I tried this last November while visiting Bordeaux. The producer had a representative offering the wine for tasting and they were running a discount, unsurprising in light of the reputation of the 2013 vintage (worst in the past decade). It was my first time trying Sociando Mallet and I was impressed how well they did under the challenging circumstances. This is not a profound wine, but it was pleasant and had decent concentration. Their performance with the 2013 got me curious about how well they could do in a good year. I tried the 2015 a month later at a wine bar in Rabat and it was delicious. If you see this for under 30 euros/dollars as I saw it, it's worth picking up for a midweek claret with decent maturity and weight.
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Part of a 2020-1995 Verticale. Expectedly edgy and lacking substance. Considering the awful conditions of the vintage don't expect much improvement with time.
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We tasted the 2013 Sociando Mallet from a Magnum bottle. Ruby color. Red cherry, some smoky note, Cigar box. On the palate, it is dry, medium acidity, with firm but silky tannins. Medium long finish. Nice Bordeaux, unlikely to develop more, but will still be at a good level for a while.
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Yes, 2013 is not a good vintage and yes, almost all other vintages of Sociando are better. Nonetheless, although being quite lean this wine showed some elegance and was surprisingly enjoyable
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Plommer og kirsebær på duft, litt på den varme sida. Samme i munnen, og med en litt kantete syrepg noe grønn stilk. Ikke en super opplevelse dette, men lar seg drIkke.
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Medium bodied, traditional styling. Have tasted most Sociando vintages since early 2000s, this is the weakest by landslide.
Night 1: Correct nose, but palate tastes over the hill like 25+ years instead of the youth it is. Poor concentration. Limp red fruit, charred cedar, old paperbacks, brick dust, hints of green vegetative tones. After a few hours it turns completely to beautiful smelling reduction (animal skins, lanolin, iron), and the wine changes after that gaining more body and length but still not too satisfying. 86-87
Night 2: Used compressor vacuum overnight, and today the wine is open. It's just pretty similar to a random mid-90s cheap bottle of Bordeaux: red fruit, a little wood, but thin and green. Visibly it looks watered down, not light bodied like a Pinot - the edges are clear like water.
At $25 USD in 2022 this is a poor value. Wish it wasn't so, the 2014 is drinking so well right now.
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Vin limpide, brillant. Belle couleur grenat avec ocelle légèrement teintée. Larmes fréquentes et épaisses. Joli nez sur le cassis, le tabac blond, les épices douces et l'eucalyptus. Pointe de groseille rouge. Belle attaque sur la groseille rouget et le cassis, suivi par le tabac et un fin boisé vanillé. Belle finale équilibrée, mais assez courte. Léger manque de matière, mais vin très arômatique. Reste très agréable, dans l'esprit du domaine. 87.
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It’s not terrible but drink it up folks. I got a mail shot from The Wine Society (UK) this week and it had one of their handy vintage guides. They rated 2013 as a four out of ten. I’d forgotten what a crappy vintage it was.
Nondescript probably sums it up and the other four bottles will not be around for long. Might even give a couple away.
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This wine is starting to become an enjoyable wine. It is still very reductive and takes time until it opens (the next day it was much more expressive). It will take another 5 years or more to evolve. I know why I love Bordeaux.
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Decanted for 1,5h . Dark red colour . Nose is a little defensive at the moment , but uniform . Taste is ok , but also nice and uniform ( BDX , left bank , Sociando ?? ) . Smooth , cassis , low tannics ... Sorry thats not my style ! All guys how like a "Susi-wine" could buy and drink it . I prefer the old style from Sociando , which is more earthy , typical northern left bank , tannic and animalic tones ect. Drink now or when you ever like , or buy a 10€ wine from everywhere , it will be the same . 86 Points / 15,5 Points .
rusty nail, raw meat, pencil shavings, minerality... oaky perfume, vanilla, piment, plum, red berries, barnyard, cigar box...
good aftertaste but lacks body, medium bodied but chewy leather. I really am a big fan of SM! Shitty year but a good classical St. Estephe witn nice minerality and a raw grace!
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Meilleur que lors de ma dernière expérience. Les fruits est plus expressif avec encore une belle trame d’acidite. Nous avons de la cerise en bouche et sur le nez. Les tannins sont encore assez présents. Le bois est encore légèrement trop présent à mon goût.
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I am a massive SM fan with bottles in the cellar from 2008 unbroken up to 2016 (and cases of the 2017 and 2018 purchased EP but not yet delivered).
2013 was a difficult year in Bordeaux and it shows in this offering from Jean G. It’s not terrible (and drink up if you have any as no upside for me) but it’s not the great wine that I associate with this cracking estate. I suppose the fact that I would consider cooking with it says It all about a wine that I paid over £20 a bottle for (scary, wide-eyes and shocked face emoji!)
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Quite simple and not deserving any attention. Vanilla oak and alcohol attack prevails, plain both pnp and after 30’ in decanter. Simply buy something else))
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Le vin est probablement encore un peu ferme. Il est encore très discret autant sur le nez que dans la bouche. La trame d'acidité est belle et il y'a une belle finesse dans la texture. J'ai l'impression que cette bouteille est à revisiter dans 2 ou 3 ans.
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3/23/2024 - tekaldas wrote: 88 Points
I tried this last November while visiting Bordeaux. The producer had a representative offering the wine for tasting and they were running a discount, unsurprising in light of the reputation of the 2013 vintage (worst in the past decade). It was my first time trying Sociando Mallet and I was impressed how well they did under the challenging circumstances. This is not a profound wine, but it was pleasant and had decent concentration. Their performance with the 2013 got me curious about how well they could do in a good year. I tried the 2015 a month later at a wine bar in Rabat and it was delicious. If you see this for under 30 euros/dollars as I saw it, it's worth picking up for a midweek claret with decent maturity and weight.
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11/23/2023 - CarpeDiem! wrote: 87 Points
Part of a 2020-1995 Verticale. Expectedly edgy and lacking substance. Considering the awful conditions of the vintage don't expect much improvement with time.
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7/15/2023 - michael@tastingsbymichael.com Likes this wine: 89 Points
We tasted the 2013 Sociando Mallet from a Magnum bottle. Ruby color. Red cherry, some smoky note, Cigar box. On the palate, it is dry, medium acidity, with firm but silky tannins. Medium long finish. Nice Bordeaux, unlikely to develop more, but will still be at a good level for a while.
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5/8/2023 - michigan66 Likes this wine: 94 Points
fruity and dense smell.
dark ruby color in the glass.
long and full taste with notes from blueberry, vanilla and some wood.
a great QPR
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4/1/2023 - egoya Likes this wine: 89 Points
Yes, 2013 is not a good vintage and yes, almost all other vintages of Sociando are better. Nonetheless, although being quite lean this wine showed some elegance and was surprisingly enjoyable
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1/2/2023 - daghaug wrote:
Plommer og kirsebær på duft, litt på den varme sida. Samme i munnen, og med en litt kantete syrepg noe grønn stilk. Ikke en super opplevelse dette, men lar seg drIkke.
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8/21/2022 - aero wrote:
Medium bodied, traditional styling. Have tasted most Sociando vintages since early 2000s, this is the weakest by landslide.
Night 1: Correct nose, but palate tastes over the hill like 25+ years instead of the youth it is. Poor concentration. Limp red fruit, charred cedar, old paperbacks, brick dust, hints of green vegetative tones. After a few hours it turns completely to beautiful smelling reduction (animal skins, lanolin, iron), and the wine changes after that gaining more body and length but still not too satisfying. 86-87
Night 2: Used compressor vacuum overnight, and today the wine is open. It's just pretty similar to a random mid-90s cheap bottle of Bordeaux: red fruit, a little wood, but thin and green. Visibly it looks watered down, not light bodied like a Pinot - the edges are clear like water.
At $25 USD in 2022 this is a poor value. Wish it wasn't so, the 2014 is drinking so well right now.
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7/21/2022 - OW_SOSPEL Likes this wine: 87 Points
Vin limpide, brillant. Belle couleur grenat avec ocelle légèrement teintée. Larmes fréquentes et épaisses. Joli nez sur le cassis, le tabac blond, les épices douces et l'eucalyptus. Pointe de groseille rouge. Belle attaque sur la groseille rouget et le cassis, suivi par le tabac et un fin boisé vanillé. Belle finale équilibrée, mais assez courte. Léger manque de matière, mais vin très arômatique. Reste très agréable, dans l'esprit du domaine. 87.
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3/12/2022 - Brentw1 wrote: 82 Points
It’s not terrible but drink it up folks. I got a mail shot from The Wine Society (UK) this week and it had one of their handy vintage guides. They rated 2013 as a four out of ten. I’d forgotten what a crappy vintage it was.
Nondescript probably sums it up and the other four bottles will not be around for long. Might even give a couple away.
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1/21/2022 - El_Toro Likes this wine: 91 Points
This wine is starting to become an enjoyable wine. It is still very reductive and takes time until it opens (the next day it was much more expressive). It will take another 5 years or more to evolve. I know why I love Bordeaux.
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10/25/2021 - willmark wrote: 80 Points
22 oct 2021 - seems past its peak…will need to consume the rest of the case sooner rather than later..
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2/12/2021 - drboehm wrote: 86 Points
Decanted for 1,5h . Dark red colour . Nose is a little defensive at the moment , but uniform . Taste is ok , but also nice and uniform ( BDX , left bank , Sociando ?? ) . Smooth , cassis , low tannics ...
Sorry thats not my style ! All guys how like a "Susi-wine" could buy and drink it .
I prefer the old style from Sociando , which is more earthy , typical northern left bank , tannic and animalic tones ect.
Drink now or when you ever like , or buy a 10€ wine from everywhere , it will be the same .
86 Points / 15,5 Points .
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12/11/2020 - Monsieur le Comte wrote: 91 Points
rusty nail, raw meat, pencil shavings, minerality...
oaky perfume, vanilla, piment, plum, red berries, barnyard, cigar box...
good aftertaste but lacks body, medium bodied but chewy leather.
I really am a big fan of SM! Shitty year but a good classical St. Estephe witn nice minerality and a raw grace!
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9/19/2020 - Morrisson Likes this wine: 86 Points
Meilleur que lors de ma dernière expérience. Les fruits est plus expressif avec encore une belle trame d’acidite. Nous avons de la cerise en bouche et sur le nez. Les tannins sont encore assez présents. Le bois est encore légèrement trop présent à mon goût.
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7/17/2020 - Brentw1 wrote: 82 Points
I am a massive SM fan with bottles in the cellar from 2008 unbroken up to 2016 (and cases of the 2017 and 2018 purchased EP but not yet delivered).
2013 was a difficult year in Bordeaux and it shows in this offering from Jean G. It’s not terrible (and drink up if you have any as no upside for me) but it’s not the great wine that I associate with this cracking estate. I suppose the fact that I would consider cooking with it says It all about a wine that I paid over £20 a bottle for (scary, wide-eyes and shocked face emoji!)
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5/21/2020 - kim@meko.ru wrote: 85 Points
Quite simple and not deserving any attention. Vanilla oak and alcohol attack prevails, plain both pnp and after 30’ in decanter. Simply buy something else))
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10/20/2018 - ajeeja Likes this wine: 91 Points
Here I found a beautiful bottle with all the traits of a Médoc Bordeaux. Maybe not particularly complex, but a clear crowd pleaser. Great QPR.
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11/13/2016 - Morrisson Likes this wine: 85 Points
Le vin est probablement encore un peu ferme. Il est encore très discret autant sur le nez que dans la bouche. La trame d'acidité est belle et il y'a une belle finesse dans la texture. J'ai l'impression que cette bouteille est à revisiter dans 2 ou 3 ans.
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10/19/2016 - GiorgosD Likes this wine: 91 Points
Sec, corsé et fruité
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4/23/2014 - Jeff Leve wrote: 87 Points
Spice, leaf, herb and red fruit in character, this is a light, user-friendly style of Sociando Mallet that will drink well early. 86-88 Pts
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