This was not “done”. I’m not a fan of older wines, but this still had fruit in the glass, and was balanced with that chocolate. Berries on the nose, with soft tannins and hint of tobacco and leather lingering. Aged well, and was not the “dead bottle” I was expecting based on the ratings.
Decanted for three hours.
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The wine looks ruby colored. The legs are slow. There is light sediment in the bottle. It smells like black currant (cassis), plum, cherry, oak, cinnamon, chocolate and black pepper. It tastes like black currant (cassis), cherry, oak, black pepper, cinnamon and chocolate. The body is medium. The wine has silky texture. The wine finishes long. The wine has low acidity.
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This one's still kicking, but better drink them now because it's near the end of its window. Great pairing with a BBQ steak. Kind of reminded us of a French wine at this point of its life. The later vintage Andrus' are more my liking, but this one is interesting.
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opened and tasted, very good drank an hour later and over next 2 hours a very dependable wine still. Probable peaked a few years ago. No age show yet though clean and great finish.
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Loads of blackcurrant on the nose and on the palate. Very smooth, soft and supple tannins are well-integrated. I didn't observe any bricking and the color was still very dark (although we drank it in a semi-dark restaurant so I didn't have a great chance to really gauge the color. Beautiful, thick legs. Really like this wine.
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Color: deep purple with slight brick edges Nose: Cherry, blackberry, licorice and sweet spices Mouth: Blackberry, plum, and black licorice with still heavy oaky tannins and nicely unexpected acidity Overall: Nice long finish From a challenging year. Still a nice mature wine.
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Very Bordeaux-like in style which makes sense given the blend described on the label (Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Merlot). Certainly more medium bodied than the regular and reserve Napa Cab's of Pine Ridge. A bit mouth puckering out of the bottle so we decanted it for about an hour. Somewhat of a combination of black and red fruits in the taste but more of a black fruit nose. With dinner, after about an hour in the decanter, the wine was very good, but short of outstanding.
Other Notes: Huge lumps of sediment poured out during decanting so make sure you use a filter. Extra long cork was a nice touch - like a first growth cork! Also a good winery to visit with a nice tasting room (salespeople maybe a little too aggressive). It's just up the road from Stag's Leap (They sent us to Pine Ridge)
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Consumed at a BYO restaurant. Not decanted. Very smooth right out of the bottle. Nice balanced blend with tannins well integrated. Would buy more at the right price.
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Ruby color though the edges had a hint of auburn. Nice cherry and chocolate on the nose. Not quite as lively on the palate though the finish was bold and long. Nice tanins suggest there's still some time left in this baby. Good fruit, though I wish it was as pleasant on the palate as on the nose.
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Inky ruby coloring, with a nose of pencil shavings and currants, rather simple, but very attractive. Really attractive flavors on the palate, with some cassis and red fruits, in a medium-bodied, easy going style. Elegant.
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Day Trip to Napa (Napa Valley CA): Tasting at winery. Slight floral and spiced start with subtle, softer styled Cabernet flavors. Good for the next few years.
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Definite cherry and blackberry on the nose. Tannins very subdued after 2 hours of decanting. Really, really nice finish that paired exceptionally well with braised veal chop. I look forward to another taste in 2 years. The Parker rating of 77 baffles me. Had to be a bad batch.
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Initially muted fruit and highly tannic. After decanting 1.5 hours the wine was wonderful. It displayed a deep dark purple color with nice pink on the edges. The nose was very powerful, full of cassis and blackberry. After a bit, I was able to discern a lot of 2ndary stuff. Blueberry, cinnamon, pencil shavings and anise. On the palate, the fruit was not as big as on the nose, but still it displayed the fruit well. And the fruit was overshadowed just a bit by the tannin. A little bit of black pepper showed through as well. Perhaps just a touch (and I mean very slight) of something green appeared midway through a nice long finish. I found this wine to be a delightful treat overall. After evaluating myself and then reviewing scores, I found it interesting that RP gave this a 77 while Laube (who I usually give no credence to) gave this a 92. To my amazement, I agree with Jimbo on this one and must assume that RP just had an off sample.
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Quick visit to Napa and Sonoma; 7/9/2004-7/10/2004 (Sonoma and Napa): Tasting at winery. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cab Franc, Petit Verdot, Malbec. Lean fruit aromas. Black cherry flavors with modest tannins and acidity. Hold for a couple of years ago to get better balance, but don't hold this much beyond 2012.
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7/19/2021 - ejca wrote: 98 Points
Openned 3 hour before trying. Very smooth, subtle fruit but did not improve with additional time. Might be gettimg to the end of it life.
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4/11/2021 - sctrojan94 wrote:
This was not “done”. I’m not a fan of older wines, but this still had fruit in the glass, and was balanced with that chocolate. Berries on the nose, with soft tannins and hint of tobacco and leather lingering. Aged well, and was not the “dead bottle” I was expecting based on the ratings.
Decanted for three hours.
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1/17/2016 - tederf wrote: 88 Points
Still a bit of life left in this. Not a whole lot of vibrant fruit though. Dark cherry and chocolate - soft tannins.
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2/23/2015 - DSved Likes this wine: 92 Points
The wine looks ruby colored. The legs are slow. There is light sediment in the bottle. It smells like black currant (cassis), plum, cherry, oak, cinnamon, chocolate and black pepper. It tastes like black currant (cassis), cherry, oak, black pepper, cinnamon and chocolate. The body is medium. The wine has silky texture. The wine finishes long. The wine has low acidity.
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1/10/2015 - magic2coop Likes this wine: 90 Points
Give it time to open up. Sandalwood and dried cherries. Enjoy now.
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5/25/2014 - bibendumrrb wrote: 85 Points
Really showing it's age. A lot of tar that jumps out and lingers after the fruit.
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4/5/2014 - Coachron13 Likes this wine: 90 Points
This one's still kicking, but better drink them now because it's near the end of its window. Great pairing with a BBQ steak. Kind of reminded us of a French wine at this point of its life. The later vintage Andrus' are more my liking, but this one is interesting.
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1/6/2014 - joedv8s Does not like this wine: 90 Points
opened and tasted, very good drank an hour later and over next 2 hours
a very dependable wine still. Probable peaked a few years ago. No age show yet though clean and great finish.
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1/1/2013 - gavinesq wrote: 93 Points
Loads of blackcurrant on the nose and on the palate. Very smooth, soft and supple tannins are well-integrated. I didn't observe any bricking and the color was still very dark (although we drank it in a semi-dark restaurant so I didn't have a great chance to really gauge the color. Beautiful, thick legs. Really like this wine.
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10/13/2012 - samalexis wrote: 90 Points
Good not great, decanted for 2 hours and it was enjoyable. oaky tannins and a hint of black cherry. would not wait too much longer on this one.
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9/20/2012 - FPNova wrote: 88 Points
Color: deep purple with slight brick edges
Nose: Cherry, blackberry, licorice and sweet spices
Mouth: Blackberry, plum, and black licorice with still heavy oaky tannins and nicely unexpected acidity
Overall: Nice long finish From a challenging year. Still a nice mature wine.
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2/4/2012 - Lunan wrote: 80 Points
Not flawed so much as boring
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4/18/2011 - jctaylor wrote: 87 Points
Licorice, some fruit and green pepper. Nice but not amazing.
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1/8/2011 - gcalys Likes this wine: 89 Points
Very drinkable; lacked complexity; decanting might have helped but I didn't have time.
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2/21/2010 - ejca wrote:
Took about 2 hours to open, and was very good, nice flavors but very softer than expected.
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1/3/2010 - nkromberg wrote:
We drank this at my first clean out the cellar party. The party was 10/31/09.
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8/9/2009 - DTWOB wrote: 86 Points
Over rated
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2/22/2009 - jonwill wrote: 91 Points
Nice soft fruit with almost no tannins but a missing midsection to it - drinking well right now and doubt it will get much better from here.
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9/6/2008 - Teamcrev wrote: 89 Points
Very Bordeaux-like in style which makes sense given the blend described on the label (Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot, Malbec, Cabernet Franc and Merlot). Certainly more medium bodied than the regular and reserve Napa Cab's of Pine Ridge. A bit mouth puckering out of the bottle so we decanted it for about an hour. Somewhat of a combination of black and red fruits in the taste but more of a black fruit nose. With dinner, after about an hour in the decanter, the wine was very good, but short of outstanding.
Other Notes:
Huge lumps of sediment poured out during decanting so make sure you use a filter.
Extra long cork was a nice touch - like a first growth cork!
Also a good winery to visit with a nice tasting room (salespeople maybe a little too aggressive). It's just up the road from Stag's Leap (They sent us to Pine Ridge)
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7/29/2008 - bigkhna wrote:
Surprisingly good but must be decanted at least 1 hour plus. The longer it was opened the smoother and more robust it was.
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3/15/2008 - kgh wrote: 94 Points
Surprisingly good. Decanted one hour prior to dinner. Dark berry fruit, spice, and earth notes all combined very well with soft, integrated tannins.
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12/25/2007 - jrlamia wrote: 90 Points
Smooth tannins, mature fruit, long finish of cocoa, cedar. Wonderful with Christmas dinner.
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12/7/2007 - cgrant wrote: 82 Points
Really disappointing. Not bad but flavor profile was very thin.
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4/29/2007 - jmp wrote: 90 Points
decanted 1 hour - great nose, very smooth tannins and easy to drink. Main complaint is that it is flabby in the middle. Fruit is on the decline.
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4/20/2007 - ELH wrote: 92 Points
Consumed at a BYO restaurant. Not decanted. Very smooth right out of the bottle. Nice balanced blend with tannins well integrated. Would buy more at the right price.
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3/24/2007 - lpk22 wrote: 90 Points
Decanted, very smooth, tannins were well integrated. Red fruit, cedar, chocolate. Very good. Not sure it is going to get a whole lot better.
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1/5/2007 - mraabpfg wrote: 94 Points
Just short of excellent, decanted an hour and it was open and soft with a rich velvet finish felt like the tannins and fruit were evenly balanced.
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11/25/2006 - lizjagla@yahoo.com wrote: 93 Points
Excellent Balanced taste. Didn't take long to open up, decanted 1 hour before drinking. Not quite extraordinary, but a great bottle none the less.
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9/4/2006 - mattowan wrote: 85 Points
Still pretty nose of red fruit and lead pencil. Fruit now in slight decline. Would highly recommend drinking now, if only to avoid further decline.
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4/5/2006 - mattowan wrote: 89 Points
Ruby color though the edges had a hint of auburn. Nice cherry and chocolate on the nose. Not quite as lively on the palate though the finish was bold and long. Nice tanins suggest there's still some time left in this baby. Good fruit, though I wish it was as pleasant on the palate as on the nose.
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5/5/2005 - fine137 wrote: 91 Points
Very good fruit with a nice supple finish, very elegant. Let it breathe for at least an hour before trying.
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3/24/2005 - mdstenner wrote: 92 Points
Inky ruby coloring, with a nose of pencil shavings and currants, rather simple, but very attractive. Really attractive flavors on the palate, with some cassis and red fruits, in a medium-bodied, easy going style. Elegant.
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2/18/2005 - Burgundy Al wrote: 87 Points
Day Trip to Napa (Napa Valley CA): Tasting at winery. Slight floral and spiced start with subtle, softer styled Cabernet flavors. Good for the next few years.
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2/14/2005 - mattowan wrote: 91 Points
Definite cherry and blackberry on the nose. Tannins very subdued after 2 hours of decanting. Really, really nice finish that paired exceptionally well with braised veal chop. I look forward to another taste in 2 years. The Parker rating of 77 baffles me. Had to be a bad batch.
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1/13/2005 - RJD wrote: 92 Points
Initially muted fruit and highly tannic. After decanting 1.5 hours the wine was wonderful. It displayed a deep dark purple color with nice pink on the edges. The nose was very powerful, full of cassis and blackberry. After a bit, I was able to discern a lot of 2ndary stuff. Blueberry, cinnamon, pencil shavings and anise. On the palate, the fruit was not as big as on the nose, but still it displayed the fruit well. And the fruit was overshadowed just a bit by the tannin. A little bit of black pepper showed through as well. Perhaps just a touch (and I mean very slight) of something green appeared midway through a nice long finish. I found this wine to be a delightful treat overall. After evaluating myself and then reviewing scores, I found it interesting that RP gave this a 77 while Laube (who I usually give no credence to) gave this a 92. To my amazement, I agree with Jimbo on this one and must assume that RP just had an off sample.
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7/10/2004 - Burgundy Al wrote: 87 Points
Quick visit to Napa and Sonoma; 7/9/2004-7/10/2004 (Sonoma and Napa): Tasting at winery. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cab Franc, Petit Verdot, Malbec. Lean fruit aromas. Black cherry flavors with modest tannins and acidity. Hold for a couple of years ago to get better balance, but don't hold this much beyond 2012.
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