Opened this at an Open That Bottle Night dinner 3/2/22. It was huge, decanted for 20 minutes. Held it's own with amazing bottles. No one other than I was familiar with Herman Story, now everyone wants some. Just ordered more myself
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Decanted 45 min. Drank over 2 days. Day 2 was a bit better than day 1. Consistent big, bold tastes of darker fruits with a big peppery finish (on day 1).
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Oh man, oh man, oh man, OH MAN!!! This is a big wine, for fans of big wines! Heavy on the dark fruit, the spice, the earth, the wood, and some very "animal" sorts of flavors and aromas. Nice tannins tell me this will still be knocking 'em dead 3-4 years from now at least! But very good now. Wow!!!
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Inky purple in color and opaque in the glass; aromas of blackberries, raspberries, black licorice, tobacco, and tar on the nose; tastes of tart blackberries, raspberries, cinnamon, and pepper on the palate; full-bodied, medium(+) acidity, and medium(+) tannins; long, peppery finish. This was a big wine that was heavy and round in the mouth but had absolutely no heat from the 15.8% abv!!
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Popped, decanted for about an hour. Granular sediment. Nose gives hint of cola, ripe blackberries. On the palate, black tea mixes with the berries with very low acidity and velvety soft tannins. Wow, this is such great wine. Wonderful! Drink now.
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Upon pouring in the glass found lots of dark fruit on the nose and on the front and mid-palette, with a finish that has soften. However I found after enjoying it with a ribeye the wine profile became much less fruit forward and for us much more enjoyable. Planning to enjoy my other two soon.
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Had with a Cornona 19 middle of the week Mousaka. It went well and not heavy, very well balanced and nice aroma of blue fruits. Decanted about 2 hours; nice!
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The problem is when you have a bunch of friends over and you have already consumed a 2011 Saxum Booker and a 2009 Two Hands BellasGarden, after some sancerre, and someone (I think it was my wife) says open another bottle. So I go to the storage room and grab the first syrah I see. Well infanticide is the result along with a little bit of a foggy memory this morning (I kept the Booker off to the side while cooking and drank most of it.) So what I do remember is dark fruit, licorice, some smoke and some spice. This morning I also rememberd to put the 15's in the back and move the 04's through 12's to the front to avoid making that mistake again. I think with cellar time of 2-3 years this wine would be up to the 93 that Vinous gave it. If you don't want to wait the years at least give it a few hours in a decanter. Don't make my mistake.
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Big powerful, smack you in the face nose of leather, black fruit, a little funk. Decanted and enjoyed over about three hours. Was actually very nice, balanced, smooth and a nice flavor profile. I was expecting a fruit bomb, that was not the case. It was very enjoyable!
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Decanted 1.5 hrs; probably wouldn't have hurt to decant a bit longer. Consistent, big, bold dark fruit tastes with plenty of tannin. Very alive & tasty.
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Decanted for about an hour, but honestly we should have given it at least two, as it was a bit hot at first, and really needed some time and aeration in order to integrate and blossom. Once it did, this really turned from good to fantastic. Dark fruits on the nose, with hints of coffee and tobacco. Boysenberry, blackberry, and mocha notes on the palate. Balanced, but complex, and medium tannins that assisted in a fairly long finish. Perhaps if we had waited a few more hours this could have jumped a couple more points up the rating scale.
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Vigorous splash decant. Wow. A powerhouse of a wine. Dark almost black in color. Incredible nose of roasted smoky meats. Bacon. Dark fruits. A hedonistic fruit bomb. I couldn't drink this every day, but will be nice to pull out as a crowd pleaser every so often.
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Powerful and outstanding. Dark dark fruits with a very long smokey almost tobacco finish that goes on and on. My first Herman Story - I am going to find others. A great wine.
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What a great wine. Decanted for 30min and drank over 1 to 2 hrs. Pepper and great black fruits. Sweetness that lingers makes it really tasty. You can feel the heat (it is over 15%) if was a bit less would have been ideal for me. But a great wine regardless. Enjoy it
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Pnp on Halloween because I needed a wine and it was on the top of the pile...way too young, disjointed, alchohol showing big time. Pumped and tucked away in the fridge for a week...this wine is ridiculously good! Right up there with my favorite vintages(08, 09 & 11). Black fruit, pepper, bacon fat, red meat, camp fire. This wine is spectacular with a seriously long decant...like a week. Can't wait to follow the evolution of this one over the coming years. 94 with upside!
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Taste Mollydooker & Herman Story (San Diego Wine Co.): “100% Syrah from the Slide Hill, Denlinger, Shadow Canyon, White Hawk, Bien Nacido, Jespersen, Presquile, & Alta Colina Vyds; 18 mos in 85% new FR oak; 15.8% ABV; 1,107 cases made & released 3/6/17.”
N: Smoke, poss with undertones of garigue?
P: Med body; NICE, almost swtish frt met by an astringent pucker which quite irons itself out by the LONG, tangy/swt finish. NICELY done for now & through '21, POSS longer. 94 pts Dunnuck & 93 Vinous (Raynolds). [As of mid Mar '20, wine-searcher still shows 2 sources @ $42.29 & $48].
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Paso Robles Wine Trip; 9/12/2017-9/14/2017: Aromas of saucy currants and black cherries with vanilla, cocoa and distinct bacon fat note. Bold and punch with black currants and blueberries, laced with spiced tea, cocoa, black pepper glaze. Dark and jammy and oaky but relatively balanced, in-your-face but intriguing. Syrah with a bit of Viognier.
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Decanting now... Stellar as usual after two hour decant. Nice Backbone and tannins and acidity to give it life but lots of fruit and typical Syrah notes on the nose. Excellent.
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Day 1: too much of everything (barrel spice, smoke, heat). Ledtbij decanted untouched a couple hours before pouring back in bottle and left uncapped all night in the cellar. Day 2: nose of electric purple smoked fruits, urethane, sous vide park belly, light clove and anise, menthol. Oddly the body has mellowed to medium plus with a long fruity tannin grainy finish that leaves your mouth with a blackberry puff on a menthol cigarette. Great stuff but hold or let it sit out for a day.
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Wow! Nice jammy rich flavor. The toasted new oak was prevalent giving nice notes of vanilla and clove. The tannins are a bit pronounced, but softened the longer it was open and should be great in about 2 years. This is a definite winner. The remaining bottles in the cellar will rest for 2 to 3 years.
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Dark black and red fruits, spices, toasted oak, black pepper, medium acidity, really nice balance for the extreme alcohol. This is a good value as always from this producer.
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A solid 95 point nose. Wonderful smokey smells that hit you a foot from the bottle. Black and blue fruits, no denying they're there, smokey, bloody meat, bacon fat, yum. Russell delivers.
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12/21/2022 - Buhever wrote:
To Peter Sherlock. Christmas 2022
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3/3/2022 - Chef carlos wrote: 90 Points
Opened this at an Open That Bottle Night dinner 3/2/22. It was huge, decanted for 20 minutes. Held it's own with amazing bottles. No one other than I was familiar with Herman Story, now everyone wants some. Just ordered more myself
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11/13/2021 - bbcc66 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Decanted 45 min. Drank over 2 days. Day 2 was a bit better than day 1. Consistent big, bold tastes of darker fruits with a big peppery finish (on day 1).
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8/1/2021 - TallMikeWine Likes this wine: 95 Points
Oh man, oh man, oh man, OH MAN!!! This is a big wine, for fans of big wines! Heavy on the dark fruit, the spice, the earth, the wood, and some very "animal" sorts of flavors and aromas. Nice tannins tell me this will still be knocking 'em dead 3-4 years from now at least! But very good now. Wow!!!
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7/17/2021 - Central Coast Wino Likes this wine: 93 Points
Big, bold, and delicious. This wine is ready to drink, but I expect that it will hold up well for years to come.
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7/26/2020 - Stephen Rash Likes this wine: 93 Points
Inky purple in color and opaque in the glass; aromas of blackberries, raspberries, black licorice, tobacco, and tar on the nose; tastes of tart blackberries, raspberries, cinnamon, and pepper on the palate; full-bodied, medium(+) acidity, and medium(+) tannins; long, peppery finish. This was a big wine that was heavy and round in the mouth but had absolutely no heat from the 15.8% abv!!
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5/23/2020 - westywines Likes this wine: 90 Points
Huge, bold wine that fills the mouth with fruit and slight dry tannins. Could use more age but was terrific after being open 1-1.5 hours.
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4/17/2020 - Salute Likes this wine: 93 Points
Popped, decanted for about an hour. Granular sediment.
Nose gives hint of cola, ripe blackberries.
On the palate, black tea mixes with the berries with very low acidity and velvety soft tannins.
Wow, this is such great wine. Wonderful!
Drink now.
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4/15/2020 - SalFromCal Likes this wine: 90 Points
Upon pouring in the glass found lots of dark fruit on the nose and on the front and mid-palette, with a finish that has soften. However I found after enjoying it with a ribeye the wine profile became much less fruit forward and for us much more enjoyable. Planning to enjoy my other two soon.
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4/14/2020 - wendyinwlv wrote: 95 Points
Had with a Cornona 19 middle of the week Mousaka. It went well and not heavy, very well balanced and nice aroma of blue fruits. Decanted about 2 hours; nice!
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12/20/2019 - markcic Likes this wine: 90 Points
The problem is when you have a bunch of friends over and you have already consumed a 2011 Saxum Booker and a 2009 Two Hands BellasGarden, after some sancerre, and someone (I think it was my wife) says open another bottle. So I go to the storage room and grab the first syrah I see. Well infanticide is the result along with a little bit of a foggy memory this morning (I kept the Booker off to the side while cooking and drank most of it.) So what I do remember is dark fruit, licorice, some smoke and some spice. This morning I also rememberd to put the 15's in the back and move the 04's through 12's to the front to avoid making that mistake again. I think with cellar time of 2-3 years this wine would be up to the 93 that Vinous gave it. If you don't want to wait the years at least give it a few hours in a decanter. Don't make my mistake.
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11/7/2019 - sbfireman wrote: 94 Points
Pretty much spot on from previous TN's only added weight and depth. Still a hold.
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8/13/2019 - The Wine Write Likes this wine:
Pop and pour, drank over two nights. Much better night 2. Opulent aromatics. Big red spicy fruit flavors. Finishes with some drying tartness.
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7/21/2019 - sbfireman wrote: 93 Points
Damn good - hedonistic approach to syrah. Dark fruits, no heat, aromatics for days.
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4/26/2019 - tamfrezo wrote: 95 Points
Superb
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2/19/2019 - tamfrezo Likes this wine:
Excellent as always
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2/2/2019 - wdcwineguys Likes this wine: 91 Points
Big powerful, smack you in the face nose of leather, black fruit, a little funk. Decanted and enjoyed over about three hours. Was actually very nice, balanced, smooth and a nice flavor profile. I was expecting a fruit bomb, that was not the case. It was very enjoyable!
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1/4/2019 - bbcc66 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Decanted 1.5 hrs; probably wouldn't have hurt to decant a bit longer. Consistent, big, bold dark fruit tastes with plenty of tannin. Very alive & tasty.
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10/4/2018 - Wine Lover 1964 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Definitely needs air and time to open up. Very big new world syrah for those who like it.....like me!
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8/5/2018 - rdf58 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Full throttle and in your face but still quite enjoyable. The hedonistic side of syrah but plenty of complexity and even a bit of nuance.
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6/16/2018 - Wine Problems Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted for about an hour, but honestly we should have given it at least two, as it was a bit hot at first, and really needed some time and aeration in order to integrate and blossom. Once it did, this really turned from good to fantastic. Dark fruits on the nose, with hints of coffee and tobacco. Boysenberry, blackberry, and mocha notes on the palate. Balanced, but complex, and medium tannins that assisted in a fairly long finish. Perhaps if we had waited a few more hours this could have jumped a couple more points up the rating scale.
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6/7/2018 - tamfrezo Likes this wine: 92 Points
Wonderful so full of various flavors
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5/29/2018 - tamfrezo Likes this wine: 92 Points
Excellent flavors wonderful Blend
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5/27/2018 - hiltondg wrote: 93 Points
Vigorous splash decant. Wow. A powerhouse of a wine. Dark almost black in color. Incredible nose of roasted smoky meats. Bacon. Dark fruits. A hedonistic fruit bomb. I couldn't drink this every day, but will be nice to pull out as a crowd pleaser every so often.
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5/25/2018 - rwerner Likes this wine: 92 Points
Dark and delicious black fruit on the mouth, chocoalte, coffee, tannins continue into a very long finish.
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5/2/2018 - tamfrezo Likes this wine: 93 Points
Absolutely Superb. Wonderful mix of grapes to produce a magnificent Blend which tasted so big and perfect. Great vineyard....highly recommend.
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1/25/2018 - Tyler C Likes this wine: 93 Points
Powerful and outstanding. Dark dark fruits with a very long smokey almost tobacco finish that goes on and on. My first Herman Story - I am going to find others. A great wine.
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1/13/2018 - Wine Lover 1964 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Had with Travis & Lacy and bbq brisket. Great solo after 2r decant, even better with meal.
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1/6/2018 - GeorgeGj wrote: 93 Points
What a great wine. Decanted for 30min and drank over 1 to 2 hrs. Pepper and great black fruits. Sweetness that lingers makes it really tasty. You can feel the heat (it is over 15%) if was a bit less would have been ideal for me. But a great wine regardless.
Enjoy it
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1/4/2018 - tamfrezo Likes this wine: 92 Points
Excellent
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1/3/2018 - tamfrezo wrote:
excellent flavors grat wine
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12/29/2017 - treesritter wrote: 93 Points
Perfect
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11/7/2017 - SICILIAN-SOLE Likes this wine: 94 Points
Pnp on Halloween because I needed a wine and it was on the top of the pile...way too young, disjointed, alchohol showing big time. Pumped and tucked away in the fridge for a week...this wine is ridiculously good! Right up there with my favorite vintages(08, 09 & 11). Black fruit, pepper, bacon fat, red meat, camp fire. This wine is spectacular with a seriously long decant...like a week. Can't wait to follow the evolution of this one over the coming years. 94 with upside!
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9/30/2017 - srh Likes this wine:
Taste Mollydooker & Herman Story (San Diego Wine Co.): “100% Syrah from the Slide Hill, Denlinger, Shadow Canyon, White Hawk, Bien Nacido, Jespersen, Presquile, & Alta Colina Vyds; 18 mos in 85% new FR oak; 15.8% ABV; 1,107 cases made & released 3/6/17.”
N: Smoke, poss with undertones of garigue?
P: Med body; NICE, almost swtish frt met by an astringent pucker which quite irons itself out by the LONG, tangy/swt finish. NICELY done for now & through '21, POSS longer. 94 pts Dunnuck & 93 Vinous (Raynolds). [As of mid Mar '20, wine-searcher still shows 2 sources @ $42.29 & $48].
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9/12/2017 - isaacjamesbaker wrote: 91 Points
Paso Robles Wine Trip; 9/12/2017-9/14/2017: Aromas of saucy currants and black cherries with vanilla, cocoa and distinct bacon fat note. Bold and punch with black currants and blueberries, laced with spiced tea, cocoa, black pepper glaze. Dark and jammy and oaky but relatively balanced, in-your-face but intriguing. Syrah with a bit of Viognier.
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9/2/2017 - Wine Lover 1964 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanting now... Stellar as usual after two hour decant. Nice Backbone and tannins and acidity to give it life but lots of fruit and typical Syrah notes on the nose. Excellent.
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7/13/2017 - Babik Likes this wine: 92 Points
Day 1: too much of everything (barrel spice, smoke, heat). Ledtbij decanted untouched a couple hours before pouring back in bottle and left uncapped all night in the cellar.
Day 2: nose of electric purple smoked fruits, urethane, sous vide park belly, light clove and anise, menthol. Oddly the body has mellowed to medium plus with a long fruity tannin grainy finish that leaves your mouth with a blackberry puff on a menthol cigarette. Great stuff but hold or let it sit out for a day.
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6/8/2017 - bradfriedlander Likes this wine: 92 Points
Wow! Nice jammy rich flavor. The toasted new oak was prevalent giving nice notes of vanilla and clove. The tannins are a bit pronounced, but softened the longer it was open and should be great in about 2 years. This is a definite winner. The remaining bottles in the cellar will rest for 2 to 3 years.
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5/23/2017 - pakabear Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dark black and red fruits, spices, toasted oak, black pepper, medium acidity, really nice balance for the extreme alcohol. This is a good value as always from this producer.
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4/29/2017 - alpha_ori Likes this wine: 91 Points
2017 Paso Robles; 4/28/2017-4/30/2017: These wines are so extreme, I don't know how they hold together. But they do.
You can literally smell the barrel toast on this one. Smooth presentation, but finishes in mouthdrying tannin. This needs to settle.
This isn't my favorite Syrah profile (I prefer more clarity and less bulk), but it is enjoyable, and I wonder what it will be like after a few years.
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4/15/2017 - treesritter wrote: 90 Points
Needs more age. Still drinkable now, but will be better in 2-5 years.
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4/14/2017 - Wine Lover 1964 Likes this wine: 93 Points
One of the best Russell does year in year out. This year is no exception
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4/13/2017 - dontime wrote: 93 Points
A solid 95 point nose. Wonderful smokey smells that hit you a foot from the bottle. Black and blue fruits, no denying they're there, smokey, bloody meat, bacon fat, yum. Russell delivers.
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