12/12/2016 - acyso wrote:

The Rotating Dinners, I.7: 2005 Bordeaux Blends (Chicago, IL): Served double-blind (but it was known this was a 2005 Bordeaux blend). To properly describe this wine, I have replaced all the adjectives in my original tasting note with "oaky": Oaky and oaky, oaky and over-oaked. Oaky and oaky, an oaky bruiser of a wine. An oaky, heavy-oaked wine. I guessed oaky Bordeaux. So now that it's clear how idiotic things are when there's only oak everywhere, here's the original note: dark and leathery; dense and over-extracted. Heavy and anonymous, a real bruiser of a wine. An uninspiring heavy-handed wine. I guessed modern Bordeaux.

8/9/2017 - MikeATL Does not like this wine:

More gooptastic than the 2005, remarkably intense, cloying, and viscous Luden's cough drop fruit with an unfortunately long finish, I find it distinctly unpleasant as each sip elicits an involuntary, visceral wince. It is still very primary and youthful, though, so it at least has that going for it.

9/28/2022 - Keith Levenberg Does not like this wine:

We have here the Bernard Magrez Chateau Pape-Clement (Bernard Magrez, Proprietaire), which has Bernard Magrez's signature on it in four places between the front and back label, plus an extra bonus photograph of a dapper sport-coated Bernard Magrez next to a bio blurb of the Pope for whom the chateau is named, briefly leaving the unsettling impression that Bernard Magrez was a 14th century Pope. The wine itself was equally unconvincing. I have tried very hard to like the modern-day Pape Clements and I think I'm done trying. The late '90s were impressive, then in the aughts they went over the top, then in the 'teens they appeared to moderate a little, but without getting to the point of being impressive again. This one is somewhere between the second and third zone. It's got a roasted quality that seems to combine barrel toast and Graves-signature scorched earth. The fruit is rich enough for balance but muddled, blurry. I am sorry. No more Bernard Magrez for me.

5/7/2016 - acyso wrote:

Rite of Spring at Chevalier Wines (Chicago, IL): Pretty much everything wrong with modern Napa cabernet can be found in this bottle. Overly sweet, overly oaked, overripe, and just plain overdone. Identifiable as modern red wine only. A triumph over varietal and terroir. "Uncle!"

5/27/2016 - salil wrote:

I've had a few bottles of 2003 Bordeaux recently that have defied the stereotype of '03s being clumsy, jammy, and overripe, and this is another to add to the list. It's certainly a ripe wine with plenty of plummy and dark berried fruit at its core, but there's also a savoury earthiness beneath, and a bright herbal, eucalyptus-like note on the nose that adds a fresh, high toned edge to the aromatics. The palate is very well balanced with enough acidity to give it a sense of lightness and freshness on the palate, and a long, savoury finish. Very impressive.

3/24/2023 - Seth Rosenberg Likes this wine:

Nose of beautiful deep fruits - blackberry and raspberry and blueberry. Ripe but well balanced and not overdone at all. Part jammy part crystalline - some purple spices and dark florals - just a touch of bell pepper behind that which adds a dimension and complexity. With some swirling and air there are hints of earthy funk - a kind a sauvage and some Barnyard and stems. The palate starts with the sweet fruit. Just beautiful, spices and violets. In the back is some earth and funk. Fruit is ripe but the wine is crisp and lively and beautiful. Finish shows hints of savory and pyrazines behind the fruit. Great focus throughout. How is this possible for $24??? Nose - 5.5/6, Palate - 5-5.5/6, Finish - 5+/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1-1.5/2 = 16.5-17.5/20.

Day 4: This has opened an integrated well. Lots of different fruits - mostly dark like blackberry and a bit of cassis but also some hints of wild strawberry. Also prominent is a green note - tobacco and some bell pepper along with earth, some funk and a bit of graphite. The palate has great dark fruits and lift, some tobacco and bell pepper, it’s crunchy with lift but with a great depth and complexity of flavors.

11/7/2014 - Seth Rosenberg Likes this wine:

As Lord Flashheart says, "WOOF! ... I like it firm and fruity!" Massive aromas of peach, red apple, brown spice - nutmeg and allspice, stones and minerals, spicy chili peppers. This manages to be huge and yet really clear and focused. There's also a nice herbal thing that comes out, and some of that ZS sweet-sour. The Feinherb shows more on the palate - this is huge on the palate (but still focused), with so much flavor that you keep expecting more RS, but it doesn't come. You end up with something that feels like a linear superposition of a Mosel Spatlese and a Wachau Smaragd. Flavors of red apple, peach, peach pit, stones, steel, chili peppers, sweet&sour, herbs. So much concentration that it almost feels like a fruit and chili pepper gelee. I get cognitive dissonance since the palate is so thick and powerful, yet not that sweet at all, and it also is very lively and energetic. When you swallow, the finish of peach, bitter peach pit and stones really explodes and occupies the mouth for quite a while. Impressive, but needs a decade. Nose - 5.5/6, Palate - 5-5.5/6, Finish - 5+/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1.5/2 = 17-17.5/20.

10/29/2015 - acyso wrote:

Annual Comparative Bordeaux Tasting (2000/2005) (Chicago, IL): ...along comes this disgusting concoction. This is an amorphous, shapeless blob, raised in >100% new oak, probably hitting something like 15% abv (I didn't care to check), tasting like it has 20 g/L of residual sugar, and made from sun-baked grapes. This wine is a parody of itself.

2/20/2016 - acyso wrote:

They don't make 'em like they used to (New York City, NY): #09-02. Holy shit. A riesling to end all wines.

6/2/2016 - Seth Rosenberg Likes this wine:

Bready and rich on the nose, lemon and tart, chalky. Wicked on the palate with bread and lemon. Big and rough - not as sleek as the BdB, a bit sweet which is fine but a bit brawny for me (damn you Adrian!!!). This might mellow nicely with time, but I'm not certain of it. Nose - 5/6, Palate - 4.5+?/6, Palate - 4.5+?/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 15+?/20.

6/4/2016 - Nanda wrote:

Slow oxed for 6 hours and consumed over the next 3-4 hours. Gorgeous aromatics of cassis, pencil lead, bell pepper, tobacco leaf, and cigar ash. So much good stuff going on. On the palate the fruit is round but by no means hot/roasted. Good lift and precision from medium acid. The tannins are suave early in the night but more brawny and biting with time. Great precision and complexity here. Will be better with 5-10 years. Who says '03 BDX from 'modern' producers can't age?

11/30/2021 - millej Likes this wine:

Have I mentioned before that Jay H is one of the most generous people in the history of mankind?

Knowing my love of Sherry he saved a pour from his bottle and made the long drive down here to drop it off. I kept thinking I should tell him not to go to so much trouble but that was balanced by really, really wanting to try this.

Hauntingly beautiful nose. I'm getting hazelnuts, caramel, orange peel and even hints of ginger on the long complex palate. It starts out lush and then as the richness slowly fades on the near endless finish it becomes an ethereal mist of flavor.

I was taken back to the dinner about 20? years ago where I had my first Gonzalez Byass anada - a '68 which Joe P brought. Jay H. was there, as was Greg T. and Jesus Barquin. It started a love affair which has had me spending a lot more on Sherry than I ever thought likely.

If this was any better 2 days ago (seems unlikely but who knows) I can only assume that all the dinner attendees floated home without need for automotive transport.

Jay - I owe you one.

12/3/2017 - acyso wrote:

Vinetasters: Brown Bag (Skokie, IL): A classically proportioned, if a little ornery, Bordeaux. There's a bit of greenness thanks to the cabernet franc here, but it's very light. The fruit here is a little clamped down, and shows more black than red. It's earthy and dusty, and, as much as I hate to admit as much, Salil was right in saying that this wine was not yet ready. Good, but certainly in need of more time.

6/5/2015 - Sotto325 wrote:

A fascinating journey: almost at the crossroads between aged gran Rioja and full bodied dark fruit. Elegant . At 17 years, this bottle will have a definitively different profile in 2-3 years more akin to the older Muga wines. At present,dark garnet showing almost like a young tempranilo. Smoke, serious dark,cherry, bramble fruit galore and a finish that lasts almost a full minute. It straddles old world Rioja style,with fruit extraction of the more modern style. Excellent.

2/17/2017 - Seth Rosenberg Likes this wine:

Rieslingfeier 207 Seminar:"Different Strokes for Different Slopes: Germany and Austria" (Craft Restaurant (Private Dining Room), New York, NY): Beautiful nose - big, some creaminess. Ripe and perfect with peach fruit, spice, almond cream. The palate shows the ripe peach, florals, honeysuckle - more burly, saline, and broth elements come out towards the end - tangerine, peel, lime and stones on the finish. Nose - 5.5/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1.5/2 = 17/20.

12/3/2015 - acyso wrote:

HDH holiday tasting (Chicago, IL): A very unconvincing showing today. Completely closed. Huge and massive, with absolutely nothing pleasurable on the palate. Give it 20 years and pray that the emperor is clothed.

9/17/2016 - salil wrote:

AP #8-97. Brilliant wine. 1996 is not my favorite German vintage, but this is a masterpiece of balance - it has the powerful, almost screechy acidity of '96s, moderate sweetness on a lightweight frame, and yet all the flavours, sweetness, and acidity here come together in a very seamless whole. The aromatics are classic Prüm, still showing some of that sponti funk and sulfur amidst bright florality, stony minerality, apple and citrus flavours, and some maturing lemon cream and smoky notes. There's tremendous depth on the palate and remarkable length. Glad that I have another bottle.

9/11/2016 - acyso wrote:

Domaine Chicago party: Laughably bad wine, of the Mystery Science Theatre 3000 kind. If I put a sticker that says "pinot noir" on a can of Cherry Coke, that doesn't turn the Cherry Coke to pinot noir. Though it might turn it into Aubert.

3/29/2016 - acyso wrote:

2014 Joh. Jos. Prüm (Chicago, IL): #21-15, 7% abv. Easily my favourite of the Spätlesen. This had everything in good balance. There's a little bit of pineapple Gummibärchen here on the nose. This shows a touch more ripeness than the BB Spätlese on the palate, but with a lot more added complexity from a tinge of fresh green herbs. The acidity here feels a lot more integrated and less "tacked onto" the wine than the BB, and I prefer this to the WS for the added herbal elements.

11/24/2019 - salil wrote:

Brilliant. Still quite youthful and vibrant - there's a greenish tinge to the colour and the fruit seems shockingly youthful and fresh, even though there's a lot more savoury and honeyed complexity than I remember from my last bottle 6 years ago. The sweetness has subsided some; it's a more elegant wine now with a remarkable combination of power and that delicate, floating Dönnhoff palate presence. Glad I have one more.

9/6/2018 - salil wrote:

Brilliant wine, showing all the notes I want out of classic Côte-Rôtie. Light on its feet but so perfumed and fragrant with layers of meatiness, black olive/briny notes, violets, and higher toned herbal notes all coming together around a core of red fruit. Perhaps it's just a touch lean on the finish where the fruit feels a touch thin and the acidity still sticks out a bit, but the aromatics alone make this a wow experience.

9/5/2016 - acyso wrote:

#32-97, 7.5% abv. From half-litre. Moderate amber colour. The nose is alluring enough, with a fruit-salad of flavours, along with some clear botrytis spice and black tea tones. Without a doubt, the palate is very, very sweet, but there's plenty of acidity, and some more of that interesting black tea character. Despite the crazy acidity here, I can't help but feel this is slightly cloying all the same; the separate components don't seem to be as well-integrated as they should be. The fruit flavours don't seem to be as delineated on the palate either. And for all the concentration and sugar here, this wine just seems... simple. Perhaps I caught this at an awkward time?

5/19/2016 - acyso wrote:

In which 20+ year old Nebbiolos were consumed (Chicago, IL): Ex-Premier Cru. How's that for a unicorn? This is a broadly scaled and very large-sized bottle of champagne. The nose actually reminds me a little bit of the smell when I am making bread. The palate is quite chalky, and there's a lot of thick, yeasty richness here. Not my preferred style of champagne, but if it's served a touch colder than average, that gives it just enough lift.

5/19/2016 - acyso wrote:

In which 20+ year old Nebbiolos were consumed (Chicago, IL): This is chardonnay of a much bigger and opulent style. Heavier and rich on the palate, with a bit of cloying sweetness, though at the same time, there seems to be paradoxically quite a lot of acidity. Very spicy, there's almost something slightly gewurztraminer-like to this wine. The finish is a touch alcoholic. Certainly not my preferred style of chardonnay, but not a bad example of a large-scaled one either.

5/17/2016 - Rieslingfan wrote:

My last bottle of this wine, and so of course the best...

Aging from the outside in, it's now a core of fruit wrapped in old leather, cherry infused tobacco in an elegant room. It is an absolute pleasure to drink now, with or without food.

3/19/2016 - blanquito wrote:

Primary and fruity right now, but open, aromatic and delicious. A little spicy, a little gamey, with lots of brightness to go with surprisingly good depth. No crime to open now, but this has improved/deepened since my last go, so I plan to give this another 5 years before the next. Today 91-92 pts.

2/20/2016 - acyso wrote:

Rieslingfeier Grand Tasting (New York City, NY): In a great spot at the moment. A restrained nose shows a touch of gasoline. The palate is quite elegant, with really racy acidity, and the secondary characteristics are showing very well here. This has lost almost whatever juicy primary fruit it may have had originally in favour of riper and more mature yellow fruit.

2/7/2010 - Chomsky wrote:

Very modern Cahors from a négociant producer, 100% oak, ripe fruit, and all that. The fruit is very dark and fading somewhat, but the oak isn't; the result is a big-framed, somewhat raspy and savory wine with an herbal edge that doesn't have that much to do with Cahors. Wasn't bad with duck confit, though.

1/4/2016 - Neecies Likes this wine:

Impeccable flavor and balance, but we didn't decant and it could have used several hours' worth. Based on this bottle, the CT drinking window is too shortsighted--had I another bottle, I'd schedule it for 2020.

11/20/2015 - acyso wrote:

Clayfu's birthday (Los Angeles, CA): Heartbreaking. I thought this was alright at first, showing the correct density, but the pervasive baked apple note and a slight oxidative note makes me call it as the pox.

11/7/2015 - KeithAkers wrote:

Nose: The nose is gorgeous and savory with dark red cherries, olive tapenade, violets, leather, and black pepper. There is excellent depth with a very elegant base to it.

Taste: Medium bodied with medium+ acidity and silky tannins. There is a real deftness to the feel with layering and balanced along with dark red cherries, raspberries, black pepper, and some olive tapenade.

Overall: This is gorgeous and refined. It took about a half hour to get going and was everything one would want from aged Syrah.

5/5/2015 - salil wrote:

Leo's Blind Tasting Group - May '15 edition (The Kitchen at Grove): Flat out wow. This is absolutely incredible, and yet another reason for me to be patient with my younger Magdelaines. It's impossible to fully catalogue the array of flavours here - layers of red berried fruit, tobacco, cedar, leather, earth, and sweeter floral and herbal notes, all conveyed with remarkable finesse and a lightness of touch on the palate. The aromatics keep expanding and becoming more complex with air, and the finish resonates long after each sip. Stunning wine - thank you Jay!

5/13/2014 - salil wrote:

Consistent as ever. Savoury mature leather, tobacco, earth and cedar notes frame a core of dark fruit that's still quite youthful and fresh, and it's very polished on the palate with the tannins just about fully integrated.

5/3/2016 - indiscriminate palate wrote:

Tar, dried flowers, dried fruit and plums. Very chocolaty palate; quite rich. Also, quite disjointed right now; soft tannin. Not sure where this is going.

3/9/2016 - acyso wrote:

Jason comes to town (Chicago, IL): Holy green, Batman! This is green. Super green. I mean, really, really green. Like smelling the sap from some raw stems green. But since it's cabernet and not pinot, that's not a huge deal, though I could easily see this becoming offputting to those who are more accustomed to Californian jam. The palate is soft, elegant, and floral, with a wispy lightness to it. Demure and shy, but showing its charms all the same. The palate shows some red fruit, and the green doesn't manifest as prominently there as it does on the nose. A superb example of cabernet.

5/19/2016 - acyso wrote:

In which 20+ year old Nebbiolos were consumed (Chicago, IL): (Opened and put into a decanter at the beginning of dinner.) I wanted to like this wine more, but there was just too much chocolate on the nose and palate that distracted me from the other good things here. Seriously, apart from the oak (which, granted, isn't too prominent), this would have been a fantastic bottle. The fruit was powerful and fresh, and there's plenty of stuffing here. But it's all marred by this streak of oak, like some cheap graffiti on a building (I fully admit to being a huge anti-oak partisan when it comes to Piedmont).

5/18/2016 - salil wrote:

A crash course in Zind Humbrecht at Jeff and Dena's (Raleigh, NC): Hey, a non-ZH interloper! No surprise that this is astounding - unbelievably light and delicate, yet so powerful with palate-staining intensity. There's no sense of botrytis here - just an array of bright Meyer lemon, candied limes, green apples, and riper tropical fruits with gentle honeyed and floral accents. So bright and focused with tremendous acidity beneath balancing the sweetness, and astounding length. This is incredible.

3/9/2016 - acyso wrote:

Jason comes to town (Chicago, IL): I'd have easily called this as a right bank if this had been served blind to me. There's an incredible amount of funk on the nose, especially for a Californian "Bordeaux". There's a dustiness to this wine which I find really compelling, in addition to the barnyard funk and sweet red plums. The palate is quite fruity, but it's dried fruit, and also has a lot of that same earth. Quite hefty, but with good acidity all the same.

6/3/2016 - acyso wrote:

#14-12, 7% abv. The nose on this has a whole ton of sponti on it. There's a slight hint of the things to come, but it's mostly muted at the moment. The palate, on the other hand, is chock full of sweet and juicy white fruit, but of a really sweet disposition. There's a lot of slate on this wine as well, and the sponti actually shows a bit on the palate as well. This lacks a lot of the acidic drive that I want in riesling (not to say this is a low-acid wine!), and is more of a creamy, fleshy, and full-bodied expression of Spätlese. Nevertheless, quite good.

2/6/2016 - Chomsky wrote:

Acetone.

8/31/2016 - acyso wrote:

Not much to add to my previous notes -- this is just as delicious as before. Essence of pear, with fresh acidity and a touch of minerality. Great stuff.

1/27/2016 - acyso wrote:

UGC 2016 (Chicago, IL): More barrel than grape, one wonders if the grapes were an inadvertent addition.

1/22/2016 - indiscriminate palate wrote:

What a strange wine. Herbs, a gamut of fruit of citrus through tropical and stone fruit. Some oxidative notes. All of the wooly waxiness of Chinon with none of the joy.

1/13/2016 - Keith Levenberg Likes this wine:

Really beautiful bottle of Burgundy - at the early stage of true maturity but seems to have the stuffing and density to hold on for awhile. Ready to go pretty much from the pop of the cork, too. A healthy, fresh ruby in color, yet the fruit is in a mostly tertiary stage with savory, earthy aromatics while still having plenty of body and sweet flesh and with that sticky, sappy grip that only age brings once the structure has simmered down. I bought this very recently for $20 a bottle. If you factor in storage costs of $1 per year, that means the wine was FREE! Don't give up on your off-the-beaten-path Burgundies, people! They can age superbly, too.

10/4/2016 - indiscriminate palate wrote:

Ackerized. Another bottle that shows faint hints of what once was - rich, waxy, with tropical notes and a bit of spice - but is sadly well beyond its prime (or another victim of Acker's less-than-careful review of its auction wine provenance).

10/2/2015 - Seth Rosenberg wrote:

Nose of dark/sweet fruit - violets, plums, dark berries, vanilla, stones. Good fruit on the palate with stones, spices, florals, dusty tannins, plums and more stones. This is excellent young N Rhone. Nose - 5-5.5/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 5+/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1-1.5/2 = 16-17/20.

1/21/2017 - acyso wrote:

Hanging out with Salil; 1/21/2017-1/22/2017 (Chicago, IL): L.11. I think Salil is much more keen on this than I am. He's wrong, as usual. But this is still a very solid entry-level champagne. The nose here initially showed a lot of bread and raw white mushrooms, and the palate very much the same. But with air, more of the citrus and mineral qualities come out, which certainly makes this more compelling. For me, this is a bit too acid-driven and doesn't have quite enough fullness on the palate. But if this entry-level wine is any indication, this is a producer to watch.

1/1/2017 - Seth Rosenberg Likes this wine:

Nose of flowers, sweat, nice secondary, meat, tomato - savory, sweet spices. Palate shows florals, meaty, tart acidic in middle. meat/saline, savory - tart red fruit and savory finish. Zak and Salil always like the Vallouit better than I do. Nose - 5-5.5/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 4.5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1-1.5/2 = 15.5-16.5/20.

1/14/2014 - acyso wrote:

Angelus and Daugay Tasting at Binny's (Chicago, IL): Very big nose, with lots of ripe fruit notes. The palate is massive, with lots of sweet fruit. No acidity whatsoever and really heavy oak use. Spoof wine.

4/13/2017 - Seth Rosenberg wrote:

AP #8. I was behind everyone else (yeah, yeah), and people were raving about this, but when I got to this, I thought it was fine, but not stellar. Classic Prüm notes on the nose of ripe apple, spices, cinnamon, some slate. The palate had similar flavors and had strong acid, but it seemed bony to me - sleek yes, but maybe too much so - not the right sugar/acid balance to be electric. Probably a 15/20.