Community Tasting Note

• Cristal2000 Likes this wine:

  February 8, 2019 - Was fortunate to sample many of the 2018 wines from barrel from Memento Mori. The broad takeaway is WOW, these are going to be stunning. 2018 seems to be similar to the quality and characteristics of 2016, which is just fantastic.
  
  MM has added two blocks of Vine Hill Ranch to their lineup in this vintage (and 2017), and I believe it will not only be added to the blend, but also used as an SVD. Tasting those two blocks, they are extremely different from each other and show how amazingly unique each block in the same vineyard can be. The first sample was black, deep, rich and showed scorched earth elements similar to LPV. It was lights out. Just awesome. The second sample was way higher toned and hit you right in the face. Fruit seemed redder, the profile was more acidic and rode way higher on the pallet. Reminded me much more of a VHR wine. It will be interesting to see how they blend these together. It is very promising. 95-98.
  
  The 2018 Dr Crane was again for me the star of the show. Shows that wonderful and amazing nose of blueberry compote, scorched earth and white flowers that is so intoxicating. Already expressive and opulent on the pallet, it is super concentrated, round, dense and chock full of pure fruit backed by lots of mineral driven and wet stone flavors. This is killer. 98-100
  
  The 2018 LPV was super dense, dark and black in the glass. Scorched earth, embers, mineral driven flavors and great blackberry fruit throughout. Dense and drying on the pallet at the moment. Big structure and quite long. Super young, but tons of promise. 96-98

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26 Comments

• vintage1949 commented:

  8/22/20, 6:59 AM - Hey Cristal,
  
  I posted this question to two other CT’ers.
  
  I was going to buy the three selections from MM for the first time. Now comes a fourth. Worth it to cut back on B Cellars and buy all four MM’s? Dave

• Cristal2000 commented:

  8/22/20, 8:37 AM - Hi Dave - depends on your preference. B Cellars makes a good super concentrated, opulent and hedonistic wine. It's massive and fun, but perhaps not a food wine. MM is also powerful, but a bit more balanced and classic. I like them both for different reasons.

• vintage1949 commented:

  8/22/20, 9:16 AM - Hi Cristal,
  Thanks for your thoughts. From your comment it appears-what a surprise grin-I want wine from both producers. Now I have to decide if I want to split some of my funds and buy a bit of both or finish buying up all four offerings from MM and move on to B Cellars next year. Leaning towards the latter. Dave

• Cristal2000 commented:

  8/22/20, 9:29 AM - I trust Sam Kaplan's wines more than Kirk Venge's by a wide margin, but B Cellars is definitely Venge's best work. Case in point, I would buy the 18 MM wines without tasting them, but not the B Cellars wines. So if I were you, I'd err on the side of more MM, but that is just me.

• vintage1949 commented:

  8/22/20, 9:42 AM - Just read your new comment. Will go with the MM this year. Next year will try to get as much information as possible about B Cellars (from CT’ers and professional reviews) and then decide.

• vintage1949 commented:

  8/22/20, 2:07 PM - Cristal,
  
  Do you evaluate Kirk Venge‘s wines including B Cellars before they are released? Would help before I pull the trigger on some of his 2019’s. Dave

• vintage1949 commented:

  9/29/20, 2:36 AM - To Everyone,
  
  Does anybody know if the fires hit Memento Mori and more importantly is their 2018 vintage moved offsite? (Of course hoping offsite is safe)
  
  What about Carter Cellars? Dave

• vintage1949 commented:

  9/29/20, 2:47 AM - Cristal-as per your comments I did buy Memento Mori’s first two offerings of 2018 and will buy the next two. Whew that comes out to a case. Hope the wines are safe. Anxious to get them-feel like a kid in a candy store with a haul to overlook. Dave

• Cristal2000 commented:

  9/30/20, 3:19 PM - Dave - most all the fully bottled wines are held in warehouses that are well away from the fires. I don't think there will be an issue with 2018. For 2019 in barrel, Arkenstone (where they make the wine) was right in the line of the fire, but I am unaware of how much damage they may have sustained. It is a world class facility, and I am not sure the wines in the caves would be lost even if the fire rolled over it. I am sure we will hear more as time goes by and people are able to get in and access things.
  
  Expect there to basically be no 2020 vintage. A number of wineries have already said they aren't making wines, and I am sure most everyone will follow. Those that do make a wine will be pushing their credibility.
  
  Re: your B Cellars question, yes, generally I am able to visit and sample their beckstoffer offerings. That said, I have not been able to do so for the 2018 vintage yet.

• vintage1949 commented:

  10/1/20, 9:18 AM - Hey Cristal,
  Thanks for the update. You sure are a valuable member of CT. FYI I sent Memento Mori an e-mail about the fires. They indicated everything was OK. Dave

• vintage1949 commented:

  10/1/20, 12:39 PM - Greetings again,
  Now that 2020 is off the table can you give me any more information about the 2019 vintage? Do you think winemakers like Memento Mori and Carter made wines worth purchasing at their price tag? I noticed the 2017 produced wines that scored in the low 90’s. If 2019 is like 2017 that may be another vintage to overlook. Wow-then we would be going into 2021. I guess the next couple years I could buy Bordeaux. And there are Sauternes I need to buy. Info you have would be most appreciated. Dave

• Cristal2000 commented:

  10/4/20, 8:53 PM - I haven't had a chance to taste any 2019's. Rumor is they will be similar to 2014, which is far better than 2017, but not as good as 13, 15, 16 or 18. Still likely worth checking out. No smoke taint issues.

• vintage1949 commented:

  10/5/20, 2:11 AM - Hi Cristal,
  It will be interesting to see what 2018’s are available during the next six months. So far all of the 2018’s I am getting are from wineries that I am a member. Just starting to save up for 2019 but would direct my funds for more 2018 if they were available as I slowly accrued more funds. I do not have the funds that some CT’ers have. Five grand was my upper limit— was until 2018 came along. Spent a little more:)
  
  Oh the good days in the 1980’s when I had a budget of $600 a month and a case-yes a case of Mouton Rothschild was $680. Had cases and cases of first growths. Napa was just beginning to get its act together for first class wines thus my cellar was mostly Bordeaux. Dave

• vintage1949 commented:

  11/5/20, 4:32 AM - Greetings Everyone,
  Yup another question. I will be buying all four Memento Mori’s 2018 Cab offerings. However in the future I may want to concentrate on, let’s say, just two of his wines. Which two do you find the best of the lot? I fully realize it changes from year to year but maybe one or two are consistently better than the others. Dr.Crane seems to be mentioned often as a favorite. From my cellar I must admit wines with the SVD of Dr.Crane seem to be the best of a group.
  
  Second question. How long should one wait after a bottle has traveled for three or four days? I do believe in bottle sickness. Dave

• Cristal2000 commented:

  11/5/20, 10:17 AM - Dave - stick to Crane and LPV, and give the wines at least a week if you want to be safe. Cheers!

• vintage1949 commented:

  11/5/20, 8:58 PM - Hey Cristal,
  Sounds like a plan to procure the wines you mentioned from vintages that are worthy of spending $200+. I must admit bottle shock for me is a real concern when wines need to be opened shortly after arrival. I think waiting a period of time as mentioned is a reasonable course of action. Dave

• vintage1949 commented:

  11/9/20, 4:35 AM - Hi Cristal,
  I have been posing this question to other CT’ers. When can one start drinking the 2018 MM’s and in general what would be their drinking windows? The answers surprised me as I am use to Bordeaux’s. It seems like a ten year wait to begin drinking is just ridiculous, rather an early drinking window-say two years after the vintage-was the norm for an answer.
  
  As you know I am in my seventies so the earlier I can drink a particular wine the better. As I previously indicated MM wines seem to have an early drinking window. Since MM wines come in three packs I can obviously drink the wines at different times. (Buying all four offerings plus an extra three pack of the Dr)
  
  When do you think in general the first bottles of 2018 MM wines will be ready? As an example 2021? 2022? 2023? Dave

• Cristal2000 commented:

  11/9/20, 11:04 AM - Hi Dave - hard to say since I have yet to try any of the 18 MM's. Based on my experience with other wines of the vintage, I would say they deserve 2-3 years of age before really beginning to hit their stride, but that is always a moving target. I would look here on CT to see if people are enjoying the wine.
  
  I'd be careful not to get too caught up with predicting drinking windows. You see a lot of CT'ers try to do that, but really they don't know. I find it a bit funny when someone says it'll be "better in 10 years" here. It's all just conjecture. And also, just because a wine can last a long time doesn't mean it will actually be drinking well.

• vintage1949 commented:

  11/9/20, 4:06 PM - Thanks Cristal for the excellent answer. In the future will look for CTer’s that I trust talking about a starting point for MM. Note:Grin That includes you! Dave

• vintage1949 commented:

  11/21/20, 9:09 PM - Hey Cristal.
  Regarding your statement of “The 2018 Dr Crane was again for me the star of the show. Shows that wonderful and amazing nose of blueberry compote,” I have a couple questions. I noticed you, as well as some others, mention a blueberry aspect to the nose. When I taste some syrahs they have a blueberry nose and/or palate. For me that is fine in a Syrah. I am not a fan of sweet blueberry flavors in a Cabernet Sauvignon. So when you mention blueberry on the nose is it just one small component of the nose or is it a major player? Is the blueberry you mention a major aspect of the palate? Thinking of buying two three packs of the Dr. instead of one but not until I have the scoop on blueberry nose and possible flavors. Dave

• Cristal2000 commented:

  11/24/20, 7:01 AM - Hi Dave - the classic elements of Crane are violets and blueberry. Obviously different producers show some difference in the experience, but if you're not a fan of blueberry in Cab then I would split your purchase between Crane and LPV. You won't get any blueberry in LPV. Cheers!

• vintage1949 commented:

  11/24/20, 10:57 AM - Hi Cristal,
  Have you ever had a bottle of Mollydooker Shiraz Blue Eyed Boy? Dave

• Cristal2000 commented:

  11/24/20, 12:22 PM - Cannot say that I have.

• vintage1949 commented:

  11/24/20, 7:22 PM - Sorry Cristal,
  Was going to use the blueberry taste of that wine and compare it to other wines for a discussion between us. Oh well.
  
  For some people the MM Dr. has a blueberry taste and others thinking a chocolate/mocha taste might develop. Funny as I would dislike a fresh strong blueberry taste but the other aspect chocolate/mocha I would love. Will just have to find out for myself. Dave P.S. Happy Thanksgiving!

• Cristal2000 commented:

  11/24/20, 9:44 PM - Yeah...I don't think it's the kind of blueberry you're thinking of with these references...

• vintage1949 commented:

  11/25/20, 4:49 AM - One last shot Cristal-Have you ever had a left bank Bordeaux with blue characteristics? Might have had same Chateau.
  
  An expensive option-listing on wine searcher buy a 2016 MM Dr. Crane from Benchmark Wine Group for $362. Oh hell as you stated the blue fruit would be different than from a Syrah. Dave

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