This was really good. Tannins are integrated, and the wine is showing nice notes of blackberry, pepper, cherry, earth, oak, leather, with medium intensity, and a nice roundness and elegance on the finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Goddammit this fucks HARD. Tremendous banger of a wine from a hot dry vintage built for intensity and aging. I love it...
Exceedingly chameleonic over the course of even a single glass. The nose and palate change so intensely with temperature, I can't help but to point out how extreme it is. At ~68 degrees, the intensity of the leather and tobacco and secondary/tertiary notes is beautiful and steals the show, but also at ~60 degrees the fruit does the same. More than I expected. Anyway...
Dark bloody barn red color, very minor bricking, although the nose immediately suggests its age.
Excellent concentration and highly complex on the nose: Black plum, mulled black cherry, white pepper, cedar, wet tobacco, leather, cocoa powder, steak blood/heme/iron, smoke, igneous rock, wet stones. A lovely bouquet to keep revisiting and peeling layers.
On the palate, tannins quite present but well integrated and well balanced--might improve from here for ~5 years, but really showing tremendously right now, hard for me to hold. Palate shows sour cherry, red plum, leather, fruitcake, baking spice, tobacco, crushed rocks, dusty forest floor. Finishes long but slightly dusty, so perhaps a reason to hold for a few more years, given there's definitely plenty of life.
This is TREMENDOUS
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
I mean wow. This one is one fabulous wine, needed an hour or two to fully flesh out. At peak can’t see upside but wow. Juicy saline tang meaty dark delicious but clean.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
Another great wine dinner with Bernard Burtschy (Taberna del Alabardero, Washington D.C.): Expressive complex nose displaying perfectly ripe black fruit, blackberry, black cherry, licorice, coffee, strong black pepper, rare steak, tapenade, garrigue, clove/smoke and crushed rocks. Excellent concentration, finely layered perfectly ripe black fruit, silky and oily, excellent balance, freshness and detail, bright acidity, strong mineral, and a long generous black fruit driven finish with a hint of black pepper at the end. This is a pleasant surprise. Although clean, this is a classic Hermitage that is drinking beautifully. If tasted blind, I may guessed as Chave. If you think these top Chapoutier hermitages are too modern, you outta give the 98 l'Ermite a chance.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Slow ox for two hours. Beautiful, elegant Burgundian style Hermitage. Cherry, blackberry, herbs, bacon fat and spice come through. The wine has a modern feel to it but the oak is now quite well integrated into the wine. Finishes long and complex. Great wine and a great moment.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
At dinner. Brief note. Sweet red cherry, blackberry, and mulberry jam upfront with a pretty good lashing of oak that masks the secondary flavors I can sense are behind it. Still ridiculously young and powerful but not without charm. Needs another 15+ years to show its potential.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
(Blind tasting) Developed but also a bit mute nose. Dried fruit, tobacco, cigar and liquorice. Good depth, but expected more. Medium-fullish, elegant, balanced and harmonious palate that grows in intensity after an hour. Dried blackberries, salmiak, cedary oak. Slightly dry tannins detracts. Long and generous. Guessed on Hermitage with Bdx-vibes.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
7th Annual Christmas dinner and cellar raid (Naperville, IL): Part of Christmas wine dinner and cellar raid and didn't take detailed notes. Power and elegance wrapped up in a beautiful bottle. Not quite at the level of the 1985 La Chapelle but still quite amazing
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
pepper, spicy, dark berries, good ripe tannin structure, still at his beginning, especially from MG, good length and structure, would be interesting in 10 years, 95-96
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
This was class in a bottle. The wine was full bodied, nicely balanced, polished, and was firing on all 8 cylinders. Was open and giving. Fantastic length . I was able to hold onto this glass for an hour or so.
Did not get the decant I would have liked.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
With 2 hours of double decanting under its belt, everything was in play. The wine is thick, rich, plush and polished, with layers of sweet, perfectly ripe dark berries, licorice, stone and earthy notes. The wine is long and fresh. The wine was even better with another hour or two in the glass.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Chicago: wine, food, friends...cigars!; 9/17/2014-9/20/2014 (Blackbird, Les Nomades, Naha, with lunch at Shaw's Crab House): {magnum} Served side by side with a magnum of 2000 Pegau Capo, it would be splitting hairs to try and choose a favorite. This has slightly more acidity, and slightly better structure, but in the end it comes down to personal style preference. A brilliant chassis, with delicate layers of red and blue fruits that sit atop a bed of cool stones and dried herbs; finish lasts for a minute+. Has two decades or more in this format. highly recommended
Served non-blind, give it several hours aeration in decanter prior to service.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No
/ Comment
Nez un peu en retrait au départ, qui se révélera avec l’aération. Vin assez tannique, très structuré de par sa grande minéralité (Parker qualifie le tout de « granite liquid minerality! »). Il faut d’ailleurs beaucoup apprécier ce trait pour aimer ce vin, qui ne conviendra pas à tous les dégustateurs. Du grand jus de caillou!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No
/ Comment
2/15/2024 - Raizes Likes this wine: 93 Points
黑樱桃、李子的果味在酸度引领下成为主线,胡椒、甘草、皮革和烟熏味做出补充。香气的呈现略弱,整体状态不算太好。单宁细腻丝滑,展现了良好的成熟度和陈年融合,但也一直在努力追赶酸度的步伐,直到后期才逐渐找回应有的强度,成为完整结构的最后一块拼图。
和去年喝过的同款相比,这一瓶的状态不是很好。开瓶六小时后,在席间做了双重醒酒,随着香气和单宁的丰满,营造了一段还算令自己满意的试饮窗口。
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
1/1/2024 - Peter Spijker Likes this wine: 94 Points
This was really good. Tannins are integrated, and the wine is showing nice notes of blackberry, pepper, cherry, earth, oak, leather, with medium intensity, and a nice roundness and elegance on the finish.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
11/18/2023 - Honest Horse Likes this wine: 96 Points
Goddammit this fucks HARD. Tremendous banger of a wine from a hot dry vintage built for intensity and aging. I love it...
Exceedingly chameleonic over the course of even a single glass. The nose and palate change so intensely with temperature, I can't help but to point out how extreme it is. At ~68 degrees, the intensity of the leather and tobacco and secondary/tertiary notes is beautiful and steals the show, but also at ~60 degrees the fruit does the same. More than I expected. Anyway...
Dark bloody barn red color, very minor bricking, although the nose immediately suggests its age.
Excellent concentration and highly complex on the nose: Black plum, mulled black cherry, white pepper, cedar, wet tobacco, leather, cocoa powder, steak blood/heme/iron, smoke, igneous rock, wet stones. A lovely bouquet to keep revisiting and peeling layers.
On the palate, tannins quite present but well integrated and well balanced--might improve from here for ~5 years, but really showing tremendously right now, hard for me to hold. Palate shows sour cherry, red plum, leather, fruitcake, baking spice, tobacco, crushed rocks, dusty forest floor. Finishes long but slightly dusty, so perhaps a reason to hold for a few more years, given there's definitely plenty of life.
This is TREMENDOUS
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/17/2023 - jmoon Likes this wine: 96 Points
I mean wow. This one is one fabulous wine, needed an hour or two to fully flesh out. At peak can’t see upside but wow. Juicy saline tang meaty dark delicious but clean.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
9/16/2023 - Raizes Likes this wine: 95 Points
黑莓,黑李子、甘草、皮革,很多的紫罗兰花香和一点点胡椒,非常芳香的呈现。在酸度和酒精的相互平衡下,结构方正、宽广、挺拔,单宁丰富有力的同时非常成熟和细腻,与高集中度的香气共同支撑起饱满的中段口感,同时在悠长的余味中萦绕不散。
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
3/17/2023 - dcwino wrote: 96 Points
Another great wine dinner with Bernard Burtschy (Taberna del Alabardero, Washington D.C.): Expressive complex nose displaying perfectly ripe black fruit, blackberry, black cherry, licorice, coffee, strong black pepper, rare steak, tapenade, garrigue, clove/smoke and crushed rocks. Excellent concentration, finely layered perfectly ripe black fruit, silky and oily, excellent balance, freshness and detail, bright acidity, strong mineral, and a long generous black fruit driven finish with a hint of black pepper at the end. This is a pleasant surprise. Although clean, this is a classic Hermitage that is drinking beautifully. If tasted blind, I may guessed as Chave. If you think these top Chapoutier hermitages are too modern, you outta give the 98 l'Ermite a chance.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/3/2021 - mclanew Likes this wine: 96 Points
Slow ox for two hours. Beautiful, elegant Burgundian style Hermitage. Cherry, blackberry, herbs, bacon fat and spice come through. The wine has a modern feel to it but the oak is now quite well integrated into the wine. Finishes long and complex. Great wine and a great moment.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
2/6/2019 - europat55 wrote: 93 Points
Nose: A-/A Palate: B++/A-
My #3, Group's #1 (23 pts). Tasted blind.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/29/2018 - ESTEELE90 Likes this wine:
At dinner. Brief note. Sweet red cherry, blackberry, and mulberry jam upfront with a pretty good lashing of oak that masks the secondary flavors I can sense are behind it. Still ridiculously young and powerful but not without charm. Needs another 15+ years to show its potential.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/1/2018 - Argrath wrote: 94 Points
(Blind tasting)
Developed but also a bit mute nose. Dried fruit, tobacco, cigar and liquorice. Good depth, but expected more.
Medium-fullish, elegant, balanced and harmonious palate that grows in intensity after an hour. Dried blackberries, salmiak, cedary oak. Slightly dry tannins detracts. Long and generous.
Guessed on Hermitage with Bdx-vibes.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/9/2017 - bablues wrote: 95 Points
7th Annual Christmas dinner and cellar raid (Naperville, IL): Part of Christmas wine dinner and cellar raid and didn't take detailed notes. Power and elegance wrapped up in a beautiful bottle. Not quite at the level of the 1985 La Chapelle but still quite amazing
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
12/6/2015 - aquacongas Likes this wine: 95 Points
pepper, spicy, dark berries, good ripe tannin structure, still at his beginning, especially from MG, good length and structure, would be interesting in 10 years, 95-96
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/30/2015 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 94 Points
A private dinner (Restaurant Behrens Am Kai *, Düsseldorf, Germany): Magnum. Wonderfully pure and fresh, berries and cherries, sous-bois, tannic but balanced, cool minerality, very elegant, intense and silky, very good length.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
4/2/2015 - pilot360 wrote:
This was class in a bottle. The wine was full bodied, nicely balanced, polished, and was firing on all 8 cylinders.
Was open and giving. Fantastic length . I was able to hold onto this glass for an hour or so.
Did not get the decant I would have liked.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
3/9/2015 - Jeff Leve wrote: 97 Points
With 2 hours of double decanting under its belt, everything was in play. The wine is thick, rich, plush and polished, with layers of sweet, perfectly ripe dark berries, licorice, stone and earthy notes. The wine is long and fresh. The wine was even better with another hour or two in the glass.
1 person found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
9/18/2014 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:
Chicago: wine, food, friends...cigars!; 9/17/2014-9/20/2014 (Blackbird, Les Nomades, Naha, with lunch at Shaw's Crab House): {magnum} Served side by side with a magnum of 2000 Pegau Capo, it would be splitting hairs to try and choose a favorite. This has slightly more acidity, and slightly better structure, but in the end it comes down to personal style preference. A brilliant chassis, with delicate layers of red and blue fruits that sit atop a bed of cool stones and dried herbs; finish lasts for a minute+. Has two decades or more in this format. highly recommended
Served non-blind, give it several hours aeration in decanter prior to service.
3 people found this helpful, do you? Yes - No / Comment
10/9/2009 - ludwigbpm wrote: 97 Points
Nez un peu en retrait au départ, qui se révélera avec l’aération. Vin assez tannique, très structuré de par sa grande minéralité (Parker qualifie le tout de « granite liquid minerality! »). Il faut d’ailleurs beaucoup apprécier ce trait pour aimer ce vin, qui ne conviendra pas à tous les dégustateurs. Du grand jus de caillou!
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment
10/27/2005 - Will wrote:
Chapoutier verticale at St John (London): Another very basic TN: lots of coffee on the nose but otherwise rather basic at this stage. Needs time, obviously.
Do you find this review helpful? Yes - No / Comment