Rich, some faded blackberry fruit, but mostly about the aged aspects. Cigar, dark chocolate, menthol, slight smoke, no oak signature. Valbuena rarely disappoints. Terrific. Drink up!
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Drank at the Inn in Pound. Decanted for 30 mins. Muted nose initially but opened in the glass. Some black fruit, but fading. This wine was mostly tertiary, showing notes of leather, earth and tobacco. Tannins mostly resolved &, unfortunately, a surprisingly short finish. Wine was enjoyable but we likely waited a few years too many to open. I still have a mag of this and must remember to decant b4 opening.
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Eðalklúbbur, vínsmakk #2 vor 2021 (Hlíðarás 10): Meðaldökkt á litinn. Komnir fram múrsteinstónar í litnum. Í ilmi rúsínur, ryk. Mjög þroskað þegar smakkað á því. Einhver minntist á edik. Ennþá í lagi þegar smakkað á því en bara rétt svo. Vín á allra síðustu metrunum. Áhugavert samt að smakka svona aðframkomið vín. Þarna er náttúrlega líka spurning um við hvaða aðstæður þetta vín hefur verið geymt því Valbuena ætti náttúrlega að þola 20 ára geymslu ef geymt við góðar aðstæður.
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brown rim, dark core, still showing some red Very tertiary nose, earthy, woody (not oaky), some VA, tobacco, really fancy cigars Still lots of life here but fully mature. Some sweet fruit and dark chocolate. Leather and a long finish Apparently very Vega Sicilia according to wine maker. I think i'd have liked to try it 5-10 years ago but still it's fascinating
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right now, this wine is past its prime, with the fruit having dissipated, leaving only a slightly flavored acidic liquid. too bad, i bet this was once pretty good.
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50 ANNI AIS PIEMONTE (TORINO MUSEO DELL' AUTOMOBILE): Profilo autunnale di foglie bagnate, carne e sangue rappreso. All' assaggio la dolcezza del frutto e la polverosità tabaccosa ricordano un Brunello old-style, ma è la vibrazione acida a stupire per gioventù e brio. Ha un tocco rustico che lo rende accattivante, mai banale. Sul finale molto persistente, dal tannino granulare emerge un lato speziato e sapido corroborante che richiede cibo. Buonissimo, grande sorpresa della giornata.
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Started out as a complete failure. Almost no nose, harsh tannins and acidity but no pleasant fruit. After one hour in the glass it started to open up, and after another hour it all came together.
So, leave this wine in the decanter for 2-3 hours at least, and then you will find lots of ripe, but mature dark berries, leather, tobacco, tea, strawberry on nose and palate. Taste is medium++ bodied, and has lots of rather harsh tannin that needs food.
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Had the opportunity to try this from a restaurant list.
Popped and poured. Beautiful garnet color. Nose was incredible; fresh, red fruits, cassis, leather. The most captivating nose of any wine I've experienced. I literally could not stop smelling. . . .
Medium-bodied to be sure. Again, fresh. Core of red fruits persisted, with perhaps some white pepper and hints of vanilla. Good acid. Beautifully balanced. Persisted on the palate for minutes.
This was a wow wine for me.
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Still needs time,as even with an hour decanting the overall impression was in accessable. Much better with food ,though hid the true taste...will keep another 5 years!
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Arthritis Foundation Connoiseurs' Room (Pfister Hotel, Milwaukee): i was not expecting much given previous notes on this wine. in the end, i found this wine marvelous for reasons other found it horrendous. youthful cherry fruit all over the nose. hinting at some light corkiness perhaps, but really in the end so subtle and wrapped in others complexity. very aged forest floor. old growth forest. wide oranging to the rim that seems pretty consistent with 15 years of age. spearmint all in the nose. this is not a 'pants on the floor' wine. the nose shows an elegant expression, but then the palate is rocked with an intense acidity, that is actually very pleasing in the context of this wine. the decent of cedar over the years shows on the palate. the acid is the salt here and makes for an explosive palate without being monsterous. iron, high acid, and a bright meatiness with an herbal underbelly. long long finish. drink now to 2014.
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Dark color than expected. Hinting on corky. Iron cherry fruit, really of its own thing. Acutally, it just occured to me -- I have had allot of grand riserva rioja (which this is not) show a little corky. A bit bloody almost. Tight on the palate. Much better than when I had it three years ago. The acids are so integral they just push everything else out. Hammer it out. The thought is that it isn't corked, just that all that wood treatment had to end up somewhere in the taste. I can taste it 3 minutes after the fact.
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Dinner at Acme with Bill, Brian, Lauren & others. I've yet to have one of these that made me understand it's popularity and pricing. Unfortunately, this bottle did nothing to change that. Purple in the glass, this wine showed very monolithic today. Decent richness on the palate but at the same time rather tight with a good tannic structure underneath. Will clearly benefit from some additional cellar time but I'm not certain the fruit will outlast the tannins. 50+12+11+7+7 = 87(+?)
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A great performance by this wine. Started out slow, but after a couple hours the nose was explosive. Although a "second" wine, Valbuena has class. Impressive performance. Decant for 2-3 hours.
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Spanish Inquisition at Brad England's House: Red color trending towards orange/brown. The initial smell is dominated by brett/horse, but this dissipates fairly quickly. What is left gives flowers, pine needles, resin, herbs (that change with time in the glass), and a distinct celery note. This is almost light bodied on the palate and slightly tart. Red fruit with dried tobacco dominate the taste. The finish has a sweetness that is abruptly terminated by ringing acidity that lingers nicely. The brett and acidity make this controversial but I thought it was still a very nice wine. It is likely to be at (or past) peak.
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We tasted this over a few hours. Initially, it had a great nose, albeit a bit horsey, and was a bit acidic in the mouth. Later (2 hours) it lost its harshness, but still was a 90 point wine at best, maybe 88.
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My impression is very different from the other postings. First the color in our bottle was still a vibrant red. The nose held beautiful fruit notes of blackberry, etc. It was very well balanced. My wife and I felt that this wine could go for more years, but it may be appproaching its peak.
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Wine night w/ Phil (Gentile's): Not very good. Browning in colour and very hazy. Toasty nose, very acidic upfront and strong stemmy notes. Underlying dark cherries and bergamot/tea, but subsumed by tannins and very bad notes. Not enjoyable. A sip the next day actually caused me to gag.
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Dark ruby red. Lovely aromas of wild fruits, marzipan, some chocolate and a little blood. Full body, with very good concentration. Tasty flavors of wild fruits, a little coffee and some pepper. Balance and structure are lacking right now. Acidity is all over the place, tannins are noticeable though pretty integrated, but nice levels of oak accompany the flavors offered. Good long finish with a heavy aftertaste. Overall this is a good wine, but it needs many more years to soften and integrate the acidity and tannins. I plan to open another bottle no earlier than 2010. Should be very good then. Tasty though now!
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VERY COMPLEX WINE WITH TOUCHES OF LEATHER AND COFFEE ALONG WITH LOTS OF BERRY FRUIT AND CHERRIES IN THE NOSE. BERRIES & CHERRIES IN THE FLAVOR. MEDIUM TO LONG FINISH.
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Unusual nose but a good taste with young tempranillo. Some hay and perhaps barnyard on the nose. May be better with a few hours aeration. Controversial wine amongst those in attendance.
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8/5/2023 - andtheodor wrote: 93 Points
Rich, some faded blackberry fruit, but mostly about the aged aspects. Cigar, dark chocolate, menthol, slight smoke, no oak signature. Valbuena rarely disappoints. Terrific. Drink up!
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9/15/2022 - BradE wrote:
Our expectations were modest, but with air this was enjoyable. Not a rock star, but nice.
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3/17/2022 - cephomer Likes this wine: 91 Points
Drank at the Inn in Pound. Decanted for 30 mins. Muted nose initially but opened in the glass. Some black fruit, but fading. This wine was mostly tertiary, showing notes of leather, earth and tobacco. Tannins mostly resolved &, unfortunately, a surprisingly short finish. Wine was enjoyable but we likely waited a few years too many to open. I still have a mag of this and must remember to decant b4 opening.
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8/24/2021 - adamcaldwell Likes this wine: 95 Points
Opened 5 hours before, double decanted. Absolute stunner, in great shape for drinking now but also should have years more. Impressive.
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6/25/2021 - Jonne Likes this wine: 92 Points
Bra kraft, fylligt med röda och mörka bär, aningen te och läder. Hade hållit stilen flera år till.
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2/12/2021 - bitdrerik wrote:
Eðalklúbbur, vínsmakk #2 vor 2021 (Hlíðarás 10): Meðaldökkt á litinn. Komnir fram múrsteinstónar í litnum. Í ilmi rúsínur, ryk. Mjög þroskað þegar smakkað á því. Einhver minntist á edik. Ennþá í lagi þegar smakkað á því en bara rétt svo. Vín á allra síðustu metrunum. Áhugavert samt að smakka svona aðframkomið vín. Þarna er náttúrlega líka spurning um við hvaða aðstæður þetta vín hefur verið geymt því Valbuena ætti náttúrlega að þola 20 ára geymslu ef geymt við góðar aðstæður.
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4/24/2018 - henrygjeffreys Likes this wine:
brown rim, dark core, still showing some red
Very tertiary nose, earthy, woody (not oaky), some VA, tobacco, really fancy cigars
Still lots of life here but fully mature. Some sweet fruit and dark chocolate. Leather and a long finish
Apparently very Vega Sicilia according to wine maker. I think i'd have liked to try it 5-10 years ago but still it's fascinating
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12/25/2017 - Nekodab wrote: 97 Points
Buy more...
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12/6/2015 - thwacker wrote: flawed
right now, this wine is past its prime, with the fruit having dissipated, leaving only a slightly flavored acidic liquid. too bad, i bet this was once pretty good.
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11/24/2015 - galenico Likes this wine: 93 Points
50 ANNI AIS PIEMONTE (TORINO MUSEO DELL' AUTOMOBILE): Profilo autunnale di foglie bagnate, carne e sangue rappreso.
All' assaggio la dolcezza del frutto e la polverosità tabaccosa ricordano un Brunello old-style, ma è la vibrazione acida a stupire per gioventù e brio.
Ha un tocco rustico che lo rende accattivante, mai banale. Sul finale molto persistente, dal tannino granulare emerge un lato speziato e sapido corroborante che richiede cibo. Buonissimo, grande sorpresa della giornata.
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11/14/2015 - NoTrollingerPlease wrote: flawed
Best bottle (@Schmiede, Kirchheim): Unfortunately slightly corked, therefore NR.
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4/7/2015 - Blauweiss Likes this wine: 93 Points
Started out as a complete failure. Almost no nose, harsh tannins and acidity but no pleasant fruit. After one hour in the glass it started to open up, and after another hour it all came together.
So, leave this wine in the decanter for 2-3 hours at least, and then you will find lots of ripe, but mature dark berries, leather, tobacco, tea, strawberry on nose and palate. Taste is medium++ bodied, and has lots of rather harsh tannin that needs food.
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5/25/2014 - renzetti Likes this wine: 94 Points
Still very good, but do not keep it longer. Drink now!
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7/17/2012 - RayOB wrote: 91 Points
Drank at Roka
Smooth and soft with a lot of earthy overtones. Still get the sweet cherries.
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6/4/2012 - mcases wrote: 88 Points
Passed its time. Nice wine that would give a lot more five years ago.
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3/1/2012 - RayOB wrote: 92 Points
Drank at Roka
Lovely smooth velvety wine with some slight bricking. Notes of cherries, tobacco and vanilla. Very long finish
Yet again Vega-Sicilia lives up to expectations
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9/17/2011 - mariolanza wrote: flawed
Thought is was ok and decanted for 12 hours, but others said this was way past its peak, and oxidised
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8/14/2011 - mariolanza wrote: 89 Points
Dark bordeaux style, earthy and mushrooms aromas. Losing it's colour quickly once decanted and still high acidity, but nice nevertheless.
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3/1/2011 - skin2win wrote: 95 Points
Had the opportunity to try this from a restaurant list.
Popped and poured. Beautiful garnet color. Nose was incredible; fresh, red fruits, cassis, leather. The most captivating nose of any wine I've experienced. I literally could not stop smelling. . . .
Medium-bodied to be sure. Again, fresh. Core of red fruits persisted, with perhaps some white pepper and hints of vanilla. Good acid. Beautifully balanced. Persisted on the palate for minutes.
This was a wow wine for me.
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2/11/2011 - O.F. wrote: 85 Points
Still needs time,as even with an hour decanting the overall impression was in accessable. Much better with food ,though hid the true taste...will keep another 5 years!
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5/1/2010 - Lorien wrote: 89 Points
see my notes 5/3/2004 rated 89 points. 6 years later and still very nice, and in my opinion ready to be enjoyed fully.
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2/19/2010 - nzinkgraf wrote:
Arthritis Foundation Connoiseurs' Room (Pfister Hotel, Milwaukee): i was not expecting much given previous notes on this wine. in the end, i found this wine marvelous for reasons other found it horrendous.
youthful cherry fruit all over the nose. hinting at some light corkiness perhaps, but really in the end so subtle and wrapped in others complexity. very aged forest floor. old growth forest. wide oranging to the rim that seems pretty consistent with 15 years of age. spearmint all in the nose. this is not a 'pants on the floor' wine. the nose shows an elegant expression, but then the palate is rocked with an intense acidity, that is actually very pleasing in the context of this wine. the decent of cedar over the years shows on the palate. the acid is the salt here and makes for an explosive palate without being monsterous. iron, high acid, and a bright meatiness with an herbal underbelly. long long finish. drink now to 2014.
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2/19/2010 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
Dark color than expected. Hinting on corky. Iron cherry fruit, really of its own thing. Acutally, it just occured to me -- I have had allot of grand riserva rioja (which this is not) show a little corky. A bit bloody almost. Tight on the palate. Much better than when I had it three years ago. The acids are so integral they just push everything else out. Hammer it out. The thought is that it isn't corked, just that all that wood treatment had to end up somewhere in the taste. I can taste it 3 minutes after the fact.
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2/18/2010 - reyrei wrote: 95 Points
Amazing!
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6/5/2009 - Hazeo wrote:
Very acidic. Not much else showing ... hmm bad storage?
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9/8/2007 - JeffGMorris wrote: 87 Points
Dinner at Acme with Bill, Brian, Lauren & others. I've yet to have one of these that made me understand it's popularity and pricing. Unfortunately, this bottle did nothing to change that. Purple in the glass, this wine showed very monolithic today. Decent richness on the palate but at the same time rather tight with a good tannic structure underneath. Will clearly benefit from some additional cellar time but I'm not certain the fruit will outlast the tannins. 50+12+11+7+7 = 87(+?)
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4/29/2007 - BradE wrote:
A great performance by this wine. Started out slow, but after a couple hours the nose was explosive. Although a "second" wine, Valbuena has class. Impressive performance. Decant for 2-3 hours.
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12/13/2006 - lars1014 wrote: 88 Points
Spanish Inquisition & Pizza at Brad England's House (Brad England's House - The Island Lake House, Minneapolis): Bretty to begin with, but this settles down into a nose of flowers, resin, an array of herbs (Dave said some celery, which is accurate). The wie is quite tame in the mouth with low tannins and slightly high acid. Any wine with vegetables in the nose is a questionable wine.
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12/13/2006 - Dave Dalluge wrote: 90 Points
Spanish Inquisition at Brad England's House: Red color trending towards orange/brown. The initial smell is dominated by brett/horse, but this dissipates fairly quickly. What is left gives flowers, pine needles, resin, herbs (that change with time in the glass), and a distinct celery note. This is almost light bodied on the palate and slightly tart. Red fruit with dried tobacco dominate the taste. The finish has a sweetness that is abruptly terminated by ringing acidity that lingers nicely. The brett and acidity make this controversial but I thought it was still a very nice wine. It is likely to be at (or past) peak.
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12/13/2006 - BradE wrote:
We tasted this over a few hours. Initially, it had a great nose, albeit a bit horsey, and was a bit acidic in the mouth. Later (2 hours) it lost its harshness, but still was a 90 point wine at best, maybe 88.
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12/13/2006 - Siggy wrote: 90 Points
Weekday Pizza Night at Brad's (Brad's House, Minneapolis): Tart. High-toned red fruit. Nicely developed tobacco/forest floor secondary notes. Smoke and tea. Some horse/brett. Seems to be about at its peak now.
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4/21/2006 - jrufusj wrote: flawed
TTG#7: Hamina Comes to Town (and we all drink good wine) (Keyaki Grill at Capital Tokyu; La Fève Wine Bar (Tokyo)): Corked, damnit! Liked the palate that came through despite the TCA – lots of leather, cassis, cherry. Great structure and balance. Now I’ve got to go buy one so I can see what it should have been.
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3/20/2006 - Mr Cabernet wrote: 93 Points
My impression is very different from the other postings. First the color in our bottle was still a vibrant red. The nose held beautiful fruit notes of blackberry, etc. It was very well balanced. My wife and I felt that this wine could go for more years, but it may be appproaching its peak.
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4/12/2005 - AndrewSGHall wrote:
Wine night w/ Phil (Gentile's): Not very good. Browning in colour and very hazy. Toasty nose, very acidic upfront and strong stemmy notes. Underlying dark cherries and bergamot/tea, but subsumed by tannins and very bad notes. Not enjoyable. A sip the next day actually caused me to gag.
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5/3/2004 - Lorien wrote: 89 Points
Dark ruby red. Lovely aromas of wild fruits, marzipan, some chocolate and a little blood. Full body, with very good concentration. Tasty flavors of wild fruits, a little coffee and some pepper. Balance and structure are lacking right now. Acidity is all over the place, tannins are noticeable though pretty integrated, but nice levels of oak accompany the flavors offered. Good long finish with a heavy aftertaste. Overall this is a good wine, but it needs many more years to soften and integrate the acidity and tannins. I plan to open another bottle no earlier than 2010. Should be very good then. Tasty though now!
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8/25/2003 - buckeye76 wrote: 91 Points
VERY COMPLEX WINE WITH TOUCHES OF LEATHER AND COFFEE ALONG WITH LOTS OF BERRY FRUIT AND CHERRIES IN THE NOSE. BERRIES & CHERRIES IN THE FLAVOR. MEDIUM TO LONG FINISH.
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1/6/2001 - JeffGMorris wrote:
Unusual nose but a good taste with young tempranillo. Some hay and perhaps barnyard on the nose. May be better with a few hours aeration. Controversial wine amongst those in attendance.
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