12/18/2023 - StarV100 wrote:

Drinking beautifully now. Ideally should have about 30 minutes in the glass before it really starts to shine. Very firm structure. Still with lots of tannins and lots of deep red fruit, good acidity and a bit of mineral. Should last for a few more years so there’s no hurry. The 2010 Brunellos are coming along nicely now

9/23/2021 - StarV100 wrote:

Ready for business, drank both bottles at Talula's Table in Kennett Square. Firm, smooth tannins, plenty of dark red fruit, medium acidity on a comfortable bed of earth and mineral. Love this wine.

12/16/2020 - StarV100 wrote:

Stunning. From Magnum. Brought this to a 10 course meal at Talula's Table in Kennett Square, PA. Gorgeous nose right off the bat of deep cherry, damp earth and leather. Palette as per nose with a gliscerine mouthfeel and a 30s finish. This will work with any hearty dish and will definitely please the crowd. If you find this, don't buy it. Save it for me.

12/11/2020 - StarV100 wrote:

I loved this wine. Really fresh. Powerful nose of deep red fruits, pear, steel and a hint of loam. Palette super powerful as per the nose but with a touch of sweet glycerin on mid-palate which added a beautiful complexity and finish. Full bodied and tannic, but softened quickly, fully ready to go in 20 minutes and stayed with me for the 2 hours over dinner. Dining outside in New York at 53 degrees kept the wine at perfect drinking temperature the whole night. Added benefit of dining in early winter on the streets of New York!!

1/26/2020 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

From the Zachy's 2015 Brunello tasting. My first comment was "wow". Very structured, soft but firm tannins with deep red fruit. Even at this youthful stage, I could get some secondary notes of leather and earth. Great acidity to cut through. Way, way too young to give it a Sucking 100, I do think its score could easily be upgraded with time.

2/22/2019 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

As per previous recent examples, the 2003 Beaucastel is in a good place right now. No decant, none needed.
Dark fruity nose, tannins fully resolved, soft on the palate and a good, 20 sec finish. Pleasant hints of coffee and leather. Surprisingly less structure than I've come to expect from Beaucastel. The acidity is pretty low on this example, the result of a very growing season, I expect.
Drink up. I suggest while good now, it will begin to decline in a couple of years.

2/15/2019 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

Very primal. First sip after PnP was alcoholic and even a little sour. But after an hour in glass, started to open up. Still mostly showing primary flavors of deep red fruit. This really needs time but I got a few pretty cheap it was worth testing out.

2/7/2019 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

Strong nose with red fruit and secondary notes of glycerine (in a good way), leather, floral and tobacco. Palate as per nose with 20s finish Tannins fully resolved. Perfect with steak at Delmonico's NYC. Wish I had more, but I would drink this up in the next 2 to 4 years tops.

1/26/2019 - StarV100 wrote:

Drinking beautifully now. From magnum, bottle to glass. Moderate sediment. A little tight early on but emerged in 30 minutes to lovely red fruit, mineral and a bit of cedar, 20 second finish. Very firm throughout the night. Superb with duck and m-r steak.

1/18/2019 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

Fruity and elegant, firm structure, strong nose of dark cherry and a bit of earth with a good 30 second finish. Winner of a blind tasting among family of several moderately priced 2015 Cotes de Nuits.

4/29/2018 - StarV100 wrote:

From magnum, needed about 30 minutes of air in the decanter. Harmonious, dense, smooth and delicious. Muted red fruit with tobacco, spice and some earthy notes. Absolutely ready for business.

3/31/2018 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

Fully ready for business after a one hour decant. I don't agree with other comments about holding off for another few years. This wine was fully expressive, deeply coloured, deep red fruits, cedar, and firm, not overpowering tannins. Ate with veal and potatoes at Vaucluse NYC.

12/22/2017 - StarV100 wrote:

PnP with Italian. Lots of deep red fruit, tannins mostly resolved but still with great backbone. Palate a little funky, could be licorice, but very sweet and smooth. 30s finish. Nice. Ready but has years left.

12/23/2017 - StarV100 wrote:

To John S Xmas 2017

11/3/2017 - StarV100 wrote:

smooth and delicious, simple but lovely

11/4/2017 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

From Magnum, Lusardis, New York. Beautiful aromas, cherry, earth, a little tannic and youthful at first but 20 - 30 minutes in the glass brought it around nicely. Smooth and soft on the palette, long finish. Definitely ready for prime time and will last for at least another decade.

10/27/2017 - StarV100 wrote:

PnP. A little alcohol funk on first sip which blew off pretty quickly. Sour cherry, full body, a little bit of liquorice, medium finish. Seems to be getting close to peak but may benefit from a couple more years of cellar time.

10/13/2017 - StarV100 wrote:

Gorgeously fragrant right away, smooth yet firm on the palette, lots of deep red fruit, a little mineral, coffee and spice notes. Tannins resolved and fully integrated. A beauty!

5/26/2017 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

Lovely aroma of cherry and a bit of earth. Nice strong attack but it really falls off on the palate. The finish is a real let down. I think that this might be going through a dumb phase right now? I have had many bottles from other vintages and it's a goto for me, so this was a little disappointing.
I won't look at another one for at least a couple of years.

11/19/2015 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

Started with a new Gigondas, moving to the Telegraphe. Decanted for about 45 minutes. Deep ruby, a tiny bit of bricking, expressive nose of mineral and leather. On the palate, getting leather, mineral, a little cigar box, underlain with a slightly tart, blackberry core. 30s finish. Tannins mostly resolved but good structure for several more years.

11/13/2015 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

Really nice wine. Very expressive note. Silky mouthfeel, mineral, blackberry, earth, a little cedar. Medium finish. Needed 30 minutes or so in the glass to make it. Very, very nice

10/23/2015 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

This is very old world. Not a fruit bomb, much more savory, leather and tea notes. Long finish, a couple of years will round it out nicely

10/17/2015 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

Lovely smooth tannins, maybe a little tight, with dark red fruit, mineral and leather. Coming together nicely. Trying to stop drinking these as will benefit from a couple more years.

9/19/2015 - StarV100 wrote:

Full bodied, expressive notes of dark red fruit, leather, earth. Slight astringency but very very good. More time in bottle wouldn't hurt.

9/12/2015 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

Decanted and began drinking right away so it took a while for the nose to come around. Again with the Tuscan food, this wine mellows beautifully with a little air time, smooth, rich red fruity, mineral and earth. I think a case in reserve of this is not enough. I'm gonna look for more.

8/29/2015 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

Very expressive nose of earth and cherry. On the palette, deep red fruits, kirsch and something else (maybe even a floral note?) My wife thought a hint of leather. Very nice, but my Clos des Papes are a little better.

8/23/2015 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

I bought 14 of these recently and decided to give one a try to gauge how long I needed to wait. Decanted for about an hour, this wine was quite tannic but with great Tuscan food pairings, showed up very nicely. Deep red fruit, nice mineral, long finish and wonderful on the palette. I'm going to try to cellar these for another 3 - 5 years, but it's gonna be tough.

8/6/2015 - StarV100 Likes this wine:

I am a little partial to gigondas. Steely mineral, beaming red fruit, great structural tannins

10/3/2009 - StarV100 wrote:

Drank from 375 ml. A little tannic out of the bottle but only about 20 minutes in the glass was needed to soften it right up. Nose of dark red fruit, some earth, mushrooms and leaves. The aromas seemed to fill the air. First sip yielded abundance of cherry fruit, mushrooms and flowers. Nice bite on the finish, which lasted 20 seconds. I have 4 more splits and one 750, but I don't think I need to stage these out. Only 6 months ago, I thought these needed a few more years. With a good meal, they're coming out!

2/10/2009 - StarV100 wrote:

Directly out of bottle to glass, gave up very little on the nose, very tannic, some deep red fruit, a little herbaceous and with a fair bit of alcohol on the palate. Deep ruby red. After 20 minutes, the green notes disappeared. After 60 minutes, the nose improved with lead pencil, dark red fruit. After 90 minutes, the nose really began to come out. Mouthfilling red fruit, floral and mineral notes, velvety tannins, with a little heat. 45s finish. It certainly needs about 3 to 5 years but will be terrific then.

11/12/2006 - StarV100 wrote:

Aromas of dark red fruit and mineral with just a little brett. Palate good acidity with moderate tannins and medium + intense flavours as per the nose with a little heat on the back of the throat, betraying the 15% alcohol. Full body and 15 - 20 sec finish.

10/15/2006 - StarV100 wrote:

Dry, acidic and still present tannins, full bodied, somewhat light on the nose. Initial impression - where's the fruit? This wine seems to have collapsed, and all that 's left is tannins, acidity and alcohol. Not very pleasant.

3/1/2006 - StarV100 wrote:

Disappointing, not much fruit

1/24/2006 - StarV100 wrote:

Really coming together. Clear deep ruby colour, clean somewhat intense nose of bell pepper, cassis and dark red fruit, dry, good acidity with tannins nicely resolving. Palate as per the nose with some plum. Wonderful wine.

12/10/2003 - StarV100 wrote:

Second tasting. First time at Bymark, second time at North 44.
Medium bodied, with gentle aromas of red fruit. No oak. Little detectible tannins and short finish (someone even commented on that). Pleasant dinner wine. $22.95 LCBO, $74 at North 44.

10/16/2005 - StarV100 wrote:

Clear ruby colour, strong raspberry / cherry aromas with firm bracing tannins followed by a 20 - 25 second finish, with a slight mineral, tannic aftertaste. This baby will last at least 3 to 5 years in the cellar, but it's great now.

3/28/2004 - StarV100 wrote:

Drank with shrimp and rice with raisons and almonds (not the best match). Deep aroma of dark fruit and just a hint of astringency (road tar?) which seemed to disappear after more time in the glass. Decanted for 45 minutes, perhaps could have used more time. Very strong tannins dried the mouth and overwhelmed the wine so it was not extremely enjoyable now but with the very powerful fruit content, bottle ageing will help this one considerably. Good enough to replace the bottle drunk to get back to 7 in inventory.

8/12/2005 - StarV100 wrote:

Real classic Burgundy with firm, but not overwhelming tannins. Fruitful and fragrant, with terrior and leaves. I loved this wine and bought 6 more after trying it.

3/6/2004 - StarV100 wrote:

Great wine. Lovely aroma of cherries and red licorice. 20 second finish with smooth velvety tannins which seem to wrap around the tongue about 10 seconds after swallow. Not overly complex but this may come out with more cellar time. Still, lots of mouthfilling flavour.

5/7/2003 - StarV100 wrote:

Tried at Vintages Summerhill tasting room. It seemed ready for drinking but with firm enough tannins to last for awhile. I should try one in 2005 or 2006 to test it out. Lots of red fruit, not acidic and very fragrant. Looking forward to this one.

3/3/2005 - StarV100 wrote:

Wife and I had a bottle at Prime, in Las Vegas. It was really exquisite, smooth and fruity, silky tannins and an underlay of subtle oak. Ate with filet mignon and potatoes. It seems incredibly refined, young and full bodied. Wife loved it as well. US$82 on Prime's memu.

11/23/2003 - StarV100 wrote:

Remarkably light colour belies its full bodied flavour. Soft sweet tannins, not dusty dry, doesn't seem to need much ageing, but with lots and lots of red fruit and deeply scented aroma, it will go on for a while. Twenty second finish. Really liked this one and sought it out.

10/22/2005 - StarV100 wrote:

Drank at the TWC offline in October 2005 but took no notes.

1/30/2004 - StarV100 wrote:

Very well balanced: Extremely fruity, strong tannins and a taste of alcohol mean that this wine will benefit from another year or two in the cellar. Probably the most fragrant wine I have yet tried, extremely sweet red fruit, wife picked up some lead pencil. Dusty dry tannins on the finish, which last a good 20 seconds. Deep garnet color.

12/5/2004 - StarV100 wrote:

Unlike the 2000 I had a year ago, this one was very fragrant with loads of red fruit and just enough sweetness to offset the firm tannins. Very very smooth, no hint of acidity. Highly enjoyable. Decanted 1/2 bottle for 30 minutes prior to drinking. Drank second half 24 hours later (vacuum sealed). Ate with chicken and salad.

12/11/2003 - StarV100 wrote:

Drank at Avalon during dinner with client. Medium ruby colour, surprisingly light on the nose. Really had to swirl it to get much aroma. Fresh, fruity aroma. Detected virtually no tannins. Very smooth and refined. Medium bodied. Seems a little closed at present and perhaps some cellaring will bring out more of everything. Still, I liked it very much but would not yet describe as delicious. Short (5 - 10 second) finish.

10/14/2005 - StarV100 wrote:

Had a sample at Summerhill tasting bar. Gently oaked, clear deep colour but not opaque. Very fruity, nice finish, lots of body, silky tannins, really refined. Loved this wine.

5/9/2005 - StarV100 wrote:

Medium (on the light side). Ink red / purple with strong aromas upon opening, but abating somewhat in the glass. 5 second finish, not overly complex. Reminds me of Merlot. Fruity and "sweet" with a tiny hint of vegetative matter. Overall very pleasant but not overly complex or full. Not very tannic.

12/31/2004 - StarV100 wrote:

Aromatic. Very smooth 15 second finish. A little acidic and not quite as much fruit as expected but still very nice. Flavour notes a little little cherry liquer (kirsh?) and not red fruit. Dry tannins not overpowering, although long term finish is quite drying. Give it another couple of years to blend the tannins, acid and liquer into a finished product.

9/14/2005 - StarV100 wrote:

Deep garnet red with no noticeable brick ageing. Powerful red fruit aroma immediately fills the room. Still strongly noticeable tannins, a 25 second finish with strong alcohol heat lasting a minute or more. Red fruit mouth with slight grassy notes.