Bloody blinds

• 2018 Chartogne-Taillet Champagne Blanc de Blancs Heurtebise 96 Points

  France, Champagne

  Yellow fruits, fresh lifted, a touch of ox, and gentle sea foam. With not even a lot of air, this shows gorgeously clean, and gently ripe mandarin segments (I'm imagining those overly exaggerated drawings of them when I was a kid, when they looked ripe and juicy, and I'm talking about just one section.)
  
  Palate showed ripe stone fruits, gentle salinity and bitter minerals. It’s like tasting river stones with a gentle bit of fruits on it. With time, the citrus notes come through beautifully on the palate. Now with the fruits forward, the salinity and sea spray coats the fruits a bit. A bit of straw on the finish too.
  
  Do consider giving this some air, because the last glass showed some magic. The last glass showed crystal clear yellow fruits, so clean and bright on the palate. I hate how it's always the last glass and the wine decides to be like, "wait, let me show you this.." 96+

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• 2022 Jean-Paul & Benoit Droin Chablis Grand Cru Hommage à Louis 94 Points

  France, Burgundy, Chablis, Chablis Grand Cru

  Gently spice yellow fruits, soft honeyed fruits. Damp hay and white floral notes. So pleasant.
  
  White and gently golden fruits on the palate, with good savoriness and awesome fruited minerals. Bitterness from a pineapple rind. Though quite tasty, I wanted the acidity to be turned just a notch higher here - it's there, but I wished it was a bit more piercing on the palate. Just something to add a bit more tartness, not like a tongue ring.
  
  Something interesting is how this seemed to go well with sashimi too, giving the flavor profile almost a light malo profile, and not a heavy one neither.

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• 2019 Mayacamas Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Top Block 95 Points

  USA, California, Napa Valley

  [Blind]
  Prep: Wine was allowed to breathe in a decanter at cellar temp for 16 hours.
  
  Nose: Bright red plums, dried stones, a clean vanilla without being in your face (this was nice). Dried red floral petals.
  
  Palate: Strict, dark red fruits, with a dry profile. Good graphite dry, minerals on the finish.
  
  The additional notes below was from a separate sample of the wine when it was pop and poured, kept in a smaller 3-4oz container with no air. This separate sample was provided to show contrast when it was popped and poured vs decanted for 16 hours:
  
  Nose: A bigger, fresher brightness yet holds dark fruit. Vivid dark earth.
  
  Palate: Dark black fruits, deep earth, graphite with some savoriness. Dark fruits here show nicely. Preferred with minimal air.
  
  My call: Bordeaux, right-bank, 2022. It was hard for me to decide on the bank but the soft vanilla made me go right.. it wasn't in your face and quite graceful. I was way off but I do not feel too bad that I called Bordeaux.

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• 2019 Sine Qua Non Syrah Estate Eleven Confessions Vineyard 98 Points

  USA, California, Central Coast

  Orange citrus notes on the nose, red fruits and gently macerated red fruits. Beautiful dark fruits and a peasant forest notes, gentle vanilla, just enough to add complexity and depth.
  
  Dark black fruits, rich fruit and earth. Vivid fruits, pitch black earth with fruit at its core, somehow so well balanced. Savory minerals help keep the fruit encompassed. The alcohol does NOT show. Gorgeous. So happy this showed up today.
  
  Prep: Only poured an ounce to taste, left the rest in the bottle to slow-ox for ~2 hours.

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• 2015 Giuseppe Quintarelli Amarone della Valpolicella Classico Riserva 98 Points

  Italy, Veneto, Valpolicella, Amarone della Valpolicella Classico

  Floral red fruits, intense but with nice softness to the aromas here. Dark flowers, gentle red fruits - hard to pin down exactly what but maybe something like strawberries and/or cherries but with no tartness, has gentle ripeness and lifted by gentle floral notes.
  
  Palate showed dark red fruits, pleasant black fruits, all ripe but has the balance of earth, minerals and bitterness. Great juiciness, which was the cherry on top for me - the acidity seemed very well integrated but still rides that line between 'not enough' and 'too much.' The body on the palate was pleasant too, it had weight but also with a bit of ghostly elegance, like a morning fog.
  
  Past experiences with a handful of producers of Amarone had me worried for a few notes: old plums, raisins, and heavily spiced oak like cedar. Thank the heavens that none of 'em were found in this bottle.

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• 2022 Château d'Yquem 98 Points

  France, Bordeaux, Sauternais, Sauternes

  This is very akin to the ‘01 but with awesome freshness. Golden, real honey, with fresh aromas of apricots if it were somehow juicy and nicely ripe, without that dull/quiet aspect of it.
  
  Palate reminds me exactly of the '01 when I had it from a 750ml. Golden in all ways heavenly, both rich yet swift honey, white and golden flowers.
  
  Can't think of anything clever to say.. I went back in time to taste the '01 on the day of release.. the '01 had a baby in '22.. something like that.
  
  This went extremely well with some crème brûlée. Ironic this worked out because before this, I was literally telling @bsumoba how a lot of pairings don't work seem to work for me, and how something only works if it's magical to me. He said, "hold my Yquem."

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Did not expect the reds to show up, glad they did.