This was in a blind line up of some very prestigious 2019 Napa reds (and one 2016 thrown in), specifically:
2019 MacDonald 2019 Kinsman Eades La Voleuse Du Chagrin 2019 Kinsman Eades Anjea Sleeping Lady Vineyard 2019 Colgin Tychson Hill 2019 Realm Absurd 2019 Scarecrow 2019 Harlan 2019 Myriad Elysian 2019 La Pelle Res 2019 Magnificent 7 2019 Cliff Lede Songbook 2016 Colgin Tychson Hill
2019 KE Anjea - I was very happy this wine showed so well! After reading everyone's notes praising this wine, I finally had an opportunity to taste it, and it did not disappoint! I wasn't sure what wine this was, but I rated it at the top along with the MacDonald and Harlan. This wine was remarkably well structured, showed silky tannins and exquisite fruit. It was absolutely delicious! Loved it! (Yes, Jennifer and Mark, you guys were right!) 97 out of 98 because I believe it will drink even better with more time. I do think I could sit with this wine by myself or share with one other to follow it over a longer period of time. I did come back to this wine, and it did keep getting better (I know....hard to believe!) I think Nigel outdid himself with this wine!
Palate: Deep and dark but light red fruits, deep earth and tasty bitter minerals.
Generous and fun at the moment. You can tell it wants to be serious, and I'm sure with even a couple of hours, it would've been. Should've spent more time with this.
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Given the glowing CT reviews, just had to open one of these. My first Kinsman Eades Cabernet. Drank on three different occasions over four days (while storing on nitrogen). On Day 1 on PnP, this is pretty challenging, rough and tannic, a literal wall of wine emblematic of its’ youth. Drank over a few hours letting it aerate in the glass and it mellowed somewhat. On Day 2, with a three hour decant (after sitting on nitrogen overnight) it has mellowed and blossomed into a beauty. The color is like India Ink in the middle and burgundy on the edge. And the nose, oh, the nose…from the get-go it is riveting with floral and dark fruit aromas. Wow. The improvement from the Day 1 process was stunning. It had piercing dark fruit, was super complex with incredible energy/brightness and was velvety on the palate. This was a joy to drink, continuing the trend, for me, of 2019 Napa Cabs drinking great over the last year or so. If you got a 3-pack you should absolutely try one now if you haven’t already.
Sucked into opening one of these thanks to my CT friends on here.....you know who you are, ty.
3 hour decant, back into the bottle and enjoyed over 3-4 hours at the table tonight with a great tasting amongst friends and family.
Dark garnet in the glass. Nose of cherry fruit and sweet toffee. This is a unique wine in a sense. Fresh and precise, with depth and florals and a certain wow factor. Hard to give it anything other than a 97 tonight. 2nd WOTN at the table. Extremely good quality. I should note that this is my very first taste ever, of a KE wine. I bought these from the winery, sight unseen or should I say palate, untasted? It's very, very good.....
Thirty minute decant. Deep dark intense ruby color. Blueberry, cassis, orange-infused dark chocolate, and subtle graphite and coffee. Dry, dusty palate. Firm, yet satiny, tannins on the longish finish.
I think I over-decanted the last bottle of this I had a month ago. This is surprisingly good with less than an hour of air. Nigel Kinsman was very kind to bring this to dinner with #1WineLover and I (at Bistro Don Giovanni in Napa).
Eight hour decant. Nearly opaque intense magenta color. Stewed blackberry, mincemeat, marmalade-infused baker’s chocolate, and subtle caramel. Very dry, plush palate, with fine acidity. Firm, full, medium intensity tannins on the long finish.
This was a wonderful first Kinsman-Eades experience for me. Decanting Queen was very kind to bring this to share at a wine-fueled NYE weekend (in small town Texas). Hard to believe this will keep improving over the next few years, but it will.
A Wine Fueled Goodbye to 2023; 12/29/2023-12/31/2023 (College Station, TX): This is a spectacular once in a lifetime wine. There was something so clean and precise about the nose and palate. A combination of ripe yet refined Napa fruit, and old world tobacco and stones. This is fruit from Erewhon Market, not your local Publix (or Sainsbury’s for the UK). Lots of structure and still needs more integration, but I don’t feel bad at all for opening one early. Even at this young age I’d score this higher but I know it will get better and the scale doesn’t go to 150!!!!!
We have this 8 hours in the decanter and drank over the next four. Just stunning and so glad I could experience with AGELVIS, Paul and Melissa in our last wine weekend of 2023!
Wanted to open one of these over the holidays. With the advice of Shae, I double decanted this over 4-6 hours. Drank over two nights, got better and better with more time in bottle. Purely intoxicating nose, blueberries, dark cocoa, cassis. Had next to 2019 Hall Platinum and this was way better.
Opened this to pair with steaks for Christmas dinner and what a stunner. 2nd time having this in the last 4 months. Didn't expect a significant change this time around and was proven correct.
Decanted for 4 hours and consumed over 2+ hours. While I wish I would have decanted this a bit longer, the best glass was certainly the last one.
What sets this wine apart is the plush moutfeel and silky tannins that are perfectly integrated with a lovely backdrop of acidity that carries it forward. This wine is dark fruit dominated and showcases the Sleeping Lady vineyard wonderfully. Of the 3 KE cabs, Anjea feels like the Goldilocks to me. Nothing is too big or too small, everything just works in harmony.
While I'll always be #teamrhad, this Aneja is simply fantastic.
If opening between now and 2025, give this a minimum 6 hours of air, preferably 8.
Holy cow! Finally had to scratch the itch and try one of my Kinsman. It took a lot of self-control. Sleeping Lady vineyard. Deep ruby purple. Very aromatic at pop but gains with hours of air. Blackberries, black currant, plum, tobacco, mint early on. The palate is very Bordeaux like. Fruit given its youth but some lead pencil, wet stone too. This will age amazingly. Can’t wait to try the other vineyards.
Saved a glass for Christmas Day. Was the best. Stunner and sleeping lady usually isn’t my favorite. 96 now with potential for 3-4 more points.
Nose: [59°-61°] Wet and clean black mulch, buried cedar, black and purple fruits, and clumps of clay with thin veins of graphite. With plenty of time, minerals surface in the earth.
Palate: [60°-61°] Black fruits with dark yet fresh red fruits that give the flavor profile an amazing lift and freshness. Clean savory wood and graphite, and pleasantly bitter earth and minerals on the finish. With almost an hour of time in the glass, a heavier pitch of earth, savory minerals and even a clean metalic note (in a good way) develops on the finish, while keeping a dark profile of fruits. Too much air though, and the wine seems to bring bitter green shrubbery and dried twigs.
Attributes: Clear, dark ruby. Dry with medium amounts of grippy tannin. Medium-plus body with medium to medium-plus acidity. Great finish of at least 20 seconds.
Thoughts: This seems ready from the get go. I preferred this much better on pop and pour. The notes were more distinct and fresh, while delivering with intent. I'm starting to learn that too much air can make really make the tannin aspects stand out a lot. Pop and pour and journey along, but maybe not let this air out for too many hours. If you're gonna air this out for that long, might as well cellar it for a handful of years.
Serving notes: Bordeaux glass. Served one glass and emptied bottle into a decanter at cellar temp ~54° and consumed over 5.5 hours. Recommend serving ~58°-62°, and only decant if needed.
What stands out is the amazing balance and silky texture of this wine. It is amazingly light with no hard edges. This wine is open and ready for business after a decant
This is damn young. I bought 2019 and 2021 of all 3 wines, never had a glass of this, had a sip a year ago. Needed to get into one. This was almost black in the glass, dark fruits, heavily perfumed, very complex on mid palate. It is 6 years away. I usually say these wines need 10-20 years but this was approachable with a 9 hour decant, yes young but approachable. A lot going on here, chocolate milk shake, with bakers spice, asian spice, white pepper and toasted oak. damn good!
I've been holding out on my stash of KE as I know patience will be reward. I'm also reminded daily that tomorrow is not promised. It's easy for me to consider pulling the best when on vacation with my family. Fathers day is as good as any to be treated to the best Napa has to offer.
I reached out to Nigel & Shae and asked them which KE should I pull for my upcoming trip. Nigel quickly suggested Anjea and I'm glad he did. I've tasted every vintage of Anjea and this bottling has grown on me with each vintage. Firm tannins and structure for days. This wine was a joy to drink over 48. The development over that window was subtle which tells me this built for the long haul.
For my palate this wine is on the youthful side but I can easily see this being a triple digit wine when it hits 10+ years of age.
I had the pleasure of opening a 13 VHR shortly after and these two really have a lot in common with regards to structure.
Big wine with lots of oak. It settled a bit on day two but will require at least 5 years. Black/blue fruit, vanilla, anise, cassis…. At this stage it tastes like top to upper middle tier Napa but just not unique. Blind I’d guess Realm.
No notes simply impressions. A horizontal tasting of all three KE - all three very different than its siblings yet all with a central theme. Double Decanted 24 hours beforehand and these wines are still big bad and delicious. Anjea from Sleeping lady was a much bigger wine than I remember tasting a year ago- was beautiful. if you would have asked me to guess vintage, I would have assumed 2018 not the super sexy 2019 vintage. Hold min of 5 years.
The third wine in the trio of 2019s at Wheeler farms. Double decanted the day before, enjoyed our of Riedel stems with Isabel, the assistant winemaker.
The Anjea was the darkest In color of the 3 wines. 100% CS, it stains the glass with each swirl. Notes of milk chocolate, cassis, deeply concentrated and classic in many ways, this comes across as balanced and authentic.
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Kinsman 2019 & 2021: Well, well, well. It seems that Anjea in 2019 has some heft going on here. There’s a polish in 2019 that is remarkable, but that glaze is varnish for a podium that is stacked, packed, racked, and lip-smacked. The Anjea takes the essence of succulence, adds a fistful of fresh berries, hucks it in your eye, but then apologetically kisses you on the cheek with finessed flecks of forest floor, spicebox, anise, and blackberry seed. Blue and black fruits dominate, skillfully buoyed in a structured and concentrated frame that is a far cry from any of the other softer Sleeping Lady fruit-puller producers you may have experienced thus far. The contours here show finesse, but dear lord if the deltoids on this Van Damme aren’t also pumping out flavor and range the likes of which I’ve never experienced from this site. Finishes grippy but with a signature mouth-watering lusciousness that is like licking a bowl of mocha-whipped cream cheese topped with double-stuffed Oreos and blackberry cobbler crumbles… and a cherry.
The Anjea is 100% Clone 22, which is an anomaly for this address, as Sleeping Lady is typically planted to Clone 7. Compared to the 2021 Anjea barrel sample, the 2019 Anjea is unsurprisingly less of a neutron bomb in its current state, but it does share a similar profile with its two-year younger sister. The 2021 may carry a tad more richness at the end of the day, but we will have to see how the 21’s in-bottle behavior shakes out in a few years’ time. 98-99+ points for the 2019 Anjea. Unless and until it is lapped by the 2021, the 2019 is the best iteration of Sleeping Lady I’ve ever had. Captivating now but will reward with some short term cellaring.
Note: This bottle had been open around 24 hours before service.
As with the other 19's, this had been open for over 24 hours with a decant. Still grippy after all that time, it's clear you'll want to give this a ton of air if drinking anytime soon.
All these wines are excellent complements to each other, with the Anjea being the most black fruited, dense and earthy in the lineup. Blackcurrant, black licorice, chargrill, spice box and forest floor jump out of the glass. The palate is stacked with luscious if firm dark fruit that shows huge almost tar like grainy consistency. Full bodied and amazingly fresh and pure, this has depth for days and layers that will keep unfurling with time. Displays a powerful mid palate that leads to a very long finish. Another must have winner.
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Napa 2022; 5/2/2022-5/5/2022 (Napa Valley, CA): No formal notes over the tasting at Cook St Helena with Shae. The best Anjea I have tasted to date (2016, 2017). Seems to have opened up a bit even in the last few months based on recent tasting notes. Explodes with blueberry off the nose. Clone 22. The first Anjea that really clicked for me. The other years have just been tough to read behind the tannins at the various times I have tasted them. Changed my order to 6 of these after the tasting! 99-100 down the road.
The second tasting of the day was lunch which Shae Kinsman at Farmstead in St. Helena. The 3 Kinsman wines were paired with a Lamb Burger.
All wines tasted out of what appeared to be 500ml shiner bottles. They were all double decanted but the amount of time is unknown. The wines included: 2019 Bella Oaks (98 points) 2019 Kinsman Eades La Voleuse du Chagrin (98+ points) 2019 Kinsman Eades Anjea Sleeping Lady Vineyard (97 points) 2019 Kinsman Eades Rhadamanthus Diamond Mountain District (97+ points)
As a disclaimer, I have never rated a wine 100 points. Not because I am opposed to it but because I have not found that wine that has truly blown my socks off yet. However, I would not be surprised if any one of these wines made by Nigel reaches the point ever rarefied air for me in the upcoming years. In my opinion for my palate, All 4 wines tasted above have the ability to reach 100 points. Every wine in this lineup was spectacular true highlight of my trip!
Unfortunately, I don’t have tremendously detailed notes on these wines, as the lunch had a more personable feel than intellectual dissecting wine tasting vibe.
The 2019 vintage of Anjea was only bottled a few weeks prior to this tasting. Initially, Shae wasn’t sure we were going to be able to taste any of the Kinsman 2019s but luckily for me, they got Nigel’s stamp of approval the week prior to our visit that they were showing extremely well from the bottle.
The Anjea was a bit more tightly wound than the other wines tasted in the Kinsman lineup. The nose was floral, red and black fruit with mineral undertones. The palate was of red, blue and black fruit and minerality. This was the most muscular wine in the lineup. It had a firmer tannic backbone than the other wines tasted. It is complex and full bodied. For my preference, this is a wine to lay down for several years but if you have patience, you should be rewarded in spades!
3 days in Napa: Arkenstone, Memento Mori, Maxem, The French Laundry, Christopher Tynan, Kinsman, Harlan, Vice Versa, Accendo, Fairchild, Macdonald, and a truckload of others (Napa): A barrel sample to be sure, with all the succulence and flamboyance you’d want from a burst of astound-me juice rocketing to the back of your throat. But again, even with a barrel sample like this, the master refinement kicks into gear and shows its ability to level its power and intensity with class and focus. It will be fascinating to see how this 2019 behaves in relation to the 2016 Anjea, as the 2019 behaves like what I’d expect a fired-up younger version of the 2016 would behave like. A ton of power here, but also a ton of exacting delineation of flavor just waiting to show its full worth in due time. 95-97+ points.
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I'm not exactly sure how close to the finished product this is, but boy is it good. Like most all barrel samples, it was showing a lot of fleshy fruit, but it also showcased excellent acidity, powerful concentration and tons of potential. Compared to the 16, it appeared to have a bit more fruit and opulence, without quite the massive depth and concentration. That could change as it evolves, but it is going to be a wine you want to buy if you can. 95-97
Exploring 2018s and 2019s in Napa - Spring 2021; 4/18/2021-4/22/2021 (Napa Valley, CA): Slightly darker in color than the other two. Super floral and aromatic with notes of apricot/orange blossom and rose petal, leading to tart cherry, red currant, cassis, boysenberry, and baking spices which were perfectly integrated. Such an elegant wine, with a nice energetic weight to it. Grippy tannins and a slight hint of residual sugar, but delicious overall with a long lush finish. Really excited and looking forward to its release already even though it's over an year out!
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4/14/2024 - MN Wine Junkie Likes this wine: 97 Points
Champers and Napa Cabs Blind - Fun Times! (Chateau Simms): I believe this wine received about a 2 hour Slo-O.
This was in a blind line up of some very prestigious 2019 Napa reds (and one 2016 thrown in), specifically:
2019 MacDonald
2019 Kinsman Eades La Voleuse Du Chagrin
2019 Kinsman Eades Anjea Sleeping Lady Vineyard
2019 Colgin Tychson Hill
2019 Realm Absurd
2019 Scarecrow
2019 Harlan
2019 Myriad Elysian
2019 La Pelle Res
2019 Magnificent 7
2019 Cliff Lede Songbook
2016 Colgin Tychson Hill
2019 KE Anjea - I was very happy this wine showed so well! After reading everyone's notes praising this wine, I finally had an opportunity to taste it, and it did not disappoint! I wasn't sure what wine this was, but I rated it at the top along with the MacDonald and Harlan. This wine was remarkably well structured, showed silky tannins and exquisite fruit. It was absolutely delicious! Loved it! (Yes, Jennifer and Mark, you guys were right!) 97 out of 98 because I believe it will drink even better with more time. I do think I could sit with this wine by myself or share with one other to follow it over a longer period of time. I did come back to this wine, and it did keep getting better (I know....hard to believe!) I think Nigel outdid himself with this wine!
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4/14/2024 - bsumoba Likes this wine: 99 Points
Near perfect for me. Balanced and enjoyable. Nigel is doing something special with his wines.
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4/14/2024 - WineBurrowingWombat Likes this wine:
Eyes Wide Shut - Day 2 (A quiet place): Nose: Ripe, dark red fruits, fruited earth, pleasantly earthy soil, and some spiced oak.
Palate: Deep and dark but light red fruits, deep earth and tasty bitter minerals.
Generous and fun at the moment. You can tell it wants to be serious, and I'm sure with even a couple of hours, it would've been. Should've spent more time with this.
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3/28/2024 - ozziewine Likes this wine: 97 Points
Given the glowing CT reviews, just had to open one of these. My first Kinsman Eades Cabernet. Drank on three different occasions over four days (while storing on nitrogen).
On Day 1 on PnP, this is pretty challenging, rough and tannic, a literal wall of wine emblematic of its’ youth. Drank over a few hours letting it aerate in the glass and it mellowed somewhat.
On Day 2, with a three hour decant (after sitting on nitrogen overnight) it has mellowed and blossomed into a beauty. The color is like India Ink in the middle and burgundy on the edge. And the nose, oh, the nose…from the get-go it is riveting with floral and dark fruit aromas. Wow.
The improvement from the Day 1 process was stunning. It had piercing dark fruit, was super complex with incredible energy/brightness and was velvety on the palate. This was a joy to drink, continuing the trend, for me, of 2019 Napa Cabs drinking great over the last year or so.
If you got a 3-pack you should absolutely try one now if you haven’t already.
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2/16/2024 - Mark1npt Likes this wine: 97 Points
Sucked into opening one of these thanks to my CT friends on here.....you know who you are, ty.
3 hour decant, back into the bottle and enjoyed over 3-4 hours at the table tonight with a great tasting amongst friends and family.
Dark garnet in the glass. Nose of cherry fruit and sweet toffee. This is a unique wine in a sense. Fresh and precise, with depth and florals and a certain wow factor. Hard to give it anything other than a 97 tonight. 2nd WOTN at the table. Extremely good quality. I should note that this is my very first taste ever, of a KE wine. I bought these from the winery, sight unseen or should I say palate, untasted? It's very, very good.....
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1/31/2024 - AGELVIS Likes this wine: 97 Points
Thirty minute decant. Deep dark intense ruby color. Blueberry, cassis, orange-infused dark chocolate, and subtle graphite and coffee. Dry, dusty palate. Firm, yet satiny, tannins on the longish finish.
I think I over-decanted the last bottle of this I had a month ago. This is surprisingly good with less than an hour of air. Nigel Kinsman was very kind to bring this to dinner with #1WineLover and I (at Bistro Don Giovanni in Napa).
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12/30/2023 - AGELVIS Likes this wine: 97 Points
Eight hour decant. Nearly opaque intense magenta color. Stewed blackberry, mincemeat, marmalade-infused baker’s chocolate, and subtle caramel. Very dry, plush palate, with fine acidity. Firm, full, medium intensity tannins on the long finish.
This was a wonderful first Kinsman-Eades experience for me. Decanting Queen was very kind to bring this to share at a wine-fueled NYE weekend (in small town Texas). Hard to believe this will keep improving over the next few years, but it will.
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12/30/2023 - Decanting Queen Likes this wine: 98 Points
A Wine Fueled Goodbye to 2023; 12/29/2023-12/31/2023 (College Station, TX): This is a spectacular once in a lifetime wine. There was something so clean and precise about the nose and palate. A combination of ripe yet refined Napa fruit, and old world tobacco and stones. This is fruit from Erewhon Market, not your local
Publix (or Sainsbury’s for the UK). Lots of structure and still needs more integration, but I don’t feel bad at all for opening one early. Even at this young age I’d score this higher but I know it will get better and the scale doesn’t go to 150!!!!!
We have this 8 hours in the decanter and drank over the next four. Just stunning and so glad I could experience with AGELVIS, Paul and Melissa in our last wine weekend of 2023!
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12/30/2023 - sean7711 Likes this wine: 98 Points
Wanted to open one of these over the holidays. With the advice of Shae, I double decanted this over 4-6 hours. Drank over two nights, got better and better with more time in bottle. Purely intoxicating nose, blueberries, dark cocoa, cassis. Had next to 2019 Hall Platinum and this was way better.
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12/25/2023 - tyfabes Likes this wine: 97 Points
Opened this to pair with steaks for Christmas dinner and what a stunner. 2nd time having this in the last 4 months. Didn't expect a significant change this time around and was proven correct.
Decanted for 4 hours and consumed over 2+ hours. While I wish I would have decanted this a bit longer, the best glass was certainly the last one.
What sets this wine apart is the plush moutfeel and silky tannins that are perfectly integrated with a lovely backdrop of acidity that carries it forward. This wine is dark fruit dominated and showcases the Sleeping Lady vineyard wonderfully. Of the 3 KE cabs, Anjea feels like the Goldilocks to me. Nothing is too big or too small, everything just works in harmony.
While I'll always be #teamrhad, this Aneja is simply fantastic.
If opening between now and 2025, give this a minimum 6 hours of air, preferably 8.
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12/24/2023 - TMOVino2 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Holy cow! Finally had to scratch the itch and try one of my Kinsman. It took a lot of self-control. Sleeping Lady vineyard. Deep ruby purple. Very aromatic at pop but gains with hours of air. Blackberries, black currant, plum, tobacco, mint early on. The palate is very Bordeaux like. Fruit given its youth but some lead pencil, wet stone too. This will age amazingly. Can’t wait to try the other vineyards.
Saved a glass for Christmas Day. Was the best. Stunner and sleeping lady usually isn’t my favorite. 96 now with potential for 3-4 more points.
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12/24/2023 - WineBurrowingWombat Likes this wine: 96 Points
Nose: [59°-61°] Wet and clean black mulch, buried cedar, black and purple fruits, and clumps of clay with thin veins of graphite. With plenty of time, minerals surface in the earth.
Palate: [60°-61°] Black fruits with dark yet fresh red fruits that give the flavor profile an amazing lift and freshness. Clean savory wood and graphite, and pleasantly bitter earth and minerals on the finish. With almost an hour of time in the glass, a heavier pitch of earth, savory minerals and even a clean metalic note (in a good way) develops on the finish, while keeping a dark profile of fruits. Too much air though, and the wine seems to bring bitter green shrubbery and dried twigs.
Attributes: Clear, dark ruby. Dry with medium amounts of grippy tannin. Medium-plus body with medium to medium-plus acidity. Great finish of at least 20 seconds.
Thoughts: This seems ready from the get go. I preferred this much better on pop and pour. The notes were more distinct and fresh, while delivering with intent. I'm starting to learn that too much air can make really make the tannin aspects stand out a lot. Pop and pour and journey along, but maybe not let this air out for too many hours. If you're gonna air this out for that long, might as well cellar it for a handful of years.
Serving notes: Bordeaux glass. Served one glass and emptied bottle into a decanter at cellar temp ~54° and consumed over 5.5 hours. Recommend serving ~58°-62°, and only decant if needed.
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12/9/2023 - beau11 wrote: 99 Points
What stands out is the amazing balance and silky texture of this wine. It is amazingly light with no hard edges. This wine is open and ready for business after a decant
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10/30/2023 - jeffmudd Likes this wine: 97 Points
Wow, wow and wow! What a beautiful wine and can only dream on where this will be in another 3-7 years, flirting with perfection of I was to guess.
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7/25/2023 - zimmy07 Likes this wine: 95 Points
This is damn young. I bought 2019 and 2021 of all 3 wines, never had a glass of this, had a sip a year ago. Needed to get into one. This was almost black in the glass, dark fruits, heavily perfumed, very complex on mid palate. It is 6 years away. I usually say these wines need 10-20 years but this was approachable with a 9 hour decant, yes young but approachable. A lot going on here, chocolate milk shake, with bakers spice, asian spice, white pepper and toasted oak. damn good!
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6/18/2023 - MJP Hou TX Likes this wine: 97 Points
Family trip to Telluride.
I've been holding out on my stash of KE as I know patience will be reward. I'm also reminded daily that tomorrow is not promised. It's easy for me to consider pulling the best when on vacation with my family. Fathers day is as good as any to be treated to the best Napa has to offer.
I reached out to Nigel & Shae and asked them which KE should I pull for my upcoming trip. Nigel quickly suggested Anjea and I'm glad he did. I've tasted every vintage of Anjea and this bottling has grown on me with each vintage. Firm tannins and structure for days. This wine was a joy to drink over 48. The development over that window was subtle which tells me this built for the long haul.
For my palate this wine is on the youthful side but I can easily see this being a triple digit wine when it hits 10+ years of age.
I had the pleasure of opening a 13 VHR shortly after and these two really have a lot in common with regards to structure.
97+
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3/27/2023 - MAXIMUM SATISFACTION wrote: 95 Points
Big wine with lots of oak. It settled a bit on day two but will require at least 5 years. Black/blue fruit, vanilla, anise, cassis…. At this stage it tastes like top to upper middle tier Napa but just not unique. Blind I’d guess Realm.
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1/13/2023 - LiteItOnFire Likes this wine: 96 Points
No notes simply impressions. A horizontal tasting of all three KE - all three very different than its siblings yet all with a central theme. Double Decanted 24 hours beforehand and these wines are still big bad and delicious. Anjea from Sleeping lady was a much bigger wine than I remember tasting a year ago- was beautiful. if you would have asked me to guess vintage, I would have assumed 2018 not the super sexy 2019 vintage. Hold min of 5 years.
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8/20/2022 - jviz wrote: 97 Points
The third wine in the trio of 2019s at Wheeler farms. Double decanted the day before, enjoyed our of Riedel stems with Isabel, the assistant winemaker.
The Anjea was the darkest In color of the 3 wines. 100% CS, it stains the glass with each swirl. Notes of milk chocolate, cassis, deeply concentrated and classic in many ways, this comes across as balanced and authentic.
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5/26/2022 - csimm wrote: 99 Points
Kinsman 2019 & 2021: Well, well, well. It seems that Anjea in 2019 has some heft going on here. There’s a polish in 2019 that is remarkable, but that glaze is varnish for a podium that is stacked, packed, racked, and lip-smacked. The Anjea takes the essence of succulence, adds a fistful of fresh berries, hucks it in your eye, but then apologetically kisses you on the cheek with finessed flecks of forest floor, spicebox, anise, and blackberry seed. Blue and black fruits dominate, skillfully buoyed in a structured and concentrated frame that is a far cry from any of the other softer Sleeping Lady fruit-puller producers you may have experienced thus far. The contours here show finesse, but dear lord if the deltoids on this Van Damme aren’t also pumping out flavor and range the likes of which I’ve never experienced from this site. Finishes grippy but with a signature mouth-watering lusciousness that is like licking a bowl of mocha-whipped cream cheese topped with double-stuffed Oreos and blackberry cobbler crumbles… and a cherry.
The Anjea is 100% Clone 22, which is an anomaly for this address, as Sleeping Lady is typically planted to Clone 7. Compared to the 2021 Anjea barrel sample, the 2019 Anjea is unsurprisingly less of a neutron bomb in its current state, but it does share a similar profile with its two-year younger sister. The 2021 may carry a tad more richness at the end of the day, but we will have to see how the 21’s in-bottle behavior shakes out in a few years’ time. 98-99+ points for the 2019 Anjea. Unless and until it is lapped by the 2021, the 2019 is the best iteration of Sleeping Lady I’ve ever had. Captivating now but will reward with some short term cellaring.
Note: This bottle had been open around 24 hours before service.
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5/17/2022 - Cristal2000 Likes this wine: 97 Points
As with the other 19's, this had been open for over 24 hours with a decant. Still grippy after all that time, it's clear you'll want to give this a ton of air if drinking anytime soon.
All these wines are excellent complements to each other, with the Anjea being the most black fruited, dense and earthy in the lineup. Blackcurrant, black licorice, chargrill, spice box and forest floor jump out of the glass. The palate is stacked with luscious if firm dark fruit that shows huge almost tar like grainy consistency. Full bodied and amazingly fresh and pure, this has depth for days and layers that will keep unfurling with time. Displays a powerful mid palate that leads to a very long finish. Another must have winner.
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5/3/2022 - sean7711 Likes this wine: 98 Points
Napa 2022; 5/2/2022-5/5/2022 (Napa Valley, CA): No formal notes over the tasting at Cook St Helena with Shae. The best Anjea I have tasted to date (2016, 2017). Seems to have opened up a bit even in the last few months based on recent tasting notes. Explodes with blueberry off the nose. Clone 22. The first Anjea that really clicked for me. The other years have just been tough to read behind the tannins at the various times I have tasted them. Changed my order to 6 of these after the tasting! 99-100 down the road.
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3/9/2022 - JustBreathe680 Likes this wine: 97 Points
The Great Escape; 3/8/2022-3/9/2022 (Napa): Great Escape to Napa: 2 day getaway with my dad (3/8/22-3/9/22)
The second tasting of the day was lunch which Shae Kinsman at Farmstead in St. Helena. The 3 Kinsman wines were paired with a Lamb Burger.
All wines tasted out of what appeared to be 500ml shiner bottles. They were all double decanted but the amount of time is unknown. The wines included:
2019 Bella Oaks (98 points)
2019 Kinsman Eades La Voleuse du Chagrin (98+ points)
2019 Kinsman Eades Anjea Sleeping Lady Vineyard (97 points)
2019 Kinsman Eades Rhadamanthus Diamond Mountain District (97+ points)
As a disclaimer, I have never rated a wine 100 points. Not because I am opposed to it but because I have not found that wine that has truly blown my socks off yet. However, I would not be surprised if any one of these wines made by Nigel reaches the point ever rarefied air for me in the upcoming years. In my opinion for my palate, All 4 wines tasted above have the ability to reach 100 points. Every wine in this lineup was spectacular true highlight of my trip!
Unfortunately, I don’t have tremendously detailed notes on these wines, as the lunch had a more personable feel than intellectual dissecting wine tasting vibe.
The 2019 vintage of Anjea was only bottled a few weeks prior to this tasting. Initially, Shae wasn’t sure we were going to be able to taste any of the Kinsman 2019s but luckily for me, they got Nigel’s stamp of approval the week prior to our visit that they were showing extremely well from the bottle.
The Anjea was a bit more tightly wound than the other wines tasted in the Kinsman lineup. The nose was floral, red and black fruit with mineral undertones. The palate was of red, blue and black fruit and minerality. This was the most muscular wine in the lineup. It had a firmer tannic backbone than the other wines tasted. It is complex and full bodied. For my preference, this is a wine to lay down for several years but if you have patience, you should be rewarded in spades!
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4/30/2021 - csimm wrote: 97 Points
3 days in Napa: Arkenstone, Memento Mori, Maxem, The French Laundry, Christopher Tynan, Kinsman, Harlan, Vice Versa, Accendo, Fairchild, Macdonald, and a truckload of others (Napa): A barrel sample to be sure, with all the succulence and flamboyance you’d want from a burst of astound-me juice rocketing to the back of your throat. But again, even with a barrel sample like this, the master refinement kicks into gear and shows its ability to level its power and intensity with class and focus. It will be fascinating to see how this 2019 behaves in relation to the 2016 Anjea, as the 2019 behaves like what I’d expect a fired-up younger version of the 2016 would behave like. A ton of power here, but also a ton of exacting delineation of flavor just waiting to show its full worth in due time. 95-97+ points.
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4/23/2021 - Cristal2000 Likes this wine: 96 Points
I'm not exactly sure how close to the finished product this is, but boy is it good. Like most all barrel samples, it was showing a lot of fleshy fruit, but it also showcased excellent acidity, powerful concentration and tons of potential. Compared to the 16, it appeared to have a bit more fruit and opulence, without quite the massive depth and concentration. That could change as it evolves, but it is going to be a wine you want to buy if you can. 95-97
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4/22/2021 - ffzhang Likes this wine: 97 Points
Exploring 2018s and 2019s in Napa - Spring 2021; 4/18/2021-4/22/2021 (Napa Valley, CA): Slightly darker in color than the other two. Super floral and aromatic with notes of apricot/orange blossom and rose petal, leading to tart cherry, red currant, cassis, boysenberry, and baking spices which were perfectly integrated. Such an elegant wine, with a nice energetic weight to it. Grippy tannins and a slight hint of residual sugar, but delicious overall with a long lush finish. Really excited and looking forward to its release already even though it's over an year out!
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