Rejäl pjäs med fortfarande pigga bäraromer (körsbär, björnbär) och mörk choklad och läder. Påtagliga tanniner även om de är polerade. Rätt diskreta ålderstoner trots de dryga 20 åren. Man vill gärna ha något substantiellt att äta till.
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First wine in my "Marie Kondo the Cellar" project. This wine is way past its published drinking window and given that plus previous reviews and the "Annata Diversa" label, I expected little from this bottle and assumed I had just completely blown it. Boy was I wrong. My wife, in fact, describes this as her "perfect wine". Deep dark purple core with thin rim of bricking. Dark fruit, prune, savoury lamb ragu with mint, leather and chocolate on the nose. Full body with medium intensity, plush tannins. Mouthwatering dark cherries, plum, leather, chocolate, herbs on the palate - well balanced and complex. Medium finish. I suppose I should still feel a bit bad for not drinking this about 10 years ago when there would have been more complexity and tannic structure and longer finish, but thank goodness this bottle was still a delight. Surprised to see so many still in cellars - drink up.
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In perfect drinking condition right now. Great dark berry notes and some leather in the nose. Beautiful mouthfeeling, nicely integrated tannins, great complex structure, needs an hour to open up.
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Dark red color , nose of dark fruits , plums , graphite, pepper , on the palate round , full bodied, great acidity, can last for more 5/7 years in a perfect shape
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This wine was surprising to me as I did not expect to find it as enjoyable as I did. It was certainly on the thinner side for Solaia and you did get some of the green leafy quality you would expect from a colder and less ripe vintage, but it showed some bright acidity and was very pleasurable when paired with food. Not a perfect example of Solaia by any means, but enjoyable nonetheless.
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Black core, ruby rim. Dark fruits, clean earth on nose. On palate, super savoury: rare meat, roasted nuts/coffee, soy sauce, loaded with umami. Moderate acidity, high level of smooth/textured tannins, alcohol seems higher than the 13% declared. Rich, full bodied, long, complex. Superb. Drinking beautifully for a 16 year old wine; not a trace of oxidation. Will likely last many more years.
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Annual Tasting Group Holiday Party (I Nonni, St. Paul, MN): Dark red color. Small pour over 15 minutes. Very beguiling, I was taken immediately by the lovely nose of creme de cassis, dried leaves, earth, and charcoal. The palate is texturally alluring as well, it simply glides across the tongue with its beautiful dark berry fruits leading the way, creme de cassis, blackberry cobbler, charcoal, wood spices, and hints of mushroom with a long integrated finish. Great silky tannins too! Thanks to Dan for this beauty. 93+ to 94pts.
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Got a small pour of this at our annual holiday party and was immediately taken by it. This is incredibly elegant and finessed and complex on a very svelte and lifted, frame. Tobacco leaf, currants, raspberry, cherry, expresso and mineral. Loved it! Hard to fin at a good price though even with 2002 off vintage rap. This is stellar!. Thanks Dan!
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02 Solaia had no sangiovese in the blend. It was a difficult vintage. But the wine was so lovely with raspberries, spices, black currant and coffee. Palate had ripe red and black fruits. Smooth and elegant. Great effort for the vintage.
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Tuscany BYO (Valby): Cool and refreshing black currant fruit with a lovely balance. Has a nice touch of saltiness to it, almost like soy, but not in a bad way. Very impressive!
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Weekly tasting group #118; Italy: Bolgheri (@ CvR): Dark fruits, sweet spices, cedar and smoke in the bouquet. On the palate however quite tertiary with mushrooms, autumn forest, celery and reductive impressions. Firm acidity and soft, slightly drying tannin. This bottle is by far not as good as the one I tasted in 2012 and in fact a bit too old now. (See also my previous note). Don’t know the history of this bottle. No score.
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Pour avoir bu ce vin dans des millésimes plus réussis, je dois avouer avoir été plutôt déçu de cette bouteille. La couleur est encore jeune et bien rouge sans reflets grenat. Le nez est très boisé, presque vanillé et évoque pour moi plus la Californie que la Toscane. En bouche on a un vin de style "international" certes bon, mais sans personnalité. les tanins sont fondus. Fruit encore présent et un peu confituré. La finale est courte. Probablement à son apogée. Je ne crois pas que ce vin a le potentiel de s'améliorer. À boire donc et sans trop d'attentes. Une année très difficile en Toscane et j'ai l'impression qu'Antinori a voulu "sauver les meubles" en sortant quand même leur Solaia. Peut-être auraient t'ils dû s'abstenir comme plusieurs autres grandes maisons toscanes en 2002?
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still no final note but promising - tomorrow the note will be ready...
thank you for the patience, now I get the chance to finish my note It was the most expensive wine on the wine list on a Italien cruise ship in the mediterranean sea. we paied 143 € for this bottle including service charge in the restaurant. I ordered the wine because I have the 2007 in my cellar and that one cost me over 200 € at a restaurant wine broker. After I saw the lable and researched quickly on the internet, I realised, that this was a special vintage for tignanello because the sangiovese grape was rotten that year. So the 2002 solaia is not the typical super tuscan blend with sangiovese. this is a pure cabernet sauvignon - cabernet franc blend - exciting. it took my whife and me two nights to enjoy the bottle.
First of all - this is a wine you need to taste if you get the chance.
The first night the wine started with very rich dark berries, some cherry, sandlewood, oak, ripe plums, prunes and also s hint of smoke which gives the wine a very elegant, depth underneith all the fruityness and barrel aftermath. Quite intese palate, rich cabernet all over the mouth.. tannins and some acidity cut through the full body - surprisingly no taste or scent of alcohol wse, very nice. Rich and long finish, pleasant
The second night
all the fruits were gone... the first smell seemed as if someone smoked the wine together with some ham, deep smoky, meaty, leather in the nose. on the palate now more harmony. The tannins and the acidity now blend in very well. coming from the last night not realy an improvement but a nice variation on a very high and interesting level.
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Weekly tasting group #018; Italy. (@ WW): Transparent garnet red. Some pleasant barnyard in the bouquet. Smoky and luxurious impressions. Dark fruits on the palate and a long finish. Beautiful and complex wine. Ready now.
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Excellent bottle. This is drinking very nicely right now.
Opened up beautifully, even tho just popped and poured. Increased in elegance with air.
This is very Tuscan.
It's a shame some folks have been put off just because there was no Sangiovese in the blend for this vintage. The truth is that this is a top wine from Antinori, and they only chose to leave of the Sangiovese in this vintage because they wanted to maintain the standard, and the Sangiovese harvest in 2002 was not up to scratch.
The wine itself is brilliant. Lots of fruit, and a slight tartness that comes from the vintage itself.
In the beginning, when Antinori started making Solaia, it was originally a Cab/Cab Franc blend - before they started adding Sangiovese.
In 2002, they went back to their original blend, giving one an opportunity to taste this again. I'd consider this bottle a collectible.
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Dark red color with slightly orange edges; First aroma of a 1995 Ribera-del-Duero Gran Reserva; after 10 min changes to a classical quality Bordeaux blend and develops in this orientation; Full-bodied, tannic, not balanced, coarse, mouthful, bestiary, sensual and very enjoyable.
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Unlike the regular Solaia vintages, this does not contain any sangiovese- it is made from cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc- due to the problamatic ripening of this variety in the 2002 vintage, hence the warning on the label that it is a particular vintage. What is very impressive however, is the fact that the wine tastes and smells more Tuscan than many sangiovese dominated blends. It shows intense espresso coffee, leather and cherry on the note, in full harmony to the mid+ bodied palate with fine-grained tanins, bright fruit and high acidity. Aftertaste is long and persistent. Quite an achievment given the vintage. Will improve further with additional cellaring. Very elegant.
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Apparently this year's Sangiovese was not up to scratch so this is merely a blend of Cabernets Sauvignon & Franc. Tuscan nose, cherries, coffee, leather, earth, green peppers, garrigue herbs, later hint of sweet spice. Light-medium bodied, nice tannins, nice acidity with a lovely bitterness giving an interesting bite.
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Wine was decanted for 1 hour, but that is not enoough. This wine needs minimum 2 hours. Very close first this wine then showsc very intense and complex aromas of leaves, leather and dark fruits. Palate is too heavy and tanins are too strong for now. Extremely long finish. Wine should develop in 3-4 years, potentially 95.
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First observation: capsule tight, cork protruding a few millimeters. Blackish/ruby, dense. Old World nose of earth, underbrush, burning autumn leaves, wood fire, soy sauce and minerals, some burnt-match sulfur, but barely any fruit. Big palate weight, very savoury, with high level of ripe/smooth tannins, just-right acidity and alcohol. Extreme in length and complexity.
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Tar, rich black currant, nut, coffee and mineral nose. Med-full bodied with dry, ripe tannins, and medium acidity; good fruit; tarry, dried berry finish. 4/5
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12/30/2023 - Vatch Likes this wine:
Fully mature, light bodied. Very good, balanced. No 'wow' factor. Drink up before it's too late and fruit disappear.
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2/4/2023 - Jonne Likes this wine: 92 Points
Rejäl pjäs med fortfarande pigga bäraromer (körsbär, björnbär) och mörk choklad och läder. Påtagliga tanniner även om de är polerade. Rätt diskreta ålderstoner trots de dryga 20 åren. Man vill gärna ha något substantiellt att äta till.
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3/6/2021 - Uncle Victor Likes this wine: 94 Points
First wine in my "Marie Kondo the Cellar" project. This wine is way past its published drinking window and given that plus previous reviews and the "Annata Diversa" label, I expected little from this bottle and assumed I had just completely blown it. Boy was I wrong. My wife, in fact, describes this as her "perfect wine". Deep dark purple core with thin rim of bricking. Dark fruit, prune, savoury lamb ragu with mint, leather and chocolate on the nose. Full body with medium intensity, plush tannins. Mouthwatering dark cherries, plum, leather, chocolate, herbs on the palate - well balanced and complex. Medium finish. I suppose I should still feel a bit bad for not drinking this about 10 years ago when there would have been more complexity and tannic structure and longer finish, but thank goodness this bottle was still a delight. Surprised to see so many still in cellars - drink up.
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1/3/2021 - Denniswre Likes this wine: 84 Points
Let it breath for 30'. Really good wine!
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3/21/2019 - DrZett wrote: 93 Points
In perfect drinking condition right now. Great dark berry notes and some leather in the nose. Beautiful mouthfeeling, nicely integrated tannins, great complex structure, needs an hour to open up.
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12/27/2018 - robferguson1 wrote: 92 Points
In good condition, I felt it a touch sharp on the palate as if aged beyond peak but very drinkable
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9/10/2018 - robferguson1 wrote: 93 Points
Deep rich fruit , long and still lots of life
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6/25/2018 - Gian wrote: 91 Points
Dark red color , nose of dark fruits , plums , graphite, pepper , on the palate round , full bodied, great acidity, can last for more 5/7 years in a perfect shape
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6/14/2018 - sfilene wrote: 91 Points
This wine was surprising to me as I did not expect to find it as enjoyable as I did. It was certainly on the thinner side for Solaia and you did get some of the green leafy quality you would expect from a colder and less ripe vintage, but it showed some bright acidity and was very pleasurable when paired with food. Not a perfect example of Solaia by any means, but enjoyable nonetheless.
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3/24/2018 - Barbara B Likes this wine: 95 Points
Black core, ruby rim. Dark fruits, clean earth on nose. On palate, super savoury: rare meat, roasted nuts/coffee, soy sauce, loaded with umami. Moderate acidity, high level of smooth/textured tannins, alcohol seems higher than the 13% declared. Rich, full bodied, long, complex. Superb. Drinking beautifully for a 16 year old wine; not a trace of oxidation. Will likely last many more years.
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1/27/2018 - kostaslonis wrote: flawed
corked
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8/18/2017 - bordeaux456 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Another fantastic showing from this wine. Really wish I had more, if I find some I would happily purchase again.
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7/2/2017 - Zuluwalker wrote:
We both loved it. We both gave it a 10/10
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5/7/2017 - robferguson1 wrote: 90 Points
Great fruit , good nose.
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12/9/2016 - rocknroller wrote: 93 Points
Annual Tasting Group Holiday Party (I Nonni, St. Paul, MN): Dark red color. Small pour over 15 minutes. Very beguiling, I was taken immediately by the lovely nose of creme de cassis, dried leaves, earth, and charcoal. The palate is texturally alluring as well, it simply glides across the tongue with its beautiful dark berry fruits leading the way, creme de cassis, blackberry cobbler, charcoal, wood spices, and hints of mushroom with a long integrated finish. Great silky tannins too! Thanks to Dan for this beauty. 93+ to 94pts.
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12/9/2016 - chablis28 wrote: 94 Points
Got a small pour of this at our annual holiday party and was immediately taken by it. This is incredibly elegant and finessed and complex on a very svelte and lifted, frame. Tobacco leaf, currants, raspberry, cherry, expresso and mineral. Loved it! Hard to fin at a good price though even with 2002 off vintage rap. This is stellar!. Thanks Dan!
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8/16/2016 - bordeaux456 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Excellent wine for a very average vintage. I think this will be a collectors piece. At least 5-7 more years of life in this wine, if not more!
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5/6/2016 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 92 Points
02 Solaia had no sangiovese in the blend. It was a difficult vintage. But the wine was so lovely with raspberries, spices, black currant and coffee. Palate had ripe red and black fruits. Smooth and elegant. Great effort for the vintage.
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4/8/2016 - canan wrote: 93 Points
Tuscany BYO (Valby): Cool and refreshing black currant fruit with a lovely balance. Has a nice touch of saltiness to it, almost like soy, but not in a bad way.
Very impressive!
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9/3/2015 - dron_ap wrote:
Very classical and stylish. Sounds more like left bank than tuscany. Just Great despite bad vintage and lack of sangiovese
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7/11/2015 - Meneley wrote:
Ready to drink now. Beautiful dried red fruits, has aged gracefully but I would drink between now and 2018. LO
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9/20/2014 - Zuluwalker Likes this wine:
One of my favourite wine's in many years. Still haunted by the flavours 3 years later, I want it again.
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5/19/2014 - Zweder wrote:
Weekly tasting group #118; Italy: Bolgheri (@ CvR): Dark fruits, sweet spices, cedar and smoke in the bouquet. On the palate however quite tertiary with mushrooms, autumn forest, celery and reductive impressions. Firm acidity and soft, slightly drying tannin. This bottle is by far not as good as the one I tasted in 2012 and in fact a bit too old now. (See also my previous note). Don’t know the history of this bottle. No score.
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10/3/2013 - Yagil wrote: 91 Points
Sextet, that became a Septet, 4th meeting: Super Tuscan evening (at Yoram's): a very enjoyable Solaia from a special challenging vintage
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9/29/2013 - poste244 wrote: 88 Points
Pour avoir bu ce vin dans des millésimes plus réussis, je dois avouer avoir été plutôt déçu de cette bouteille.
La couleur est encore jeune et bien rouge sans reflets grenat.
Le nez est très boisé, presque vanillé et évoque pour moi plus la Californie que la Toscane.
En bouche on a un vin de style "international" certes bon, mais sans personnalité. les tanins sont fondus. Fruit encore présent et un peu confituré. La finale est courte.
Probablement à son apogée. Je ne crois pas que ce vin a le potentiel de s'améliorer. À boire donc et sans trop d'attentes.
Une année très difficile en Toscane et j'ai l'impression qu'Antinori a voulu "sauver les meubles" en sortant quand même leur Solaia. Peut-être auraient t'ils dû s'abstenir comme plusieurs autres grandes maisons toscanes en 2002?
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6/4/2013 - raymalt wrote:
boeuf, pasta, et fromage
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5/5/2013 - dron_ap wrote: 93 Points
Brilliant. Lot's of fruit. Starts from St Estephe style, but then opens more like new world cab. But a lot of style there
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7/19/2012 - Peter J Lauer wrote: 91 Points
still no final note but promising - tomorrow the note will be ready...
thank you for the patience, now I get the chance to finish my note
It was the most expensive wine on the wine list on a Italien cruise ship in the mediterranean sea.
we paied 143 € for this bottle including service charge in the restaurant. I ordered the wine because I have the 2007 in my cellar and that one cost me over 200 € at a restaurant wine broker.
After I saw the lable and researched quickly on the internet, I realised, that this was a special vintage for tignanello because the sangiovese grape was rotten that year. So the 2002 solaia is not the typical super tuscan blend with sangiovese. this is a pure cabernet sauvignon - cabernet franc blend - exciting.
it took my whife and me two nights to enjoy the bottle.
First of all - this is a wine you need to taste if you get the chance.
The first night the wine started with very rich dark berries, some cherry, sandlewood, oak, ripe plums, prunes and also s hint of smoke which gives the wine a very elegant, depth underneith all the fruityness and barrel aftermath.
Quite intese palate, rich cabernet all over the mouth.. tannins and some acidity cut through the full body - surprisingly no taste or scent of alcohol wse, very nice. Rich and long finish, pleasant
The second night
all the fruits were gone... the first smell seemed as if someone smoked the wine together with some ham, deep smoky, meaty, leather in the nose.
on the palate now more harmony. The tannins and the acidity now blend in very well. coming from the last night not realy an improvement but a nice variation on a very high and interesting level.
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1/30/2012 - Zweder wrote: 92 Points
Weekly tasting group #018; Italy. (@ WW): Transparent garnet red. Some pleasant barnyard in the bouquet. Smoky and luxurious impressions. Dark fruits on the palate and a long finish. Beautiful and complex wine. Ready now.
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11/24/2011 - Wamrod Likes this wine: 93 Points
Excellent bottle. This is drinking very nicely right now.
Opened up beautifully, even tho just popped and poured. Increased in elegance with air.
This is very Tuscan.
It's a shame some folks have been put off just because there was no Sangiovese in the blend for this vintage. The truth is that this is a top wine from Antinori, and they only chose to leave of the Sangiovese in this vintage because they wanted to maintain the standard, and the Sangiovese harvest in 2002 was not up to scratch.
The wine itself is brilliant. Lots of fruit, and a slight tartness that comes from the vintage itself.
In the beginning, when Antinori started making Solaia, it was originally a Cab/Cab Franc blend - before they started adding Sangiovese.
In 2002, they went back to their original blend, giving one an opportunity to taste this again. I'd consider this bottle a collectible.
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3/17/2011 - Yagil Likes this wine: 92 Points
Dark red color with slightly orange edges;
First aroma of a 1995 Ribera-del-Duero Gran Reserva; after 10 min changes to a classical quality Bordeaux blend and develops in this orientation;
Full-bodied, tannic, not balanced, coarse, mouthful, bestiary, sensual and very enjoyable.
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9/27/2010 - Yiannis wrote: 93 Points
Unlike the regular Solaia vintages, this does not contain any sangiovese- it is made from cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc- due to the problamatic ripening of this variety in the 2002 vintage, hence the warning on the label that it is a particular vintage. What is very impressive however, is the fact that the wine tastes and smells more Tuscan than many sangiovese dominated blends. It shows intense espresso coffee, leather and cherry on the note, in full harmony to the mid+ bodied palate with fine-grained tanins, bright fruit and high acidity. Aftertaste is long and persistent. Quite an achievment given the vintage. Will improve further with additional cellaring. Very elegant.
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9/26/2010 - KostaKats wrote: 89 Points
Apparently this year's Sangiovese was not up to scratch so this is merely a blend of Cabernets Sauvignon & Franc. Tuscan nose, cherries, coffee, leather, earth, green peppers, garrigue herbs, later hint of sweet spice. Light-medium bodied, nice tannins, nice acidity with a lovely bitterness giving an interesting bite.
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1/17/2010 - timcullen wrote: 92 Points
Smooth. Low in tannin. Delicious. Drank with basti and emma in blind tasting with siepi
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1/20/2009 - dron_ap wrote: 93 Points
Wine was decanted for 1 hour, but that is not enoough. This wine needs minimum 2 hours. Very close first this wine then showsc very intense and complex aromas of leaves, leather and dark fruits. Palate is too heavy and tanins are too strong for now. Extremely long finish. Wine should develop in 3-4 years, potentially 95.
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3/23/2008 - Barbara B wrote: 92 Points
First observation: capsule tight, cork protruding a few millimeters.
Blackish/ruby, dense. Old World nose of earth, underbrush, burning autumn leaves, wood fire, soy sauce and minerals, some burnt-match sulfur, but barely any fruit. Big palate weight, very savoury, with high level of ripe/smooth tannins, just-right acidity and alcohol. Extreme in length and complexity.
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10/3/2006 - Double-A Likes this wine: 90 Points
Tar, rich black currant, nut, coffee and mineral nose. Med-full bodied with dry, ripe tannins, and medium acidity; good fruit; tarry, dried berry finish.
4/5
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