4/6/2024 - PDX-S Likes this wine:

Day two- Zalto Burgundy glass
Bing cherries, soy, morels, and a little forest floor on the nose.

Incredibly composed, good acid and tannins, another mouthwatering experience. There are dark and red cherries, orange peel, cola, and savory mushrooms dancing across the palate.

Really stellar wine that is in a great place currently. Still quite vigorous with just the beginnings of tertiary development starting to show.

4/5/2024 - rocknroller wrote:

Friday Night Lights (Jim and Michelene's Place, St. Paul, MN): Light-medium ruby color. Drank a couple glasses over 2 hours. I'd been waiting for the '11 Maresh Vineyard to really deliver, and over multiple bottles it was always good, but never truly memorable. Well that finally changed. The quintessential Oregon experience, for me anyway, was on full display. This had a stunning perfume of wild strawberries, mountain raspberry and blooming wild flowers, with pretty lifted spice notes. The palate is tart and the cool red berries shine in their purity and focus, draped in spice and rose petals with dried forest floor, the weightless palate defies logic with the depth of its flavors and the soaring finish. One to just sit sip by itself and savor every last drop. Outstanding. 95 to 96pts.

2/10/2024 - arthrovine wrote:

Purchased a case from D’Vine here in PDX many years ago. And stored professionally since. 3/3 have been cooked. The experience of friends whom have purchased the same is identical. One of these days I’m going to destroy the rest of mine. Sigh….

2/6/2024 - mattstolz11 Likes this wine:

Brought by Melissa directly from the PGC cellars. Killer wine firing on all cylinders. unmistakably Cali even made by Patty and Jim, but the abundant fruit has integrated into a well balanced wine in the prime of its life, but still not moved into that savory later in life characteristics yet, still feels youthful and energetic. But no reason not to drink this now it's fantastic.

11/24/2022 - Redteeth wrote:

I'm not captivated by the Horsepower wines. I served both the 2012 and 2013 Sur Echalas Syrah at a dinner attended by several people with good tasting abilities for food and wine. Both bottles were acquired on release, properly stored, and had sound corks. Having read many Cellar Tracker tasting notes on these wines, I decanted then 24 hours in advance and then let them breathe open for several hours before serving. The wines got everyone's attention and were considered interesting. One guest, an experienced professional chef, described the 2013 as "muddy". The 2012 was preferred over the 2013. There are many tasting notes in Cellar Tracker that do a good job describing the Horsepower wines, so I won't repeat them. But I think they require too much "effort" to really appreciate them. They are not crowd pleasers except to people who really want to get deep into the Cayuse funk experience from stony vineyards. I've quit buying Horsepower Syrahs and feel good about that decision. The jury is now out on whether I continue to purchase the Grenache.

11/15/2022 - Ex-Ray wrote:

Fabulous wine, fully mature! Only time I've tasted this vintage, which came from their library collection. Still garnet, slightly translucent, with powerful complex aromas of cassis, roasted meat, bacon, plums, but less of the gamey tones of their younger wines. This was smooth, round, perfectly balanced, still with excellent fruit but no tannin. The finish was also long and smooth without being too hot.
Ric

9/4/2022 - larsth wrote:

Obviously young but drinkable now although there will be much more to come. It did improve on day 2. Fragrant with mainly red fruits. Good clean fruit with some sweetness but a good mineral backbone. Tasting it against most of the PCG 2019 Pinot range at the vineyard, I personally like the combination of PCG with the Pommard clone and and the Weber Vineyard with its Dundee Hills soil in a more classic year like 2019, but again that is just my personal preference.

7/28/2022 - rocknroller wrote:

"Guy's Night": Aged Napa (Joe & Khem's Place, Mpls): Very dark red/purple color. Splash decanted . Drank a glass plus over 2 hours. Drank in a flight with a '96 Abreu Madronna Ranch and a '96 Togni. Wow, this was electric on the nose and palate. Cassis, eucalyptus, black cherry, leather, huckleberry pie, subtle graphite, and some earth. The palate shows those same gorgeous black and purple fruits, leather, menthol, glycerin, graphite, truffle, full bodied and really long. This was so sleek, impeccably polished and well integrated. 95+ to 96pts.

6/22/2022 - Motz wrote:

Tasted over two days.

A whole lot of depth and substance here. The wine changes inflection throughout and its variety and terroir driven character put the mind to Burgundy. No reason not to enjoy now, but worth holding onto for several years. 92-93.

6/2/2022 - Motz wrote:

Next to the 2018 Q, and a flight of five BH wines, this showed acetic qualities, on the bouquet and palate. I pointed this out but was told it was fine. The proper action would have been to open another bottle. Oh well. I bought a bottle instead, which I plan to taste in the near future.

I have encountered this flaw (acetic), and effervescence, in more BH made wines than any other producer in the WV. In fairness, BH has usually offered replacements for flawed bottles.

5/15/2022 - Djfermentation Likes this wine:

We were pleasantly surprised by the level of interest and beauty of this 9 year old domestic Riesling. It was beginning to show secondary characteristics on top of some fruit. A lovely pairing with red curry last night and quite delightful on its own. I wish we had more.

5/22/2022 - smorris291 wrote:

Second bottle, about a year after I opened the last one. Dark, opaque purple in the glass. Dark fruits with spice, turning to a briny olive on the palate. Still pretty tannic, long finish. On night two, some of the fruit had fallen away…but overall still great. I just find these Riverain Syrahs so, so fascinating.

4/28/2022 - Jeremy Holmes wrote:

Rich, complex and layered. Strawberry and cherry fruits. Brioche and biscuits notes. Good depth and powerful. creamy and long.

3/19/2022 - Bonesetter Likes this wine:

Drank 19/3/2022. At 18 years of age, still bursting with fruit. Possibly the best Australian merlot I have drunk. Beautiful wine.

1/13/2022 - pjhr Likes this wine:

Delicious red berry aromas with a smooth palate of lively red fruit, spice, and earthy notes with a moderate long finish. Drinking beautifully!

3/9/2022 - underwds wrote:

Raspberry and boysenberry fruit, maybe a little pomegranate. Still more ruby color than brick. Transitions to earthiness and a long finish. This echoes the style I fell in love with 35 years ago with W-S.

10/27/2015 - arthrovine wrote:

Popn poured followed over 5 hours. 1/2 bottle corked and tried next day with little variation

Striking youthful red/purple color with no meniscus. Youthful aromatics with fresh red and blue fruit. Palate was also fresh exuberant fruit even a bit of glycerine. Slight cola. Mild secondary flavors. Finished medium length with some heat. Correct for the hot 2003 vintage. Definitely not porty or gloppy, just exuberant. Blinded, I would have guessed California..RRV.

Good for a tough vintage and the fruit has held up. I would hold for another 5 years to see how this 12 year old matures?

2/26/2022 - tomlee wrote:

Crimson in color. 13.6% ABV. Intriguing nose of red fruits, olive brine, smoke and flowers. Medium body with ample acidity. Clean and concentrated. Strawberries, kirsch, salted meats and minerals on the palate. Exceptional length on the finish. Complex Grenache that is compelling now and will drink well for years to come. Not quite on par with the 14 vintage I tried earlier this year.

2/10/2022 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine:

Bottle variation: I wrote a tasting note three nights ago on this, was disappointed, gave it 85. Not corked, but nothing there. Opened another bottle to compare: this one is excellent. It's the polar opposite of the Cayuse syrahs, with their full body, smoky, roasted meat, black fruit style which we love. This is ruby-garnet and translucent. It is all about subtlety, elegance and complexity. It is fully mature. The aroma is mostly raspberry, black cherry and plum. Medium body, very soft and round, similar fruits to the aroma. No tannin to speak of. The aftertaste is surprisingly long but also soft, smooth, and flavorful. Although it is primarily a cabernet sauvignon and merlot blend, its style seems more St. Emilion than the Left Bank communes. No reason to hold it any longer...time to enjoy!
Ric

2/1/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:

Another object lesson in older Nebbiolo needing air. Light browning garnet color. Upon first whiff, all prune and volatile acidity. Before dinner at the 5 hour mark, thin, acidic, and earthy (not in a good way). I was not feeling optimistic. Fortunately, though, by time the pasta course arrived (after about 8 hours of air at this point), the transformation had occurred. More body and sap, brown spice, tobacco, orange peel, and some sweet red fruit. After coming close to tossing this, it wound up being satisfying and very good if nowhere near great. No mistaking its traditional leaner, funkier, more mineral style with all of the joy and sorrow that that brings.

2/7/2022 - Ex-Ray Does not like this wine:

Surprisingly disappointing. One-dimensional nonspecific aromas and flavors. I have two more from this vintage, will drink another soon to see if it's bottle variation or not.

5/23/2021 - Jeremy Holmes wrote:

So bright and vivid, with juicy briary fruits, some tobacco and plenty of lead pencil action. It has lovely balance and poise and is rich without any excess weight whatsoever. The finish is long and precise.

1/1/2022 - RolfT wrote:

Coravined precisely 4 years ago. The experience this time was an improvement (86 pts last time), but still not a really good wine.

1/11/2022 - aagrawal wrote:

Stood up for months and decanted, still had fine sediment in last 2-3oz. Medium-plus ruby with age-appropriate bricking; aromatics are fairly reticent right now with some trace black fruits, mulch, forest floor; palate is full bodied, some black fruits remaining, medium-plus to high acidity especially for bordeaux, tertiary forest floor flavors, a bit shrill in the midpalate as the fruit fades, a bit of soy and tamari throughout, tannins still somewhat present, low alcohol (12.5%); finish is short-medium length. At the moment this isn't quite in balance but I think a little air will help it flesh out a bit. Still, definitely fully mature if not a little over the hill. The 1995 was certainly drinking better right now. 87
1 hour air: Definitely fleshes out. Aromatically more complex with soy, tamari, cedar; palate also shows tertiary soy and a bit more depth. Heading in a good direction for now.
3 hours air: No, not heading in a positive direction. The fruit never fleshed out, the tertiary complexity did not gain more prominence. Still seems a bit unbalanced and more about structure than flavor. Not what I expect from Margaux, and honestly at this point I'm considering not finishing the bottle. This was a miss. 85-

10/22/2021 - nzinkgraf wrote:

Cork fell apart, some sediment on top of the cork. Deep and brooding nose. F***ing ENchanting aroma. Palate is fresh as a daisy. Medium minus tannin. Wow. Fresh blackberry fruit palate. The star of a fruit salad. Damn, this is fine. Chewy and on point. The depth of pomegranate fruit leather. Push the window to 2028 at least.
Day 2. Palate really settles in. Last time day 3 was a little tired. But that was 9 years ago.
Day 3…still going just fine, but was best on day 2. Heavy sediment.

10/3/2021 - Dulcie and Aylwin wrote:

More than ten years since my last TN on this number and I still have two bottles in the "cellar." Somewhat skeptical about the longevity of the 2008 vintage at this point, but this offering is still showing pretty well: plenty of spicy tart cherry fruit evident, a good color with a hint of brick around the rim; it did fade somewhat after a few hours. Should not keep the second one for much longer.

10/11/2021 - yodamark Likes this wine:

Well well. I think i gave the last bottle of this 98/100 when tried at the winery back in April . This bottle opened to celebrate some good news in the Angas family. This bottle from Lady Frenulums cellar and it pains me to admit it but was superior to the bottle from my cellar I took to the winery by a poofteenth. This was primal, tight, dark, young and has hardly moved an inch since release. Deep brooding crimson purple oozing chocolate, blackberry, sweet sandalwood almost earthy rubber exotic hints ( not unlike old Basket Press) and the palate was dense rich and extremely long. A 99 Rocky Basket Press would give it a run for its money but other than that there is no better 1999 Barossa or Eden Valley shiraz i can think of or have tried. 99 HOG tried recently was lovely but not in this class. Just an ethereal work of art. Give it 20 more years.
This wine is orgasmic and defies all logic, and given the madness of the world at present what a great combo..

7/9/2021 - DougLee wrote:

Hah, did not wait 3-5 years as recommended by my own TN of 3/28/20. Opened to accompany baked chicken. Dark but translucent ruby. Heady nose of musty cherry, full-blown violets, damp cellar, hints of currant. Layers of iron-laden pulpy raspberry, ripe red plum, earth, velvety meaty tones, and a suggestion of smoke on the palate. Bright acidity and firm tannin. Longer finish of potent red berry fruit, earth, iron, and cinnamon. A hedonistic DDO. Loved it.

9/8/2021 - pbaek wrote:

Dark ruby color. Expressive nose of ripe cherry fruit and flowers, somewhat sweet on the palate but not overly so. A hint of green, vegetables, as well and marks of chalk. Rich, full bodied Pinot Noir, clearly darker than its counterpart in Burgundy, but also unique and singular and delicious. So much material here, so I’m sure this will age beautifully and settle down in 3-5 years. At Palægade with Per Ø.

9/10/2021 - Nutty08 wrote:

Unfortunately totally oxidized.

8/30/2021 - arthrovine wrote:

Just purchased 4. 1st one corked.

8/31/2021 - PDX-S wrote:

Ah PB, Rasa’s discontinued secondary label. This Cab/Merlot is now fully composed and relaxed a decade later.
Day two shows the very beginning of some savory aromas, though the classic plum, tobacco and spicy notes remain upfront.
Spicy tobacco, plum skins, and black cherries fill the mouth before segueing to a nice and lengthy finish that brings cedar, black pepper and intensely drying tannins to the forefront.
This wine is in a great place at the moment, really hitting its stride.

4/3/2021 - rocknroller wrote:

Very dark red color. Splash decanted mainly for sediment. Drank 2 glasses over 3 hours. I've always loved this nose and we're still going strong today. Dark fruits, blackberries and black raspberry, aromatic with viognier overtones, savory, creosote, beef blood, dried earth fill the nose. This notably had little of the roasted meat notes of previous bottles. The palate has the signature cool feel to the dark berry fruit and more subtle veins of blue fruits; blackberry liqueur, blackberries and cassis, full bodied and suave, savory, tar, earth and refined white pepper. Well integrated and it seems to be flying along on a great plateau. Loved it again.

3/2/2021 - John Dunlap Likes this wine:

This is the one annual purchase that I open the day of delivery as this is my "go to" rose for the summer and I what to see what to expect. It's a lovely fun wine right now and after a month or so of rest, it will subtly bloom and become a bit more structured. This year it is not 100 percent TN, but that's fine. Quite quaffable at 11 percent alcohol. It passes this early test, but not rated. More formal notes around Easter. Enjoy.

2/1/2021 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:

{magnum} PnP that was better during the second half as the wine warmed and opened up a bit more. Loads of fresh apples, minerals, and zesty acidity. It's nice, and very easy drinking though not something to sit and ponder for hours. Good value. recommended

1/18/2021 - jgreco Likes this wine:

The 2017 Arterberry Maresh Maresh Vineyard is pale, limpid red in color. Lovely, light bodied, perfumed, red fruit with lots of savory characteristics lurking just beneath the surface. Soft and velvety texture. This is amazing now, but will be out of this world in 5 years time.

1/26/2021 - mphatic Likes this wine:

Screwcap, 14.5% alc. Bright gold, still relatively youthful colour.

Outstanding. Let’s get that out of the way. Powerful nose of concentrated pear, grapefruit, cashew, butter, tobacco, warmed spices, and vanilla custard. Intense florals emerge after 2 days open, along with some hazelnut.

Powerful palate. Intensely fruited. Creamy/rounded mouthfeel, yet it possesses great drive through well-balanced acidity.

Opinion. Big chardonnay, perhaps already past its peak. It almost becomes a bit too much after a couple of glasses such is its intensity. Drink over the next couple of years, with some flavoursome food.

2/1/2021 - acidqueen wrote:

A cellar release from AR. I have lots of AR Syrah in the cellar (Clary and Que) so it was nice to drink an older Syrah as mine are just too young and seem to be in suspended animation right now. This was very good, ready to drink. Dark berry, iron, earth and menthol. Still has many years ahead but great now.

12/12/2020 - rocknroller wrote:

Mixed Wines Virtually (Home): Very dark red/purple color with a 3-4mm transition. PNP, poured into vessels for transport at 4:15pm and into glasses at 7pm. Drank a glass over 3.5 hours. There's a wonderfully aromatic and high toned nose wafting out of the glass immediately; savory, very floral, sweet dark fruits, gorgeous dark berries; black currants, blackberries, mulberry, tar, hints of dried eucalyptus and white pepper. The palate is like velvet, so soft and supple, full bodied and refined, gorgeous black and blue fruits, blackberry, blueberry, cassis, boysenberry, eucalyptus, dried herbs, tar, smoke, glycerin, violets, and white pepper. This is texturally gorgeous and offers lovely purity adn length. These have been incredibly good and consistent over the years. My last bottle and very sorry to see it go, but always great to go out on a high note. My and group WOTN.

12/2/2020 - David Paris (dbp) wrote:

My first bottle of this in 10 years. The aromas are quite soft, expressing some soft, old berries, cooking mushrooms with some soil still attached, and a nice bit of briar and spice. Palate entry certainly shows its age more than I would expect for only 10 years old, but that has been some of my experience with 2008. The fruit feels excessively aged, shows some nice spice, tart berry notes, decent acidity and just slight tannins. A nice big wall of acidity on the finish; nice spice and intensity after you hold it in the mouth for a while to allow that to fully develop. The finish is rich and spicy. I'm thinking I would have preferred this about 5 years into into its development than over 10... and generally I'm a guy that prefers aged wine!

11/25/2020 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:

PnP drank over 2 nights; I liked the first night slightly better. Good freshness, with a warm blanket of tar, bright cherry fruit, some citrus on the nose, and a finish that was good+ on PnP and grew to be noticeably long on the final sip. Good+ structure. It's never going to be a wow wine, but that's fine with me, if this (and similar) is what flies under the radar, I'm perfectly content to drink them all. 14,200 bottles produced. highly recommended

http://www.italianwine.blog

9/19/2020 - Ron Slye wrote:

Still quite interesting but I think this could still use some time to integrate and reach its full potential. Some nice savory fruit notes, and good structure. I think in two or so years I am going to really like this.

8/16/2020 - Nutty08 Likes this wine:

Still pretty tightly wound. Wasn’t giving up much but had a nice core of cherry fruit and upfront acidity. This has nice “bones” but isn’t giving up too much. Has a little
deeper fruit but also larger scaled acidity and structure compared to the other ‘12’s. Best to bury this one.
Better on night 2. Showed more depth to the fruit and a nice forest note. Seemed to be at an awkward phase, still best to hold.

8/17/2020 - David Paris (dbp) wrote:

First bottle of this in 9 years... when I had it in 2011 I thought the fruit too forward and "modern" for my palate, and suspected some time resting would mellow it out and I'd find it more enjoyable. Currently the aromas are fairly subdued, with just light bits of darkly complected plums showing through. On big sniffs I get lots of chalk dust and volcanic rock. The palate is soft and very smooth. Nothing angular about it, as it coats the palate in an almost creamy sensation... initially. The flavors are light on the palate, but the overall experience is quite luscious. As its held some acid pokes through along with darker fruits, but it does take a while to develop this. Actually, now that it's been in my mouth for 15 seconds, acid is actually fairly dominant, which I quite enjoy. That acid carries into the finish, but it's coupled with large scaled fruits like plum and blackberries. My whole first glass I was just taking simple, small, short sips with dinner and didn't even notice the acid. After I let this last sip hold in my mouth for 30 seconds, all I feel on the finish is acidity even a minute later, which for my palate, is very enjoyable, and is a lovely counterpoint to the scale of the fruit. All in all, I find this far more enjoyable than it was near release. This is drinking at peak, for me, for this bottle. I was going to say maybe slightly on the decline due to the stewed fruit notion, but I commented on that 9 years ago; that's just the nature of the wine. However, the tannin and acid has fallen far more in balance with the fruit, and that acid has somehow really ratcheted up on the finish. Probably because the tannins have almost entirely resolved.

7/2/2020 - galewskj wrote:

Double blind 2012 Pinot from somewhere (Everyone's House): The double blind lineup was:
- 2012 Domaine Serene Evenstad Res (benchmark)
- 2012 Hartford Court Far Coast
- 2012 Thomas
- 2012 Le Cadeau Merci Res
- 2012 Occidental Elizabeth
- 2012 Domaine Serene Jerusalem Hill
- 2012 Marcassin Marcassin Vineyard

This wine was controversial. The 3 of us that didn't know what it was thought it was flawed. I got nail polish, a shy nose and an abrasive palate. The person who generously provided ALL the wines didn't say much. Then one guy showed up late, loved it and hated the 2014 Aubert CIX chardonnay that we were all previously gushing over. I just hope this 2012 Thomas is in a weird place or the bottle was actually flawed. Unscored.

7/11/2020 - zinnut wrote:

This is so disjointed and acidic. The mouthfeel is disturbing. Not a pleasant wine. Generous at 85.

7/10/2020 - LikeABC wrote:

Corked, damn. Was looking forward to it

7/14/2020 - rocknroller wrote:

Medium garnet red color. PNP, split bottle over 3.5 hours. I'd been saving this bottle for a special occasion, and our anniversary fit the bill nicely. I can't really believe it had been five years since we last had a bottle, but time sure does fly. Well I had very high expections for this bottle based on previous experience with it and how the '07 St. Innocents have aged. This started rather slowly out of the gate and I was wondering if I'd missed the window for a few minutes. Silly me, as this just started blossoming after about 20 minutes in glass. And it just kept building and adding to the complexity through the next three hours as we reveled in our good fortune. Caveat Emptor: If you just drink this down, you will likely not get the same experience. This was one of those wines that hit on all cylinders for me. What a beguiling and seductive nose filled with pretty red fruits, more strawberry and raspberry, but still some cherry notes too, wonderful earthiness, more to underbrush and dried earth, dried flowers, baking spice, and fine ground tobacco. The palate is sublime and seamless, elegance in a glass, medium bodied, featherweight really, perfectly balanced with the same red berries showing, nice purity to the fruit and still the cherry notes showing here too; dried earth, truffle, sous bois, and later showing more damp earth and tobacco. Very long, feminine and seductive. All you could ever ask for in a pinot for my tastes. Adored it. This is the kind of wine you don't want any food to interfere with it - just savor every contemplative sip by itself. Clearly this has plenty of gas in the tank as this didn't really open for a half hour and then improved for a couple hours. I won't open my last one for a couple years anyway. 95+ to 96pts and my wife said is 97 too high - probably not.

7/24/2020 - Sepsis wrote:

Very young.
Save 5-10 years

6/13/2015 - rmcbrayer wrote:

Two hour decant. Has gone downhill since my last note. The heat overpowers whatever fruit may be there. Slight aromas of cinnamon emerge after an hour. On the palate, it seems to have started disintegrating in to blackberry and alcohol. Don't think it gets better from here. Will drink my last two bottles soon.