November 23, 2023 - By the glass. Second time I taste wines from this winery, cleary under British inspiration. Good integration of aromas and flavors in the glass. Wood and black fruit with tar and black liquorice. Complexity rather than depth.
Por copas. Segunda vez que cato vinos de esta bodega de clara inspiración británica. Buena integración de aromas y sabores en la copa. Madera y fruta negra junto a alquitrán y regaliz negro. Complejidad antes de profundidad.
October 21, 2022 - Decanted 6 hours. Very nice and enjoyable but a bit unremarkable. Very solid at the right price. Probably a slight improvement following 2 nights
September 1, 2020 - Punching above its price point
Double Decanted 1 hour, Nose shows clove, baking spice, candied purple violets and fresh raisin. Floral, with hints of underlying terroir notes and minerality. Palate Silky smooth, no burn, medium weight with green Japanese plum flesh, red apple skins, plump blonde raisin, reduced red currants/red fruits, finish of Crushed Christmas cookies and alcoholic tang. Aromatics did not improve on day two losing angles and freshness. Very Solid. Purchased as direct import upon release, stored accordingly and enjoyed at 60-70f, dont see a benefit to hold longer as this is showing primetime… Na zdrowie
August 3, 2020 - Pleasant and approachable, red cherries and milk chocolate flavors but not showing much more complexity. That said it has a really long and flavorful dried cherry finish. It still has lots of life ahead.
March 14, 2020 - First night of the end of world. Not bad. Will save the better stuff for future days.
January 7, 2019 - Really didn't give this its due, but opened it because I wanted some port with the figgy pudding. Nice, dense, youthful black fruit and spice profile. Not overly complex yet, but I did it a disservice with so little air. Meant to re-visit the following day but was unable to.
October 20, 2018 - still firm and fairly fresh. excellent balance; seamless dark fruits nose & palate. good length
June 24, 2018 - Second of three bottles. Drank the first in October 2017. In that TN, I wrote that the wine was still too young at 20 yrs old, and that this bottle next to me wouldn't get opened for another ~five years. No regrets re: jumping the gun, though -- tonight the tannins are slightly more resolved, and there's an almost tawny-like entry of caramel and nuts. Similar flavor profile otherwise -- chocolate, cherries, raisin, and the spiced apple that another reviewer mentioned.
Definitely still recommend putting another five or 10 years on this, but this time I'm way more optimistic about its potential. If everything goes right from here, this will turn into a classic VP and be a sleeper of the vintage.
October 26, 2017 - From half bottle. Still nowhere near mature. Fortunately this is the first of three bottles, so can let the others sit. Will probably open the second bottle in five years and the third in 10.
That said, even when it peaks, doubt it's one of the best wines of the vintage. There's a wonderful core of cherry and chocolate, but the fruit starts to get raisiny as it fans out, and the finish has almost a whisky-like burn to it. Should improve a little over time, but will probably always be rough-hewn. Definitely cigar-friendly.
July 22, 2017 - FTLOP 12th Anniversary; 7/21/2017-7/23/2017 (Seattle, Washington): Almost opaque ruby-purple in color. Subtle nose of red fruit with a touch of cinnamon and a touch of spirit. Intense sour cherry on the palate with pronounced tannins on the mid-palate. Long warm finish.