Cellared since release. Light gold color. Fine mousse. Yeast, brioche, nutty aromas with peach and apple on the nose. Perfectly mature with complex mix of fruit and aged oxidative nutty notes on the palate, great balance, medium-long finish. Should hold for a few more years but unlikely to improve further. Excellent.
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Depending on your threshold for oxidative notes, this is either over the hill or an interesting wine with a nice patina of age - hence the lack of a score. The golden color lets you know what you're in for. The nose is heavy with oxidative and autolytic notes and the fruit has a baked quality to it. On the palate is has a ton of brioche, nutty oxidative notes, baked apples, meyer lemon, ginger and an odd vanilla note towards the finish that I can only guess came from barrel fermentation. This probably has the finest mousse I have come across in a domestic sparkling wine and it is one of the real strengths of the wine. I think this probably would have been a little better a few years back, but it isn't horrible. The larger takeaway is that these wines don't have anywhere near the arc of maturation that you would expect from Champagne.
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Quite dark yellow in colour, with aromas of macerated Apple, some stone fruit, and toasted notes, palate was still bright with the fruit showing well and medium plus acidity and finish, cellared since release.
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Cellared since release. Very light gold, nice mousse. More fruit than toast/bread on the nose: peach, tropical, plus some floral honeysuckle notes. Medium body, crisp fresh fruit, great balance, medium fish. Excellent.
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Bold and rich creamy texture. Wonder how it will age. Lacks some acidity, but perhaps it is because of its age? I will try to find another couple of bottles to cellar.
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This was flat out amazing! Just gorgeous bright, vibrant yellow fruit....laser cut of lemon/lime citrus, chalky minerals, tiny refreshing bubbles. Couldn't believe how fresh and alive this is at age 11! And to go with the freshness...wonderful complexities of caramel green apples, honeycomb, brioche, citrus blossom florals, crushed shells. Perfect feel with the tiny bubbles, great airy and creamy mousse......just fantastic! The best domestic bubbly I've ever had.
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Shared with Grafstrb. WOW! This was absolutely fantastic. Gorgeous nose of creme broulet, brioche and toast. Just a gorgeous nose. Crisp and lively on the palate, we could not have picked a better way to start the night. Went well with the Tuna Tartare that was prepared as it cut through the food. A joy to drink. long finish with the flavors of the nose going all the way through to the end.
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BODY: golden yellow color with a hint of tan throughout; (forgot to note wine’s weight).
TASTE: wonderful papaya and guava fruit flavors; hint of butterscotch; great acid; almost like an aged Roussanne. Very nice effort. This is drinking beautifully right now. Was a decent pairing with the tuna tartare: I thought the tuna made the wine better, but the wine didn't make the tuna better. yonster's bottle.
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Purchased direct from cellar club. Stored at 55 deg, chilled, popped and poured. Beautiful light golden color. Very fine bubbles. Flavor was deep but not overpowering with good balance of acidity. Excellent dry sparkling!
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11/30/2019 - dbg wrote:
Cellared since release. Light gold color. Fine mousse. Yeast, brioche, nutty aromas with peach and apple on the nose. Perfectly mature with complex mix of fruit and aged oxidative nutty notes on the palate, great balance, medium-long finish. Should hold for a few more years but unlikely to improve further. Excellent.
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4/21/2017 - Seafoam Manor wrote:
Depending on your threshold for oxidative notes, this is either over the hill or an interesting wine with a nice patina of age - hence the lack of a score. The golden color lets you know what you're in for. The nose is heavy with oxidative and autolytic notes and the fruit has a baked quality to it. On the palate is has a ton of brioche, nutty oxidative notes, baked apples, meyer lemon, ginger and an odd vanilla note towards the finish that I can only guess came from barrel fermentation. This probably has the finest mousse I have come across in a domestic sparkling wine and it is one of the real strengths of the wine. I think this probably would have been a little better a few years back, but it isn't horrible. The larger takeaway is that these wines don't have anywhere near the arc of maturation that you would expect from Champagne.
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7/26/2015 - eoinhharkins Likes this wine: 93 Points
Quite dark yellow in colour, with aromas of macerated Apple, some stone fruit, and toasted notes, palate was still bright with the fruit showing well and medium plus acidity and finish, cellared since release.
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7/2/2014 - bablues wrote: 92 Points
Judgement of Chicago (Nomi): Tasted blind. Light. Almonds and more almonds on the nose and palate. Very nice..
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12/31/2013 - dbg wrote:
Cellared since release. Very light gold, nice mousse. More fruit than toast/bread on the nose: peach, tropical, plus some floral honeysuckle notes. Medium body, crisp fresh fruit, great balance, medium fish. Excellent.
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8/18/2013 - mhauser wrote:
This was highly disappointing for the price. Overly sweet, not very complex, and lacking a good mouthfeel.
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3/3/2013 - JPMC Likes this wine: 92 Points
Consistent and classic year-year, bottle-bottle. One of the best examples of CA sparkling.
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2/3/2013 - meatbomb013 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Bold and rich creamy texture. Wonder how it will age. Lacks some acidity, but perhaps it is because of its age? I will try to find another couple of bottles to cellar.
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11/10/2012 - Fishboy wrote: 91 Points
Great sparkler
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7/2/2012 - Mrbuzz Likes this wine: 95 Points
78% Chardonnay, 22% Pinot Noir
48% Napa, 26% Sonoma, 20% Mendocino, 6% Marin
This was flat out amazing! Just gorgeous bright, vibrant yellow fruit....laser cut of lemon/lime citrus, chalky minerals, tiny refreshing bubbles. Couldn't believe how fresh and alive this is at age 11! And to go with the freshness...wonderful complexities of caramel green apples, honeycomb, brioche, citrus blossom florals, crushed shells. Perfect feel with the tiny bubbles, great airy and creamy mousse......just fantastic! The best domestic bubbly I've ever had.
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3/24/2012 - mjf@ulkner wrote: 92 Points
Best bottle yet. Rich and opulent, lots of mature honey and toasty flavors. Would match up favorably with many old world sparklies at twice the price.
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1/18/2012 - Todd W. wrote: 89 Points
- Light gold color.
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12/31/2011 - S2 wrote: 91 Points
Good stuff! Bubbles were somewhat restrained. Good depth with yeast, apple and lemon curd on the taste.
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10/30/2011 - annerk wrote: 92 Points
Wonderful creamy with good acidity. With or without food, this one is a hit.
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11/26/2010 - reela wrote:
Bought from schramsberg on 10/09/10. Drank at gillespie's night before brenda's b'day 2010
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9/4/2010 - yonster24 wrote:
Shared with Grafstrb. WOW! This was absolutely fantastic. Gorgeous nose of creme broulet, brioche and toast. Just a gorgeous nose. Crisp and lively on the palate, we could not have picked a better way to start the night. Went well with the Tuna Tartare that was prepared as it cut through the food. A joy to drink. long finish with the flavors of the nose going all the way through to the end.
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9/4/2010 - grafstrb wrote:
– popped and poured –
– tasted non-blind over 45 min. - 60 min. –
– 77% Chardonnay, 23% Pinot Noir –
NOSE: intense bouquet; toast; yeast; almond; slight almond oxidative note; stunning nose, really.
BODY: golden yellow color with a hint of tan throughout; (forgot to note wine’s weight).
TASTE: wonderful papaya and guava fruit flavors; hint of butterscotch; great acid; almost like an aged Roussanne. Very nice effort. This is drinking beautifully right now. Was a decent pairing with the tuna tartare: I thought the tuna made the wine better, but the wine didn't make the tuna better. yonster's bottle.
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8/3/2010 - Edward A wrote: 92 Points
Purchased direct from cellar club. Stored at 55 deg, chilled, popped and poured. Beautiful light golden color. Very fine bubbles. Flavor was deep but not overpowering with good balance of acidity. Excellent dry sparkling!
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4/24/2010 - mjf@ulkner wrote: 89 Points
Good food wine. Full bodied with some sweet honeyed notes- great pairing with Ad Hoc fried chicken recipe.
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1/3/2010 - drerwinsu wrote: 94 Points
Very well balanced. Citrus flavors but not too acidic not too dry
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12/31/2009 - drerwinsu wrote: 92 Points
Very well balanced. Citrus flavors but not too acidic not too dry.
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11/12/2009 - Nutty08 wrote:
Trip to Napa/Sonoma; 11/7/2009-11/14/2009 (Napa/Sonoma): Strong nose of yeast and almonds. Rich nutty palate with mineral finish. Impressive complexity.
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9/8/2009 - mjf@ulkner wrote: 87 Points
Not as good as I remembered from the winery tastings. Fairly one dimensional average bubbly. Poor QPR.
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7/2/2009 - smphelps wrote: 91 Points
Pears, nuts and cookie dough in a bright , clean presentation.
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5/2/2009 - bigdomer wrote: 86 Points
Lime and green apple are very pronounced.
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4/20/2009 - peternelson wrote: 93 Points
Winery: Complex bisquit, creamy, rich frt; lots of tart a’s, briney, fresh oysters ! Intense, beaut. This rivals the great stuff.
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2/24/2009 - annerk wrote: 90 Points
50+3+12+17+ 8 Dough on nose. Palate of pear with creaminess, moderate acidity. Good balance with a little hazelnut on the finish
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10/14/2008 - maffinito wrote:
Bisquit taste. Fresh
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