Over a few days. Not so much green as others have found, but a bit too fruit forward for my taste, best on day three maybe. Think i will wait and hope things find a new balance.
There is a greenness to this wine that is just not going away. It hasn’t come together the way I would imagine the winemaker would have likely hoped - either a fruit issue or a technical winemaking issue as the weather in 2016 should have resulted in a full and vibrant Nota Bene.
Molto Bene Nota Bene! (Vino Loco & Lolo's Seaside Tasting Lodge): Part of an eight vintage vertical tasting. Oh boy, not good. Pyrazines through the roof on the nose. Vegetal green bell pepper and pickled green bean. For the record, 2016 was a long warm growing year. A very good vintage for the books. Pyrazines typically suggest that the core fruit was underripe. And underripe in your flagship blend?! This is perplexing and somewhat disappointing. The atypical low alcohol (13.5%) may be a clue to underripe fruit. The 2016 Black Hills Syrah has also been a disapointment. Underripe fruit is a vineyard issue and possibly a "too early" call on the winemaker's part. Very little can be done to correct this in the winery. And additional time in the cellar is not going to remedy the condition. There was a decent wine under this "green cloak" but hard to enjoy. This was the group's least preferred wine.
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This wine is finally starting to come together and the restraint on the alcohol is allowing the fruits to shine through. Dark cherries and pomegranate. Lovely mouthfeel. If this wine can maintain its integrity it will be something to hold on to. The bottle variation is quite something though, so have measured expectations!
There is a delicate complexity to this wine and it's particularly enjoyable to have a Bordeaux blend at only 13.5% ABV. Interesting floral notes, red berry fruit, and notes of cedar. Delicious.
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So great! Still has the nice berry/cherry going on. Slight earthiness still there too. Tannins are pretty silky. Just an outstanding wine. Only 2 bottles left I better pick my spots! Served with Prime Rib reverse seared on the Yoder to 125*. Perfect pairing! Great meal!
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Still quite green, almost green pepper, although more fruit coming through than the last few bottles. Oak on the finish. Not their best vintage, but nice enough with some pizza on a Thursday night.
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Excellent and well balanced for current drinking. Over the course of a slow night, the cab franc and merlot elements showed the strongest with the scales tipping toward red fruit and green bell pepper.
Yea this wine is just so good! Consistently seeming to improve as well. Served with reverse seared ribeyes done over charcoal with pecan smoke. Outstanding! We wish every wine could be of this quality and consistency!
I thought this was a nice bottle of wine. I have never tried the Nota Bene before, but I had heard excellent things from a few people. It didn’t disappoint. I did find this wine to be a little sweet for my liking. I also think the tannins still need time to resolve. Would revisit in 3 years to see the progress. For reference, decanted this bottle for about 45 minutes prior to tasting. If drinking now, I would go with a 2 hour decant.
Paired with some cheese and crackers. Decanted for 1 hour. Nice plum/cherry qualities with a leaf note. I thought it was tobacco perhaps. Like the good tobacco green leaf. Not like an ashtray. Can def feel the quality. Great Thurs nite wine!
Hmmm, a tad too early to open right now. Another Nota Bene in blocks. All angular in fruit, tannin, alcohol & acidity. There is pervasive oak on the nose & palate. This was somewhat improved on Day 2 but Day 3 was much better. There is structure here and potential but still early days. I’m burying the rest of my bottles down low and will revisit in 3-5 years.
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Had in a fully blind tasting - all 2016 vintages - Black Hills Nota Bene, La Frenz Grand Total, Painted Rock Red Icon, and Road 13 5th Element.
9 tasters ranked wines 1 to 4. All wines were decanted for 3 hours.
3 x 1st place Grand Total, 3 x 1st place 5th Element..
Interestingly the 2 non wine drinkers picked Red Icon as their favourite. The 7 other more experienced (but still all amateur) wine drinkers all put Red Icon last, in part because of its off-putting nose. If you think yourself a wino you probably will not enjoy.
One outlier picked Nota Bene. It is not drinking well, I hope it develops over the coming years as I have a bunch of it, but starting to lose hope for the 2015 and onwards vintages. Over oaked and or not enough fruit for a Bordeaux blend - if you like Italian wines give it a chance.
5th Element had better fruit and structure than La Frenz Grand Total, but bodes well for the ability for both of these to age and be delicious for another 5 plus years.
Final ranking: 1. Road 13 5th Element 2. La Frenz Grand Total 3. Black Hills Nota Bene 4. Painted Rock Red Icon
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After reading a number of great reviews of Nota Bene from Francois Le Mouel, I searched this out at Willow Park in Calgary (unfortunately, this is a wine that's better sought elsewhere, as I paid $68 at Willow Park but later found and bought another bottle at Zyn for $51).
This wine was deep purple with a reddish rim. It had aromas of raspberry, sour cherry, slate, and a hint of black pepper. The wine was dry with medium-intensity flavours of black cherry, oak, and a hint of molasses. Acidity and alcohol (13.5%) were medium with medium-minus tannins. The body was bold and finish was long.
This is a smooth New World wine done very well that's easy to sip with a delicious and complex finish. I imagine this would go exceptionally well with a grilled steak but I was perfectly content drinking this on its own. Probably worth the $68 CAD I paid for this bottle but a great QPR at $51 CAD. A no brainer to buy again. The currently listed community drink dates say this is best enjoyed from 2022-2027. I don't doubt this will get better over the next few years but I see no reason not to suggest this is drinkable now.
Margot's. Decanted earlier in the day. Highly aromatic, bright raspberry fruit and spicy cigar-box cedar, excellent acidity and finish. Have past experience with various vintages of Nota Bene but usually 8 or more years out--very surprised at how well this showed so young.
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Nose: Initial forest funk, ripe purple plums, blue/purple flowers, shrubbery, deep earth, soft spiced oak and a slight lead pencil note.
Palate: Juicy, intense red fruits with well integrated earth, soft but firm oak (elegant oak?), some spice and same lead pencil from the nose but slightly bolder.
Clear, medium Ruby. Dry with medium amounts of firm, grippy tannins. Medium to medium-minus body with medium-plus acidity. Great finish of about 18+ seconds. Intense wine, high acidity keep things bright, juicy and lively (made me salivate and want to keep drinking more.. dangerous if you ask me). Well integrated earth, oak and spice. Very interesting wine. I'm usually biased against lighter wines but this was very enjoyable.. also very "purple" in terms of taste. Decent structure and strong acidity that makes me think this can still sleep for at least 6 years.
I got totally ripped off as I purchased this in a hotel in a British Columbia hotel for ~$120 U.S. dollars... but seeing what people are paying here (seems to be about $45 average here in the U.S.), I will say the quality is definitely worth the price (unfortunately not for me though when I was over there).
Raspberry aromas initially violets and cassis later. Flavors of crisp raspberry followed by hints of cocoa. Earthy background maybe the cigar box notes on. Well balanced overall.
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One of six Black Hills bottles in an evening of tasting with a few friends: two bottles of Syrah ('14, '15), two bottles of Carménère ('15, '16) and two bottles of Nota Bene ('15, '16).
Because it's still so young, so this bottle was decanted the night before; then vacuumed and put it away for 19 hours. Aromas of red fruits, pepper and cedar. Medium to full body. On the palate, there are cherries, red berries, pepper, cedar and tobacco wrapped in a nice structure with lots of tannins and acidity. It will get better as years go by.
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Decanted and served at 65*. 60 day dry aged ribeyes were on tap Wow. So nice right now. Cherries and red berries on the nose with a hint of pepper like a Syrah. Tannins are pretty relaxed. Can’t wait to see how this develops over a couple years! Nice and smooth now. But it’s gonna lay down nicely
3/8/2024 - KillerJones Likes this wine: 92 Points
On the nose the age is evident… with tertiary characteristics of earth, tobacco & almost a garrigue note.
Dark cherry & some green pepper from the Cab Franc. (damn you, IBMP!)
Lots of complexity here - surprisingly high acidity, too - makes me think there's still more years ahead for this vintage.
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1/17/2024 - nanoose wrote:
Over a few days. Not so much green as others have found, but a bit too fruit forward for my taste, best on day three maybe. Think i will wait and hope things find a new balance.
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3/1/2023 - I Drink and I know Things Likes this wine: 93 Points
Absolutely amazing right now! Well balanced. Hints of dark fruit, soft tannins and a wonderful finish. Need to find more!!
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11/26/2022 - scaredone Likes this wine: 90 Points
Much better the second day, on opening there is a strong blackberry aftertaste, similar to the 15.
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10/29/2022 - Dave Dewar wrote:
A bit green, as noted by other reviewers, but not overly so, IMO.
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9/23/2022 - Vino Loco wrote: 88 Points
There is a greenness to this wine that is just not going away. It hasn’t come together the way I would imagine the winemaker would have likely hoped - either a fruit issue or a technical winemaking issue as the weather in 2016 should have resulted in a full and vibrant Nota Bene.
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4/26/2022 - Canoehead Does not like this wine: 87 Points
Molto Bene Nota Bene! (Vino Loco & Lolo's Seaside Tasting Lodge): Part of an eight vintage vertical tasting. Oh boy, not good. Pyrazines through the roof on the nose. Vegetal green bell pepper and pickled green bean. For the record, 2016 was a long warm growing year. A very good vintage for the books. Pyrazines typically suggest that the core fruit was underripe. And underripe in your flagship blend?! This is perplexing and somewhat disappointing. The atypical low alcohol (13.5%) may be a clue to underripe fruit. The 2016 Black Hills Syrah has also been a disapointment. Underripe fruit is a vineyard issue and possibly a "too early" call on the winemaker's part. Very little can be done to correct this in the winery. And additional time in the cellar is not going to remedy the condition. There was a decent wine under this "green cloak" but hard to enjoy. This was the group's least preferred wine.
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2/12/2022 - Bcolvey Likes this wine: 90 Points
Really good.
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7/5/2021 - Vino Loco Likes this wine: 90 Points
This wine is finally starting to come together and the restraint on the alcohol is allowing the fruits to shine through. Dark cherries and pomegranate. Lovely mouthfeel. If this wine can maintain its integrity it will be something to hold on to. The bottle variation is quite something though, so have measured expectations!
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7/2/2021 - davo22 wrote: 93 Points
There is a delicate complexity to this wine and it's particularly enjoyable to have a Bordeaux blend at only 13.5% ABV. Interesting floral notes, red berry fruit, and notes of cedar. Delicious.
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6/11/2021 - Deb C wrote:
Thank you to Diane for dinner at Vij’s
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3/6/2021 - uzzi Likes this wine: 93 Points
So great! Still has the nice berry/cherry going on. Slight earthiness still there too. Tannins are pretty silky. Just an outstanding wine. Only 2 bottles left I better pick my spots! Served with Prime Rib reverse seared on the Yoder to 125*. Perfect pairing! Great meal!
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2/23/2021 - Jay707 wrote: 94 Points
Cab sab base
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2/11/2021 - Vino Loco wrote: 89 Points
Still quite green, almost green pepper, although more fruit coming through than the last few bottles. Oak on the finish. Not their best vintage, but nice enough with some pizza on a Thursday night.
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1/6/2021 - Neecies Likes this wine:
Excellent and well balanced for current drinking. Over the course of a slow night, the cab franc and merlot elements showed the strongest with the scales tipping toward red fruit and green bell pepper.
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10/16/2020 - Rawhide Likes this wine:
Jammy!
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6/17/2020 - KillerJones wrote:
Still very young - loads of sediment in the bottle. Bright future.
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5/29/2020 - uzzi Likes this wine: 92 Points
Yea this wine is just so good! Consistently seeming to improve as well. Served with reverse seared ribeyes done over charcoal with pecan smoke. Outstanding! We wish every wine could be of this quality and consistency!
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5/9/2020 - bordeaux456 Likes this wine: 88 Points
I thought this was a nice bottle of wine. I have never tried the Nota Bene before, but I had heard excellent things from a few people. It didn’t disappoint. I did find this wine to be a little sweet for my liking. I also think the tannins still need time to resolve. Would revisit in 3 years to see the progress. For reference, decanted this bottle for about 45 minutes prior to tasting. If drinking now, I would go with a 2 hour decant.
88+
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4/16/2020 - uzzi Likes this wine: 91 Points
Paired with some cheese and crackers. Decanted for 1 hour. Nice plum/cherry qualities with a leaf note. I thought it was tobacco perhaps. Like the good tobacco green leaf. Not like an ashtray. Can def feel the quality. Great Thurs nite wine!
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4/13/2020 - Chateau du Fey 1994 Likes this wine: 91 Points
I know this is a "cult wine" which often means it is over-rated but I have to admit it is excellent. Really one of my favourite BC "big wines."
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4/5/2020 - Canoehead Likes this wine: 91 Points
Hmmm, a tad too early to open right now. Another Nota Bene in blocks. All angular in fruit, tannin, alcohol & acidity. There is pervasive oak on the nose & palate. This was somewhat improved on Day 2 but Day 3 was much better. There is structure here and potential but still early days. I’m burying the rest of my bottles down low and will revisit in 3-5 years.
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12/25/2019 - Vino Loco wrote: 88 Points
Had in a fully blind tasting - all 2016 vintages - Black Hills Nota Bene, La Frenz Grand Total, Painted Rock Red Icon, and Road 13 5th Element.
9 tasters ranked wines 1 to 4. All wines were decanted for 3 hours.
3 x 1st place Grand Total, 3 x 1st place 5th Element..
Interestingly the 2 non wine drinkers picked Red Icon as their favourite. The 7 other more experienced (but still all amateur) wine drinkers all put Red Icon last, in part because of its off-putting nose. If you think yourself a wino you probably will not enjoy.
One outlier picked Nota Bene. It is not drinking well, I hope it develops over the coming years as I have a bunch of it, but starting to lose hope for the 2015 and onwards vintages. Over oaked and or not enough fruit for a Bordeaux blend - if you like Italian wines give it a chance.
5th Element had better fruit and structure than La Frenz Grand Total, but bodes well for the ability for both of these to age and be delicious for another 5 plus years.
Final ranking:
1. Road 13 5th Element
2. La Frenz Grand Total
3. Black Hills Nota Bene
4. Painted Rock Red Icon
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10/10/2019 - geoffjb Likes this wine: 92 Points
After reading a number of great reviews of Nota Bene from Francois Le Mouel, I searched this out at Willow Park in Calgary (unfortunately, this is a wine that's better sought elsewhere, as I paid $68 at Willow Park but later found and bought another bottle at Zyn for $51).
This wine was deep purple with a reddish rim. It had aromas of raspberry, sour cherry, slate, and a hint of black pepper. The wine was dry with medium-intensity flavours of black cherry, oak, and a hint of molasses. Acidity and alcohol (13.5%) were medium with medium-minus tannins. The body was bold and finish was long.
This is a smooth New World wine done very well that's easy to sip with a delicious and complex finish. I imagine this would go exceptionally well with a grilled steak but I was perfectly content drinking this on its own. Probably worth the $68 CAD I paid for this bottle but a great QPR at $51 CAD. A no brainer to buy again. The currently listed community drink dates say this is best enjoyed from 2022-2027. I don't doubt this will get better over the next few years but I see no reason not to suggest this is drinkable now.
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8/31/2019 - Neecies Likes this wine:
Margot's. Decanted earlier in the day. Highly aromatic, bright raspberry fruit and spicy cigar-box cedar, excellent acidity and finish. Have past experience with various vintages of Nota Bene but usually 8 or more years out--very surprised at how well this showed so young.
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6/24/2019 - WineBurrowingWombat Likes this wine: 93 Points
Nose: Initial forest funk, ripe purple plums, blue/purple flowers, shrubbery, deep earth, soft spiced oak and a slight lead pencil note.
Palate: Juicy, intense red fruits with well integrated earth, soft but firm oak (elegant oak?), some spice and same lead pencil from the nose but slightly bolder.
Clear, medium Ruby. Dry with medium amounts of firm, grippy tannins. Medium to medium-minus body with medium-plus acidity. Great finish of about 18+ seconds. Intense wine, high acidity keep things bright, juicy and lively (made me salivate and want to keep drinking more.. dangerous if you ask me). Well integrated earth, oak and spice. Very interesting wine. I'm usually biased against lighter wines but this was very enjoyable.. also very "purple" in terms of taste. Decent structure and strong acidity that makes me think this can still sleep for at least 6 years.
I got totally ripped off as I purchased this in a hotel in a British Columbia hotel for ~$120 U.S. dollars... but seeing what people are paying here (seems to be about $45 average here in the U.S.), I will say the quality is definitely worth the price (unfortunately not for me though when I was over there).
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1/23/2019 - elizabeth1655 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Raspberry aromas initially violets and cassis later. Flavors of crisp raspberry followed by hints of cocoa. Earthy background maybe the cigar box notes on. Well balanced overall.
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10/19/2018 - Powlin Likes this wine: 91 Points
nez vanille reglisse pruneau
bouche acidite presente pas de tannins long en bouche gros fruits
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9/17/2018 - dilbert64 wrote: 92 Points
One of six Black Hills bottles in an evening of tasting with a few friends: two bottles of Syrah ('14, '15), two bottles of Carménère ('15, '16) and two bottles of Nota Bene ('15, '16).
Because it's still so young, so this bottle was decanted the night before; then vacuumed and put it away for 19 hours. Aromas of red fruits, pepper and cedar. Medium to full body. On the palate, there are cherries, red berries, pepper, cedar and tobacco wrapped in a nice structure with lots of tannins and acidity. It will get better as years go by.
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9/1/2018 - uzzi Likes this wine: 91 Points
Decanted and served at 65*. 60 day dry aged ribeyes were on tap Wow. So nice right now. Cherries and red berries on the nose with a hint of pepper like a Syrah. Tannins are pretty relaxed. Can’t wait to see how this develops over a couple years! Nice and smooth now. But it’s gonna lay down nicely
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8/10/2018 - MaryMoCla wrote:
Winery says not to drink for a year
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