Heat on the finish subsides with more time in the glass. It's dark in color and rich in expressions of dark stone fruit and woodsy in profile. This had been sitting on a shelf, in a wine shop, since release. I wonder how proper storage would have altered the profile?
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Unbelievable power for a Merlot. Deep, dark berry color, abundant fruit on the nose and through the palate. Well integrated tannins and acidity. The one fault is the extreme heat, even with the wine near the end of its apparent drinking window. Still, a very enjoyable experience.
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I agree with another reviewer that the slight heat you get on this prevents it from going to a '93' for me, but overall this was a great bottle of wine and excellent QPR - Black, full bodied with a nose of black fruit, plum, cedar, mocha, spice and vanilla, nicely made, good integration with a touch of heat, fruit forward intensity, powerful, sweet, velvety smooth on the palate with terrific length, very tasty! (92 Points).
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Clear mid ruby color. The nose is clean, with medium intensity, sweet red ripe fruit, alcohol a bit apparent, milk chocolate hints, jamy, developing.
The wine is dry, medium body, medium intensity, high alcohol (15%) and medium acidity, tannins medium+ but velvety and round, juicy, oilyt texture, warm feeling due to alcohol, milk chocolate,plum, black cherry, sweet oaky mid+ finish.
Very good wine, premium price, drinkning now but could age further.
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God fylde med moden frugt, og rimeligt god balance. Velintegreret fadpræg. Savner lidt saftighed og struktur, det har den muligvis haft tidligere i sit liv.
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Beautifully matured merlot, with inky character, plum reduction on the nose and palate, well integrated coffee/chocolate action. The high alcohol level prevens from higher score.
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a garnet, almost inky merlot. Her legs are some what slow. Aromas of Blackberry, Prune, Plum, Dust, Espresso, Cedar, Vanilla, and Chocolate. I taste Blackberry, Prune, and Espresso in a medium body with a smooth texture and a medium finish.
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Chockful of fruit: cherries, cassis. No signs of ageing. Also mocca, chocolate notes. Too high on alcohol, almost port, medium tannins & acidity. Medium length. Drinks very nicely, despite the alcohol.
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Deep ink red with purple hue. Earthy nose with some fruits and alcohol. Initial attack is coarse, over-extracted core, mid palate is bitter, dry and unbalanced, green herb, a bit heavy in weight, hint of dark fruits, peppery, and an unimpressive finish with lots of bitterness. Agreed with previous reviewer - nothing exciting, nothing to write home about it. An average wine.
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Pleasantly surprised by this one. Wouldn't have guessed it was a merlot. Had the pepper of a syrah. This was much better chilled down to about 59 degrees. Paired well with both a ham and swiss chard soup and then with a jalepeno chocolate afterwards. Would definitely drink again for $18.
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Decant for 1 hour. Very dark red in color. Dark fruit, plum and chocolate aroma. Definate blackberry and black cherry, chocolate and tobacco. Strong tannins. Acid and alcohol are held in check. Full body with medium finish.
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When I pulled it out of my eurocave it was quite cold and I liked the first few sips but as it warmed and opened up more I didn't find it particularly distinctive
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AWS White Clay Chapter - Merlot (Newark, Delaware): Slightly funky nose, earthy, bell pepper, rich with more tannins than the CC Grand Estates. Chewy. I wouldn't guess this to be merlot if blinded. The group was split on this wine but I liked it.
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Dark, slightly cooked plum fruit and dark chocolate, spicy herbal notes, very tannic still and very alcoholic with lots of heat on the finish. As others have mentioned this is not a very typical Merlot. Lacking balance and could win from further ageing as long as the fruit doesn't fade. - 86 points
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Lapostolle makes good wines at every price point. Dark chocholate, plum and cofee battle substantial tannins, as mentioned in several reviews. For those who don't mind a little fight in their wine.
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Still a bit young. Slightly tart. Very strong on tannins. Dry & very dark. Not your typical Merlot. Very tasty though. Hard to go wrong on a Lapostolle. Cookie points for being a "green" wine!
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Dark ruby, 90% saturated. Deep nose of ripe blackberry. Palate is soft with abundant tannins, nicely pronounced acidity, and fine balance. (4+11+16+6) = 87
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popped and put thru vinturi into decanter for 2 hrs. wow. nose of dirt that jumped outta glass. inky inky deep purple color. taste of in ur face dark fruit, blackberry with boatloads of chocolate and spice. real nice. definitely got some strong tannins, which caight me off guard. decent but not great finish. good for a cheapie.
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South American and American Wines; 12/6/2009-12/7/2009 (Wine Gallery): Very expressive green peppers, spiced plums , inkish and somewhat overextracted. Smells of chinese medicine as well. Very full bodied merlot. Big and juicy with dense dark choc undertones. Definitely a crowd pleaser but really an off the mill souless bottle.
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Still young. Needs a lot of air at the moment to become balanced. It was best on day 2 after being in the glass for about half an hour. I think this should be at its best in 2-3 years. There's a good structure and a lot of stuffing.
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RUSSK Just vinturied, with no decanter time. Mild nose and acid. A bit hot (14.5%). Almost savory, saltier than sweet. No objectionable tanins or bitterness. Not generous or aromatic. Unless it improves in the decanter, I would not buy it again for $30 or event $20.
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Strawberry on the nose, with hint of chocolate on the finish, tannins medium. Got better after several hours and even better the next day. Perhaps this needs more time in the cellar, but I believe this was produced to be consumed near term.
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aromas of berries, dark chocolate and spice. flavors of spice, mocha, and cherries. it has a little alcohol burn, but other than that, this is very nice. not sure it's worth the $19 tho.
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Very dark purple in color. The nose is spice box, cedar and black fruit. Across the palate this wine has a lot going on. Plumb and currant fruit lead the way with anise, black pepper and dark chocolate notes following at the end. The tannins are still big and linger on the finish but will lay down with a little more bottle time.
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2009 LVMH Tasting at Elway's Cherry Creek (Denver, CO): I sure wish they would tone down the oak profiles on this Alexandre lineup. 85% Merlot with the balance Carmenere, this saw 11 mos in 40% new French oak. A dark ruby core with espresso roast, black and blue fruits and some cream. Fairly tannic right now, it's worth revisiting in a year to see if it's integrated some.
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Blended with carmenere for structure and spice. Explosive flavors of cassis, black cherry and dark chocolate are complemented by the finely integrated oak .
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Crystal Premium Chilean Wines Thematic Tasting (Crystal Wines): Overoaked on french barrels. This smells like a woodshed with wood shavings all over and hits you like with a wooden plank. It took me a while to find one small round blackberry buried under the wood shavings. However, palatewise, it was mostly black fruits with blueberry pie. Quite thick tannins but not exactly viscous.
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Maroon color. Nose of rich blackberry, pencil shavings, mushroom, and toasted oak. Sweet blackberry and currant on the palate with wet leather, graphite, and dark bitter chocolate. Beautiful structure with moderate dusty tannins and enough acidity to keep things focused. A little peppery heat on the finish. Very nice wine. Needs some time to breathe.
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6/8/2014 - pauljr1121 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Heat on the finish subsides with more time in the glass. It's dark in color and rich in expressions of dark stone fruit and woodsy in profile. This had been sitting on a shelf, in a wine shop, since release. I wonder how proper storage would have altered the profile?
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11/10/2013 - DTWOB Likes this wine: 89 Points
Unbelievable power for a Merlot. Deep, dark berry color, abundant fruit on the nose and through the palate. Well integrated tannins and acidity. The one fault is the extreme heat, even with the wine near the end of its apparent drinking window. Still, a very enjoyable experience.
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10/21/2013 - Tarrant wrote: 92 Points
I agree with another reviewer that the slight heat you get on this prevents it from going to a '93' for me, but overall this was a great bottle of wine and excellent QPR - Black, full bodied with a nose of black fruit, plum, cedar, mocha, spice and vanilla, nicely made, good integration with a touch of heat, fruit forward intensity, powerful, sweet, velvety smooth on the palate with terrific length, very tasty! (92 Points).
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9/19/2013 - kostaslonis wrote: 89 Points
(Genius in Gastronomy tasting room)
Clear mid ruby color. The nose is clean, with medium intensity, sweet red ripe fruit, alcohol a bit apparent, milk chocolate hints, jamy, developing.
The wine is dry, medium body, medium intensity, high alcohol (15%) and medium acidity, tannins medium+ but velvety and round, juicy, oilyt texture, warm feeling due to alcohol, milk chocolate,plum, black cherry, sweet oaky mid+ finish.
Very good wine, premium price, drinkning now but could age further.
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8/17/2013 - mwieth wrote:
God fylde med moden frugt, og rimeligt god balance. Velintegreret fadpræg. Savner lidt saftighed og struktur, det har den muligvis haft tidligere i sit liv.
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5/28/2013 - Lyubomir Lefterov wrote: 89 Points
Beautifully matured merlot, with inky character, plum reduction on the nose and palate, well integrated coffee/chocolate action. The high alcohol level prevens from higher score.
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4/29/2013 - Carrie Britton wrote:
a garnet, almost inky merlot. Her legs are some what slow. Aromas of Blackberry, Prune, Plum, Dust, Espresso, Cedar, Vanilla, and Chocolate. I taste Blackberry, Prune, and Espresso in a medium body with a smooth texture and a medium finish.
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1/17/2013 - bino wrote: 88 Points
Chockful of fruit: cherries, cassis. No signs of ageing. Also mocca, chocolate notes. Too high on alcohol, almost port, medium tannins & acidity. Medium length. Drinks very nicely, despite the alcohol.
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12/2/2012 - natoamaral wrote: 89 Points
Notas de frutas vermelhas frescas maduras, mirtilo, madeiras e baunilha. Drank in São Paulo, Brazil.
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2/19/2012 - cjheinrich84 wrote: 93 Points
Salty on the nose - reminds me of a lake dockside. Instant thoughts of the ocean and waves once tasted.
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2/9/2012 - Joegish Likes this wine: 88 Points
Solid Merlot. Nothing too special...it does open up nicely after about 30 minutes. Would not actively seek out for a repurchase.
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12/19/2011 - miller8680 wrote:
given as gift
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10/15/2011 - Ghuerren wrote: 87 Points
Too oaky and cherrish. Should rest fir at least 2 hours before drinking.
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8/15/2011 - Hawk94 wrote: 84 Points
Deep ink red with purple hue. Earthy nose with some fruits and alcohol. Initial attack is coarse, over-extracted core, mid palate is bitter, dry and unbalanced, green herb, a bit heavy in weight, hint of dark fruits, peppery, and an unimpressive finish with lots of bitterness. Agreed with previous reviewer - nothing exciting, nothing to write home about it. An average wine.
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6/4/2011 - Heyward wrote: 81 Points
OK Merlot... nothing to write home about. Medium structure, some fruit, but nothing that jumps out at you or lingers on the finish. Alcohol forward.
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5/25/2011 - kbhiggins wrote: 89 Points
Pleasantly surprised by this one. Wouldn't have guessed it was a merlot. Had the pepper of a syrah. This was much better chilled down to about 59 degrees. Paired well with both a ham and swiss chard soup and then with a jalepeno chocolate afterwards. Would definitely drink again for $18.
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5/5/2011 - hende14 wrote: 89 Points
Decant for 1 hour. Very dark red in color. Dark fruit, plum and chocolate aroma. Definate blackberry and black cherry, chocolate and tobacco. Strong tannins. Acid and alcohol are held in check. Full body with medium finish.
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3/23/2011 - gmbdds wrote: 89 Points
Notes of blackberry, black cherry and chocolate. The nose is great and the palate is good. A lovely wine and attractive value.
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3/16/2011 - pavel_p wrote: 87 Points
Pop and poured, and drank over 1.5h hours. This seemed to have good underlying substance but clearly overoaked for my taste
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3/6/2011 - ToddR911 wrote: 87 Points
When I pulled it out of my eurocave it was quite cold and I liked the first few sips but as it warmed and opened up more I didn't find it particularly distinctive
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3/4/2011 - Leomania Likes this wine: 89 Points
Popped and used Vinturi; took an additional hour to open up. Blackberry and raspberry flavors; good acidity and lively tannins. Very nice.
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12/3/2010 - Outplaying wrote:
AWS White Clay Chapter - Merlot (Newark, Delaware): Slightly funky nose, earthy, bell pepper, rich with more tannins than the CC Grand Estates. Chewy. I wouldn't guess this to be merlot if blinded. The group was split on this wine but I liked it.
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11/28/2010 - Jkwine wrote: 92 Points
Doesn't taste like a merlot. Has bits of malbec to it.
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10/24/2010 - isbjoern wrote: 86 Points
Dark, slightly cooked plum fruit and dark chocolate, spicy herbal notes, very tannic still and very alcoholic with lots of heat on the finish. As others have mentioned this is not a very typical Merlot. Lacking balance and could win from further ageing as long as the fruit doesn't fade. - 86 points
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8/22/2010 - danielbleier wrote: 88 Points
Lapostolle makes good wines at every price point. Dark chocholate, plum and cofee battle substantial tannins, as mentioned in several reviews. For those who don't mind a little fight in their wine.
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8/4/2010 - Hypersomnia Likes this wine: 90 Points
Really tasty interesting wine. Finish on this kind of reminded me of Peccorino Romano cheese. Very bold and very interesting.
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7/15/2010 - KeithAkers wrote: 86 Points
LVMH at Binny's (Binny's Lincoln Park, Chicago IL): nose: solid and balanced nose of cedar, spices, dark red fruits and berry tones. Good tones, but lacking any real depth
taste: medium bodied with smooth tones of cedar, spices, dark red cherries and dark red fruits. There is also a touch of heat on the finish
overall: the heat is annoying. This is a solid merlot. Straightforward but without all that much depth to it on either the nose or palate
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7/8/2010 - brodarte wrote: 87 Points
Still a bit young. Slightly tart. Very strong on tannins. Dry & very dark. Not your typical Merlot. Very tasty though. Hard to go wrong on a Lapostolle. Cookie points for being a "green" wine!
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3/27/2010 - fingers Likes this wine: 87 Points
Dark ruby, 90% saturated. Deep nose of ripe blackberry. Palate is soft with abundant tannins, nicely pronounced acidity, and fine balance. (4+11+16+6) = 87
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3/19/2010 - Ynelover wrote: 92 Points
popped and put thru vinturi into decanter for 2 hrs. wow. nose of dirt that jumped outta glass. inky inky deep purple color. taste of in ur face dark fruit, blackberry with boatloads of chocolate and spice. real nice. definitely got some strong tannins, which caight me off guard. decent but not great finish. good for a cheapie.
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3/12/2010 - czar33 wrote: 89 Points
Solid Merlot, quite aromatic, no rough edges, smooth yet powerful and long, quite enjoyable.
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12/6/2009 - Alex H wrote: 80 Points
South American and American Wines; 12/6/2009-12/7/2009 (Wine Gallery): Very expressive green peppers, spiced plums , inkish and somewhat overextracted. Smells of chinese medicine as well. Very full bodied merlot. Big and juicy with dense dark choc undertones. Definitely a crowd pleaser but really an off the mill souless bottle.
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11/30/2009 - tendring Likes this wine: 86 Points
Wine Education Service - The Wines of Michel Rolland (LSE): Inky, no age, quite vivid.
Fruit with chocolate and mint on the nose, earthy.
Lovely fruit, soft tannins, good balance, choclate and coffee, great length.
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10/23/2009 - troykuhn wrote: 85 Points
Dark red, almost purple color...spicey taste with a hint of chocolate...strong finish...not a bad Merlot
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9/21/2009 - VHJV wrote: 89 Points
Still young. Needs a lot of air at the moment to become balanced. It was best on day 2 after being in the glass for about half an hour. I think this should be at its best in 2-3 years. There's a good structure and a lot of stuffing.
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9/13/2009 - RussK wrote: 88 Points
RUSSK Just vinturied, with no decanter time. Mild nose and acid. A bit hot (14.5%). Almost savory, saltier than sweet. No objectionable tanins or bitterness. Not generous or aromatic. Unless it improves in the decanter, I would not buy it again for $30 or event $20.
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9/7/2009 - SapphireDirewolf wrote: 88 Points
Strawberry on the nose, with hint of chocolate on the finish, tannins medium. Got better after several hours and even better the next day.
Perhaps this needs more time in the cellar, but I believe this was produced to be consumed near term.
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9/7/2009 - SapphireDirewolf wrote: 88 Points
Strawberry on the nose, chocolate on the finish. Preferred the Marques Casa Concha Merlot over this one.
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8/15/2009 - ihavezinned wrote: 87 Points
aromas of berries, dark chocolate and spice. flavors of spice, mocha, and cherries. it has a little alcohol burn, but other than that, this is very nice. not sure it's worth the $19 tho.
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8/3/2009 - mrpalmer wrote: 91 Points
Excellent as usual. Fruit, tannins, med-long finish.
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7/24/2009 - whynblog wrote: 89 Points
Very dark purple in color. The nose is spice box, cedar and black fruit. Across the palate this wine has a lot going on. Plumb and currant fruit lead the way with anise, black pepper and dark chocolate notes following at the end. The tannins are still big and linger on the finish but will lay down with a little more bottle time.
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6/3/2009 - amateurwino wrote: 87 Points
slightly savory and mossy nose; a bit simple on palate
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5/7/2009 - Tim Heaton wrote:
2009 LVMH Tasting at Elway's Cherry Creek (Denver, CO): I sure wish they would tone down the oak profiles on this Alexandre lineup. 85% Merlot with the balance Carmenere, this saw 11 mos in 40% new French oak. A dark ruby core with espresso roast, black and blue fruits and some cream. Fairly tannic right now, it's worth revisiting in a year to see if it's integrated some.
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4/10/2009 - angelito wrote: 87 Points
Blended with carmenere for structure and spice. Explosive flavors of cassis, black cherry and dark chocolate are complemented by the finely integrated oak .
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2/21/2009 - Alex H wrote: 80 Points
Crystal Premium Chilean Wines Thematic Tasting (Crystal Wines): Overoaked on french barrels. This smells like a woodshed with wood shavings all over and hits you like with a wooden plank. It took me a while to find one small round blackberry buried under the wood shavings. However, palatewise, it was mostly black fruits with blueberry pie. Quite thick tannins but not exactly viscous.
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1/23/2009 - mrpalmer wrote: 91 Points
Nice. Fairly tannic. Should cellar a few years.
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11/3/2008 - hcampana wrote: 91 Points
Retailer wine tasting (Lots of TNs incl. 05 Torre Muga, 05 Guado al Tasso, 06 Achaval Mirador, 05 Pintia, etc.) (Monterrey, Mexico): Very fruity, ripe, thick and flamboyant.
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10/19/2008 - jsums wrote: 89 Points
Maroon color. Nose of rich blackberry, pencil shavings, mushroom, and toasted oak. Sweet blackberry and currant on the palate with wet leather, graphite, and dark bitter chocolate. Beautiful structure with moderate dusty tannins and enough acidity to keep things focused. A little peppery heat on the finish. Very nice wine. Needs some time to breathe.
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