2/28/2024 - Pfleonard wrote:

Enjoyed at Paul Akey’s wine club

9/5/2021 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Sorry for you Mr. Meddings. No oxidation at all. My bottle much like Empire80 way back in pre-pandemic 2018. I quote, "Develops in the glass. Golden colour, initial hit of lemon and honey, combining into something rich, concentrated and quite complex." That's my bottle. He scored 92, I'm not so generous with a stingy 91. I hope the next 3 in your case of 6 fair better.

9/4/2021 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

7 years since last taster review and still a Spanish Syrah, still full-bodied, still restrained, also wish I had some more.

12/12/2020 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

I've kinda stopped writing notes during the Quar, but this was really good.

11/18/2020 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Can't improve on CHBEAUMONT tasting note from September 18, 2020. Only arguing over a measly point. Sometimes that can start a war, but in our case only violent agreement.

11/7/2020 - Pfleonard Does not like this wine:

Yup

6/19/2020 - Pfleonard Does not like this wine:

Prunes. Cooked prunes. Someone leave a skid out on the dock on a hot afternoon during shipping?

4/27/2020 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Oh my!

12/22/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Big but well balanced. Still fruit rather than stew. Super silky in mouth. Quite lovely. Many years left. Don't believe the drink by date.

6/25/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Fresh and fruity. Yum.

6/17/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Huh. Grabbed it out of the cellar for a light accompaniment with a light pasta dinner and Wine Align curated it. It is light. But has an lifted and bright quality that carries it through and past the dark fruit. Excellent acidity is refreshing but that dark fruit holds it in, for a very nice balance. Very pleasant surprise given I had no idea what I was hauling out.

6/4/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Tastes just like the Rawlings baseball glove I had as a kid. It got kinda boring standing around in the outfield, so nothing else to chew on. In a good way. Very French. Very big. Very nice.

5/10/2019 - Pfleonard wrote:

Like sitting downwind from the camp fire. Too smoky. Gotta get up and move.

5/7/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Very nice Australian Bordeaux blend. Fruity, forward, medium body and nicely balanced.

5/1/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Super light colour. Kind of light a German Spatbergunder. That said tons of strawberry and forest floor on the nose and palate. Very nice.

4/27/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Lovely fresh citrus. Light weight but wide mouthfeel makes it feel bigger than it actually is. Spring is in the air.

4/26/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Light and fresh. There is a bit of dankness to give it weight but it all works. Nice.

4/19/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

My wife makes a really rustic Pasta Puttanesca. I like to match with Aglianico, also from Campania as the backwards nature of the wines stands up to the anchovies and capers. Tonight I went a little upscale with this Taurasi... maybe too upscale. It's a really lovely concentrated smooth southern Rhone wine... No sense of place.

4/13/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Classy wine. Not big, but balanced. The subtle balance you hope for from a great Burgundy.

4/5/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

This has aged well.

3/23/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Wine Align put this in the quarterly mystery box. I'm glad they did. There was a lot of fruit, leaning to light red rather than dark, good tannins, and despite what everyone else is writing on this thread, I would have said medium body. Very nice.

3/31/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

I thought Burgundy was in France. Who knew? Aged well.

3/23/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Nice. Good with spaghetti aglio et olio.

3/19/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Well built wine. Dark fruits, herbaceous, medium+ concentration, soft tannins, long finish. Can't ask for much more.

3/13/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Very nice. Citrusy. Would never have guessed Italian. Pleasant surprise.

3/5/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

It wants to be a grand cru Chablis. Pouilly Fume? well yes, but 109km northeast.

3/9/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Wine and cheese. Saturday afternoon skiing and boarding. Does it get any better? This wine goes with snow and skiing. I'm sure they never considered that. Oh yeah, and cheese... afternoons in winter.

3/9/2019 - Pfleonard wrote:

It's purple. It's big. Maybe too big....

2/14/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Smoooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooothhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh.

2/9/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Sadly for the wine, i had it with hot soup and cheese, in to the chalet mid-afternoon taking a break from skiing. Sadly as this syrah deserves meat. Not sadly for me. Very nice wine, good day on the hills.

2/5/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

So what is a Super Tuscan that just claims to be a Tuscan. Oh yeah, a Super Tuscan.... 30 years ago. So now what do I do with a wine that tastes like a Super Tuscan but is a fraction of the price... today. Drink it. Recommend it.

1/12/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Maybe this is why Ontario makes a lot of Cabernet Franc. When it works, it really works. This is a concentrated wine, bigger on the palate than I was expecting, but well balanced through the mouth and a long finish. Lovely with the beef tenderloin. Both were melt in the mouth.

1/13/2019 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

No trademark infringement... a Premier Cru Burgundy in California. Absolutely lovely!

11/13/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Bobbing for Granny Smith apples in a barrel of salt water at a gas station.

11/16/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

So like this wine is warm. I don't mean temperature, I mean big, soft, leathery heat in the mouth. Very nice. Reminded me of chewing on a baseball glove, standing in the outfield, 10 years old waiting for someone to hit it out of the infield. But not French, although it was Montreal, so think Rawlings. Really quite nice.

11/9/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Okay so first sip was like my mother's Christmas turkey... sucked all the moisture out of my mouth. Tannic? Woah. Then after a while it changed, well maybe it was the pork. Couldn't quite place it but then I remembered chewing on pencils when I was a kid. HB to be precise, not 2H. So for those of you that never did that, think oak and graphite... maybe a little bit of rubber. This is 12 years old, never any fruit in it near as I can tell. Still a puppy. Did I really like it, well everyone else is giving it a 92 and I gave it a 90. So yes, but not as much.

Follow up, so next day I had exact same pork chop with maple/dijon glaze but with a Chardonnay. Didn't taste as good. Was it the wine?

10/31/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Kind of like the black sand beaches of Santorini...dark mineral and dry.

10/27/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Aging really well. Medium bodied, lovely fruit. Years to go but now in my belly.

10/24/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Wow. What a lovely wine. Aging beautifully. Medium+ body, fruits moving to stew but a ways to go. Substance and concentration in spades!

10/16/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Unlike the person below, I cannot award this wine 100 points. However, it is pleasant, mid-weight, hints of berries and leather. Nice.

9/28/2018 - Pfleonard Does not like this wine:

See the review from 3daywinereview.com dated 01/21/2017. Tart and acidic. Bang on. Don't normally expect to have to decant a wine for 3 days for it to improve, bottle is empty by then. Overconstructed.

9/22/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Everything is balanced and feels correct. Earthy, garrigue, softened tannins. Nice.

9/25/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Ditto.

8/7/2018 - Pfleonard wrote:

I'm at odds with everyone else below. Bought this in 2014 and laid it down immediately. First thing I noticed when I opened it was the cork looked like it had never seen the wine. Odd. When poured would have sworn it was a cool climate Pinot Noir, transparent. Taste. Way out of balance. Cherries are really big and slightly sweet, which was nice, but the 20% alcohol was very noticeable and left a lingering bitterness and heat in the back of the mouth, which can be fine with whiskey, but not here. Maybe its trying to be a liqueur? Very thin feel through the centre of the tongue, then that bitterness. This didn't work, or at least way off expectation. Don't share with friends.

8/4/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

This is well put together and perfect mid-summer, peach season, wine.

8/6/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

Every year same old stunningly good Chardonnay. Seriously, someone needs to find a flaw.

8/5/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

The bottle weighs a metric tonne. No shit. The wine does too. And not totally in a good way. I think I collapsed under its own weight. I meant I.

8/4/2018 - Pfleonard wrote:

I think I regret giving this away. A small taste, not enough for a note, but I think I missed something good. No rating, c'est dommage.

7/30/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

They just don't make much wine like this anymore. They being everyone else. Don't make being unfortunately. This is a wine you bring out when most people at the table are eating a hearty meal, celebrating something, appreciate fine wine, or in my case all of the above. Lovely.

7/24/2018 - Pfleonard Likes this wine:

It does exactly what I wanted a Rosso di Montalcino to do. Be fruity, medium bodied, a little bit fruity and food friendly. Mission accomplished. Was a little worried given 14.5% alcohol, bit that was well integrated.