Immer Keller Dormagen, bzw. Erlangen. Füllstand: Into-neck-high fill. 50 mm langer schöner Naturkorken. 14,5 Prozent Alkohol. Geschmacklich ok, nicht so bekömmlich. Ins Glas: Aromen von Wild, Frucht, Sekundäraromen, Reife und Frucht halten sich die Wage, typischer Cabernet-Noten. Am Gaumen wirkt dieser Wein dann allerdings als wenn der Wein eine kleinen Teil Merlot oder ähnliches im Verschnitt bekommen hat. Jedenfalls nicht so streng und Tanninherb wie andere 100% Cabernet aus Frankreich oder Italien, sondern gefälliger. Nachtrag: die letzten 250 ml am zweiten Tag waren dank Vakuum und Kühlschrank auch noch sehr gut! Viel Satz in der Flasche.
ENGLISH: Needs 30-45 Minutes to open fully and benefits from air. Dark fruit, herbs, secondary aromas. Much smoother than a Cabernet dominated Bordeaux. Kind of silky. Was some Merlot added? Medium concentration and medium lenght. Works well solo ant with beef or lamb. Would wait longer than three years to consume your last bottles. Will not improof.
New World style at it´s peak or 2-3 years past it´s peak but still very pleasent. Drink: 2010-2025, Peak: 2012-2022.
Sowohl Solo als auch als Essensbegleiter gut.
89-90 Punkte / Points.
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Smelled like a barn -- and not a pleasant one -- upon opening, but then it opened up and became an inviting forest, a wholly elegant surprise. Medium-bodied, hints of oak and smooth tannins.
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I'm trying to purge my cellar of wines that are well past their drinking windows. This wine was supposedly 3 years past its recommended drinking window, but it was impressive. The telltale Chilean light tar/leather/dark fruit nose is still very prominent. The legs glide down the glass as if in slow motion. It still coats the mouth with a silky, velvety feel. Up front, it tastes of blackberries and very ripe blueberries, followed mid-palate by an herbaceous hint, and the soft tannins create a mouth-watering, lingering finish. No matter what the price point (inexpensive), this was a well structured wine that was a sheer joy to drink. Regrettably, this was my last bottle of this vintage. The wine looks inky colored. The legs are slow. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like blackberry, tobacco, black pepper, plum and tar. It tastes like blackberry, blueberry, forest floor and stems. The body is medium/full. The wine has silky texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has low acidity.
Very nice mature cab and a bargain to boot. I would say drink these over the next 3-5 years. Not overly complex but nice integration and plenty of fruit.
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This was put into a flight of Bordeaux as a ringer. It stood out as being a bit hot and one-dimensional. Not bad for the price and genre, but obviously not my favorite.
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Deep ruby. Some green stems showing. Touch of tobacco. Nice but not over done sweet oak, pretty good balance. Enjoyable over three nights, refrigerated and gassed in between.
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Garnet, iridescent colour, without sediment. Medium/light body. Slightly floral and vegetal nose with green pepper dominating the palate. Not great. Left me with a headache-sulphites?
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The wine looks garnet colored. The legs are medium. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like oak, burnt, high toast and black currant (cassis). It tastes like black currant (cassis), oak and high toast. The body is light/medium. The wine has angular texture. The wine finishes medium.
Lots of charred wood.
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Dark Cab with a fruity nose. Cherry palate, meaty, simple with oak in check would go well with a variety of meals. Nice effort, not your everyday red with a decent finish.
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Smells good but not as expressive as the 2007. The color shows some age, with noticable tinging around the edges. Not as rich or complete as the 2007. The mouthfeel is not as full; the finish is shorter and a little bitter too. This being said, it's still a good wine. At $20, equal or better values are available in abundance. At $11, it is very good value.
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Still drinking quite well. Much more red fruit in this wine than I would have expected, with earth, spice and hints of leather. Tannins are still in evidence and acidity is fine.
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After 3 days in a Vacuvin stoppered bottle and this wine has mellowed out considerably. The harsh tannins are gone, and the pepper & spice taste has softened leaving a the fruits as before. No new tastes were detected. If I were to rate this wine again, it would be 2 points higher.
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Dense dark red color. Smells like wet soil, decayed flowers, sweet wood. Very dry taste lingers on palate, of berries, plums, pepper, but overpowered by oak. Long earthy finish. Some slight variation in the two bottles I drank.
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Dark Cab with a fruity nose. Cherry palate, meaty, simple with oak in check would go well with a variety of meals. Nice effort, not your everyday red with a decent finish.
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Wines of South America (Sydney): Colour: Medium intensity ruby with some rim fade, legs Nose: Herbs; mint, sulphur – struck match, jammy blackcurrant Mouth: Jammy, spicy, medium acid, medium plus tannin, medium plus alcohol Oh dear.
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(tasting at Mich&Bo's) What an interesting cab! Dark red in the glass, with a nose of old shoes, barnyard and old carpet, in addition to stewed red fruits. Palate is sweet and intense, softening out nicely and well balanced. Accessible. Drinking well now. FANTASTIC value!
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This bottle if a major over achiever for a sub $20 bottle. Pop and pour. the color is a beautiful dark garnet. the nose is graphite, pepper, spice and black cherry fruit. The flavor profile is well integrated with great fruit: black cherry, blackberry and plum with lots of spice , sweet wood, some pepper, vanilla. Medium longish finish. Really delicious. This is in a nice place to drink now but should last for several more years.
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Dark Cab with a fruity nose. Cherry palate, meaty, simple with oak in check would go well with a variety of meals. Nice effort, not your everyday red with a decent finish.
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A fascinating wine! This consists of an amazing bouquet, a sophisticated structure, harmonious balance and an elegant taste, which ends with a delicate and stylish 30+ seconds finish.
That is for now. But also has a great potential to develop in the bottle for another 5-8 years; highly recommended…One of my favorite Chilean wines of all time!
Un vino fascinante! Que consiste de un sorprendente aroma, una sofisticada estructura, un balance armonioso y de un gusto elegante, el cual termina con 30+ segundos de delicado y refinado sabor.
Esto es por ahora. Pero con mucho potencial por desarrollar en la botella por otros 5-8 años; altamente recomendado…Uno de mis vinos Chilenos favoritos de todos los tiempos!
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Drank the Montes Alpha Cab Sau alongside its Argentinian cousin, the Kaiken Ultra Cab Sau. Both under the same Montes Family. Dark Garnet red with purple hues, with aromas of cherry, black currant, capsicum and hints of oak. On the palate is dark black fruits, cherries, tobacco. Medium bodied. Good lenth of finishing with hints of oak. Overall I found it thinner and lack the structure compare to Kaiken. But it's drinking well now.
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Deep ruby color with a nose of ripe raspberry, black berry, tobacco, vanilla. Full-bodied, with a dense structure, silky texture and no bumps. Flavors of black currant, tobacco, spice, oak, vanilla. Great finish. Drink from 2010 to 2015.
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Beautiful violet/purple with dark red hues. Cedar, mint, red berries, leafy green herbs, nice nose. Onto a mouthwatering fleshy palate, good balance, medium to long finish.
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Consumed over three hours at a steak house. Shocked at the development over the last year. Rich, dense, sweet blackberry liqueur now dominating, which strikes the palate with excellent concentration and a bold presence. The new French oak backdrop (a year ago too strong) has now integrated, supplying solid toasted oak and hints of scorched earth, which play very well with the classic Chillean creosote notes that linger long on the backend.
Fantastic bottle for drinking now or holding over the midterm. 91 -JRS
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Stewed dark fruit, vanilla, pepper, meat; the finish was somewhat rubbery and bitter. What I got from this bottle seemed more complex than the one I had last year, but that doesn't necessarily mean I liked it any better this time around; in fact, less so. It did confirm, however, that the oak in this wine overwhelms the fruit.
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Good juicy blackcurrant fruit in here although the oak is a little heavy-handed and overpowers through mid-palate and finish. More than a hint of Colchagua terroir in here, which is a big plus. Some of the aggression has worked itself out of the system over the past 6 months or so. Agree with previous tasters that bottle variation is rife with this wine, and I guess it's to be expected - not sure of production figures but my guess is they knock it out by the cartload. Ready now but will keep, although not sure about improve.
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Color was clear, light purple. Flavors of dark berries, plums, a little mocha and a hint of oak. Nicely blended, but slightly hot on the palate. Fruity, long finish. Seems young, the wine needed over 90 minutes for the tannins to settle down. A nice enjoyable wine.
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A very good young Cabernet. Will age nicely for several years. This wine seems to have a lot of bottle variation, but this bottle was in perfect shape.
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Nice nose of smoked meat and bright red fruit; monolithic on the palate; firm acidity and austere tannins; not much of a finish. A bit of a disappoinment.
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Had my second consecutive excellent Chilean wine this weekend. The first (a few weeks agao) was the Single Vineyard Nimbus Estate Merlot - this time around it was the Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon.
This wine was very dense purple in the glass and smelled of oak, tobacco and dark coffee. On the palate I got a lot of ripe, dark berry fruit flavors, oak and hints of leather. The tannins were well-developed and provided a nice structure base from which to enjoy the wine. It was quite rich and pleasing, I would have it again and am glad I have one more bottle in the cellar.
Not many bottles of this left folks so if you'd like to try it you'll have to hurry...it is great! Have a wonderful week everyone!
Ian
Davidson Rating Scale: 9.1
Cost: 24.00
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Very average - this has been much better in past vintages. Opened it before dinner and was glad when it was gone so we could get on to better things...
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Deep ruby color. Rich nose of black cherry, cassis, leather, and chocolate. Touch of menthol/alcohol. The palate is firmly structured, high tannin content-fruit and oak influenced. Finishes a bit medicinal, high alcohol, and those tannins sneak up and punch you in the nose. Not at all integrated. Hopefully will take some time in bottle to round out a touch.
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A weekend of value-priced 2006 Cabernet Sauvignons:
2006 Merryvale Starmont Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon: 88 2006 Montes Alpha Estate Bottled Cabernet Sauvignon: 88 2006 Rusden Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Bakery Hill: 86 2006 Medalla Real Special Reserve Single Estate Cabernet Sauvignon: 83
Many Cabernet aficionados will be turned off by how heavily manipulated the grape is in the Montes Alpha offering. While it only sees a year in French oak, the wine displays aromatics not too dissimilar from their Syrah of the same vintage: vague aromas of fruit are overwhelmed by those of deep oak, motor oil and some tar. Eventually some of these aromatics blow off to reveal ripe cabernet fruits, which when tasted, hold on the palette with gripping tannins before being released into a pleasing, lingering, plumy fruit finish.
Drink now with an extended decant, or over the next three to six years. 88 – JRS
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Attractive garnet wine throwing out a strong nose of assorted forestry - oak and cedar dominate with a passing whiff of mint and blackcurrant fruit. Rather assetive and aggressive attack with a little a robust cabernet character but a touch too much heat. Strong oak character persists through the medium finish. As usual reliable and a good QPR, but not as convincing as the 2005 vintage. Rather a macho example.
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Intoxicating nose with deep blueberry chocolate. Very simple palate at first. Used vinturi and it started showing more. Fairly simple but satisfying. Good QPR as always.
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Drank with brisket at an outdoor BBQ. Very New World Cab with big fruit and big oak. Rich viscous mouthfeel and good Cab flavors with a nice finish, though, a bit oaky for my tastes. Nice BBQ wine.
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Dark color, revealing very impressive depth and concentration. Offers layers of plump currant, butterscotch, coco, dust and loads of green vegetable flavors. Firms up nicely, finishing with rich Cabernet fruit. 10% Merlot. (Drink 2009-2013) - JD90
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Taken on the 2nd Day after it was opened the night before. Serving temperature played a huge part. Straight out from the bottle, chilled - Nose: Stewed Plums, light Blueberries and Black currant. On the Palate, it was juicy berries with a hint of bitter chocolate on the finish. The Wine represented good weight and structure. 15 mins later - Nose: Blueberries and Black currant were more dominate. On the Palate, the Black currants were bigger and yummier, tobacco, leather and bitter chocolate was more dominate. 30 mins later at 28c room temp - Nose was an Attack of sweet berry fruit, was less refine, more in your face impression. On the palate: the fruits were starting to fade and the bitterness of the wine was overpowering all the other flavours: Overall, a very good QPR but one would need to watch the serving temperature of this very wine. Served slightly chilled.
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Intense, sweet, ripe blackcurrant fruit with rather obvious oak. This is rather an assertive, unsubtle wine, tending towards the jammy, but there is plenty of extract and it should develop over the next 2 to 3 years.
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Dark crimson in color. Very fruit forward and lush. The nose is full of black fruit and hints of licorice and smoke. Lots of pronounced black cherry, currant and smoky tobacco flavors that mix well with the sturdy tannins. The finish is medium length. Built to drink now. Good QPR.
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Needs more new oak, or a lot more time, I'm not sure. I decanted the wine 1 hour. On the nose, currants and prunes, dark chocolate, tar, and a touch of cedar. Taste: average mouthfeel, currants, prunes and cassis, chocolate. Too acidic, tannins not integrated, too chewy. The next night I tasted it again, hopeful. It harmonized better, but still the tannins are just not right in this wine to me. So, is this wine just not ready? I've had some French Bordeaux that is just wound so tight that it needs way more time, this could be the situation here. I may buy another one to lay down just to find out, but then it'll be too late to buy more. Some of the past Alphas have been spectacular, so I was disappointed by this effort. I used a cup or so for my red pasta sauce.
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NobleRottersSydney - South America (Alio's, Surry Hills): [cork, 14.5%, A$25] A youthful, spicy, peppery nose, not especially varietal, but with an intriguing iron earthiness beneath. On the palate earthy and stony, but with some spotlit black fruits. There’s a full-bodied, warm bloom on the palate, which fades quickly to a warm but short finish, remaining only a little on the front-palate. Acceptable.
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Bright red colour. Good vibrant blackcurrant fruit aromas with hints of caramel or chocolate. Quite well balanced on the palate with good structure. Noticeably firm tannins and acidity balanced by the purity of the fruit suggesting it might age well for around 5+ years. Nice black 'spangles' fruit lingering on the finish.
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Boston Wine Expo: Oh, there's some rubber here, but it's a good rubber. Big, rich, and tasty. This may not make sense, but there's some great rubbery fruit here. And yes, there's a fair bit of oak, but it works. Tasty stuff. I'll take this over 95% of Cali Cabs under $30. 89-90
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On the nose getting some good aromas, black currant maybe some licorice tinged with a hint of tobacco. On the palate you can tell this is still a bit young, tannins are very tight and have an acidic under tone. Day 2 nose is exhibiting some green peppers, the fruit profile is more pronounced which is good, getting more oak on the finish, not a bad everyday cab.
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Very tasty, and well made, yet slightly disappointing when compared to the Montes Syrah of the same vintage, in that it's a bit flabby, and not nearly as complex and probably not to be aged too long - Very dark, well concentrated with notes of sweet plum, black fruit, cedar and vanilla on the nose, decent structure, balanced, sweet on the finish with medium length (88 Points).
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Placed first for me in a 6 bottle blind cabernet tasting. Some herbs and tire rubber on the nose, nice body with a long multi-layered finish. Color me impressed, I was blown away when we pulled the bags off. Definitely heading out to pick up a couple bottles of this, awesome QPR.
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Very nice aromas of currant, dark berries and herbs. The same is refleced in the flavour, although the rather tight tannins dominate slightly. Needs some time in the decanter to open up, and would probably improve with a few more years of age. Good QPR.
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Overwhelming green olive and green pepper backed by coffee and harsh, bitter tannins. Dig deep for the cherry and currant flavors. Tight and angular. I know this wine gets a lot of exposure in the glossy mags, and the comensurate amount of advertising. The recommendations are overly generous.
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The first day it was smooth and somewhat thin tasting with "controlled" (controlled in relation to Chilean-style cab anyway) tannins and muted fruit and chocolate flavors. On the third day this wine opened up a lot. The nose changed to a bright clear sweet spicey cassis from the first day's earth, graphite, green pepper and leather. The taste changed by the third day too; More mouthfeel, tangier tastes in line with the (third day) nose, more apparent acidity, and rougher but still under-control tannins -- I think it must have been french oak.
The way this cabernet progressed on the counter over 3 days was similar to the new Bordeauxs I've tried recently (though it is clearly a South America style of wine), so I'll assume that this bottle is capable of (maybe big) improvements with age. I'll probably pick up a few more at Costco to stash 3-4 years then reassess -- I actually don't doubt that it might improve over 8 or more years.
EDIT: I pasted in the producer website info I looked up after I wrote the above tasting.
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Limpid clean colour. Restrained with typical chilean herbal/vegetal note. Sweet cranberry cab fruit. Good structure. Very drinkable. Not over oaked. Can even take this with food. Very good.
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2/6/2021 - Vinophil2000 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Immer Keller Dormagen, bzw. Erlangen.
Füllstand: Into-neck-high fill. 50 mm langer schöner Naturkorken. 14,5 Prozent Alkohol. Geschmacklich ok, nicht so bekömmlich.
Ins Glas: Aromen von Wild, Frucht, Sekundäraromen, Reife und Frucht halten sich die Wage, typischer Cabernet-Noten.
Am Gaumen wirkt dieser Wein dann allerdings als wenn der Wein eine kleinen Teil Merlot oder ähnliches im Verschnitt bekommen hat. Jedenfalls nicht so streng und Tanninherb wie andere 100% Cabernet aus Frankreich oder Italien, sondern gefälliger. Nachtrag: die letzten 250 ml am zweiten Tag waren dank Vakuum und Kühlschrank auch noch sehr gut! Viel Satz in der Flasche.
ENGLISH: Needs 30-45 Minutes to open fully and benefits from air. Dark fruit, herbs, secondary aromas. Much smoother than a Cabernet dominated Bordeaux. Kind of silky. Was some Merlot added?
Medium concentration and medium lenght. Works well solo ant with beef or lamb. Would wait longer than three years to consume your last bottles. Will not improof.
New World style at it´s peak or 2-3 years past it´s peak but still very pleasent. Drink: 2010-2025, Peak: 2012-2022.
Sowohl Solo als auch als Essensbegleiter gut.
89-90 Punkte / Points.
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9/5/2020 - brasstab Likes this wine: 90 Points
Smelled like a barn -- and not a pleasant one -- upon opening, but then it opened up and became an inviting forest, a wholly elegant surprise. Medium-bodied, hints of oak and smooth tannins.
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4/3/2018 - WineDoDo Likes this wine: 90 Points
I'm trying to purge my cellar of wines that are well past their drinking windows. This wine was supposedly 3 years past its recommended drinking window, but it was impressive. The telltale Chilean light tar/leather/dark fruit nose is still very prominent. The legs glide down the glass as if in slow motion. It still coats the mouth with a silky, velvety feel. Up front, it tastes of blackberries and very ripe blueberries, followed mid-palate by an herbaceous hint, and the soft tannins create a mouth-watering, lingering finish. No matter what the price point (inexpensive), this was a well structured wine that was a sheer joy to drink. Regrettably, this was my last bottle of this vintage.
The wine looks inky colored. The legs are slow. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like blackberry, tobacco, black pepper, plum and tar. It tastes like blackberry, blueberry, forest floor and stems. The body is medium/full. The wine has silky texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has low acidity.
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12/26/2017 - dsimmons Likes this wine: 93 Points
Drinking above its pedigree.
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2/20/2017 - icury wrote: 90 Points
What a nice surprise
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12/20/2016 - dsimmons Likes this wine: 90 Points
Very nice mature cab and a bargain to boot. I would say drink these over the next 3-5 years. Not overly complex but nice integration and plenty of fruit.
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4/1/2016 - VHJV wrote: 88 Points
This was put into a flight of Bordeaux as a ringer. It stood out as being a bit hot and one-dimensional. Not bad for the price and genre, but obviously not my favorite.
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10/4/2015 - Deux Chevaux wrote:
Our last one. Similar to our prior note, but if anything darker, more chocolate, and richness.
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7/16/2015 - Deux Chevaux Likes this wine:
Deep ruby. Some green stems showing. Touch of tobacco. Nice but not over done sweet oak, pretty good balance. Enjoyable over three nights, refrigerated and gassed in between.
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2/12/2015 - dsimmons Likes this wine: 92 Points
Delicious QPR still going strong
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11/6/2014 - linkswinelover6549 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Terrific bottle. Rich, creamy, full body Red
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4/21/2014 - MidLifeVices wrote: 86 Points
Garnet, iridescent colour, without sediment. Medium/light body. Slightly floral and vegetal nose with green pepper dominating the palate. Not great. Left me with a headache-sulphites?
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2/16/2014 - brigcampbell wrote: 85 Points
The wine looks garnet colored. The legs are medium. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like oak, burnt, high toast and black currant (cassis). It tastes like black currant (cassis), oak and high toast. The body is light/medium. The wine has angular texture. The wine finishes medium.
Lots of charred wood.
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1/30/2014 - Pemberton Michael Likes this wine: 89 Points
Good expressive nose - some cedar and floral. Full feel, smooth. Drinking surprising well. Oak is subtle. Lacks complexity, but very good for price.
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8/5/2013 - bcmatthias Likes this wine: 88 Points
Still drinking great.
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6/17/2013 - whineoh3 wrote: 89 Points
Dark Cab with a fruity nose. Cherry palate, meaty, simple with oak in check would go well with a variety of meals. Nice effort, not your everyday red with a decent finish.
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12/4/2012 - bcmatthias wrote: 88 Points
Consistent, value for the price.
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12/2/2012 - Motz wrote: 89 Points
Smells good but not as expressive as the 2007. The color shows some age, with noticable tinging around the edges. Not as rich or complete as the 2007. The mouthfeel is not as full; the finish is shorter and a little bitter too. This being said, it's still a good wine. At $20, equal or better values are available in abundance. At $11, it is very good value.
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10/8/2012 - bcmatthias wrote: 85 Points
Seems to be fading. Almost raisiny.
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9/21/2012 - elevation02 wrote: 92 Points
Sad to see it go. Beauty Wine!
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8/23/2012 - Leomania Likes this wine: 88 Points
Still drinking quite well. Much more red fruit in this wine than I would have expected, with earth, spice and hints of leather. Tannins are still in evidence and acidity is fine.
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5/14/2012 - bcmatthias wrote: 89 Points
Solid value
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4/10/2012 - Rcolella wrote:
3-5 years
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4/3/2012 - Casimir61 wrote: 88 Points
After 3 days in a Vacuvin stoppered bottle and this wine has mellowed out considerably. The harsh tannins are gone, and the pepper & spice taste has softened leaving a the fruits as before. No new tastes were detected. If I were to rate this wine again, it would be 2 points higher.
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3/31/2012 - Casimir61 wrote: 86 Points
Dense dark red color. Smells like wet soil, decayed flowers, sweet wood. Very dry taste lingers on palate, of berries, plums, pepper, but overpowered by oak. Long earthy finish. Some slight variation in the two bottles I drank.
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2/18/2012 - whineoh3 wrote: 88 Points
Wonderful benchmark Chilean wine. Great fruit and minerality. Well balanced. Great with food.
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2/7/2012 - Edzo wrote: 89 Points
Wonderful benchmark Chilean wine. Great fruit and minerality. Well balanced. Great with food.
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11/26/2011 - bcmatthias wrote: 89 Points
Very nice. Great value.
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11/22/2011 - whineoh3 wrote: 91 Points
Dark Cab with a fruity nose. Cherry palate, meaty, simple with oak in check would go well with a variety of meals. Nice effort, not your everyday red with a decent finish.
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10/5/2011 - chatters wrote:
Wines of South America (Sydney): Colour: Medium intensity ruby with some rim fade, legs
Nose: Herbs; mint, sulphur – struck match, jammy blackcurrant
Mouth: Jammy, spicy, medium acid, medium plus tannin, medium plus alcohol
Oh dear.
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8/9/2011 - JerM wrote: 91 Points
(tasting at Mich&Bo's) What an interesting cab! Dark red in the glass, with a nose of old shoes, barnyard and old carpet, in addition to stewed red fruits. Palate is sweet and intense, softening out nicely and well balanced. Accessible. Drinking well now. FANTASTIC value!
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5/24/2011 - dsimmons Likes this wine: 92 Points
This bottle if a major over achiever for a sub $20 bottle. Pop and pour. the color is a beautiful dark garnet. the nose is graphite, pepper, spice and black cherry fruit. The flavor profile is well integrated with great fruit: black cherry, blackberry and plum with lots of spice , sweet wood, some pepper, vanilla. Medium longish finish. Really delicious. This is in a nice place to drink now but should last for several more years.
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4/25/2011 - stefan.sarin@gmail.com wrote:
This one is much better, nothing of what I wrote last time is true of this bottle, this is a OK cab, nothing great but definitely an OK wine ...
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4/16/2011 - Elongatedm wrote: 90 Points
Smooth finish.
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2/18/2011 - adk.dmn wrote: 90 Points
Dark Cab with a fruity nose. Cherry palate, meaty, simple with oak in check would go well with a variety of meals. Nice effort, not your everyday red with a decent finish.
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12/6/2010 - Rhaub wrote: 90 Points
Took to Brogadere. Nice bottle medium
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10/24/2010 - redman77 wrote: 88 Points
I will hold my last bottle for 3 years...
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7/18/2010 - RATER wrote: 91 Points
A fascinating wine!
This consists of an amazing bouquet, a sophisticated structure, harmonious balance and an elegant taste, which ends with a delicate and stylish 30+ seconds finish.
That is for now. But also has a great potential to develop in the bottle for another 5-8 years; highly recommended…One of my favorite Chilean wines of all time!
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Un vino fascinante!
Que consiste de un sorprendente aroma, una sofisticada estructura, un balance armonioso y de un gusto elegante, el cual termina con 30+ segundos de delicado y refinado sabor.
Esto es por ahora. Pero con mucho potencial por desarrollar en la botella por otros 5-8 años; altamente recomendado…Uno de mis vinos Chilenos favoritos de todos los tiempos!
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7/13/2010 - ThMeyer wrote: 88 Points
Blackberries, cassis and black cherries for days. Quite sweet and new world - but delicious. Worked well with steak.
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7/8/2010 - hkm520240 wrote: 87 Points
Drank the Montes Alpha Cab Sau alongside its Argentinian cousin, the Kaiken Ultra Cab Sau. Both under the same Montes Family.
Dark Garnet red with purple hues, with aromas of cherry, black currant, capsicum and hints of oak. On the palate is dark black fruits, cherries, tobacco. Medium bodied. Good lenth of finishing with hints of oak. Overall I found it thinner and lack the structure compare to Kaiken. But it's drinking well now.
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6/22/2010 - Kmdills wrote: 87 Points
Very good but the oak is a bit overpowering. Better on day 2.
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6/15/2010 - stefan.sarin@gmail.com wrote:
Did not like this at all, to oaky, to sweet, felt fake, and this for someone that likes aussie fruity oaky wines.
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5/30/2010 - Life At Your Leisure 🍷 wrote: 91 Points
Deep ruby color with a nose of ripe raspberry, black berry, tobacco, vanilla. Full-bodied, with a dense structure, silky texture and no bumps. Flavors of black currant, tobacco, spice, oak, vanilla. Great finish. Drink from 2010 to 2015.
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5/25/2010 - Wade Instone wrote: 90 Points
Beautiful violet/purple with dark red hues. Cedar, mint, red berries, leafy green herbs, nice nose. Onto a mouthwatering fleshy palate, good balance, medium to long finish.
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5/4/2010 - CdP in NYC wrote: 91 Points
Consumed over three hours at a steak house. Shocked at the development over the last year. Rich, dense, sweet blackberry liqueur now dominating, which strikes the palate with excellent concentration and a bold presence. The new French oak backdrop (a year ago too strong) has now integrated, supplying solid toasted oak and hints of scorched earth, which play very well with the classic Chillean creosote notes that linger long on the backend.
Fantastic bottle for drinking now or holding over the midterm. 91 -JRS
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4/18/2010 - heythatslife wrote: 85 Points
Stewed dark fruit, vanilla, pepper, meat; the finish was somewhat rubbery and bitter. What I got from this bottle seemed more complex than the one I had last year, but that doesn't necessarily mean I liked it any better this time around; in fact, less so. It did confirm, however, that the oak in this wine overwhelms the fruit.
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4/16/2010 - Khamen wrote: 86 Points
Good juicy blackcurrant fruit in here although the oak is a little heavy-handed and overpowers through mid-palate and finish. More than a hint of Colchagua terroir in here, which is a big plus. Some of the aggression has worked itself out of the system over the past 6 months or so. Agree with previous tasters that bottle variation is rife with this wine, and I guess it's to be expected - not sure of production figures but my guess is they knock it out by the cartload. Ready now but will keep, although not sure about improve.
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3/25/2010 - cliffkol wrote: 89 Points
Color was clear, light purple. Flavors of dark berries, plums, a little mocha and a hint of oak. Nicely blended, but slightly hot on the palate. Fruity, long finish. Seems young, the wine needed over 90 minutes for the tannins to settle down. A nice enjoyable wine.
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3/22/2010 - VHJV wrote: 89 Points
A very good young Cabernet. Will age nicely for several years. This wine seems to have a lot of bottle variation, but this bottle was in perfect shape.
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1/29/2010 - gigabit wrote: 84 Points
Nice nose of smoked meat and bright red fruit; monolithic on the palate; firm acidity and austere tannins; not much of a finish. A bit of a disappoinment.
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1/27/2010 - TheWrongAlex wrote: 89 Points
Chewy, tobacco and dark fruit notes. Needs a heavy, meaty dish to pair.
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1/19/2010 - elevation02 wrote: 91 Points
Hi All:
Had my second consecutive excellent Chilean wine this weekend. The first (a few weeks agao) was the Single Vineyard Nimbus Estate Merlot - this time around it was the Montes Alpha Cabernet Sauvignon.
This wine was very dense purple in the glass and smelled of oak, tobacco and dark coffee. On the palate I got a lot of ripe, dark berry fruit flavors, oak and hints of leather. The tannins were well-developed and provided a nice structure base from which to enjoy the wine. It was quite rich and pleasing, I would have it again and am glad I have one more bottle in the cellar.
Not many bottles of this left folks so if you'd like to try it you'll have to hurry...it is great! Have a wonderful week everyone!
Ian
Davidson Rating Scale: 9.1
Cost: 24.00
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12/7/2009 - mikedstan wrote:
Solid.
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12/1/2009 - Yiannis wrote: 89 Points
Dark ruby-purple. Ripe fig, blackcurrant, glossy print. Mid-full bodied with firm tanins, high acidity and long finish. Well made.
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11/8/2009 - Martin Redmond wrote: 86 Points
Deep garnet color, berries and currant on the nose. Benefited airing seemed smoother the 2nd day. Complexity, finish good at this point. Good QPR
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10/17/2009 - tigerpaw75 wrote: 85 Points
Very average - this has been much better in past vintages. Opened it before dinner and was glad when it was gone so we could get on to better things...
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10/11/2009 - peterseville wrote:
Fantastic - although remarkably like an Aussie shiraz!
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9/29/2009 - jjclips2 wrote: 85 Points
Deep ruby color. Rich nose of black cherry, cassis, leather, and chocolate. Touch of menthol/alcohol. The palate is firmly structured, high tannin content-fruit and oak influenced. Finishes a bit medicinal, high alcohol, and those tannins sneak up and punch you in the nose. Not at all integrated. Hopefully will take some time in bottle to round out a touch.
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9/28/2009 - CdP in NYC wrote: 88 Points
A weekend of value-priced 2006 Cabernet Sauvignons:
2006 Merryvale Starmont Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon: 88
2006 Montes Alpha Estate Bottled Cabernet Sauvignon: 88
2006 Rusden Wines Cabernet Sauvignon Bakery Hill: 86
2006 Medalla Real Special Reserve Single Estate Cabernet Sauvignon: 83
Many Cabernet aficionados will be turned off by how heavily manipulated the grape is in the Montes Alpha offering. While it only sees a year in French oak, the wine displays aromatics not too dissimilar from their Syrah of the same vintage: vague aromas of fruit are overwhelmed by those of deep oak, motor oil and some tar. Eventually some of these aromatics blow off to reveal ripe cabernet fruits, which when tasted, hold on the palette with gripping tannins before being released into a pleasing, lingering, plumy fruit finish.
Drink now with an extended decant, or over the next three to six years. 88 – JRS
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9/11/2009 - burgburgburg wrote: 86 Points
dark red, berry scent, heavy, powerful and intense, oaky and young, not specifically outstanding
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8/24/2009 - WineForRob wrote: 82 Points
Strong oak and candied fruit. Not my style.
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8/19/2009 - Khamen wrote: 86 Points
Attractive garnet wine throwing out a strong nose of assorted forestry - oak and cedar dominate with a passing whiff of mint and blackcurrant fruit. Rather assetive and aggressive attack with a little a robust cabernet character but a touch too much heat. Strong oak character persists through the medium finish. As usual reliable and a good QPR, but not as convincing as the 2005 vintage. Rather a macho example.
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7/30/2009 - toontune wrote: 88 Points
Big and flavorful
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7/10/2009 - masonjp wrote: 88 Points
Intoxicating nose with deep blueberry chocolate. Very simple palate at first. Used vinturi and it started showing more. Fairly simple but satisfying. Good QPR as always.
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7/6/2009 - ccrida wrote: 87 Points
started out very green, rough. After 2+ hrs in the decanter it really rounded out nicely. A crowd pleaser that went well with steaks.
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7/4/2009 - PIntag wrote: 86 Points
Drank with brisket at an outdoor BBQ. Very New World Cab with big fruit and big oak. Rich viscous mouthfeel and good Cab flavors with a nice finish, though, a bit oaky for my tastes. Nice BBQ wine.
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6/13/2009 - ihavezinned wrote: 88 Points
great nose of blackberry, cedar, spice box, and tobacco
dry on the palate with flavors of berry, milk chocolate, spice, and cedar
good QPR at $16
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6/7/2009 - InternationalWineReport wrote: 90 Points
Dark color, revealing very impressive depth and concentration. Offers layers of plump currant, butterscotch, coco, dust and loads of green vegetable flavors. Firms up nicely, finishing with rich Cabernet fruit. 10% Merlot. (Drink 2009-2013) - JD90
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5/20/2009 - bradschier wrote:
Not too bad - a bit oaky that needs some time. But still solid for price.
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5/19/2009 - BarneyBuzz wrote: 89 Points
Taken on the 2nd Day after it was opened the night before. Serving temperature played a huge part.
Straight out from the bottle, chilled - Nose: Stewed Plums, light Blueberries and Black currant. On the Palate, it was juicy berries with a hint of bitter chocolate on the finish. The Wine represented good weight and structure.
15 mins later - Nose: Blueberries and Black currant were more dominate. On the Palate, the Black currants were bigger and yummier, tobacco, leather and bitter chocolate was more dominate.
30 mins later at 28c room temp - Nose was an Attack of sweet berry fruit, was less refine, more in your face impression. On the palate: the fruits were starting to fade and the bitterness of the wine was overpowering all the other flavours:
Overall, a very good QPR but one would need to watch the serving temperature of this very wine. Served slightly chilled.
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5/16/2009 - millwhat wrote:
Juicy and easy-drinking, but not one-dimensional.
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4/25/2009 - La Grappe wrote: 86 Points
Intense, sweet, ripe blackcurrant fruit with rather obvious oak. This is rather an assertive, unsubtle wine, tending towards the jammy, but there is plenty of extract and it should develop over the next 2 to 3 years.
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4/12/2009 - whynblog wrote: 88 Points
Dark crimson in color. Very fruit forward and lush. The nose is full of black fruit and hints of licorice and smoke. Lots of pronounced black cherry, currant and smoky tobacco flavors that mix well with the sturdy tannins. The finish is medium length. Built to drink now. Good QPR.
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4/10/2009 - Dave124 wrote: 88 Points
Slightly fruit forward with a taste of earth. Light tannins after. Delightful.
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4/1/2009 - darrel_f wrote: 86 Points
Good QPR.
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3/15/2009 - wade wrote: 86 Points
Needs more new oak, or a lot more time, I'm not sure. I decanted the wine 1 hour. On the nose, currants and prunes, dark chocolate, tar, and a touch of cedar. Taste: average mouthfeel, currants, prunes and cassis, chocolate. Too acidic, tannins not integrated, too chewy. The next night I tasted it again, hopeful. It harmonized better, but still the tannins are just not right in this wine to me. So, is this wine just not ready? I've had some French Bordeaux that is just wound so tight that it needs way more time, this could be the situation here. I may buy another one to lay down just to find out, but then it'll be too late to buy more. Some of the past Alphas have been spectacular, so I was disappointed by this effort. I used a cup or so for my red pasta sauce.
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3/12/2009 - Laurence wrote: 94 Points
Outstanding balance, flavor and smooth. It has everything.
Hard to believe I drank the same bottle everyone else is commenting on.
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3/2/2009 - graemeg wrote:
NobleRottersSydney - South America (Alio's, Surry Hills): [cork, 14.5%, A$25] A youthful, spicy, peppery nose, not especially varietal, but with an intriguing iron earthiness beneath. On the palate earthy and stony, but with some spotlit black fruits. There’s a full-bodied, warm bloom on the palate, which fades quickly to a warm but short finish, remaining only a little on the front-palate. Acceptable.
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2/6/2009 - peetee wrote: 88 Points
Bright red colour. Good vibrant blackcurrant fruit aromas with hints of caramel or chocolate. Quite well balanced on the palate with good structure. Noticeably firm tannins and acidity balanced by the purity of the fruit suggesting it might age well for around 5+ years. Nice black 'spangles' fruit lingering on the finish.
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1/25/2009 - DukeDrew wrote: 87 Points
Nice QBR, needs some time in the decanter, as it's a little tight.
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1/24/2009 - hutch wrote: 89 Points
Boston Wine Expo: Oh, there's some rubber here, but it's a good rubber. Big, rich, and tasty. This may not make sense, but there's some great rubbery fruit here. And yes, there's a fair bit of oak, but it works. Tasty stuff. I'll take this over 95% of Cali Cabs under $30. 89-90
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1/22/2009 - stercomm wrote: 87 Points
On the nose getting some good aromas, black currant maybe some licorice tinged with a hint of tobacco. On the palate you can tell this is still a bit young, tannins are very tight and have an acidic under tone. Day 2 nose is exhibiting some green peppers, the fruit profile is more pronounced which is good, getting more oak on the finish, not a bad everyday cab.
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1/18/2009 - bilge316 wrote: 84 Points
Fruit forward with some green pepper and vegetal flavors. I found it a bit bit harsh and unbalanced.
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1/10/2009 - Tarrant wrote: 88 Points
Very tasty, and well made, yet slightly disappointing when compared to the Montes Syrah of the same vintage, in that it's a bit flabby, and not nearly as complex and probably not to be aged too long - Very dark, well concentrated with notes of sweet plum, black fruit, cedar and vanilla on the nose, decent structure, balanced, sweet on the finish with medium length (88 Points).
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1/10/2009 - theoves wrote: 87 Points
A nice, basic cab. Tastes of mint, eucalyptus and dark fruit with a medium finish.
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1/5/2009 - Zinny wrote:
Pretty impressive for an under-$20 cabernet. Good, balanced flavors. Not too oaky, not over ripe. Some greenness but overall very servicable.
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12/11/2008 - gripNsip wrote:
Placed first for me in a 6 bottle blind cabernet tasting. Some herbs and tire rubber on the nose, nice body with a long multi-layered finish. Color me impressed, I was blown away when we pulled the bags off. Definitely heading out to pick up a couple bottles of this, awesome QPR.
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11/27/2008 - mmh wrote: 85 Points
Very nice aromas of currant, dark berries and herbs. The same is refleced in the flavour, although the rather tight tannins dominate slightly. Needs some time in the decanter to open up, and would probably improve with a few more years of age. Good QPR.
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11/23/2008 - bubbachumps wrote: 86 Points
Nice big wine for the price. New world style with notes of cassis and a touch of green bell pepper. Very simple flavors, although pleasureable.
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11/15/2008 - Iguanasneeze wrote: 79 Points
Overwhelming green olive and green pepper backed by coffee and harsh, bitter tannins. Dig deep for the cherry and currant flavors. Tight and angular. I know this wine gets a lot of exposure in the glossy mags, and the comensurate amount of advertising. The recommendations are overly generous.
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9/20/2008 - hankj wrote: 89 Points
The first day it was smooth and somewhat thin tasting with "controlled" (controlled in relation to Chilean-style cab anyway) tannins and muted fruit and chocolate flavors. On the third day this wine opened up a lot. The nose changed to a bright clear sweet spicey cassis from the first day's earth, graphite, green pepper and leather. The taste changed by the third day too; More mouthfeel, tangier tastes in line with the (third day) nose, more apparent acidity, and rougher but still under-control tannins -- I think it must have been french oak.
The way this cabernet progressed on the counter over 3 days was similar to the new Bordeauxs I've tried recently (though it is clearly a South America style of wine), so I'll assume that this bottle is capable of (maybe big) improvements with age. I'll probably pick up a few more at Costco to stash 3-4 years then reassess -- I actually don't doubt that it might improve over 8 or more years.
EDIT: I pasted in the producer website info I looked up after I wrote the above tasting.
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9/15/2008 - Nico P. wrote:
Limpid clean colour. Restrained with typical chilean herbal/vegetal note. Sweet cranberry cab fruit. Good structure. Very drinkable. Not over oaked. Can even take this with food. Very good.
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4/17/2008 - Siggy wrote: 85 Points
Winestreet Does Chile & Argentina (Kozlak's, North Oaks, MN): High-toned, bright blueberry fruit on the nose. The palate is soft and jammy, showing smoky strawberry/plummy fruit. Good stuff.
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