11/4/2016 - JMazen wrote:

Wow. What a disappointment. Nice color saturation. Wine was a deep purple almost leaning towards black. Bretty nose lead to more of the same on the palate. No mid palate and short on the finish. A real piece of crap or a highly flawed example.

2/15/2010 - JMazen wrote:

Drunk from magnum. The wine seems to be at peak. Very nice aromatics. Strong aroma of cassis, herbs, and leather. Round and elegant in the mouth with a long, balanced finish. Tannins are well integrated. Worked extremely well with grilled strip steaks.

6/28/2008 - JMazen wrote:

I'm perplexed by this wine. This is my second bottle this week. The first was flawed and I accept the fact that there will be defective bottles in every case. This one had a fairly advanced color for a 93. No vibrancy and lots of bricking. The nose showed lots of brett with a dirty edge. The brett did blow off after 1/2 hour or so but there was nothing exciting about the perfume or palate. It just tasted like a tired bottle of Burgundy that had seen better days. Perhaps it was mishandled along the supply chain. This was purchased from a reputable retailer in NJ. I have more and will not give up as my first bottle of this was wonderful.

6/22/2008 - JMazen wrote:

Pale with a green tinge. Loaded with minerals with a slightly round midpalate. Long pleasant finish.

5/4/2008 - JMazen wrote:

Decanted 1 hour prior to dinner. I was worried about this bottle since the cork was slightly protruding. The capsule came off clean. When I opened it in the cellar the bouquet filled the room with an almost flowery aroma. Some slight bricking at the edges with a garnet core. Medium to full bodied red fruits and a medium to long finish. Everyone (non wine geeks) remarked how much they liked the wine without being asked. For a sub $20 purchase it was a big hit and is drinking great right now.

4/21/2008 - JMazen wrote:

Just plain lacking. I'm shocked this came from the CDP producer I like so much. The wine was flabby with no redeeming characteristics. I was certain it was a damaged bottle until i read the notes here.

3/6/2008 - JMazen wrote:

Didn't love this out of the gate. Slightly disjointed nose with tons of earth and burnt rubber. Time in the glass helped tremendously as the nose and palate turned to cherries and chocolate. A touch of sweetness on the palate with a decent finish. I'll wait a bit before pouring again.

2/29/2008 - JMazen wrote:

Everything is there but not nearly ready yet

2/3/2008 - JMazen wrote:

Very nice

1/23/2008 - JMazen wrote:

My first Loire Pinot. Seemed thin and acidic at first. When the Arctic Char showed up the wine seemed to flesh out and become less astringent. The food helped considerably. This had Loire written all over it. Not bad, not great. I wouldn't purchase again based on price.

1/23/2008 - JMazen wrote:

Great wine. Maybe a little advanced for something from 2004 but very interesting. Dark color with no real noticeable signs of aging. Clean nose that changed considerably over the 2 hours I had it in my glass. Sweet and pure. Very nice.

1/22/2008 - JMazen wrote:

Slight bricking at the edges with a light purple center. A little disjointed during the first hour or so this came together very nicely. Aromas of potting soil and very pure fruit including cherries and strawberry. Seamless finish. I wish I had more as this was an excellent example of a Volnay hitting it's stride.

1/8/2008 - JMazen wrote:

drank with a slight cold so nuance was wasted on me. Mouthfeel was round and not terribly structured but I couldn't get a bit of nose. I'll revisit when feeling better. The score reflects my wife and friend.

1/8/2008 - JMazen wrote:

corked

12/31/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Dark color. Earthy notes with black fruit. Great balance.

12/21/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Utterly undrinkable and sadly I do not believe it was flawed. Off smelling. Slightly sour and dirty on the nose. Nothing redeeming on the palate.

12/19/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Well made but uninspiring.

12/19/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Beautiful bordeaux like nose with loads of lead pencil and currant. Color was not as evolved as I would have expected showing a bright deep purple. Round and sweet but not over the top. Long balanced finish.

10/29/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Yuck.

10/23/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Tried this with a tasting group last night and all around the table I heard WOW! Pineapple on the nose and palate. Very primary right now with power and acidity to age. Well balanced for a young wine.

10/22/2007 - JMazen wrote:

I don't buy enough of Girardin's wines. Quality for the money seems to always be high and I flat out like their wines. This opened with a nose of tropical fruits. The first sips showed the acidity which characterizes the vintage, but after 1/2 hour the wine became rounder and fuller in the mouth. The group moved on to reds but I drained this bottle. $50 and I'm buying more.

10/19/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Completely uninspired. Nothing flawed in the bottle but nothing at all to make me take notice. Hard, lack of fruit and linear. I'd have trouble buying this again at half the price.

9/18/2007 - JMazen wrote:

I thought it was good. A little reminiscent of a California Meritage with good sweetness, balance and length. It just didn't do anything for me other than being technically correct.

9/3/2007 - JMazen wrote:

This was a new one for me. I've never had a dry Tokaji before.

Pale color. Lovely flowery aromatics. Lots of minerals with good weight. Medium long balanced finish.

The non wine geeks loved it. I thought it was an excellent buy at $27.

9/1/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Very young. Steely with loads of minerals.

6/24/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Had four of these in the past few weeks. I like the flavor profile but saw some bottle variation as far as evolution is concerned. The urgency to finish was from the first one I opened that fell apart after an hour. Last night's bottles performed much better. Some funk on the nose that blew off. Cherries, tar, and smoke. Fully integrated tannins.

6/24/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Very solid CDP and a steal for what I paid. Red fruits with smoke and a shot of pepper. Flavors got more complex over the hour and a half it took to drink. I'd wait a couple of years to drink the rest.

4/18/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Fabulous aromatics leap from the glass as it opens up over a 4 hour period. Delicious and complex.Light on it's feet the wine is entering it's drinking window and should remain there for a good ten years. Glad I have more.

2/26/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Just ok. Hopefully it was going through a weird period.

1/28/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Deep purple core with the slightest tinge of bricking at the rim. Nose of spice and black fruits jump from the glass. No disappointment on the palate. Medium bodied, full midpalate, and sweet tannins. The wine did well with food and gained in complexity as the meal went on.

1/25/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Liked it...

1/22/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Wow. A very pure expression of SB with intensity, wonderful mouthfeel and bracing acidity. I think I paid $60 for this and well worth the money.

1/22/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Not flawed from what we could tell. Just shitty. Had this over ripe roasted characteristic that none of us could get past. We ended up dumping more than half and drinking the 99 Chapoutier Mordoree, yummers!

1/22/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Fabulous! A little closed on the nose and palate but got better and better as the meal went on. Very complex. At $150 I'd buy more.

1/19/2007 - JMazen wrote:

Awesome, multi layered steely acidity maybe a bit young.

10/11/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Wife loved it.. I didn't try the wine

10/1/2006 - JMazen wrote:

For a non-merlot drinker I really liked this. From my son's birthyear on his 14th birthday. Still deep purple with very little sign of bricking. Nose of plums, leather, and earth. Fully integrated on the palate but still showing enough backbone to hold up to braised lamb shanks. Finish was long and sweet.

10/1/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Moldy cork but wine was unflawed. Mineral and some tropical fruits on nose opened up after about an hour. Served at cellar temp the wine kept getting better and better. Powerful and focused without any hint of being overbearing. Worked well with sashimi. Very nice wine.

8/24/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Best 20 bucks I've spent this week. Pale straw color. Citrus nose. Fabulous mothfeel showing great balance with a long finish.

8/20/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Complete mixed bag at the table. My wife hated it and asked if I thought it was flawed. Notes of honey and wet stones without being even the slightest bit sweet.. If I tased it blind I doubt I waould have called it Chenin. Well made wine that got better and more interesting over the 2 hours it was opened. I would be tempted to buy more for a long term experiment. Baumard is more my style from this property.

8/20/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Lovely perfume of cherries and garrigue. Beautiful sweet round mouthfeel. Tannins fully resolved. Wine is at peak. Absolute pleasure to drink.

8/2/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Infanticide! Everything is there. Needs lots of time to reach it's potential.

8/2/2006 - JMazen wrote:

very good wine

8/2/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Very nice...needs time

8/2/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Very good to excellent.

5/12/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Very nice wine. Black fruits and plums on nose. A little early as this bottle was not fully integrated. I'd give it two more years and this should be absolutely singing.

5/12/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Nice wine. Slight signs of age. Nice red fruits soft on palate.

5/6/2006 - JMazen wrote:

I'm guessing fairly representative of the vintage. A light wine at peak with a few years of life left. Orange at the rim with a brown/purple core. Lightly perfumed with mineral notes. Drank beautifully. Not much glycerin but well balanced and completely integrated. Reasonably long finish. No real flaws. Truly enjoyable.

4/17/2006 - JMazen wrote:

A little candied but excellent fruit, still showing backbone. At peak.

4/17/2006 - JMazen wrote:

Over the hill