lifted '78 fruit, very classic there, for sure; cherry and red berries of your choice. Decent length, but that's about it, no need to overstate it all. Really nice, classic wine. Drink. (my wine) (Edit: Seth is correct -- this is Sonoma Valley designated, not Sonoma County. I didn't notice this when I entered my note.)

3/26/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Wines and friends with lovely little Adira, and Seth and Keshet; chez them: Green straw-gold. Big, classic steely nose at first, but then creamy vanilla, nutmeg, crème brûlée; beautiful nose. Palate is very approachable and a little sweet; perceptible residual sugar. Tangy grapefruit length, though hardly taut acid. Extremely nice now. It's primary, and it will keep for a while, but why bother? Drink this.

3/26/2015 - Matt Neel Likes this wine:

Wines and friends with lovely little Adira, and Seth and Keshet; chez them: Straw. Monster nose, smells just like a bakery: yeast, flour, rising dough; then cream, orangesicle, and, interestingly, fresh-cut grass or alfalfa -- an epic nose! The palate is, somewhat thankfully, more reserved and elegant; nice sweetness, obviously a healthy dosage (love) and a matched creamy mousse; cream with a little salinity to it. But really delicate and poised, a ballerina. Lovely, long length. Excellent. Doesn't need age, it's great now, but I'm sure it will improve for a few years. Delicious wine.

3/26/2015 - Matt Neel wrote:

Wines and friends with lovely little Adira, and Seth and Keshet; chez them: Amber gold. Bang! Petrol like a backfiring Volkswagen, practically gasoline. Then -- carefully, so my face doesn't catch on fire -- orange peels, hazelnuts, custard-cream; and a box of rotten oranges. Palate is dry, spicy, weighty; more of the rotten oranges, some cream, and oxidation; shy on fruit. Decent finish. Nice wine but drink up!