2/4/2024 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Lovely, just lovely. Old bottle decant, mid sediment. Almost a milk chocolate color. Old posh leather and tobacco. Zero tannin. Wife said she tastes something savory like bacon fat. I didn’t get that, but she’s more refined in her flavor profiles. I feel that this could continue to age another decade.

11/10/2023 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

Rather oxidated. On the edge of drinking window. Flat and mineral-less. Drink up or give to a neighbour :-)

5/17/2023 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

2023, no decant, 20 min in-bottle breathe. Well balanced. Accompanied by a slow roasted pork dish. Beautiful pairing.

2/17/2023 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Still needs time. Mid tannins. Recommend 1hr. breathe.

12/28/2022 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Not a lot of experience sipping old Margauxs but this came out beautifully. Sediment decanting only, consumed right away. Lovely bouquet with honey, truffles and leather. No burn on the nose. Palette of red currants, rhubarb, mushrooms, nice and earthy. This was a bright and vibrant wine with all tannins aged out. This was a privilege to consume with a 28-day dry aged Kansas City cut at Arthur J in Manhattan Beach.

12/8/2022 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

Garnet, inky. Parsley stems, herby and blackberries. No decant, opened in bottle for 60 mins. Lovely wine with a huge steak.

11/12/2022 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

No decant. No tannin. Musty, forest floor, leather nose. Blackberries and prune. I wish I had a more experienced pallet to comprehend this level of wine, but suffice it to say it was thoroughly enjoyable. We ate it with dry aged bone-in New York strip and some bluepoint oysters.

9/24/2022 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

Musty, earthy, complex.

7/9/2022 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Black cherries/plum, pepper, leather, medium to high tannin. Needs another 10 years.

2/27/2022 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Nose: wet stone, rhubarb, leather/tobacco, coffee. Palette: low tannin, low acid, oak, blackberries, ripe cherries and licorice. This is nice.

1/3/2022 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

50th birthday nugget. Bottle-breathed for 1.5 hours. Cork was intact at the wine end (phew). It did lose some lustre as we poured. Would have corovan’d it if I had a redo. Crimson brown color, clear and light viscosity. Earthy, prunes, leather on the nose. Forrest floor, marzipan, plum palette. No tannin, mid-acidity, Probably peaked 30 years ago, but then again so did I.

11/20/2021 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

Still young and tannic. Took a couple of hours in bottle to punch through. Needs 3-5 more years. Recommend decanting.

11/11/2021 - Ash in Hermosa Does not like this wine:

Astringent and tannic.

11/7/2021 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Very pleasant. Drinking well.
Nose - cherry stems and slight fennel.
Color - ruddy purple.
Texture - light, no legs, not syrupy.
Palette - no tannin, low acidity, cherries, almonds, rhubarb.
Bought a case en primeur back in 2010 with my mates and am glad it turned out so well. Thanks Monkeybiz101 and Samkkay.

10/17/2021 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

Gluey blackberries on nose, dry and stemmy palate. Sucks some moisture out of the mouth. Mellowed out after an hour and leathery palette came through. Happy to have held onto this for a decade but also happy to be drinking this now while watching the Dodgers v Braves in the ‘21 NLCS at home with my feet up. It’s not a long keeper.

10/3/2021 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Procured from a private cellar so took a flier on it. 2/3 of the cork disintegrated but there was a small air pop when I pierced the bottom third. Bottle breathed for an hour and drank over 3 hours. Color and viscosity were as expected - murky rosewood with medium legs but not too syrupy. Nose of prunes, vanilla and some earthiness but not overpowering or spoiled. A bit acidic at 1 hr, but blossomed after hour 2 with black currants, almonds and forest floor. A tad sherried but not too much. Medium to full bodied. I was pretty pleased.

6/19/2021 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Like shoving your face into the divots of those old leather club chairs. Powerful leather & tobacco on the nose, with prunes on the palate and low acidity. Breathed in the bottle for about 45 mins and showed mid-tannins. I recommend decanting for an hour and seeing how this evolves at the table. Drinking very well today. Will be even better down the road I feel.

2/6/2021 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

2 hour decant. 60/40 cab/merlot. It’s full but not a punch in the mouth kinda Napa heavyweight brute. Pencil shavings, leather, gluey, cab nose, and the more subtle merlot does come through on the palette with mix of clove and muddled cherries. I wonder, though, whether it’s worth the cellar slot to age this wine or invest more in the Chateau. Regardless a good bang for the buck. If you can pick up some age at the local and pop it open that night, then do it I say. I had it with a 28-day dry aged bone in NY strip and the combo worked well. I need to hit the Peloton in the morning though.

1/30/2021 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

1 hour decant. A solid and hefty prune and leather Napa cab-based blend in an affordable package. Hard to get a Mt. Veeder at this $34 price point. Go get some!

1/23/2021 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Marzipan and root veg on the nose. Candied cherries and ripe plums, with medium tannin. Drinking well now, but could probably use another year in the cellar.

1/9/2021 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

Lackluster.

12/27/2020 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Lovely Mersault village with green apples and pear notes and that characteristic earthy undertone. Drinking well now.

11/14/2020 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Honey, melon, lemon zest, some mineral sharpness. This is ready to drink.

10/23/2020 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

Dark jam berries and slate on the nose. Fennel, some leather, black licorice and cherries with the merlot punching through. Medium tanin. Breathed for 1 hour but could use a smidge longer tbh. Have carried this [stuff] around for 10 years with skepticism, but am happy I did so now.

4/5/2020 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

Decanted for an hour and paired with a bolognese. Nose is packed with root vegetables, black pepper and stewed plums. A bit sharp and tannic on the palette with fennel and beetroot flavors powering forward with an acerbic follow. The 20% Cab Franc really comes through at this stage, and some further aging/decanting should round this wine out when the Cabernet moves to the front. This is a lovely punch of a wine at a very good price point. Va bene.

3/14/2020 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Decanted but not breathed. Herbaceous nose of fennel, mint. Powerful punch of prunes, black current on the palette, old leather. Surprisingly low tannin. Typical full-bodied Napa cab.

1/31/2020 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Rhubarb, dark chocolate and damp earth on the nose. Tart cherries and celery on the palette. Moderate tannins that should continue to improve with age and should further mellow in 2-3 years. Had with skirt steak fajitas. Enjoyable.

3/17/2018 - Ash in Hermosa Likes this wine:

Drank with no aeration/breathing. Leather on the nose. Tart, dry, hints of licorice and dark cherries -- herbaceous fruits; low in tannin. We drank this after an Oregon Pinot and the contrast is significant... i.e., this wine is more earthy, delicate and fresh. Nice bottle for a lower Burgundy price point.

8/5/2013 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

- Garnet color with medium forming legs and aromas of black currant, cherry and oak. It's balanced and has flavours of smokey, black currant, cherry and oak with a medium/full body. Smooth texture with a medium finish.

8/8/2012 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

Drinkable and enjoyable now. Upper end of the "very good" scale. Red berries, esp. cherries and currant flavors, and a slight smokey quality with mild acidity. Are you bringing this to your snobby wine friend's house for dinner? Probably not, because he'll just pull out a La Tache to compare. Save this for a good casual dinner while sitting with your down-to-earth friends in an English garden pairing it with something like a nice top roast with a side of goose fat potatoes. Any garden will do, to be honest.

12/14/2010 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

Crisp and mineral-focused chardonnay with clear notes of chalk, flint and mild fruit (pears, apple skins). Had the opportunity to taste this at Olivier Leflaive alongside the '07 Chassagne-Montrachet to compare the gradient influences of the terroir even from two very close villages, and this was clearly the drier and more mineral-like experience. A wonderful bottle.

9/15/2010 - Ash in Hermosa wrote:

A soft cork made me concerned, but the wine poured full and showed beautiful dark ruby colors mixed with dusty hues. I was worried initially by the past-due suggested drinking date, but was pleasantly surprised to find a wine filled in the nose and palette with muddled berries, spiced apples and pleasant residual peaty flavors with very low tanin if any at all. A very nice bottle that has kept well over the years. I wish I had more.