January 1, 2017 - Cherry, cranberry and prune nose, with a warm rum note. Silky palate of strawberry, raspberry, blackberry, marmalade and toffee, with a quirky touch of potting soil, charcoal and green astringency. Good balance, but not a long finish.
February 19, 2016 - aged well, good flavour, full bodied
February 19, 2016 - aged well, lots of flavour good balance
April 28, 2014 - Had this last night, after the Fairview Madcap red (2007).
This Bear was fantastic. Took a bit of time to open up (would recommend decanting for one hour). I kick myself for not having several of these. Now I could only replace it with the 2010.
August 8, 2011 - A soft, oak and fruit driven wine that is typical of many Okanagan reds in that it feels a little overworked and therefore has no precision especially on the finish. Is undoubtedly still a decent drink for short term pleasure with barbeque.
December 22, 2010 - The boquet was an overwhelming punch-in-the-nose of oaky vanilla with a sharp coconut upper cut, and though some aromas poked through, it was hard to find anything else beyond the "barrel program". The palate played out better; silky, full and long. Fine grained tannins and nice acidity to lift and balance the dark ripe fruit. Blackberry, strawberrry, toffee and coco with a dash of licorice. A good effort. Missing body for a higher score. It will be nice to see how the wine shows in a few years when the wood subsides. The wine has a great backbone and should stand up.