The most "feminine" Estate Cuvée coming out of L'Aventure ever. Not sure why -- was not even the top 2 coldest years in the last 10. Balanced, lacks the strong tannins of the 2016 Optimus. But I actually like those chewy tannins more than this 2019.
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This is a dark purple opaque wine. The flavor are a combination of blackberry, black pepper, eucalyptus, and dusty leather. It's a full bodied wine with a rich consistency and finish. This is an intense wine with a mellow consistency. Overall, this is a masculine wine that's drinkable now and well into the future.
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Shear's 95-100 point tasting (Shear's Grotto): Complex nose, bell pepper, dark fruits. On the palate, glycerin mouthfeel, some alcohol and heat. Kind of reminds me of a high-end Shiraz, but very tasty for its style.
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Plush, smooth, rich and well balanced with acids. All kinds of plums, black fruit a whisper of cassis in the mouth. Nose has a touch of reductiveness which could be young wine with sulphur to burn off - but all in all a sumptuous delicious glass of juice that drinks great now and will only get better over the the next 5-10 years! d
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really love this wine-dark fruit, graphite, blackberry, dark plum--goes down easy, nicely layered...probably should score it 95-96, but realizing that it probably just matches my flavor profile and biases well
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this is really an amazing wine that compares with expensive wines of this score...feminine, exquisite, dark plum, black currant, polished marble...more medium bodied with a refined finish, less grand, intense, nor with long legs.
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Rendu hors de prix. Sur les mures et les prunes avec un peu de boisé et d'épices. Tannins serrés et rudes. Long, bien sec et un brin capiteux. Jeune mais prometteur.
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Decanted for a couple of hours. Dark inpenetrable crimson reflecting its youth. Fresh ripe cherries on the nose, touch of plum and roses. Fresh fruit on the palate with well balanced tannins and acidity. Right grip and medium lenght. Lovely aftertaste that evokes great Aussie shirazes but but with the elegance of Bordeaux.
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Still not showing itself as a $100 bottle of wine. More time to integrate is my guess. I'm thinking it tastes like someone blended 4 varieties together and the wines are still fighting to show themselves.
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Really super complex in terms of aromatics, and then more tense and taught on the palate as well. That is kinda super interesting, and totally not expected.
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Party with some 100 pointers: Similar to my note on January 4, 2022 (more info than you probably need to know in that note), the Estate Cuvee shows much more complex and reachable than the bruiser boy Côte-à-Côte. Where the Estate Cuvee suffered quite honestly is that it was sitting next to a series of SQNs and top performing Napa Cabs. Being that the Estate Cuvee is supposed to be a marriage of Rhone and Napa (or Bordeaux, or whatever Cab-heavy region you care to compare), having representations that outshined it on both fronts just added to the insult.
This is a good wine. As a stand-alone with your buddies on some rando porch in Paso with nothing but a fat plate of nachos in your face, it’s a perhaps a great wine. It is a powerful chest bumper with a textural aptitude that could…could good be quite notable one day. There is just a lot going on, and not in the ways you want to forecast as heightened complexity; it is (of course) very young and has a lot to work out. The mystery will be if it can ever truly work it ALL out and be a complete wine one day. Dare to dream. I scored this 97 six months ago. It could get there, but this showing was certainly more awkward. Both L’Aventure wines were a hit among the crowd, so I might be overly critical in portraying the slaughtering between Asseo’s creations and the others we had that night. A victim of the competition perhaps.
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PHMG WAG Paso Robles (Paso Lyon): My WOTN, the depth and complexity win the day! Layers and layers unfold like waves at the beach. Just sit, listen, and watch...I mean linger, smell and taste! This would be $200+ from Napa. Black fruit, stones, mocha, mint, florals, and anise/pepper. Great structure! now-2030.
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PNP-Sensory glassware. Deep purple with ruby halo. Clean nose, not picking up much of a bouquet. Dark fruit, great tension from tannins that linger and dance on the tongue. For some reason this 19 Paso blend reminds me of Calistoga fruit. Dark Cassis, tobacco, dark unsweet chocolate with baking spice. More savory than sweet.
Day two a more floral bouquet with a sweeter palate that has come to the forefront. Overall a wonderful wine.
50% Syrah, 35% CS & 15% PV
As many have mentioned 19 is a benchmark vintage for Paso. This bottling is showing the promise of this region as an alternative to Napa and surround areas. Around $100 this is worth the spend.
Composed of 50% Syrah, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 15% Petit Verdot, the 2019 L’Aventure Estate Cuvée is quite a purring black panther of a wine, even without the benefit of a decant or extended air. With a surprisingly smooth textural accord from the first pull of the cork, Stephan Asseo’s flagship juice literally melts on to the palate without any sense of juvenile astringency or unforgiving tannins. This vintage of the Estate Cuvée holds a much more suave and glossy coating when compared to previous vintages, and even more so when likened to its brawnier 2019 Côte à Côte counterpart. The Cuvée consistently oozed class and polish throughout the handful of hours of consumption.
A kaleidoscopic assemblage of black raspberry, cassis, blackberry pie filling, charcoal, black cherry, embers, and purple flower notes cascade in seamless vogue flamboyance; not too ostentatious, but certainly not without red carpet confidence and some flashbulb “Can I get your autograph?!” magnetisms. There is a serious side here, but it’s more like Angelina Jolie in Girl Interrupted; I mean, it’s dark and significant, but it’s still just Angie the A-lister pushing for the Oscar. So, be not mistaken, this wine carries some majestic intensity behind the glamour, but it doesn’t whack you upside the head with its agenda so much that you leave feeling like you need 100mg of Thorazine to make it through the rest of the week. This honcho knows how to negotiate and navigate. Less like the Khmer Rouge Brother Number One Pol Pot and more like a better-looking Henry Kissinger (a little history lesson for ya’ll), the Estate Cuvée is not without a little modern controversy for those who might be averse to modernity (and unconventional varietal splicing) in their Rhone and Bordeaux alignments.
Though these massive L’Aventure concoctions invariably seem to go through some bumps and bruises along their evolutionary journeys, I hope to think that this vintage of the Estate Cuvée will lead somewhat more of a charmed life. It’s not a sin to drill a hole in the cranium of this wine now, but surely some patience will reveal even more nuance in the coming years – at least, as much nuance as a 16% ABV Paso Syrah Frankenstein can muster up these days.
4/25/2024 - SWHighlander wrote: 90 Points
The most "feminine" Estate Cuvée coming out of L'Aventure ever. Not sure why -- was not even the top 2 coldest years in the last 10. Balanced, lacks the strong tannins of the 2016 Optimus. But I actually like those chewy tannins more than this 2019.
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4/5/2024 - DrELW Likes this wine: 93 Points
This is a dark purple opaque wine. The flavor are a combination of blackberry, black pepper, eucalyptus, and dusty leather. It's a full bodied wine with a rich consistency and finish. This is an intense wine with a mellow consistency. Overall, this is a masculine wine that's drinkable now and well into the future.
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3/28/2024 - AaronJCohen Likes this wine: 93 Points
Took to Birchrun. It was still young and needs more time. However it was excellent. It had wonderful dark fruit and spice on the nose.
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12/30/2023 - Ticker tape guy Likes this wine: 93 Points
dark bold great mouthfeel..liquorice chocolate dark dark berry fruit..a really nice wine
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10/4/2023 - Gkautry Likes this wine: 96 Points
Drinking well. Will only improve.
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8/27/2023 - JCLyons Likes this wine:
.
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7/22/2023 - JimmyR Likes this wine: 92 Points
Great!
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4/30/2023 - Rudolph Schmidt wrote:
50% Syrah, 45% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 5% Petit Verdot. 81% new French oak.
Decanted 2h. Graphite, mocha, intense cassis, bakers chocolate, dried flowers, blueberry.
Enjoyable but this needs time in the cellar.
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4/29/2023 - gjv115 wrote:
Pnp. Clumsy. Lots of potential here but neither of us enjoyed it. Perhaps with more time to decant then we have it it would come together.
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3/29/2023 - bubbachumps wrote: 94 Points
Shear's 95-100 point tasting (Shear's Grotto): Complex nose, bell pepper, dark fruits. On the palate, glycerin mouthfeel, some alcohol and heat. Kind of reminds me of a high-end Shiraz, but very tasty for its style.
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3/29/2023 - michael47 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Plush, smooth, rich and well balanced with acids. All kinds of plums, black fruit a whisper of cassis in the mouth. Nose has a touch of reductiveness which could be young wine with sulphur to burn off - but all in all a sumptuous delicious glass of juice that drinks great now and will only get better over the the next 5-10 years! d
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1/23/2023 - richshoes Likes this wine: 94 Points
really love this wine-dark fruit, graphite, blackberry, dark plum--goes down easy, nicely layered...probably should score it 95-96, but realizing that it probably just matches my flavor profile and biases well
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12/6/2022 - richshoes Likes this wine: 96 Points
this is really an amazing wine that compares with expensive wines of this score...feminine, exquisite, dark plum, black currant, polished marble...more medium bodied with a refined finish, less grand, intense, nor with long legs.
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11/4/2022 - maxima wrote: 90 Points
Rendu hors de prix.
Sur les mures et les prunes avec
un peu de boisé et d'épices.
Tannins serrés et rudes.
Long, bien sec et un brin capiteux.
Jeune mais prometteur.
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9/17/2022 - Dwongl Likes this wine: 97 Points
Decanted for a couple of hours. Dark inpenetrable crimson reflecting its youth. Fresh ripe cherries on the nose, touch of plum and roses. Fresh fruit on the palate with well balanced tannins and acidity. Right grip and medium lenght. Lovely aftertaste that evokes great Aussie shirazes but but with the elegance of Bordeaux.
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9/14/2022 - levicn wrote: 92 Points
醒酒三个多小时，深紫红色，闻香有奶油，烤面包，青椒和甜美的黑果香气，有些脂粉味，还有些许烟熏质感，香气很浓郁。入口酸度高，单宁紧涩，有些扎嘴，颗粒感明显，给人感觉强劲有力，果糖混合着青椒和奶油味，后段浓得有点化不开，带着微苦，根据我的经验，这应该是还没醒开。香水般的余味十分漂亮，在奶油中收尾。风格现代的一支酒，香气浓郁，酒体饱满，能感觉出来酒很壮，很有料，也许需要五六个小时的醒酒才能绽放，不管怎么说肯定是杀幼了，现在绝对不是适饮期，还有非常长的陈年潜力。
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9/13/2022 - Countless Likes this wine: 93 Points
Still wasn't ready after a six-hour decant. Better on day two.
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8/21/2022 - redrules Likes this wine: 91 Points
Still not showing itself as a $100 bottle of wine. More time to integrate is my guess. I'm thinking it tastes like someone blended 4 varieties together and the wines are still fighting to show themselves.
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8/11/2022 - drwine2001 wrote:
Three Tastings and a Meal in Paso Robles; 8/11/2022-8/13/2022 (Paso Robles, California): Almost inky depth. Significant oaky base. Deep blueberry and tart red fruit with an excellent soil feel and liveliness, dry, tannic finish. Should be long lived, but as always, it will be a question of how well the wood is absorbed.
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6/22/2022 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Really super complex in terms of aromatics, and then more tense and taught on the palate as well. That is kinda super interesting, and totally not expected.
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6/9/2022 - csimm wrote:
Party with some 100 pointers: Similar to my note on January 4, 2022 (more info than you probably need to know in that note), the Estate Cuvee shows much more complex and reachable than the bruiser boy Côte-à-Côte. Where the Estate Cuvee suffered quite honestly is that it was sitting next to a series of SQNs and top performing Napa Cabs. Being that the Estate Cuvee is supposed to be a marriage of Rhone and Napa (or Bordeaux, or whatever Cab-heavy region you care to compare), having representations that outshined it on both fronts just added to the insult.
This is a good wine. As a stand-alone with your buddies on some rando porch in Paso with nothing but a fat plate of nachos in your face, it’s a perhaps a great wine. It is a powerful chest bumper with a textural aptitude that could…could good be quite notable one day. There is just a lot going on, and not in the ways you want to forecast as heightened complexity; it is (of course) very young and has a lot to work out. The mystery will be if it can ever truly work it ALL out and be a complete wine one day. Dare to dream. I scored this 97 six months ago. It could get there, but this showing was certainly more awkward. Both L’Aventure wines were a hit among the crowd, so I might be overly critical in portraying the slaughtering between Asseo’s creations and the others we had that night. A victim of the competition perhaps.
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4/16/2022 - Grinner wrote: 95 Points
PHMG WAG Paso Robles (Paso Lyon): My WOTN, the depth and complexity win the day! Layers and layers unfold like waves at the beach. Just sit, listen, and watch...I mean linger, smell and taste! This would be $200+ from Napa. Black fruit, stones, mocha, mint, florals, and anise/pepper. Great structure! now-2030.
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2/2/2022 - MJP Hou TX Likes this wine: 95 Points
PNP-Sensory glassware. Deep purple with ruby halo. Clean nose, not picking up much of a bouquet. Dark fruit, great tension from tannins that linger and dance on the tongue. For some reason this 19 Paso blend reminds me of Calistoga fruit. Dark Cassis, tobacco, dark unsweet chocolate with baking spice. More savory than sweet.
Day two a more floral bouquet with a sweeter palate that has come to the forefront. Overall a wonderful wine.
50% Syrah, 35% CS & 15% PV
As many have mentioned 19 is a benchmark vintage for Paso. This bottling is showing the promise of this region as an alternative to Napa and surround areas. Around $100 this is worth the spend.
95+ Drink or hold.
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1/4/2022 - csimm wrote: 97 Points
Composed of 50% Syrah, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 15% Petit Verdot, the 2019 L’Aventure Estate Cuvée is quite a purring black panther of a wine, even without the benefit of a decant or extended air. With a surprisingly smooth textural accord from the first pull of the cork, Stephan Asseo’s flagship juice literally melts on to the palate without any sense of juvenile astringency or unforgiving tannins. This vintage of the Estate Cuvée holds a much more suave and glossy coating when compared to previous vintages, and even more so when likened to its brawnier 2019 Côte à Côte counterpart. The Cuvée consistently oozed class and polish throughout the handful of hours of consumption.
A kaleidoscopic assemblage of black raspberry, cassis, blackberry pie filling, charcoal, black cherry, embers, and purple flower notes cascade in seamless vogue flamboyance; not too ostentatious, but certainly not without red carpet confidence and some flashbulb “Can I get your autograph?!” magnetisms. There is a serious side here, but it’s more like Angelina Jolie in Girl Interrupted; I mean, it’s dark and significant, but it’s still just Angie the A-lister pushing for the Oscar. So, be not mistaken, this wine carries some majestic intensity behind the glamour, but it doesn’t whack you upside the head with its agenda so much that you leave feeling like you need 100mg of Thorazine to make it through the rest of the week. This honcho knows how to negotiate and navigate. Less like the Khmer Rouge Brother Number One Pol Pot and more like a better-looking Henry Kissinger (a little history lesson for ya’ll), the Estate Cuvée is not without a little modern controversy for those who might be averse to modernity (and unconventional varietal splicing) in their Rhone and Bordeaux alignments.
Though these massive L’Aventure concoctions invariably seem to go through some bumps and bruises along their evolutionary journeys, I hope to think that this vintage of the Estate Cuvée will lead somewhat more of a charmed life. It’s not a sin to drill a hole in the cranium of this wine now, but surely some patience will reveal even more nuance in the coming years – at least, as much nuance as a 16% ABV Paso Syrah Frankenstein can muster up these days.
95-97+ points.
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12/29/2021 - Boydmick wrote:
100 points
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