4/25/2020 - rsbeck wrote:

A friend popped, poured and enjoyed this for several hours before bringing me the remaining quarter bottle. I put it in the cellar for a few hours to cool it down just a tad. So, this sample received a lot of air and was slightly warmer than cellar temperature. I'd guess around 62-65 degrees. This was just sublime from the very first sniff and it continued to bewitch and beguile on the palate. Incredible zen-line harmony, elegance, complexity and sophistication, all of the elements are so beautifully balanced and integrated -- and even after all of that air, it continued to open and reveal yet more nuance over the next 90 minutes. This is not a Marilyn Monroe, this is an Audrey Hepburn that beckons you to it, rewards your rapt attention, and maintains its striking, yet subtle elegance all the way through its lengthy, expanding finish, which still lingers and haunts a day later.

7/12/2019 - rsbeck wrote:

Popped, poured, consumed over next 90 minutes. Fresh, juicy, medium bodied and very enjoyable already. I love Charvin in these cooler vintages. An early drinker already exhibiting good complexity that may need a few more years to peak, but no need to wait.

3/19/2019 - rsbeck wrote:

2nd bottle of the evening. Similar notes.

2/17/2019 - rsbeck wrote:

Popped, poured, consumed over next two hours. This has developed further, revealing even more elegance and nuance. Wonderfully complex and balanced with an expanding, lingering, beguiling finish. This bottle performed beautifully. Should cruise on this plateau for years to come.

5/10/2018 - rsbeck wrote:

Popped, poured, consumed over next two hours. Excelllent balance of minerals, fruit, citrus and saline with a beguiling finish. Lovely. 95+

1/3/2017 - rsbeck wrote:

Third bottle of the night. Consistent with other two bottles. Performing nicely. Balanced, complex, lengthy expanding finish.

2/25/2015 - rsbeck wrote:

Pop and pour, consumed over next 2 hours. Started out absolutely closed aromatically and simple but refreshing on the palate. This did not wow me with its fruit or mid-palate weight. This wine beckoned and beguiled, inviting me to come closer and pay attention. I had other "wow" wines in glasses next to this, but as the meal progressed and it revealed its lithe, nervous, seductive charm, I found this one more appealing and more interesting. There are some very nice things going on here.

11/29/2014 - rsbeck wrote:

Pop and pour. Layers of red fruit, leather and iron/beef blood framed by vanilla/American Oak. Medium body. Ruby/garnet. Beautiful balance. Easy to like, a real crowd pleaser.

4/1/2014 - rsbeck wrote:

Popped, poured, aired in glass 30 minutes, followed over the course of an evening. Wonderful aromatics lead to a fascinating, yet tightly wound palate that changed gradually over the evening revealing more and more character. Intense, yet elegant, fresh and lively with beautiful structure, balance and texture. The small amount of new oak this saw seems to me to have already been absorbed. There is a significant puff of chalky tannin in the lengthy finish. Doesn't hurt that this is already succulent, complex and delicious yet it's easy to see how this is only going to get better.

1/4/2014 - rsbeck wrote:

Popped, decanted 90 minutes, consumed over next hour. Over-ripe sweet prune flavored fruit mixed with French Oak to give those curious flat cherry cola flavors. Given the over-ripe nature of the fruit, the acidity evident is certainly a curiosity.

9/21/2012 - rsbeck wrote:

Popped, breathed in bottle 90 minutes, followed over next two hours. Fabulous nose. Would have been happy just to sniff all night. Layers of red fruit, leather, earth, saline, with a wonderful hint of Burgundy barnyard and a firm, but refined tannic finish that softened over the course of the evening.