Showing way above it's pedigree, this bottle was rocking tonight. Very clear hue. A fairly stinky nose with good high tone, nice spice, licorice, and garrigue to spare. In the mouth it's got a medium red fruit character, very pleasant attack and good length. The finish has a bit of bite or I'd give this a couple more points. Overall it's a nice treat to pull out mature CDP on a random Friday night, enjoy it, and then find out it cost $21 back in the day. Drink now, probably has a couple more years on it. Glad I didn't open sooner.
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Consistent with previous bottles, mixed red and black fruit and Asian spices on the nose. The palate is a bit muddled with predominantly red fruits, strawberry and red cherry, it's a medium minus acidity which is what I think is driving the lack of precision. Drink up.
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This wine tastes fully mature. The fruit is still there, but starting to fade a little. Nice accompaniment with grilled leg of lamb. One bottle left in cellar. Drink sometime within the next year, maybe as one of our Thanksgiving wines
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Finally got to one of these 10 years (to the day) after purchase. Brambly black cherry, licorice, cough syrup, tree bark, and tons of black pepper. Drying tannic finish that emphasizes the alcohol and makes the wine taste fairly hot overall. Almost all CDPs I drink these days make me wonder why I bought so damn many of these over the years. They have always been pretty cheap but I am often searching for the charms.
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Still trying to hold on, but was fading fast. This bottle has undertaken many moves w/ me (as evidenced by it being a bit further along than I would have liked), but still showed its Lesec-essence very well. Held its own v. mid 2000 Turleys & mid 2000 Channing Daughters' reds w/ stuffing.
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Very consistent with my last bottle, I am definitely going to drink through the remaining bottles as they appear to be still holding on, but on the decline.
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Ripe, mixed, red and dark fruit, red roses and fig on the nose. Saturated red fruit on the palate, almost sweet, with hints of vanilla. Not overly expressive, drink up.
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Decanted about 30 minutes. Ruby red with bricking at the rim. Cassis, cherry, dried herbs, smoked meat, and pepper on the nice and very open nose. Medium body with ripe, integrated tannins and very nice acidity. On the palate the pepper and garrigue pops out and the fruit veers more towards raspberry. Nice length on the finish with just a bit of an herbal element adding to the complexity. Very nice CdP in its prime.
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Delicious...at peak maturity now (though may hold comfortably for another 3-4 years). Balanced with sweet fruit that required about 30 minutes of air to fully emerge...
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Very enjoyable but not very complex. Lots of very ripe fruit, as mature as it is going to get, a little bit of Grenache character, but mostly a Parker wine. Very well done, and not cloying, perfect for EZ drinking or people not used to European wine.
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Palate is soft, showing good red Grenache fruit and sweet garrigue, sweet and pretty and tasty, but far from profound. And then, with air, the TCA emerges.
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Popped and poured. Deep garnet to brick hue. Nose showed dark berries, forest floor, and a bit of anise. Nice balance on the palate of dark fruit, a bit of earthiness and spice, and soft tannins on the finish.
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Rosh Hashana. This has a very polished, sleek exterior, yet underlying that there is some wild raspberry and complexities like grilled meat and some garrigue. The tannins seem soft. I get the overall impression that this is a manupulated wine rather than an entirely honest one. Not a bad wine, but not something that I would seek out.
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Gorgeous ruby, red brick color. Upon opening, the nose on this baby was not revealing much, although some dinstinct herbal and spiciness going on. This seemed rather hot (14% EtOH) and disjointed. After 2 hrs in the decanter, with some fairly vigorous swirling, this was drinking MUCH better. Now, the kirsch, meetiness, slight spiciness (owing to the small amount of syrah, I presume), and some dry twig, were all coming through. Much more "Rhone-y"). Started out at 86pt, but rose to 90 after decanting. I'm more in agreement with WA than with WS regarding the drinking window. I'd hold for several more years.
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Somewhat disappointing. After two hours it finally showed some classic CdP taste and smell. But the fruit never really came through. I recently purchased the bottle and I wonder if it was stored improperly. This tasted nothing like the 2001 Galets Blonds I had a few years ago.
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Shocking wine, RT opened this. Utterly awesome nose, tons of earth. Based on color I thought it was past its prime, but this is a young exhilirating wine.
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This wine is showing beautifully after an hour and a bit in the decanter. Deep red in the glass, and the nose is intense and powerful with flavours of meat, cherry, smoke and spice with a bit of alcohol showing as well. Full, rich flavours of red fruits and meat follow in the mouth with the concentrated fruit balancing firm tannins, and the only (slight) downside being a finish that fades a tad too quickly.
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definitly better with food (pici with lamb ragu),overall quite smoky. a little thin on the midpalate. generally, just not so enjoyable. would not buy again. without food, 86 points, with food 88-89.
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Nice nose and lots of stuffing on the palate, but this is a bit disjointed and too hot for me. I doubt it will improve. Lovers of big grenache who aren't averse to high alcohol will surely like this more than I did though.
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Dark ruby color. Nose of pepper, strawberry, cherry, and earth. The mouth feel was nice with full body and very nice finish. Drink it now or lay it down for 6-8 years.
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At the first sip out of the bottle my wife declared it felt hot so I decanted and we hoped this would evolve. The color was a brick-red which seemed a bit odd because the wine is still young. The finish was a bit thin but over time it became spiced with pepper and cloves. This wine never did hit its stride and my wife preferred the rest of an Arrowood Cab we had from the prior night.
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My last two bottles were completely different from my earlier TN. Great nose, interesting notes of garrigue and earth, but the wine was shut down hard. Didn't give up much after 2-3 hours of air. I'll chalk it up to bottle variation.
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This wine is definitely ready to go. Sweet cherry and earth, with a whiff of brett to keep things interesting. A touch of heat on the finish. Overall, quite elegant and food-friendly.
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Good at first, but much better after an hour in the decanter. The nose is powerful and enticing. As others have noted, smoked meat and spice (clove in particular) with a bit of black pepper. Not a heavyweight, but it has excellent balance and is drinking great now. At $26 this is a real bargain for a quality CdP.
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Deep ruby red color and an interesting nose...muted smoked beef and spice with a light pungent cherry backing. Very smooth entry and middle with a grip on the end that has some hang time. Pleasant and rounded fruit texture with an even balance of tannic structure to keep it all in place. This grows on you...
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9/30/2020 - Brain Capers Likes this wine:
Excellent aged CDP, drinking very well, plum, and fruitcake. Enjoyed with some grilled hanger steak.
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1/15/2016 - grossie Likes this wine: 92 Points
Showing way above it's pedigree, this bottle was rocking tonight. Very clear hue. A fairly stinky nose with good high tone, nice spice, licorice, and garrigue to spare. In the mouth it's got a medium red fruit character, very pleasant attack and good length. The finish has a bit of bite or I'd give this a couple more points. Overall it's a nice treat to pull out mature CDP on a random Friday night, enjoy it, and then find out it cost $21 back in the day. Drink now, probably has a couple more years on it. Glad I didn't open sooner.
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4/24/2015 - Bill Bucklew wrote: 88 Points
Consistent with previous bottles, mixed red and black fruit and Asian spices on the nose. The palate is a bit muddled with predominantly red fruits, strawberry and red cherry, it's a medium minus acidity which is what I think is driving the lack of precision. Drink up.
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2/15/2015 - rocknroller wrote: 90 Points
Monthly Tasting Group: CDP's and Southern Rhones (Meritage, St. Paul): Notes were pretty well gone by this point, just a taste and I thought it was very good.
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1/30/2015 - Neurowine1 wrote:
This is better than the last bottle but still not all that attractive. Still quite drying on the backend. Died hard after one day.
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10/20/2014 - DeanaLynn wrote: 93 Points
Excellent, full-bodied, fruity taste with hints of black cherry and spice.
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7/5/2014 - mouton45 wrote: 90 Points
This wine tastes fully mature. The fruit is still there, but starting to fade a little. Nice accompaniment with grilled leg of lamb. One bottle left in cellar. Drink sometime within the next year, maybe as one of our Thanksgiving wines
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4/19/2014 - Neurowine1 wrote:
Finally got to one of these 10 years (to the day) after purchase. Brambly black cherry, licorice, cough syrup, tree bark, and tons of black pepper. Drying tannic finish that emphasizes the alcohol and makes the wine taste fairly hot overall. Almost all CDPs I drink these days make me wonder why I bought so damn many of these over the years. They have always been pretty cheap but I am often searching for the charms.
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2/10/2014 - calodo2011 Likes this wine: 89 Points
Still trying to hold on, but was fading fast. This bottle has undertaken many moves w/ me (as evidenced by it being a bit further along than I would have liked), but still showed its Lesec-essence very well. Held its own v. mid 2000 Turleys & mid 2000 Channing Daughters' reds w/ stuffing.
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2/19/2013 - Bill Bucklew wrote: 88 Points
Very consistent with my last bottle, I am definitely going to drink through the remaining bottles as they appear to be still holding on, but on the decline.
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1/4/2013 - Bill Bucklew wrote: 88 Points
Ripe, mixed, red and dark fruit, red roses and fig on the nose. Saturated red fruit on the palate, almost sweet, with hints of vanilla. Not overly expressive, drink up.
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10/21/2012 - mouton45 wrote: 91 Points
drinking beautifully now. Had it with griled chicken fajitas and grilled veiggies
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8/11/2012 - Vino Me wrote: 90 Points
Opened with memphis style dry ribs. Old world. This had an underbrush and menthol character.
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5/8/2011 - cbbrown3 wrote: 91 Points
Decanted about 30 minutes. Ruby red with bricking at the rim. Cassis, cherry, dried herbs, smoked meat, and pepper on the nice and very open nose. Medium body with ripe, integrated tannins and very nice acidity. On the palate the pepper and garrigue pops out and the fruit veers more towards raspberry. Nice length on the finish with just a bit of an herbal element adding to the complexity. Very nice CdP in its prime.
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11/10/2010 - cubswinws wrote: 89 Points
Bricking around the edges. Subdued nose. Soft and still decent fruit. Nice but time to drink up.
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11/9/2010 - Employee500 wrote: 90 Points
Delicious...at peak maturity now (though may hold comfortably for another 3-4 years). Balanced with sweet fruit that required about 30 minutes of air to fully emerge...
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10/16/2010 - Tree512 wrote: 89 Points
Very enjoyable but not very complex. Lots of very ripe fruit, as mature as it is going to get, a little bit of Grenache character, but mostly a Parker wine. Very well done, and not cloying, perfect for EZ drinking or people not used to European wine.
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9/20/2010 - branman1986 wrote: flawed
Worst corked bottle I've ever come across
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5/7/2010 - Pknut wrote:
Palate is soft, showing good red Grenache fruit and sweet garrigue, sweet and pretty and tasty, but far from profound. And then, with air, the TCA emerges.
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10/28/2008 - Spencer wrote: 90 Points
Much better than my last bottle. Balanced, mature. Smoke, blood, garrigue.
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10/25/2008 - inkana wrote: 90 Points
Popped and poured. Deep garnet to brick hue. Nose showed dark berries, forest floor, and a bit of anise. Nice balance on the palate of dark fruit, a bit of earthiness and spice, and soft tannins on the finish.
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9/29/2008 - Pknut wrote:
Rosh Hashana. This has a very polished, sleek exterior, yet underlying that there is some wild raspberry and complexities like grilled meat and some garrigue. The tannins seem soft. I get the overall impression that this is a manupulated wine rather than an entirely honest one. Not a bad wine, but not something that I would seek out.
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2/16/2008 - Haggis wrote: 90 Points
Gorgeous ruby, red brick color. Upon opening, the nose on this baby was not revealing much, although some dinstinct herbal and spiciness going on. This seemed rather hot (14% EtOH) and disjointed. After 2 hrs in the decanter, with some fairly vigorous swirling, this was drinking MUCH better. Now, the kirsch, meetiness, slight spiciness (owing to the small amount of syrah, I presume), and some dry twig, were all coming through. Much more "Rhone-y"). Started out at 86pt, but rose to 90 after decanting. I'm more in agreement with WA than with WS regarding the drinking window. I'd hold for several more years.
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12/27/2007 - davidutallen wrote:
Somewhat disappointing. After two hours it finally showed some classic CdP taste and smell. But the fruit never really came through. I recently purchased the bottle and I wonder if it was stored improperly. This tasted nothing like the 2001 Galets Blonds I had a few years ago.
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11/22/2007 - the godfather wrote: 94 Points
Shocking wine, RT opened this. Utterly awesome nose, tons of earth. Based on color I thought it was past its prime, but this is a young exhilirating wine.
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9/14/2007 - Diane (LI) wrote:
Simple and light - strawberries and mushrooms. The Lesec collection drank better a couple of years ago.
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6/16/2007 - salil wrote: 90 Points
This wine is showing beautifully after an hour and a bit in the decanter. Deep red in the glass, and the nose is intense and powerful with flavours of meat, cherry, smoke and spice with a bit of alcohol showing as well. Full, rich flavours of red fruits and meat follow in the mouth with the concentrated fruit balancing firm tannins, and the only (slight) downside being a finish that fades a tad too quickly.
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5/29/2007 - Florida Keys Girl wrote: 88 Points
definitly better with food (pici with lamb ragu),overall quite smoky. a little thin on the midpalate. generally, just not so enjoyable. would not buy again. without food, 86 points, with food 88-89.
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3/22/2007 - Spencer wrote: 87 Points
Nice nose and lots of stuffing on the palate, but this is a bit disjointed and too hot for me. I doubt it will improve. Lovers of big grenache who aren't averse to high alcohol will surely like this more than I did though.
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2/24/2007 - Tejano wrote: flawed
Corked...
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9/26/2006 - Halcyn wrote: 91 Points
Dark ruby color. Nose of pepper, strawberry, cherry, and earth. The mouth feel was nice with full body and very nice finish. Drink it now or lay it down for 6-8 years.
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9/24/2006 - Winetex wrote: 85 Points
Not flawed but not really drinkable either. Lots of astringency on the nose and palate probably due to alcohol. A single bottle that hit the sink.
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7/22/2006 - Arch57 wrote: 86 Points
At the first sip out of the bottle my wife declared it felt hot so I decanted and we hoped this would evolve. The color was a brick-red which seemed a bit odd because the wine is still young. The finish was a bit thin but over time it became spiced with pepper and cloves. This wine never did hit its stride and my wife preferred the rest of an Arrowood Cab we had from the prior night.
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4/30/2006 - Siggy wrote:
My last two bottles were completely different from my earlier TN. Great nose, interesting notes of garrigue and earth, but the wine was shut down hard. Didn't give up much after 2-3 hours of air. I'll chalk it up to bottle variation.
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4/5/2006 - Siggy wrote: 90 Points
This wine is definitely ready to go. Sweet cherry and earth, with a whiff of brett to keep things interesting. A touch of heat on the finish. Overall, quite elegant and food-friendly.
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3/6/2006 - jim dixon wrote: 92 Points
Good at first, but much better after an hour in the decanter. The nose is powerful and enticing. As others have noted, smoked meat and spice (clove in particular) with a bit of black pepper. Not a heavyweight, but it has excellent balance and is drinking great now. At $26 this is a real bargain for a quality CdP.
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2/21/2006 - Tejano wrote: 90 Points
Deep ruby red color and an interesting nose...muted smoked beef and spice with a light pungent cherry backing. Very smooth entry and middle with a grip on the end that has some hang time. Pleasant and rounded fruit texture with an even balance of tannic structure to keep it all in place.
This grows on you...
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2/10/2006 - mbieweng wrote: 87 Points
Not the greatest for a CDP. Heavy licorice and alcohol. Maybe too young?
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