Nose: [57°] Black earth, blackcurrants, stone, spiced and damp new oak and a dark scent of graphite. Floral aromas ride with the spiced oak notes very nicely with a purpose. [61°] With some time, roasted dark green herbs surface along with some fine coffee and cocoa powder. Tar you get from the palate eventually shows up on the nose as well. Dark red fruits eventually tags along.
Palate: [57°] Indulgent blackcurrants from the nose that drains deep into black earth, dark graphite, minerals as if they were somehow burnt, spiced damp oak and steeped black tea on the finish. With some time, black tar develops on the finish alongside with pleasantly bitter minerals. [62°] Develops a macerated fruit profile that I love but is kept within bounds with its black, bitter mineral notes.
Attributes: Dark ruby. Dry with medium amounts of fine, grippy tannin. Medium to medium-plus body with medium to medium-plus acidity. Great finish of about 26-28 seconds. Some sediment already in bottle.
Thoughts: Been wanting to taste Dalla Valle for a while now and glad I am finally able to. This thing is layered and very tasty. Dark and brooding characters yet shows restraint. At its current youthful stage, I love how the wine exudes fun and liveliness but knows how to control itself and hold back a little, knowing well not to go overboard with it, almost precocious. This should have an amazing life ahead of it as the flavors did not waver once throughout the tasting, holding strong throughout. Excited to see how this will be with some age, if I can even help it. 97+ easy.
Serving notes: Bordeaux glass. Served one glass and emptied bottle into a decanter at cellar temp ~55° and consumed over 8 hours. Recommend serving ~58°. Decanting was not necessary but do so as needed.
From the first sip, I could tell that I'd really like this wine. The nose was full of rich and complex aromas, while the palate was smooth and balanced.
Overall, I was very impressed with this wine. It showed great complexity, balance, and depth. The quality of the grapes and the winemaking were clearly evident. I would highly recommend this wine to anyone looking for a high quality and enjoyable bottle of wine.
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An incredible vintage even at this stage, I remember tasting the 2016 at this age and it was outstanding. I believe this might be slightly better in the long term and could easily get to 99+ points, the quality of these wines have really improved and I struggle to see the same quality in another winery apart from Spottswoode. The nose was wonderfully perfumed along with crushed blackcurrants, red currents, violets, tobacco leaf, crushed black pepper, dark chocolate and all spice. The palate was round, rich yet refined with dark lush black fruit filling the palate, along with savoury herbs, all-spice structured tannins, a seductive mid-palate, there is real energy and persistence throughout, the finish is what really put this wine to the next level which was incredibly long and lingering. This is flickering on perfection. 98++
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3/29/2023 - BigBoy_Sonoma Likes this wine: 99 Points
It’s a remarkable wine. The structure and the elegance make it hard to describe. It both big but smooth at the same time.
Black fruiit, blue fruit, cedar, herbal notes, black currants, cassis, layered complexity and spices. A+ (99)
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1/29/2023 - WineBurrowingWombat Likes this wine: 97 Points
Nose: [57°] Black earth, blackcurrants, stone, spiced and damp new oak and a dark scent of graphite. Floral aromas ride with the spiced oak notes very nicely with a purpose. [61°] With some time, roasted dark green herbs surface along with some fine coffee and cocoa powder. Tar you get from the palate eventually shows up on the nose as well. Dark red fruits eventually tags along.
Palate: [57°] Indulgent blackcurrants from the nose that drains deep into black earth, dark graphite, minerals as if they were somehow burnt, spiced damp oak and steeped black tea on the finish. With some time, black tar develops on the finish alongside with pleasantly bitter minerals. [62°] Develops a macerated fruit profile that I love but is kept within bounds with its black, bitter mineral notes.
Attributes: Dark ruby. Dry with medium amounts of fine, grippy tannin. Medium to medium-plus body with medium to medium-plus acidity. Great finish of about 26-28 seconds. Some sediment already in bottle.
Thoughts: Been wanting to taste Dalla Valle for a while now and glad I am finally able to. This thing is layered and very tasty. Dark and brooding characters yet shows restraint. At its current youthful stage, I love how the wine exudes fun and liveliness but knows how to control itself and hold back a little, knowing well not to go overboard with it, almost precocious. This should have an amazing life ahead of it as the flavors did not waver once throughout the tasting, holding strong throughout. Excited to see how this will be with some age, if I can even help it. 97+ easy.
Serving notes: Bordeaux glass. Served one glass and emptied bottle into a decanter at cellar temp ~55° and consumed over 8 hours. Recommend serving ~58°. Decanting was not necessary but do so as needed.
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12/31/2022 - JJB007 Likes this wine: 98 Points
From the first sip, I could tell that I'd really like this wine. The nose was full of rich and complex aromas, while the palate was smooth and balanced.
Overall, I was very impressed with this wine. It showed great complexity, balance, and depth. The quality of the grapes and the winemaking were clearly evident. I would highly recommend this wine to anyone looking for a high quality and enjoyable bottle of wine.
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7/26/2022 - unrelenting wrote: 96 Points
Super Hot and closed but a Unique citrus palate.
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5/6/2022 - Alexander Smith Likes this wine: 98 Points
An incredible vintage even at this stage, I remember tasting the 2016 at this age and it was outstanding. I believe this might be slightly better in the long term and could easily get to 99+ points, the quality of these wines have really improved and I struggle to see the same quality in another winery apart from Spottswoode. The nose was wonderfully perfumed along with crushed blackcurrants, red currents, violets, tobacco leaf, crushed black pepper, dark chocolate and all spice. The palate was round, rich yet refined with dark lush black fruit filling the palate, along with savoury herbs, all-spice structured tannins, a seductive mid-palate, there is real energy and persistence throughout, the finish is what really put this wine to the next level which was incredibly long and lingering. This is flickering on perfection. 98++
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