March 17, 2024 - Very serious Sauvignon Blanc, probably one of the most serious I’ve tasted and unsurprisingly coming from one of the most serious makers in the world. Very ripe and some tertiary development already. Lemon curd, pineapple, honey, finishing off really long and salty with excellent concentration. Didn’t know they make it with 100% Sauv Blanc!
August 26, 2023 - Another delightful bottle. A touch more refined than the prior bottle, more delicate, but a still long finish.
May 30, 2023 - This struck me as a more muscular wine more characteristic of a well-made California SB. Tropical fruits and gardenias burst from the glass, with a palate that followed directly from the nose. At this price point, it's hard ot call it a "summer sipper", but it was a delightful wine to enjoy during these early days of summer.
March 23, 2023 - Medium expressive mature nose displaying neutral yellow fruit, lemon curd, apple, lanoline, honeysuckle, honey, petrol, sweet spices and mineral. Excellent concentration, generous neutral yellow fruit, rich yet cool and steely, bright acidity, strong mineral, and a medium to long ripe neutral yellow fruit driven finish with a hint of petrol and lanoline at the end. Drinking nicely.
September 23, 2022 - Honey comb with dense palate yet refreshing. Aromas develop sweet flower after a while. A lovely drink.
September 23, 2022 - Decanted for ~2-hrs prior to serving. My last btl of a full-case, and perhaps all in good time too. I had loved this wine very much in its first decade of life, but felt it has gotten all too mature over the last 4-6yrs. Depending on how (what state) one likes their white wine, some may actually prefer it now, being more rounded & complex on the palate. Anyway, this opened with scents of nuts, bits of honey, butterscotch & sherry - all tell-tale notes of a mature wine. Still fresh on the palate, with nice richness/concentration, layers & roundness. Totally yellow-fruit driven, none actually guessed this was a Sauv-Blanc and most if not all veered towards a Chard with some nice age on it. Enjoyable... but as mentioned I'd very much have preferred it in its younger form.
December 1, 2021 - Small Bordeaux gathering (Clarity - Vienna, Virginia): Beautiful fully mature nose displaying ripe yellow fruit, dry pineapple, peach, honey, strong lanoline, butterscotch, sweet spices and mineral. Excellent concentration, layers upon layers of sweet yellow fruit, dense and rich, bright acidity and mineral, and a seamless long ripe yellow fruit driven finish with butterscotch and lanoline at the end. There is no grassy note. This has developed beautifully. No need to rush but not sure if it will improve.
November 13, 2021 - Light gold color. Fragrant perfumed melange of smoke and ripe white and yellow fruits. On the palate, rich texture, supple, and lushly rich fresh fruit. Sufficient acidity for balance. Long finish. Bright fresh enjoyable wine!
Made by Chateau Margaux from an 11 hectare vineyard planted in 100% Sauvignon Blanc. At 15 years on this wine is at its peak, but might hold an additional 3-5 more years. Personally, I wouldn’t chance it. It’s so delicious today!
April 28, 2021 - Similarly decanted for ~2-hrs+ prior to serving. This was a wine of tension/electricity as opposed to the '06 SHL Blanc which we had side-side. Notes of honey, cream & tinge of spices wafted from the glass after some air/time, it was on the palate where this confused - where some thought it was Burg-like! Refreshingly young, even more so than a '10 DDC Blanc that was served together too. Yellow-fruited, with limestone & great minerality, this had both power & tensile, but yet elegant/agile across the palate - totally doesn't seem like a wine with 15.1% ABV! In a great place, with an equally great future ahead...
April 17, 2021 - Once opened at dinner, the wine needed a half hour to reveal its full bodied, and delicious mineral infused nature. Fresh and vibrant this is an elegant wine that gives new meaning to sauvignon blanc, not one of my favorite grapes. The aromas keep coming the longer we linger drinking this wine. And this begins to approach the fondness I have for fine white Burgundy from Domaine LeFlaive. Gardenias and luscious lemons, a touch of apple, lovely and lingering.