This was about as rich, polished, and modern as it gets. PnP, Dark purple robe without any bricking. Clearly well made, nose of vanilla and barrel toast, still primary in that sense. Dark fruit without overripe flavors, and that is appreciated, but it has a marked new world feel. To me the gripe here is too much wood with too much toast masks its sense of place. I’m not confident in how it will integrate, but the saving grace is its balancing acidity. Best to hold this wine for 3-5 years and enjoy on the younger end, I think. Crowd pleaser in that context.
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The aroma is the best part of this wine. Decant for 3 hours, every sniff is a different experience. The best one is like a perfume. Quelques Fleurs!!! On the palate, earthy, balance, tannin is not as silky as top echelon wine, but not bad. Acidity is just right.
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PnP. Nose has lovely earth notes and, after about an hour, sweet fruits: blueberries and blackberries, and some floral notes.
Palate: the wine is very refined, elegant; the mouthfeel is medium; it feels light, feminine, almost closer to a Burgundy or a Margaux. I think this is characteristic of 2017s. There is the slightest green note that is sometimes not detectable, also a characteristic of 2017, but this didn’t bother me at all. The tannins are very well integrated, barely noticeable. The wine is drinking just fine now, but can no doubt last several more years.
Had with southern BBQ with Kalyani, Swasti, Jackie and Nancy. This was a tribute to Yee Kwong.
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Quite plush but opulent and young warm vintage cocoa espresso blackcurrant plum notes. Quite glossy. Tasted blind I’d pick it as an ‘18. Took an hour to open, good but lacked a bit of mid palate snd length compared to a “real 18” very good for the vintage.. not obviously right bank. I’m sure the personality will unfold and will become more distinct over time.
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Poured last (and blind) at the end of a pinot centric tasting. This was dark, intense, clearly a young right bank to me, although I thought it was an 18 based on how dark fruited it was and the degree of extraction. Pretty thick wine in other words compared to the 17s I’ve had. Balanced acidity, large scale and I think it has plenty of potential upside. Glad to have a couple
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Pinot Blind: Just opened. Didn’t show well initially. Had a seemingly reductive note and strong oak influence. Had a deep black fruit streak. Glossy and polished. Just too young and hard to get a good read on.
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Showing a gleaming garnet hue, the wine is lush with flavor, cashmere tannins and length and purity of fruit. The finish combines dark, sweet fruits and minerality with salty tannins, making this not just a dazzling taste but a distinct feel as well. Reaching 14% alcohol, the wine is a blend of 88% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc. The harvest ran from September 22 to October 2.
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9/17/2023 - jviz wrote: 92 Points
This was about as rich, polished, and modern as it gets. PnP, Dark purple robe without any bricking. Clearly well made, nose of vanilla and barrel toast, still primary in that sense. Dark fruit without overripe flavors, and that is appreciated, but it has a marked new world feel. To me the gripe here is too much wood with too much toast masks its sense of place. I’m not confident in how it will integrate, but the saving grace is its balancing acidity. Best to hold this wine for 3-5 years and enjoy on the younger end, I think. Crowd pleaser in that context.
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8/27/2022 - KAT9 Likes this wine: 94 Points
The aroma is the best part of this wine. Decant for 3 hours, every sniff is a different experience. The best one is like a perfume. Quelques Fleurs!!! On the palate, earthy, balance, tannin is not as silky as top echelon wine, but not bad. Acidity is just right.
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8/20/2022 - Brendel Likes this wine: 94 Points
PnP. Nose has lovely earth notes and, after about an hour, sweet fruits: blueberries and blackberries, and some floral notes.
Palate: the wine is very refined, elegant; the mouthfeel is medium; it feels light, feminine, almost closer to a Burgundy or a Margaux. I think this is characteristic of 2017s. There is the slightest green note that is sometimes not detectable, also a characteristic of 2017, but this didn’t bother me at all. The tannins are very well integrated, barely noticeable. The wine is drinking just fine now, but can no doubt last several more years.
Had with southern BBQ with Kalyani, Swasti, Jackie and Nancy. This was a tribute to Yee Kwong.
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8/14/2022 - jmoon Likes this wine: 93 Points
Quite plush but opulent and young warm vintage cocoa espresso blackcurrant plum notes. Quite glossy. Tasted blind I’d pick it as an ‘18. Took an hour to open, good but lacked a bit of mid palate snd length compared to a “real 18” very good for the vintage.. not obviously right bank. I’m sure the personality will unfold and will become more distinct over time.
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6/11/2022 - jviz wrote: 94 Points
Poured last (and blind) at the end of a pinot centric tasting. This was dark, intense, clearly a young right bank to me, although I thought it was an 18 based on how dark fruited it was and the degree of extraction. Pretty thick wine in other words compared to the 17s I’ve had. Balanced acidity, large scale and I think it has plenty of potential upside. Glad to have a couple
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6/10/2022 - Nutty08 wrote:
Pinot Blind: Just opened. Didn’t show well initially. Had a seemingly reductive note and strong oak influence. Had a deep black fruit streak. Glossy and polished. Just too young and hard to get a good read on.
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12/26/2021 - KAT9 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Balance, interesting aroma profile. Very earthy and floral. Decanted for 4-5 hours and it is constantly changing. Love it.
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4/26/2018 - Jeff Leve wrote: 96 Points
Showing a gleaming garnet hue, the wine is lush with flavor, cashmere tannins and length and purity of fruit. The finish combines dark, sweet fruits and minerality with salty tannins, making this not just a dazzling taste but a distinct feel as well. Reaching 14% alcohol, the wine is a blend of 88% Merlot and 12% Cabernet Franc. The harvest ran from September 22 to October 2.
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