March 31, 2010 - dark red, beautiful mature nose of cherry, tobacco and cedar; medium bodied elegant seamless wine with nice finish. really really nice and significantly better than last bottle. lots of sediment.
March 19, 2010 - Limited notes, from memory dark purple; smoky red to blue fruits with touch leather and black tea; dusty more slight chocolate and mint thinning out a bit on the finish. nice mature tasting cali styled bordeaux blend.
December 25, 2007 - didnt study extensively as i shared bottle with team after rafting down a Mendoza rapid but it was a fairly large wine that could still benefit from more time.
December 7, 2007 - Leather and eucalyptus on the nose immediately after opened. Decanted. An hour later, still a bit of leather, but the eucalyptus had faded (still there, but weak). Flavors of tart red cherry -- really not a terribly complex flavor profile. A long finish now, and good mouthfeel - though a bit tannic on the tongue, unclear if this needs to open even further or if there was a bit too much sediment. Ready to drink and we don't think it will improve with age, but we think this could last a bit longer if desired.
December 23, 2005 - Not the best offering from Achaval, given that thier wines didn't really come to form until the '02 vintage. Otherwise, the wine is reminscent of the latest style Quimera blend that they currently bottle. For the price, well worth the effort.
March 18, 2005 - Not that impressed. Preferred it upon immediately opening. Definitely has a bit of a S.American flavor profile (e.g. subtle eucalyptis), easily could have confused for a Chilean, despite the malbec. Lots of sentiment at end.
January 22, 2005 - Served at Al Gordon's with Saturday Group. Decanted for about 3 hours. Nice rich nose. Good attack. Not tannic. But here's the rub: Pablo complained that there was no back end to the wine, and I reluctantly have to agree. I had thought about buying another bottle, but at this point I think I'll pass. $35 is a good price for the wine but not if it's lacking length. Oh well,,,,