On the first night this wine was very tight, even after 30-60 minutes of air. It was well structured and bold, but I felt that I wasn't getting everything, so I put it away for the night. On night 2 it had opened up, but was too pruny and raisiny for my tastes. I'm disappointed, as I really liked the '06 (that vintage was grenache dominated, whereas this one was syrah dominated).
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I love it when I find a bottle I didn't know I had. This is drinking beautifully now. Beautiful, clean fruit, lots of plum and raspberry, with a little leather and a touch of smokiness. Perfect balance. Delicious, with a long, enjoyable finish. Excellent.
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Beautiful, clean fruit, lots of plum and raspberry, with a little leather and a touch of smokiness. Perfect balance. Delicious, with a long, enjoyable finish. Excellent.
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14.8% alcohol. Showing a bit more ripeness than a year ago. Black and blue fruit nose, with pepper and earth. In the mouth, slightly hot, with plenty of fruit and a good meaty-peppery edge to the acidity. Warm on the finish. B+
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This bottle was nothing like the last. After an hour decant, berries and an array of winter spices fill my nose with pleasure. The palate is makes my mouth salivate - delicious garrigue, dark red berries, and a minerality that was not present in previous bottles. All components of the wine are balanced. The finish has acidic bite, and although it is not as smooth (yet; tannic) or as long as I would like, it is never the less delicious. I wish I had more bottles. This wine has made a drastic change or the better since my last.
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This bottle was a little harder than the last. Lots of structure, the fruit was a little hidden. Plum, raspberry, and leather on the nose and palate. Medium-full bodied. A good bottle, but it seemed like it could have used a couple more years.
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Nice plush, ripe and clean blackberry and dark cherry fruit on the nose with just a hint of white pepper and limestone. Nice dark fruits on the attack, but surprisingly light on its feet with a crisp mineral filled finish. Still on the young side, another year or two in the bottle will do it good. Even better on day 2, with more minerality showing up to go with lovely black fruits.
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The 2006 Cuvee Cristie had a little more complexity, with some beautiful floral aromatics. The 2007 is a more straightforward Rhone blend. Beautiful, clean fruit, lots of plum and raspberry, with a little leather and a touch of smokiness. Perfect balance. Delicious, with a long, enjoyable finish. Excellent.
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Decanted one hour in the glass. Plum and dark fruit on the nose with minimal alcohol upon swirling. The palate reveals delicious ripe dark fruits, and berries. Managed oak and the wine is tannic but not overly so. The finish ends with a tannic choke cherry element that is still yummy. This wine could lie down for more years easily; I suspect a longer decant was in order. Good finish and solid bottle.
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This was gooooooood. I thought I had written a note on a previous bottle, but it seems that isn't the case. Last time I thought the grenache component was predominant, but this time I noticed more of a syrah note. In any event, well integrated, ripe fruit with excellent balance provided by the acidity. Just great.
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14.8% alcohol. Served blind. And universally enjoyed by the group. No hints of under-ripeness here. Dark red color. Gorgeous nose of black fruit, spice, earth, and loamy minerals. This is wound up pretty tightly at the moment, but it's focused, balanced, and concentrated on the palate. The fruit leads the way, but there is serious complexity and structure backing it up. Some tannic grip on the finish. Better with a few more years in bottle. An excellent wine without a doubt. A-
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3/7/2014 - Central Coast Wino wrote: 88 Points
On the first night this wine was very tight, even after 30-60 minutes of air. It was well structured and bold, but I felt that I wasn't getting everything, so I put it away for the night. On night 2 it had opened up, but was too pruny and raisiny for my tastes. I'm disappointed, as I really liked the '06 (that vintage was grenache dominated, whereas this one was syrah dominated).
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4/16/2013 - JavaMonkey wrote: 90 Points
I love it when I find a bottle I didn't know I had. This is drinking beautifully now. Beautiful, clean fruit, lots of plum and raspberry, with a little leather and a touch of smokiness. Perfect balance. Delicious, with a long, enjoyable finish. Excellent.
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9/22/2012 - JavaMonkey wrote: 90 Points
Beautiful, clean fruit, lots of plum and raspberry, with a little leather and a touch of smokiness. Perfect balance. Delicious, with a long, enjoyable finish. Excellent.
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4/27/2012 - JavaMonkey wrote: 88 Points
Another closed bottle. It was better on the second day. Lots of raspberry fruit, some smokiness. Medium weight.
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1/5/2012 - gutt22 wrote:
14.8% alcohol. Showing a bit more ripeness than a year ago. Black and blue fruit nose, with pepper and earth. In the mouth, slightly hot, with plenty of fruit and a good meaty-peppery edge to the acidity. Warm on the finish. B+
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12/2/2011 - Cellar Fiend wrote: 92 Points
This bottle was nothing like the last. After an hour decant, berries and an array of winter spices fill my nose with pleasure. The palate is makes my mouth salivate - delicious garrigue, dark red berries, and a minerality that was not present in previous bottles. All components of the wine are balanced. The finish has acidic bite, and although it is not as smooth (yet; tannic) or as long as I would like, it is never the less delicious. I wish I had more bottles. This wine has made a drastic change or the better since my last.
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11/27/2011 - JavaMonkey wrote: 87 Points
This bottle was a little harder than the last. Lots of structure, the fruit was a little hidden. Plum, raspberry, and leather on the nose and palate. Medium-full bodied. A good bottle, but it seemed like it could have used a couple more years.
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9/4/2011 - jreis wrote:
Nice plush, ripe and clean blackberry and dark cherry fruit on the nose with just a hint of white pepper and limestone. Nice dark fruits on the attack, but surprisingly light on its feet with a crisp mineral filled finish. Still on the young side, another year or two in the bottle will do it good. Even better on day 2, with more minerality showing up to go with lovely black fruits.
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8/8/2011 - bobpsi wrote: 90 Points
P&P. Very nice red rasberry, blackberry pepper nose, big and fresh. Moderately tannic with plenty of red and black fruits, black pepper and earth.
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7/16/2011 - tooch wrote: 86 Points
Spicy red fruit, mocha and herbs. Dense and powerful with a touch of heat on the end.
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6/27/2011 - JavaMonkey wrote: 90 Points
The 2006 Cuvee Cristie had a little more complexity, with some beautiful floral aromatics. The 2007 is a more straightforward Rhone blend. Beautiful, clean fruit, lots of plum and raspberry, with a little leather and a touch of smokiness. Perfect balance. Delicious, with a long, enjoyable finish. Excellent.
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6/2/2011 - Cellar Fiend wrote: 90 Points
Decanted one hour in the glass. Plum and dark fruit on the nose with minimal alcohol upon swirling. The palate reveals delicious ripe dark fruits, and berries. Managed oak and the wine is tannic but not overly so. The finish ends with a tannic choke cherry element that is still yummy. This wine could lie down for more years easily; I suspect a longer decant was in order. Good finish and solid bottle.
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3/27/2011 - aagrawal wrote: 81 Points
Rhone Rangers 2011 (San Francisco): Not too flavorful. 81-82
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12/30/2010 - suthersm wrote: 90 Points
This was gooooooood. I thought I had written a note on a previous bottle, but it seems that isn't the case. Last time I thought the grenache component was predominant, but this time I noticed more of a syrah note. In any event, well integrated, ripe fruit with excellent balance provided by the acidity. Just great.
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9/26/2010 - Sweet Nancy wrote:
Good nose, dark fruit, earthy element. Will hold the second and last bottle a couple years to see how it develops.
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9/3/2010 - gutt22 wrote:
14.8% alcohol. Served blind. And universally enjoyed by the group. No hints of under-ripeness here. Dark red color. Gorgeous nose of black fruit, spice, earth, and loamy minerals. This is wound up pretty tightly at the moment, but it's focused, balanced, and concentrated on the palate. The fruit leads the way, but there is serious complexity and structure backing it up. Some tannic grip on the finish. Better with a few more years in bottle. An excellent wine without a doubt. A-
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