3rd of 4 wines celebrating JDRF “virtual” gala with friends while still social distancing. This was the overall consensus no 1 wine of the evening. My no 2. Deep opaque cranberry purple in color with a big prominent nose of blackberry, Cocoa and oak with notes of menthol. There is a smoothness and integration to these little bit older wines compared to the newer release vintages that I typically drink. Very nice with a great balance of acidity and tannins. Drinking very nicely and I'm "fortunate." About 94.
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Opened about 4 1/2 hours prior (but no decant) this could have been taken for a Bordeaux. Which honestly considering its lineage surprised me. The fruit is muted at this point but still present (dark berries mostly) but a lot of secondary things are going on. Leather, cassis, tobacco with a nice spiciness amping up the flavor some. The tannins are very smooth, but present and the whole thing is very balanced. The finish is noticeably long. I think this will cellar for a while so there is no rush, but I do think it is a finished product.
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Beautiful deep garnet color with a pronounced bouquet and flavor of cassis, blackberries, plum, cola, and vanilla oak, with wonderful, nuance, depth, and balance, making for a very smooth feel in the mouth. Very long and lingering finish. The perfect second wine after an old Champagne to complement a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner on a glorious day North of New Orleans in the piney woods of Louisiana. I must complement all of our cooks on the excellent turkey, brazil nut stuffing, creamy mashed potatoes , rich turkey gravy, corn pudding, brussel sprouts hash, cranberry relish, and the super pumpkin pie with whipped cream. The food and wine were both WOWs.
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Very similar to the previous bottle and quite glorious with a bouquet and flavor of cassis, plums, eucalyptus, and a bit of toast. Only slightly less compelling on the second try. Great balance, nuance, and depth with a very long finish. Drunk at Emeril's Coastal Restaurant in San Destin, Florida at the end of a beautiful week at the beach.
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Deep purple color with an extraordinary bouquet and flavor of eucalyptus, plum, cassis, and a bit of toasty oak. Rich, silky, and pure with perfect balance, great depth, and an almost endless finish. This is a pinnacle wine and a WOW wine. If you can get your hands on some, do so. Complemented by the wonderful 1990 Bollinger R.D. Champagne and the 2000 Zind-Humbrecht Goldert Vendange Tardive. Made our Thanksgiving meal even better.
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The 2010 Fortunate son has arrived. Silky tannins, fresh aromas with tastes of blackberry, cassis, hints of chocolate and coffee. Reminds me of 2005 Hillside Select, which is great company to be compared. Incredible.
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Initially very disjointed with an intense green pepper note running through it. After a few hours open it calmed a little bit still remained awkward (not tannic though). Pretty typical Napa flavors of chalky cassis, mocha, extracted blue/black fruit, oak... Possibly needs several more years but not as good as prior years in my opinion.
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3 hr decant and drank over 60 min. This went quickly for a reason. Medium body, seemed visually thin. But the nose, oh the nose, and the palate, oh the palate! Smoke, cedar, blue fruit, purple fruit, ripe plum, Christmas spice, oak, smooth perfectly integrated tannins. Seems like it's only in the early part of the window too. Can't wait to see what this is like in 5 years. 1-2 points upside...potential 100. Did I mention that it was good and I really loved this wine?
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This is a very good bottling compared to the 2007 which is the only other vintage I have tried. Very powerful, weighty and rich from opening without any hint of over blown alcohol like many of the high end California Cabs. Fabulous eucalyptus note on the finish that dissipated quickly. For the 1st hour it was disjointed as a previous reviewer noted and then came together - intense, rich dark fruits, a little mocha, and a hint of bitter orange. Will be very interesting to see how it evolves with age.
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Seemed pretty disjointed. Definitely has some nice big flavors that have just no quite come together. Still very bright and vibrant with moderate tannin. Decanted 1 hour.
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Just a huge wine. Took it out from the wine cellar and had to decant for 4 hours before it hit its stride and it continued to evolve for the rest of the evening. Spice, plum with a super long, creamy finish. Impressive.
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11/18/2021 - Fabisperl wrote:
Chicago!
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11/15/2020 - RockyII Likes this wine: 94 Points
3rd of 4 wines celebrating JDRF “virtual” gala with friends while still social distancing. This was the overall consensus no 1 wine of the evening. My no 2. Deep opaque cranberry purple in color with a big prominent nose of blackberry, Cocoa and oak with notes of menthol. There is a smoothness and integration to these little bit older wines compared to the newer release vintages that I typically drink. Very nice with a great balance of acidity and tannins. Drinking very nicely and I'm "fortunate." About 94.
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4/15/2020 - Niagara wrote: 95 Points
Still going strong, not breaking stride. Delicious, and for such a big wine, lots of fun. Think meatloaf wine, stew, boeuf bourguignon.
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12/24/2019 - JS1056 wrote: 95 Points
Opened about 4 1/2 hours prior (but no decant) this could have been taken for a Bordeaux. Which honestly considering its lineage surprised me. The fruit is muted at this point but still present (dark berries mostly) but a lot of secondary things are going on. Leather, cassis, tobacco with a nice spiciness amping up the flavor some. The tannins are very smooth, but present and the whole thing is very balanced. The finish is noticeably long.
I think this will cellar for a while so there is no rush, but I do think it is a finished product.
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11/28/2019 - tcosgriff Likes this wine: 100 Points
Beautiful deep garnet color with a pronounced bouquet and flavor of cassis, blackberries, plum, cola, and vanilla oak, with wonderful, nuance, depth, and balance, making for a very smooth feel in the mouth. Very long and lingering finish. The perfect second wine after an old Champagne to complement a wonderful Thanksgiving dinner on a glorious day North of New Orleans in the piney woods of Louisiana. I must complement all of our cooks on the excellent turkey, brazil nut stuffing, creamy mashed potatoes , rich turkey gravy, corn pudding, brussel sprouts hash, cranberry relish, and the super pumpkin pie with whipped cream. The food and wine were both WOWs.
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9/13/2019 - tcosgriff Likes this wine: 98 Points
Very similar to the previous bottle and quite glorious with a bouquet and flavor of cassis, plums, eucalyptus, and a bit of toast. Only slightly less compelling on the second try. Great balance, nuance, and depth with a very long finish. Drunk at Emeril's Coastal Restaurant in San Destin, Florida at the end of a beautiful week at the beach.
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11/22/2018 - tcosgriff Likes this wine: 100 Points
Deep purple color with an extraordinary bouquet and flavor of eucalyptus, plum, cassis, and a bit of toasty oak. Rich, silky, and pure with perfect balance, great depth, and an almost endless finish. This is a pinnacle wine and a WOW wine. If you can get your hands on some, do so. Complemented by the wonderful 1990 Bollinger R.D. Champagne and the 2000 Zind-Humbrecht Goldert Vendange Tardive. Made our Thanksgiving meal even better.
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4/22/2018 - Carl Thoma wrote: 95 Points
California taste. Read the better reviews as I agree with them. Ready to drink.
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12/15/2017 - CR lawrence Likes this wine: 97 Points
The 2010 Fortunate son has arrived. Silky tannins, fresh aromas with tastes of blackberry, cassis, hints of chocolate and coffee. Reminds me of 2005 Hillside Select, which is great company to be compared. Incredible.
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12/9/2017 - MAXIMUM SATISFACTION wrote: 92 Points
Initially very disjointed with an intense green pepper note running through it. After a few hours open it calmed a little bit still remained awkward (not tannic though). Pretty typical Napa flavors of chalky cassis, mocha, extracted blue/black fruit, oak... Possibly needs several more years but not as good as prior years in my opinion.
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7/21/2017 - Geaux Tigers Likes this wine: 97 Points
3 hr decant and drank over 60 min. This went quickly for a reason. Medium body, seemed visually thin. But the nose, oh the nose, and the palate, oh the palate! Smoke, cedar, blue fruit, purple fruit, ripe plum, Christmas spice, oak, smooth perfectly integrated tannins. Seems like it's only in the early part of the window too. Can't wait to see what this is like in 5 years. 1-2 points upside...potential 100. Did I mention that it was good and I really loved this wine?
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7/29/2016 - Hotspur66 wrote: 94 Points
This is a very good bottling compared to the 2007 which is the only other vintage I have tried. Very powerful, weighty and rich from opening without any hint of over blown alcohol like many of the high end California Cabs. Fabulous eucalyptus note on the finish that dissipated quickly. For the 1st hour it was disjointed as a previous reviewer noted and then came together - intense, rich dark fruits, a little mocha, and a hint of bitter orange. Will be very interesting to see how it evolves with age.
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5/2/2016 - MAXIMUM SATISFACTION wrote: 92 Points
Seemed pretty disjointed. Definitely has some nice big flavors that have just no quite come together. Still very bright and vibrant with moderate tannin. Decanted 1 hour.
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6/29/2015 - Niagara wrote: 95 Points
still too young ... but delicious. Woodbridge delivers again, as always.
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6/23/2015 - JohnFlorian wrote: 97 Points
Indeed a huge wine. Beautiful finish, even for a youngin'. One of my favorites from the Woodbridge stable.
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2/24/2015 - thatrick wrote: 96 Points
Wow what a wine - needs several years in the cellar to all come together but wow it has everything there for this to really rock
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12/31/2014 - DaButtah wrote: 97 Points
Just a huge wine. Took it out from the wine cellar and had to decant for 4 hours before it hit its stride and it continued to evolve for the rest of the evening. Spice, plum with a super long, creamy finish. Impressive.
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12/26/2014 - Gestalted Likes this wine: 96 Points
Wow, wow, wow was this incredible. Perfectly balanced with massive cassis and notes of minty eucalyptus. Finish just goes on and on.
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