Disgorged March 2015. Lime and yellow apple that translated into a compact, restrained package. Stone fruits, too, finishing with a briny/saline tactile quality that is bright and lively. A few people commented that it tasted a bit sweet. I didn't find that quality, as say compared to a recent Grand Cellier that I though the dosage was more apparent. Overall, I can sense the structure and energy that continues to live in the 2008. Really good.

Drank as part of a complete vertical of all Kutch Chards (14-17, to include Trout Gulch). We started oldest wine, of course the 2014, which for me has been a fantastic wine bottle after bottle. This one performed as well. Flinty, citrusy nose. Apple, pear with a flinty, lemony rainwater finish, which gives it structure and tension. This remains distinctive, a superior Chard that keeps on trucking along.

Drank as part of a complete vertical of all Kutch Chards (14-17, to include Trout Gulch). This bottle shows a toasted barrel influence in the aromatic. Lemon, lots of green apple and spicier in tone than the 2014 SCM that preceded it. Using 2014 again as a contrast, the 2015 replaces the flinty/mineral of the 2014 with a big cut of lemony acidity/spice that is quite pronounced. This same quality impacts the finish, too. This 2015 is fantastic, and while it tones down the flint of the 2014, it brings an energy and presence that for me surpasses the 2014. And as I said in a previous TN about this wine, you have to like acidity in your wine to enjoy this, which I do...retasted the following morning from leftovers in the bottle at room temp, this is just really stunning. The flint/wet stone note has come forward and the intensity of the acidity remains, too. A wine for the senses. Excellent.

Drank as part of a complete vertical of all Kutch Chards (14-17, to include Trout Gulch). This followed the 2014 and 2015, which for me are big 'shoes' to fill. This 2016 has a a lot of the same acid profile of the 2015, and it also has some of the minerality of the 2014, what my notes called 'steely' or 'wet stone'. These 2 descriptors may not seem related but they help form my perception of what I sensed in the core of the 2016. The dominating fruit for me here is the green apple, a fresh cut pippin is the best descriptor, where the flavor is crisp, bright. Finishes with a little wisp of caramel and my notes also say 'candied green apple'....retasted the following day from bottle leftover at room temp and it reflects some light creaminess, a gently smooth quality that is mixing with the apple and citrus and some flint. I see this 2016 having qualities of both the 2014 and 2015, so if you like one or both vintages, you get some of each with the primary volume of both turned down, bringing it all together to make the 2016. Delicious.

Drank as part of a complete vertical of all Kutch Chards (14-17, to include Trout Gulch). This was the first designated vintage for TG, although it did play a large role in composing the 2014 SCM Chard, which is a genius wine. Little lift of green herb in the aroma, and following the 2014-2016 Chards, this was the fleshiest of the four for me, even a bit creamy with white pepper, green apple and ginger. Spicy pear in the finish with a supportive apple note....retasted the following morning from the leftover bottle at room temp, this shows a bright, distinct lemon peel, which them marries with the texture to convey some lemon custard. Of note, this wine is labeled at 13.4% ABV, which is about 3/4ths of a point of alcohol higher than the previous three Chards (all were around 12.7%). This also has a wet stone feel to the palate, and is just a little more gentle on the acidity as to compared to the other Chards. Very good.

Drank as part of a complete vertical of all Kutch Chards (14-17, to include Trout Gulch). Yellow apple, mint, some toast and supple, with what I recalled being the least of the 5 Chards in terms of perceived acidity. Spice, green apple, some lemon but not the lemon intensity of the 2015....retasted the following morning from leftovers at room temo, my notes from yesterday reflect the wine pretty well as it tastes today. Like the 2017 Trout Gulch, this seems a little more approachable than the other Chards. What I notice this morning is some yellow apple (which for me usually means a softer, less acidic impression of the fruit), some stone fruit, like a peach or nectarine. As the wine finishes, there is a mandarin orange kind of citrus that gently fills in. I believe for the 2017 whites, people will find them more gentle and less intense, which I do like but I will drink my 2017s before the earlier vintages,

Drank as part of a complete vertical of all Kutch Chards (14-17, to include Trout Gulch). This was the final wine of the six Chards. My notes tailed off for this wine, as I probably was getting a bit palate fatigued. What I jotted down yesterday was creamy with citrusy acids. Yellow/green apple, mint and some honey. Fortunately, there is plenty leftover from last night to retaste today at room temp. This reminds me a lot of the 2016 Sonoma Coast, mixing green apple, stone, and lemon together. Of note, too, it's about a whole point lower in alcohol from the 2016 Trout Gulch, and more in line too with the alcs on the 2014-2016 Chards. It does have a touch of the 2016 Trout's creaminess and also the same kind of dried green herb note, too. This 2017 seems more complete to me now too, juicy and refreshing, and a wine you can get into and drink now.

Drank as part of a 5 bottle flight of Falstaffs (2010 non-blind, with the 2012, 2014, 2017 and 2018 tasted blind). 13.25% ABV with 50% whole cluster. Red cherry, sweet pomegranate, cinnamon (like a red hots candy) and red apple. This wine is approaching a decade old and is holding up well and drinking with a good balance, too. No rush on these if you have any remaining.

Drank as part of a 5 bottle flight of Falstaffs (2010 non-blind, with the 2012, 2014, 2017 and 2018 tasted blind). I did not pick this out as the 2012, and I have drank a lot of the 2012 over the past 5 years. When it was first released, I was really fond of the wine, and then as time went on I found the stems and the balance in total out of whack, so I went negative on it. A recent bottle kind of opened my eyes again as to how the wine had either evolved further, or I had evolved, or both! So, in seeing this revealed as 2012 when we pulled the bag off was both confirming for the recent bottle I enjoyed, and perhaps the wine has truly changed. It has a real purity or raspberry, a rocky note, and then some pepper which is mainly on the aromatic. With more air, cherry, raspberry jam, yet this still remained balanced, and my notes say, ugh, 'elegant'. I'd never think to call the 2012 elegant but this was my note from yesterday....retasting from yesterday using the bottle leftovers today, I can see the darker color of this wine now. I would not call this elegant today, as the density is a little more apparent to me. What the wine tells me today is that this is going to be a lot less like what Falstaff is today, especially the 2017 and 2018 in terms of weight. I do like it, but not anywhere near as much as the way Jamie is making the newer releases.

Drank as part of a 5 bottle flight of Falstaffs (2010 non-blind, with the 2012, 2014, 2017 and 2018 tasted blind). This was bottled three days ago. There is structure here, some power and coil with cherry. Red and purple fruit, with some vanilla on the finish? I did star this wine as I liked it as much as the 2017 as the winners for me in the lineup. Unfortunately, none left to retaste today so will have to follow the journey of the 2018 over time. Of note, this was a large vintage for Falstaff so there will be either more of it, or more of it going into the Sonoma Coast, or both. But, we will get to see Falstaff do its thing.

Drank as part of a 5 bottle flight of Falstaffs (2010 non-blind, with the 2012, 2014, 2017 and 2018 tasted blind). I've gushed and gushed about this wine for almost 2 years now, both when I first had it prior to going to bottle, and since then from bottle several times. It's on my short list for WOTY for 2019 and it might stand in a tie with the 2017 Rivers-Marie Platt PN. We'll see later in the year when I do them side by side. For yesterday's bottle, some light stems on the nose. My notes then say 'intensity' with blue fruit, spicy, all mixed together. Then, 'purple purity and seductive'. Yet, in all of this perceived power, there is medium weight and balance. Youthful, juicy and delicious....retasting the following day from the leftover wine at room temp, damn I love this wine. There is structure, purity, balance, with some earth/soil, complexity. And yesterday when we had this blind, I knew this was the 2017 under the bag, as a wine that is unmistakable in how it translates to such pleasure and balance. Beautiful again. Damn.

Drank as part of a 5 bottle flight of Falstaffs (2010 non-blind, with the 2012, 2014, 2017 and 2018 tasted blind). Tasted right after the 2017 and that may never be a fair fight for any other wine given the beauty of that 2017. While it doesn't have the intensity and presence of the 2017, it does maintain the balance of that wine, actually a superb balance. Lightly rocky in tannin, with pure red and some blue fruit to go with it. Delicious, sexy and drinking very well for me right now.

Tasted over two days. 50% whole cluster, and just under 14% ABV. On Day 1, this seemed riper to me, with a bit of syrup (referring to palate weight/feel), with dark berry and some maple. On Day 2, pretty similar, with some riper quality alongside the density that doesn't feel balanced to me. Finishes astringent, too. This bottle was not nearly as good as the one I wrote up a year ago, and I suspect that bottle may have had some cooler chill added to it. This may be the way to approach this wine. Overall, this bottle is not of the style and touch that Jamie now uses for McDougall.

Drank as part of a 5 bottle flight of McDougall (2010 non-blind, with the 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2018 tasted blind, along with a 2018 Bohan Graveyard that was put in as a ringer). On Day 1, this is floral, perfumey with purple fruit and spicy, too. A big wine with power, composed of dark strawberry, cola/root beer (?). Nothing to retaste on Day 2, unfortunately. I'd look to Brig Campbell's note (which should be around the same tasting date as mine) for some additional context.

Drank as part of a 5 bottle flight of McDougall (2010 non-blind, with the 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2018 tasted blind, along with a 2018 Bohan Graveyard that was put in as a ringer). Tasted over two days. On Day 1, this shows a terrific mix of blue/purple fruit, juicy and finely balanced. On Day 2, this adds a little savory quality, with a juicy dark cherry. The overnight air seemed to evolve this wine some more, changing the fruit perception for me. Both this 2013 and 2018 were my wines of the flight, and I believe the 2013 is showing the kind of balance that makes it stand out. Terrific.

Drank as part of a 5 bottle flight of McDougall (2010 non-blind, with the 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2018 tasted blind, along with a 2018 Bohan Graveyard that was put in as a ringer). On Day 1, what stands out for me are the aromatics. Purple and red fruit, with a spice note. Polished, delicious and balanced, and of note, this wine was just bottles a few days prior to us tasting it. Has a purity and rocky quality that show the positive tannin structure that is in the wine. For Day 2, the fruit profile is gorgeous, mixing all kinds of colors--red, blue, purple, all fresh and pure. Medium weighted, and for me this is more like the weight of what I enjoy about Jamie's Falstaff, not the power of the usual McDougall. Finishes with the same rocky tannin and structure from Day 1, and I would believe this will not only be a strong vintage for McDougall but one that is going to age superbly.

Drank as part of a 5 bottle flight of McDougall (2010 non-blind, with the 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2018 tasted blind, along with a 2018 Bohan Graveyard that was put in as a ringer). This was the ringer wine that Jamie mixed into the McDougall flight. And perhaps as a credit to it, as well as the consistency of expression for the McDougalls, this Bohan seemed the most different. This was 100% destemmed, yet very floral. What made this seem unlike the McDougalls was the zesty quality it displayed. It has an approachable quality, lifted by acidity that carries the red fruit. Didn't have anything to taste on Day 2. Also of note, this bottle, like with all the 2018s we tasted, was just bottled earlier in the week.

Drank as part of a 5 bottle flight of McDougall (2010 non-blind, with the 2013, 2015, 2017 and 2018 tasted blind, along with a 2018 Bohan Graveyard that was put in as a ringer). When I tasted this wine at our Kutch dinner with Jamie at my place back in November 2018, it stood out as one of my wines of the night. Had not tasted it since so was good to get another look at it. Yesterday, we tasted the wine and it seemed to show some stems on the nose, a little peppery. The palate? Smooth and balanced. Also what I noted was some opulence and youth, almost giving off a barrel-sample quality, all of that jamminess that comes with a young wine. Seductive red fruit. On Day 2, I retasted this again at room temp, and I get the same stems on the aromatic. The palate remains delicious, and my notes say balance with a good density. A mix of dark berry, rocky tannin, stony, with power, showing a tight finish. This 2015 is going to go a long time, and this bottle confirms the terrific quality, stuffing and future for what's to come. Excellent vintage for McDougall.