With my nephew at our house. No detailed notes. Decanted for two hours and drank over another three. Dark ruby colour. Concentrated blue and dark fruit and some red fruit, a vegetal/herbaceous aspect that adds complexity but does not fully fit the rest of the picture, bitter chocolate, light tobacco, spices, and vanilla, with medium-level acidity, lightly grainy tannin, and very good persistence. The alcohol is lightly warming and felt higher than the 14% ABV stated on the label. The new oak is present, and the texture is grainy/sandpapery and not as smooth as one would hope for. The wine has great concentration and outstanding length but needs a few more year to integrate the oak and soften the texture. 91(+)
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Dark ruby color with medium legs. Oak, cassis and blackberry on the nose, which really opened up after two hours in the decanter. Chewy palate with plum and black tea dominate. Long leathery finish.
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Super Bowl 2023: this was better than I expected, not a typical Calif fruit bomb but nuanced & sophisticated. I will try to provide more detailed notes later, but on the nose & palate ripe black and dark red fruits with a pleasant undertone of herbs de provence, lavender, thyme, mint along with cassis and a wonderfully smooth finish. Drinks very easy. Medium to dark garnet in the glass with long, slow legs. Medium acidity, alcohol; low sweetness. Decanted for an hour before serving and consumed over the course of the football game. Has the backbone to go another 5-8 years (maybe 10) without losing any structure or character.
Would I buy again: yes - highly recommended. An excellent Bordeaux blend from a quality Calif producer that has some history. I have a couple bottles left and would definitely buy more if I see it in the $45-50 range. A wine with character, nuance and class that stands out among the usual Napa offerings in its price range.
NB: my wife (who *hates* most Calif wines) said she really liked it, thought it was French (I didn't tell her 🤠)
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2/11/2024 - PSPatrick wrote: 91 Points
With my nephew at our house. No detailed notes. Decanted for two hours and drank over another three. Dark ruby colour. Concentrated blue and dark fruit and some red fruit, a vegetal/herbaceous aspect that adds complexity but does not fully fit the rest of the picture, bitter chocolate, light tobacco, spices, and vanilla, with medium-level acidity, lightly grainy tannin, and very good persistence. The alcohol is lightly warming and felt higher than the 14% ABV stated on the label. The new oak is present, and the texture is grainy/sandpapery and not as smooth as one would hope for. The wine has great concentration and outstanding length but needs a few more year to integrate the oak and soften the texture. 91(+)
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7/15/2023 - Twopawsup Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dark ruby color with medium legs. Oak, cassis and blackberry on the nose, which really opened up after two hours in the decanter. Chewy palate with plum and black tea dominate. Long leathery finish.
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7/15/2023 - BigBoy_Sonoma Likes this wine: 95 Points
Black fruit,
Blue fruit, cedar, cassis, herbal notes, leather finishes balanced A
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2/12/2023 - brennan18 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Super Bowl 2023: this was better than I expected, not a typical Calif fruit bomb but nuanced & sophisticated. I will try to provide more detailed notes later, but on the nose & palate ripe black and dark red fruits with a pleasant undertone of herbs de provence, lavender, thyme, mint along with cassis and a wonderfully smooth finish. Drinks very easy. Medium to dark garnet in the glass with long, slow legs. Medium acidity, alcohol; low sweetness. Decanted for an hour before serving and consumed over the course of the football game. Has the backbone to go another 5-8 years (maybe 10) without losing any structure or character.
Would I buy again: yes - highly recommended. An excellent Bordeaux blend from a quality Calif producer that has some history. I have a couple bottles left and would definitely buy more if I see it in the $45-50 range. A wine with character, nuance and class that stands out among the usual Napa offerings in its price range.
NB: my wife (who *hates* most Calif wines) said she really liked it, thought it was French (I didn't tell her 🤠)
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1/7/2023 - pauldrinksgsm Does not like this wine: 86 Points
It's a bit too fruity but not substantial
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