Bu avec LES FOUDUVIN Chapitre Estrie au Resto AVV La Suite de Sherby jeudi le 22-Février-2024. Mieux que les autres bues dernierement. Assez ample et rond, on a une petite impression de glycérine. Fruit dense et extrait, primare certains ont mentionnés. Les tannins sont charnus et la finale très longue. Un peu brute et tape à l'oeil. Bien dans ce style.
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OMG. This so delicious. Pure blackcurrant, blue plum, coffee grinds, truffle, mushroom on the nose. On the palate, so delicious now, really come around after many years so closed. Red fruits, smoke, fantastic acid fruit balance. Absolutely at its peak. I’m scoring high based on pleasure, rather than intricate complexity.
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Tasted at Don Melchor vertical dinner with Enrique Tirado. Very identifiably Chile, with some of the trademark quince and Eucalyptus notes. Juicy and very concentrated. Tons of oak is still making its presence felt with vanilla and chocolate aromatics. I would not have guessed that this wine is 17 years old - youthful in appearance and the palate. Nice to drink now but with plenty in store.
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Original purchase and stored in a temperature controlled environment. Bottle decant 2 hours. Drank over 3 hours. Nose of dark ripe fruit and a hint of cocoa. In the glass it didn't show any signs of age. The palate was surprisingly fresh, ripe cherry and plums. Tannins still very present, but not intrusive. Very enjoyable now.
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Agreeing with many recent notes. This wine is at it's prime now so enjoy. Beyond full body, the wine has a beautiful nose and color and still offers a nice amount of jaminess, but the tannins are now wonderfully smooth with age.
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Very dark ruby color, with no sign of aging. Decanted just before drinking. Full bodied. Cassis and plum fruit, with a hint of graphite pencil. Was hoping for other Bordeaux-like secondary notes, but never came. Velvety on the palate, but still some fine tannins left, so I’m imagining it could last a couple more years easily, so will hold onto my remaining bottle.
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By now 16 years old bottle, kept under wine cellar has a dark red ruby color, soft aromas, as most Chilean cabernet. At taste round, prunes, dry figs and a medium to long finishing
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Really at a good spot in it's 16 years. Mellowed out to a delightful wine. Cherry, tobacco, leather, earthy notes and still fruit. Tannins are mellowed out. Drinks like a Bordeaux
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Splash decant. This was the last wine of a tasting that had many "bonus" bottles, so pardon the short note. But this was consistent with my expectation for a well aged Don Melchor. Almost bordeaux-ish, great fruit, earth and spice. Leather, violets.
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colour is dark and opaque. looks younger than i’d have thought. a very attractive old world/bordeaux-like nose on this wine with iron, sanguine aromas, sage. palate is big and full, some nice dark fruit poking through but lots of classy mineral and savoury notes that speak to its quality and age. some nice residual tannin as well as a very nice lingering fennel note (credit to uncle victor’s palate on distinguishing that!) on the long finish. impressive.
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Thank you to #1or#2 for sharing this bottle with us. This was a first experience for me and a pleasant surprise. Initial impression was that he’d poured a Bordeaux... Well balanced full fruit with graphite, rustic herbs, greasewood. Lively acidity and sinewy tannins with a long finish punctuated with spicy black licorice. This was a real crowd pleaser and a wonderful pairing with grilled steaks, warm company and great memories.
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Perhaps has passed its peak drinking window. Tannins are soft now but starting to fall apart into a grainy mouthfeel that lacks some structure, tending toward stewed figs and prunes and powdered cocoa. Not enough acid to keep in balance at this point. Still a rich wine with dark fruits. Full body that provides drinking pleasure, but not the harmonious and balanced symphony that Don Melchor can be in other bottles and vintages. Drink now if you have any left--don't wait.
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It was surprisingly good. Still plenty of bright red fruits. A lot of oak at the open and and then it trails off nicely; still great after a decade and a half.
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Full body, deep garnet color. Intense black fruits forward aroma complemented by tobacco, pepper and spices’ box. Black currants and blackberry palate following by long liquorice finish. Impressive, bold and rich but too powerful for my taste, albeit velvety and well balanced, integrated tannins and berries’ acidity. Food friendly, well pairing to veal stew. Serve 16ºC - 18ºC. Open half hour ahead. Drink now.
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Very good. Last of several bottles that have passed through my cellar going back to the 2003 vintage. Unfortunately Don Melchor is now out of my price range.
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Edging towards a mature wine but with no visual signs of aging. Deep red, nearly opaque. Tannins are fully integrated. Tobacco and a hint of vanilla on the nose. Dark cherry with a hint of vanilla. Very smooth with a extremely long and pleasing finish. Don't think that this will necessarily be better in 10 years but I think that it will still be great at that time.
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Dense et végétal encore une fois. Capiteux et asséchant. Ne fait et ne fera pas partie de mes achats dans le futur...surtout avec la hausse de prix des dernières années!
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Dark fruits, coffee notes with some chocolate & cedar. Tannins still noticeable but softer then last bottle. Medium acidity with great balance. Very tasty and is in the sweet spot.
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Burly. Charred blackberry pie. Wood and smoke. Kinda slaps you around and then gives you a hug. It still may soften as it matures into old age as Don Melchor tends to do but, although perhaps not everyone’s taste, it is fun to drink now.
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Wonderful. Very dark color. Not brown or thinning. Bright dark cherry! But over ripe. Has another 10 years left. Drinking well now. Won’t likely improve with more time !but who knows;)
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Very seductive nose of cigarbox, tobacco, vanilla. Almost full bodied, dense, very complex, wih generously matured black fruit, cedar, liquorice, cocoa, plum, with lost of charming sweet ones in the background, this hedonist wine is perfect to be enjoyed now. Don't wait too long, because the fruit could shift to overmature aromas at some point.
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Dark red Bordeaux style. Aromas of red berries and dark chocolate . At taste is round, balanced tannins and acidity. Day 2 and 3 decayed a lot, loosing its aromas and ending with a bitter taste.
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let this decant for 2 hours, loads of tannins and some dark fruit. had the rest of the bottle on day 2, nose was dusty and bottle even more relaxed. a really a great cab that tastes more old world than new. dark dark red, slight hints of brown.
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Wish I had waited for the others to become this wonderful. Deep and rich with an outstanding nose of perfume and sweet fruit. Lovely deep purple with absolutely no signs of deterioration. Very nearly a perfect wine!
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PNP. Ruby with some very slight browning and medium legs. A closed nose offering only black cherry, oak and spice. Palate was thick and oaky with black currants and earthy spices. Finish was also oak laden and tannic with leather and wood. On night two it showed more on the finish with some ash, granite, pumice and dried black cherry. Fairly rich and earthy after 13 years but the wine seems muddled and lacked definition.
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Ouff, encore un monstre de cassis et/ou d`eucalyptus...certains ont encore mentionné les plants de tomates! Plus ça va, plus j`ai de la difficulté avec ces super Chiliens, j`en encave plus depuis ces millésimes 2006, 2007. Je ne prend rien pour du cash et je ne ne me fit pas aux opinions des autres sur ces vins, je n`aime tout simplement pas.
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This was surprising amazing. Decanted for five hours and seemingly as youthful as when it was bottled. Have to believe 13 years ago it was a bruiser...
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Dense dark brick red with a medium rim. Sligthly murky nose, rather tight and almost oxidised, but the palate was full of dark red fruits, forest floor and leathery notes. Full bodied and delicious.
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This wine is in a great space. With 1 hour in the decanter, we ran out of patience, finished the bottle, and opened another. Nicely integrated and balanced. Big and bold.
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Un peu mieux mais encore d`un block. Bourgeons de cassis et eucalyptus encore une fois, prévisible et constant. Assez tannique et asséchant, belle longueur avec un peu de chauffe.
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Color was dark ruby red with slight orange on the rim. Nose was filled with currant, coffee grains, oak, black olive, forest floor and cigar box all of which were rather subdued. The palate was still tightly wound full of blackberry and fresh currants along with roasted coffee, and some new saddle leather. The finish despite being tannic from the pop and poured spread out fairly well over the back palate. Night 2 more blueberries and cherries along with some lead pencil on a much smoother palate.
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Decanted, with a little sediment. Medium (+) ruby color, with very little garnet on the rim. The nose is developing (+), with the black fruit, cedar, leather, tobacco and that green herbal note that is sometimes a marker for Chilean Cabs (or perhaps it is the 4% Cabernet Franc?). The palate is dry, with medium (+) acidity, medium (+), rounded, tannins and medium (+) alcohol (although the label says 14.5%). Fine quality and balance and QPR. Overall, however, based on my experience with other vintages, I expected a little more fruit and depth. Perhaps, at 12 years, it is starting its downhill slide? Drink now, not likely to improve with further aging.
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Splash decanted for 20 minutes and drank over next hour at a dinner party. No detailed notes. Should have decanted longer. Nice and smooth at first, but was really beginning to open up into something special at the end.
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Ce fut mon dernier millésime acheté et avec raison...le prix est rendu complètement RIDICULE...132$ pour le 2015!!! Nez sur le cassis, l`eucalyptus, le plant de tomate, le caoutchouc...il n`a pas changé! En bouche, après un 3 heures de carafe, il s`assagit mais c`est tout de même tannique et asséchant. Cassis, mures et poivrons...la composante végétal me dérange...de même que l`acidité déficiente. La finale est longue mais trop sèche. Plus qu`ordinaire en ce moment!
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Oak nose without the chalk and darker chocolates. A hint of petroleum on the nose too. T7 B7 Acidity with back bone in the finish.
After unveiling: Normally, I find the Don to be singular and a little lacking (ie 90-) but this performed very well. Possibly in its prime and drinking smoothly with a lengthy finish
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Deep garnet red core with a touch of brick. A bit savory on the nose with some interesting characteristics. Followed up by cassis, blackberries, dust and a touch of greenery. Medium tannins (6.5/10) and medium plus bodied. Darker fruit than expected in the palate with some spices, cocoa and something a touch tropical. Medium plus to long finish. Drink till 2025.
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Initially dominated by a slightly bitter, coffee flavour. While I was disappointed at the first sip, within 45 minutes, however, this had morphed into a smooth, beautifully balanced Don Melchor. Lovely bottle.
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PNP into a decanter and drank over 90 minutes. Lots of bell pepper and cedar on the nose. A nice, full mouthfeel. Tannins are softened and the wine is well rounded and balanced. It was a very nice wine that I wish we took a little longer to drink than we did.
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Very dense. A bit vegetal and with some of the black fruit flavors starting to turn towards "raisined" characters. Still concentrated a layered and delicious but probably has already hit its peak. Drink.
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Deep dark purple hue. Classic cab-- white pepper, peat moss, plums on the nose. Sweetness on front end. Dark fruit, smooth, balanced, long finish, and pleasant. Very enjoyable bottle.
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Encore une fois, similaire à mes autres notes, c'est végétal avec du cassis et cette odeur de caoutchouc brulée qui me laisse un peu perplexe, vraiment pas dans unce bonne phase et ce depuis quelques années...changera t'il, c'est à espérer car j'en avais une caisse!
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Deep purple garnet, opaque, garnet miniscus. Smells are currants, pyrazine, dark cherry, vanilla, smoke and tar. The tastes are cherry, currants, earthy notes, and smoky tatses. Soft tannins and nice acidity.
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Decanted to remove the plentiful solids, then drank almost immediately. By fa, the best DM ever. Deep, luxuriant flavors and terrific mouth-feel. It's been worth the wait.
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The vaguest hint of a little oxidation in an otherwise lovely bottle. Lacking the gloss and depth of glossy fruit of other bottles. Rather dusty. The best have been bolder in their fruit, and this bottle not truly representative. Scored anyway, as I didn't detect overriding flaws as such. 89+
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This wine was absolutely delicious!! Paid $65 and would gladly do it again. 30 min decant, old world style, nice acidity, not too much fruit, graphite, smoke, leather, cassis and a great old world style mouthfeel w/o being chewy and overbearing. Absolutely loved it and will buy again <$65 ALL DAY
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Last bottle of the cade, earthy, musty, old world nose, the palate is full of cherry, cassis, black tea, tobacco, truffle notes, all nicely balanced. Holding up well!
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Deep ruby with brick edges. Mature Bordeaux nose with sweet tobacco and earth. Dark fruit flavors that seem to be fading, with some damp oak on the finish. Had no food, yet nice on it's own.
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Typical nose of medoc: blackcurrant and graphite. Same in the mouth with great length. A little too much acidity in the finish for my taste: would be a 95 wine without it.
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PNP, I had this bottle on its side for a number of years and the bottle age has made this a delight to drink. Old world nose of earth truffles, sadle leather on the palate, with hints of dark cherry, ripe plum and cassis on the palate with fully integrated tannins as the secondary nuances have taken complete control. Based on this bottle, drink up!
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Pas mieux que celle bue il y a quelques mois. Poivrons verts et eucalyptus, au et en bouche et ce après presque 3 heures de carafe. Il faut de la patience, en espérant que cette composante végétal s'estompe!
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During a Cab Sav blind tasting. Expressive nose with lots of bonbon, raspberry, strawberry, cake. This is far too confectionery for me, I don't even find it inviting to go on and taste it, so sweet is the nose. It is almost as someone has told them - the riper the better. The palate is rich again, velvety tannins. Finishes a bit short, not surprising given the monolythic style. Don Melchor is the flagship CabSav of Concha y Toro, one of the world's largest wine producers. Nevertheless, they have not cracked the code yet how to make a really world class Cabernet, sad it is...
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Classic Chilean cab. Well integrated but tennis still firm enough to give it a backbone and depth. This could still last several more years but it is drinking nicely now. Great chewy texture with loam and tobacco notes. Only noticeable flaw was that I found the finish a little short for a wine of this quality and complexity.
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On the varietal but with a little pizazz. The highlight is the confectionary bouquet. The weight is nice and the flavors are interesting--plum, cherry, sand, sour candy, neutral oak, and chicken broth--but it's not as balanced or integrated--and is no longer as present--as other vintages like the more concentrated 2003. Drink now.
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Tasted blind during South American Reds Night. Dark ruby red turning violet at the rim with a transparent edge. The nose is quite powerful and fruity with hints of raspberry, cranberry, beats and spice. It has a full body with a nice, round texture - very smooth and has a solid mid-palate that tapers off attractively and fleshy with hints of dried herbs, earth and smoke. Drink now until 2021. 92+
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Tastes great! Decanted to remove the plentiful solids.Lots of cabernet richness without a sense of being S. American or anything but a fine wine. It's well integrated and showing rich red fruits, spice, and some earth notes. Very deep dark purple in color.
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Very powerful and intense. Very different to what I was used to from Don Melchor. Smoked meat and ripe black fruits are the only aromas I could discern from it. Still good, but not what I was expecting based on previous experiences.
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Decanted 375 ml bottle for one hour. Moderate sediment. Deep red-purple color. Flowery nose of blackberries and vanilla. Medium-to-full bodied dark fruit on the palate, well-balanced by acids and soft tannins. Lengthy, fruit-driven finish. Overall, a delightful wine that is drinking very well at this point. Plan to drink my remaining bottles over the next five years, although the drinking window might be longer.
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Decanted for 2-3 hours and this was just spectacular. Beautiful dark rich Chilean Cabernet(97% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Cabernet Franc. Drank wonderful on its own as well as with braised pork shoulder.
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Best Don Melchor I've ever tasted. Rich, full, mouthfilling with cabernet berries and red fruits along with a sense of cocoa. Deep purple-red in color. Decanted and let open a few minutes, then drank over two days.
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Seemed to be just past its peak, but any given bottle might go the distance. Subtle spice intertwining with mature tannins. On the palate notes of boysenberry and lingering tobacco leaf. A couple hours into it left me fulfilled and wanting more of it. A solid example of single vineyard Chilean cab.
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Bu avec Bulle et Headless au resto AVV Sballo de Sherbrooke! Nez sur le cassis et un brin végétal, typé Cabernet que j`ai callé au nez, je pensais un gros cab Canadien style Occulus. En bouche, très extrait, fruits noirs un peu séché et tannins râpeux. Long et un brin capiteux…le temps ne pourra que l’améliorer.
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Big nose with blackberry and blueberry fruit. Loads of tar smoke and ash on the finish with lots of dark fruits. Typical Melchor. Silky smooth texture with a great finish.
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This wine is drinking nicely now. Tannins have softened and the typical Chilean features are showing well. Liam, oak, black fruit, tobacco. In good balance. That said I'm not sure the wine justifies the price inflation that I've noted over the past few years.
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This bottle has evolved from my last one nearly 3 years ago. This had a bit less fruit and a bit more dusty notes. This evolution was very beneficial in toning down what my notes called a bit overpowering plum. I feel like this bottle is in a pretty good spot right now and I will be drinking one more in the next 6 months and my last in the next 18 months. Drink now till 2018
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Ah good - after a few muted ones, this bottle is super. Dark opaque. Young. Nose not very suggestive, but slightly chocolatey, antique furniture, dusty. Some tomato and spice, and the merest whiff of ethereal blackcurrant. Hazelnuts. Delicious initial palate, deep fruit. Cor, really good attack and mouth-coating deliciousness. Coffee, chocolate, Asian spices. Lovely silky texture at first. Round. Some mint and a long lingering and delicious sexy finish. Nice acid propping it all up. However, the tannins are somewhat coarse at the end in this. A little rough unfortunately, bringing up the rear with a bit of heft instead of the grace needed to score higher. Still, this is excellent and the spectrum of sheer flavour is stunning. (95-96)
No idea what's wrong with some peoples' bottles! This is drinking OK without a long decant, but will benefit from a few more years to calm down the tannins a little more. Nothing shows any sign of fading of doing anything other than being being better!
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Had at Hawksmoor Air Street. This had blackcurrant, leather and surprisingly high levels of tannin. The fruit seemeed to be fading slightly but this still has some time left in it.
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Opened 45 mins pre-drinking. Changed significantly over the evening fom dark fruit predominating initially, through cedar, almond(?) on the finish, and ending the night with liquorice. Enjoyable, and complex wine. Real weight, so needs to be drunk with food.
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Tar, rubber, wood smoke, plums and currants. Complex and seductive. Robust finish with sweet blackberry and blueberry fruit, iodine and ash. Lacks that zip. Sensing it a little dull. Just starting to decline. But still In a good place now so drink up. Decanted 2.5 hours.
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Consumed at a party. An excellent Cabernet. Aromas and flavors of black cherry, blackberry, hints of mint and chocolate, oak. The tannins seem pretty much resolved - soft and velvety in the mouth. Rich and intense fruit. Score 93-94.
Decided to check in on this. Popped and poured. This was singing straight out of the bottle with black currant, blueberry, sour cherry, and mint on the nose. On the palate, dense, toeing the line without being overdone. Flavors of currants, cherry, blackberry, and mocha. Long finish with plenty of grip. Not sure where this goes from her but in a pretty good spot right now. Drink or hold.
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Wednesday Nooner (Rocknroller's (Kevin & Vicki's Place)): Very dark red/purple color. Decanted for 2 hours and followed several glasses over 4 hours more. This was slow to evolve and went through an awkward phase in glass that was very woody and even had a bit of heat, but man did this change over the first hour. Once this hit its stride it kept improving over 3 hours and reminded me a nice Graves. The nose is brambly at first, dark fruits, blackberry, black cherry, subtle eucalyptus that comes in after 20 minutes or so and fades over the same time; there is a nice smoky, scorched earth element along with the minerals and oak. The palate transforms from a somewhat thin in the middle wine to a more full bodied, black fruited gem with scorched earth, blackberry, blueberry, soft tannins oak, and gravelly minerals. This clearly will benefit from more cellar time, but develops well over 3 hours plus. My advice would be to decant for 3 hours and then follow over a few hours to be well rewarded. 93+ to 94pts.
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Haven't posted notes lately, drinking much less wine of late but this was a blockbuster and probably the better of the 2 bottles we had, the other being the 2004 Clos Apalta this evening, we had our last bottle of this vintage 4 years ago, and it's only got better, much smoother and integrated, simply stunning and one of the best bottles we've had in recent memory - Black/purple, full bodied with an extreme nose of plum, cigar box, cedar, mocha, tobacco and vanilla, very 'new world', but quite balanced with many years to go, silky smooth, dry yet sweet on the finish with incredible length, one of Chile's and the world's best (96 Points).
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Round the World Cab/Cab Blend Blind Tasting (My Home): After 3 hour decant. This was a surprise! I have tasted Don Melchor before, but this was my first bottle with a chance to do a serious decant. This note is being written the day after, so specifics are limited. The mouthfeel with this wine was extremely silky. My favorite wine of the night despite some vegetal flavors on the finish. Fruit forward, good acidity, very balanced with subdued tannins. The tannins have resolved substantially... this is your drinking window. Enjoy!
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95 points surprise with the quality of this wine full bodied powerful yet balance , had this with wagyu rice and a piece of slow cook wagyu cheek. great
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Not sure if this was a tainted bottle or if it was just in a bad place. Came highly recommended but did not live up to the hype. Muted. Alcoholic with an off, almost garbage like, nose.
I really enjoyed this although it is a bigger style Don Melchor than I've had in the past, so I can see where terms like 'porty' are coming from. I'd agree that this is at the begining of what could very well be a long drinking window. I'm going to try and hold out for another two years until my next bottle.
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Popped and let stand for about an hour. Herbal nose. Medium plus viscosity. Much different experience with this bottle. Initial palate of bright cherries / raspberries changes to more dark fruit with slight menthol on the finish. Great acidity and balance. Drinking very nicely.
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PNP, cola, menthol nose, tart plum, cherry,mineral notes, not jammy, quite dry, seems old world, this bottle lacks the structure & concentration to be great!
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P&P - A good bottle of wine but nothing wow... Smelled of earth and leather but tasted of coffee with hints of blackberry not much finish whatsoever, maybe would have been better with a decant?
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Blackcurrant. Big wine. Plenty of flavour. Developed nicely after 3 hours in the decanter. Full on new world Cabernet style. None of the port like textures that others have said they saw. Coats the mouth nicely with good length.
This was a little muted at first, however it did open up over time. There was some light fruit but it was more herbal at this point with some menthol on the finish. Enjoyable but seemed a little closed at this point.
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Lacking the tension and grip of prior vintages. Tastes over ripe with similarities to some out of balance 2005 Bordeaux. This will go well with grilled burgers, but it is not my style this vintage....maybe not until they reign in the ripeness.
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I used to love Don Melchor. After opening multiple bottles of this vintage I can confidently say, this wine has become a overly sweet, almost port like expression of cabernet. While this was always a fruit forward, new world style it has gone too far and I no longer enjoy this wine. So much so, I poured that last bottle down the drain. I thought the first bottle or two might have been tainted, but there is no way that this was the case as I have had with multiple bottles from multiple sources...too bad.
Nez sur les poivrons verts et l'eucalyptus. En bouche, c'est ample et un peu asséchant en ce moment. Long avec un peu de chauffe en finale. Bien mais les attentes étaient plus grandes...à revoir!
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I opened this bottle by "accident", mistaking its paper wrapping for Altus. Happy error! Don Melchor is a rocking Cab, Chilean-style. Deep purple in the Riedel, with massive legs, featuring deep aromas of berries and brambles. After an hour in the glass, initial alchohol aired out, and the sumptuous texture reigned. Blackberries, dark cherries, toasted oak and Thanksgiving spices all blended together, reaching a nice long finish of tamed tannins. Shared with Jesse by the fireplace.
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Aromas of green bell pepper with dark fruit. Finish is not too long. Not too tannic. Green bell pepper is on the initial taste. Not too sweet. Some bitter dark chocolate at the very end.
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We decanted the wine for 90 minutes before we poured the first glass. It was dark ruby in colour and offered black currant, cherry, bell pepper, dark chocolate and tobacco as well as hints of eucalyptus and mint on the nose. On the palate the wine showed sweet fruit, black currant, dark cherry, bell pepper, chocolate, some spice and some eucalyptus, paired with medium-plus lively acidity, medium-plus well-integrated tannin, a good, rich, slightly creamy mouthfeel and incredible length. The full-bodied wine was dense and powerful yet balanced. An outstanding Cabernet; would buy again. Drink now and over the next four to six years.
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Slow O for 3-4 hours. Beautiful dark fruit with mild acidity and smooth but present tannins. A little more compact than the last few bottles, probably should of decanted for and hour. One of my favorite wines from South America. I think I bought these for $50 at the SAQ. *After 24 hours the wine improved with a more expansive mouth and a longer finish. 94+ on day 2.
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Realmente é um grande vinho. Equilibrado, taninos aveludados e álcool no ponto certo. Nariz com especiarias, na boca levemente frutado, com notas de baunilha e chocolate, complexo e estruturado.
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Though young it is approachable now. It comes out with lifted aromas of black fruits and a touch of red berries, oily, earthy tones. Full bodied with good acidity, made for the long run but fun at the moment as well.
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Nicely structured wine, good flavor profile, but the nose had an overwhelming herbaceous aspect that detracted from the experience for me. Other than that, cassis and a touch of leather on the nose and pretty well integrated in the mouth. Has plenty of life ahead of it.
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consistent with notes of 2/4/2012 - but the green pepper noted on the first 2 bottles never appeared - just lush coffee, plum, and licorice backed with leather and tar.
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Drank over three days with decanting/aerating. Typically dark and oaky profile for more recent vintages of this wine but not over the edge. Fruit is able to balance out the earthy, tarry notes - makes me wonder the oak treatment and the toastiness of the barrels they use. Good nose that matches the palate with a long finish. Heavy bodied
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APPEARANCE: clear; deep ruby; medium legs & tears NOSE: clean; pronounced intensity; flavour characteristics: black fruit (blackberry, black cherry, cassis); developing PALATE: dry; high acidity; full body; high tannin; high alcohol; long finish; pronounced flavour intensity; flavour characteristics: as per nose: black fruit (blackberry, black cherry, cassis), liquorice, white pepper READINESS FOR DRINKING: can drink now, but has potential for ageing FURTHER REMARKS: Fantastic chewy wine with great body and intensity balanced with nice fruit. Already reasonably complex, but still in its adolescence.
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My first Don Melchor so my expectations were high. Decanted for about an hour. Nice nose of dark fruit. Outstanding mouth feel - very silky. Palate of dark fruit. Not Napa like but excellent nonetheless. Great balance. Met expectations.
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Strained and decanted approx. 2 hours ... Some nice fruit to open; subtle but distinct. An almost Italian like mineral-note took over on the mid-palate, and the finish was med-long, dry and very earthy. The tannins were present, but well-integrated and, all told, it came together and drank quite well, particularly paired with food. That being said, at this price point, it's a pretty lousy value.
I've actually found the $60-$80 price range, for most labels, pretty disappointing. Rarely does it wow you enough to make it feel like money well spent, beyond our normal $25-$45 fare.
... Susan's birthday, 2013.
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Started off before the decant, smelling terrible. Many of us thought this wine was oxidized, but we left it and hoped it would blow off. It did in fact blow off and turned in to a very nice wine, but not achieving the scores that we are reading about. For 70 dollars i can find better.
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Mello smell, strong berry taste. Good wine. If made in Napa, one of many good wines. In my opinion not a great value, which is what I am looking for when I drink a Chilean wine.
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Décanté 3h. Beau nez de cassis et de goudron. En bouche, il est juteux à souhait avec des saveurs de fruits noirs et d'érable. Le tout est balancé avec une précision incroyable... La finale est un peu courte mais TRÈS crémeuse.... Coup de coeur
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Deep purple, tannic, a bit bitter on the palate. Pleasant nose. Tasted and drank a glass on opening, decanted for hours, then 24 hours. Tannins mellowed, taste of bitter cherries. Interesting wine. May have potential years from now.
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- Garnet color with medium forming legs. It's balanced with a full body. Smooth texture with a long finish - Drinking very well right now complex, long finish, silky... 94pts
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Aroma complexo de frutas negras e especiarias, persistente e prazeroso. Na boca carnudo, estruturado, belos taninos redondos, bastante equilibrado. Ótimo vinho
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Needs a good decant, a very powerful wine. Dark, rich, hedonistic fruit and firm tannins. Bought at a shop to bring to a dinner while traveling on business in Puerto Rico. Would have been better if properly cellared and decanted. Although still very good, felt heavy.
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Popped and poured a sip and almost dumped! There was a terrible bite that stayed with me for an hour. I vacuum sealed and put it back in the cellar. Tried again a couple of days later and it had lost the bite and turned into a smooth and mellow beauty.
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From the bottle, deep aromas of dark fruits and smoky meat. Decanted a few hours. Drank wonderfully. Flavors of black berry, plum with smoky meat aromas carrying over to the taste. Hint of herb and mint at the tail end. Velvety tannins and a nice long finish. Good balance made for a very enjoyable wine paired with BBQ rib-eyes.
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Very balanced and comes Cab. Decanted and is ready to drink. Very dark, almost black look to it. Notes of coffee, even leather too the taste. Drink now. Not much to this wine to age for added taste. Good beginning to the evening.
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I opened this at Ryan's with some friends and let it sit probably not long enough but about 30 minutes. The nose on this wine was elegant and smooth with what I thought were dark plum hints. The nose made you want to drink this wine and that is when you realize this is just a baby and this bottle has a lot more time left in them. Don't let the nose fool you this is a powerfull but refined wine that in time the nose will match the juice. I will not be touching my next bottle for at least a year. Enjoy now to 2018
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South American Tasting (Jan's House): Really young. Decanted and Vinturi treated for 3 hours. Dark purple. Tannic with tobacco, red fruits, spice and floral notes. Medium to long finish. Hold for five years. 92-94.
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An anoying experience compared to the previous two bottles I have had. Three hour decant. The wine just stubbornly refused to open up. Splashed from jug to jug for a while, and emphatic swirling in glass brought some more aromatics and depth. But this petulant bottle refused to show well. "I'm not coming out to play!"
I think I'll leave off from the rest for 5 years.
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Such an elegant wine. Soft berries on the nose with plum and slight leather. The nose changes as you whirl it in the glass. The taste is the payoff. Great powerful taste, but in an elegant fashion. this wine is so totally integrated that you don't know what to expect next and you are surprised when it delivers more and more. I heartily recommend this wine.
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I was very impressed with the depth of flavor and great balance of this wine. I questioned whether this would live up to its price tag. But I'd buy it again.
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april fools wine tasting; 4/1/2012-4/2/2012 (Scott & Todd's): 4/1/1/0 1st/2nd/3rd/4th place votes in this flight, so clearly WOTF. Wonderful combination of power and complexity. Cassis with a bit of lavender, mineral infused blackberry, dark chocolate, medium sweet oak and just a hint of thyme. Carl's WOTD and one of my top 3 wines of the day. Drink with a good decant or hold. Deserving of its international pedigree.
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Medium-ruby with hints of garnet. Strong boquet of forest floor right out of bottle but, other than that the nose is pretty closed. This wine on the palate is COMPLETELY different. This wine offers such amazing, complex, and deep layers of spice, oak, fruit, earth and cedar box. Dark, young berries welcome the flow of this wine onto the palate followed by notes of white pepper, clove, graphite, and a very enjoyable inky-ness to finishing fruity/leathery characteristics. 90% of what I drink is middle to high end Napa Valley Cabernet Savignon, and I absolutely love this wine. There is so much complexity in the flavors of this wine I couldnt even imagin what it would be like in 15 years. Good now through 2027+?
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Wonderfully integrated dark fruit with smooth tannins make this Cab a terrific wine. Must decant for an hour to fully appreciate the complexity of tabacco, coffee, leather and currant. Finish lasts for 30+ seconds.
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you can not drink this with out inhaling the cedar, oak, tobacco, currant, black cherry, balanced tannins and a long finish this remains one of my favorite old world style wines a hit with friends matched with a new world cab. Cheers. Drink now or hold all is good.....
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initial nose of coffee, oak, and prune. Licorice and plum palate when tasted...4 hours later, some of the oaky nose has blown off, and I get great plum, currant and coffee on the nose. Plum, fig, licorice and tobacco with some slight green pepper when tasted.
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Strong nose of leather and tobacco on the first night. A little disjointed but still excellent. After another day, this really came together beautifully. 92 first night 94+ on day 2.
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Iltet 1½ time, ingen bundfald. Dybrød farve med flotte gardiner. Duften er afdæmpet og ikke kraftig men toner af bær og vanille. Smagen er utrolig fyldig og til dels kompleks, tanninerne er stramme men flot balanceret. Drukket til lammeculotte og ovnbagte rødbeder. Perfekt match med lidt syremodspil fra rødbederne og fedt i kødet til de stramme tanniner. Gemmepotentiale flere år endnu.
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Riper than I remember. Lacking secondary development but not unexpected given it's youth. Smooth tannins. Mild herbaceous quality. Less pronounced than last bottle. I enjoyed this but still riper than I truly prefer. No distracting flavors/aromas.
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Color: bright ruby-red; Bouquet: expressive and complex chocolate, black cherry and ripe plum mingle with coffee and cassis; Taste: red fruit features in a dense, full-bodied wine whose fine, ripe tannins lead into a big, long and juicy finish. Quuite tight upon first opening. Best to let stand one hour or more.
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Consumed over two days, it took until the second day for the fruit to really come out in this wine,balancing the spicy herbaceous. Tremendous, just not in the typical California super-ripe style.
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Basically similar to the last note, though this one had 2 hours decant and still needed more..... opened up nicely in the glass, but still a little less open than previously, which makes me score it a point less.
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I was very curious about his wine. Initially, there was a lot of funk and sulphur in the wine. It took a couple of hours for the funk to blow off. Once it did, this was an incredible wine. It has a depth of fruit and texture that is on par with the best wines on any continent. Not only was the Cab fruit on perfect display in a unique terroir profile, but the texture of the wine reminded me of the texture I've previously experienced in first growth bordeaux wines. This was a real treat. Give it 3-4 hours to open up. If you do, you will not be disappointed in any way.
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Some interesting notes on the nose and palate, kind of a blend of new and old world styles with fruit and terrior, but way too tart from mid palate to finish. For the same price, higher end Aussie Cabs have a similar style but better balance (Shirvington or 707)
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Cassis (blackcurrant), very ripe plums. Dark chocolate(coffee even), thyme and rosemary. Great nose!! Silky tannins (that could benefit from a few years of ageing still). Very powerful. Great concentration yet very elegant ... Wow wine!! Peppery finish. Very long, blending it all together. Very very good
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Excellent balance, depth and complexity with a captive nose. This is an outstanding wine made with the softer, more elegant european style in mind. Food friendly wine without being over the top. Needs two to three hours of air before it really shines - a pop and pour would be a diservice for such a quality bottle.
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One of the finest bottles of wine I have been privileged to consume.
Up-ended and splashed into a big jug to sit for 90 minutes before sampling.
Bouquet deep and penetrating, complex mix of wood, graphite, deep, deep fruit. Blackcurrants. A little liquorice and smoke. A little coffee. Palate velvety and lush. Sweet, deep. Chocolate. Fruit. Some spice. Long aftertaste devloping. Hedonistic and seductive. Pefect balance of tannins and acid. A marvellous drinking experience. This is drinking perfectly. With age will come more complexity, but probably not for the long-haul. My brain, nose and mouth are still re-living the experience a day later.
95+ points. £50 at the moment in the UK, and going up... I really ought to save money to get more of this.
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Decanted for 1 hour and served with beef tenderloin. Slow out of the gate but once it warmed to room temp this Cab was singing. Solid dark fruit, coffee/mocha mix and hints of spice on the nose. On the attack the fruit carried on with dark cherry and perhaps raspberry, coffee and more mocha and the mid palate. Well structured, tame tannin and drinking very well right now. Should hold for several more years!
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Decanted this for an hour before having with dinner. For me this is better than most Cali Cabs at this price point. Lovely nose with ripe fruits and spice. The palate is long deep with a touch of that Chilean funk that makes me love Don Melchor. Yes this is getting better with age.
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Lots of coffee on the nose. I've also got some cherries, raspberry, floral components. Full bodied with gentle tannins and medium aftertaste. I was expecting something more complex.
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Dark purple in color. Heavy nose of graphite, lead and dark ripe fruits. Surprising medium in body with lush tannins and a low acidity making it a. It flabby. Round dusty tannins with tons of ripe dark fruits in the mouth. Well made.
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I opened this with friends after the Delille vertical tasting on 8/24/11. It had a beautiful, rich and fragrant bouquet of cassis, black cherry, cedar, smoke, mocha, anise and spice aromas. The palate was big, rich and well integrated with flavors of black cherry, cassis, licorice, spice, mocha and cocoa. It has developed very nicely over the last 18 months. 93+
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i´m writting this after i drunk it... then, difficult to do a really good tasting note. but i can say this will be one of the unforgetable wines i had , really good and tasty .
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- Brick color with slow forming legs - Can you say mouth full of CHOCOLATE? extremely long finish that is well balanced. If you like big complex South American wine you will savor this treat.
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Super rich and fruity with deep ruby garnet color, balanced complexity and wonderful mouthfeel. Had with Steak Diane and it paired wonderfully. Excellent nose and finish. A very nice special occasion wine that will be enjoyed with every sip.
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Let this slowly open over 8 hours. Deep dark full bodied wine. Light toast mocha and dark fruits. Rich voluptuous palate with tannins and acidity in balance. A beautiful south american cab that is good to go now or will surely age and improve over the next 5+ years. 93 points non blind. The Don Rules!
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Dark color with earth and mushroom aromas. 2+ hour decant and the taste moderate in complexity with earth, oak, and mineral. Tannins had softened but not silky and finish wrapped up too soon. We really enjoyed this with aged cheddar/onion/mushroom cheeseburgers, yumm 92+. Will think twice about one or two more when on sale but at this price point many other nice options and I will have to wait and see if the memory lingers or fades.
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Aromas of green pepper and cassis. Similar flavors with moderate oak on the finish. Med-full body with nice density but not over-extracted. Tannins were moderate and gave nice grip to the finish.
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Blind Night (Jock): Almost black in color. Aromas of black fruit and eucalyptus. Tastes of blackberry and currant. Well balanced. Rich finish with some tannins and a touch of alcohol on the finish. My guess was a new world cab blend. Rick's 2nd bottle.
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note to self: way tooyoung to drink. initially falbby but pulled together after 2-3 hours in open bottle. black fruit, and lots of slightly tart tannins, toasted oak detected. nothing special now but could be special in 5 years.@ 45$ its an OK buy for now.
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Corks: South American (Rossford, OH): Italian-style nose, with lots of stinky tar. Delicious. Smooth. Green notes, fennel, good acid, light tannin, big but refined. Creamy.
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Classic new world Cabernet with a touch of greenness/herbaceousness. Developed very nicely over two nights with smooth tannins and disappearance of first nights distracting finish. Should evolve beautifully.
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Concentrated dark ruby colour. Smoky, toasty, cassis, woodspice and tobacco nose. Full, flavourful and balanced with a slight, Bretty iodine note on the finish. 3.5/5
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Decanted for two hours. A violet-garnet, with a ruby rim. Sumptuous crushed lava rock, dark chocolate, cough syrup, sage, espresso, dark cherry and pencil lead, while resonating blackberry through out. Captivating in every sense, with a long finish and soft, silky tannins with the right amount of presence. A voluptuous mid-palate that is complex and round. What a finish! Very classy and there's enough tannin and acidity to allow a fair amount of time in any dark cellar. I would have guessed that this was from Bolgheri before Chile. Always an outstanding producer making a wine that has developed one hell of a fine pedigree. Drink now- 2022.
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Decanted for two hours. A violet-garnet, with a ruby rim. Sumptuous crushed rock, dark chocolate, espresso, dark cherry and pencil lead, while resonating blackberry through-out. Captivating in every sense, with a long finish and soft, silky tannins with the right amount of presence. A voluptuous mid-palate that is complex and round. What a finish. Very classy and there's enough tannin and acidity to allow a fair amount of time in any dark cellar. I would have guessed that this was from Bolgheri before Chili. Always an outstanding producer making a wine that has developed one hell of a fine pedigree. Drink now- 2022.
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This was a much better bottle than I opened about a year ago. This was what I expected - big nose of sweet, ripe, dark berry: oak, vanilla, licorice and some earthy notes. Rich, layered and lush on the palate with nice balance and a smooth mouthfeel. Good structure and a nice long, fruity finish.
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A reallly intense nose of cassis and currants...got me primed for tasting, but delivered somewhat mixed results. Lots of tar, bacon fat, and muted fruit on the palate with a hot finish. Had with deep dish pizza. I have a difficult time trying to be impressed by any SA wines, they are few and far between...in my experience.
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Great nose, rich currant, cassis and dark chocolate. Not as impressive on the palate, with decent concentration of dark fruit and chocolate notes, that turned quite harsh on the finish. Needs time to intergrate. 88+
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Lush and rich youthful cab with controlled tannins. Its nose has great complexity - dark cassis sweet cotton candy mixed with red candy apple still wet from dipping and a background of choclate toffee . On the front of the mouth its got great fruit balance (more chocolately cassis and bright bing cherries) while the midpalate is fat and rich, not at all overpowered by tannins. Great long finish with a wonderfully dark fruit aftertaste. I didn't expect to enjoy this Melchor so much at this young stage.
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Big dark extracted fruit. Lots of oak influence but its tucked well into the whole. A little green on the finish, but I think this has a lot of upside given time.
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14.5% ABV. I opened this the previous night and left if corked in the cellar. Translucent dark garnet. The nose struck me as sharply herbal with secondary mocha and currant. Later I thought I perceived some sandalwood. Medium full bodied on palate with rich black currant fruit, some cigar tobacco and a continuation of the herbal note from the nose that overall reminds me of several Sonoma Valley Cabernets I have tasted. This still has some structure, but is drinkable now. Not bad, but this has a pretty modest QPR.
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Reserved nose. Nice carmel, pine, green pepper. This is not a flavor profile I usually go for but in this wine it works. Mid palate is sweet and ends with a smooth smokey tar finish. The balance here is really nice. A few more years will be good to this wine. Drink 2014+
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Puissant, beaucoup de bois même goût de brûler (Empyreumatique). Les fruits sont encore bien camouflé et même peut-être un peu étouffé pour l'instant par la barrique. Tannins également puissant. Gagnera grandement à être vieilli. Tout de même très intéressant, mais pas nécessairement un bon RQP.
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Decanted one hour, tar, tobacco, dark fruit, smoky, with a nice grip. This wine fills your mouth and has a long enjoyable finish. Still showing its youth this wine is drinking well now but will improve with additional time in the bottle.
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Luscious dark berries and chocolate. Our 4some really appreciates a good wine and we were all very impressed. Grilled steaks, great friends and a great wine. It may not last until 2022 but the tannins were evident and has years of good drinking ahead.
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Overall agree with other descriptions-- aerated and decanted about 1 hour in decanter and glasses; very nice dark red appearance in the glass; nose is a bit muted, smoke/charcoal and hint of tobacco, maybe a little touch of green pepper; tastes wonderful, definitely get some dark cherry and still get the smoke and tobacco, good tannins, just a touch of heat on the end; nice balance and mod-long finish; good now, got better as the night went on, but definitely will get better with some time in the cellar. Wonderful!
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Still so young! Muted nose but great tannins. Day one was chard wood, black fruit & very well ballanced in structure. Second day was silky, chocholate & quite smokey.
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Deep youthful red color. Aromas of blackcurrants, tobacco and cassis. Ripe, highly extracted fruit in the mouth with excellent structure, depth and length. After about 30 minutes, the tannins started to melt away and the wine took on a silky, tongue-coating texture. Delicious with the great mixed grill at Hoof and Fin Restaurant in Philadelphia.
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Nose was not as impressive as I had expected. However, the taste was just spendid and only got better as time went on. Decanted for 1 hour at which time I began tasting it. After 2 hours, you could taste deep dark cherry and dark plum flavors. By the time I reached 3 hours, the taste was a slighty sweet cherry taste...just wonderful. What was surprising was the smoothness and soft tannins considering the vintage...it was something that I did not expect. This was just a wonderful bottle of wine and one that I will be purchasing more of. I never expected to say this but this has been one of the better wines from my cellar that I drank in 2010.
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Score will go up with more age. Loved the softness and the smoke. Big fruit as expected but the nose is a bit muted. 45 minutes breathing in the glass wasn't sufficient. End of the bottle was getting better with every sip.
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Part of Virtual Community Tasting Event VI. Popped and poured, allowed to open up in the glass for about 40 minutes. A rather dark red to the rim, not much purple here. The nose is not very expressive, but not entirely reticent either. Notes of cassis and some tar pushing through, and a slight bell pepper thing going on. This is obviously very young, but does have the signature of a well-made wine on the nose. Very full-bodied on the palate, lots of cassis, plums and other dark fruits, quite a bit of tannins and a bit sweet, this is rather fruit forward at the moment. After a couple of hours open, notes of tobacco come out, but otherwise this remains a fruit-forward, well-crafted wine. I would definitely leave this for 5 years in the cellar before trying again. 50+5+11+17+8=91
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This was the only wine of the night that was purely CS. Very deep in colour, serious in nature, tobacco, dark fruits. On the palate, there is a serious structure and density that said mountain fruit. Serious enough for me as to be described as being focused. I don’t think I’ve ever said that about a Cab before. Impressive.
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From tasting earlier vintages I expected more jammy plum notes, but this was leaning a bit more towards tobacco with a light cherry side and undertones of spice and an almost undetectable licorice/anise presence. It was delicious, but give this a bit more time and your patience should be rewarded. Not as overly tannic as some suggest, but I would still allow time for more integration.
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Royal puple. Nose has dark fruits but mostly unrevealing. On the other hand, the alcohol is enought to make your eyes water at the first sniff. Soft almost "old" tanins that give the wine a feel of being older than it is and the wine has great mouthfeel. That said, seems on the tight side, and you just can't quite get away from that alcohol as it evaporates.
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We drank this with grilled T-bone steaks on 3/14/10. The bouquet was very nice with cassis, black cherry, tobacco, cedar, mocha, toast, licorice, anise and spice aromas. The palate was powerful and well balanced with flavors of cassis, black cherry, mocha, licorice, anise, toast and spice flavors. It had young and aggressive tannins and a moderate 35 second finish. It needs bottle time to better integrate.
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In a blind tasting of cabs and zins with 7 other people, 6 of 8 us confused this one for a zin vs. a cab. Most at the tasting are very experienced and nailed most of the others on the head (Pride Vinter's Reserve Cab, Beringer Reserve, Seghesio Zin, Marietta Angeli, etc.). A solid wine overall, very nice fruit just not full bodied and a lot of heat for 14.5% alcohol. I think the heat actually threw people off for "spice" on a zin? Again, very good but just confusing -- guess I am drinking too much California cab to understand the Chileans yet. Or, this one just may need more time to live up to the higher published ratings that I have seen...
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Robust and still young, but enjoyable now. This is a powerful wine, even after a Barbaresco. Given it's drinkability and yet ageability, I'll open a bottle a year to see how this evolves.
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Very fruit forward on the nose with smells of blackberries. On the palate there's good concentration, more dark berries, lots of oak and vanilla. Has a waxiness to the oak, and I wouldn't be surprised if this were American oak. A bit of leather flavor too. Well defined tannins and fairly layered. Length of 40+ secs. Very nice wine and will improve with age.
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Very green. Wait at least 5 more years before opening. I can see why the ratings have been high but even after double decanting it still was very tight and young.
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Silky smooth, full bodied and just enjoyable. Similar in style to some of the best and biggest fruit bombs, except that it's not a fruitbomb. It was frightingly easy to drink for such concentration. For me the wine was like a very good performer but not an artist, it does everything so right but it doesn't have the quirks which can take it sky high.
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Can you give a wine 92 points and still be disapointed? I agree with a previous note that it tastes more like an upscale Marques de Casa than a flagship wine. I really enjoyed this wine, but prefer the Almaviva.
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Chilean and new world all the way. Like a richer, tastier Marques de Casa Concha. Who would have thought? Lots of plums, anise, currants, pencil lead on the palate... in very rich and lush fashion. Good tannic structure and acidity. The wine feels nice and taut.
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Strong medicinal smell when first opened that took a long time to blow off. Full, fruity, sweet flavors dominated by black currant and boysenberry, with some oak backing things up - flavors are similar to a Napa mountain cab, but without the austerity. At the same time, there is a slightly unpleasant touch of "greenness" to the flavors. Big full body with a rich, coating mouthfeel, drying tannins and decent balance. It has lots of potential, but is still primary, rough and somewhat awkward. Needs lots of airtime right now.
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1-8-10 blind tasting No elaborate notes, but this wine had a distinct green bell pepper character, a lot like many Carmenere's that I've had. Everyone at the tasting had tried the Ventisquero Gran Reserve Carmenere a few days before, and many thought that’s what it was.
This wine had more of a vegetal character than fruit. This is a non-Americanized Authentic Chilean.
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Fabulous Chilean Cab, and although pricey, this is probably comparable to many Cali Cabs or others that are double the price, unfortunately this one will continue to climb the price charts over time as people discover the relative value, this was outstanding and just a bit better than the 'Terrunyo' counterpart we had before that was an even better value, can't wait to try another in a few years - Black/purple, well concentrated with an extreme nose of plum, coffee, cherry, cedar, mocha, tobacco and vanilla, stong tannins, very balanced if at this stage, further complexity will come over time, velvety smooth, dry yet sweet on the palate with great length, stunning (94 Points).
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Decanted for one hour. Loamy soil, earth, fig, blackberry and tobacco. Long finish and well balanced. I think this will improve with some added complexity with additional time in bottle.
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This wine presented very deep ruby red with a strong dark berry and floral aroma. At first pour it had strong a tannic bit, however after an hour of decanting it opened up nicely. This was 1 of 3 Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon we had in a blind tasting at Thanksgiving. This was the clear winner. Blackberry, leather, smoke, some earthy flavors came through. Balance was good after the decanting. Although this was the winner, I think there are better California and Argentina cabs that are of better value.
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A gummy, chewy taste that offers rich plum, red and dark berry flavors. However, I found the finish sorely lacking structure and finesse. While very fruit forward, the wine didn't seem capable of sustaining a long finish and ultimately drank like more o
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I'm committing infanticide in a very good way. This is much more approachable now than the 05 was at this point. Double decanted and have been enjoying over the past hour. Fantastic.
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Not sure if the bottle was corked or not - but definitely not as good as previous years; lack of any body or substance. Left to breathe for a day, but still not too good as others.
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Dark toasted oak and blackberry aromas lead the way. Black currant, smokey tobacco, tar hints, fig compote and dark chocolate add to the complexity across the palate. The finish has a very earthy note and is lingering. A nice balance of fruit and minerality. Another excellent effort. Decant for now.
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4/13/2024 - aveeck wrote: 88 Points
The 2005 showed much better than the 2006 during a vertical tasting.
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3/29/2024 - cubswinws Likes this wine: 96 Points
Really a big surprise as to how good this wine has become. Its really changed over the past decade.
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2/24/2024 - maxima wrote: 89 Points
Bu avec LES FOUDUVIN Chapitre Estrie au
Resto AVV La Suite de Sherby jeudi le 22-Février-2024.
Mieux que les autres bues dernierement.
Assez ample et rond, on a une petite impression de glycérine.
Fruit dense et extrait, primare certains ont mentionnés.
Les tannins sont charnus et la finale très longue.
Un peu brute et tape à l'oeil.
Bien dans ce style.
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12/14/2023 - gpcoleman Likes this wine: 93 Points
Just keeps getting better.
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11/18/2023 - Oddbod Likes this wine: 96 Points
OMG. This so delicious. Pure blackcurrant, blue plum, coffee grinds, truffle, mushroom on the nose. On the palate, so delicious now, really come around after many years so closed. Red fruits, smoke, fantastic acid fruit balance. Absolutely at its peak. I’m scoring high based on pleasure, rather than intricate complexity.
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11/16/2023 - Ethan-ol wrote:
Lcbo Nov 2023 - $617
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11/1/2023 - streethawk wrote:
Tasted at Don Melchor vertical dinner with Enrique Tirado. Very identifiably Chile, with some of the trademark quince and Eucalyptus notes. Juicy and very concentrated. Tons of oak is still making its presence felt with vanilla and chocolate aromatics. I would not have guessed that this wine is 17 years old - youthful in appearance and the palate. Nice to drink now but with plenty in store.
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9/24/2023 - curtr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Nice depth. Went well with Tendercrop Sirloin.
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6/23/2023 - cawineaux wrote: 95 Points
Original purchase and stored in a temperature controlled environment. Bottle decant 2 hours. Drank over 3 hours. Nose of dark ripe fruit and a hint of cocoa. In the glass it didn't show any signs of age. The palate was surprisingly fresh, ripe cherry and plums. Tannins still very present, but not intrusive. Very enjoyable now.
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6/21/2023 - callmeacab22 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Agreeing with many recent notes. This wine is at it's prime now so enjoy. Beyond full body, the wine has a beautiful nose and color and still offers a nice amount of jaminess, but the tannins are now wonderfully smooth with age.
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4/25/2023 - curtr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Resolved, great pairing with a ribeye.
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1/7/2023 - M.Batard wrote: 93 Points
Very dark ruby color, with no sign of aging. Decanted just before drinking. Full bodied. Cassis and plum fruit, with a hint of graphite pencil. Was hoping for other Bordeaux-like secondary notes, but never came. Velvety on the palate, but still some fine tannins left, so I’m imagining it could last a couple more years easily, so will hold onto my remaining bottle.
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12/25/2022 - curtr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted 1 hour. Fully resolved, great pairing with Christmas Prime Rib. Drink now to 2026.
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12/22/2022 - popasq Likes this wine: 94 Points
I concur with previous reviews, this wine is excellent and will not get better, drink now!
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9/16/2022 - libero wrote: 93 Points
By now 16 years old bottle, kept under wine cellar has a dark red ruby color, soft aromas, as most Chilean cabernet. At taste round, prunes, dry figs and a medium to long finishing
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8/22/2022 - jerrysvino Likes this wine: 91 Points
Really at a good spot in it's 16 years. Mellowed out to a delightful wine. Cherry, tobacco, leather, earthy notes and still fruit. Tannins are mellowed out. Drinks like a Bordeaux
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8/3/2022 - wino121 wrote: 94 Points
Yup
That good-
Beautiful wine, in the window.
Drink now
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6/16/2022 - galewskj wrote: 93 Points
Splash decant. This was the last wine of a tasting that had many "bonus" bottles, so pardon the short note. But this was consistent with my expectation for a well aged Don Melchor. Almost bordeaux-ish, great fruit, earth and spice. Leather, violets.
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5/28/2022 - maxima wrote: flawed
Réduite/Déviante
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5/22/2022 - hsacks Likes this wine: 93 Points
Similar to the 5/1/14 bottle except now fully mature and in the second half of its prime drinking period.
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3/27/2022 - gpcoleman Likes this wine: 92 Points
Excellent Cab.
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3/19/2022 - #1 or #2? Likes this wine: 93 Points
colour is dark and opaque. looks younger than i’d have thought. a very attractive old world/bordeaux-like nose on this wine with iron, sanguine aromas, sage. palate is big and full, some nice dark fruit poking through but lots of classy mineral and savoury notes that speak to its quality and age. some nice residual tannin as well as a very nice lingering fennel note (credit to uncle victor’s palate on distinguishing that!) on the long finish. impressive.
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3/19/2022 - Uncle Victor Likes this wine: 92 Points
Thank you to #1or#2 for sharing this bottle with us. This was a first experience for me and a pleasant surprise. Initial impression was that he’d poured a Bordeaux... Well balanced full fruit with graphite, rustic herbs, greasewood. Lively acidity and sinewy tannins with a long finish punctuated with spicy black licorice. This was a real crowd pleaser and a wonderful pairing with grilled steaks, warm company and great memories.
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2/26/2022 - nanoose wrote:
Quite enjoyable but past its prime. Very dark fruit, stewed quality. Cassis, prunes and figs. Spice. Tannnins completely integrated. Long finish.
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2/6/2022 - TMacpherson wrote: flawed
Could have been good but flawed by now.
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1/28/2022 - Thief wrote: 91 Points
Perhaps has passed its peak drinking window. Tannins are soft now but starting to fall apart into a grainy mouthfeel that lacks some structure, tending toward stewed figs and prunes and powdered cocoa. Not enough acid to keep in balance at this point. Still a rich wine with dark fruits. Full body that provides drinking pleasure, but not the harmonious and balanced symphony that Don Melchor can be in other bottles and vintages. Drink now if you have any left--don't wait.
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11/12/2021 - RhinoBetsy Likes this wine: 93 Points
It was surprisingly good. Still plenty of bright red fruits. A lot of oak at the open and and then it trails off nicely; still great after a decade and a half.
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11/10/2021 - doug123 Likes this wine:
Drinking well. Plenty of fresh notes
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10/16/2021 - vlzat wrote: 93 Points
Full body, deep garnet color. Intense black fruits forward aroma complemented by tobacco, pepper and spices’ box. Black currants and blackberry palate following by long liquorice finish. Impressive, bold and rich but too powerful for my taste, albeit velvety and well balanced, integrated tannins and berries’ acidity. Food friendly, well pairing to veal stew. Serve 16ºC - 18ºC. Open half hour ahead. Drink now.
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8/14/2021 - Wine Poor Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very good. Last of several bottles that have passed through my cellar going back to the 2003 vintage.
Unfortunately Don Melchor is now out of my price range.
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5/12/2021 - meatbomb013 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Edging towards a mature wine but with no visual signs of aging. Deep red, nearly opaque. Tannins are fully integrated. Tobacco and a hint of vanilla on the nose. Dark cherry with a hint of vanilla. Very smooth with a extremely long and pleasing finish. Don't think that this will necessarily be better in 10 years but I think that it will still be great at that time.
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4/26/2021 - Uncle John Likes this wine: 92 Points
Mature and beautiful.
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4/7/2021 - maxima wrote: 87 Points
Dense et végétal encore une fois.
Capiteux et asséchant. Ne fait et ne fera pas partie
de mes achats dans le futur...surtout avec
la hausse de prix des dernières années!
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4/7/2021 - Gas Station Wine Guy Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dark fruits, coffee notes with some chocolate & cedar. Tannins still noticeable but softer then last bottle. Medium acidity with great balance. Very tasty and is in the sweet spot.
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3/1/2021 - rmohr wrote: 91 Points
Drinking really well right now. Went great with a couple of T-Bones.
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2/27/2021 - Zed57 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Burly. Charred blackberry pie. Wood and smoke. Kinda slaps you around and then gives you a hug. It still may soften as it matures into old age as Don Melchor tends to do but, although perhaps not everyone’s taste, it is fun to drink now.
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1/22/2021 - GeorgeSW wrote: 93 Points
Very good, time to drink up
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9/12/2020 - ragtop Likes this wine: 95 Points
Wonderful. Very dark color. Not brown or thinning. Bright dark cherry! But over ripe. Has another 10 years left. Drinking well now. Won’t likely improve with more time !but who knows;)
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9/5/2020 - MVW wrote: 93 Points
This wine has really come together. 4 years ago, I was not a fan. Drank tonight with NY strip off the grill, beautiful wine well integrated.
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8/30/2020 - libero wrote: 92 Points
This 14 years old bottle, unfortunately the last one of 2006, it is dark red, dense, round and balanced.
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7/31/2020 - CarpeDiem! Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very seductive nose of cigarbox, tobacco, vanilla. Almost full bodied, dense, very complex, wih generously matured black fruit, cedar, liquorice, cocoa, plum, with lost of charming sweet ones in the background, this hedonist wine is perfect to be enjoyed now. Don't wait too long, because the fruit could shift to overmature aromas at some point.
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7/29/2020 - cubswinws Likes this wine: 92 Points
Complex smoky cabernet drinking quite well at present.
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7/19/2020 - EdgardoJM wrote: 95 Points
Tobacco and leather. Dark friluit. Open the bottle 2 hours ahead and decanted 1 hours before comsuption. Excellent.
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7/17/2020 - maxima wrote: flawed
Réduite/déviante
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7/15/2020 - libero wrote: 92 Points
Dark red Bordeaux style. Aromas of red berries and dark chocolate . At taste is round, balanced tannins and acidity. Day 2 and 3 decayed a lot, loosing its aromas and ending with a bitter taste.
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12/22/2019 - Bottle Dog Likes this wine: 96 Points
beautiful wine, brownish tinge, tannins have mellowed beautifully, followed a bottle of gran reserva rioja.
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12/7/2019 - Bottle Dog wrote: 95 Points
let this decant for 2 hours, loads of tannins and some dark fruit. had the rest of the bottle on day 2, nose was dusty and bottle even more relaxed. a really a great cab that tastes more old world than new.
dark dark red, slight hints of brown.
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11/23/2019 - lvjohn Likes this wine: 96 Points
Wish I had waited for the others to become this wonderful. Deep and rich with an outstanding nose of perfume and sweet fruit. Lovely deep purple with absolutely no signs of deterioration. Very nearly a perfect wine!
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10/22/2019 - redhead6971 Likes this wine: 89 Points
PNP. Ruby with some very slight browning and medium legs. A closed nose offering only black cherry, oak and spice. Palate was thick and oaky with black currants and earthy spices. Finish was also oak laden and tannic with leather and wood. On night two it showed more on the finish with some ash, granite, pumice and dried black cherry. Fairly rich and earthy after 13 years but the wine seems muddled and lacked definition.
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8/22/2019 - maxima wrote: 87 Points
Ouff, encore un monstre de cassis et/ou d`eucalyptus...certains ont encore mentionné
les plants de tomates!
Plus ça va, plus j`ai de la difficulté avec ces super Chiliens,
j`en encave plus depuis ces millésimes 2006, 2007.
Je ne prend rien pour du cash et je ne ne me fit pas aux opinions des autres sur ces vins, je n`aime tout simplement pas.
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8/16/2019 - libero wrote: 92 Points
Still savoring it...
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8/16/2019 - libero wrote: 92 Points
A very good Chilean wine
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8/11/2019 - bruce61 Likes this wine: 99 Points
This was surprising amazing. Decanted for five hours and seemingly as youthful as when it was bottled. Have to believe 13 years ago it was a bruiser...
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8/9/2019 - om42 Likes this wine: 94 Points
This bottle just sang. Amazing balance. Fruit is still popping but tertiary development makes it shine.
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8/1/2019 - Polarper Likes this wine: 94 Points
Dense dark brick red with a medium rim. Sligthly murky nose, rather tight and almost oxidised, but the palate was full of dark red fruits, forest floor and leathery notes. Full bodied and delicious.
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7/20/2019 - Marcyrillo Likes this wine: 94 Points
Delicious. Full bodied, complex and fresh. A long life ahead.
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5/12/2019 - EvanRose wrote: 91 Points
Tight at opening but revealed soft tannins, bright red fruit and good acid, medium finish.
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4/19/2019 - peterk Likes this wine:
This wine is in a great space. With 1 hour in the decanter, we ran out of patience, finished the bottle, and opened another. Nicely integrated and balanced. Big and bold.
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4/10/2019 - lvjohn Likes this wine: 95 Points
Decanted to remove solids. Needs plenty of air time to open, but when it does, it is a beauty. Fully integrated with dark red fruits and spice.
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3/3/2019 - Tire-bouchon Griffin wrote:
Ben du Kabernet pour un souper dans son château
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2/20/2019 - maxima wrote: 88 Points
Un peu mieux mais encore d`un block.
Bourgeons de cassis et eucalyptus encore une fois,
prévisible et constant. Assez tannique et asséchant,
belle longueur avec un peu de chauffe.
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2/16/2019 - redhead6971 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Color was dark ruby red with slight orange on the rim. Nose was filled with currant, coffee grains, oak, black olive, forest floor and cigar box all of which were rather subdued. The palate was still tightly wound full of blackberry and fresh currants along with roasted coffee, and some new saddle leather. The finish despite being tannic from the pop and poured spread out fairly well over the back palate. Night 2 more blueberries and cherries along with some lead pencil on a much smoother palate.
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1/5/2019 - Bowmanifesto wrote: 93 Points
Marvelous sophistication. Stellar Cabernet qualities for all five senses. Suave and luxuriant.
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1/1/2019 - carstenf wrote: 91 Points
NewYearsEve : Dark color , cigarbox in the nose. Earth with a rubber hint.
Very nice and mature now. Drank with Pahlmeyer Cab. 05
Could buy again
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12/31/2018 - TannicBeast Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanted, with a little sediment. Medium (+) ruby color, with very little garnet on the rim. The nose is developing (+), with the black fruit, cedar, leather, tobacco and that green herbal note that is sometimes a marker for Chilean Cabs (or perhaps it is the 4% Cabernet Franc?). The palate is dry, with medium (+) acidity, medium (+), rounded, tannins and medium (+) alcohol (although the label says 14.5%). Fine quality and balance and QPR. Overall, however, based on my experience with other vintages, I expected a little more fruit and depth. Perhaps, at 12 years, it is starting its downhill slide? Drink now, not likely to improve with further aging.
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12/2/2018 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 93 Points
Rich and complex, still a little tinge of alcohol bite, layered and good fruit. Medium finish, soft tannins,
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11/30/2018 - curtr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted 1.5 hrs, then drank over next hour. At peak, great depth & character. Drink over next 5 years. Now-2023.
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11/27/2018 - Ed B wrote: 91 Points
Splash decanted for 20 minutes and drank over next hour at a dinner party. No detailed notes. Should have decanted longer. Nice and smooth at first, but was really beginning to open up into something special at the end.
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8/8/2018 - maxima wrote: 86 Points
Ce fut mon dernier millésime acheté et avec raison...le prix est rendu complètement RIDICULE...132$ pour le 2015!!!
Nez sur le cassis, l`eucalyptus, le plant de tomate, le caoutchouc...il n`a pas changé!
En bouche, après un 3 heures de carafe, il s`assagit
mais c`est tout de même tannique et asséchant.
Cassis, mures et poivrons...la composante végétal me dérange...de même que l`acidité déficiente.
La finale est longue mais trop sèche.
Plus qu`ordinaire en ce moment!
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7/28/2018 - cab blends wrote: 95 Points
Oak nose without the chalk and darker chocolates. A hint of petroleum on the nose too. T7 B7 Acidity with back bone in the finish.
After unveiling: Normally, I find the Don to be singular and a little lacking (ie 90-) but this performed very well. Possibly in its prime and drinking smoothly with a lengthy finish
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7/28/2018 - Millennial Drinkers wrote: 92 Points
Deep garnet red core with a touch of brick. A bit savory on the nose with some interesting characteristics. Followed up by cassis, blackberries, dust and a touch of greenery. Medium tannins (6.5/10) and medium plus bodied. Darker fruit than expected in the palate with some spices, cocoa and something a touch tropical. Medium plus to long finish. Drink till 2025.
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5/13/2018 - CieloVista wrote: 88 Points
....a little bitter at first; needed to open up
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5/5/2018 - sole Likes this wine: 94 Points
Initially dominated by a slightly bitter, coffee flavour. While I was disappointed at the first sip, within 45 minutes, however, this had morphed into a smooth, beautifully balanced Don Melchor. Lovely bottle.
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2/9/2018 - maxima wrote: flawed
Oxydée/réduction!
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2/2/2018 - davidspieker wrote: 91 Points
Nice garnet color with sediment. Musty cellar aroma. Rich and earthy dark cherry and milk chocolate flavors. Smooth.
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1/13/2018 - qtsam11 wrote: 92 Points
PNP into a decanter and drank over 90 minutes. Lots of bell pepper and cedar on the nose. A nice, full mouthfeel. Tannins are softened and the wine is well rounded and balanced. It was a very nice wine that I wish we took a little longer to drink than we did.
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1/5/2018 - jusuf Likes this wine: 94 Points
Very pleasant to drink. Cherry mixed with vanilla. The nose is a bit lacking in filigree. Full body.
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12/25/2017 - sergio anaya Likes this wine:
EXCELENTE - NATAL 2017
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12/23/2017 - hsacks Likes this wine: 93 Points
Similar to the 5/1/14 bottle.
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12/18/2017 - Thief Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very dense. A bit vegetal and with some of the black fruit flavors starting to turn towards "raisined" characters. Still concentrated a layered and delicious but probably has already hit its peak. Drink.
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11/21/2017 - williamswhine Likes this wine: 93 Points
Deep dark purple hue. Classic cab-- white pepper, peat moss, plums on the nose. Sweetness on front end. Dark fruit, smooth, balanced, long finish, and pleasant. Very enjoyable bottle.
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10/29/2017 - Alfaro wrote: 94 Points
PnP, Exceptional, in a very good place right now, still has a ton of structure and backbone to it.
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10/11/2017 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 89 Points
Perhaps it needed more time to open up but it did not wow me. Tannic despite aging, a bitastringent
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10/11/2017 - maxima wrote: 85 Points
Encore une fois, similaire à mes autres notes,
c'est végétal avec du cassis et cette odeur de
caoutchouc brulée qui me laisse un peu perplexe,
vraiment pas dans unce bonne phase et ce depuis quelques années...changera t'il,
c'est à espérer car j'en avais une caisse!
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10/5/2017 - Marcyrillo Likes this wine: 92 Points
Elegant, balanced and fresh. Black fruits, not to much oak. Very pleasant with few years ahead.
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9/6/2017 - hackey37 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Deep purple garnet, opaque, garnet miniscus. Smells are currants, pyrazine, dark cherry, vanilla, smoke and tar. The tastes are cherry, currants, earthy notes, and smoky tatses. Soft tannins and nice acidity.
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7/30/2017 - shank wrote: 91 Points
Has settled down to a point of elegance.
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7/16/2017 - ggtirevite wrote: 93 Points
Took me three different corkscrews but i got the sucker out (dried in part). The wine was still awesome though.
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6/30/2017 - Bluth Likes this wine: 92 Points
Dark ruby, fully open after 2 hours of decantage, medium to full body, rounded tannin, juicy ripeness. Certainly better if can be got under 100 bucks.
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5/31/2017 - lvjohn Likes this wine: 96 Points
Decanted to remove the plentiful solids, then drank almost immediately. By fa, the best DM ever. Deep, luxuriant flavors and terrific mouth-feel. It's been worth the wait.
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5/29/2017 - Rob-Rah Likes this wine: 89 Points
The vaguest hint of a little oxidation in an otherwise lovely bottle. Lacking the gloss and depth of glossy fruit of other bottles. Rather dusty. The best have been bolder in their fruit, and this bottle not truly representative. Scored anyway, as I didn't detect overriding flaws as such. 89+
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3/30/2017 - Kyle_Stewart wrote: 93 Points
This wine was absolutely delicious!! Paid $65 and would gladly do it again. 30 min decant, old world style, nice acidity, not too much fruit, graphite, smoke, leather, cassis and a great old world style mouthfeel w/o being chewy and overbearing. Absolutely loved it and will buy again <$65 ALL DAY
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3/23/2017 - curtr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Tannins resolved, at a good place now. Many good years ahead.
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3/1/2017 - Esteban wrote: 92 Points
Une touche végétale mais pas exagéré. Beaucoup de puisssance mais sans déséquilibre. Très beau vin sans être mémorable.
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1/27/2017 - wineshaman wrote: 92 Points
Last bottle of the cade, earthy, musty, old world nose, the palate is full of cherry, cassis, black tea, tobacco, truffle notes, all nicely balanced. Holding up well!
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1/23/2017 - KeithSurg wrote: 93 Points
Deep ruby with brick edges. Mature Bordeaux nose with sweet tobacco and earth. Dark fruit flavors that seem to be fading, with some damp oak on the finish. Had no food, yet nice on it's own.
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1/20/2017 - jocelyng wrote: 92 Points
Typical nose of medoc: blackcurrant and graphite. Same in the mouth with great length. A little too much acidity in the finish for my taste: would be a 95 wine without it.
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12/31/2016 - Touchais59 wrote: 89 Points
Very smoky taste.
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11/24/2016 - krmcgrath wrote: 91 Points
Dark and red fruit, lots of resolving oak, tobacco and slightly green tannins. Smooth and round. Drink now.
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11/6/2016 - Grinner wrote: 90 Points
20th Annual Lyon 10 Year Retrospective: The Mish Mash (Lyon Den): This bottle underperformed a bit... It has nice cassis / cab fruit with some oak and resolved tannins. Fades quickly on the finish. 88pt on day 2. Don't think I'd save this much longer.
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10/7/2016 - wineshaman wrote: 92 Points
PNP, I had this bottle on its side for a number of years and the bottle age has made this a delight to drink. Old world nose of earth truffles, sadle leather on the palate, with hints of dark cherry, ripe plum and cassis on the palate with fully integrated tannins as the secondary nuances have taken complete control. Based on this bottle, drink up!
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10/3/2016 - maxima wrote: 86 Points
Pas mieux que celle bue il y a quelques mois.
Poivrons verts et eucalyptus, au et en bouche et ce après presque 3 heures de carafe.
Il faut de la patience, en espérant que cette composante végétal s'estompe!
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10/3/2016 - Uncle John wrote: 93 Points
Beautiful once again. Best after an hour of air.
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9/14/2016 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 93 Points
Soft tannins, tobacco and leather, round, medium finish.
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8/19/2016 - Collector1855 wrote: 91 Points
During a Cab Sav blind tasting. Expressive nose with lots of bonbon, raspberry, strawberry, cake. This is far too confectionery for me, I don't even find it inviting to go on and taste it, so sweet is the nose. It is almost as someone has told them - the riper the better. The palate is rich again, velvety tannins. Finishes a bit short, not surprising given the monolythic style. Don Melchor is the flagship CabSav of Concha y Toro, one of the world's largest wine producers. Nevertheless, they have not cracked the code yet how to make a really world class Cabernet, sad it is...
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7/5/2016 - lvjohn Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drinking very nicely right now. Seemed rich and balanced to me.
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7/4/2016 - Chateau du Fey 1994 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Classic Chilean cab. Well integrated but tennis still firm enough to give it a backbone and depth. This could still last several more years but it is drinking nicely now. Great chewy texture with loam and tobacco notes. Only noticeable flaw was that I found the finish a little short for a wine of this quality and complexity.
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6/17/2016 - Rollerball wrote: 91 Points
On the varietal but with a little pizazz. The highlight is the confectionary bouquet. The weight is nice and the flavors are interesting--plum, cherry, sand, sour candy, neutral oak, and chicken broth--but it's not as balanced or integrated--and is no longer as present--as other vintages like the more concentrated 2003. Drink now.
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6/4/2016 - joet626 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very good. Fruity, velvety, delicious
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4/26/2016 - Life At Your Leisure 🍷 wrote: 92 Points
Tasted blind during South American Reds Night. Dark ruby red turning violet at the rim with a transparent edge. The nose is quite powerful and fruity with hints of raspberry, cranberry, beats and spice. It has a full body with a nice, round texture - very smooth and has a solid mid-palate that tapers off attractively and fleshy with hints of dried herbs, earth and smoke. Drink now until 2021. 92+
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4/5/2016 - lvjohn Likes this wine: 95 Points
Tastes great! Decanted to remove the plentiful solids.Lots of cabernet richness without a sense of being S. American or anything but a fine wine. It's well integrated and showing rich red fruits, spice, and some earth notes. Very deep dark purple in color.
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4/1/2016 - IvanKrazy Likes this wine: 90 Points
Very powerful and intense. Very different to what I was used to from Don Melchor. Smoked meat and ripe black fruits are the only aromas I could discern from it. Still good, but not what I was expecting based on previous experiences.
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3/28/2016 - SLIMES Likes this wine:
The last bottle was better than the others, but I don't think this will age as well as some other vintages. Drink now. (Fruit's fading)
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3/21/2016 - wculpepper Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted 375 ml bottle for one hour. Moderate sediment. Deep red-purple color. Flowery nose of blackberries and vanilla. Medium-to-full bodied dark fruit on the palate, well-balanced by acids and soft tannins. Lengthy, fruit-driven finish. Overall, a delightful wine that is drinking very well at this point. Plan to drink my remaining bottles over the next five years, although the drinking window might be longer.
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1/30/2016 - tuzlukov Likes this wine: 96 Points
Tremendous balance with ripe and friendly tannins. A wine with great depth, structure, and persistence.
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1/23/2016 - soyhead wrote:
served to me blind
nose - char
mouth - toasty, complex red fruit. long finish. Liked by Alex.
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1/17/2016 - Uncle John wrote: 94 Points
Decanted for 2-3 hours and this was just spectacular. Beautiful dark rich Chilean Cabernet(97% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Cabernet Franc. Drank wonderful on its own as well as with braised pork shoulder.
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1/4/2016 - lvjohn Likes this wine: 94 Points
Best Don Melchor I've ever tasted. Rich, full, mouthfilling with cabernet berries and red fruits along with a sense of cocoa. Deep purple-red in color. Decanted and let open a few minutes, then drank over two days.
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12/26/2015 - Curtis Cooke Likes this wine: 92 Points
Seemed to be just past its peak, but any given bottle might go the distance. Subtle spice intertwining with mature tannins. On the palate notes of boysenberry and lingering tobacco leaf. A couple hours into it left me fulfilled and wanting more of it. A solid example of single vineyard Chilean cab.
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10/4/2015 - maxima wrote: 85 Points
Bu avec Bulle et Headless au resto AVV Sballo de Sherbrooke!
Nez sur le cassis et un brin végétal, typé Cabernet que j`ai callé au nez, je pensais un gros cab Canadien style Occulus.
En bouche, très extrait, fruits noirs un peu séché et tannins râpeux.
Long et un brin capiteux…le temps ne pourra que l’améliorer.
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10/2/2015 - Poisey Likes this wine: 91 Points
Big nose with blackberry and blueberry fruit. Loads of tar smoke and ash on the finish with lots of dark fruits. Typical Melchor. Silky smooth texture with a great finish.
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9/5/2015 - SLIMES wrote:
Not perfectly stored for all its life but this wine seems to be ready to drink up.
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8/20/2015 - Chateau du Fey 1994 wrote: 91 Points
This wine is drinking nicely now. Tannins have softened and the typical Chilean features are showing well. Liam, oak, black fruit, tobacco. In good balance. That said I'm not sure the wine justifies the price inflation that I've noted over the past few years.
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8/10/2015 - jcasey555 Likes this wine: 90 Points
much better than the most previous bottle. Nicely balanced medium finish.
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7/12/2015 - jcasey555 wrote: 87 Points
has not aged well.
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6/27/2015 - tuzlukov Likes this wine: 96 Points
Tremendous balance with ripe and friendly tannins. A wine with great depth, structure, and persistence.
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5/10/2015 - briquette wrote: 89 Points
Nice elegant wine with lots of complexity but can't shake the green vegetal undertones.
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5/4/2015 - NEwino wrote: 93 Points
This bottle has evolved from my last one nearly 3 years ago. This had a bit less fruit and a bit more dusty notes. This evolution was very beneficial in toning down what my notes called a bit overpowering plum. I feel like this bottle is in a pretty good spot right now and I will be drinking one more in the next 6 months and my last in the next 18 months. Drink now till 2018
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5/2/2015 - Rob-Rah Likes this wine: 95 Points
Ah good - after a few muted ones, this bottle is super. Dark opaque. Young. Nose not very suggestive, but slightly chocolatey, antique furniture, dusty. Some tomato and spice, and the merest whiff of ethereal blackcurrant. Hazelnuts. Delicious initial palate, deep fruit. Cor, really good attack and mouth-coating deliciousness. Coffee, chocolate, Asian spices. Lovely silky texture at first. Round. Some mint and a long lingering and delicious sexy finish. Nice acid propping it all up. However, the tannins are somewhat coarse at the end in this. A little rough unfortunately, bringing up the rear with a bit of heft instead of the grace needed to score higher. Still, this is excellent and the spectrum of sheer flavour is stunning. (95-96)
No idea what's wrong with some peoples' bottles! This is drinking OK without a long decant, but will benefit from a few more years to calm down the tannins a little more. Nothing shows any sign of fading of doing anything other than being being better!
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4/22/2015 - SLIMES Likes this wine: 92 Points
Had at Hawksmoor Air Street. This had blackcurrant, leather and surprisingly high levels of tannin. The fruit seemeed to be fading slightly but this still has some time left in it.
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4/4/2015 - MonkeyBiz101 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Opened 45 mins pre-drinking. Changed significantly over the evening fom dark fruit predominating initially, through cedar, almond(?) on the finish, and ending the night with liquorice. Enjoyable, and complex wine. Real weight, so needs to be drunk with food.
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3/7/2015 - Poisey Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tar, rubber, wood smoke, plums and currants. Complex and seductive. Robust finish with sweet blackberry and blueberry fruit, iodine and ash. Lacks that zip. Sensing it a little dull. Just starting to decline. But still In a good place now so drink up. Decanted 2.5 hours.
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2/21/2015 - Chainthroer wrote: 93 Points
Consumed at a party. An excellent Cabernet. Aromas and flavors of black cherry, blackberry, hints of mint and chocolate, oak. The tannins seem pretty much resolved - soft and velvety in the mouth. Rich and intense fruit. Score 93-94.
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2/17/2015 - spendergast Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted 20 minutes. Notes of currant, cherry, cedar, damp earth with nice balance and well integrated tannins.
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2/12/2015 - GalvezGuy Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decided to check in on this. Popped and poured. This was singing straight out of the bottle with black currant, blueberry, sour cherry, and mint on the nose. On the palate, dense, toeing the line without being overdone. Flavors of currants, cherry, blackberry, and mocha. Long finish with plenty of grip. Not sure where this goes from her but in a pretty good spot right now. Drink or hold.
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1/30/2015 - Hazevedo Likes this wine: 92 Points
great wine
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1/21/2015 - rocknroller wrote: 94 Points
Wednesday Nooner (Rocknroller's (Kevin & Vicki's Place)): Very dark red/purple color. Decanted for 2 hours and followed several glasses over 4 hours more. This was slow to evolve and went through an awkward phase in glass that was very woody and even had a bit of heat, but man did this change over the first hour. Once this hit its stride it kept improving over 3 hours and reminded me a nice Graves. The nose is brambly at first, dark fruits, blackberry, black cherry, subtle eucalyptus that comes in after 20 minutes or so and fades over the same time; there is a nice smoky, scorched earth element along with the minerals and oak. The palate transforms from a somewhat thin in the middle wine to a more full bodied, black fruited gem with scorched earth, blackberry, blueberry, soft tannins oak, and gravelly minerals. This clearly will benefit from more cellar time, but develops well over 3 hours plus. My advice would be to decant for 3 hours and then follow over a few hours to be well rewarded. 93+ to 94pts.
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1/9/2015 - tuzlukov Likes this wine: 95 Points
Let it breathe a lot to get rid of the "Jerez"
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1/9/2015 - dontime wrote:
Rather disappointing. If scoring 88-90.
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1/1/2015 - iamandyc Likes this wine: 93 Points
Wonderful as usual. Plus body and richness. Dark fruit with earthy notes. Good nose and finish. A touch oaky yet.
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10/11/2014 - Tarrant wrote: 96 Points
Haven't posted notes lately, drinking much less wine of late but this was a blockbuster and probably the better of the 2 bottles we had, the other being the 2004 Clos Apalta this evening, we had our last bottle of this vintage 4 years ago, and it's only got better, much smoother and integrated, simply stunning and one of the best bottles we've had in recent memory - Black/purple, full bodied with an extreme nose of plum, cigar box, cedar, mocha, tobacco and vanilla, very 'new world', but quite balanced with many years to go, silky smooth, dry yet sweet on the finish with incredible length, one of Chile's and the world's best (96 Points).
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10/4/2014 - LFCHALA wrote: 92 Points
It is not very complex. However, it has a huge balance between its components. This delicious right now.
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9/21/2014 - djlevin Likes this wine: 93 Points
Round the World Cab/Cab Blend Blind Tasting (My Home): After 3 hour decant. This was a surprise! I have tasted Don Melchor before, but this was my first bottle with a chance to do a serious decant. This note is being written the day after, so specifics are limited. The mouthfeel with this wine was extremely silky. My favorite wine of the night despite some vegetal flavors on the finish. Fruit forward, good acidity, very balanced with subdued tannins. The tannins have resolved substantially... this is your drinking window. Enjoy!
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9/14/2014 - Son888 wrote: 95 Points
95 points surprise with the quality of this wine full bodied powerful yet balance , had this with wagyu rice and a piece of slow cook wagyu cheek. great
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8/17/2014 - shellylowen Likes this wine: 93 Points
Blackberry, cocoa, great nose finish. Decant for an hour, truly opens up.
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8/1/2014 - BHP1994 wrote: 86 Points
Not sure if this was a tainted bottle or if it was just in a bad place. Came highly recommended but did not live up to the hype. Muted. Alcoholic with an off, almost garbage like, nose.
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7/8/2014 - srigo wrote: 98 Points
Excelent
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7/1/2014 - SLIMES Likes this wine: 91 Points
I really enjoyed this although it is a bigger style Don Melchor than I've had in the past, so I can see where terms like 'porty' are coming from. I'd agree that this is at the begining of what could very well be a long drinking window. I'm going to try and hold out for another two years until my next bottle.
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6/29/2014 - artist777 wrote: 93 Points
Popped and let stand for about an hour. Herbal nose. Medium plus viscosity. Much different experience with this bottle. Initial palate of bright cherries / raspberries changes to more dark fruit with slight menthol on the finish. Great acidity and balance. Drinking very nicely.
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6/26/2014 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 92 Points
Aged very nicely, smooth, probably could have been decanted to allow it to fully open. Medium finish, slight eathiness, great mouth full.
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5/18/2014 - jcasey555 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Pleasant cab, drinking well at this time.
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5/9/2014 - Brett and Megan Likes this wine: 93 Points
aroma - black raspberry, cedar, chocolate, smoke; taste - spicy herbs, hot, sweet berry, dirt, forest floor, mushroom
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5/1/2014 - hsacks Likes this wine: 93 Points
Same characteristics as the 8/4/10 bottle except now at beginning of peak drinking period.
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3/20/2014 - Winiac wrote: 92 Points
Pure and ripe fruit. Well balanced. Good new world wine with restraint and class.
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3/15/2014 - DugyDog Likes this wine: 90 Points
Minty, menthol nose and flavors. smooth, tannins are sweet and resolved. lots of fruit…not quite jammy but very full dark fruit.
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3/8/2014 - wineshaman wrote: 88 Points
PNP, cola, menthol nose, tart plum, cherry,mineral notes, not jammy, quite dry, seems old world, this bottle lacks the structure & concentration to be great!
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3/7/2014 - Bull Dog 21 Likes this wine: 90 Points
P&P - A good bottle of wine but nothing wow... Smelled of earth and leather but tasted of coffee with hints of blackberry not much finish whatsoever, maybe would have been better with a decant?
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3/4/2014 - AlanM68 wrote: 91 Points
Blackcurrant. Big wine. Plenty of flavour. Developed nicely after 3 hours in the decanter. Full on new world Cabernet style. None of the port like textures that others have said they saw. Coats the mouth nicely with good length.
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2/23/2014 - artist777 wrote: 91 Points
This was a little muted at first, however it did open up over time. There was some light fruit but it was more herbal at this point with some menthol on the finish. Enjoyable but seemed a little closed at this point.
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2/15/2014 - drum-wine Likes this wine: 93 Points
Kaffee, Tabak (Snus), sehr würzig und kräftige, mit deutlichen Tannine. Auch Zwetschgen und Zimt.
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2/8/2014 - khmark7 wrote: 86 Points
Lacking the tension and grip of prior vintages. Tastes over ripe with similarities to some out of balance 2005 Bordeaux. This will go well with grilled burgers, but it is not my style this vintage....maybe not until they reign in the ripeness.
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2/2/2014 - Uncle John wrote: 93 Points
Very nice once again. Beautiful dark fruit that drank best after 2 hours in the decanter.
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2/1/2014 - C Mackay wrote: 85 Points
I used to love Don Melchor. After opening multiple bottles of this vintage I can confidently say, this wine has become a overly sweet, almost port like expression of cabernet. While this was always a fruit forward, new world style it has gone too far and I no longer enjoy this wine. So much so, I poured that last bottle down the drain. I thought the first bottle or two might have been tainted, but there is no way that this was the case as I have had with multiple bottles from multiple sources...too bad.
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12/23/2013 - fredericotm wrote:
Almoço de Natal (Leo+Fe, Negreiros+Fabi, Freddi+Elisa+Komi) Emiliano
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11/28/2013 - maxima wrote: 86 Points
Nez sur les poivrons verts et l'eucalyptus.
En bouche, c'est ample et un peu asséchant en ce moment. Long avec un peu de chauffe en finale.
Bien mais les attentes étaient plus grandes...à revoir!
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11/28/2013 - Bowmanifesto wrote: 92 Points
I opened this bottle by "accident", mistaking its paper wrapping for Altus. Happy error! Don Melchor is a rocking Cab, Chilean-style. Deep purple in the Riedel, with massive legs, featuring deep aromas of berries and brambles. After an hour in the glass, initial alchohol aired out, and the sumptuous texture reigned. Blackberries, dark cherries, toasted oak and Thanksgiving spices all blended together, reaching a nice long finish of tamed tannins. Shared with Jesse by the fireplace.
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11/24/2013 - RobertB321 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Aromas of green bell pepper with dark fruit. Finish is not too long. Not too tannic. Green bell pepper is on the initial taste. Not too sweet. Some bitter dark chocolate at the very end.
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11/23/2013 - PSPatrick wrote: 91 Points
We decanted the wine for 90 minutes before we poured the first glass. It was dark ruby in colour and offered black currant, cherry, bell pepper, dark chocolate and tobacco as well as hints of eucalyptus and mint on the nose. On the palate the wine showed sweet fruit, black currant, dark cherry, bell pepper, chocolate, some spice and some eucalyptus, paired with medium-plus lively acidity, medium-plus well-integrated tannin, a good, rich, slightly creamy mouthfeel and incredible length. The full-bodied wine was dense and powerful yet balanced. An outstanding Cabernet; would buy again. Drink now and over the next four to six years.
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10/18/2013 - Uncle John wrote: 93 Points
Slow O for 3-4 hours. Beautiful dark fruit with mild acidity and smooth but present tannins. A little more compact than the last few bottles, probably should of decanted for and hour. One of my favorite wines from South America. I think I bought these for $50 at the SAQ.
*After 24 hours the wine improved with a more expansive mouth and a longer finish. 94+ on day 2.
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10/12/2013 - americanstorm Likes this wine: 93 Points
needs at least 2 hr to start to shine
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10/12/2013 - Pimenta Likes this wine: 93 Points
Realmente é um grande vinho. Equilibrado, taninos aveludados e álcool no ponto certo. Nariz com especiarias, na boca levemente frutado, com notas de baunilha e chocolate, complexo e estruturado.
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10/3/2013 - Lyubomir Lefterov wrote: 94 Points
Though young it is approachable now. It comes out with lifted aromas of black fruits and a touch of red berries, oily, earthy tones. Full bodied with good acidity, made for the long run but fun at the moment as well.
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9/13/2013 - bubbachumps wrote: 90 Points
Nicely structured wine, good flavor profile, but the nose had an overwhelming herbaceous aspect that detracted from the experience for me. Other than that, cassis and a touch of leather on the nose and pretty well integrated in the mouth. Has plenty of life ahead of it.
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8/9/2013 - danielbleier Likes this wine: 93 Points
consistent with notes of 2/4/2012 - but the green pepper noted on the first 2 bottles never appeared - just lush coffee, plum, and licorice backed with leather and tar.
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7/20/2013 - iamandyc wrote: 91 Points
Drank over three days with decanting/aerating. Typically dark and oaky profile for more recent vintages of this wine but not over the edge. Fruit is able to balance out the earthy, tarry notes - makes me wonder the oak treatment and the toastiness of the barrels they use. Good nose that matches the palate with a long finish. Heavy bodied
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7/16/2013 - @VisserMartijn Likes this wine: 94 Points
APPEARANCE: clear; deep ruby; medium legs & tears
NOSE: clean; pronounced intensity; flavour characteristics: black fruit (blackberry, black cherry, cassis); developing
PALATE: dry; high acidity; full body; high tannin; high alcohol; long finish; pronounced flavour intensity; flavour characteristics: as per nose: black fruit (blackberry, black cherry, cassis), liquorice, white pepper
READINESS FOR DRINKING: can drink now, but has potential for ageing
FURTHER REMARKS: Fantastic chewy wine with great body and intensity balanced with nice fruit. Already reasonably complex, but still in its adolescence.
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5/17/2013 - MarioD wrote: 93 Points
My first Don Melchor so my expectations were high. Decanted for about an hour. Nice nose of dark fruit. Outstanding mouth feel - very silky. Palate of dark fruit. Not Napa like but excellent nonetheless. Great balance. Met expectations.
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5/16/2013 - markandsusanw wrote: 91 Points
Strained and decanted approx. 2 hours ... Some nice fruit to open; subtle but distinct. An almost Italian like mineral-note took over on the mid-palate, and the finish was med-long, dry and very earthy. The tannins were present, but well-integrated and, all told, it came together and drank quite well, particularly paired with food. That being said, at this price point, it's a pretty lousy value.
I've actually found the $60-$80 price range, for most labels, pretty disappointing. Rarely does it wow you enough to make it feel like money well spent, beyond our normal $25-$45 fare.
... Susan's birthday, 2013.
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5/12/2013 - Grayvino wrote: 89 Points
Started off before the decant, smelling terrible. Many of us thought this wine was oxidized, but we left it and hoped it would blow off. It did in fact blow off and turned in to a very nice wine, but not achieving the scores that we are reading about. For 70 dollars i can find better.
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5/11/2013 - VinoDiver wrote: 93 Points
Smooth, lush, good balance.
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5/4/2013 - joet626 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Rich and lush with plenty of dark fruits flavor. Outstandingly balanced. This is as good as Cab gets. Loved it, as usual.
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4/24/2013 - KikeG wrote: 93 Points
Excellent as always. Very nice and powerful cabernet. Each sip revealed something different. Excellent QPR.
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4/12/2013 - czotter613 wrote: 93 Points
Beautiful. Perfectly balanced after a 30 minute decant.
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3/23/2013 - Sijan Likes this wine: 94 Points
This was fantastic! Deep, dark, rich cab with notes of cedar and spice. Expressive nose, smooth mouthfeel with silky tannins, long finish.
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3/1/2013 - ralevine wrote: 91 Points
Member son888 review is perfect. Nice wine and actually pleasantly surprised. Enjoy on both nights
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1/1/2013 - Brunellobuddy wrote: 94 Points
- Garnet color.
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12/25/2012 - robertdtwo wrote: 89 Points
Enjoyable...berry most prominent, but didn't seem to enjoy this as much as I remember in the past.
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12/24/2012 - leesullivan Likes this wine: 89 Points
Mello smell, strong berry taste. Good wine. If made in Napa, one of many good wines. In my opinion not a great value, which is what I am looking for when I drink a Chilean wine.
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12/23/2012 - dedalover Likes this wine: 96 Points
Décanté 3h. Beau nez de cassis et de goudron. En bouche, il est juteux à souhait avec des saveurs de fruits noirs et d'érable. Le tout est balancé avec une précision incroyable... La finale est un peu courte mais TRÈS crémeuse.... Coup de coeur
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11/27/2012 - wpd wrote: 87 Points
Deep purple, tannic, a bit bitter on the palate. Pleasant nose. Tasted and drank a glass on opening, decanted for hours, then 24 hours. Tannins mellowed, taste of bitter cherries. Interesting wine. May have potential years from now.
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11/18/2012 - Son888 wrote:
- Garnet color with medium forming legs. It's balanced with a full body. Smooth texture with a long finish - Drinking very well right now complex, long finish, silky...
94pts
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11/1/2012 - bablues wrote: 90 Points
Got the touch of mint as other described. No detailed notes. Very good, but didn't blow me away.
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10/31/2012 - heldermramos@gmail.com Likes this wine: 93 Points
Aroma complexo de frutas negras e especiarias, persistente e prazeroso. Na boca carnudo, estruturado, belos taninos redondos, bastante equilibrado. Ótimo vinho
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10/31/2012 - Colia wrote: 90 Points
Tasted at Bordeaux blend event. Whiff of VA. Very fine grained texture and big body. Chocolate notes and ripe berries.
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10/21/2012 - diane.forgy@dianeforgy.com wrote: 91 Points
Needs a good decant, a very powerful wine. Dark, rich, hedonistic fruit and firm tannins. Bought at a shop to bring to a dinner while traveling on business in Puerto Rico. Would have been better if properly cellared and decanted. Although still very good, felt heavy.
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10/15/2012 - jaxpaj wrote: 93 Points
Popped and poured a sip and almost dumped! There was a terrible bite that stayed with me for an hour. I vacuum sealed and put it back in the cellar. Tried again a couple of days later and it had lost the bite and turned into a smooth and mellow beauty.
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10/15/2012 - wineshaman wrote: 90 Points
PNP, rich and concentrated, dark currants/cassis, black plum, hints of chocolate and vaillia. Still needs a year or so to fully intergrate. 90+
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10/11/2012 - Jayarr wrote: 90 Points
Soft and fleshy which surprised me. We thought it had a great aroma, very dark color with dark berry, coffee and a touch of mint.
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9/22/2012 - jonysan Likes this wine: 92 Points
From the bottle, deep aromas of dark fruits and smoky meat. Decanted a few hours. Drank wonderfully. Flavors of black berry, plum with smoky meat aromas carrying over to the taste. Hint of herb and mint at the tail end. Velvety tannins and a nice long finish. Good balance made for a very enjoyable wine paired with BBQ rib-eyes.
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8/25/2012 - Bcw1989 wrote: 91 Points
Very balanced and comes Cab. Decanted and is ready to drink. Very dark, almost black look to it. Notes of coffee, even leather too the taste. Drink now. Not much to this wine to age for added taste. Good beginning to the evening.
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8/14/2012 - JohnOnWine wrote: 95 Points
Wonderful.
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7/9/2012 - NEwino wrote: 93 Points
I opened this at Ryan's with some friends and let it sit probably not long enough but about 30 minutes. The nose on this wine was elegant and smooth with what I thought were dark plum hints. The nose made you want to drink this wine and that is when you realize this is just a baby and this bottle has a lot more time left in them. Don't let the nose fool you this is a powerfull but refined wine that in time the nose will match the juice. I will not be touching my next bottle for at least a year. Enjoy now to 2018
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7/2/2012 - danielbleier wrote: 93 Points
consistent with prior notes of 2/14/2012, except on 2nd day the green pepper notes fade away
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6/25/2012 - 3daywinereview.com wrote: 92 Points
South American Tasting (Jan's House): Really young. Decanted and Vinturi treated for 3 hours. Dark purple. Tannic with tobacco, red fruits, spice and floral notes. Medium to long finish. Hold for five years. 92-94.
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6/14/2012 - mrmedoes wrote: flawed
Ahhh the risk of buying wine in the Caribbean... Only slight up front, massive flaws on finish, and given any amount of oxygen, only worse.
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4/29/2012 - Rob-Rah wrote:
An anoying experience compared to the previous two bottles I have had. Three hour decant. The wine just stubbornly refused to open up. Splashed from jug to jug for a while, and emphatic swirling in glass brought some more aromatics and depth. But this petulant bottle refused to show well. "I'm not coming out to play!"
I think I'll leave off from the rest for 5 years.
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4/11/2012 - franco rosso wrote: 95 Points
Such an elegant wine. Soft berries on the nose with plum and slight leather. The nose changes as you whirl it in the glass. The taste is the payoff. Great powerful taste, but in an elegant fashion. this wine is so totally integrated that you don't know what to expect next and you are surprised when it delivers more and more. I heartily recommend this wine.
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4/3/2012 - Sauvyfan Likes this wine: 92 Points
I was very impressed with the depth of flavor and great balance of this wine. I questioned whether this would live up to its price tag. But I'd buy it again.
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4/2/2012 - silton wrote: 93 Points
april fools wine tasting; 4/1/2012-4/2/2012 (Scott & Todd's): 4/1/1/0 1st/2nd/3rd/4th place votes in this flight, so clearly WOTF. Wonderful combination of power and complexity. Cassis with a bit of lavender, mineral infused blackberry, dark chocolate, medium sweet oak and just a hint of thyme. Carl's WOTD and one of my top 3 wines of the day. Drink with a good decant or hold. Deserving of its international pedigree.
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3/1/2012 - SommelierSargent wrote: 93 Points
Medium-ruby with hints of garnet. Strong boquet of forest floor right out of bottle but, other than that the nose is pretty closed. This wine on the palate is COMPLETELY different. This wine offers such amazing, complex, and deep layers of spice, oak, fruit, earth and cedar box. Dark, young berries welcome the flow of this wine onto the palate followed by notes of white pepper, clove, graphite, and a very enjoyable inky-ness to finishing fruity/leathery characteristics. 90% of what I drink is middle to high end Napa Valley Cabernet Savignon, and I absolutely love this wine. There is so much complexity in the flavors of this wine I couldnt even imagin what it would be like in 15 years. Good now through 2027+?
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2/20/2012 - Schiffy Likes this wine: 93 Points
Wonderfully integrated dark fruit with smooth tannins make this Cab a terrific wine. Must decant for an hour to fully appreciate the complexity of tabacco, coffee, leather and currant. Finish lasts for 30+ seconds.
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2/10/2012 - The Wine Guy wrote: 93 Points
you can not drink this with out inhaling the cedar, oak, tobacco, currant, black cherry, balanced tannins and a long finish this remains one of my favorite old world style wines a hit with friends matched with a new world cab. Cheers. Drink now or hold all is good.....
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2/4/2012 - danielbleier wrote: 92 Points
initial nose of coffee, oak, and prune. Licorice and plum palate when tasted...4 hours later, some of the oaky nose has blown off, and I get great plum, currant and coffee on the nose. Plum, fig, licorice and tobacco with some slight green pepper when tasted.
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2/3/2012 - Sethbo11 wrote: 93 Points
Strong nose of leather and tobacco on the first night. A little disjointed but still excellent. After another day, this really came together beautifully. 92 first night 94+ on day 2.
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1/14/2012 - Engelund wrote: 93 Points
Iltet 1½ time, ingen bundfald. Dybrød farve med flotte gardiner. Duften er afdæmpet og ikke kraftig men toner af bær og vanille. Smagen er utrolig fyldig og til dels kompleks, tanninerne er stramme men flot balanceret. Drukket til lammeculotte og ovnbagte rødbeder. Perfekt match med lidt syremodspil fra rødbederne og fedt i kødet til de stramme tanniner. Gemmepotentiale flere år endnu.
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1/9/2012 - texaswinelover wrote: 92 Points
Riper than I remember. Lacking secondary development but not unexpected given it's youth. Smooth tannins. Mild herbaceous quality. Less pronounced than last bottle. I enjoyed this but still riper than I truly prefer. No distracting flavors/aromas.
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1/6/2012 - Kento61 wrote:
Color: bright ruby-red; Bouquet: expressive and complex chocolate, black cherry and ripe plum mingle with coffee and cassis; Taste: red fruit features in a dense, full-bodied wine whose fine, ripe tannins lead into a big, long and juicy finish. Quuite tight upon first opening. Best to let stand one hour or more.
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1/3/2012 - DavidDay wrote: 94 Points
Consumed over two days, it took until the second day for the fruit to really come out in this wine,balancing the spicy herbaceous. Tremendous, just not in the typical California super-ripe style.
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1/2/2012 - Rob-Rah wrote: 94 Points
Basically similar to the last note, though this one had 2 hours decant and still needed more..... opened up nicely in the glass, but still a little less open than previously, which makes me score it a point less.
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12/25/2011 - A&C wrote: 94 Points
I was very curious about his wine. Initially, there was a lot of funk and sulphur in the wine. It took a couple of hours for the funk to blow off. Once it did, this was an incredible wine. It has a depth of fruit and texture that is on par with the best wines on any continent. Not only was the Cab fruit on perfect display in a unique terroir profile, but the texture of the wine reminded me of the texture I've previously experienced in first growth bordeaux wines. This was a real treat. Give it 3-4 hours to open up. If you do, you will not be disappointed in any way.
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12/12/2011 - Josevft wrote: 96 Points
Awesome wine!
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12/2/2011 - atwkite wrote: 91 Points
Some interesting notes on the nose and palate, kind of a blend of new and old world styles with fruit and terrior, but way too tart from mid palate to finish. For the same price, higher end Aussie Cabs have a similar style but better balance (Shirvington or 707)
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11/27/2011 - leonardo_de_araujo wrote: 94 Points
Cassis (blackcurrant), very ripe plums. Dark chocolate(coffee even), thyme and rosemary. Great nose!!
Silky tannins (that could benefit from a few years of ageing still).
Very powerful. Great concentration yet very elegant ... Wow wine!!
Peppery finish. Very long, blending it all together.
Very very good
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11/26/2011 - Al-Vino wrote: 92 Points
Excellent balance, depth and complexity with a captive nose. This is an outstanding wine made with the softer, more elegant european style in mind. Food friendly wine without being over the top. Needs two to three hours of air before it really shines - a pop and pour would be a diservice for such a quality bottle.
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11/1/2011 - williamswhine wrote: 93 Points
Wow... big, powerful red. Dense, deep dark fruit, oaky, tobacco, full bodied, long finish. Great with beef-- totally enjoyed by the dinner party.
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10/23/2011 - Rob-Rah wrote: 95 Points
One of the finest bottles of wine I have been privileged to consume.
Up-ended and splashed into a big jug to sit for 90 minutes before sampling.
Bouquet deep and penetrating, complex mix of wood, graphite, deep, deep fruit. Blackcurrants. A little liquorice and smoke. A little coffee. Palate velvety and lush. Sweet, deep. Chocolate. Fruit. Some spice. Long aftertaste devloping. Hedonistic and seductive. Pefect balance of tannins and acid. A marvellous drinking experience. This is drinking perfectly. With age will come more complexity, but probably not for the long-haul. My brain, nose and mouth are still re-living the experience a day later.
95+ points. £50 at the moment in the UK, and going up... I really ought to save money to get more of this.
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10/22/2011 - brouigu1 wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for 1 hour and served with beef tenderloin. Slow out of the gate but once it warmed to room temp this Cab was singing. Solid dark fruit, coffee/mocha mix and hints of spice on the nose. On the attack the fruit carried on with dark cherry and perhaps raspberry, coffee and more mocha and the mid palate. Well structured, tame tannin and drinking very well right now. Should hold for several more years!
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10/18/2011 - Uncle John wrote: 93 Points
Decanted this for an hour before having with dinner. For me this is better than most Cali Cabs at this price point. Lovely nose with ripe fruits and spice. The palate is long deep with a touch of that Chilean funk that makes me love Don Melchor. Yes this is getting better with age.
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10/8/2011 - vsbastosx wrote: 91 Points
Lots of coffee on the nose. I've also got some cherries, raspberry, floral components. Full bodied with gentle tannins and medium aftertaste. I was expecting something more complex.
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10/1/2011 - LesterKwong wrote: 91 Points
Dark purple in color. Heavy nose of graphite, lead and dark ripe fruits. Surprising medium in body with lush tannins and a low acidity making it a. It flabby. Round dusty tannins with tons of ripe dark fruits in the mouth. Well made.
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9/28/2011 - Samsara wrote: flawed
Goûté lors de la dégustation Salud Chile !
organisée à Montréal aux Entrepôts Dominion
le 28 septembre 2011 par l'agence publicitaire Exacto
35 domaines et leurs producteurs
Plus de 175 produits
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9/23/2011 - jaxpaj wrote: 94 Points
The green notes that dominated the wine last year have faded and now just add a nuance to the wine. Silky smooth with great depth.
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8/24/2011 - garambler wrote: 94 Points
I opened this with friends after the Delille vertical tasting on 8/24/11. It had a beautiful, rich and fragrant bouquet of cassis, black cherry, cedar, smoke, mocha, anise and spice aromas. The palate was big, rich and well integrated with flavors of black cherry, cassis, licorice, spice, mocha and cocoa. It has developed very nicely over the last 18 months. 93+
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8/19/2011 - jpizquierdo wrote: 95 Points
i´m writting this after i drunk it... then, difficult to do a really good tasting note. but i can say this will be one of the unforgetable wines i had , really good and tasty .
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7/27/2011 - Zingrrl wrote: 92 Points
Drank with cousin Brian. Didn't take notes (silly me) but it was very, very good. Remember the tannins being just right.
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7/10/2011 - witkinddavis wrote: 91 Points
Young needs a couple more years
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7/9/2011 - kaptainreboot wrote: 92 Points
- Brick color with slow forming legs - Can you say mouth full of CHOCOLATE? extremely long finish that is well balanced. If you like big complex South American wine you will savor this treat.
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7/8/2011 - cknibb wrote: 84 Points
Too much green pepper, acid & heat for me. This wine is too over done for me. Many other better options at this price.
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7/6/2011 - Bernt Olav wrote: 92 Points
Beste Cabernet Sauv. jeg har drukket utenfor Bordeaux.
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6/26/2011 - hsacks wrote: 93 Points
Similar to the 8/4/10 bottle except this time I decanted the wine for 45 minutes. Great with my wife's grilled skirt steak.
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6/4/2011 - Heyward wrote: 93 Points
Super rich and fruity with deep ruby garnet color, balanced complexity and wonderful mouthfeel. Had with Steak Diane and it paired wonderfully. Excellent nose and finish. A very nice special occasion wine that will be enjoyed with every sip.
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5/29/2011 - farinas Likes this wine: 94 Points
Excellent complexity, plummy nose with balanced taste and long berry-infused finish
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5/28/2011 - Uncle John wrote: 93 Points
Let this slowly open over 8 hours. Deep dark full bodied wine. Light toast mocha and dark fruits. Rich voluptuous palate with tannins and acidity in balance. A beautiful south american cab that is good to go now or will surely age and improve over the next 5+ years. 93 points non blind. The Don Rules!
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5/27/2011 - Empirate wrote: 92 Points
Dark color with earth and mushroom aromas. 2+ hour decant and the taste moderate in complexity with earth, oak, and mineral. Tannins had softened but not silky and finish wrapped up too soon. We really enjoyed this with aged cheddar/onion/mushroom cheeseburgers, yumm 92+. Will think twice about one or two more when on sale but at this price point many other nice options and I will have to wait and see if the memory lingers or fades.
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5/27/2011 - erichrod wrote: 94 Points
Vertical with 2005 and 2007. It's the best.
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5/14/2011 - Surfdoc wrote: 91 Points
Aromas of green pepper and cassis. Similar flavors with moderate oak on the finish. Med-full body with nice density but not over-extracted. Tannins were moderate and gave nice grip to the finish.
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5/4/2011 - kstoddard Likes this wine: 90 Points
Blind Night (Jock): Almost black in color. Aromas of black fruit and eucalyptus. Tastes of blackberry and currant. Well balanced. Rich finish with some tannins and a touch of alcohol on the finish. My guess was a new world cab blend. Rick's 2nd bottle.
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4/15/2011 - cooberp wrote: 90 Points
Notes from memory. Definitely an oaky, dark fruit-forward, and fuller-bodied modern wine, but not oppressively heavy or overextracted. Soft and rich.
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4/7/2011 - aagrawal wrote: 90 Points
Wine Enthusiast's Toast of the Town (City Hall, San Francisco): Very interesting nose of roasted bell peppers. Tannic structure but well balanced. 90+
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3/31/2011 - jcasey555 wrote: 90 Points
Much better after a day
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3/29/2011 - jeanluc07 wrote: 91 Points
note to self: way tooyoung to drink. initially falbby but pulled together after 2-3 hours in open bottle. black fruit, and lots of slightly tart tannins, toasted oak detected. nothing special now but could be special in 5 years.@ 45$ its an OK buy for now.
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3/21/2011 - ecola Likes this wine: 92 Points
A killer wine. Drinking tight right now, but promises a lot more. Very aggressive black fruit flavors and aromas. Very sweet and gripping tannins.
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3/3/2011 - joshwoodward wrote: 93 Points
Corks: South American (Rossford, OH): Italian-style nose, with lots of stinky tar. Delicious. Smooth. Green notes, fennel, good acid, light tannin, big but refined. Creamy.
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2/26/2011 - texaswinelover wrote: 93 Points
Classic new world Cabernet with a touch of greenness/herbaceousness. Developed very nicely over two nights with smooth tannins and disappearance of first nights distracting finish. Should evolve beautifully.
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2/20/2011 - ricegpa wrote: 95 Points
This wine was fabulous. I should have grabbed the remaining 6 bottles.
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2/17/2011 - robertdtwo wrote: 92 Points
Very slight musty funk quickly blew off to reveal berry, graphite and mineral notes.
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2/2/2011 - vegasoenophile wrote: 90 Points
- Tasted at Wine Spectator New World Wine Experience 2010
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1/25/2011 - Double-A wrote: 88 Points
Concentrated dark ruby colour. Smoky, toasty, cassis, woodspice and tobacco nose. Full, flavourful and balanced with a slight, Bretty iodine note on the finish.
3.5/5
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1/22/2011 - Matt Scott wrote: 94 Points
Decanted for two hours. A violet-garnet, with a ruby rim. Sumptuous crushed lava rock, dark chocolate, cough syrup, sage, espresso, dark cherry and pencil lead, while resonating blackberry through out. Captivating in every sense, with a long finish and soft, silky tannins with the right amount of presence. A voluptuous mid-palate that is complex and round. What a finish! Very classy and there's enough tannin and acidity to allow a fair amount of time in any dark cellar. I would have guessed that this was from Bolgheri before Chile. Always an outstanding producer making a wine that has developed one hell of a fine pedigree. Drink now- 2022.
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1/22/2011 - Matt Scott wrote: 94 Points
Decanted for two hours. A violet-garnet, with a ruby rim. Sumptuous crushed rock, dark chocolate, espresso, dark cherry and pencil lead, while resonating blackberry through-out. Captivating in every sense, with a long finish and soft, silky tannins with the right amount of presence. A voluptuous mid-palate that is complex and round. What a finish. Very classy and there's enough tannin and acidity to allow a fair amount of time in any dark cellar. I would have guessed that this was from Bolgheri before Chili. Always an outstanding producer making a wine that has developed one hell of a fine pedigree. Drink now- 2022.
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1/9/2011 - rickspicks wrote: 93 Points
This was a much better bottle than I opened about a year ago. This was what I expected - big nose of sweet, ripe, dark berry: oak, vanilla, licorice and some earthy notes. Rich, layered and lush on the palate with nice balance and a smooth mouthfeel. Good structure and a nice long, fruity finish.
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12/22/2010 - chd850 wrote:
N: concentrated nose of currant, swiss candy
M: full-bodied, sweet, good amount of tannin and spice, muscular, great fruity, sweet mouth.
Not much complexity, yet concentrated, solid, fruity cab. Pure joy to drink.
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12/21/2010 - wineotim wrote: 86 Points
A reallly intense nose of cassis and currants...got me primed for tasting, but delivered somewhat mixed results. Lots of tar, bacon fat, and muted fruit on the palate with a hot finish. Had with deep dish pizza. I have a difficult time trying to be impressed by any SA wines, they are few and far between...in my experience.
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12/11/2010 - wineshaman wrote: 88 Points
Great nose, rich currant, cassis and dark chocolate. Not as impressive on the palate, with decent concentration of dark fruit and chocolate notes, that turned quite harsh on the finish. Needs time to intergrate. 88+
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12/10/2010 - Vilse wrote: 92 Points
Popped and poured with friday pizza. great ending to a very wierd week at work.
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12/8/2010 - Mr.Overhill wrote: 93 Points
Lush and rich youthful cab with controlled tannins. Its nose has great complexity - dark cassis sweet cotton candy mixed with red candy apple still wet from dipping and a background of choclate toffee . On the front of the mouth its got great fruit balance (more chocolately cassis and bright bing cherries) while the midpalate is fat and rich, not at all overpowered by tannins. Great long finish with a wonderfully dark fruit aftertaste. I didn't expect to enjoy this Melchor so much at this young stage.
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12/3/2010 - oeno8105 wrote:
What a disappointment. All hype and no substance. Never again.
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11/6/2010 - mye wrote: 91 Points
Dark brooding purple. Nose distinctively Don Melchor chocolate, coco, blackberries.
Good with a lamb shank
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10/23/2010 - krmcgrath wrote: 91 Points
Big dark extracted fruit. Lots of oak influence but its tucked well into the whole. A little green on the finish, but I think this has a lot of upside given time.
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10/17/2010 - OneLastSyrah Likes this wine: 91 Points
14.5% ABV. I opened this the previous night and left if corked in the cellar. Translucent dark garnet. The nose struck me as sharply herbal with secondary mocha and currant. Later I thought I perceived some sandalwood. Medium full bodied on palate with rich black currant fruit, some cigar tobacco and a continuation of the herbal note from the nose that overall reminds me of several Sonoma Valley Cabernets I have tasted. This still has some structure, but is drinkable now. Not bad, but this has a pretty modest QPR.
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9/13/2010 - hutch wrote: 92 Points
Delicious. Big and bold. Maybe I love it so much because of experiences I've had in the past, but I'm pretty into this wine. 92-93
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9/5/2010 - bambam wrote: 91 Points
Reserved nose. Nice carmel, pine, green pepper. This is not a flavor profile I usually go for but in this wine it works. Mid palate is sweet and ends with a smooth smokey tar finish. The balance here is really nice. A few more years will be good to this wine. Drink 2014+
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8/30/2010 - jarjarbinx99 wrote: 90 Points
Puissant, beaucoup de bois même goût de brûler (Empyreumatique). Les fruits sont encore bien camouflé et même peut-être un peu étouffé pour l'instant par la barrique. Tannins également puissant. Gagnera grandement à être vieilli. Tout de même très intéressant, mais pas nécessairement un bon RQP.
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8/24/2010 - TD2Irish wrote: 93 Points
Decanted one hour, tar, tobacco, dark fruit, smoky, with a nice grip. This wine fills your mouth and has a long enjoyable finish. Still showing its youth this wine is drinking well now but will improve with additional time in the bottle.
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8/16/2010 - vinodolphin wrote: 94 Points
Luscious dark berries and chocolate. Our 4some really appreciates a good wine and we were all very impressed. Grilled steaks, great friends and a great wine. It may not last until 2022 but the tannins were evident and has years of good drinking ahead.
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8/13/2010 - mdkraft99 wrote: 92 Points
Overall agree with other descriptions-- aerated and decanted about 1 hour in decanter and glasses; very nice dark red appearance in the glass; nose is a bit muted, smoke/charcoal and hint of tobacco, maybe a little touch of green pepper; tastes wonderful, definitely get some dark cherry and still get the smoke and tobacco, good tannins, just a touch of heat on the end; nice balance and mod-long finish; good now, got better as the night went on, but definitely will get better with some time in the cellar. Wonderful!
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8/10/2010 - kaptainreboot wrote: 92 Points
Still so young! Muted nose but great tannins. Day one was chard wood, black fruit & very well ballanced in structure. Second day was silky, chocholate & quite smokey.
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8/4/2010 - hsacks wrote: 93 Points
Deep youthful red color. Aromas of blackcurrants, tobacco and cassis. Ripe, highly extracted fruit in the mouth with excellent structure, depth and length. After about 30 minutes, the tannins started to melt away and the wine took on a silky, tongue-coating texture. Delicious with the great mixed grill at Hoof and Fin Restaurant in Philadelphia.
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7/26/2010 - srkool wrote: 95 Points
Nose was not as impressive as I had expected. However, the taste was just spendid and only got better as time went on. Decanted for 1 hour at which time I began tasting it. After 2 hours, you could taste deep dark cherry and dark plum flavors. By the time I reached 3 hours, the taste was a slighty sweet cherry taste...just wonderful. What was surprising was the smoothness and soft tannins considering the vintage...it was something that I did not expect. This was just a wonderful bottle of wine and one that I will be purchasing more of. I never expected to say this but this has been one of the better wines from my cellar that I drank in 2010.
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7/20/2010 - Mig22 wrote: 90 Points
Score will go up with more age. Loved the softness and the smoke. Big fruit as expected but the nose is a bit muted. 45 minutes breathing in the glass wasn't sufficient. End of the bottle was getting better with every sip.
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6/5/2010 - NiklasW Likes this wine: 91 Points
Part of Virtual Community Tasting Event VI. Popped and poured, allowed to open up in the glass for about 40 minutes. A rather dark red to the rim, not much purple here. The nose is not very expressive, but not entirely reticent either. Notes of cassis and some tar pushing through, and a slight bell pepper thing going on. This is obviously very young, but does have the signature of a well-made wine on the nose. Very full-bodied on the palate, lots of cassis, plums and other dark fruits, quite a bit of tannins and a bit sweet, this is rather fruit forward at the moment. After a couple of hours open, notes of tobacco come out, but otherwise this remains a fruit-forward, well-crafted wine. I would definitely leave this for 5 years in the cellar before trying again. 50+5+11+17+8=91
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6/1/2010 - TheEngineer wrote: 93 Points
This was the only wine of the night that was purely CS. Very deep in colour, serious in nature, tobacco, dark fruits. On the palate, there is a serious structure and density that said mountain fruit. Serious enough for me as to be described as being focused. I don’t think I’ve ever said that about a Cab before. Impressive.
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5/1/2010 - Clarkmeister wrote: 88 Points
Wine Spectator's Grand Tour Las Vegas 2010 (The Venetian): Muted nose. Crushed by the superior Almaviva on one side of them and Clos Apalta on the other.
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4/30/2010 - ews3 wrote: 91 Points
Wine Spectator Grand Tour 2010 (Ronald Reagan International Trade Center, Washington DC): nose of smoked brisket and charcoal. palate shows nice fruit, with quite a bit of smoke. medium finish turns a bit hot after 10s.
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4/26/2010 - robertdtwo wrote: 91 Points
From tasting earlier vintages I expected more jammy plum notes, but this was leaning a bit more towards tobacco with a light cherry side and undertones of spice and an almost undetectable licorice/anise presence. It was delicious, but give this a bit more time and your patience should be rewarded. Not as overly tannic as some suggest, but I would still allow time for more integration.
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4/25/2010 - spineguy wrote: 92 Points
Opened and decanted 2 hours. Rich and smooth. Thought it was going to be way too young to drink but was not disapointing.
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4/1/2010 - fekfouri wrote: 91 Points
Nose is more open than the 2005. "Fruit bomb". Lots of fruit and jam, leather and cedar. Long finish, powerful body. I prefer the other.
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4/1/2010 - smphelps wrote: 88 Points
Royal puple. Nose has dark fruits but mostly unrevealing. On the other hand, the alcohol is enought to make your eyes water at the first sniff. Soft almost "old" tanins that give the wine a feel of being older than it is and the wine has great mouthfeel. That said, seems on the tight side, and you just can't quite get away from that alcohol as it evaporates.
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3/14/2010 - garambler wrote: 92 Points
We drank this with grilled T-bone steaks on 3/14/10. The bouquet was very nice with cassis, black cherry, tobacco, cedar, mocha, toast, licorice, anise and spice aromas. The palate was powerful and well balanced with flavors of cassis, black cherry, mocha, licorice, anise, toast and spice flavors. It had young and aggressive tannins and a moderate 35 second finish. It needs bottle time to better integrate.
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3/14/2010 - ilm-pape wrote: 90 Points
In a blind tasting of cabs and zins with 7 other people, 6 of 8 us confused this one for a zin vs. a cab. Most at the tasting are very experienced and nailed most of the others on the head (Pride Vinter's Reserve Cab, Beringer Reserve, Seghesio Zin, Marietta Angeli, etc.). A solid wine overall, very nice fruit just not full bodied and a lot of heat for 14.5% alcohol. I think the heat actually threw people off for "spice" on a zin? Again, very good but just confusing -- guess I am drinking too much California cab to understand the Chileans yet. Or, this one just may need more time to live up to the higher published ratings that I have seen...
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3/13/2010 - Ryan D Likes this wine:
Robust and still young, but enjoyable now. This is a powerful wine, even after a Barbaresco. Given it's drinkability and yet ageability, I'll open a bottle a year to see how this evolves.
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2/27/2010 - djdaqm Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very fruit forward on the nose with smells of blackberries. On the palate there's good concentration, more dark berries, lots of oak and vanilla. Has a waxiness to the oak, and I wouldn't be surprised if this were American oak. A bit of leather flavor too. Well defined tannins and fairly layered. Length of 40+ secs. Very nice wine and will improve with age.
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2/10/2010 - jkramer65 wrote: 94 Points
REALLY young and tight but looks to be something extraordinary in the future. won't be tasting another for a long time.
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2/8/2010 - jaxpaj wrote: 88 Points
Very green. Wait at least 5 more years before opening. I can see why the ratings have been high but even after double decanting it still was very tight and young.
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1/30/2010 - jeremy_ross wrote: 90 Points
Drank this a couple of weeks ago. I remember it having a strong green chile and a generally unripe vegetable flavor. Probably needs time.
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1/24/2010 - AndersZ wrote: 94 Points
Silky smooth, full bodied and just enjoyable. Similar in style to some of the best and biggest fruit bombs, except that it's not a fruitbomb. It was frightingly easy to drink for such concentration. For me the wine was like a very good performer but not an artist, it does everything so right but it doesn't have the quirks which can take it sky high.
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1/21/2010 - Philly NQ King wrote: 92 Points
Can you give a wine 92 points and still be disapointed? I agree with a previous note that it tastes more like an upscale Marques de Casa than a flagship wine. I really enjoyed this wine, but prefer the Almaviva.
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1/16/2010 - gunpwdr wrote: 91 Points
Chilean and new world all the way. Like a richer, tastier Marques de Casa Concha. Who would have thought? Lots of plums, anise, currants, pencil lead on the palate... in very rich and lush fashion. Good tannic structure and acidity. The wine feels nice and taut.
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1/11/2010 - rickspicks wrote: 92 Points
Strong medicinal smell when first opened that took a long time to blow off. Full, fruity, sweet flavors dominated by black currant and boysenberry, with some oak backing things up - flavors are similar to a Napa mountain cab, but without the austerity. At the same time, there is a slightly unpleasant touch of "greenness" to the flavors. Big full body with a rich, coating mouthfeel, drying tannins and decent balance. It has lots of potential, but is still primary, rough and somewhat awkward. Needs lots of airtime right now.
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1/8/2010 - TJolley Likes this wine: 93 Points
1-8-10 blind tasting
No elaborate notes, but this wine had a distinct green bell pepper character, a lot like many Carmenere's that I've had.
Everyone at the tasting had tried the Ventisquero Gran Reserve Carmenere a few days before, and many thought that’s what it was.
This wine had more of a vegetal character than fruit. This is a non-Americanized Authentic Chilean.
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1/2/2010 - Tarrant wrote: 94 Points
Fabulous Chilean Cab, and although pricey, this is probably comparable to many Cali Cabs or others that are double the price, unfortunately this one will continue to climb the price charts over time as people discover the relative value, this was outstanding and just a bit better than the 'Terrunyo' counterpart we had before that was an even better value, can't wait to try another in a few years - Black/purple, well concentrated with an extreme nose of plum, coffee, cherry, cedar, mocha, tobacco and vanilla, stong tannins, very balanced if at this stage, further complexity will come over time, velvety smooth, dry yet sweet on the palate with great length, stunning (94 Points).
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12/29/2009 - SMG wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for one hour. Loamy soil, earth, fig, blackberry and tobacco. Long finish and well balanced. I think this will improve with some added complexity with additional time in bottle.
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12/28/2009 - tommyvernieri wrote:
I tasted a well balanced, but somewhat sugarfied fruit bomb. It did have some very nice pepper on the finish.
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12/21/2009 - rdesmeul wrote: 93 Points
Will get better. The eucalyptus notes are not as strong as in the '95 and '97 but they are present. Good balance of acidity and tannins.
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12/4/2009 - DJSeiler wrote: 91 Points
This wine presented very deep ruby red with a strong dark berry and floral aroma. At first pour it had strong a tannic bit, however after an hour of decanting it opened up nicely. This was 1 of 3 Chilean Cabernet Sauvignon we had in a blind tasting at Thanksgiving. This was the clear winner. Blackberry, leather, smoke, some earthy flavors came through. Balance was good after the decanting. Although this was the winner, I think there are better California and Argentina cabs that are of better value.
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10/8/2009 - nycebo wrote: 83 Points
A gummy, chewy taste that offers rich plum, red and dark berry flavors. However, I found the finish sorely lacking structure and finesse. While very fruit forward, the wine didn't seem capable of sustaining a long finish and ultimately drank like more o
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10/7/2009 - peeks13 wrote:
A Night of Classic Cabernet (9/23/2009) (Wine Discount Center Barrington): Didn't show well, not in a Chilean"green" sort of way but more medicinal in taste. Would like to believe it was an anomaly. Pass on the rating.
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7/25/2009 - Schu wrote: 93 Points
I'm committing infanticide in a very good way. This is much more approachable now than the 05 was at this point. Double decanted and have been enjoying over the past hour. Fantastic.
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7/4/2009 - nogohawk wrote: flawed
Not sure if the bottle was corked or not - but definitely not as good as previous years; lack of any body or substance. Left to breathe for a day, but still not too good as others.
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5/2/2009 - ews3 wrote: 92 Points
Philadelphia Wine Festival (Marriott, Philadelphia PA): chocolate notes most prominent, but this had some greenness on the palate that I didn't enjoy as much as prior times I've had Don Melchor
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5/2/2009 - jrobs7777 wrote:
The Eighth Annual Philadelphia Wine Festival (Philadelphia Marriott Downtown): Good, but I'm not sure it lives up to the hype. However, at this price point it is still good value.
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2/21/2009 - whynblog wrote: 93 Points
Dark toasted oak and blackberry aromas lead the way. Black currant, smokey tobacco, tar hints, fig compote and dark chocolate add to the complexity across the palate. The finish has a very earthy note and is lingering. A nice balance of fruit and minerality. Another excellent effort. Decant for now.
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