Community Tasting Note
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WineBurrowingWombat Likes this wine: 96 points
December 11, 2023 - If I can just scoochie on in here.. (Napa): Aromas dark red fruits, very similar to the Oakville bottling, but with a bit of opulence and richness. There’s a touch of citrus that gives the aromas a nice complexity and refreshing quality, along with a gentle caress of pencil shavings.
Palate matches nose with dark, opulent fruits but without any citrus notes. Brooding in profile but holds the same freshness and class. Awesome cedar notes on the finish, followed by pleasant savory notes.
Loved the freshness on this one, but the fruit still seems somewhat youthful. The acidity is doing a lot of the carrying here, keeping the fruits in check, never allowing it to become rich. This should be had in another handful of years. Wouldn't mind following this over the course of a long evening neither.1 person found this helpful 844 views
9 Comments
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blarmston commented:
12/12/23, 3:26 PM - Nice TN's WBW.
I love me some Futo, and have had a couple great visits over the years with Tom and Jessica, but I stopped buying with the '16 vintage due to the price hikes.
I have to ask, what's the entry cost for the Oakville and OV/SL now? My guess is $500+ for the former and $300 for the latter? -
WineBurrowingWombat commented:
12/12/23, 3:49 PM - Ding ding ding! Damn you kinda nailed it!
$350 for the blend, and $500 for the Oakville and Stags bottlings.
$350 for the Sauv blanc. I honestly want to try it but damn, $350 for a SB made me think twice. -
blarmston commented:
12/12/23, 5:45 PM - Yeah, those prices are, um, "elevated".
Maybe I think that because I was buying those wines from '13-'16 when they were $150 for the blend and I think $300 for the two SVD's.
I also liked their Helianthus wines to access Jason's winemaking at lower price points, but sadly it seems that they've wound down their operations with that label. -
MJP Hou TX commented:
12/15/23, 5:26 AM - I find it interesting they're showing 18's since they release their wines so early (21 is already in my cellar). Seems like that would be the more brutish vintage to taste at this point. These are assumptions on my part as I've been cellaring my FUTO since purchase. Hitting the pause button for 22.
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WineBurrowingWombat commented:
12/15/23, 7:33 AM - Same, honestly thought they were going to pull the '21s. They were showing quite well, maybe only 45 mins to an hour of air by the time I tasted. Preferred the Oakville bottling for its power, elegance and freshness over the Stag.
You haven't opened any of your bottles? I want to open a couple of my '21s already LOL -
blarmston commented:
12/15/23, 10:51 AM - outside of MACDONALD and Memento Mori (I will be buying much less than usual), my plan is to skip the '22 vintage entirely.
Suspect end to growing season (heat spikes, rain, etc) coupled with early reviews on an epic '23 equals save up my silver for then... -
WineBurrowingWombat commented:
12/15/23, 10:54 AM - Smart man, sounds like a plan!
Were you with MM from the beginning or something? -
blarmston commented:
12/15/23, 11:08 AM - I have been buying heavily since the 2013 vintage, and have close relationships with many of the peeps there, and I love Sammy's wines so its an easy buy every year for me...
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WineBurrowingWombat commented:
12/15/23, 11:10 AM - Ahh, wow that's definitely a long relationship you guys have! That makes sense.