This wine reveals itself after letting it sit for 30+ minutes offering up amazing character, sharp distinct plum, graphite and wood flavors all melded together into a seamless soft mouthfeel and then a long finish. Drinking well now or hold for a couple more years.
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In great shape - absolutely humongous, with a big nose right out of the gates of dense chocolate/fudge, graphite, and earth, followed by a still quite structured wine with smooth tannin. We decanted and it settled down at the 2-3 hour mark to reveal a super dense, creamy, and chocolatey L'Orage, melded with dark fruits, spice, licorice, and a hint of cedar on the long finish. It's not super complex, more in the hedonistic direction, and it certainly delivered. We'll hold our last bottle 3-5 more years minimum.
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(Tasted after a 2-hour decant...)...Very new-world in style; nice fruit, perfumy, well-balanced tannins. Alcohol is noticeable. I understand why people like this style of wine, but it's not for me; it lacks the complexity and nuances of old-world Cabs, or even of Napa Cabs. For the money, I'd rather have 2 bottles of Chinon.
Overrated by the community here.
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Cherry, cassis, strawberry, amazing freshness and purity, dried earth, cinnamon, hints of vanilla, great finish. Not the most complex wine, but certainly very good and a pleasure to drink. Good as a PnP, drink over next 5 years.
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I loved this wine! Deep purple in color. Lush black fruit, licorice, and some earthy notes as well. Full bodied with medium-low acidity with just enough tannin grip to know the wine will age well. Really well balanced. An hour or so to decant and drank just as good the second day.
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Medium plus sized bouquet, earth and herbaceous notes.
Large on entry to the palate, smooth and silky, with limited tannin grip. The wine opens wide and begins narrowing towards a 20-30 second finish. The flavour is classical WA state, somewhere between Napa and Bordeaux. Earth, herbs, licorice and subtle blackberry. This is a well structured wine, though perhaps slightly on the lesser ripe side as hints of green are present.
All in all a nice wine in the old world direction with body and substance. Will likely enhance nicely with age. Good value at the price.
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This is a well made wine and a great price. Picked up for under $50. Needed about an hour decant to open up. Was great the second night. Big fruit, but well balanced.
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Two hour decant. Deep purple ruby color. Prominent graphite and black cherry, with subtle notes of vanilla and lavender, on the nose. Smooth palate with heavy acidity. Medium intensity, zesty tannins on the medium finish.
This is drinking somewhat tight at the moment. Could achieve 90 pts or better in a couple of years. At this price point, I was expecting this to be more accessible.
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This ripe and plush Cabernet has a pleasant juiciness that is both accessible and fun, if a bit straightforward. Cherry red in color, medium in body, nose of candied cherry, pencil lead, and fruitcake. Tastes of blueberry pie, milk chocolate, vanilla bean, and cedar, with a sweet and lingering finish. 14.1% alcohol. Ready to go with minimal air. Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon with some Cabernet Franc. A little disjointed on second day.
I enjoyed the sweetness and silkiness of this wine, though it could come across as cloying to those expecting more Washington savoriness / earthiness. The polish to this wine is almost like Thomas Rivers Brown coming to Washington, albeit with a bit less depth. This is also a really good wine for $50. I'd err towards drinking in the next few years, since this doesn't have the tannic structure to last much longer. Tasting as good as it does now, though, there's no reason to wait. 93+.
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Decided to give this a shot after enjoying the 2013 vintage last year and also in light of the 96 rating from Jeb Dunnuck of WA. Dark black fruit with a touch of red - blackberry, dark currants, dark raspberry, and a little dark cherry. Smooth mid-palate coupled with solid depth and flavors of dark berries plus some spice. Decent finish but not overly long nor deep and a little tannic/tart. Slow ox for 4 hours and drank over a couple more. Improved a little with time, however, I believe this vintage needs a couple years to let the fruit soften and open-up a little more especially on the back-end. Although I'm sure a decent decant would have helped as well - unfortunately on vacation with limited resources. Primarily cabernet sauvignon with a small amount of cab franc.
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Black cherries, black raspberries, licorice, and lead pencil in the nose. Concentrated fruit in the flavor with plums, black cherries and hints of herbalness and spice. Will benefit from more time in the cellar. (Tasted out of magnum)
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Notes of clove, blackberry, wet stone and some dark licorice. Large scaled in the mouth, serious extraction, but does not enter full on jam fest. Has nice structure and acidity. Very nice wine now that should improve with a little time in the bottle.
Too young obviously, but wanted to see why Parker raved. Blown away by fruit, but an hour in the structure had really emerged. Wait 3-4 years, will be great.
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I did not like this much. Too strong, tannic, concentrated, but not subtle smooth or elegant. And my head feels stuffy the next morning. My wie and I both like good reds but we did not finish this bottle. Maybe if it is decanted really long, or tried over several days, or stored for a few years, but I will not return to this wine. I tried aerating it several times. At $60 retail this is to me a waste of money. I only bought because I had a 20% off coupon for a select group of wines, but for $48 I could have had a markedly superior (to my taste) Stags Leap Artemis. I think the high scores reflect the power of the wine, but this is not equivalent to a good drinking experience for me. Far better for me would be say a Leoville Barton 2012, at $75 with a 6 bottle discount. Or in the same new world style maybe an Andrew Will Sorella 2011 or 2012 for $64. If you already have the l'Orage I would suggest keeping it a couple of years. If drinking soon, follow the example of those here who liked it and give it plenty of time and air.
edit: Since I compared it unfavorably with mostly more expensive wines, I mention a cheaper and also better one: the flagship wine Pentage from Pentage winery in Penticton, BC, at $35. I have just returned from Canada and that winery and can still not drink the last glass of l'Orage.
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Double decanted and then drank with dinner and beyond. Very lush and smooth. Time will open it up more but I rather liked how it is currently drinking.
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Very good showing! A notch up from the Boss Block of the same vintage, based on our taste at least. After a few minutes the nose went into a shell, only to re-emerge 2-3 hours later (we decanted and consumed over 5 hours), at which point dark fruits (i.e., blueberry, blackberry), vanilla/oak, cedar, damp earth, dark chocolate, and espresso were revealed in varying proportions. Very much in balance, good tannic spine, but very lush and smooth as well, showing good depth of fruit, and quite chocolatey! A bit darker in flavor profile than the 2013, tasted around the same time last year - both wines, though, exhibited the same melding of elegance with power and depth. This is quite good now, but only with hours of decanting. I look forward to following this for many years. 93+
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4/14/2024 - Wine12345 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Great wine, but a little past its prime. Drink now.
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1/8/2024 - Wine12345 Likes this wine: 95 Points
I love this wine!
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10/10/2023 - Wine12345 Likes this wine: 95 Points
This is fantastic! A lovely bottle of wine.
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9/23/2023 - NPBWineGuy Likes this wine: 94 Points
Superb. Everything is in balance after it breathed for about 1 hour in the glass. PnP it was not nearly as good. It needed that time to warm up.
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7/17/2023 - Wine12345 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Drank with dinner at home of Cindy Layport & Steve Herring
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4/20/2023 - Higginsrj wrote:
Smooth, dark fruit. Nice finish
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7/6/2022 - NPBWineGuy Likes this wine: 93 Points
This is delicious, albeit still young. Cherries, blueberries and earth. Spice box. Tannins are still pronounced. It has many years to run.
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6/17/2022 - Nbkat8 wrote: 93 Points
This wine reveals itself after letting it sit for 30+ minutes offering up amazing character, sharp distinct plum, graphite and wood flavors all melded together into a seamless soft mouthfeel and then a long finish. Drinking well now or hold for a couple more years.
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4/25/2022 - JGinMO wrote: 92 Points
Still very young, needed 30+ mins in glass to settle down.
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10/17/2021 - Apollo5710 wrote: 94 Points
In great shape - absolutely humongous, with a big nose right out of the gates of dense chocolate/fudge, graphite, and earth, followed by a still quite structured wine with smooth tannin. We decanted and it settled down at the 2-3 hour mark to reveal a super dense, creamy, and chocolatey L'Orage, melded with dark fruits, spice, licorice, and a hint of cedar on the long finish. It's not super complex, more in the hedonistic direction, and it certainly delivered. We'll hold our last bottle 3-5 more years minimum.
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1/2/2021 - Wine12345 wrote:
Gift to Scott Lape
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10/14/2020 - mkporwit Likes this wine: 92 Points
Could go a bit longer
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9/23/2020 - Swaggering Beaunie wrote: 88 Points
(Tasted after a 2-hour decant...)...Very new-world in style; nice fruit, perfumy, well-balanced tannins. Alcohol is noticeable. I understand why people like this style of wine, but it's not for me; it lacks the complexity and nuances of old-world Cabs, or even of Napa Cabs. For the money, I'd rather have 2 bottles of Chinon.
Overrated by the community here.
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7/4/2020 - Vinobc wrote: 91 Points
Decanted 3 hours before drinking. Nose of cherry and plum. Nice, be not great.
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10/29/2019 - pakabear Likes this wine: 93 Points
Cherry, cassis, strawberry, amazing freshness and purity, dried earth, cinnamon, hints of vanilla, great finish. Not the most complex wine, but certainly very good and a pleasure to drink. Good as a PnP, drink over next 5 years.
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8/1/2019 - bubbachumps wrote: 93 Points
Consistent with my prior notes and a total bargain at ~$45 price point.
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7/2/2019 - bubbachumps wrote: 93 Points
Consistent with my prior notes.
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6/27/2019 - Rumi Likes this wine: 92 Points
Chocolate liqueur behind dark berry with just a kiss of pepper. Sticks around a while with an earthy finish. Very mild tannins.
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3/3/2019 - gbpeyton Likes this wine: 96 Points
I loved this wine! Deep purple in color. Lush black fruit, licorice, and some earthy notes as well.
Full bodied with medium-low acidity with just enough tannin grip to know the wine will age well. Really well balanced. An hour or so to decant and drank just as good the second day.
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2/13/2019 - vincemcd61 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Fabulous wine. Had with Prima’s Bella pizza
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2/7/2019 - Clark W Griswold Likes this wine: 92 Points
Double decant. Nice mix of red and blue fruits. Creamy texture. Chocolatey finish. Drinking really well!
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2/1/2019 - sean7711 wrote: 92 Points
No formal notes. Smooth and good value
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11/21/2018 - gmat5497 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Delightful.
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11/17/2018 - Mackall817 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Outstanding in every way. The average of 92.8 on this site isn't good enough.
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10/7/2018 - J.S Likes this wine: 92 Points
Medium plus sized bouquet, earth and herbaceous notes.
Large on entry to the palate, smooth and silky, with limited tannin grip. The wine opens wide and begins narrowing towards a 20-30 second finish. The flavour is classical WA state, somewhere between Napa and Bordeaux. Earth, herbs, licorice and subtle blackberry. This is a well structured wine, though perhaps slightly on the lesser ripe side as hints of green are present.
All in all a nice wine in the old world direction with body and substance. Will likely enhance nicely with age. Good value at the price.
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6/11/2018 - wdcwineguys Likes this wine: 92 Points
This is a well made wine and a great price. Picked up for under $50. Needed about an hour decant to open up. Was great the second night. Big fruit, but well balanced.
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5/24/2018 - AGELVIS wrote: 88 Points
Two hour decant. Deep purple ruby color. Prominent graphite and black cherry, with subtle notes of vanilla and lavender, on the nose. Smooth palate with heavy acidity. Medium intensity, zesty tannins on the medium finish.
This is drinking somewhat tight at the moment. Could achieve 90 pts or better in a couple of years. At this price point, I was expecting this to be more accessible.
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5/13/2018 - bubbachumps wrote: 94 Points
Consistent with my prior notes.
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4/12/2018 - msuwine wrote: 93 Points
This ripe and plush Cabernet has a pleasant juiciness that is both accessible and fun, if a bit straightforward. Cherry red in color, medium in body, nose of candied cherry, pencil lead, and fruitcake. Tastes of blueberry pie, milk chocolate, vanilla bean, and cedar, with a sweet and lingering finish. 14.1% alcohol. Ready to go with minimal air. Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon with some Cabernet Franc. A little disjointed on second day.
I enjoyed the sweetness and silkiness of this wine, though it could come across as cloying to those expecting more Washington savoriness / earthiness. The polish to this wine is almost like Thomas Rivers Brown coming to Washington, albeit with a bit less depth. This is also a really good wine for $50. I'd err towards drinking in the next few years, since this doesn't have the tannic structure to last much longer. Tasting as good as it does now, though, there's no reason to wait. 93+.
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3/31/2018 - iahviahv wrote: 95 Points
Good QPR, lay it down for a couple of years and you would have created a monster wine ++
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3/5/2018 - gmat5497 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Needed to open up but when it did, excellent.
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2/18/2018 - Badmonkey wrote: 91 Points
Decided to give this a shot after enjoying the 2013 vintage last year and also in light of the 96 rating from Jeb Dunnuck of WA. Dark black fruit with a touch of red - blackberry, dark currants, dark raspberry, and a little dark cherry. Smooth mid-palate coupled with solid depth and flavors of dark berries plus some spice. Decent finish but not overly long nor deep and a little tannic/tart. Slow ox for 4 hours and drank over a couple more. Improved a little with time, however, I believe this vintage needs a couple years to let the fruit soften and open-up a little more especially on the back-end. Although I'm sure a decent decant would have helped as well - unfortunately on vacation with limited resources. Primarily cabernet sauvignon with a small amount of cab franc.
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12/21/2017 - bubbachumps wrote: 94 Points
Consistent with my prior notes.
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12/1/2017 - buckeye76 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Black cherries, black raspberries, licorice, and lead pencil in the nose. Concentrated fruit in the flavor with plums, black cherries and hints of herbalness and spice. Will benefit from more time in the cellar. (Tasted out of magnum)
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11/8/2017 - bubbachumps wrote: 94 Points
Notes of clove, blackberry, wet stone and some dark licorice. Large scaled in the mouth, serious extraction, but does not enter full on jam fest. Has nice structure and acidity. Very nice wine now that should improve with a little time in the bottle.
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10/26/2017 - JGinMO wrote: 92 Points
Too young obviously, but wanted to see why Parker raved. Blown away by fruit, but an hour in the structure had really emerged. Wait 3-4 years, will be great.
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10/7/2017 - mathwonk wrote:
I did not like this much. Too strong, tannic, concentrated, but not subtle smooth or elegant. And my head feels stuffy the next morning. My wie and I both like good reds but we did not finish this bottle. Maybe if it is decanted really long, or tried over several days, or stored for a few years, but I will not return to this wine. I tried aerating it several times. At $60 retail this is to me a waste of money. I only bought because I had a 20% off coupon for a select group of wines, but for $48 I could have had a markedly superior (to my taste) Stags Leap Artemis. I think the high scores reflect the power of the wine, but this is not equivalent to a good drinking experience for me. Far better for me would be say a Leoville Barton 2012, at $75 with a 6 bottle discount. Or in the same new world style maybe an Andrew Will Sorella 2011 or 2012 for $64. If you already have the l'Orage I would suggest keeping it a couple of years. If drinking soon, follow the example of those here who liked it and give it plenty of time and air.
edit: Since I compared it unfavorably with mostly more expensive wines, I mention a cheaper and also better one: the flagship wine Pentage from Pentage winery in Penticton, BC, at $35. I have just returned from Canada and that winery and can still not drink the last glass of l'Orage.
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9/23/2017 - tjross Likes this wine: 94 Points
Double decanted and then drank with dinner and beyond. Very lush and smooth. Time will open it up more but I rather liked how it is currently drinking.
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6/11/2017 - MDV wrote: 85 Points
Overly ripe and stewed.
so disappointing given the ratings, WA state can craft interesting wine, but not this one.
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5/21/2017 - Apollo5710 wrote: 93 Points
Very good showing! A notch up from the Boss Block of the same vintage, based on our taste at least. After a few minutes the nose went into a shell, only to re-emerge 2-3 hours later (we decanted and consumed over 5 hours), at which point dark fruits (i.e., blueberry, blackberry), vanilla/oak, cedar, damp earth, dark chocolate, and espresso were revealed in varying proportions. Very much in balance, good tannic spine, but very lush and smooth as well, showing good depth of fruit, and quite chocolatey! A bit darker in flavor profile than the 2013, tasted around the same time last year - both wines, though, exhibited the same melding of elegance with power and depth. This is quite good now, but only with hours of decanting. I look forward to following this for many years. 93+
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5/8/2017 - Bonanza wrote: 98 Points
Impressive. Full of flavors, rich and seamless front to back. Wow!
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12/3/2016 - John Nania Does not like this wine:
A little musty for my taste.
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