January 21, 2024 - [Cellared since release, either 6 or 12 bottles, #1 of these, perfect fill, cork in excellent shap] Straight from cellar, PopNPour. Celestial nose, incredibly balanced fruit and suave minerality. Impeccable balance. Nose explodes, aristocratic, mid palate goes forever, initially very airien wine that just seems to smell and taste someplace in the Heavens in terms of aromatics, lift, plate presence... can't believe this is 15% alcohol. Nose is llicorice soil, impeccably ripe fruit, sophisticated like a Grands Echezeaux or Musigny. at 30 minutes: Foreplate is now gallpin along with winsome fruit. Unreal. I had to pour a glass for my spouse and tell myself to stop drinking the wine. At 60-90 minutes - "retried, astonishingly huge fruit has come forward, totally compelling. In addition some of the minerals are peeking through the waves of fruit and soil. This wine has everything. Unbelievable."
(This is likely highest score I've given in past 5 years for a red wine but for aged Musigny. I've had every vintage since 1992 and this is the most memorable of them all).
December 25, 2023 - Christmas Day 2023 no better time to drink than with loved ones hope it's worth the wait been in my cellar 5 years
November 16, 2022 - Always a favorite of mine, the 04 Erasmus soldiers on with no signs of fading. Bright and pretty but with plenty of substance and gravity, the wine shows bright red cherry and currant fruit with still bracing tannins. This wine has personality to spare.
October 28, 2022 - (Blind tasting)
No score, since the wine was damaged in some way. Properly stored, but very oxidized.
Behind the damage could be sensed a fullish wine with sweet, dark fruit and high evident alcohol.
March 25, 2022 - Decanted for 1 hour and served with tritip, potato pave, and asparagus. Fantastic wine.
October 19, 2018 - From magnum. In 2013 rated the wine 97 points and while still a clearly stunning wine, found a bit more anise and warmth then I prefer. Plenty of life here and we finished every drop. A showy red fruit driven with no hard edges, like a friendly puppy dog, lots of fun, but hard to take too seriously. Hedonistic in nature.
August 7, 2018 - The 95 score is a mix of the two experiences i had. Decanted for 3 hours and it was a good wine fully balanced and elegant, complex nose with primary and secondary aromas, but not astonishing. After 3 more hours! It was when it showed its brilliance, shedding the excess of primary notes and mixing secondary and tertiary notes, all well integrated. So do not be shy with the aereation, this wine needs AT LEAST 5 hours of air in a decanter. It may seem too much for a 14 year priorat but it is not, otherwise you will miss why Parker gave this one a perfect score. I would not say the amount of air indicates a young wine, i would rather say it is more like a priorat feature, as it has been the case with other great priorats i ve had. So i don t think this will improve with many years more or will require less air. Tannins are already really soft and you will not find a hard edge, indicating it is in its drinking window now. I would rate it 98 for the second half of the experience but by then just two glasses left so i could not say if shortly after that it would start to fade quckly.
February 10, 2018 - Powerful statement of priorat glory; very intense and clearly will need more time; would not be surprised by a perfect score when mature
February 5, 2018 - Lieblings-Rotwein meiner Frau. Diesmal etwas schwächer als vor drei und zwei Jahren (damals jeweils auf 99 Punkte Niveau). Wirkt in der Nase schon alkoholisch und mächtig, man könnte an Port oder CdP denken, am Gaumen Priorat typische Mineralität und Kälte trotz der konzentrierten dunklen Beerenfrucht. Dazu Veilchen und etwas Teer. Angenehme Würze, mir im mid palate etwas zu breit und mächtig. Am Ende wieder präziser, so daß ich glaube, dass der Wein noch mindestens 10 Jahre Zukunft vor sich hat. Früher hätte mir der Wein noch viel mehr Spaß gemacht, jetzt wirkt er mir eine Spur zu extrahiert. 95
December 25, 2017 - Slo-oxed for 30 minutes, but definitely will benefit from a 30 to 60 minute decant -- for aeration & (a fair amount of) sediment -- as the wine needs time to settle and come together. Your first contact with this wine will be its aromas of 'sweet' floral, and red cherry fruit. These follow on your palate along with some dark cherry, spice, and a touch of earth. All producing an incredibly balanced, medium to plus bodied wine, with mostly integrated tannins and a smooooth mouthfeel. This is clearly a wine hallmarked by balance and finesse! Was this wine made in the vineyard or the cellar?? Either way, it deserves kudos all around. We are ecstatic that we have one more bottle, as this wine will hold its greatness for many years to come.