Sadly last magnum. Decanted for 45 min. Barron very aptly summarizes every excellent aspect of this wine and how it is currently drinking. What an absolute pleasure.
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What a wine. Brilliant combination of black cherries, dark raspberries, wet earth, licorice, conifer, and a whiff of iodine. Plump, chewy, velvety, tremendous balance for such a big wine. Displays wonderful tension between youthful vigor and bottle age complexity. This runs deep and lengthens and expands with more time in glass. It's accessible now with a decant but has lots of upside moving forward.
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93+ points. The Foley flagship, this vintage is 100% cab sauv blended from Howell Mtn, Mt. Veeder, Atlas Peak and Calistoga vineyards and the high altitude quality of the grapes comes through. Highly recommend with the caveat that this is now probably just a bit past prime and any remaing bottles need to be drunk up soon. Definitely drink not hold. Beautiful, fully mature and ageing very nicely into a L bank Bdx style wine albeit still more muscular then most aged left bankers of this vintage. Decanting not needed if you just let this sit in the glass for a few minutes with some swirling - short 30 minute splash decant at most. Reddish purple, some peripheral bricking noted, soft supple mouth feel, medium - full bodied, very well balanced, complex and oak and tannins completely resolved with a medium length aftertaste. Nose soft, somewhat muted and more floral then anticipated - more red cherry and raspberry then the expected dark stone fruit present with lavendar, black pepper, vanilla and an interesting hint of mint or perhaps eucalyptus present. On the flavor profile more cedar then oak up front which speaks to the secondary and tertiary notes starting to come through at this stage of development as well as black currant, kirsch, leather, stone, graphite and an ending floral lilac note.
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Dark red colour, complex dark berries nose, smooth tannins. A youthful, big wine in a very enjoyable phase. Unfolding bouquet After 1-2 hours without being decanted. Deep and fruity. Californian Red at its best! Wonderful. A compagnion for a nice evening! Still some years to go.
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Opened on Thanksgiving weekend with friends. Lovely wine. Not decanted but did not really need it. My feeling is the wine is on it's sweet spot and no need to hold. Complex, aromatic, fine chewy tannins, long finish. Grab one on a good deal. Cheers
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Still drinking well. Decanted two hours in advance. Rich blackberry and cherry fruit flavors with plenty of grip and yet a still velvety mouthfeel. Slightly bitter on the finish, but not enough to detract from overall enjoyment.
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Perfect cork this time. PnP is as good as if not better than the previous bottle. Will see how it holds up on day 2 before purchasing more. Like this style of wine and think this is a good value vs. the higher end Hall wines.
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Started off quite harsh, could be a bit over the hill. After 60 minutes started to open up. Tannins still fairly pronounced, flavors of coffee, chocolate, and hints of dark fruit.
Overall a fun one to try but probably not a crowd-pleaser.
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Clear deep purple with garnet rim. Clean nose of pronounced intensity with blackberries, prunes, preserved fruit, bitter chocolate, leather, cured meat. Wine is developing. On the palate it is dry with medium plus acidity, very smooth, silky medium tannins, high alcohol, medium plus, mouthful body, medium plus flavor intensity of chocolate, toast, meat, fruit preserves. Finish is medium plus. Very good wine. Drink now or can be aged further
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From 1.5, decanted 2 hours. 2 of 3. Slightly disappointed after first being off charts. Seems to be slighly over-hill. Hoping this one was a fluke - will drink las sooner rather than later.
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Showing a hint of age, fruit seems a touch diminished and this bottle was thinner than past bottles. Even still, this is a robust Cabernet blend with a firm backbone and plenty of grip. Decanted two hours.
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Where do I start? What an incredible wine. This wine is so complex on many levels. On the nose initially lots of youth with dark fruit, integrated oak, and a touch red rose petal. Within 5 minutes of being in the glass it evolved it's tertiary profile with notes of cassis, dried plums, figs, pencil shavings, cedar, and a hint of youthfulness trying to show it's head.
On the palate, layers upon layers of richness and complexity that kept me coming back for another glass. It was still incredibly young at 11 years old but shed all its baby fat and fruit bombness. I couldn't get enough of this wine. It is probably just entering its prime drinking window now which speaks to its character and quality. The only other wine that left me feeling like this was the 2010 Shafer Hillside Select which was rated 100 points. I would argue that this is better because it just utterly left me speechless.
If you have this wine-drink it now, it is such a good place now and will reward you with its graciousness, power, and finesse. Cheers!
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While not an issue, cork did crumble closest to wine. Decanted. Right off the bat, this was still a BIG wine. Years to go. Was wonderful. Big dark rich fruit but muted by a slight earthiness that gave the wine more character. Tannis still there but have soften somewhat. Too bad last bottle.
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crowd pleaser of the night at 4th July dinner, good but not great for me, good somewhat extracted purple / dark fruit, good balance of flavors given the blend, some secondary leather / oak notes, but a little soft and lacking sufficient acidity for my tastes to be a great wine
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Nicely balanced blend by Robert Foley. Smooth like most St. Helena wines, and the rich sediment adds nice complex character to each sip. Ready to drink now and definitely drink by 2020.
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From mag, pnp, drinking very well, but poses some room to improve from additional aging. Full body, leather, earth tones with just the right hint of oak. Well crafted! Will wait a couple more years to open next bottle.
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We did not expect it, and were not all that pleased when we discovered it, but this bottle showed as much an obvious case of reduction as any bottle I have ever tasted. We know the provenance of this bottle, and don't suspect any handling or storage issues. With a decant, through the vinturi, from front to back there was what I call a rubbery, banana leaf meets mushroom earth nose and palate. Aside from the reduction, this is the world class awesome wine you would expect from this pedigreed producer. The color is black ink. There is character and structure any wine would be proud to exhibit. Just coming into it's stride, the fruit is showing both some youth and maturity. Mostly dark cherry and blackberry. Big oak works and contributes. Full bodied. Flavor nuances that a blend shows better than the individual varietals could ever accomplish on their own. We kept drinking and enjoying for the awesome characteristics that overcame most of the flaw.
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Drank in FL. A rich ripe chocolately Cab based wine that really hit the spot tonight. A real croed pleaser type of wine. Just pure yum. In nice place being very showy, but well balanced and true to Napa. See this holding for many many yeaes, but could easily be in prime now.
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Enjoyed this but felt a touch of heat on the finish which was unusual for me in Foley's wines. Excellent nose and big mouthfeel, I will need to revisit this one in the near future.
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Wow, what a difference six months can make. Perhaps decanting the wine for two hours was the difference, but this wine was completely different than just six months ago with incredibly smooth tannins that seamlessly integrated into the dark, rich blackberry fruit. Impressed with the concentration of this blend that exhibited the same spice , mocha and chocolate notes for my last tasting. Paired unbelievably well with lamb.
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Decanted for 90 minutes. Outstanding! Dark fruit with "chalky" tannins (characteristic noted in many 2006's). More balanced than expected. Right in the drinking window -- 5+ years remaining..
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Side Bern's Wine Store Tasting (Tampa, Fl.): Deep, concentrated flavors. Mature dark ripe fruits, earth, mineral, oak. Tannins integrated and balanced, yet the wine could still use a couple more years. (Doris - 88. Dark red color. Concentrated flavors)
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Patiently waited 5 years to open a bottle and can report that I should have waited another few more years. This wine has rich dark fruit with strong hints of spice, currant and a hot, mocha like finish. The tannins are smooth and starting to integrate into the fruit, but hope this wine can and will get better with some more age.
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Still really young, needed a couple of hours in the decanter to get enough air to show some real presence. It's actually a typical 2006 in that they all seem to need time and I'll wait a while before I open any more from any producer!
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Nose: smooth cherries and a little pepper; decanted for 60 minutes, and still a little hot
Pallet: dirt, graphite, bark (?) - not sure that's the right word but it makes me think of the woods; not in the way that a scotch does, but it makes me think of wintertime in the woods
Legs: very smooth with some nice tannins; could have used a bit more, but very smooth; perhaps in a few years this will come together, lose the heat and
Overall very nice; wish I had another bottle or three
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Gobs of alcohol (15.5%) and rich pleasant black fruit. There was not much evolution in the glass or decanter over the first hour. Saved the rest for the following day using vacuum device in bottle. Still strong alcohol dominating the palate and less fruit...actually, not as good 24 hrs after opening. Unsure this will change much over the next few years and then it may not be for the better. Overall a decent experience.
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Recent write-ups on the age-ability of some of these big California Cabs has had me slightly concerned so I've been testing some of my '05 and '06 Cabs to check in on them. No worries here (or really elsewhere for that matter). This wine has improved substantially since last tasted, as it has softened and gained complexity. Still probably a couple of years away from what I'd consider prime drinking window.
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Big nose of flowers, fresh black berries, dark red cherries, graphite, and mocha. Palate of blueberry jam, currant, marachino cherries, and fresh blackberries, with traces of mocha and espresso. Very extracted. Chewy, chalky, drying tannins. Noticeable alcohol burn above 65F Needed at least a couple hrs to open up enough to enjoy. Medium to long finish. Wait at least a 3+ years to open more. Great complexity and concentration but the high alcohol puts it out of balance.
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Popped and poured, which was a mistake as this was not nearly as good as the prior bottle that was decanted for a few hours. Still a bit tight and tannic, the deep notes of chocolate and blackberry weren't as prominant as before. Still a good wine, but not nearly as impressive.
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I really wanted to like this wine more. I had this in LA several years ago and was blown away by it. Perhaps this wine just needs more time as the tannins did start to mellow after 30 minutes. The front flavors are described in many posts below and are a joy but then about 3/4 of the way thru something happens and the wine gets disjointed and very tannic. Not the silky tannins and great finish I recall. I have 2 bottles of the 2008 and will keep those sometime before trying.
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This young monster is stunning. Dark rich black cherry with some chocolate and mocha nuances. It has an awesome mouthfeel, leading to a long and memorable finish. The wine has such power yet the finish shows awesome finesse.
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Decant one hour. Rich inky dark ruby red. Blacker at the rim. Monster of a nose. Can smell this two feet away with ease. Rich and spicy, racy sexy blackberry, dark chocolate, malt, fig, dark brown sugar and molasses. Not for the faint of heart. Massive robust bold extraction. Weighty and fat with along gripping finish. Creamy cassis, coffee and rhubarb. Tannic but sweet with a nice acidic touch. Alcohol is in line with little to no heat. Plum blueness. YES! A winner.
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Many layers to this thing, unfortunately all of them, but one, are oak....too bad since once you pull the splinters out there really is a nice, focused and very fresh layer of fruit, mostly blueberries. It would be delicious toning down the oak... I doubt it will ever integrate. Almost makes me want to become a tree hugger, save the wine!
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Dark, ripe fruit nose with a lot of oak. Medium to full bodied palate has a lot of oak and less ripeness than I expected. Lots of tannins. Does not smell corked and the palate is certainly big but not ripe. Might have had a bit of taint. Judgment reserved.
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One of the better bottles of Foley Claret I've had. This wine, while extremely big, was balanced with ripe black plum, pine tar, toasty sweet oak, and a full mouthfeel that stayed with you for a long time.
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Double decanted. Nose was good, but the wine was just flat early on. Like coke that lost its carbonation. Started to come around by the end though, getting off the mat and turning into a very nice wine. Disappointing overall, as the Foley Claret's are typically much better. Maybe an off bottle.
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Deep, dark purple. Nose dominated by dark fruits, oak and vanilla. On the palate, very rich, tons of dark fruit, lots of buttery/vanilla flavors. A bit young, hopefully some of the oak with integrate better over time. Dusty, but sweet tannins. A bit too big, but hopefully will come together.
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12/09 Dark purple concentrated black fruit - chalky chocolate oak finish - young - double window - approachable now and a good 10 year plus laydown. 93 pts.
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A very very pleasant surprise - enjoyed the first of 9 bottles last night with Kim for dinner with grilled NY strips and what an outstanding CA bordeaux blend this turned out to be. Decanted for over three hours, very dark wine, concentrated but surprisingly well balanced for as young a wine as an '06, very big and almost dusty with a great mouth feel and an almost explosive nose, pleasant aftertaste. Nose amazing and very aromatic with strong underlying oak and dark fruit and some vanilla and chocolate accents. Primary flavors included well balanced burnt oak, mocha, dark stone fruit and blueberry with a definite herbal accent developing later on the palate. This wine is entering a very reasonable drinking window now, improved a lot with the decant and has many years of cellaring left with anticipated continued improvement and overall improved balance. Too expensive to be any kind of a reasonable QPR but I really highly recommend this wine despite the price point, looking forward to tracking maturation of the other 8 bottles over the next 2 - 3 years.
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If you like blueberry and vanilla in your Cab, then this is for you. Sweet, hot, rich and tannic. Perfectly acceptable cocktail wine but I cannot imagine this pairing with food.
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Family Winemakers San Francisco (Fort Mason San Francisco): Tasted at the Family Winemakers in SF. Quick notes: huge wine. Chocolate, dark cherry and blackberry fruits with a dry, dusty, tannic finish. Good right now. Will probably be Very Good.
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2/6/2024 - corkcellar wrote: 91 Points
Sadly last magnum. Decanted for 45 min. Barron very aptly summarizes every excellent aspect of this wine and how it is currently drinking. What an absolute pleasure.
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8/15/2023 - Baron Slick wrote: 94 Points
What a wine. Brilliant combination of black cherries, dark raspberries, wet earth, licorice, conifer, and a whiff of iodine. Plump, chewy, velvety, tremendous balance for such a big wine. Displays wonderful tension between youthful vigor and bottle age complexity. This runs deep and lengthens and expands with more time in glass. It's accessible now with a decant but has lots of upside moving forward.
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6/13/2022 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drinking as beautifully as it did 5 years ago!
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4/22/2022 - ikkaariainen Likes this wine: 93 Points
93+ points. The Foley flagship, this vintage is 100% cab sauv blended from Howell Mtn, Mt. Veeder, Atlas Peak and Calistoga vineyards and the high altitude quality of the grapes comes through. Highly recommend with the caveat that this is now probably just a bit past prime and any remaing bottles need to be drunk up soon. Definitely drink not hold. Beautiful, fully mature and ageing very nicely into a L bank Bdx style wine albeit still more muscular then most aged left bankers of this vintage. Decanting not needed if you just let this sit in the glass for a few minutes with some swirling - short 30 minute splash decant at most. Reddish purple, some peripheral bricking noted, soft supple mouth feel, medium - full bodied, very well balanced, complex and oak and tannins completely resolved with a medium length aftertaste. Nose soft, somewhat muted and more floral then anticipated - more red cherry and raspberry then the expected dark stone fruit present with lavendar, black pepper, vanilla and an interesting hint of mint or perhaps eucalyptus present. On the flavor profile more cedar then oak up front which speaks to the secondary and tertiary notes starting to come through at this stage of development as well as black currant, kirsch, leather, stone, graphite and an ending floral lilac note.
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11/2/2021 - shafer1994 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Dark red colour, complex dark berries nose, smooth tannins. A youthful, big wine in a very enjoyable phase. Unfolding bouquet After 1-2 hours without being decanted. Deep and fruity. Californian Red at its best! Wonderful. A compagnion for a nice evening! Still some years to go.
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5/4/2021 - ogres3 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Delicious. Full-bodied, complex ripe fruit, nice finish, in a good window. New world but pairs well with duck/ribeye.
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4/11/2021 - Rbtrage wrote: 93 Points
My last bottle yet the best.
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4/8/2021 - Rbtrage wrote: 91 Points
Tasty but seems to be nearing the end of its drinking window. Drink up.
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11/27/2020 - melal41 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Opened on Thanksgiving weekend with friends. Lovely wine.
Not decanted but did not really need it.
My feeling is the wine is on it's sweet spot and no need to hold.
Complex, aromatic, fine chewy tannins, long finish.
Grab one on a good deal.
Cheers
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11/20/2020 - Rbtrage wrote: 88 Points
This bottle was drinkable but clearly over the hill. Didnt quite enjoy as much as the earlier bottles.
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11/14/2020 - winejnky Likes this wine: 92 Points
Still drinking well. Decanted two hours in advance. Rich blackberry and cherry fruit flavors with plenty of grip and yet a still velvety mouthfeel. Slightly bitter on the finish, but not enough to detract from overall enjoyment.
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10/17/2020 - Rbtrage wrote: 93 Points
Followed nicely mature bottles of Les Pavots and Au Sommet. Held its own against two great wines. Highly recommended.
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7/31/2020 - Rbtrage wrote: 93 Points
Perfect cork this time. PnP is as good as if not better than the previous bottle. Will see how it holds up on day 2 before purchasing more. Like this style of wine and think this is a good value vs. the higher end Hall wines.
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7/29/2020 - Rbtrage wrote: 93 Points
The cork didnt come out in one piece. Very syrupy mouth feel. Full bodied. Fruity but complex. Reminds me of some Hall wines.
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7/13/2020 - redz wrote: 92 Points
Initially tight, minimal nose and a little funky. After 2-3 hrs decant, opened up to a luscious dark smooth beauty. Wouldn't hold it much longer.
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6/28/2020 - ogres3 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Drinking beautifully. Paired with rib-eye. Full bodied complex but not overpowering fruit. Quite smooth. Restrained but very good finish.
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5/8/2020 - gsquireh wrote:
To Alex
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12/21/2019 - akolicich Likes this wine: 91 Points
Started off quite harsh, could be a bit over the hill. After 60 minutes started to open up. Tannins still fairly pronounced, flavors of coffee, chocolate, and hints of dark fruit.
Overall a fun one to try but probably not a crowd-pleaser.
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11/8/2019 - D3S Does not like this wine: 85 Points
Menthol and acetone on the nose, no fruit, thick harsh tannins. Either bad bottle or way over the hill.
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6/22/2019 - budman Likes this wine: 93 Points
Smooth as silk. Good fruit. Long finish.
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5/18/2019 - vpoms wrote: 92 Points
Clear deep purple with garnet rim. Clean nose of pronounced intensity with blackberries, prunes, preserved fruit, bitter chocolate, leather, cured meat. Wine is developing. On the palate it is dry with medium plus acidity, very smooth, silky medium tannins, high alcohol, medium plus, mouthful body, medium plus flavor intensity of chocolate, toast, meat, fruit preserves. Finish is medium plus. Very good wine. Drink now or can be aged further
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12/24/2018 - corkcellar wrote: 89 Points
From 1.5, decanted 2 hours. 2 of 3. Slightly disappointed after first being off charts. Seems to be slighly over-hill. Hoping this one was a fluke - will drink las sooner rather than later.
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11/30/2018 - winejnky wrote: 91 Points
Showing a hint of age, fruit seems a touch diminished and this bottle was thinner than past bottles. Even still, this is a robust Cabernet blend with a firm backbone and plenty of grip. Decanted two hours.
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7/4/2018 - hawkeye54 wrote:
Over the hill. Toasted. Major dissapointment considering I've had it for eight years in my cellar.
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5/6/2018 - cigar52 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Drinking beautifully now... wish this was not the last of 6!!!
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11/16/2017 - pgrzesik Likes this wine: 97 Points
Pop and pour - drank over 2 hours.
Wow! What a wine!
Where do I start? What an incredible wine. This wine is so complex on many levels. On the nose initially lots of youth with dark fruit, integrated oak, and a touch red rose petal. Within 5 minutes of being in the glass it evolved it's tertiary profile with notes of cassis, dried plums, figs, pencil shavings, cedar, and a hint of youthfulness trying to show it's head.
On the palate, layers upon layers of richness and complexity that kept me coming back for another glass. It was still incredibly young at 11 years old but shed all its baby fat and fruit bombness. I couldn't get enough of this wine. It is probably just entering its prime drinking window now which speaks to its character and quality. The only other wine that left me feeling like this was the 2010 Shafer Hillside Select which was rated 100 points. I would argue that this is better because it just utterly left me speechless.
If you have this wine-drink it now, it is such a good place now and will reward you with its graciousness, power, and finesse. Cheers!
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7/1/2017 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Nose and palate with layers of blackberry and cassis fruit with integrated spices and oak notes finishing with soft tannins and lovely concentration.
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4/22/2017 - Acohen Likes this wine: 92 Points
Lots of plum and dark fruit with a really nice mouthbalance and long finish
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3/15/2017 - Ridgerunner Likes this wine: 93 Points
For whatever reason I seem to prefer these wines a bit younger. This would have been a 95 point wine 3 years ago!
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12/16/2016 - Hi.its.Don.4.Wine Likes this wine: 95 Points
While not an issue, cork did crumble closest to wine. Decanted. Right off the bat, this was still a BIG wine. Years to go. Was wonderful. Big dark rich fruit but muted by a slight earthiness that gave the wine more character. Tannis still there but have soften somewhat. Too bad last bottle.
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10/18/2016 - Knicksfan wrote: 93 Points
Reliably good and interesting.
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7/5/2016 - WoodieBayArea wrote: 92 Points
crowd pleaser of the night at 4th July dinner, good but not great for me, good somewhat extracted purple / dark fruit, good balance of flavors given the blend, some secondary leather / oak notes, but a little soft and lacking sufficient acidity for my tastes to be a great wine
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6/24/2016 - Knicksfan wrote: 93 Points
still clicking on all cylinders
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6/23/2016 - Acohen Likes this wine: 91 Points
Rich dark fruit with plum, blackberry and a lot of leather and some cocoa on the finish. Starting to get into secondary phase
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5/23/2016 - Knicksfan wrote: 93 Points
consistently good.
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4/9/2016 - mckillop Likes this wine: 91 Points
Cherry and leather on the mouth. Red fruits on the nose. Medium+ body. Not my favorite vintage of this label but still very yummy!
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3/20/2016 - Acohen Likes this wine: 91 Points
Dark fruit with good nose of currant and cassis. Has rich dark fruit but some earthiness, dryness and sendiment on the finish
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11/29/2015 - Vineyard Boy Likes this wine: 93 Points
Nicely balanced blend by Robert Foley. Smooth like most St. Helena wines, and the rich sediment adds nice complex character to each sip. Ready to drink now and definitely drink by 2020.
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10/24/2015 - D3S Likes this wine: 93 Points
93 points. Decanted for 30 minutes. Big beautiful nose, nice fruit and finish. I believe it still has a few years left.
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7/31/2015 - Hazevedo Likes this wine: 92 Points
Fantastic wine , full body
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4/2/2015 - KenK Likes this wine: 92 Points
Nice sweet chocolate cherry flavors with good depth and richness, nice creamy fruit forward flavors.
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3/20/2015 - Sonoma-W Likes this wine: 96 Points
Outstanding! Thick, great tannins, a bit of chalkiness
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3/5/2015 - beau11 wrote: 93 Points
Kenk sums it up perfectly. Has years left
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2/8/2015 - JimV Likes this wine: 93 Points
Good red blend wine. Has red fruit and chocolate in nose and taste. Some soft tannins. Should drink well for a couple of more years.
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1/10/2015 - KenK wrote: 93 Points
Nice rich zippy warm red fruits dominate this very good cab. A tad chewy and structured with concentrated chocolate cherry flavors.
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8/29/2014 - corkcellar Likes this wine: 93 Points
From mag, pnp, drinking very well, but poses some room to improve from additional aging. Full body, leather, earth tones with just the right hint of oak. Well crafted! Will wait a couple more years to open next bottle.
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8/18/2014 - shaferguy91 wrote: 92 Points
No decant
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6/7/2014 - comlaw Likes this wine: 95 Points
Outstanding wine. Lots of black fruit, balanced tannin, great depth. Mature but should last for years.
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4/11/2014 - PSUSteve Likes this wine: 93 Points
From a magnum that surprisingly wasn't open long. This was in a great place. Rich and smooth with layered black fruit focused on blackberry.
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3/28/2014 - bnord81 wrote: 95 Points
wonderful bottle of wine, from a great producer
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2/1/2014 - Mike Kopanski wrote: 89 Points
We did not expect it, and were not all that pleased when we discovered it, but this bottle showed as much an obvious case of reduction as any bottle I have ever tasted. We know the provenance of this bottle, and don't suspect any handling or storage issues. With a decant, through the vinturi, from front to back there was what I call a rubbery, banana leaf meets mushroom earth nose and palate. Aside from the reduction, this is the world class awesome wine you would expect from this pedigreed producer. The color is black ink. There is character and structure any wine would be proud to exhibit. Just coming into it's stride, the fruit is showing both some youth and maturity. Mostly dark cherry and blackberry. Big oak works and contributes. Full bodied. Flavor nuances that a blend shows better than the individual varietals could ever accomplish on their own. We kept drinking and enjoying for the awesome characteristics that overcame most of the flaw.
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12/24/2013 - KenK Likes this wine: 92 Points
Drank in FL. A rich ripe chocolately Cab based wine that really hit the spot tonight. A real croed pleaser type of wine. Just pure yum. In nice place being very showy, but well balanced and true to Napa. See this holding for many many yeaes, but could easily be in prime now.
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10/22/2013 - DarinC Likes this wine: 92 Points
Oak is completely integrated. Showed best with 1-2 hrs of air. Much better than a year ago. Little heat evident if served 65-70F.
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10/14/2013 - Gabe Likes this wine: 92 Points
Enjoyed this but felt a touch of heat on the finish which was unusual for me in Foley's wines. Excellent nose and big mouthfeel, I will need to revisit this one in the near future.
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7/9/2013 - Schiffy Likes this wine: 94 Points
Wow, what a difference six months can make. Perhaps decanting the wine for two hours was the difference, but this wine was completely different than just six months ago with incredibly smooth tannins that seamlessly integrated into the dark, rich blackberry fruit. Impressed with the concentration of this blend that exhibited the same spice , mocha and chocolate notes for my last tasting. Paired unbelievably well with lamb.
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5/26/2013 - Sonoma-W Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted for 90 minutes. Outstanding! Dark fruit with "chalky" tannins (characteristic noted in many 2006's). More balanced than expected. Right in the drinking window -- 5+ years remaining..
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5/17/2013 - dcwino wrote: 92 Points
Trip’s visit to DC - Capital Grill (Capital Grill at Tysons corner, VA): Big ripe cab, fresh blue fruits, tobacco, baked fruits and a hint of lead pencil. No noticeable heat. Seems a bit monolithic.
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4/12/2013 - cubswinws Likes this wine: 92 Points
Nice wine with big juicy cabernet flavors. Well balanced and tannins are fine and not too aggressive. Enjoyable.
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2/15/2013 - cliffkol wrote: 91 Points
Side Bern's Wine Store Tasting (Tampa, Fl.): Deep, concentrated flavors. Mature dark ripe fruits, earth, mineral, oak. Tannins integrated and balanced, yet the wine could still use a couple more years. (Doris - 88. Dark red color. Concentrated flavors)
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1/23/2013 - Schiffy wrote: 90 Points
Patiently waited 5 years to open a bottle and can report that I should have waited another few more years. This wine has rich dark fruit with strong hints of spice, currant and a hot, mocha like finish. The tannins are smooth and starting to integrate into the fruit, but hope this wine can and will get better with some more age.
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12/27/2012 - drycab Likes this wine:
Still really young, needed a couple of hours in the decanter to get enough air to show some real presence. It's actually a typical 2006 in that they all seem to need time and I'll wait a while before I open any more from any producer!
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12/24/2012 - navquarter Likes this wine: 93 Points
Nose: smooth cherries and a little pepper; decanted for 60 minutes, and still a little hot
Pallet: dirt, graphite, bark (?) - not sure that's the right word but it makes me think of the woods; not in the way that a scotch does, but it makes me think of wintertime in the woods
Legs: very smooth with some nice tannins; could have used a bit more, but very smooth; perhaps in a few years this will come together, lose the heat and
Overall very nice; wish I had another bottle or three
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9/26/2012 - spineguy wrote: 91 Points
Gobs of alcohol (15.5%) and rich pleasant black fruit. There was not much evolution in the glass or decanter over the first hour. Saved the rest for the following day using vacuum device in bottle. Still strong alcohol dominating the palate and less fruit...actually, not as good 24 hrs after opening. Unsure this will change much over the next few years and then it may not be for the better. Overall a decent experience.
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7/3/2012 - B Paul wrote: 94 Points
Recent write-ups on the age-ability of some of these big California Cabs has had me slightly concerned so I've been testing some of my '05 and '06 Cabs to check in on them. No worries here (or really elsewhere for that matter). This wine has improved substantially since last tasted, as it has softened and gained complexity. Still probably a couple of years away from what I'd consider prime drinking window.
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5/12/2012 - ChicagoScot wrote: 91 Points
Big full juice with a rich velvet finish
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1/26/2012 - DarinC wrote: 87 Points
Big nose of flowers, fresh black berries, dark red cherries, graphite, and mocha. Palate of blueberry jam, currant, marachino cherries, and fresh blackberries, with traces of mocha and espresso. Very extracted. Chewy, chalky, drying tannins. Noticeable alcohol burn above 65F Needed at least a couple hrs to open up enough to enjoy. Medium to long finish. Wait at least a 3+ years to open more. Great complexity and concentration but the high alcohol puts it out of balance.
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1/13/2012 - Cow Town wrote: 90 Points
Popped and poured, which was a mistake as this was not nearly as good as the prior bottle that was decanted for a few hours. Still a bit tight and tannic, the deep notes of chocolate and blackberry weren't as prominant as before. Still a good wine, but not nearly as impressive.
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11/23/2011 - conga523 wrote: 91 Points
I really wanted to like this wine more. I had this in LA several years ago and was blown away by it. Perhaps this wine just needs more time as the tannins did start to mellow after 30 minutes. The front flavors are described in many posts below and are a joy but then about 3/4 of the way thru something happens and the wine gets disjointed and very tannic. Not the silky tannins and great finish I recall. I have 2 bottles of the 2008 and will keep those sometime before trying.
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8/17/2011 - rdsboca wrote: 93 Points
This young monster is stunning. Dark rich black cherry with some chocolate and mocha nuances. It has an awesome mouthfeel, leading to a long and memorable finish. The wine has such power yet the finish shows awesome finesse.
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6/15/2011 - beezer6 wrote: 92 Points
Decant one hour. Rich inky dark ruby red. Blacker at the rim. Monster of a nose.
Can smell this two feet away with ease.
Rich and spicy, racy sexy blackberry, dark chocolate, malt, fig, dark brown sugar and molasses. Not for the faint of heart.
Massive robust bold extraction. Weighty and fat with along gripping finish. Creamy cassis, coffee and rhubarb.
Tannic but sweet with a nice acidic touch. Alcohol is in line with little to no heat. Plum blueness. YES! A winner.
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5/30/2011 - gsquireh wrote: 90 Points
Spice and blackberry in this full bodied rich claret.
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4/9/2011 - cadamson wrote: 83 Points
Many layers to this thing, unfortunately all of them, but one, are oak....too bad since once you pull the splinters out there really is a nice, focused and very fresh layer of fruit, mostly blueberries. It would be delicious toning down the oak... I doubt it will ever integrate. Almost makes me want to become a tree hugger, save the wine!
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3/19/2011 - RedorDead wrote: 95 Points
Beautiful bottle. Opened up after 1/2 hour and got better and better. Palate in Glendale with Lamb sirloin.
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3/17/2011 - Dasher wrote: 93 Points
This taste much like the 2007, the 2005 was smoking great. This botle like all of his others will lay up for a long time.
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3/6/2011 - Ben Carlson wrote: 93 Points
very nice! enjoyed 2 bottles
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10/27/2010 - Uglypinga wrote:
Dark, ripe fruit nose with a lot of oak. Medium to full bodied palate has a lot of oak and less ripeness than I expected. Lots of tannins. Does not smell corked and the palate is certainly big but not ripe. Might have had a bit of taint. Judgment reserved.
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10/25/2010 - babnik Likes this wine: 90 Points
One of the better bottles of Foley Claret I've had. This wine, while extremely big, was balanced with ripe black plum, pine tar, toasty sweet oak, and a full mouthfeel that stayed with you for a long time.
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5/16/2010 - jdbcolumbus wrote: 91 Points
Sweet blue fruit nose, full bodied and nicely balanced big fruit, acid and sweet tannins. Nice finish. Very enjoyable fruit bomb.
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5/2/2010 - Clarkmeister wrote: 90 Points
Double decanted. Nose was good, but the wine was just flat early on. Like coke that lost its carbonation. Started to come around by the end though, getting off the mat and turning into a very nice wine. Disappointing overall, as the Foley Claret's are typically much better. Maybe an off bottle.
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4/4/2010 - Tree512 wrote: 92 Points
Much more integrated although still definitely a cocktail wine. Ready to go.
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2/15/2010 - jcortney wrote: 92 Points
Absolutely outstanding. Decanted 1 hour and was a bit hit around the table.
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12/13/2009 - cadamson wrote: 90 Points
Deep, dark purple. Nose dominated by dark fruits, oak and vanilla. On the palate, very rich, tons of dark fruit, lots of buttery/vanilla flavors. A bit young, hopefully some of the oak with integrate better over time. Dusty, but sweet tannins. A bit too big, but hopefully will come together.
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12/5/2009 - GA wrote: 93 Points
12/09 Dark purple concentrated black fruit - chalky chocolate oak finish - young - double window - approachable now and a good 10 year plus laydown. 93 pts.
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11/10/2009 - cookie7 wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for 45 minutes. Aromas of chocolate pancakes. Blue fruits and chocolates on the palate. Great wine.
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10/22/2009 - ews3 wrote: 92 Points
2009 Wine Spectator NYWE Grand Tasting (Marriott Marquis, Times Square, NYC): nice black fruit and red cherry. some heat on an otherwise pleasant medium finish.
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8/27/2009 - ikkaariainen wrote: 91 Points
A very very pleasant surprise - enjoyed the first of 9 bottles last night with Kim for dinner with grilled NY strips and what an outstanding CA bordeaux blend this turned out to be. Decanted for over three hours, very dark wine, concentrated but surprisingly well balanced for as young a wine as an '06, very big and almost dusty with a great mouth feel and an almost explosive nose, pleasant aftertaste. Nose amazing and very aromatic with strong underlying oak and dark fruit and some vanilla and chocolate accents. Primary flavors included well balanced burnt oak, mocha, dark stone fruit and blueberry with a definite herbal accent developing later on the palate. This wine is entering a very reasonable drinking window now, improved a lot with the decant and has many years of cellaring left with anticipated continued improvement and overall improved balance. Too expensive to be any kind of a reasonable QPR but I really highly recommend this wine despite the price point, looking forward to tracking maturation of the other 8 bottles over the next 2 - 3 years.
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8/21/2009 - Phin wrote: 94 Points
Dusty berry and blackberry. Excellent concentration. Drank well with no decant.
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5/23/2009 - Tree512 wrote: 91 Points
If you like blueberry and vanilla in your Cab, then this is for you. Sweet, hot, rich and tannic. Perfectly acceptable cocktail wine but I cannot imagine this pairing with food.
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12/28/2008 - B Paul wrote: 94 Points
Drank alongside a 1999 Harlan Estate and, although they were very different in style, this one held its own very well.
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8/24/2008 - tanglenet wrote:
Family Winemakers San Francisco (Fort Mason San Francisco): Tasted at the Family Winemakers in SF. Quick notes: huge wine. Chocolate, dark cherry and blackberry fruits with a dry, dusty, tannic finish. Good right now. Will probably be Very Good.
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