March 19, 2020 - Decanted and served. Rich, balanced mature St.-Emilion that showed beautifully with a brief decant. Amazing value but alas, my last bottle.
February 9, 2020 - Second Sunday Group: 2013 Barolo (Neil's): Courtesy of Marc. Dark color-youthful appearance. Tobacco, black fruit and green herbal notes. Dark fruit on the palate with a good finish. Turns out this was corked-however when I first had it I didn't pick it up at all. Only after had it been open for a while did I start to detect what others had picked up. It's nice to have a lesser sensitivity thanothers at times like this. My score reflects my initial taste...who knows how much I'd have enjoyed a pristine bottle.
November 28, 2019 - Pop and pour. This is showing beautifully with well-integrated fruit and tannins. Mature acid leads the palate with light herbal and floral notes present. At peak.
October 21, 2019 - Decanted and served. Showing beautifully for such an inexpensive old wine. Not terribly complex but well-integrated aged red fruit, melted tannins, moderate acid. No point in aging further.
August 15, 2018 - Bought two cases from a Chicago source 13-14 years ago, in part because price was at or under 20/b (paperwork not handy), and have been enjoying this for years with a half dozen bottles left. Decanted with below-average sediment for Bdx of this age. Color is excellent, though not as vivid; full and fragrant nose, mature dark red fruit, bit of tanned leather; good finish. Around this plateau for the last several years without any sensory evidence of deterioration. Stored horizontally in a cool, dark basement since purchase. My evaluation: I've stopped giving scores on a "100-point scale" as I've become less convinced that they can be meaningful to others. I use a 4-category scale (perhaps with +/-)--not including flawed--which runs outstanding/notable/drinkable/poor. I considered this outstanding- when considering quality, age, and price.
July 23, 2017 - Wow. The smoothness and grace of age, but still has power and finesse. Classic Bordeaux hint of menthol in the nose, just a touch of earth and minerals in the mouth. Nice long, smooth finish. Probably at its peak now.
November 17, 2015 - A very good wine - great color - opened up well over 4 hours. Earthy wine, nice acidity, softer tannins. Wish I had a few more to try in 2-3 years.
March 21, 2015 - The wine is crimson colored. It smells like fig and forest floor with some red fruit. The wine has smooth texture. The wine has nice acidity. Drink now i don't see it improving. Drank over 3 hours.
February 22, 2015 - I have had several bottles of this sine and didn't care for them as I think they were flawed. But oddly enough this bottle was outstanding. Dark in color. Earthy, with coffee and leather, and soft tannic finish. A classic Bordeaux.
February 10, 2012 - Surprised at the vibrant color at this stage. No real fruit smell but a hint of pencil lead. Smooth but no real taste of fruit at all. Not flawed but very tired tasting. My fault for not opening years ago. I guess I need to go thru all the 2000 Bordeauxs and check the drinking windows. Inexpensive mistake.