Profound, complete Chenin Blanc flavors, just shy of decadent; lively, dances on palate, superb depth and length. In an evening of some incredible red Burgundies, this was the wine of the night. Well stored bottles of this wine should last for decades.
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excellent sweetie with good pop and bright acidity to accompany the honied-apricot and blood orange and lanolin notes. Long and super flavorful. Prefer this often even over a good Sauterne. Fantastic. EWG Loire dinner at Otono
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I brought this along with the 2005 Rieussec to a tasting with a novice group. Screw cap. Last tasted in 2018 (not 2008). Time has been good to this wine.
The color was just a shade lighter than the Rieussec - like a Hawaiian sunset with a couple hours of daylight, honey. Nose was a pretty floral, citrusy, lychee, which all transitioned to the palate. There was a sweetness to it but was framed with a tangerine-like acid that made the wine felt lighter than the Rieussec although the sweetness level felt the same. Some blue cheese and crackers make a terrific dessert.
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Honey, saffron, and dried apricots on the nose. The palate is full and viscous, with pungent orange oil, yellow plum, and a zippy acidity keeping it fresh. The finish is epic and shows all the honey, pollen, stony layers one could ask for. This is drinking very well at the moment.
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Sweet honey dipped peaches, dried apricots, sweet poached apples, slight creaminess to the texture. Racy acidity, really well balanced, this was WOTN for me, Kevin’s as well. Just a delightful and tasty dessert wine with great tertiary development. 93-94
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This was a superb wine that I will no seek out more of. Was very balanced with just the right amount of sweetness and acidity. Could have drank this all night long
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Unscrewed and poured. This has a medium yellow-gold in colour. Orange blossoms, ripe honeydew melons, with some honey and sweet quince on the nose. On the palate, there are stoney mineral honeyed pears with sweet mango and some figs; very good balance of fruit and acidity. Medium bodied with a medium-long finish.
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Deep gold verging on copper. Floral nose and taste is honeyed but very acidic. Like super acidic and sweet at the same time. Finish goes on a long time and melts into green apple skin and smoky saline. Really nice wine
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This is my last bottle of this wonderful dessert wine. The apricots, pineapple and honey are all there with the latter providing a delicious viscous mouth feel. This shows a little more acidity in the final sip but just plain a very excellent alternative to Sauterne albeit a tad more viscous. Loved it with blackberry pie previously and a lemoncello dessert tonight.
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Last time I had this was three years ago, and it just wasn't showing much. Popped another 05 yesterday, and it was perfection. Notes of apricot, Mandarin orange, pineapple, honey, fig, and smoke are perfectly integrated on the palate, supported by bracing acidity. The finish lingers for over a minute, and I'm still smiling today just thinking about every sip.
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I love this wine. Beautiful bright yellow in color, with a viscous palate coating medium body that balances fruit and acidity in perfect harmony. Apricot is the dominant character upon the palate immediately followed by pear, mango, honeysuckle, and peach. No toasted or singed fruit skin like you might see in an older Sauterne, just a delightful fruit party in your mouth with a perfectly balanced tangy finish.
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Tasted non blind. Tasted from 375 ml format bottled under screw cap. Opened and served immediately. Followed over about 90 minutes.
Yellow color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of honeysuckle, lychee, apricot and nutmeg. Flavors of honey, lychee, peach and apricot. Bright acidity, full bodied. Drink or hold.
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One of the most stunning wines I have ever tasted. Orange marmalade, apricot, candied ginger, sweet spices, honey and minerals. The palate is so intense and sweet but with incredible fresh acidity. The finish is endless and keeps pumping out later after layer of flavor. The balance between the incredibly intense flavors and freshness is what makes this experience so unbelievable. Wow, wow, wow!
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I have been sitting on five bottles of this wine for ten years. I am not as impressed with it as the wine press or wine community. I'm not sure why Domaine des Baumard chose to switch to screw tops, but it was not a good idea. I'm been sipping my second bottle nightly for a week. I can't taste any improvement, and I don't think that my remaining three bottles will improve with age.
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Deep gold color. Pronounced aromas and flavors of orange blossom/candied blood orange, fig, quince, honey, pear, marzipan, mango, truffle, ginger, and saffron. Steely mineral character and good acid backbone. Perfectly balanced; drink now but has potential for additional aging. An incredible treat.
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2002 Tete de Cuvee Champagne Tasting Volume II (Jan's Place, St. Paul, MN): Deep golden orange tinged color. Drank a glass over 30 minutes. Great nose with orange and apricot, mango, honey, and quince spice. The palate is medium plus bodied, round with crisp acid and a creamy texture, ripe, but not overly sweet, tangerine, orange zest, apricot, well balanced and crisp with a spiced finish. 94+ to 95pts.
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From 375ml. I didn't just like this wine, I loved it! This is exceptional and deserving a lofty 96 rating. This is what we live for in the wine world! Boy-o-boy there is a ton of richness in a late-harvest Loire sort of way.
Screw cap. Good light golden color with lots of years to go. Some tartaric crystals in the bottle. Tons of honey, medium-dark sugars, ripe peach, mango, and raisin; all supported by great, well balanced, acidity. Apricot, almond, and coconut too. Candied watermelon on the finish. It makes your mouth water for a v. long time. This wine is lushesly creamy, warmly acidic (yes that can occur), and remarkably balanced. Brilliant!
(Served with a Chocolate Chestnut Cake. Recipe from La Cucina Italiana magazine. The dessert was not overly sweet or chocolatety thus allowing the sweeter wine to shine.)
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Floral bouquet and wonderful mouthful of honey, pineapple and apricots. Decent acidity keeps the flavors and sweetness from being cloying. Perfect match with fresh made BlackBerry pie. Comparable to high end Sauterne but much more affordable.
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Gosh I really thought this was drinking well! I agree with other notes that there's a strong floral component to the nose, but also bergamot, candied apricot, earthiness, and saffron. The palate is rich, and yes, sweet, but in no way cloying to my palate. I felt it was still fairly lively and refreshing, though it probably doesn't have the crispness of less voluptuous vintages. The finish, by the way, is long and just stunning. Layers of orange zest, honey, and mineral bitterness unfold for well over a minute. This is drinking wonderfully, but certainly has years (decades?) to go.
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Really crazy wine. Opened at first to a honeysuckle and mushroom note. Poured a medium amber into the glass. Thick and dense. Nose of honeysuckle and sweet pear. This one changed as it sat out. Started to lose the mushroom and was more of a honeysuckle, banana cream, hint of apricot. Sweeter fruit with a little bit of a bite to the middle. The middle is where I was getting kind of a sweet roasted cashew. Finished thick. Probably the craziest Chenin I've had. But wow, not a bad little wine at all, and a great way to end a Thursday!
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Short version - really tasty, a touch overbearing on the sweetness.
A perfect liquid gold color, this is literally beautiful in the glass. A nose of white peaches and pineapple leads to a long palate with viscous mouthfeel and notes of pineapple mango peaches etc. Very balanced on the tip of the tongue, toward the finish it comes across as a little too sweet (maybe adds a guava note or similar); a bit higher acidity would make this one of the tastiest things I’ve had in the last 6 months.
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Very nice. Ripe pear, honey, orange, quince. Floral notes. Nice mouthfeel. Good acidity though, surprisingly, not quite as much as I would have liked. Decent finish.
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Loads of fruit on the nose and palate, with initial aromas and flavors of honey, pineapple, and lemon. After a half hour or so, the acidity starts to pop, and flavors of ripe Navel orange take over. Delicious, if not as complex as I'd hoped.
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One of two dessert wines after our annual stone crab dinner with Chris and Sal. I poured this great Loire wine along with a 2003 Sauterne to show the differences in the two wines. They loved this one by far, although the Sauterne was no slouch. Chris said if i had only poured the Sauterne, it would have been wonderful. But when compared to the Quarts, it came in second place
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Absolutely delicious and elegant Loire dessert wine! Not too sweet and filled with a creamy, honeyed texture accompanied by the perfect amount of acidity to keep it fresh. Finishes nicely complex with notes of quince, peach and floral minerals. Such a balanced wine.
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Color was a light, pale yellow color. Beautiful aromas of baked apricot, canned lychees. As others have mentioned, it is cloyingly sweet, and it takes away the enjoyment after more than a few sips, let me alone an entire glass.
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Immediately delicious. Very sweet, and indeed cloying. Notes of honey, quince paste, candied pineapple, candied ginger, and pear. Even a hint of the petrol/rubber note that is characteristic of Riesling. Unfortunately, the wine lacks an acidic/mineral backbone to support the syrupy flavors. It gets tiresome quickly.
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Bright yellow. Open nose of ripe orange marmelade and honey. Taste of honeysuccle and cloudberries. Sweet and concentrated. Long finish. Very good but may miss some acid and body.
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From a .375. Pre-Christmas dinner with friends. Had this (once again) with dessert of an opera cake made with Grand Marnier instead of coffee. Wonderful pairing. Fully consistent with my notes of 7/13/2017 and 6/09/2017.
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Dessert wine at Tuesday's wine group dinner. This is my favorite dessert wine - rich, sweet, not cloying or alcoholic. Perfect. My first 2 half bottles; 10 to go
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From a 375. Bastille Day eve dinner with French friends. Wine was very consistent with my tasting note of June 2017. Instead of a fruit-based dessert, had this with an opera cake flavored with Grand Marnier instead of coffee. Wine was an excellent counterpoint with the dark chocolate and a good meld with the citrus of the Grand Marnier in the filling.
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From a .375. Never had this Loire dessert wine before and it was a suggestion from a friend. Straw color, clear. Nose was very Moscato-like: peach blossoms and honeysuckle. Palate was much deeper than the highly perfumed nose had suggested: botrytis, peach and kumquat. Good acid to keep it from being cloying. While just as delicious, was lighter and more suited to Summer warmth than many Sauternes. Delicious with an apricot crostata. Wine will keep a long time.
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Last bottle, and this was a 750ml. We actually started the meal with it + appetizers and it was amazing! Same profile as previous note, prob thanks to screw cap enclosure. You have to have this with a triple cream brie and some sweet fruit marmalade (guava, orange, fig, etc) on a salty cracker/bread. It will blow your mind. Everyone loved it. Went fast.
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This tasted quite fresh, my guests and I all remarked on it being a 12 year-old wine. I think this is a great alternative to a sauternes - great complexity but much lighter on its feet than most. I think it could probably keep for a couple of decades more if not longer.
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Golden, deep colour. Nose of white truffles (just like Baumard's Papillon with age!), caramelized apples and honey. Deep and full bodied, very good balance (better than 3 years ago) and long finish. This is in a sweet spot now!
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My second encounter with this wine: light golden colored; incredibly fresh and mind-staining nose of dried apricot and pineapple and mild bakery spices; like essence or highly concentrated version of a Sauvignon blanc driven Sauternes but with brutal freshness. So lively and riveting.
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Another 94 pointer at Cowboy Ciao Scottsdale. If you love wine and can get here, get here.
Opened a half bottle as an apertif and held the rest for their "Cereal, Killer" dessert, which was a crazy good pairing. The wine has its textbook musty smell at first, which becomes subtle with air. Liquid nectarine, pebbly, weightless, good lift and energy, subtle finish that lingers all night.
Sweet Apple, lithe fruit, pear, nice texture. This is very sweet on the finish and detracts a bit from the wine. You will need to have this with a dessert...
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Thanks to Cole Kendall and a few others, I discovered the wines of Baumard awhile back. Unfortunately I seldom get to drink QdC. Expressive nose displaying mango, yellow peach jam, apricot, honey, copper and candied ginger. Exceptional concentration, dense yet precise palate, good acidity and strong presence of mineral and long finish. It still is all about the fruit as this particular bottle doesn’t show much petrol. This is absolutely delicious.
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Aromas like smelling into a valley of rainforest. Honey--as in that local, differentiated, just-sweet stuff-- mint, scallion, so expansive. Bound, if at all, by tender bitterness. Just heavenly. Complex and so truly delicately pleasurable.
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Another delicious bottle of this honeyed QdC. Lots of sweet apple and honey with nice acidity and a long long finish. Great balance to some desserts and pleasantly tasty without them afterwards. One full bottle left. Delicious.
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19th Annual Lyon 10 Year Retrospective (Chez Lyon in Eugene, OR): I still love this, despite whatever BAL I/we had at the end of this 10 year Retro tasting. This is like a liquid SweeTart, with honeyed, ripe stone fruit, pear, and tropical fruit. It has a lush texture and a finish that goes on and on with good acidity to clean up the palate. I can see where some folks would prefer Sauv Blanc to Chenin Blanc as the base for their dessert wine; thank goodness we don't all like the same things! That would make things really $$$...
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Last bottle of 6 under screw cap, and probably the best of the lot. Getting that text book bitter note below the honeyed texture. This actually went *amazingly* well with a Belgian Chocolate Pot de Creme, whereas I originally thought it would go with the Lemon Pot de Creme (it did not). I'm seriously considering restocking.
Wow - many thanks to Michael for the very kind gift. This wine is wonderful - peach and apricot and honeysuckle and just perfectly sweet. It was the exactly right counterbalance to the meal and something that I wanted to sip for awhile.
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Magnum night with the neighbors (Somewhere on E. 4th street): Screwcapped 750. A nice taste to end the evening. Golden in color. The nose has honey, orange peel and some sea air. On the palate, this is sweet but not overtly. Slightly viscous texture. Nice acidity. Honey and citrus. Long finish. A nice way to finish the evening especially with some buttered popcorn crem brulee.
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Workshop Faculty Dinner (My House, Denver, CO): This was an amazing wine to end the dinner with and a stellar match to the brioche, which turned out to be lighter and less sweet than I feared. This wine had a rivetingly complex nose of sweet peach, pear, citrus, straw, burnt caramel, vanilla, and intense mineral. As expected, but not predicted from the richly sweet nose, this wine is lithe on the palate as the mineral and tingly acidity make their presence known from the moment the wine hits the palate. No cloying sweetness or protruding etoh at all. For once a dessert wine that enhanced a dessert (and vice versa; bravo Lucas).
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Saturday Night Cali Cabs (Our House (2033 Brandywine)): Hoo boy. In a fantastic place right now. Thick and viscous. Sweetness perfectly balanced by the acidity. This is should age wonderfully but its just so hard to hold on to these. Peach, stone fruit, apricot and honey. Minerals, spice and brown sugar. There is mild development but really the evolution will be glacial. The finish is long long long.
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A tad darker than the Ste Catherine. More primary and slightly more subdued on aromas. Great purity of fruit with an additional floral and herbal component (in a positive sense), with brown sugar and marmelade. Honeyed sweetness with white florals, pear nectar, marzipan, some orange rind not all to the way to orange marmalade. The palate is very rich and very structured; this is serious stuff. Lots of baby fat but plenty of nervy and minerally acidity in this. It is very much in its primary stage of development. This is a better wine that Ste Catherine but it needs to come together more harmoniously. All this means is that this is a great Quarts de Chaume and needs plenty of time to resolve.
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A perfect match with a fruit tart. Ripe luscious nose. Surprisingly light bodied, with a mid level sweetness paired with crisp minerality. Juicy and refreshing, a perfect finisher on a warm first night of summer.
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Guava, muskmelon, canned peach, vanilla orchid, apricot, old lady perfume nose. Exotic and unusual, falling somewhere between Muscat and Gewurz, without overt botrytis or overripeness. Same on the syrup textured palate; concentrated and exotic but not in the usual ways. It's long, clean, and succulent with great freshness. Excellent with strawberry rhubarb crisp.
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Dinner with Friends (Beaucastel, Keller, McPrice, Saxum, ++) (Our home): Screw capped. Always a crowd pleaser. This is slowly evolving with years left in it. It did not seem quite as sweet as I remember, but there is a depth with layers of complexity starting to emerge. A nose of honey, sea air and caramelized pears. Full bodied. Sweet, not overtly nor cloying. Nice acidity. Great match to the cake. Very nice.
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I like it but it is in a very strange place right now. Dark, sweet stewed fruits on the nose, but on the palate it is all tropical caramelized banana, guava and spiced creme brulee. There is also a little wild grape (Muscodine maybe?) in the background. Waxy honeycomb and a hint of melon enters the party after a few minutes. The acidity is still holding its own, making this a marvelous wine for food or just for the end of the evening. I plan to save some of these for 20+ years.
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Sweet and viscous with caramel apple and pear notes. Lacking complexity and acidity to balance the sweetness so it was pretty much one note and surfeiting.
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Baumard '97 vs. '05: From a half. Yellow-gold color; moderately intense nose, pear, also has great purity, less concentration/ripeness than the 97; palate is medium bodied, good freshness, medium acidity, white fruits, simpler through the midpalate; finish is medium length. Great balance overall, fresh, slightly simpler than the 97, perhaps too young, could use slightly more acid to give it some additional freshness. 91
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WOW, really delicious! Opened this somewhat blind, expecting a normal chenin blanc and was completely unprepared for the Sauternes-like sweet wine that awaited. Absolutely delicious! Syrupy nectar with honey and rich floral (if those two words can be used together) notes. I need to try this wine again when I'm more prepared for it.
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At least in this bottle, the line was not there. A touch of lemon curd, green apple and pear. Honeyed, classic botrytis nose. Medium-long finish. This is good but doesn't hold a candle to the 2007. Was hoping for a little more nuance. Maybe in a few years...
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No heat, good acidity. Everything you could want in a solid sweet dessert wine. Packs punch with sweet orchard fruit, honey and spice. Viscous golden yellow color. Lip smacking and easy to drink.
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This was outstanding. No rough edges, heat, or cloying sweetness. Just smooth; filled with lychee, honey, mandarin orange, and caramelized sugar. Smooth finish.
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Melange of very ripe honeydew and white peaches and nectarines; stone fruit infused honey, honey, honey; suave but unctuous, with not quite enough acidity to balance the sugar, but delicious, leaving a long trail of sweetness.
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Popped and poured. Served in Riedel Vinum Bordeaux stems. @ 49 F. Nice round and supple pear, wild honey and mineral hints. Nice balance with pleasant medium plus acid. Medium bodied. Nice long and lingering finish . Outstanding wine that will last for decades.
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PHMG WAG: Conversation Piece Wines (The Lyon Hut): This qualifies as an odd-ball for the screw cap alone, but for the average tasters in this event, a late harvest Chenin Blanc was a new experience. This is like a liquid SweeTart, with honeyed, ripe stone fruit, pear, and tropical fruit. It has a lush texture and a finish that goes on and on with good acidity to clean up the palate. Every one of these that I've had at 10 years old has been better and there's no reason to think this will be different!
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Still showing very sweet, with pineapple and tropical fruit -- but it becomes clear that there is enough acid to balance -- and over time this should get even better.
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Typical nose of botrytised Chenin Blanc, ie apples and a lot of pear in this one. Medium bodied with great freshness. Very well balanced between sweetness and acidity. Loght on its feet but with great depth. Easy to drink, also due to the modest alcohol.
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Already starting to burn the baby fat, this showed amazingly well. Really starting to see the complexity emerge in the form of botrytis spice. Maybe just a touch short of where I would like it to be, but really a minor trifle as this is delicious.
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Tasted non blind at a wine dinner. Opened and served immediately. Revisited 24 hours later and was even more stunning than the original tasting!
Bottled under screwcap. Light yellow color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of honey, flowers and ripe yellow pears. Flavors of luscious pears, honey and a spritz of lemon on the medium to long finish. Medium to bright acidity, full bodied. Drink or hold. I’d have no problem doing either!
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from 375 ml. i'm a fan of the wine, but this lacks the complexity/acid of the 02. still, a worthy addition to anyone's cellar, yet the very high community scores are to me unwarranted.
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From the Thanksgiving dinner. Light gold in color. Nose of persimmon, apricots, lychee, honey. Palate of apricots, lychee, honey, a little floral, and some citrus peel and a little bitterness toward the end. The finish was long as would be expected from a desert wine. Overall a solid desert wine and good qpr, could use a little more acidity. Drink or hold: 50+5+13+18+7
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Just shy of what I was hoping this would be...but still an outstanding bottle of wine. I think this may have been best in it's youth or need another 5+ years in the bottle...
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Took this to a Loire Valey tasting and it was spectacular. The whole class loved it and it was the perfect ending wine for the class. However I didn't take any notes. As usual it's hard to score sweet white wines but this was wonderful.
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I never imagined that this kind of decency could be lurking beneath a screwcap. Fantastic fruit combined with just enough acidity makes this a great wine. If there was just a little bit more acidity and structure, and it came from somewhere other than France, this wine would be nearly perfect.
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I hate that this was my last bottle. I love that I shared it with dear friends. Honeyed fruit with a crisp citrus foundation that makes this wine almost a blend between sauterne and Canadian ice wine. Honey, peach, tropical fruits. This is a high score for a wine, but deservedly so given the wonderful drinkability. And the excellent QPR.
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nose; orange blossom, minerals, and lemon peel. palate; melons, poached pears, and brown sugar. high acidity and high sweetness. 75 plus second finish. very balanced and precise. this will last decades.
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One whiff took me back to the canned peaches in syrup that I loved as a kid. But it had more to it than just that. Lovely honeyed aromas with flowers and mangos emerging at different sniffs. Great viscosity and a lasting floral/honey flavors coated my mouth. A little more acidity would have vaulted this wine into the stratosphere, but as is, it's not flabby by any means; it just lacked a freshness on the finish that would have been perfection. Beautiful stuff!
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Nose of canned lychees, fruit cups. Syrupy, with hints of dried apricot, ripe peaches. I wish it had a bit more acidity to properly balance the sweetness. Still enjoyable but not as good as the 2009 Pink Moon Winery Huxel XL.
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Honey and peach on the nose with apricot dominating the palate. There was some mango and pineapple on the palate as well. I agree with most that the sweetness overpowers the acidity. I've only had a couple QDC's but this one was fuller, perhaps a little too full for what I was expecting. Still a wonderful experience and an enjoyable wine. Really nice fruit profile and a solid finish.
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Figs and soft mango, with a touch of hazelnut. Great minerality that allows for a second (or third) glass. Served after a cheese course, with a chocolate panna cotta with pepita brittle for a wine dinner. Nice way to end the night.
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On the nose, honey, peach and some white flowers; in the mouth, thick, sweet, complex, with acidity showing better than before. Better balanced than the last bottle a few years ago, though still swinging a little more to the sweet (vs. acid) than I would prefer. Overall, very nice with miles ahead of it.
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North American Pinot Dinner (Ris Restaurant): This was more showy than the 2002 drank alongside, with huge amounts of apricot and a viscosity that rivaled the Sauternes drank next. Acidity keeps this from getting fat but it's voluptuous. Delicious.
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Wine Club: Epic Syrah Smackdown (The Abarnment): We popped this beside the 2002, and I was excited because this is supposedly the best vintage since 1995. It's entirely possible that it's not ready yet, but in comparison to the 2002, this is way too sweet and not acidic enough. It's also more driven by young peach-style fruit, which should mellow out, but I can't imagine that this will get more balanced in the sweet-acid department. Fingers crossed.
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Rich, golden, tropical nectar. There is a cart full of fresh, sweet mango and apricot packed into this bottle and the acidity is just so well balanced. The botrytis is certainly present but doesn't distract from the chenin fruit.
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1990s California Cabernet (Charlie Palmer Steak - Washington DC): Absolutely delicious. Nose of dense apricot, sweet ripe peaches, mango with the botrytis underlying. Fantastic nose that is ripe and sweet, but balanced. On the palate, this is an interplay of tropical fruits and sweet orchard fruits. This is viscous and dense while also, remarkablely, light on its feet with a streak of acidity that keeps this fresh and vibrant. Nice long finish that just goes and goes. An absolutely fantastic example of QdC.
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California Cabernet at Charlie Palmer's (Charlie Palmer's - DC): On the same level as the 2002. Incredibly fresh tones of apricot, peaches and mangos dance on the nose and palate. Great depth, acidity, and balance. Basically what I expect from a BQC these days!
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Light gold in the glass. Pineapple, orange on the nose. The palate explodes with fruit especially pineapple, orange, apricot. I don't want to give the impression that this is heavy handed however. It is very light on its feet, with enough acidity to not be cloying. Others have described this better than I, but suffice it to say that this was really extraordinary.
COLOR: Deep yellow NOTE: Anniversary dinner with Drews. Still full of those same apricot and pineapple notes that I love so much from nose to finish. I can't really say it has changed at all in the almost 3 years I've been enjoying this vintage. It's solid as a rock and is singing every time.
DECANT: none GLASS USED: Zinfandel TASTE: 9.4 COST: 35 (375ml) VALUE: 8.5 TRY AGAIN: now - 2020 PAIRING: Went surprisingly well with chocolate truffles. Was it the butter content? Dunno.
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My first QDC, and what a treat. Tropical and fully aromatic nose. Beautiful light honeyed color. The smell, color and taste makes one think it is quite nectar-like in terms of body. But when holding this wine in one's mouth, is it pleasantly light-bodied, almost refreshingly bright. Crazy fine acids balance strong pinapple, white peach, ripe melon, honey and persimmon. Just holding this expressive wine in one's mouth and trying to catch the waves of amazing flavors that come through is almost overwhelming. A spectacular and long finish just makes the experience of trying this wine all the more glorious.
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This is my first bottle of the 2005 Baumard QDC. It no longer has the primary big tropical fruit nose as the wine has settled own. Upon opening slightly too cold, white peach, pear and apple, candied lemon peel with slight hint of petrol and botrytis. Also showing candied ginger and perhaps roasted garlic. Unctuous oily palate with good acidity and long finish. As getting slightly too warm a hint of pineapple and mango. Nicely balanced wine that is in the secondary stage. 94 pts.
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Lots of spicy botrytis on the and palate. Still fairly tart and refreshing, with plenty of quince on the mid-palate, followed by a touch of bitterness on the long finish. Really outstanding, but I honestly don't see this ever reaching the classic quality of the '95. I hope I'm wrong, as I've got plenty of it to drink. Stelvin closure; on the slow-track in aging. The '02 and '03 are better drinking now, IMHO.
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From 375ml. Pale yellow color. Rich pineapple fruit on the nose. Taste of pear, apple, and honeydew melon with some good minerality on the mid palate.. Well balanced with nice freshness and acidity. Elegant finish. Seems to be not as expressive or complex on the finish as previous bottles. Possibly closed down right now or going through a dumb phase. Hold.
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Pale yellow color. Aromas of orange blossom, quince, honeysuckle and minerals. Rich, highly extracted fruit in the mouth with great structure and depthand tremendous length. Thick, tongue-coating fruit is balanced beautifully by firm acidity. More powerful and intense than complex at his point in time. Try again in 3 years.
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Perhaps all of the hype left me a bit underwhelmed. Consumed over a week. Wine developed a slightly bitter finish the last couple of days that was not unpleasant and helped provide additional balance. Given the choice, I'd prefer to have a spatlese riesling
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Amazing. So complex and delicious it blows my mind. Passion fruit, honey, apricot, peach, canteloupe, nectarine, stone, honeysuckle. Something new with every sip. Rich, but not syrupy. Very smooth with wonderful acidity. Extraordinary
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Thick, smooth, oily, silky. Dense honeyed flowers. Bursting with bright honeysuckle and a touch of acid. Orange rind, clove, baking spices. Very complex, so smooth. Insanely long finish with some sweet spice. Beautiful and extremely young. Age 20+ years. A
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Raisin, orange blossum, springtime country field, a little slate and toffee. Full bodied but an acid bite. Love the crisp attack on the finish. Lots of lift and energy.
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Smell: Passion fruit, caramel, brown sugar, clementine, lemon, and spice
Taste: Tangerine, peach, star fruit, passion fruit, and a kaleidoscope of constantly changing flavors
Overall: Such an interesting wine. I can't begin to say how expressive and exciting this wine is. It really is a "show stopper" that turns heads wherever I've brought it. I'd gladly buy more of this at the release price.
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Chesapeake Wood Duck Inn Weekend. No formal notes. Served with Jeffrey's French Lemon Tart and Berry Coulis. What a wonderful end to the evening. This had a surprisingly delicate body (given B. Sanderson's review). The flavors were all fig and persimmon. The weight was quite substantial given the way it kind of floated in the mouth. It was an interesting pairing, because the tartness of the tart, including the crust which has a dusting of cocoa included, did not distract at all from the sweetness of the wine. It was actually a beautiful combination. I thought that we would have a hard time finishing this after a long evening of exceptional food and nice wine, but that was not a problem at all!
12.5% vol No formal notes, unfortunately. Drank over a week-and-a-half. The most memorable impression was on Day 2 or 3 of a rose bush on the palate (as in flowers and the green leaves and woody stems and branches). Various citrus notes through out the tasting period. On the final drops from the bottle there is a lingering taste and sensation on the back of the palate that reminds me of coconuts. Some crème brûlée on the long finish as well.
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This is sublime; paired with a perfect lemon tart. The acidity of the lemons perfectly counterbalanced the sweetness of the wine. Rich apricots, undertones of coconut and creme brulee. Don't know if I can keep my New Years' resolution about not buying any more wine this year..this may make me do it.
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great wine. not up to the class of the 2002, but maybe i ha vren't given it enough time. Every bottle I have of Baumard QdC is a lovely experience. Quince, apricot, lovely dried honey extract. sweet, but a nice freshness.
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Golden color, shiny and viscous and strikingly pure looking. Very pleasant perfume nose with honeysuckle, vanilla, cedar with a touch of heat which is suprising. Apricot, pineapple, golden raisins, honey. Excellent mouth feel right now, but I have a feeling it will get even better. There is detectable acidity that should help this one integrate and hold together well with age. Finish comes in waves and sticks around a very satisfying length.
For the moment the group found this one to have too much residual sugar in its current youthful state, and I agree that there is a bit of cloying if you just must drink this now. This one is too young to rate at this stage, but if I were in the business of fortune telling, I would guess 90-94+ in 10+ years.
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NSMFOW November 2009--Mini Verticals (The Grapevine, Salem, MA): Similar to my previous note: Golden color. Nose of apricots. Palate of apricot, some apple, brown sugar with great acidity to balance. The purity and density of fruit at this stage is quite pleasing.
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Apricot syrup, quince, honey and peaches on the nose. Intense and rich palate with enough acid to carry it into a long finish and avoid being cloying. So intense that a small amount is enough to satisfy. Lovely now, but seems to have the balance to last for 20 years.
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Leslie’s: Sugar sweet, but oh so blalanced; dried pineapple bits, frt cake--really good one from a local bakery... touch cocnut--very nice trop frt w/continental fresh touch. Grt intensity and stuff
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COLOR: Deep yellow NOTE: Ripe yellow peach, turkish dried apricots & fruit cocktail syrup in nose. Mouth is opulent with ripe peach, overripe pineapple, Turkish dried apricot. Finish is well-balanced, full of sweet fleshy pit fruit. Great.
DECANT: none GLASS USED: Sauternes TASTE: 9.5 COST: 35 (375ml) VALUE: 8.5 PREVIOUSLY TASTED: 01/08 TRY AGAIN: now - 2020 PAIRING: All by itself.
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This wine is just plain awesome. It is incredibly complex with aromas and flavors orange blossom, honey, peach and pineapple. The wine is thick and mouthfilling with a long finish that just won't quit. This will last for a long time and will doubtless be more stunning with additional age.
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Wonderfully complex nose of white flowers, peach pie, raisin, wet stone and oyster shell. The palate shows a compelling mix of sweet tropical fruits framed by citrus acidity. A exquisite medley of vivacious fruit and old world structure.
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CT Dinner with Ron, Derik, and Deb (Chez Grimes, Byfield, MA): Golden color. Nose of apricots. Palate of apricot, some apple, brown sugar with great acidity to balance. The purity and density of fruit at this stage is quite pleasing. I tend to like these wines on the young side. Paired well with Deb's almond, pine nut macaroons.
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CT Dinner with The Grimes, Ron and Derik (Chez Grimes, Byfield, MA): This wine never fails to please. Manages to combine the right amount of acidity with flavors of honeysuckle without being cloying. Deftly balanced. Brief notes, as this came at the end of an incredible line-up, and may have suffered some for that.
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Lemon gold color. Reminds me of the Jack Daniels, honey and lemon juice old southern cough remedy if you could mix in a little apricot. Interesting sense of weight and richness. Needs a big strong blue cheese to really set it off.
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Served from 375ml format. Light yellow color in the glass, clear hue throughout. Nose of lychee, orange and honeysuckle. Flavors of honey, apricot and orange foam. Think and unctuous on the palate without being cloying. This should be a real stunner with lots more age on it. Can be drank now but I'd hold.
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wow, what a wine, floats on your palate, not cloying at all. apricot, lemon peel plus loads of wild flowers on the nose, marzipan, peach and hints of lychee pop up as well. mouthfeel is ethereal and finish last more than a minute.
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Heavenly. Pure quince, honey, pear and passion fruit with a finish that will not stop. coats every millimeter of your tongue and really takes you to some where else. Amazing with candied fruits and sublime with chocolate. Will reward cellaring, however, I am having a very difficult time not consuming my other four bottles. So much complexity. This is so close to perfect. Best from 2013 - 2025.
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On the nose, peach, apricot, white flowers. In the mouth, sweet, rich, complex, but I wish there were more acidity to balance the sweetness. Good minerality along with the flowers and fruits, but I hope this comes into better balance over time.
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Enjoyed this gem with cheese following a french meal at friends. What a find! Wonderful, luscious balance of fruits, acidity and structure. As some have noted, it's not comparable to Sauternes from the 80s, but this is a different style of wine from a different region. It is chenin blanc, not semillon or sauvingnon blanc. Regardless, this is a remarkable wine for the price. I was at the store the following day purchasing most all I could find.
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With any luck, I'll be alive in 20 years to see if this turns into something, but I would bet against it. This vintage doesn't have the steely minerality of the classic vintages, and there isn't much botrytis going on. Of course it's tasty, but it's also neither classic nor memorable.
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Bought this at a friend's suggestion. I need more friends like that! A fun, sweet, classy wine with great honeyed bouquet and a flowery fruit. Not overpowering in any way. Glad I have more
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wow... there is a ton of sugar in this, but the balance is so good that it almost seems light! quince, honey, apricot, clove, lime, with some floral notes. really great bottle. the finish goes on and on, but is surprisingly light.
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Opened and re-"stelvined" a MONTH before. JF brought this from his cellar after a taste a month ago. Wonderful clarity and focus. Beautiful brightness of fruit and clarity. Much, much better than a blle I opened last year that was all baby fat unfocused. Beautiful purity of fruit, acidity, and terribly well balanced. An amazing future this wine has. Brilliant stuff. 97pts.
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Tasted at a superbowl party, no formal notes. Huge expectations and this did not disappoint for sure. Great lychee and persimmon, key lime, honey notes going on. Really nice acidity for a desert wine and the length of the finish was forever. The best desert wine I have ever had without a doubt. Will be securing more bottles.
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Wine Spectator is spot on with their review. This wine will hold for decades but is hard to keep from opening. Fine job, and an absolute steal for the price.
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Super rich and concentrated quince, mango, and honey with a good dose of botrytis. Right now this wine is just too primary for me to really love. The sugar is extremely coarse, burying the acid, and just needs time to soften. That said, the quality and length of the fruit is superb. Hold, hold, hold. Screwcap
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Obviously young but a treat to taste again. Rich, complex, orange peel, loads of tropical fruit, honey, sweet but good balance of acidity. Structured to last decades.
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You bring 'em - we'll drink 'em (Fayette Street Grille): Wonderful aroma of flowers, honey and peaches - rich mouthfeel (like drinking the syrup out of canned peaches) with a spine of acidity. minerality and floral honey. Perhaps lacking the acidity to go the long haul - but who cares? This is just a fabulous drink right now and I can't keep my hands off them.
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I'm losing some of my enthusiasm for this wine. I like it, but somehow it does not polarize as much as it once did. Still very good, but perhaps the slightest bit too hot on the palate.
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Fat, intense, and utterly delicious with complex aromas of quince, white fruit, orange marmalade and flowers followed by flavors of dirty honey that last for minutes. A huge hit served early in the meal with strong cheeses. A little bit blurry and overripe for my tastes but undeniably yummy.
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It becoming increasingly difficult to keep my mitts off of this wine. From 375ml. Beautiful floral nose of tropical fruits. Tastes of pear, peaches, honey, melon and orange. Excellent balance. Amazing depth and complexity on the finish that literally lasts for minutes. Outstanding. 12.5% alcohol.
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Rhones at Catal (Catal Restaurant and Uva Bar, Anaheim, CA): Sappy fat yet soft and light nose with a sappy sweet palate but in no way overly weighty or heavy. Not my favorite flavor profile but these are very well made wines and should live for a long long time.
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Drank at the new house by the backyard fieplace at dusk. Nice bright fruit and lively acidity. This wine is just impeccible in its balance. Finish goes on and on. Very clean. Best non D'Yquem sweet I have tasted.
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From a 375ml. Over the course of several nights. Wonderful nose of pineapple, baked apples, brown sugar, flowers and spice. Palate coating flavors of pear, pineapples, ripe apples and spice with an appealing slightly bitter finish. Got better each night as the acidity became more prevalent. Was a perfect match for peach and blueberry cobler. Serve slightly below cellar temp.
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Once again reminded me of the '97, not a vintage for the ages; shouldn't have listened to the hype and bought a six-pack of halves and instead bought one half of the '90; all that being said, a thoroughly delicious way to end a meal, in this case white-chocolate cheesecake, although it didn't have enough acid to cut through the richness of the cake
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Dinner at Bob & Bere's (NYC): This wine was beautifully concentrated with scents of pineapple, golden delicious apples, and spice. This was served with a fruit tart that was the perfect pairing. This wine is thicker and more concentrated than the last time I had it in November of 2007. The wine is a classic example of what to expect from Baumard.
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This is definitely the '97 in new skin: too sweet for its own good; I'm convinced that the underrated vintages are the ones to pursue with this wine -- they have the balance that the (over)ripe wines don't have; this wne was better when it warmed up, which is a bad sign: when the temperature is out of balance, the wine is finally in balance; I want to see a blind tasting against other (cheaper) CA dessert wines; this is way more new world than true Loire chenin dessert; don't see this maturing like the '90 or '95
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This may be the most delicious wine I've ever had.....this is what Nectar should be. On the nose, you get beautiful aromas of apples, pears, peaches and apricots along w/ a nice honey component. These wonderful aromas follow through on the palate. And while this is not overly sticky (which I like), it is still a lovely mouthcoating experience of pure "deliciousness". At the same time, this shows excellent acidity that gives this wine an absolutely perfect balance of fruit, sweetness & acidity. The finish is very long and simply beautiful. The only issue I have is that this is so delicious, that it's going to be difficult to keep the remaining bottles in the cellar. On the other hand, this has the potential to be a truly SPECTACULAR 100 point wine with some years on it. So my goal is to hold out, but may need counseling.....
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Great wine, but needs lots of time to really evolve. For now it's an engaging but primary dessert wine, full of pear, apricot, and honey flavors, with hints of lime, and a slightly herbal finish that reminded me of tea with honey. Good stuff with plenty of upside for the future.
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The nose had honey, citrus, apricot and floral aromas. The palate was much richer this time then when I tasted it in February. The serving temperature was cooler this time, and I think that helped. The palate was had some orange nuances along with the apple, lime, and honey flavors that I expected. This was very nice, and I probably enjoyed it more since I knew what to expect this time around.
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Explodes on the palate revealng apricots and honey with layers pineapple and orange rind. There is a mineral component that for now is buried within the lush intense fruit. Still, good acidity keeps the wine in check and cleanses the 30 sec finish. Very compelling wine that is too easy to drink now.
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This late harvest Chenin Blanc is unassailable pleasure. The nose is delirious honeydew melons, with apricot syrup. Same on the palate, with melons, apricots, orange blossom, and a touch of lemon-lime with honey. Poised balance between intense sweetness and crisp acidity, and a lengthy finish. This went equally well with desserts, and by itself. Want a capable alternative to a Sauternes? This will do.
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Creme brulee, lychee fruit, raisin, stone and hint of lime. Superb balance of acids and sweetness. A rare combination of subtle complexity and hedonistic pleasures. Will only get better over the next decade.
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fat, baroque, funky over-ripe cantaloup/honeydew melon. i loved it! don't know about how it will age, maybe lacking structure and acidity, but fun now.
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I have good news, bad news, and no-news on this wine. The "no-news" is that it is too young and built for the long haul, so if you want to drink it now you may consider serious aeration (maybe double decanting). The good news is that the aromatics and the flavors are wonderful. Honey, mango, lime zest, marzipan, floral notes, and peppery tones take turns displaying themselves in the nose and palate of this rich, multi-dimensional wine. It also has a very long and generous finish. The bad news is the level of residual sugar. It is so incredibly sweet as to irritate one's throat. This is really sweet. I tried to pair it with both a sweet dessert and a strong blue cheese and there is no comparison: go for the cheese, as this wine with a sweet dessert will give you the sugar blues. With strong blue cheese, however, it is excellent. Drink from 2012 until 2045.
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Big nose of honey, lemon, peach, violets, pineapple, and melon. Light as a feather on the palate, big and sweet, with flavors of starfruit, fig, pineapple, lemon curd. Finishes with crisp acidity and a citrus component (lime?). Pleasureable, an amazing dessert wine. Tremendous value.
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great way to finish - big nose of honey and lemon, with some apricot in there too. The palate was light and not cloyingly rich... good acidity to finish.
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Too sweet without the accompanying balance to be a memorable QdC; wait a while? Reminds me of the '97, and I never tasted one of those that turned into anything breathtaking; this was tasted in the company of an older SGN Loire chenin, and it didn't fare well in the comparison..
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Cantaloupe, Pineapple, Apricots and Passion Fruit swimming in Honey... Floral notes add complexity. An amazing wine. Easily the best dessert wine I've ever tasted! Also one of the best wines I've ever tasted. Had with multiple courses, but the creme brulee was the obvious highlight. This was a great pleasure to drink!
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The nose had major honey, apricot and citrus aromas. The palate was almost a let down from what the nose promised. Much lighter flavors than I expected, but very interesting with apricot, orange rind, a little lime, and something like yellow rasins. Not cloying at all, and a nice amount of acidity. A nice little dessert wine that we'll try again this summer.
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Lovely nose, intense fruit and white flowers, very sweet, perfect with creme brulee. I didn't find enough acidity to make this great, but it's quite nice.
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This is young, and has a ways to go, but I think it will be fantastic. Split a 750ml between courses. First with a foie gras appetizer, then with creme brulee. Honey, apricot and a lemon zest nose. Rich full viscous palate with a touch of heat, but I think that is just because of it's youth. Long, rich sweet finish. It did well with the foie (also served with a pomegranate reduction), but really shined with the creme brulee. The fats of both courses aided the wine, but the bitterness of the pomegranates and foie didn't do as well as just the creme brulee (don't get me wrong, they were still fantastic. I also had the 1995 recently and I believe this will head in a similar direction adding orange preserves to the flavor profile.
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Maybe the best non-yquem sweet wine I have ever had. This was fantastic, with lemon and honey balanced with vibrant and razor sharp acidity, it gave minutes of pleasure on the palate, and continued to evolve. Really will try to get my hands on more of this.
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Some Loire and Rhone for a Rainy Winter Day (San Francisco Bay Area): Medium yellow. Remarkable aromatics of roasted fig and more persimmon than I've ever smelled in a wine-truly distinctive. Very sweet, positively unctuous and long, but I get very little acidity here. Won't buy since I'm unconvinced by the balance and fear it would be tiresome to actually drink more than a pour.
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Impressive stuff; I can see why people flip for it. It is intensely sweet, too intense to sip more than a glass without getting the sugar jitters, but there's a lot going on in it, starting with its powerful fragrance of apricot and lychee and continuing with flavors that are almost more vegetable than fruit -- the sweetness plays an interesting game of misdirection that almost makes you overlook the fact that it tastes more like a broth of scallions and leeks than anything made from grapes. (It also helps cover up some of that stiff alcohol.) The finish begins with a backdraft of vanilla cream custard filling, then a few minutes later you notice you're still tasting those fresh veggies.
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I'm not sure what a 98pt dessert wine tastes like but this was very good. Sweet raisens and pear, very well balanced. As good or better than any Y'quem I have had
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An exceptional wine, great complexity, mouthfeel and a super long finish. Very light on it's feet for delivering so much, compared side-by-side with the 2003 Guiraud.
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This bottle seemed to peak and decline rather quickly. Notes of honey, white flowers, white raisins, and candied pineapple. Unctuous and rich on the palate. The sweetness really kicks in on the finish. Does not seem to have enough acidity to balance out the sweetness. By the next day, it was cloyingly sweet. With all the glowing notes about this wine, I am left scratching my head. 89-90 points.
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Pros: A lot of complexity in the midpalate and finish (which was quite long). Nice acidity. Lighter weight, which is a nice change (although I still prefer the texture of the higher numbered Kracher's). Cons: The alcohol is noticible. Questionable: There is a hint of bitterness. The back label suggests this is pronounced in several years time, and seems to consider this a good thing. I'm not sure if it's what I want in a sticky, but in several years I suppose I'll find out.
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Drank w/Bernard & Sue. Heavier than I expected, but still very pleasant with nice acidity to balance the sweetness. LET THIS BREATH. PLEASE!!! It really opened up towards the end of the evening ... I wish I would have opened it 24 hours ago!
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Drank over 5 nights Thanksgiving week -- fantastic, sweet syrup and unctuous honey and good balance of fruit and acidity. Interestingly, thought it was best on night 2, and then it really started to fade after night 3 of being open.
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Drank way early, but thought I would give it a try. Hints of citrus and honneysuckle on the nose, with candied ginger, meyer lemons, and sweet grapefruit on the palate. Nice finish. Drank from a 375ml bottle
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Apricots and peaches on the nose followed by peaches and pears on the tongue. Lingering complexity and the finish is nice. A little too girlie but the wife loved it.
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Served for half bottle. Pears, peaches and pineapple. Tremendous mid palate complexity. Laser like precision. Very crisp and clean. Well balanced with beautiful acidity and freshness. A knockout finish that lingers in the mouth for minutes.
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day 1 - - the clos ste. catherine was good but this is something else all together. multi-layered nose giving off something different with every sniff. rich, luxurious mouthfeel with a wonderful snap of acidity. long, complex finish. a keeper!
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Wine X: Big pure frt--like biting into super ripe pineapple, peach, and MELON! w/hint honey, lite sweetness; grt intensity, dinesse, wow. hint musk in there too (botrytis?)sock, petrol. yes.
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Wonderful aroma of flowers, honey and peaches - rich mouthfeel with a presence of peaches, minerality and floral honey. Perhaps lacking the acidity to go the long haul - but who cares? This is just a fabulous drink right now.
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Way too early for this wine, but I wanted a point of comparison over time. Already shows incredible structure. Honey, figs, grass on the nose. Tried with blue cheese, which was a great pairing, and returned to it at the end of the night. I'd wait at least five years before the next sampling.
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From half bottle. Pears, apples, honey, flowers, peaches and limestone. Rich mouth feel. Incredible mid palate depth. A very elegant finish that lasts for minutes. Nothing short of amazing.
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An almost perfect dessert wine. Wonderful nose of peaches and flowers. Tastes of peaches and a lovely caramel finish. I don't think I would ever tire of this wine.
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This wine's color is light yellow, not quite the golden color that you expect from a vintage Sauterne. The nose is absolutely fantastic though. The aromas are a perfect blend of apricot, citrus, and solvent. Bouquet is some of the best I've sampled. Simply superb. Flavors and mouth feel are just right. Excellent integration of alcohol. Smooth apricots. Just enough turpentine flavor. It's really good. Finish is equally satisfying. Boy, does it give a vintage Sauterne a run for the money. I am buying out the supply of my local retailer. This is memorable stuff. If I had to find fault with the wine, I would say there is not quite enough honey viscosity, and not quite enough lasting finish. Not the 98 point wine that others have suggested, but damn good. I am impressed.
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5/9/2024 - Musigny1955 Likes this wine: 97 Points
Bought on release in 2007. Screw top. No ullage.
Profound, complete Chenin Blanc flavors, just shy of decadent; lively, dances on palate, superb depth and length. In an evening of some incredible red Burgundies, this was the wine of the night. Well stored bottles of this wine should last for decades.
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2/1/2024 - eeeeeradicator wrote: 93 Points
Still very fresh. This will last a while. Starting to get a petrol backdrop behind honey and green apple.
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8/27/2023 - peternelson Likes this wine: 93 Points
excellent sweetie with good pop and bright acidity to accompany the honied-apricot and blood orange and lanolin notes. Long and super flavorful. Prefer this often even over a good Sauterne. Fantastic. EWG Loire dinner at Otono
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8/27/2023 - gregg g wrote:
Rich, sweet, viscous, apricots, honeyed. Could use a touch, more acidity, but drinking pretty good. From .375ml
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8/7/2023 - jnewman77 Likes this wine:
Excellent stuff; golden color; screwcap; ripe apricot and peach with honey and orchard blossoms; beautiful and fresh with lovely density and length
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3/4/2023 - DoubleD1969 Likes this wine:
I brought this along with the 2005 Rieussec to a tasting with a novice group. Screw cap. Last tasted in 2018 (not 2008). Time has been good to this wine.
The color was just a shade lighter than the Rieussec - like a Hawaiian sunset with a couple hours of daylight, honey. Nose was a pretty floral, citrusy, lychee, which all transitioned to the palate. There was a sweetness to it but was framed with a tangerine-like acid that made the wine felt lighter than the Rieussec although the sweetness level felt the same. Some blue cheese and crackers make a terrific dessert.
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1/14/2023 - jlm wrote:
Honey, saffron, and dried apricots on the nose. The palate is full and viscous, with pungent orange oil, yellow plum, and a zippy acidity keeping it fresh. The finish is epic and shows all the honey, pollen, stony layers one could ask for. This is drinking very well at the moment.
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12/14/2022 - Michael Hung Likes this wine: 93 Points
Sweet honey dipped peaches, dried apricots, sweet poached apples, slight creaminess to the texture. Racy acidity, really well balanced, this was WOTN for me, Kevin’s as well. Just a delightful and tasty dessert wine with great tertiary development. 93-94
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8/1/2022 - King Julien wrote: 94 Points
Popped and poured. Paired well with spicy Thai food.
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3/19/2022 - Smithc1214 Likes this wine: 93 Points
This was a superb wine that I will no seek out more of. Was very balanced with just the right amount of sweetness and acidity. Could have drank this all night long
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10/13/2021 - AMC Eagle wrote: 95 Points
Unscrewed and poured. This has a medium yellow-gold in colour. Orange blossoms, ripe honeydew melons, with some honey and sweet quince on the nose. On the palate, there are stoney mineral honeyed pears with sweet mango and some figs; very good balance of fruit and acidity. Medium bodied with a medium-long finish.
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9/22/2021 - jmoore431 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Not just still going strong, spectacular and probably at peak. YUM!!
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9/8/2021 - Stuart10er Likes this wine: 93 Points
Deep gold verging on copper. Floral nose and taste is honeyed but very acidic. Like super acidic and sweet at the same time. Finish goes on a long time and melts into green apple skin and smoky saline. Really nice wine
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8/19/2021 - ElAzul Likes this wine: 97 Points
This is my last bottle of this wonderful dessert wine. The apricots, pineapple and honey are all there with the latter providing a delicious viscous mouth feel. This shows a little more acidity in the final sip but just plain a very excellent alternative to Sauterne albeit a tad more viscous. Loved it with blackberry pie previously and a lemoncello dessert tonight.
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5/19/2021 - mats13 Likes this wine:
Just the most decadent orange marmalade. Excellent length. Wonderful Chenin blanc. Score consistent with before. Solid 95 imo.
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4/25/2021 - jrobs7777 wrote:
Good. Sweet with acidity, but not as complex as other vintages. Honey, orchard fruit. Delicious to drink but on the simple side.
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4/24/2021 - ziavino wrote: 100 Points
Last time I had this was three years ago, and it just wasn't showing much. Popped another 05 yesterday, and it was perfection. Notes of apricot, Mandarin orange, pineapple, honey, fig, and smoke are perfectly integrated on the palate, supported by bracing acidity. The finish lingers for over a minute, and I'm still smiling today just thinking about every sip.
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1/30/2021 - Tannic Monster Likes this wine: 95 Points
I love this wine. Beautiful bright yellow in color, with a viscous palate coating medium body that balances fruit and acidity in perfect harmony. Apricot is the dominant character upon the palate immediately followed by pear, mango, honeysuckle, and peach. No toasted or singed fruit skin like you might see in an older Sauterne, just a delightful fruit party in your mouth with a perfectly balanced tangy finish.
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12/31/2020 - wineismylife wrote: 95 Points
WIML95
Tasted non blind. Tasted from 375 ml format bottled under screw cap. Opened and served immediately. Followed over about 90 minutes.
Yellow color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of honeysuckle, lychee, apricot and nutmeg. Flavors of honey, lychee, peach and apricot. Bright acidity, full bodied. Drink or hold.
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12/2/2020 - brettay wrote: 100 Points
One of the most stunning wines I have ever tasted. Orange marmalade, apricot, candied ginger, sweet spices, honey and minerals. The palate is so intense and sweet but with incredible fresh acidity. The finish is endless and keeps pumping out later after layer of flavor. The balance between the incredibly intense flavors and freshness is what makes this experience so unbelievable. Wow, wow, wow!
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11/25/2020 - Barolo Freak wrote: 88 Points
I have been sitting on five bottles of this wine for ten years. I am not as impressed with it as the wine press or wine community. I'm not sure why Domaine des Baumard chose to switch to screw tops, but it was not a good idea. I'm been sipping my second bottle nightly for a week. I can't taste any improvement, and I don't think that my remaining three bottles will improve with age.
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6/20/2020 - Misology24 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Deep gold color. Pronounced aromas and flavors of orange blossom/candied blood orange, fig, quince, honey, pear, marzipan, mango, truffle, ginger, and saffron. Steely mineral character and good acid backbone. Perfectly balanced; drink now but has potential for additional aging. An incredible treat.
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4/1/2020 - Rollerball wrote: 95 Points
From 375 and better—and more open and complex—each night of five. Superb length and balance. Really sings.
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2/22/2020 - rocknroller wrote: 94 Points
2002 Tete de Cuvee Champagne Tasting Volume II (Jan's Place, St. Paul, MN): Deep golden orange tinged color. Drank a glass over 30 minutes. Great nose with orange and apricot, mango, honey, and quince spice. The palate is medium plus bodied, round with crisp acid and a creamy texture, ripe, but not overly sweet, tangerine, orange zest, apricot, well balanced and crisp with a spiced finish. 94+ to 95pts.
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2/5/2020 - gjv115 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Pnp.. 375.
Improved with air. Just a delicious, long blast of creamy vanilla and Carmel, with some citrus/pineapple notes. A lot going on actually.
Wonderful. Plenty of time left but how can it get better?
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12/29/2019 - John Dunlap Likes this wine: 96 Points
From 375ml. I didn't just like this wine, I loved it! This is exceptional and deserving a lofty 96 rating. This is what we live for in the wine world! Boy-o-boy there is a ton of richness in a late-harvest Loire sort of way.
Screw cap. Good light golden color with lots of years to go. Some tartaric crystals in the bottle. Tons of honey, medium-dark sugars, ripe peach, mango, and raisin; all supported by great, well balanced, acidity. Apricot, almond, and coconut too. Candied watermelon on the finish. It makes your mouth water for a v. long time. This wine is lushesly creamy, warmly acidic (yes that can occur), and remarkably balanced. Brilliant!
(Served with a Chocolate Chestnut Cake. Recipe from La Cucina Italiana magazine. The dessert was not overly sweet or chocolatety thus allowing the sweeter wine to shine.)
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8/21/2019 - ElAzul Likes this wine: 96 Points
Floral bouquet and wonderful mouthful of honey, pineapple and apricots. Decent acidity keeps the flavors and sweetness from being cloying. Perfect match with fresh made BlackBerry pie. Comparable to high end Sauterne but much more affordable.
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11/7/2018 - robmatic wrote: 93 Points
Still drinking beautifully.
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9/22/2018 - jlm wrote:
Gosh I really thought this was drinking well! I agree with other notes that there's a strong floral component to the nose, but also bergamot, candied apricot, earthiness, and saffron. The palate is rich, and yes, sweet, but in no way cloying to my palate. I felt it was still fairly lively and refreshing, though it probably doesn't have the crispness of less voluptuous vintages. The finish, by the way, is long and just stunning. Layers of orange zest, honey, and mineral bitterness unfold for well over a minute. This is drinking wonderfully, but certainly has years (decades?) to go.
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9/6/2018 - mflesh wrote: 94 Points
Really crazy wine. Opened at first to a honeysuckle and mushroom note. Poured a medium amber into the glass. Thick and dense. Nose of honeysuckle and sweet pear. This one changed as it sat out. Started to lose the mushroom and was more of a honeysuckle, banana cream, hint of apricot. Sweeter fruit with a little bit of a bite to the middle. The middle is where I was getting kind of a sweet roasted cashew. Finished thick. Probably the craziest Chenin I've had. But wow, not a bad little wine at all, and a great way to end a Thursday!
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8/27/2018 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:
Short version - really tasty, a touch overbearing on the sweetness.
A perfect liquid gold color, this is literally beautiful in the glass. A nose of white peaches and pineapple leads to a long palate with viscous mouthfeel and notes of pineapple mango peaches etc. Very balanced on the tip of the tongue, toward the finish it comes across as a little too sweet (maybe adds a guava note or similar); a bit higher acidity would make this one of the tastiest things I’ve had in the last 6 months.
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7/8/2018 - cadamson Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very nice. Ripe pear, honey, orange, quince. Floral notes. Nice mouthfeel. Good acidity though, surprisingly, not quite as much as I would have liked. Decent finish.
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6/22/2018 - King Julien wrote: 93 Points
Nice wine with dessert.
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6/15/2018 - pikemasterflash wrote:
Almost puckering sweet. Somewhat smooth and enjoyable yet tough to have more than one glass.
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5/13/2018 - rmalloy Likes this wine: 94 Points
Profound and complex. Notes of candied pineapple and ginger, apricot, and petrol. Very sweet. Acidity is good but I would prefer more.
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3/24/2018 - Brian1970 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Delicious. Green melon, honey, viscous but good acidity.
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3/13/2018 - ziavino wrote: 92 Points
Loads of fruit on the nose and palate, with initial aromas and flavors of honey, pineapple, and lemon. After a half hour or so, the acidity starts to pop, and flavors of ripe Navel orange take over. Delicious, if not as complex as I'd hoped.
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2/24/2018 - mouton45 wrote: 94 Points
One of two dessert wines after our annual stone crab dinner with Chris and Sal. I poured this great Loire wine along with a 2003 Sauterne to show the differences in the two wines. They loved this one by far, although the Sauterne was no slouch. Chris said if i had only poured the Sauterne, it would have been wonderful. But when compared to the Quarts, it came in second place
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2/20/2018 - dream Likes this wine: 93 Points
Absolutely delicious and elegant Loire dessert wine! Not too sweet and filled with a creamy, honeyed texture accompanied by the perfect amount of acidity to keep it fresh. Finishes nicely complex with notes of quince, peach and floral minerals. Such a balanced wine.
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2/10/2018 - DoubleD1969 wrote: 89 Points
Color was a light, pale yellow color. Beautiful aromas of baked apricot, canned lychees. As others have mentioned, it is cloyingly sweet, and it takes away the enjoyment after more than a few sips, let me alone an entire glass.
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1/22/2018 - rmalloy Likes this wine: 90 Points
Immediately delicious. Very sweet, and indeed cloying. Notes of honey, quince paste, candied pineapple, candied ginger, and pear. Even a hint of the petrol/rubber note that is characteristic of Riesling. Unfortunately, the wine lacks an acidic/mineral backbone to support the syrupy flavors. It gets tiresome quickly.
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1/1/2018 - vassnesen wrote: 90 Points
Bright yellow. Open nose of ripe orange marmelade and honey. Taste of honeysuccle and cloudberries. Sweet and concentrated. Long finish. Very good but may miss some acid and body.
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12/18/2017 - acidqueen wrote: 91 Points
perfect now from 375ml. Peach, with earth and depth. Not too sweet.
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12/8/2017 - OenophilistMN Likes this wine: 88 Points
From a .375. Pre-Christmas dinner with friends. Had this (once again) with dessert of an opera cake made with Grand Marnier instead of coffee. Wonderful pairing. Fully consistent with my notes of 7/13/2017 and 6/09/2017.
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10/24/2017 - mouton45 wrote: 93 Points
Dessert wine at Tuesday's wine group dinner. This is my favorite dessert wine - rich, sweet, not cloying or alcoholic. Perfect. My first 2 half bottles; 10 to go
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7/19/2017 - wineappreciation wrote: 92 Points
Nectar of apricot and peach; full, sweet, rich, almost glorious, and even some grip, but ultimately lacking in substance and depth
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7/13/2017 - OenophilistMN wrote: 88 Points
From a 375. Bastille Day eve dinner with French friends. Wine was very consistent with my tasting note of June 2017. Instead of a fruit-based dessert, had this with an opera cake flavored with Grand Marnier instead of coffee. Wine was an excellent counterpoint with the dark chocolate and a good meld with the citrus of the Grand Marnier in the filling.
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6/9/2017 - OenophilistMN Likes this wine: 88 Points
From a .375. Never had this Loire dessert wine before and it was a suggestion from a friend. Straw color, clear. Nose was very Moscato-like: peach blossoms and honeysuckle. Palate was much deeper than the highly perfumed nose had suggested: botrytis, peach and kumquat. Good acid to keep it from being cloying. While just as delicious, was lighter and more suited to Summer warmth than many Sauternes. Delicious with an apricot crostata. Wine will keep a long time.
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6/7/2017 - ews3 wrote: 94 Points
rich tropical fruit, peach, honey. enough acid to balance, but on the sweeter side for QdC. long finish.
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5/12/2017 - Hammar Likes this wine: 92 Points
too sweet on it's own, must pair with dessert
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4/30/2017 - ogres3 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Not really a white wine drinker and have few dessert wines. That said, this was refreshing, zesty, and very enjoyable.
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3/13/2017 - tp096255 Likes this wine: 95 Points
I forgot we had this so many years ago and yep, it's just as good as ever. Under screwcap. This could go another 20 years.
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3/5/2017 - ctbob wrote:
From 375, this wasn't overly sweet. Not as much minerality or acidic bite as some vintages ('90, say), but otherwise as it should be.
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3/2/2017 - tp096255 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Last bottle, and this was a 750ml. We actually started the meal with it + appetizers and it was amazing! Same profile as previous note, prob thanks to screw cap enclosure. You have to have this with a triple cream brie and some sweet fruit marmalade (guava, orange, fig, etc) on a salty cracker/bread. It will blow your mind. Everyone loved it. Went fast.
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2/4/2017 - mats13 Likes this wine: 94 Points
This tasted quite fresh, my guests and I all remarked on it being a 12 year-old wine. I think this is a great alternative to a sauternes - great complexity but much lighter on its feet than most. I think it could probably keep for a couple of decades more if not longer.
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1/6/2017 - jsherdc Likes this wine: 94 Points
Classic sweet chenin. Honeyed apricot. Mouth cleansing acidity. Delicious. 94/95
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10/24/2016 - UTPK wrote:
Golden, deep colour. Nose of white truffles (just like Baumard's Papillon with age!), caramelized apples and honey. Deep and full bodied, very good balance (better than 3 years ago) and long finish. This is in a sweet spot now!
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9/24/2016 - drwine2001 wrote:
Golden. Honeyed apricot. Weighty and unctuous, quite sweet. Very pure but could use more acidity for balance. Very good.
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8/16/2016 - jmoore431 wrote: 96 Points
My second encounter with this wine: light golden colored; incredibly fresh and mind-staining nose of dried apricot and pineapple and mild bakery spices; like essence or highly concentrated version of a Sauvignon blanc driven Sauternes but with brutal freshness. So lively and riveting.
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7/23/2016 - tomherer Likes this wine: 94 Points
Another 94 pointer at Cowboy Ciao Scottsdale. If you love wine and can get here, get here.
Opened a half bottle as an apertif and held the rest for their "Cereal, Killer" dessert, which was a crazy good pairing. The wine has its textbook musty smell at first, which becomes subtle with air. Liquid nectarine, pebbly, weightless, good lift and energy, subtle finish that lingers all night.
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7/10/2016 - pakabear Likes this wine: 92 Points
Sweet Apple, lithe fruit, pear, nice texture. This is very sweet on the finish and detracts a bit from the wine. You will need to have this with a dessert...
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7/9/2016 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
Marks duckhouse – La Las, 02 HB, 01 Pavie, CSH, Leflaive, QdC and etc. (Marks duckhouse, Falls Church, Va): From a half bottle. Pretty consistent with the last bottle. Intensely fruit driven with a hint of sweet spices. Exceptional concentration, beautiful balance and incredibly long finish. So absolutely delicious.
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6/22/2016 - dcwino wrote: 96 Points
Thanks to Cole Kendall and a few others, I discovered the wines of Baumard awhile back. Unfortunately I seldom get to drink QdC. Expressive nose displaying mango, yellow peach jam, apricot, honey, copper and candied ginger. Exceptional concentration, dense yet precise palate, good acidity and strong presence of mineral and long finish. It still is all about the fruit as this particular bottle doesn’t show much petrol. This is absolutely delicious.
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6/11/2016 - VoteferPedro Likes this wine:
delicious
still young
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4/24/2016 - Rollerball wrote: 96 Points
Aromas like smelling into a valley of rainforest. Honey--as in that local, differentiated, just-sweet stuff-- mint, scallion, so expansive. Bound, if at all, by tender bitterness. Just heavenly. Complex and so truly delicately pleasurable.
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4/16/2016 - thebonnydooner wrote: 93 Points
Another delicious bottle of this honeyed QdC. Lots of sweet apple and honey with nice acidity and a long long finish. Great balance to some desserts and pleasantly tasty without them afterwards. One full bottle left. Delicious.
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12/28/2015 - danibus Likes this wine: 90 Points
Excellent though I was expecting more given the hype. Lemon, honey, et al. Very tasty. Prefer Sauternes.
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12/13/2015 - rhalbert wrote: 95 Points
Had with Willy and Annette. Great closer to a great dinner. Had with a apple compote dessert and it was perfect.
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12/6/2015 - scott w Likes this wine: 94 Points
Tropical fruits, honey, stone fruit, bracing acidity..delicious
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11/26/2015 - Nothung Likes this wine: 90 Points
Served after Thanksgiving dinner. A great way to end a heavy meal.
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11/2/2015 - doctornoah wrote: 92 Points
Starting to approach the 2007 in complexity. Bracing and balancing acidity on honeyed notes of stone fruit.
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11/1/2015 - Grinner wrote: 95 Points
19th Annual Lyon 10 Year Retrospective (Chez Lyon in Eugene, OR): I still love this, despite whatever BAL I/we had at the end of this 10 year Retro tasting. This is like a liquid SweeTart, with honeyed, ripe stone fruit, pear, and tropical fruit. It has a lush texture and a finish that goes on and on with good acidity to clean up the palate. I can see where some folks would prefer Sauv Blanc to Chenin Blanc as the base for their dessert wine; thank goodness we don't all like the same things! That would make things really $$$...
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9/24/2015 - pakabear Likes this wine: 92 Points
Apple, Sugar, appricot, very nice acidity with a clean fresh finish. There is a bit of plastic noticeable at the finish but not off-putting.
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8/8/2015 - alr6767 wrote: 95 Points
Last bottle of 6 under screw cap, and probably the best of the lot. Getting that text book bitter note below the honeyed texture. This actually went *amazingly* well with a Belgian Chocolate Pot de Creme, whereas I originally thought it would go with the Lemon Pot de Creme (it did not). I'm seriously considering restocking.
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6/3/2015 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
Wow - many thanks to Michael for the very kind gift. This wine is wonderful - peach and apricot and honeysuckle and just perfectly sweet. It was the exactly right counterbalance to the meal and something that I wanted to sip for awhile.
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4/19/2015 - mattiasjansson wrote: 95 Points
Drinking great. Perfect balance of sweetness and acidity/freshness. Tropical fruit, lychee.
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4/18/2015 - Loren Sonkin wrote: 94 Points
Magnum night with the neighbors (Somewhere on E. 4th street): Screwcapped 750. A nice taste to end the evening. Golden in color. The nose has honey, orange peel and some sea air. On the palate, this is sweet but not overtly. Slightly viscous texture. Nice acidity. Honey and citrus. Long finish. A nice way to finish the evening especially with some buttered popcorn crem brulee.
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4/9/2015 - thomaskeil wrote: 95 Points
Workshop Faculty Dinner (My House, Denver, CO): This was an amazing wine to end the dinner with and a stellar match to the brioche, which turned out to be lighter and less sweet than I feared. This wine had a rivetingly complex nose of sweet peach, pear, citrus, straw, burnt caramel, vanilla, and intense mineral. As expected, but not predicted from the richly sweet nose, this wine is lithe on the palate as the mineral and tingly acidity make their presence known from the moment the wine hits the palate. No cloying sweetness or protruding etoh at all. For once a dessert wine that enhanced a dessert (and vice versa; bravo Lucas).
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2/28/2015 - jrobs7777 wrote:
Saturday Night Cali Cabs (Our House (2033 Brandywine)): Hoo boy. In a fantastic place right now. Thick and viscous. Sweetness perfectly balanced by the acidity. This is should age wonderfully but its just so hard to hold on to these. Peach, stone fruit, apricot and honey. Minerals, spice and brown sugar. There is mild development but really the evolution will be glacial. The finish is long long long.
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1/4/2015 - Rarffa wrote: 94 Points
very nice aroma. good fruit and body without excessive sweetness, but not quite enough acidity to balance it.
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1/1/2015 - thebonnydooner wrote: 93 Points
Lovely wine. Delicious with honeyed apple notes, well balanced and very long.
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11/26/2014 - thierrynz wrote:
A tad darker than the Ste Catherine. More primary and slightly more subdued on aromas. Great purity of fruit with an additional floral and herbal component (in a positive sense), with brown sugar and marmelade. Honeyed sweetness with white florals, pear nectar, marzipan, some orange rind not all to the way to orange marmalade. The palate is very rich and very structured; this is serious stuff. Lots of baby fat but plenty of nervy and minerally acidity in this. It is very much in its primary stage of development. This is a better wine that Ste Catherine but it needs to come together more harmoniously. All this means is that this is a great Quarts de Chaume and needs plenty of time to resolve.
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11/26/2014 - silton Likes this wine: 92 Points
Incredible aromatics with a complex fruit melange wrapped in cashmere, but very sweet and perhaps in need of more buffering acidity.
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9/8/2014 - kstoddard wrote:
Going through an awkward stage
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6/21/2014 - mjf@ulkner wrote: 93 Points
A perfect match with a fruit tart. Ripe luscious nose. Surprisingly light bodied, with a mid level sweetness paired with crisp minerality. Juicy and refreshing, a perfect finisher on a warm first night of summer.
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6/5/2014 - blanquito wrote: 93 Points
Lovely, complex, unusual, terrific. Sweet without a hint of heaviness. Very floral and tropical with guava, orange blossoms, melon.
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6/5/2014 - andtheodor wrote: 93 Points
Guava, muskmelon, canned peach, vanilla orchid, apricot, old lady perfume nose. Exotic and unusual, falling somewhere between Muscat and Gewurz, without overt botrytis or overripeness. Same on the syrup textured palate; concentrated and exotic but not in the usual ways. It's long, clean, and succulent with great freshness. Excellent with strawberry rhubarb crisp.
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5/22/2014 - Javachip wrote: 91 Points
Very sweet, with aromas and flavors of apricot, honey, white flowers, white peach syrup, allspice and nougat. Unctuous and viscous. Delicious.
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5/11/2014 - Loren Sonkin wrote: 93 Points
Dinner with Friends (Beaucastel, Keller, McPrice, Saxum, ++) (Our home): Screw capped. Always a crowd pleaser. This is slowly evolving with years left in it. It did not seem quite as sweet as I remember, but there is a depth with layers of complexity starting to emerge. A nose of honey, sea air and caramelized pears. Full bodied. Sweet, not overtly nor cloying. Nice acidity. Great match to the cake. Very nice.
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2/13/2014 - S1 Likes this wine:
I like it but it is in a very strange place right now. Dark, sweet stewed fruits on the nose, but on the palate it is all tropical caramelized banana, guava and spiced creme brulee. There is also a little wild grape (Muscodine maybe?) in the background. Waxy honeycomb and a hint of melon enters the party after a few minutes. The acidity is still holding its own, making this a marvelous wine for food or just for the end of the evening. I plan to save some of these for 20+ years.
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1/18/2014 - diggydan wrote: 88 Points
Sweet and viscous with caramel apple and pear notes. Lacking complexity and acidity to balance the sweetness so it was pretty much one note and surfeiting.
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1/11/2014 - wdb001 wrote: 95 Points
Beautiful wine. Golden color. Notes of dried apricots marmalade and honeysuckle. Long smooth finish.
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12/27/2013 - aagrawal wrote: 91 Points
Baumard '97 vs. '05: From a half. Yellow-gold color; moderately intense nose, pear, also has great purity, less concentration/ripeness than the 97; palate is medium bodied, good freshness, medium acidity, white fruits, simpler through the midpalate; finish is medium length. Great balance overall, fresh, slightly simpler than the 97, perhaps too young, could use slightly more acid to give it some additional freshness. 91
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7/10/2013 - guido23 wrote: 93 Points
WOW, really delicious! Opened this somewhat blind, expecting a normal chenin blanc and was completely unprepared for the Sauternes-like sweet wine that awaited. Absolutely delicious! Syrupy nectar with honey and rich floral (if those two words can be used together) notes. I need to try this wine again when I'm more prepared for it.
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6/15/2013 - winopops3 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Pre Fathers Day Get Together With Friends (Winopops3 Residence): Still plenty of time left. Flavors lean towards intense apricot and pineapple with just a hint of butterscotch. Always a treat.
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5/13/2013 - doctornoah wrote: 92 Points
At least in this bottle, the line was not there. A touch of lemon curd, green apple and pear. Honeyed, classic botrytis nose. Medium-long finish. This is good but doesn't hold a candle to the 2007. Was hoping for a little more nuance. Maybe in a few years...
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4/9/2013 - Hazevedo wrote: 93 Points
- Light gold color.
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2/10/2013 - jrobs7777 wrote:
No heat, good acidity. Everything you could want in a solid sweet dessert wine. Packs punch with sweet orchard fruit, honey and spice. Viscous golden yellow color. Lip smacking and easy to drink.
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2/10/2013 - jonradus wrote: 93 Points
This was outstanding. No rough edges, heat, or cloying sweetness. Just smooth; filled with lychee, honey, mandarin orange, and caramelized sugar. Smooth finish.
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12/25/2012 - Matt Scott Likes this wine: 99 Points
See previous notes. Heavenly pure, focused and coating.
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11/22/2012 - clutj wrote: 95 Points
Balanced, light, pears
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10/6/2012 - AtoZ wrote: 86 Points
actual date was a few months ago. From .375. I thought this was overly sweet and very boring. Expected way more. Open the next one in 10 years?
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9/17/2012 - dekay Likes this wine: 92 Points
Melange of very ripe honeydew and white peaches and nectarines; stone fruit infused honey, honey, honey; suave but unctuous, with not quite enough acidity to balance the sugar, but delicious, leaving a long trail of sweetness.
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8/28/2012 - moben wrote: 93 Points
Fabulous with grilled peaches and vanilla ice cream. Age should improve even more, but great now.
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8/11/2012 - kstoddard wrote:
From 375ml. Lime dominates the palare and finish. One dimensional. From my many past experiences this is definitely an off bottle.
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5/8/2012 - profiler54 wrote: 94 Points
Popped and poured. Served in Riedel Vinum Bordeaux stems. @ 49 F. Nice round and supple pear, wild honey and mineral hints. Nice balance with pleasant medium plus acid. Medium bodied. Nice long and lingering finish . Outstanding wine that will last for decades.
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4/10/2012 - Bandreas wrote: 94 Points
Exquisite
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3/2/2012 - Grinner wrote: 95 Points
PHMG WAG: Conversation Piece Wines (The Lyon Hut): This qualifies as an odd-ball for the screw cap alone, but for the average tasters in this event, a late harvest Chenin Blanc was a new experience. This is like a liquid SweeTart, with honeyed, ripe stone fruit, pear, and tropical fruit. It has a lush texture and a finish that goes on and on with good acidity to clean up the palate. Every one of these that I've had at 10 years old has been better and there's no reason to think this will be different!
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2/26/2012 - gbauer wrote:
Still showing very sweet, with pineapple and tropical fruit -- but it becomes clear that there is enough acid to balance -- and over time this should get even better.
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2/12/2012 - Bandreas wrote: 93 Points
Golden color, dried apricots, honeysuckle.quince. Long finish; good sugar/acidity balance. Exquisite wine.
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1/29/2012 - UTPK wrote:
Typical nose of botrytised Chenin Blanc, ie apples and a lot of pear in this one. Medium bodied with great freshness. Very well balanced between sweetness and acidity. Loght on its feet but with great depth. Easy to drink, also due to the modest alcohol.
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1/28/2012 - alr6767 wrote:
Already starting to burn the baby fat, this showed amazingly well. Really starting to see the complexity emerge in the form of botrytis spice. Maybe just a touch short of where I would like it to be, but really a minor trifle as this is delicious.
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1/22/2012 - goobz wrote: 93 Points
Beautiful Chenin Blanc paired perfectly with apricot souffle.
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1/7/2012 - meatman wrote: 93 Points
Great white desert wine. This disappeared too fast, soI wasn't able to follow its development.
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1/5/2012 - wineismylife wrote: 95 Points
WIML & PURPLE hand with the Hawaiian Wine-Os! (Le Guignol, Honolulu, HI): WIML95
Tasted non blind at a wine dinner. Opened and served immediately. Revisited 24 hours later and was even more stunning than the original tasting!
Bottled under screwcap. Light yellow color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of honey, flowers and ripe yellow pears. Flavors of luscious pears, honey and a spritz of lemon on the medium to long finish. Medium to bright acidity, full bodied. Drink or hold. I’d have no problem doing either!
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12/23/2011 - jeff nowak wrote: 90 Points
from 375 ml. i'm a fan of the wine, but this lacks the complexity/acid of the 02. still, a worthy addition to anyone's cellar, yet the very high community scores are to me unwarranted.
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11/24/2011 - manonthemoon wrote: 93 Points
From the Thanksgiving dinner.
Light gold in color.
Nose of persimmon, apricots, lychee, honey.
Palate of apricots, lychee, honey, a little floral, and some citrus peel and a little bitterness toward the end.
The finish was long as would be expected from a desert wine.
Overall a solid desert wine and good qpr, could use a little more acidity.
Drink or hold: 50+5+13+18+7
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11/12/2011 - Kirk Grant wrote: 94 Points
Just shy of what I was hoping this would be...but still an outstanding bottle of wine. I think this may have been best in it's youth or need another 5+ years in the bottle...
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11/10/2011 - gfish wrote: 95 Points
Took this to a Loire Valey tasting and it was spectacular. The whole class loved it and it was the perfect ending wine for the class. However I didn't take any notes. As usual it's hard to score sweet white wines but this was wonderful.
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11/4/2011 - Hog Scrotum wrote: 95 Points
I never imagined that this kind of decency could be lurking beneath a screwcap. Fantastic fruit combined with just enough acidity makes this a great wine. If there was just a little bit more acidity and structure, and it came from somewhere other than France, this wine would be nearly perfect.
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10/23/2011 - DonWinspear wrote: 93 Points
I hate that this was my last bottle. I love that I shared it with dear friends. Honeyed fruit with a crisp citrus foundation that makes this wine almost a blend between sauterne and Canadian ice wine. Honey, peach, tropical fruits. This is a high score for a wine, but deservedly so given the wonderful drinkability. And the excellent QPR.
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10/1/2011 - pikemasterflash wrote: 96 Points
The shizzle. Honeysuckle in the glass. Never disappointing. Sweet, smooth and somewhat unconventional.
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9/28/2011 - robmatic wrote: 93 Points
Lovely nectar.
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9/25/2011 - McComiskey wrote: 87 Points
Simple, but pleasant.
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9/19/2011 - botrytisvirtuoso1819 wrote: 97 Points
nose; orange blossom, minerals, and lemon peel.
palate; melons, poached pears, and brown sugar.
high acidity and high sweetness.
75 plus second finish.
very balanced and precise.
this will last decades.
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8/19/2011 - Billigan wrote: 93 Points
One whiff took me back to the canned peaches in syrup that I loved as a kid. But it had more to it than just that. Lovely honeyed aromas with flowers and mangos emerging at different sniffs. Great viscosity and a lasting floral/honey flavors coated my mouth. A little more acidity would have vaulted this wine into the stratosphere, but as is, it's not flabby by any means; it just lacked a freshness on the finish that would have been perfection. Beautiful stuff!
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8/14/2011 - DoubleD1969 wrote: 91 Points
Nose of canned lychees, fruit cups. Syrupy, with hints of dried apricot, ripe peaches. I wish it had a bit more acidity to properly balance the sweetness. Still enjoyable but not as good as the 2009 Pink Moon Winery Huxel XL.
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7/20/2011 - balkmr@hotmail.com wrote: 91 Points
Honey and peach on the nose with apricot dominating the palate. There was some mango and pineapple on the palate as well. I agree with most that the sweetness overpowers the acidity. I've only had a couple QDC's but this one was fuller, perhaps a little too full for what I was expecting. Still a wonderful experience and an enjoyable wine. Really nice fruit profile and a solid finish.
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7/4/2011 - winopops3 wrote: 93 Points
Similar to last notes. Just not as mind blowing on this occasion.
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5/30/2011 - hsacks wrote: 94 Points
Same as the 7/19/10 bottle.
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4/9/2011 - wineretriever wrote: 93 Points
Figs and soft mango, with a touch of hazelnut. Great minerality that allows for a second (or third) glass. Served after a cheese course, with a chocolate panna cotta with pepita brittle for a wine dinner. Nice way to end the night.
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4/3/2011 - gbauer wrote:
On the nose, honey, peach and some white flowers; in the mouth, thick, sweet, complex, with acidity showing better than before. Better balanced than the last bottle a few years ago, though still swinging a little more to the sweet (vs. acid) than I would prefer. Overall, very nice with miles ahead of it.
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3/31/2011 - ianinvirginia wrote: 93 Points
North American Pinot Dinner (Ris Restaurant): This was more showy than the 2002 drank alongside, with huge amounts of apricot and a viscosity that rivaled the Sauternes drank next. Acidity keeps this from getting fat but it's voluptuous. Delicious.
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2/27/2011 - joshwoodward wrote: 92 Points
Wine Club: Epic Syrah Smackdown (The Abarnment): We popped this beside the 2002, and I was excited because this is supposedly the best vintage since 1995. It's entirely possible that it's not ready yet, but in comparison to the 2002, this is way too sweet and not acidic enough. It's also more driven by young peach-style fruit, which should mellow out, but I can't imagine that this will get more balanced in the sweet-acid department. Fingers crossed.
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2/19/2011 - BillB656 Likes this wine:
Rich, golden, tropical nectar. There is a cart full of fresh, sweet mango and apricot packed into this bottle and the acidity is just so well balanced. The botrytis is certainly present but doesn't distract from the chenin fruit.
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2/12/2011 - pikemasterflash wrote:
Not sure how to rate a wine like this other than to say, "fantastic". Great wine, huge crowd pleaser.
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1/25/2011 - goobz wrote: 93 Points
Sooooo good. QDC is a well kept secret and always delivered. Paired with a fruit tart, which was a perfect match.
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1/21/2011 - gblacave Likes this wine: 93 Points
1990s California Cabernet (Charlie Palmer Steak - Washington DC): Absolutely delicious. Nose of dense apricot, sweet ripe peaches, mango with the botrytis underlying. Fantastic nose that is ripe and sweet, but balanced. On the palate, this is an interplay of tropical fruits and sweet orchard fruits. This is viscous and dense while also, remarkablely, light on its feet with a streak of acidity that keeps this fresh and vibrant. Nice long finish that just goes and goes. An absolutely fantastic example of QdC.
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1/21/2011 - tooch wrote: 92 Points
California Cabernet at Charlie Palmer's (Charlie Palmer's - DC): On the same level as the 2002. Incredibly fresh tones of apricot, peaches and mangos dance on the nose and palate. Great depth, acidity, and balance. Basically what I expect from a BQC these days!
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12/27/2010 - winopops3 wrote: 96 Points
Light gold in the glass. Pineapple, orange on the nose. The palate explodes with fruit especially pineapple, orange, apricot. I don't want to give the impression that this is heavy handed however. It is very light on its feet, with enough acidity to not be cloying. Others have described this better than I, but suffice it to say that this was really extraordinary.
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12/26/2010 - Mr. Muga wrote: 95 Points
Absolutely delicious and ready to drink. Drink now if you have 375 size bottle. Tasting notes to follow.
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10/24/2010 - alr6767 wrote: 95 Points
Phenomenal, much better than last note. Acid was there to provide the balance this time. Delicious.
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10/16/2010 - hsacks wrote: 94 Points
Same as the 7/19/10 bottle.
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10/11/2010 - tp096255 wrote: 94 Points
COLOR: Deep yellow
NOTE: Anniversary dinner with Drews. Still full of those same apricot and pineapple notes that I love so much from nose to finish. I can't really say it has changed at all in the almost 3 years I've been enjoying this vintage. It's solid as a rock and is singing every time.
DECANT: none
GLASS USED: Zinfandel
TASTE: 9.4
COST: 35 (375ml)
VALUE: 8.5
TRY AGAIN: now - 2020
PAIRING: Went surprisingly well with chocolate truffles. Was it the butter content? Dunno.
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9/18/2010 - mwhitmoe wrote: 97 Points
My first QDC, and what a treat. Tropical and fully aromatic nose. Beautiful light honeyed color. The smell, color and taste makes one think it is quite nectar-like in terms of body. But when holding this wine in one's mouth, is it pleasantly light-bodied, almost refreshingly bright. Crazy fine acids balance strong pinapple, white peach, ripe melon, honey and persimmon. Just holding this expressive wine in one's mouth and trying to catch the waves of amazing flavors that come through is almost overwhelming. A spectacular and long finish just makes the experience of trying this wine all the more glorious.
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9/9/2010 - dcwino wrote: 94 Points
This is my first bottle of the 2005 Baumard QDC. It no longer has the primary big tropical fruit nose as the wine has settled own. Upon opening slightly too cold, white peach, pear and apple, candied lemon peel with slight hint of petrol and botrytis. Also showing candied ginger and perhaps roasted garlic. Unctuous oily palate with good acidity and long finish. As getting slightly too warm a hint of pineapple and mango. Nicely balanced wine that is in the secondary stage. 94 pts.
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9/6/2010 - O>-< wrote: 93 Points
Lots of spicy botrytis on the and palate. Still fairly tart and refreshing, with plenty of quince on the mid-palate, followed by a touch of bitterness on the long finish. Really outstanding, but I honestly don't see this ever reaching the classic quality of the '95. I hope I'm wrong, as I've got plenty of it to drink. Stelvin closure; on the slow-track in aging. The '02 and '03 are better drinking now, IMHO.
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8/1/2010 - kstoddard Likes this wine: 92 Points
From 375ml. Pale yellow color. Rich pineapple fruit on the nose. Taste of pear, apple, and honeydew melon with some good minerality on the mid palate.. Well balanced with nice freshness and acidity. Elegant finish. Seems to be not as expressive or complex on the finish as previous bottles. Possibly closed down right now or going through a dumb phase. Hold.
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7/19/2010 - hsacks wrote: 94 Points
Pale yellow color. Aromas of orange blossom, quince, honeysuckle and minerals. Rich, highly extracted fruit in the mouth with great structure and depthand tremendous length. Thick, tongue-coating fruit is balanced beautifully by firm acidity. More powerful and intense than complex at his point in time. Try again in 3 years.
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6/24/2010 - Pointchaser wrote: 92 Points
Perhaps all of the hype left me a bit underwhelmed. Consumed over a week. Wine developed a slightly bitter finish the last couple of days that was not unpleasant and helped provide additional balance. Given the choice, I'd prefer to have a spatlese riesling
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6/22/2010 - mwagner7700 wrote:
Amazing. So complex and delicious it blows my mind. Passion fruit, honey, apricot, peach, canteloupe, nectarine, stone, honeysuckle. Something new with every sip. Rich, but not syrupy. Very smooth with wonderful acidity. Extraordinary
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6/20/2010 - Matt Scott wrote: 99 Points
See last notes. Simply amazing. The finish will sustain for ever. Almost perfect. Quince heaven
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6/2/2010 - MRichman wrote:
Thick, smooth, oily, silky. Dense honeyed flowers. Bursting with bright honeysuckle and a touch of acid. Orange rind, clove, baking spices. Very complex, so smooth. Insanely long finish with some sweet spice. Beautiful and extremely young. Age 20+ years.
A
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5/31/2010 - pgordon62 wrote: 93 Points
Raisin, orange blossum, springtime country field, a little slate and toffee. Full bodied but an acid bite. Love the crisp attack on the finish. Lots of lift and energy.
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5/2/2010 - Kirk Grant wrote: 95 Points
Is Kirk leaving? (With Photos) (Sips Restaurant in Southwest Harbor, ME): Color: Bright yellow
Smell: Passion fruit, caramel, brown sugar, clementine, lemon, and spice
Taste: Tangerine, peach, star fruit, passion fruit, and a kaleidoscope of constantly changing flavors
Overall: Such an interesting wine. I can't begin to say how expressive and exciting this wine is. It really is a "show stopper" that turns heads wherever I've brought it. I'd gladly buy more of this at the release price.
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3/27/2010 - 2Travel wrote: 95 Points
Chesapeake Wood Duck Inn Weekend. No formal notes. Served with Jeffrey's French Lemon Tart and Berry Coulis. What a wonderful end to the evening. This had a surprisingly delicate body (given B. Sanderson's review). The flavors were all fig and persimmon. The weight was quite substantial given the way it kind of floated in the mouth. It was an interesting pairing, because the tartness of the tart, including the crust which has a dusting of cocoa included, did not distract at all from the sweetness of the wine. It was actually a beautiful combination. I thought that we would have a hard time finishing this after a long evening of exceptional food and nice wine, but that was not a problem at all!
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3/7/2010 - Griffin wrote:
12.5% vol
No formal notes, unfortunately. Drank over a week-and-a-half. The most memorable impression was on Day 2 or 3 of a rose bush on the palate (as in flowers and the green leaves and woody stems and branches). Various citrus notes through out the tasting period. On the final drops from the bottle there is a lingering taste and sensation on the back of the palate that reminds me of coconuts. Some crème brûlée on the long finish as well.
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2/27/2010 - smokey17 wrote: 97 Points
This is sublime; paired with a perfect lemon tart. The acidity of the lemons perfectly counterbalanced the sweetness of the wine. Rich apricots, undertones of coconut and creme brulee. Don't know if I can keep my New Years' resolution about not buying any more wine this year..this may make me do it.
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2/10/2010 - monkeylug wrote: 96 Points
Honey, peach, honeysuckle, and mineral. Needs years to be close to ready. This has the acidity to take it a long way.
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12/25/2009 - 1800kidney wrote: 92 Points
Very nice....perfect with apple tart, nicely balanced
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12/16/2009 - ews3 wrote: 95 Points
great wine. not up to the class of the 2002, but maybe i ha vren't given it enough time. Every bottle I have of Baumard QdC is a lovely experience. Quince, apricot, lovely dried honey extract. sweet, but a nice freshness.
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11/22/2009 - alr6767 wrote:
Golden color, shiny and viscous and strikingly pure looking. Very pleasant perfume nose with honeysuckle, vanilla, cedar with a touch of heat which is suprising. Apricot, pineapple, golden raisins, honey. Excellent mouth feel right now, but I have a feeling it will get even better. There is detectable acidity that should help this one integrate and hold together well with age. Finish comes in waves and sticks around a very satisfying length.
For the moment the group found this one to have too much residual sugar in its current youthful state, and I agree that there is a bit of cloying if you just must drink this now. This one is too young to rate at this stage, but if I were in the business of fortune telling, I would guess 90-94+ in 10+ years.
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11/10/2009 - cgrimes wrote: 93 Points
NSMFOW November 2009--Mini Verticals (The Grapevine, Salem, MA): Similar to my previous note: Golden color. Nose of apricots. Palate of apricot, some apple, brown sugar with great acidity to balance. The purity and density of fruit at this stage is quite pleasing.
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10/26/2009 - CamWheeler wrote: 93 Points
Apricot syrup, quince, honey and peaches on the nose. Intense and rich palate with enough acid to carry it into a long finish and avoid being cloying. So intense that a small amount is enough to satisfy. Lovely now, but seems to have the balance to last for 20 years.
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10/25/2009 - peternelson wrote: 92 Points
Leslie’s: Sugar sweet, but oh so blalanced; dried pineapple bits, frt cake--really good one from a local bakery... touch cocnut--very nice trop frt w/continental fresh touch. Grt intensity and stuff
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10/23/2009 - ChinonRouge wrote: 92 Points
Very nice.
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10/2/2009 - EricBe wrote: 96 Points
deliciously perfumed, wonderful flavor.
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10/1/2009 - tp096255 wrote: 95 Points
COLOR: Deep yellow
NOTE: Ripe yellow peach, turkish dried apricots & fruit cocktail syrup in nose. Mouth is opulent with ripe peach, overripe pineapple, Turkish dried apricot. Finish is well-balanced, full of sweet fleshy pit fruit. Great.
DECANT: none
GLASS USED: Sauternes
TASTE: 9.5
COST: 35 (375ml)
VALUE: 8.5
PREVIOUSLY TASTED: 01/08
TRY AGAIN: now - 2020
PAIRING: All by itself.
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9/27/2009 - keeno1 wrote: 97 Points
This wine is just plain awesome. It is incredibly complex with aromas and flavors orange blossom, honey, peach and pineapple. The wine is thick and mouthfilling with a long finish that just won't quit. This will last for a long time and will doubtless be more stunning with additional age.
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9/17/2009 - pgordon62 wrote: 94 Points
Wonderfully complex nose of white flowers, peach pie, raisin, wet stone and oyster shell. The palate shows a compelling mix of sweet tropical fruits framed by citrus acidity. A exquisite medley of vivacious fruit and old world structure.
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9/14/2009 - cgrimes wrote: 94 Points
CT Dinner with Ron, Derik, and Deb (Chez Grimes, Byfield, MA): Golden color. Nose of apricots. Palate of apricot, some apple, brown sugar with great acidity to balance. The purity and density of fruit at this stage is quite pleasing. I tend to like these wines on the young side. Paired well with Deb's almond, pine nut macaroons.
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9/14/2009 - Deb293 wrote: 92 Points
CT Dinner with The Grimes, Ron and Derik (Chez Grimes, Byfield, MA): This wine never fails to please. Manages to combine the right amount of acidity with flavors of honeysuckle without being cloying. Deftly balanced. Brief notes, as this came at the end of an incredible line-up, and may have suffered some for that.
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8/9/2009 - smphelps wrote: 92 Points
Lemon gold color. Reminds me of the Jack Daniels, honey and lemon juice old southern cough remedy if you could mix in a little apricot. Interesting sense of weight and richness. Needs a big strong blue cheese to really set it off.
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8/1/2009 - dank wrote:
a little out of the zone right now, but bought a 6-pack of half bottles because i know it'll be great
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7/23/2009 - sadofsky wrote:
A flower garden in a glass.
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7/15/2009 - wineismylife wrote: 95 Points
DAWGS July 2009 - 6th Anniversary! (Amici's Signature Italian, Carrollton, TX): WIML95?
Tasted July 15, 2009 at an offline.
Served from 375ml format. Light yellow color in the glass, clear hue throughout. Nose of lychee, orange and honeysuckle. Flavors of honey, apricot and orange foam. Think and unctuous on the palate without being cloying. This should be a real stunner with lots more age on it. Can be drank now but I'd hold.
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7/4/2009 - angryphoton wrote: 95 Points
wow, what a wine, floats on your palate, not cloying at all. apricot, lemon peel plus loads of wild flowers on the nose, marzipan, peach and hints of lychee pop up as well. mouthfeel is ethereal and finish last more than a minute.
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6/18/2009 - Matt Scott wrote: 99 Points
Heavenly. Pure quince, honey, pear and passion fruit with a finish that will not stop. coats every millimeter of your tongue and really takes you to some where else. Amazing with candied fruits and sublime with chocolate. Will reward cellaring, however, I am having a very difficult time not consuming my other four bottles. So much complexity. This is so close to perfect. Best from 2013 - 2025.
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5/29/2009 - gbauer wrote:
On the nose, peach, apricot, white flowers. In the mouth, sweet, rich, complex, but I wish there were more acidity to balance the sweetness. Good minerality along with the flowers and fruits, but I hope this comes into better balance over time.
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5/19/2009 - DonWinspear wrote: 95 Points
Enjoyed this gem with cheese following a french meal at friends. What a find! Wonderful, luscious balance of fruits, acidity and structure. As some have noted, it's not comparable to Sauternes from the 80s, but this is a different style of wine from a different region. It is chenin blanc, not semillon or sauvingnon blanc. Regardless, this is a remarkable wine for the price. I was at the store the following day purchasing most all I could find.
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5/9/2009 - ctbob wrote:
With any luck, I'll be alive in 20 years to see if this turns into something, but I would bet against it. This vintage doesn't have the steely minerality of the classic vintages, and there isn't much botrytis going on. Of course it's tasty, but it's also neither classic nor memorable.
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4/17/2009 - rdfech01 wrote: 91 Points
Bought this at a friend's suggestion. I need more friends like that! A fun, sweet, classy wine with great honeyed bouquet and a flowery fruit. Not overpowering in any way. Glad I have more
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4/12/2009 - ews3 wrote: 94 Points
wow... there is a ton of sugar in this, but the balance is so good that it almost seems light! quince, honey, apricot, clove, lime, with some floral notes. really great bottle. the finish goes on and on, but is surprisingly light.
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4/9/2009 - cct wrote: 97 Points
Opened and re-"stelvined" a MONTH before. JF brought this from his cellar after a taste a month ago. Wonderful clarity and focus. Beautiful brightness of fruit and clarity. Much, much better than a blle I opened last year that was all baby fat unfocused. Beautiful purity of fruit, acidity, and terribly well balanced. An amazing future this wine has. Brilliant stuff. 97pts.
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2/2/2009 - manonthemoon wrote: 96 Points
Tasted at a superbowl party, no formal notes. Huge expectations and this did not disappoint for sure. Great lychee and persimmon, key lime, honey notes going on. Really nice acidity for a desert wine and the length of the finish was forever. The best desert wine I have ever had without a doubt. Will be securing more bottles.
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1/27/2009 - Rossodio wrote: 95 Points
Wine Spectator is spot on with their review. This wine will hold for decades but is hard to keep from opening. Fine job, and an absolute steal for the price.
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12/27/2008 - BillB656 wrote:
Super rich and concentrated quince, mango, and honey with a good dose of botrytis. Right now this wine is just too primary for me to really love. The sugar is extremely coarse, burying the acid, and just needs time to soften. That said, the quality and length of the fruit is superb. Hold, hold, hold. Screwcap
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12/18/2008 - foodandwineblog wrote: 95 Points
Obviously young but a treat to taste again. Rich, complex, orange peel, loads of tropical fruit, honey, sweet but good balance of acidity. Structured to last decades.
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12/14/2008 - Rinaldo Piemonte wrote: 89 Points
Would have fared better if not consumed next to an '88 Sauternes. Excellent acidity but balance will improve with more time/fading of fruit.
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12/10/2008 - dwmcubed wrote:
You bring 'em - we'll drink 'em (Fayette Street Grille): Wonderful aroma of flowers, honey and peaches - rich mouthfeel (like drinking the syrup out of canned peaches) with a spine of acidity. minerality and floral honey. Perhaps lacking the acidity to go the long haul - but who cares? This is just a fabulous drink right now and I can't keep my hands off them.
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11/28/2008 - ChinonRouge wrote: 90 Points
I'm losing some of my enthusiasm for this wine. I like it, but somehow it does not polarize as much as it once did. Still very good, but perhaps the slightest bit too hot on the palate.
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11/28/2008 - silton wrote: 93 Points
Fat, intense, and utterly delicious with complex aromas of quince, white fruit, orange marmalade and flowers followed by flavors of dirty honey that last for minutes. A huge hit served early in the meal with strong cheeses. A little bit blurry and overripe for my tastes but undeniably yummy.
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11/27/2008 - kstoddard wrote: 97 Points
It becoming increasingly difficult to keep my mitts off of this wine. From 375ml. Beautiful floral nose of tropical fruits. Tastes of pear, peaches, honey, melon and orange. Excellent balance. Amazing depth and complexity on the finish that literally lasts for minutes. Outstanding. 12.5% alcohol.
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11/24/2008 - WetRock wrote:
Rhones at Catal (Catal Restaurant and Uva Bar, Anaheim, CA): Sappy fat yet soft and light nose with a sappy sweet palate but in no way overly weighty or heavy. Not my favorite flavor profile but these are very well made wines and should live for a long long time.
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11/15/2008 - slippytoad wrote: 95 Points
Just fabulous, so intense, do many layers of various fruits, sweet but everything in the right balance.
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9/20/2008 - mmyette wrote: 97 Points
Drank at the new house by the backyard fieplace at dusk. Nice bright fruit and lively acidity. This wine is just impeccible in its balance. Finish goes on and on. Very clean. Best non D'Yquem sweet I have tasted.
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9/16/2008 - mreinitz wrote: 94 Points
Super enjoyable. Sweet but not cloying. Very tropical seeming, with passionafruit, banana, and coconut flavors.
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7/20/2008 - meatman wrote: 94 Points
From a 375ml. Over the course of several nights. Wonderful nose of pineapple, baked apples, brown sugar, flowers and spice. Palate coating flavors of pear, pineapples, ripe apples and spice with an appealing slightly bitter finish. Got better each night as the acidity became more prevalent. Was a perfect match for peach and blueberry cobler. Serve slightly below cellar temp.
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7/9/2008 - mattiasjansson wrote: 96 Points
What else can I say - this is consistently great.
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6/29/2008 - ctbob wrote: 89 Points
Once again reminded me of the '97, not a vintage for the ages; shouldn't have listened to the hype and bought a six-pack of halves and instead bought one half of the '90; all that being said, a thoroughly delicious way to end a meal, in this case white-chocolate cheesecake, although it didn't have enough acid to cut through the richness of the cake
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6/24/2008 - Kirk Grant wrote: 95 Points
Dinner at Bob & Bere's (NYC): This wine was beautifully concentrated with scents of pineapple, golden delicious apples, and spice. This was served with a fruit tart that was the perfect pairing. This wine is thicker and more concentrated than the last time I had it in November of 2007. The wine is a classic example of what to expect from Baumard.
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6/21/2008 - mattiasjansson wrote: 97 Points
As always, absolutely beautiful. Light and elegant with perfect balance of sweetness and acidity, and the finish lingers for 90+ seconds.
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6/14/2008 - ctbob wrote: 89 Points
This is definitely the '97 in new skin: too sweet for its own good; I'm convinced that the underrated vintages are the ones to pursue with this wine -- they have the balance that the (over)ripe wines don't have; this wne was better when it warmed up, which is a bad sign: when the temperature is out of balance, the wine is finally in balance; I want to see a blind tasting against other (cheaper) CA dessert wines; this is way more new world than true Loire chenin dessert; don't see this maturing like the '90 or '95
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6/11/2008 - lussier.rob@gmail.com wrote: 95 Points
Stunning..........the flavors danced in my mouth...............
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5/31/2008 - SS Chris wrote: 97 Points
This may be the most delicious wine I've ever had.....this is what Nectar should be. On the nose, you get beautiful aromas of apples, pears, peaches and apricots along w/ a nice honey component. These wonderful aromas follow through on the palate. And while this is not overly sticky (which I like), it is still a lovely mouthcoating experience of pure "deliciousness". At the same time, this shows excellent acidity that gives this wine an absolutely perfect balance of fruit, sweetness & acidity. The finish is very long and simply beautiful. The only issue I have is that this is so delicious, that it's going to be difficult to keep the remaining bottles in the cellar. On the other hand, this has the potential to be a truly SPECTACULAR 100 point wine with some years on it. So my goal is to hold out, but may need counseling.....
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5/19/2008 - burningstarIV wrote: 95 Points
50+4+14+19+8=95
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5/18/2008 - Old_Winyards wrote: 94 Points
Great wine, but needs lots of time to really evolve. For now it's an engaging but primary dessert wine, full of pear, apricot, and honey flavors, with hints of lime, and a slightly herbal finish that reminded me of tea with honey. Good stuff with plenty of upside for the future.
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5/16/2008 - last chance wrote: 94 Points
The nose had honey, citrus, apricot and floral aromas. The palate was much richer this time then when I tasted it in February. The serving temperature was cooler this time, and I think that helped. The palate was had some orange nuances along with the apple, lime, and honey flavors that I expected. This was very nice, and I probably enjoyed it more since I knew what to expect this time around.
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5/10/2008 - Paul Lin wrote: 92 Points
Cal Poly Pomona Wine Dinner (Kellogg Ranch - Pomona, CA): A really lovely wine. Notes of honey, baked apples, bees wax, walnuts, and graham crackers. Dances lightly upon the palate with good acidity.
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4/15/2008 - rmodak wrote: 95 Points
Explodes on the palate revealng apricots and honey with layers pineapple and orange rind. There is a mineral component that for now is buried within the lush intense fruit. Still, good acidity keeps the wine in check and cleanses the 30 sec finish. Very compelling wine that is too easy to drink now.
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3/30/2008 - Brian1970 wrote: 96 Points
This late harvest Chenin Blanc is unassailable pleasure. The nose is delirious honeydew melons, with apricot syrup. Same on the palate, with melons, apricots, orange blossom, and a touch of lemon-lime with honey. Poised balance between intense sweetness and crisp acidity, and a lengthy finish. This went equally well with desserts, and by itself. Want a capable alternative to a Sauternes? This will do.
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3/29/2008 - jdrach wrote:
Nose: Cantaloupe. Taste: Apricot & honey, cantaloupe.
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3/23/2008 - pgordon62 wrote: 93 Points
Creme brulee, lychee fruit, raisin, stone and hint of lime. Superb balance of acids and sweetness. A rare combination of subtle complexity and hedonistic pleasures. Will only get better over the next decade.
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3/23/2008 - sawira wrote: 92 Points
fat, baroque, funky over-ripe cantaloup/honeydew melon. i loved it! don't know about how it will age, maybe lacking structure and acidity, but fun now.
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3/22/2008 - Maestro wrote: 91 Points
I have good news, bad news, and no-news on this wine. The "no-news" is that it is too young and built for the long haul, so if you want to drink it now you may consider serious aeration (maybe double decanting). The good news is that the aromatics and the flavors are wonderful. Honey, mango, lime zest, marzipan, floral notes, and peppery tones take turns displaying themselves in the nose and palate of this rich, multi-dimensional wine. It also has a very long and generous finish. The bad news is the level of residual sugar. It is so incredibly sweet as to irritate one's throat. This is really sweet. I tried to pair it with both a sweet dessert and a strong blue cheese and there is no comparison: go for the cheese, as this wine with a sweet dessert will give you the sugar blues. With strong blue cheese, however, it is excellent. Drink from 2012 until 2045.
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3/15/2008 - GalvezGuy wrote: 96 Points
Big nose of honey, lemon, peach, violets, pineapple, and melon. Light as a feather on the palate, big and sweet, with flavors of starfruit, fig, pineapple, lemon curd. Finishes with crisp acidity and a citrus component (lime?). Pleasureable, an amazing dessert wine. Tremendous value.
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3/12/2008 - mmyette wrote: 97 Points
See previous notes. This sweet chenin blanc is almost perfect.
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3/9/2008 - nomadfromcincy wrote:
great way to finish - big nose of honey and lemon, with some apricot in there too. The palate was light and not cloyingly rich... good acidity to finish.
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2/17/2008 - ctbob wrote: 89 Points
Too sweet without the accompanying balance to be a memorable QdC; wait a while? Reminds me of the '97, and I never tasted one of those that turned into anything breathtaking; this was tasted in the company of an older SGN Loire chenin, and it didn't fare well in the comparison..
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2/14/2008 - jnanz wrote: 98 Points
Cantaloupe, Pineapple, Apricots and Passion Fruit swimming in Honey... Floral notes add complexity. An amazing wine. Easily the best dessert wine I've ever tasted! Also one of the best wines I've ever tasted. Had with multiple courses, but the creme brulee was the obvious highlight. This was a great pleasure to drink!
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2/9/2008 - last chance wrote: 94 Points
The nose had major honey, apricot and citrus aromas. The palate was almost a let down from what the nose promised. Much lighter flavors than I expected, but very interesting with apricot, orange rind, a little lime, and something like yellow rasins. Not cloying at all, and a nice amount of acidity. A nice little dessert wine that we'll try again this summer.
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2/9/2008 - petitblanc wrote: 92 Points
Lovely nose, intense fruit and white flowers, very sweet, perfect with creme brulee. I didn't find enough acidity to make this great, but it's quite nice.
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2/8/2008 - jryoung wrote: 93 Points
This is young, and has a ways to go, but I think it will be fantastic. Split a 750ml between courses. First with a foie gras appetizer, then with creme brulee. Honey, apricot and a lemon zest nose. Rich full viscous palate with a touch of heat, but I think that is just because of it's youth. Long, rich sweet finish. It did well with the foie (also served with a pomegranate reduction), but really shined with the creme brulee. The fats of both courses aided the wine, but the bitterness of the pomegranates and foie didn't do as well as just the creme brulee (don't get me wrong, they were still fantastic.
I also had the 1995 recently and I believe this will head in a similar direction adding orange preserves to the flavor profile.
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1/31/2008 - mmyette wrote: 97 Points
Maybe the best non-yquem sweet wine I have ever had. This was fantastic, with lemon and honey balanced with vibrant and razor sharp acidity, it gave minutes of pleasure on the palate, and continued to evolve. Really will try to get my hands on more of this.
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1/27/2008 - ChinonRouge wrote: 95 Points
Opened a third bottle of this fine wine. I can only reiterate how good it is. Paired with the right cheese or dessert, this wine is spectacular.
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1/5/2008 - drwine2001 wrote:
Some Loire and Rhone for a Rainy Winter Day (San Francisco Bay Area): Medium yellow. Remarkable aromatics of roasted fig and more persimmon than I've ever smelled in a wine-truly distinctive. Very sweet, positively unctuous and long, but I get very little acidity here. Won't buy since I'm unconvinced by the balance and fear it would be tiresome to actually drink more than a pour.
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12/29/2007 - Keith Levenberg wrote: 91 Points
Impressive stuff; I can see why people flip for it. It is intensely sweet, too intense to sip more than a glass without getting the sugar jitters, but there's a lot going on in it, starting with its powerful fragrance of apricot and lychee and continuing with flavors that are almost more vegetable than fruit -- the sweetness plays an interesting game of misdirection that almost makes you overlook the fact that it tastes more like a broth of scallions and leeks than anything made from grapes. (It also helps cover up some of that stiff alcohol.) The finish begins with a backdraft of vanilla cream custard filling, then a few minutes later you notice you're still tasting those fresh veggies.
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12/25/2007 - pgordon62 wrote: 93 Points
Tropical fruits, raisins, pear cobbler, honey and slate. Fresh and precise on the palate with lots of stony lime on the finish. Superb balance.
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12/22/2007 - Chrisinroch wrote: 95 Points
beautiful wine. raisiny fruit with lovely bright acid. Not heavy or cloying but nice long finish. Paired it with gorgonzola very nice
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12/19/2007 - pikemasterflash wrote: 96 Points
I'm not sure what a 98pt dessert wine tastes like but this was very good. Sweet raisens and pear, very well balanced. As good or better than any Y'quem I have had
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12/9/2007 - sumshark wrote: 95 Points
An exceptional wine, great complexity, mouthfeel and a super long finish. Very light on it's feet for delivering so much, compared side-by-side with the 2003 Guiraud.
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12/7/2007 - espia wrote:
MDH: very nice dessert wine, but 98 pts??
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12/5/2007 - goofy Yno wrote: 92 Points
honey, apple, good acidity, long finish.
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12/5/2007 - jivey wrote: 95 Points
Backstreet Offline - Always a pleasure.
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12/5/2007 - ScottS wrote: 94 Points
Extremely well balanced. This will develop into an exceptional wine!
50+5+13+17+9=94+
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12/4/2007 - Paul Lin wrote: 90 Points
This bottle seemed to peak and decline rather quickly. Notes of honey, white flowers, white raisins, and candied pineapple. Unctuous and rich on the palate. The sweetness really kicks in on the finish. Does not seem to have enough acidity to balance out the sweetness. By the next day, it was cloyingly sweet. With all the glowing notes about this wine, I am left scratching my head. 89-90 points.
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12/2/2007 - wjs wrote: 92 Points
out of .375 Thick, almost syrupy. First one of these, nothing to compare it to. Enjoyable, but me thinks I prefer Sauternes more.
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12/2/2007 - ml wrote: 93 Points
Nice, light, not too sweet dessert wine.
Pros: A lot of complexity in the midpalate and finish (which was quite long). Nice acidity. Lighter weight, which is a nice change (although I still prefer the texture of the higher numbered Kracher's).
Cons: The alcohol is noticible.
Questionable: There is a hint of bitterness. The back label suggests this is pronounced in several years time, and seems to consider this a good thing. I'm not sure if it's what I want in a sticky, but in several years I suppose I'll find out.
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12/1/2007 - phandel wrote: 92 Points
Drank w/Bernard & Sue. Heavier than I expected, but still very pleasant with nice acidity to balance the sweetness.
LET THIS BREATH. PLEASE!!! It really opened up towards the end of the evening ... I wish I would have opened it 24 hours ago!
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12/1/2007 - lussier.rob@gmail.com wrote: 94 Points
lovely dessert wine without to much sweetness. The wine flavors come thru.
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11/28/2007 - Mr Cabernet wrote: 99 Points
Wonderful. The best dessert wine I've ever tasted.
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11/23/2007 - dionysis wrote: 94 Points
Drank over 5 nights Thanksgiving week -- fantastic, sweet syrup and unctuous honey and good balance of fruit and acidity. Interestingly, thought it was best on night 2, and then it really started to fade after night 3 of being open.
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11/23/2007 - cvvhrn wrote: 95 Points
Drank way early, but thought I would give it a try. Hints of citrus and honneysuckle on the nose, with candied ginger, meyer lemons, and sweet grapefruit on the palate. Nice finish. Drank from a 375ml bottle
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11/23/2007 - Rechrom wrote: 93 Points
Yummy. Great fruit and acidity, tremendous length.
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11/23/2007 - ChinonRouge wrote: 90 Points
Somehow not as over the top good as last time I tasted it. Almost a little Sprite flavor that I did not appreciate.
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11/18/2007 - LunaLee wrote: 95 Points
Just a gorgeous dessert wine. Perfectly balanced and so rich...lingering on the finish...could go on and on....
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11/13/2007 - puterdewd wrote: 94 Points
Apricots and peaches on the nose followed by peaches and pears on the tongue. Lingering complexity and the finish is nice. A little too girlie but the wife loved it.
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11/13/2007 - kstoddard wrote: 98 Points
Served for half bottle. Pears, peaches and pineapple. Tremendous mid palate complexity. Laser like precision. Very crisp and clean. Well balanced with beautiful acidity and freshness. A knockout finish that lingers in the mouth for minutes.
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10/24/2007 - br wrote:
day 1 - - the clos ste. catherine was good but this is something else all together. multi-layered nose giving off something different with every sniff. rich, luxurious mouthfeel with a wonderful snap of acidity. long, complex finish. a keeper!
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10/3/2007 - jivey wrote: 97 Points
Offline - Liquid gold, best sauternes style wine of 05! If you don''t buy all you can you will regret it? and for $40 a half bottle..... come on!
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10/3/2007 - kstoddard wrote: 96 Points
eRobert Parker Offline - Loire (Backstreet Wine Salon, Phoenix): From half bottle. Beautiful tropical fruit nose. Pears and honey on the palate. Incredible depth and richness. Very complex finish and exceptionally well balanced.
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9/15/2007 - peternelson wrote: 95 Points
Wine X: Big pure frt--like biting into super ripe pineapple, peach, and MELON! w/hint honey, lite sweetness; grt intensity, dinesse, wow. hint musk in there too (botrytis?)sock, petrol. yes.
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9/9/2007 - vordo wrote: 97 Points
again extremely stunning, wonderful mouth feel that just lingers and lingers. pure condensed raison.
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9/4/2007 - dwmcubed wrote:
Wonderful aroma of flowers, honey and peaches - rich mouthfeel with a presence of peaches, minerality and floral honey. Perhaps lacking the acidity to go the long haul - but who cares? This is just a fabulous drink right now.
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8/30/2007 - JimN wrote: 93 Points
Way too early for this wine, but I wanted a point of comparison over time. Already shows incredible structure. Honey, figs, grass on the nose. Tried with blue cheese, which was a great pairing, and returned to it at the end of the night. I'd wait at least five years before the next sampling.
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8/26/2007 - kstoddard wrote: 97 Points
From half bottle. Pears, apples, honey, flowers, peaches and limestone. Rich mouth feel. Incredible mid palate depth. A very elegant finish that lasts for minutes. Nothing short of amazing.
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8/26/2007 - Wilson95005 wrote: 93 Points
An almost perfect dessert wine. Wonderful nose of peaches and flowers. Tastes of peaches and a lovely caramel finish. I don't think I would ever tire of this wine.
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7/25/2007 - ChinonRouge wrote: 94 Points
This wine's color is light yellow, not quite the golden color that you expect from a vintage Sauterne. The nose is absolutely fantastic though. The aromas are a perfect blend of apricot, citrus, and solvent. Bouquet is some of the best I've sampled. Simply superb. Flavors and mouth feel are just right. Excellent integration of alcohol. Smooth apricots. Just enough turpentine flavor. It's really good. Finish is equally satisfying. Boy, does it give a vintage Sauterne a run for the money. I am buying out the supply of my local retailer. This is memorable stuff. If I had to find fault with the wine, I would say there is not quite enough honey viscosity, and not quite enough lasting finish. Not the 98 point wine that others have suggested, but damn good. I am impressed.
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