Fairly lean on the nose and palate; this is a wine that just doesn't quite surpass the grape. Some cat pee on the nose, with far more of the green grassy elements than I care for. Fairly simple; just not much to dig into.

Served double blind. Darker earth elements on the nose here with slightly subdued fruit character. Fairly austere, this doesn’t seem to have much charm right now. There’s a good amount of earth and leather on the palate, and this seems to be stuck between still having some fruit and that fruit fading out into more of the secondary characteristics. My 6th, group's 3nd.

Served double blind. Fairly lovely nose, with a nice perfumed fruit character. A bit of red fruit and fairly light-bodied. Some light cherry elements on the palate as well. Not overdone, and perhaps something from a lesser estate, given the relative approachability. My 2nd, group's 2nd.

Served double blind. Relatively lighter on the nose, with a slight bit of char and some sweet red fruit. The palate shows a cough syrup component, with fairly coarse tannins that aren’t resolved at all. Very chewy and grainy, this leaves you with a somewhat leathery texture. A slight hint of overripeness on the palate here as well. My 8th, group's 7th.

Served double blind. Probably something of a modernist persuasion, this shows overripe notes on the nose and palate. The fruit is dried out but there is interestingly enough a little bit of pyrazine on the palate. The tannins are coarse and young, and this is a wine that needs more time for integration. Finishes with a slight bitterness too. Just not particularly enjoyable at this point. My 10th, group's 5th.

Served double blind. Dense and earthy on the nose with a bit of black cherry. The palate shows a good amount of acidity and balance, and while this is fairly ripe, it’s actually pretty well-balanced until you get to the finish, where a slight bit of roastedness shows up. It’s a fairly big wine; not overdone, but also not particularly elegant. I’m thinking something along the lines of Cos or Montrose? My 5th, group's 6th.

Served double blind. A very mild lactic note on an otherwise fairly reticent nose. The palate is a lot more expressive, with some fairly pleasant red fruit and floral tones. The tannins are pretty intense here, but this doesn’t seem like a wine that’s overly heavy. How these wines integrate will be an interesting question; it doesn’t feel like the fruit has enough body to outlive the large-scaled tannins here. My 4th, group's 10th.

Served double blind. From the nose, this seems like the ringer to me. The nose has an intense prune/raisin element, and significant overripeness. The palate shows some dessication and a bit of coconutty oak. Overwrought for my palate; possibly a slightly modern producer’s 2003? My 12th, group's 12th.

Served double blind. The nose shows a bit of oak here, but also a nice amount of approachable fruit. Relatively speaking, this wine doesn’t show too tannic, and indeed is a little more approachable in that respect. The finish has a bit of a black cherry liqueur note, and while the intensity and complexity on the palate isn’t as good as some of the other wines, this is fairly approachable and enjoyable. My 1st, group's 4th.

Served double blind. 2015 late release. A bit volatile on the nose and there’s just a minute amount of red fruit. Not much more pleasant on the palate, this is high-acid, thin, and weedy. Overall this wine seems a little more tart than it should be for the vintage, and that higher acidity sticks out a fair bit. My 11th, group's 9th.

Served double blind. The nose here is quite ripe, with some black cherry elements as well as a mild bit of vanilla. This doesn’t show the overripeness that some of the other larger-scaled wines have, and the fruit is slightly sweet and quite ripe on the palate. This is a bit monolithic right now; it feels a little bit clumsy and big, though I think this will improve with time, it’s not a particularly delicious wine right now. My 3rd, group's 11th.

Served double blind. Slightly pruney on the nose, there’s some coffee elements and a roasted component. The palate is overdone as well, showing more of those same overripe elements from the nose. The fruit seems to be drying out here and there’s a lot of tannin to slog through. Not particularly enticing at this stage; whether this will integrate and those roasted elements recede or not is a question only time will answer. In any case, not particularly convincing now. My 9th, group's 1st.

Served double blind. Fairly high-toned, with a little bit of organic solvent on the nose. A touch of cherry and almond as well. The palate carries that relatively higher-toned character, and there’s definitely a heap of tannin here to slog through. The fruit is ripe and there are some candied elements here as well. My 7th, group's 8th.

Served double blind. Clearly Sauternes on the nose; classic orange marmalade but not much spicy elements. The palate is fairly sweet and this lacks the acid I like, but the overall profile is a little more lifted and elegant than something like Suduiraut. I ended up guessing Rieussec.