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| | Vintage | 1992 |  Label 1 of 629 
 | | Type | Red | | Producer | Dominus (web) | | Variety | Red Bordeaux Blend | | Designation | Estate | | Vineyard | Napanook Vineyard | | Country | USA | | Region | California | | SubRegion | Napa Valley | | Appellation | Napa Valley | | UPC Code(s) | 000000638050, 017224712107, 0636595204754, 099993542048, 3157719387049, 636595105754, 636595106751, 636595107758, 636595115753, 636595116750, 636595196752, 636595199753, 636595211752, 636595212759 |
| Drinking Windows and Values |
| Community Tasting History |
| Community Tasting Notes (average 93.6 pts. and median of 94 pts. in 352 notes) - hiding notes with no text | | | Tasted by zimmy07 on 5/7/2024 & rated 97 points: I have had this wine 4 times in past 5 months, what a great wine!! same as my last tasting note as from the same case. This has many more years on it, the longer it stayed open the better it got. One of the best examples of great cali wine being made. As always, a complete smokeshow and a stunner! (180 views) | | | Tasted by Papies on 4/8/2024 & rated 96 points: Kendrick’s Wine Club (67 Pall Mall, London): Our 9th encounter in a good decade with this beautiful wine ( Papies 95 ) and we can but just repeat the experience from a couple of years ago.
Just effortlessly elegant , soft wine in the grand context of things , earthy but with a beautiful fruit, well evolved but in now way old and for lovers of this old school purity of 90s Napa that evolved classic Bordeaux style but with the extra dolllop of ripeness that comes from this terroir this is but a majestic wine experience, 95-96 easy and with a few more years to go like another 10 easy. (598 views) | | | Tasted by vinohabanero on 1/28/2024 & rated 97 points: Was doing some spring cleaning and came across this absolute stunner. Provenance was clearly excellent but oh my god is this in a great place. California jammy fruits meet bdx sophistication, actually reads more right bank than left which is obviously surprising given its composition. This will still kick for another 5-10 but likely won’t get much better. (1121 views) | | | Tasted by G_H on 1/20/2024 & rated 95 points: Oh my, this was showing well tonight. A perfect Bordeaux with just this added layer of sexiness! (1050 views) | | | Tasted by Burgundy Al on 12/21/2023 & rated 93 points: Holiday Champagne Gala (Wilmette Harbor Club): Opened and gala dinner. Alongside 1991. Still lush, fresh enough, nicely complex spices adding to fresh & mature black cherry and currant. Very good now, (893 views) | | | Tasted by zimmy07 on 12/6/2023 & rated 97 points: holy hell this was good. Insane Provenance and it showed. Dark fruits, plenty of life left, still dark purple in glass, no signs of age. Would have said 10 years old in a blind. Cedar, pencil shaving, and cocoa, just amazing. Have thought about this wine every day since I had it (1402 views) | | | Tasted by aquacongas on 11/28/2023 & rated 95 points: not blind, from 5 liter
Still fresh, more Bordeaux than Cali Cab. Elegant, still fruit, but not overwhelming. Balanced. From this size still young. 95+ (1415 views) | | | Tasted by mxpbuy on 11/23/2023 & rated 94 points: From Magnum. Maybe a teaspoon fine sediment. Decanted for 2 hours and it needed it as the first taste upon opening was all tertiary tobacco, cedar, Oak, mushrooms and only hints of fruit. After a couple hours the fruit put on lots of weight and came to the forefront. Black and red fruits, ripe and sweet but more Bordeaux from the same era and less Cali overripe fruit dominance. All the tertiary elements that dominated the plate were still discernable but more in the background creating complexity and balance. For magnum formats, this is in its best spot and unfortunately, my last mag. (927 views) | | | Tasted by Dibbs on 10/7/2023 & rated 94 points: From a magnum. My notes during the tasting said high acid, green peppers, tertiary, sweet and long finish. Notes said Margaux AOC or Right Bank? After a while, I came down on right bank 1985 vintage. Got better and better with air, fantastic wine. Not surprised to see it was Dominus, I have guessed old Dominus as right bank or Margaux AOC before. Will last for many years to come but at a really good stage. (1204 views) | | | Tasted by wineton.mee on 10/6/2023 & rated 94 points: En Magnum. Drinks like a good old right bank, lots of plush fruits left, some warmth to it but not overbearing.. got better and better with air. This is probably drinking at peak and can go for many more years yet. (1047 views) | | | Tasted by melvinyeowq on 10/6/2023 & rated 93 points: Birthday dinner with good wine friends: From magnum. Apparently a little plummy and oxidised to begin with but thankfully this recovered and gained structure with air. Distinct old-school greenness on the nose that led everyone to guess Bordeaux, with an even split between left and right-bank. Made in a rustic, traditional style from a bygone era with plenty of forest floor, dirt and cassis. Liked this a lot, albeit a step below the superb 1994 that I tried last year. Thought I might be biased towards a birth year wine (especially since not many regions were good in that year!), but glad the rest concurred at the end. (1159 views) | | | Tasted by mick978@gmail.com on 9/27/2023 & rated 95 points: Loved it. Beat out a 1991 (not best 1991 showing) in blind tasting. (781 views) | | | Tasted by Jeff Leve on 9/4/2023 & rated 96 points: Rich, concentrated, elegant, soft-textured, round, and loaded with sweet, blackberries, leafy herbs, cocoa, and plums, coming up on 33 years of age, this is surprisingly youthful. From a magnum, which I imagine is more youthful than a 750, but I thing this is a real gem. (1980 views) | | | Tasted by Cailles on 9/3/2023 & rated 99 points: An almost perfect bottle and the pinnacle of an aged Left Bank Bordeaux: highly layered, lots of beautiful tertiary aromas of all kinds, fine fruit core, perfect precision and elegance, and with impeccable balance. The 1991 and 1994 are the great vintages, but this 1992 showed more purity and elegance than any bottle I've had of the other vintages.
TN: Exciting nose full of tobacco, forest floor, some animal tones and probably a tiny hint of brett, along with fine ripe dark berries. Very intense and harmonious aromas. From the attack to the long finish, the same enchanting aromatic complex is at the forefront, with some minerality and more fruit nuances completing the picture. The intensity, complexity and precision are superb. The tannins have melted but the wine still has a lot of tension, freshness and an airy and light structure. The balance is off the charts. A masterpiece that rivals any 80s/90s Bdx I've ever had.
Decanting: Not decanted, no extensive decanting necessary. Good from the start. (1422 views) | | | Tasted by Rixley on 7/9/2023 & rated 94 points: Just right! Pnp (by host - I think we should have decanted, but didn’t really impact it) at a dinner party and didn’t get as much as I would have liked! Really wonderful in all dimensions. Perfect with a grilled steak. Worried that I had waited too long, but no, great time to enjoy. (962 views) | | | Tasted by Philip67 on 7/6/2023 & rated 97 points: Gorgeous rich, opulent. Loads of generous blackberry, blackcurrant and cassis. Saddle leather, cedar, sandal wood and rosemary. Structure still there but significantly softened now. Equivalent to to a great Bordeaux 85 or 82. Long and complex. Drinking perfectly now. Will last for years. (925 views) | | | Tasted by Gunakadeit on 4/16/2023 & rated 94 points: Reticient nose. Very elegant, balanced and refined. (1218 views) | | | Tasted by AWBryce on 4/12/2023: Drinking well, well. Aged, Cassis, herbal, good moutheel and finish,, similar to previous nose (1099 views) | | | Tasted by galewskj on 4/8/2023 & rated 95 points: Guys night: Splash decant. The nose was there from the beginning, the palate built over 1 hour. Leather, rose, beef blood, dark earth, fantastic. (1360 views) | | | Tasted by I'd Rather Be Drinking Wine on 4/6/2023 & rated 96 points: Guys Night - Something Special! (Jason's House): This wine was an excellent representative of a stellar vintage in Napa! Still youthful, but perfectly balanced for palate between fruit and tertiary goodness! Nose was divine, with plenty of old leather, earth tar, tobacco and plum. The dominance of tertiary flavors made me wonder if it was past its prime. One sip and that fear was totally dispelled! Palate showed plenty of earth and leather wrapped in dark fruit. The wine starts out tertiary, but at mid palate and all through the finish, dark fruit (mostly dark cherry and blackberry) makes a dramatic appearance and remains throughout! The finish also chows hints of dark chocolate. This paired quite well with cheese stuffed Portobello mushrooms! 96+ and in a perfect place for my palate, although I would be in no hurry to drink this, I also wouldn't hesitate in opening a bottle! (1482 views) | | | Tasted by rocknroller on 4/6/2023 & rated 94 points: Guy's Night (Jason P's, St. Paul, MN): Very dark red color with a 7mm transition to clear. Splash decanted and poured, drank a glass plus over 2.5 hours. Lovely leather on the nose, followed by a touch of bandaid, eucalyptus, detrtitus, ground flowers, and building graphite with more brooding background cassis notes. The nose is ahead of the palate tonight, but the palate still shows well and does imprive further in glass. Cassis and black cherry fruit, more persuasive than on the nose; there's still some wood here, funk, leather, and modest tannins. This was excellent and comes off a little more youthful tonight than its age woud suggest. (1206 views) | | | Tasted by aquacongas on 3/23/2023 & rated 97 points: blind
I was sure it was left bank Bordeaux. Elegant, fresh, balanced, no overwhelming California fruit. Some leather and cigar box and reluctant cassis note. 97 (1254 views) | | | Tasted by ash_then_chase on 2/4/2023 & rated 95 points: Flight #2. Too similar to #5. I switched the Dommie years. TP after #5 reveal 10 secs before #6 reveal —> “1000% this is ‘96 Lafite”. Just a hint of VAs, less of the vanilla you see in the ‘94 Dommie. I will say it again… the dinner ZB and I are organizing will be a Dom P / Dominus vertical (probably paired with Domino’s — thin crust, we’re not animals). WOTN (consensus opinion). @ Gramercy Tavern (1015 views) | | | Tasted by BradE on 12/24/2022: I liked this. Classic Dominus palate. (1316 views) | | | Tasted by gabird on 12/3/2022 & rated 93 points: Deep and rich with coffee and black fruit. Velvet texture but have to say its going a bit flat. If you have some still, dont wait!
This is a great old style wine! (1160 views) | | | Only displaying the 25 most recent notes - click to see all notes for this wine... |
| By Neal Martin
Vinous, The Judgement of Clapham Junction (Mar 2022) (3/1/2022)
(Dominus Dominus California Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By William Kelley
Decanter, Dominus Estate Vertical (11/5/2016)
(Dominus Estate, Napa Valley, California, USA, Red) Subscribe to see review text. | By John Kapon
Vintage Tastings, Dom Perignon, 12 Angry Men, Auction Lunch and a Holiday Party (12/13/2004)
(Dominus) Login and sign up and see review text. | By Stephen Tanzer
Vinous, July/August 1999, IWC Issue #85
(Dominus Estate Red Wine Napa Valley) Subscribe to see review text. | By Richard Jennings
RJonWine.com (9/13/2003)
(Dominus Estate Napanook Vineyard) Nice subtle nose; coffee, cassis palate with integrated tannins; medium finish 89 points |
NOTE: Scores and reviews are the property of Vinous and Decanter and Vintage Tastings and RJonWine.com. (manage subscription channels) |
| Dominus Producer websiteDominus Estate Napanook VineyardDominus makes two wines. The Estate has been made from 1983 to present. Historically a lot of the fruit has been sourced from the Napanook Vineyard. From 1991-1996 the Dominus Estate also prominently carried a single vineyard declaration in red diagonal letters on the front label, Napanook Vineyard.
In 1996 Dominus added the Napanook Red. Due to the great confusion with their Napanook Vineyard labeled Estate that same year they dropped Napanook Vineyard from the front label of the Estate in 1997.Red Bordeaux BlendRed Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes. Permitted grapes are Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec and rarely Carménère.Today Carménère is rarely used, with Château Clerc Milon, a fifth growth Bordeaux, being one of the few to still retain Carménère vines. As of July 2019, Bordeaux wineries authorized the use of four new red grapes to combat temperature increases in Bordeaux. These newly approved grapes are Marselan, Touriga Nacional, Castets, and Arinarnoa.
Wineries all over the world aspire to making wines in a Bordeaux style. In 1988, a group of American vintners formed The Meritage Association to identify wines made in this way. Although most Meritage wines come from California, there are members of the Meritage Association in 18 states and five other countries, including Argentina, Australia, Canada, Israel, and Mexico.EstateIn the United States, "Wines with “estate bottled” designations must: a) also designate an appellation of origin or an AVA, and both the vineyards and the winery must be located there; b) the grapes must come from vineyards owned or controlled by the winery; and c) the wine must have been produced, from crush to bottle, in a continuous process without leaving the winery’s premises."
- WINE LABEL FAQS: A QUICK SUMMARY OF LABEL DESIGNATION RULES" by David E. StollNapanook Vineyard On weinlagen-infoUSAAmerican wine has been produced since the 1500s, with the first widespread production beginning in New Mexico in 1628. Today, wine production is undertaken in all fifty states, with California producing 84% of all U.S. wine. The continent of North America is home to several native species of grape, including Vitis labrusca, Vitis riparia, Vitis rotundifolia, and Vitis vulpina, but the wine-making industry is based almost entirely on the cultivation of the European Vitis vinifera, which was introduced by European settlers. With more than 1,100,000 acres (4,500 km2) under vine, the United States is the fourth-largest wine producing country in the world, after Italy, Spain, and France.California2021 vintage: "Unlike almost all other areas of the state, the Russian River Valley had higher than normal crops in 2021, which has made for a wine of greater generosity and fruit forwardness than some of its stablemates." - Morgan Twain-Peterson Napa Valley Napa Valley Wineries and Wine (Napa Valley Vintners)Napa ValleySt. Helena |
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