Medium deep orange/yellow. Gorgeous nose of apricots and a hint of fusel oil. Lovely on the palate and not at all sweet as seen previously. Drinking beautifully at age 22 - wish I had a few more bottles.
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Light Amber in color, muted/subtle nose. The acid and sufficient residual sugar was a fantastic contrast to our picante dinner of spicy barbecued shrimp. Blew away the 2017 Chardonnay that we drank next to it
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Shows slight sligt oxidation, but otherwise totally stunning. Structured like a red wine, with loads of concentration, acidity, and backbone. Really gorgeous juice and a joy to drink.
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Tasted blind. This had a very dark yellow, almost orange color. On the nose it had Riesling character with notes of pear, nuts, with a slightly dusty note and a bit of sherry. Still good acidity on the palate with oranges, citrus, and a bit more of the sherry note. Quite good finish. Interesting wine, probably a representative bottle, so I wouldn't age this any longer. ~91
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Enjoyed at Blackberry Farm along with a 1999 Chave Hermitage. BF has a rocking aged Riesling program. This had lovely complexity and maturity. Plenty of apricot but without the sweetness.
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The ‘01 Brand was teetering on the edge of perfect maturity, showing a rich display of ripe peaches, with spiced orange, lemon curd, crushed dried leaves, wet stone and taping notes of vanilla. On the palate, I found silky, mid-weight textures, enlivened by streamlined acidity, giving way to a pretty, yet compact display of lemon, spiced orange and exotic inner floral tones. The finish was long with oily textures, which slowly faded to reveal saturating sweet citrus and minerality, as one last burst of acidity maintained freshness. I believe a few more years in bottle will put the ‘01 Brand into a beautiful drinking window.
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Not what I ususally drink in terms of Riesling but this was deeply impessive. Pretty deep golden color, high viscosity. Explosive aromatics of candied lemon, sweet lemon curd, ripe apricot, but also some spices, some exotic fruit, white flowers, chamomile, honey and some steely minerality. It‘s full-bodied, creamy, rich and powerful, but doesn‘t feel heavy, has good medium+ acidity cutting through the richness and a touch of RS adding roundness. Excellent length. A rich, oily, but super complex and layered Riesling of the highest level and full of character. Perfectly aged and ready to drink now.
Deep orange-gold with a great nose of coconut and marzipan-almond. Very rich and strong on the palate with a dry finish. More a sipping/cocktail wine for my tastes than a food wine.
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01 Alsace and 11 Red Burgundy for work crowd (Home): Deep and rich. Really quite exotic on the nose. Ripe, generously fruited and a really dense of off-dry padding. Complex. Needs rich food to shine. A bit with the audience. Beefing on the impressive but impractical. ****
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Well, the point of this pairing was to show how the same vineyard/grower could change dramatically over one vintage. Sure enough, the 00 was a beautiful piece of work and this was over-rich, over stuffed and under loved at the table.
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Dark yellow / amber color. Sweet and quite complex aromas with dried yellow fruits in addition to some oxidation (not premox). Rich and powerful, but dry mouth feling. Concentrated, but not the most elegant riesling, maybe.
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Yellow-orange. Marvelously deep Riesling fruit with aromas of honeyed orange, caramel, and nuts. Clean and dry with a silky quality. Not heavy, with tremendous length. A big-bodied wine that should last for years. From 375ml. Went well with sweet & savory dishes, including duck. Indice 1. (Christmas Eve at Wild Ginger)
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TN: ZH, Outpost, Ridge, Pride, Bedrock, Prum++: Wow, was this an amazing bottle of wine. Golden in color, slightly dark. The nose is a 100 pointer. Honey, peaches, slight diesel notes. On the palate, this is dry but with a perception of slight sweetness. Fresh and clean. Honeyed peaches. Unctuous. Delicious. Bought on release, this is ageing slowly but in a great place right now. Still showing lots of fruit but also layered complexity. I am sure there is bottle variation, but I wish I had more. My last of this vintage.
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Chilled popped and poured. Medium gold; lovely nose of complex fruits and petrol. On the palate deceptively dry given the richness of the nose. This just kept getting better throughout the evening. Superb showing; I would drink in the next 3 years.
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Beautiful. Deep gold in color, with a fabulous, classic Riesling nose with honey, mineral, treacle, deep floral nectar and grilled pineapple.
Despite the incredibly aromatic nose which promised a sweet wine, the palate was superbly balanced and elegant. Drier than expected on the approach, yet with rich fruit tannins and a light yet assertive acidity.
BALANCED. just superb. Huge minerality comes through all of the above, on the extremely long finish which had me rolling my tongue for almost a full minute, savoring the tangerine peel and mango which peeked through at the end.
Would that I had more of this!
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Deep burnished gold. So dry at first, it almost burned - indice 1. But within a few minutes in the glass, it calmed down. Very powerful in that Z-H way, with flavors of burnt orange peel, brown sugar (even though perfectly dry) and spice. Great match for the spiced chicken and Indian rice.
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Pretty consistent with my previous experience of this wine - honeyed nose that suggests a sweet wine, but on the palate dry and minerally, with that unmistakable Brand flint. Balacned on the palate with notes of mango and melon, with a fat texture and lingering finish.
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In agreement with some of the other notes it is much darker than I had expected but the level of acidity is just amazing. The wine is persistent on the palate and leaves you wanting more. It is really maturing nicely and even though the color looks past peak the wine has many years left. Outstanding.
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Served Non blind. I about had a heart attack when I poured the first glass, it was a deep dark gold color that would have been fine if this had been a VT or an SGN, or even something on the 3 to 5 on the ZH scale. But as an ‘Indice 1”, I thought for sure this bottle was toast, pre-mox, spoiled, heat damaged, something along those lines. First sip, hard to gauge anything. About ten minutes in the glass I begin to calm down a little, after 20, I was almost at the point of being surprised how good this had turned out. Full of tension and cut, this exhibited plenty of tropical fruit, but in a bone dry, steely manner. Plenty of acidity, though at 11 years old, it certainly has blended in well with the wine, in a good state of middle age. Long and lingering finish. Still plenty of life ahead I think (?).
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1992 Etienne Sauzet Puligny Premier Crus (San Francisco): Tasted after being opened 3 days. Wonderful aromas of honey, peaches, cream, white flowers and a streak of minerality. Not quite as sweet as one would guess from the nose (but it also did list an Indice 1 which may have led you to guess that as well). Medium-full bodied with good richness and a slight creaminess, but with good acidity to keep it well-balanced. Very good length.
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Medium gold color. Nose of honeysuckle, schist, pear, alpine florals. Mango, lychee, and apricot on the palate layered over a steely spine of structure and sharp acidity. Oily consistency yet remarkably elegant. Long, grapefruit- and mineral-infused finish. Great wth grilled shrimp.
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Golden but it actually lightened a bit with air. Fascinating development in that the aromatics were honeyed yellow peach in a way that suggested it would be Vendange Tardive style wine, yet it was barely off dry, not that unctuous and finished with snappy lime and minerality. Some high toned petrol appears later. Big but lots of life.
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Since the first bottle was totally oxidized, I decided to open the other 375 that I have. This one is much less amber and more golden. Nose of rich tropical fruits. As this wine warms up in the glass it becomes much more expressive. This is a big, rich layered riesling. Plenty of balancing acidity in this bottle. I like this wine a lot except there is a slight note of oxidation on the finish which obviously detracts from it thereby lowering the score. The inconsistency of wines like this are a big concern. Why is there so much bottle variation?
This wine really pissed me off. I opened the first of two 375s. Pristine, super tight cork with wax seal on top. Totally oxidized. Dark amber in color, tasted like Vin Santo without the sugar. All rancio, but dry. I bought 2 375s on release from Zachys and have stored them in a 58 degree cellar ever since. It is annoying when an expensive bottle of wine with correct storage and a perfect cork is totally dead.
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"Deep". That is Bonnie's foremost descriptor, and I have to agree. This is a wine of extraordinary depth of flavor. If you are into the intellectual side of riesling, or wine in general, you might give this 95 points or more. Me, my points tend to be weighted slightly more to the pure pleasure aspect of the wine, though a balance of pleasure/intellectual interest, to be sure.
Almost all of the prior positive notes resonate. The one fruit descriptor I note on the nose and palate not mentioned before is pineapple, which is pretty prominent. This wine definitely morphs over the course of a couple of hours. Slightly reticent at first, my first thought was "riesling stone" - the mineral/rocky elements are quite present throughout. I definitely get the grapefruit rind - especially on the palate in a slight rindy bitterness. For me, this is a wine I just want to keep going back to to explore sip after sip. Not quite as viscous as a lot of ZH wines, which I kind of miss here, as I like that rich mouthfeel, but there is a vibrancy and tension that is mesmerizing. Keith must've had a bad bottle, for tired and listless this bottle is not, tonight. I'm happy to keep putting my nose in the empty glass over and over again, too.
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All about class here. This is just showing beautifully and '01 remains one of my favorite vintages for the domaine. The nose is bright and minerally, with yellow fruits and white flowers. On the palate the wine demands your attention. It's weighty, but nicely balanced and expansive. Bone dry with lemon and grapefruit zest and pith, pineapple and tropical fruits with strong minerality. It's showing quite young with not a lot of secondary development and no trace of petrol. With air the fruit fleshed out more and helped round out the steely structure. Gorgeous wine with plenty of upside if well stored. Decanting would help at this stage. A.
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Color is light honey, and at first the wine is a bit shy. It opens up pretty quickly in a decanter and white peach and a touch of pear, crushed with a stone wrapped in lemon zest rise out of the decanter. It's combined with a noble and discreet whiff of petroleum. I serve it with anglerfish, italian style with pancetta, gremolata and beluga lenses - it's a beautiful match. Acidity is lovely and together with the minerality, the taste comes in wave after wave. Still, it's more elegant than powerful and it sits together seamlessly.It's so good I just drown myself in the completeness and stop searching details. I wouldn't wait any longer for this, but I don't see a need to rush either. Damn close to extraordinary.
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While a fine mature glass of riesling, I am more sure with each passing bottle and each passing year that the Brand cuvee is the weakest of the "big three." Both the Clos Windsbuhl and the Rangen have moe power, more intensity and for complexity. The Brand is actually more linear than ever, and this bottle was a parcel purchased on release the same time I bought the other two. Drink up.
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Indian Food, French Wine (Amber India, San Francisco): I see that I tasted this almost exactly a year ago with similar impressions. Perhaps more mature Riesling fusel aromas than then. Grapefruit rind fruit almost like a Sancerre but typical Zind Humbrecht viscosity. Barely off dry, terrific minerality. Extremely interesting and drinking very well now.
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Medium yellow color. It seems to be holding back on the nose, but with some air it let lose some yellow plums, honeydew melon, white flowers and asparagus. On the palate it is similarly tight at first, mostly giving some tart gooseberry and grapefruit. But it opened up with sweeter lemons, blood oranges and other citrus fruits. A very mineral-driven finish with wet stones and iron. Rank with lively acidity and great freshness. Seems like a sleeping beauty that still need a few more years of cellaring to fully bloom.
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Ran's 40th Birthday Extravaganza (Israel): Clearly still an infant. Nose was not showing much at first - flint, hint of petrol, fresh hay. Very nice acidity and fine tannins, with an oily texture that coats the tongue. Dry but slightly honeyed with a long finish. Should improve in 5+ years.
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Lovely dry riesling from Z-H (indice 1). Butter-yellow; moderately fragrant with notes of dried apricot and white sugar. Medium body and finish. It's the purity that impresses and a restraint sometimes missing from the Z-H lineup. It's fully mature now for my taste.
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Medium full yellow. Deep scent of peach with some ginger. Becomes full of petrol later on. Barely off dry, rich but not heavy, fresh stone fruits, tremendous sense of flint and soil on a lingering finish. This reminded me of a Rangen Riesling. After a run of poor Zind Humbrechts, this one really hit the spot. Enormously impressive without being overdone.
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Now I get it. This bottle showed beautiful intensity of white grapefruit pith and yellow stone fruit flavors with a long mineral finish. Very impressive.
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While certainly a nice drink, this riesling is far from a 99-pointer that Pierre Rovani bestowed on it. Deep yellow but not yet gold; modest attractive aroma of white raison and apricot is followed by a pleasant flavors on the palate as the nose suggests. But the intensity is really quite modest as is the length. The equilibrium is excellent, though, so maybe more time will translate to greater depth in the future. Still, a great match with the crab cakes and lobster wth mild curry sauce a the new China Grill in Ft. Lauderdale.
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I agree with Jason's note of 1/11/2004, but believe it will show a lot better in the future. It really is way too young right now, but does show a lot of potentiol. Give it time.
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The ZH Brand and the 90 Beaucastel were both superb. The ZH offered a wonderfully complex nose with hints of petroleum, violets; thick and unctuous with a finish that would not leave. It did not pair well with some of the early dishes, but was superb with the John Dory. I recommend holding this wine for several years before opening.
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Seattle Tasting Group does German Riesling (Issaquah, WA, USA): Something is wrong here. Very golden color with a gorgeous, honeyed nose. However, the palate is very flat with an oxidized feel and some obvious notes of burned rubber. The finish is unbalanced with searing, unpleasant acidity. After the bag was pulled a number of tasters went back and tried again, but this continued to disappoint. Part of the problem was that the bone-dry nature of this wine was a tough comparison to the sweeter German counterparts. However, there was more amiss here.
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7/3/2023 - rosenst1 wrote: 95 Points
Medium deep orange/yellow. Gorgeous nose of apricots and a hint of fusel oil. Lovely on the palate and not at all sweet as seen previously. Drinking beautifully at age 22 - wish I had a few more bottles.
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6/1/2021 - VinoGeeko Likes this wine: 91 Points
Light Amber in color, muted/subtle nose. The acid and sufficient residual sugar was a fantastic contrast to our picante dinner of spicy barbecued shrimp. Blew away the 2017 Chardonnay that we drank next to it
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3/28/2021 - robmatic wrote: 95 Points
Shows slight sligt oxidation, but otherwise totally stunning. Structured like a red wine, with loads of concentration, acidity, and backbone. Really gorgeous juice and a joy to drink.
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10/6/2020 - glou.sf wrote:
Tasted blind. This had a very dark yellow, almost orange color. On the nose it had Riesling character with notes of pear, nuts, with a slightly dusty note and a bit of sherry. Still good acidity on the palate with oranges, citrus, and a bit more of the sherry note. Quite good finish. Interesting wine, probably a representative bottle, so I wouldn't age this any longer. ~91
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7/14/2020 - Montesquieu Likes this wine: 94 Points
Enjoyed at Blackberry Farm along with a 1999 Chave Hermitage. BF has a rocking aged Riesling program. This had lovely complexity and maturity. Plenty of apricot but without the sweetness.
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1/7/2020 - Eric Guido Likes this wine: 93 Points
The ‘01 Brand was teetering on the edge of perfect maturity, showing a rich display of ripe peaches, with spiced orange, lemon curd, crushed dried leaves, wet stone and taping notes of vanilla. On the palate, I found silky, mid-weight textures, enlivened by streamlined acidity, giving way to a pretty, yet compact display of lemon, spiced orange and exotic inner floral tones. The finish was long with oily textures, which slowly faded to reveal saturating sweet citrus and minerality, as one last burst of acidity maintained freshness. I believe a few more years in bottle will put the ‘01 Brand into a beautiful drinking window.
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1/6/2020 - NostraBacchus Likes this wine: 96 Points
Not what I ususally drink in terms of Riesling but this was deeply impessive. Pretty deep golden color, high viscosity. Explosive aromatics of candied lemon, sweet lemon curd, ripe apricot, but also some spices, some exotic fruit, white flowers, chamomile, honey and some steely minerality. It‘s full-bodied, creamy, rich and powerful, but doesn‘t feel heavy, has good medium+ acidity cutting through the richness and a touch of RS adding roundness. Excellent length.
A rich, oily, but super complex and layered Riesling of the highest level and full of character. Perfectly aged and ready to drink now.
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12/12/2018 - Neecies Likes this wine:
Deep orange-gold with a great nose of coconut and marzipan-almond. Very rich and strong on the palate with a dry finish. More a sipping/cocktail wine for my tastes than a food wine.
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11/22/2018 - SimonG wrote: 93 Points
01 Alsace and 11 Red Burgundy for work crowd (Home): Deep and rich. Really quite exotic on the nose. Ripe, generously fruited and a really dense of off-dry padding. Complex. Needs rich food to shine. A bit with the audience. Beefing on the impressive but impractical. ****
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3/14/2017 - Topper wrote: 89 Points
Well, the point of this pairing was to show how the same vineyard/grower could change dramatically over one vintage. Sure enough, the 00 was a beautiful piece of work and this was over-rich, over stuffed and under loved at the table.
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1/7/2017 - AudunG wrote: 90 Points
Dark yellow / amber color. Sweet and quite complex aromas with dried yellow fruits in addition to some oxidation (not premox). Rich and powerful, but dry mouth feling. Concentrated, but not the most elegant riesling, maybe.
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1/1/2017 - Belon wrote:
Very dark
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5/13/2016 - dlcass Likes this wine: 92 Points
At Wild Ginger with Casey. 375 ml nose of orange peel, quince and subtle lanolin. Nice texture. Slight loss of interest on finish
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2/11/2016 - InVinjeVeritas wrote: 98 Points
Fantastic riesling. Dry, but with aroma of honey. Good acidity. Might be on top now, but will last for decades.
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12/24/2015 - aChave Likes this wine: 96 Points
Yellow-orange. Marvelously deep Riesling fruit with aromas of honeyed orange, caramel, and nuts. Clean and dry with a silky quality. Not heavy, with tremendous length. A big-bodied wine that should last for years. From 375ml. Went well with sweet & savory dishes, including duck. Indice 1. (Christmas Eve at Wild Ginger)
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8/26/2013 - Loren Sonkin wrote: 97 Points
TN: ZH, Outpost, Ridge, Pride, Bedrock, Prum++: Wow, was this an amazing bottle of wine. Golden in color, slightly dark. The nose is a 100 pointer. Honey, peaches, slight diesel notes. On the palate, this is dry but with a perception of slight sweetness. Fresh and clean. Honeyed peaches. Unctuous. Delicious. Bought on release, this is ageing slowly but in a great place right now. Still showing lots of fruit but also layered complexity. I am sure there is bottle variation, but I wish I had more. My last of this vintage.
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4/26/2013 - rosenst1 wrote: 94 Points
Chilled popped and poured. Medium gold; lovely nose of complex fruits and petrol. On the palate deceptively dry given the richness of the nose. This just kept getting better throughout the evening. Superb showing; I would drink in the next 3 years.
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9/24/2012 - Wamrod wrote: 95 Points
Ab.. Fab...
Beautiful. Deep gold in color, with a fabulous, classic Riesling nose with honey, mineral, treacle, deep floral nectar and grilled pineapple.
Despite the incredibly aromatic nose which promised a sweet wine, the palate was superbly balanced and elegant. Drier than expected on the approach, yet with rich fruit tannins and a light yet assertive acidity.
BALANCED. just superb. Huge minerality comes through all of the above, on the extremely long finish which had me rolling my tongue for almost a full minute, savoring the tangerine peel and mango which peeked through at the end.
Would that I had more of this!
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9/16/2012 - sdr Likes this wine: 90 Points
Deep burnished gold. So dry at first, it almost burned - indice 1. But within a few minutes in the glass, it calmed down. Very powerful in that Z-H way, with flavors of burnt orange peel, brown sugar (even though perfectly dry) and spice. Great match for the spiced chicken and Indian rice.
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8/18/2012 - Rani wrote: 93 Points
Pretty consistent with my previous experience of this wine - honeyed nose that suggests a sweet wine, but on the palate dry and minerally, with that unmistakable Brand flint. Balacned on the palate with notes of mango and melon, with a fat texture and lingering finish.
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7/26/2012 - MikeZ wrote: 93 Points
In agreement with some of the other notes it is much darker than I had expected but the level of acidity is just amazing. The wine is persistent on the palate and leaves you wanting more. It is really maturing nicely and even though the color looks past peak the wine has many years left. Outstanding.
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6/2/2012 - Dale M wrote: 93 Points
Served Non blind. I about had a heart attack when I poured the first glass, it was a deep dark gold color that would have been fine if this had been a VT or an SGN, or even something on the 3 to 5 on the ZH scale. But as an ‘Indice 1”, I thought for sure this bottle was toast, pre-mox, spoiled, heat damaged, something along those lines. First sip, hard to gauge anything. About ten minutes in the glass I begin to calm down a little, after 20, I was almost at the point of being surprised how good this had turned out. Full of tension and cut, this exhibited plenty of tropical fruit, but in a bone dry, steely manner. Plenty of acidity, though at 11 years old, it certainly has blended in well with the wine, in a good state of middle age. Long and lingering finish. Still plenty of life ahead I think (?).
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12/5/2011 - wickedwax wrote:
1992 Etienne Sauzet Puligny Premier Crus (San Francisco): Tasted after being opened 3 days. Wonderful aromas of honey, peaches, cream, white flowers and a streak of minerality. Not quite as sweet as one would guess from the nose (but it also did list an Indice 1 which may have led you to guess that as well). Medium-full bodied with good richness and a slight creaminess, but with good acidity to keep it well-balanced. Very good length.
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12/3/2011 - DougLee wrote: 91 Points
Medium gold color. Nose of honeysuckle, schist, pear, alpine florals. Mango, lychee, and apricot on the palate layered over a steely spine of structure and sharp acidity. Oily consistency yet remarkably elegant. Long, grapefruit- and mineral-infused finish. Great wth grilled shrimp.
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12/3/2011 - drwine2001 wrote:
Golden but it actually lightened a bit with air. Fascinating development in that the aromatics were honeyed yellow peach in a way that suggested it would be Vendange Tardive style wine, yet it was barely off dry, not that unctuous and finished with snappy lime and minerality. Some high toned petrol appears later. Big but lots of life.
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11/6/2011 - winemaker wrote: 91 Points
Since the first bottle was totally oxidized, I decided to open the other 375 that I have. This one is much less amber and more golden. Nose of rich tropical fruits. As this wine warms up in the glass it becomes much more expressive. This is a big, rich layered riesling. Plenty of balancing acidity in this bottle. I like this wine a lot except there is a slight note of oxidation on the finish which obviously detracts from it thereby lowering the score. The inconsistency of wines like this are a big concern. Why is there so much bottle variation?
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11/6/2011 - winemaker wrote: flawed
This wine really pissed me off. I opened the first of two 375s. Pristine, super tight cork with wax seal on top. Totally oxidized. Dark amber in color, tasted like Vin Santo without the sugar. All rancio, but dry. I bought 2 375s on release from Zachys and have stored them in a 58 degree cellar ever since. It is annoying when an expensive bottle of wine with correct storage and a perfect cork is totally dead.
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5/19/2011 - mdvino63 wrote: 92 Points
"Deep". That is Bonnie's foremost descriptor, and I have to agree. This is a wine of extraordinary depth of flavor. If you are into the intellectual side of riesling, or wine in general, you might give this 95 points or more. Me, my points tend to be weighted slightly more to the pure pleasure aspect of the wine, though a balance of pleasure/intellectual interest, to be sure.
Almost all of the prior positive notes resonate. The one fruit descriptor I note on the nose and palate not mentioned before is pineapple, which is pretty prominent. This wine definitely morphs over the course of a couple of hours. Slightly reticent at first, my first thought was "riesling stone" - the mineral/rocky elements are quite present throughout. I definitely get the grapefruit rind - especially on the palate in a slight rindy bitterness. For me, this is a wine I just want to keep going back to to explore sip after sip. Not quite as viscous as a lot of ZH wines, which I kind of miss here, as I like that rich mouthfeel, but there is a vibrancy and tension that is mesmerizing. Keith must've had a bad bottle, for tired and listless this bottle is not, tonight. I'm happy to keep putting my nose in the empty glass over and over again, too.
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5/17/2011 - BradKNYC wrote:
All about class here. This is just showing beautifully and '01 remains one of my favorite vintages for the domaine. The nose is bright and minerally, with yellow fruits and white flowers. On the palate the wine demands your attention. It's weighty, but nicely balanced and expansive. Bone dry with lemon and grapefruit zest and pith, pineapple and tropical fruits with strong minerality. It's showing quite young with not a lot of secondary development and no trace of petrol. With air the fruit fleshed out more and helped round out the steely structure. Gorgeous wine with plenty of upside if well stored. Decanting would help at this stage. A.
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3/20/2011 - Billy Swan wrote:
Color is light honey, and at first the wine is a bit shy. It opens up pretty quickly in a decanter and white peach and a touch of pear, crushed with a stone wrapped in lemon zest rise out of the decanter. It's combined with a noble and discreet whiff of petroleum. I serve it with anglerfish, italian style with pancetta, gremolata and beluga lenses - it's a beautiful match. Acidity is lovely and together with the minerality, the taste comes in wave after wave. Still, it's more elegant than powerful and it sits together seamlessly.It's so good I just drown myself in the completeness and stop searching details. I wouldn't wait any longer for this, but I don't see a need to rush either. Damn close to extraordinary.
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9/10/2010 - sdr Likes this wine: 88 Points
While a fine mature glass of riesling, I am more sure with each passing bottle and each passing year that the Brand cuvee is the weakest of the "big three." Both the Clos Windsbuhl and the Rangen have moe power, more intensity and for complexity. The Brand is actually more linear than ever, and this bottle was a parcel purchased on release the same time I bought the other two. Drink up.
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8/21/2010 - Keith Levenberg wrote:
Rovani gave this 98 points and something like a 50-year drinking window. It's already tired, listless, and over the hill.
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7/16/2010 - drwine2001 wrote:
Indian Food, French Wine (Amber India, San Francisco): I see that I tasted this almost exactly a year ago with similar impressions. Perhaps more mature Riesling fusel aromas than then. Grapefruit rind fruit almost like a Sancerre but typical Zind Humbrecht viscosity. Barely off dry, terrific minerality. Extremely interesting and drinking very well now.
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12/31/2009 - Nivlac wrote: 85 Points
Disappointing and not worth the wait. All the spirit was missing
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10/24/2009 - Terkel wrote: 94 Points
Medium yellow color. It seems to be holding back on the nose, but with some air it let lose some yellow plums, honeydew melon, white flowers and asparagus. On the palate it is similarly tight at first, mostly giving some tart gooseberry and grapefruit. But it opened up with sweeter lemons, blood oranges and other citrus fruits. A very mineral-driven finish with wet stones and iron. Rank with lively acidity and great freshness. Seems like a sleeping beauty that still need a few more years of cellaring to fully bloom.
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10/22/2009 - Rani wrote: 93 Points
Ran's 40th Birthday Extravaganza (Israel): Clearly still an infant. Nose was not showing much at first - flint, hint of petrol, fresh hay. Very nice acidity and fine tannins, with an oily texture that coats the tongue. Dry but slightly honeyed with a long finish. Should improve in 5+ years.
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8/13/2009 - sdr wrote: 91 Points
Lovely dry riesling from Z-H (indice 1). Butter-yellow; moderately fragrant with notes of dried apricot and white sugar. Medium body and finish. It's the purity that impresses and a restraint sometimes missing from the Z-H lineup. It's fully mature now for my taste.
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7/23/2009 - drwine2001 wrote:
Medium full yellow. Deep scent of peach with some ginger. Becomes full of petrol later on. Barely off dry, rich but not heavy, fresh stone fruits, tremendous sense of flint and soil on a lingering finish. This reminded me of a Rangen Riesling. After a run of poor Zind Humbrechts, this one really hit the spot. Enormously impressive without being overdone.
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4/26/2009 - sdr wrote: 90 Points
Gaining fat and flavor as it ages gracefully. Excellent accompaniment to Asian food that is not too spicy.
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2/13/2009 - Lorien wrote: 88 Points
ahh!! back to life:) Nice showing right now. Solid acidity and balance
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9/5/2008 - sdr wrote: 93 Points
Now I get it. This bottle showed beautiful intensity of white grapefruit pith and yellow stone fruit flavors with a long mineral finish. Very impressive.
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7/21/2008 - Lorien wrote: 79 Points
dont know. maybe its me. plus, oxedized way too fast in the glass
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4/6/2008 - sdr wrote: 88 Points
While certainly a nice drink, this riesling is far from a 99-pointer that Pierre Rovani bestowed on it. Deep yellow but not yet gold; modest attractive aroma of white raison and apricot is followed by a pleasant flavors on the palate as the nose suggests. But the intensity is really quite modest as is the length. The equilibrium is excellent, though, so maybe more time will translate to greater depth in the future. Still, a great match with the crab cakes and lobster wth mild curry sauce a the new China Grill in Ft. Lauderdale.
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7/28/2006 - Eric wrote:
Dinner with Mom & Dad at Canlis. Altogether too young and yet mindblowing rich and delicious. I am a big fan of Z-H Brand wines.
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12/6/2005 - Lorien wrote: 89 Points
I agree with Jason's note of 1/11/2004, but believe it will show a lot better in the future. It really is way too young right now, but does show a lot of potentiol. Give it time.
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5/15/2005 - keithgg wrote: 92 Points
The ZH Brand and the 90 Beaucastel were both superb. The ZH offered a wonderfully complex nose with hints of petroleum, violets; thick and unctuous with a finish that would not leave. It did not pair well with some of the early dishes, but was superb with the John Dory. I recommend holding this wine for several years before opening.
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1/22/2004 - PhoenixIWFS wrote:
Fairly dry for ZH. Nice and complex. Try in 4-5 yrs.
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1/11/2004 - Jason wrote:
Great nose of bananas, botrytis, honeysuckel. The palate is nowhere as good as the nose. It is amazingly acidic. No much else.
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1/10/2004 - Eric wrote:
Seattle Tasting Group does German Riesling (Issaquah, WA, USA): Something is wrong here. Very golden color with a gorgeous, honeyed nose. However, the palate is very flat with an oxidized feel and some obvious notes of burned rubber. The finish is unbalanced with searing, unpleasant acidity. After the bag was pulled a number of tasters went back and tried again, but this continued to disappoint. Part of the problem was that the bone-dry nature of this wine was a tough comparison to the sweeter German counterparts. However, there was more amiss here.
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