4/20/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Devant 5 hours at a minimum. It has a rustic expression. Elegant with long finish. This is a very well made wine.

4/6/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Ready to drink. Very enjoyable wine. Juicy fruit mixed with wood notes. Went well with sausages and bread/cheese.

3/30/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Ready to drink. Strawberry on the nose. Light cherry fruit tart flavor. Light and elegant. Very well-made wine.

3/30/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Still needs at least an eight hour decant at this point. Best to open a few years later. This is an amazing wine. Strong and complex and fruit forward. Does not have the bell pepper you’d expect from a Bordeaux. It’s more fruity than that, but very elegant nonetheless.

3/30/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needs 8 to 10 hour decant. Smells of licorice and cherry. Taste of light tart fruit with a long finish. Very high quality Barolo.

3/30/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Ready to drink. This is a white wine for a red wine drinker. Elegant and complex. Light like a white wine, but not too light as to lack character. Smells of petrol at first, then mellows out. There is a slight bit of oak like a Chardonnay, but not strong.

3/24/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Ready to drink after 3 hour decant. Smoky and earthy. Fruit forward for a Bordeaux. Comes together very elegantly and will complement lighter meats nicely. It continues to improve after 6 hours. Has a good many years of life ahead.

3/23/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Ready to drink after a short 30 minute decant or run through an aerator. Creamy and complex, fruit forward Great with meats.

3/17/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Ready to drink after a quick 30 minute decant, but it was still evolving after 5 hours. Beautiful floral bouquet with refined oak and dried cherries. Will continue to improve as it sits in the glass.

3/9/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needs an 8 hour decant. The difference between the 7th and 8th hour is night and day. Complicated integration of cream, soil, bell pepper, and smoke with a tart kick. Goes with lots of foods, including steak, lamb, Mexican, pizza, etc.

3/8/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 3 hours. Nice combination of creamy earth and smoky fruit. Great with lots of foods, including pizza.

3/2/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

If you’re going to drink this now, it needs a solid 6 hour decant. Smoky leather and burnt cherry. Hardly any oak for a Rioja. Underwhelmed.

2/24/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 8 hours. Fruit bursts and a finish that goes on for miles. Explodes in your mouth and changes by the minute in the glass. Amazing what they can do with Las Piedras.

2/24/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Very nice Amarone. Needs a 4 hour decant for the raisin flavors to fully open.

2/24/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

10 hour decant. Still young, but there’s a lot of character. Nice lingering notes of the terroir. Tastes like it should cost much more than what I paid for it.

2/24/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needs a good 5 hour decant for it to mellow out and then it’s earthy strawberries. A lighter style of Pinot Noir, but not too simple. Perfect with summer salads.

2/17/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

This was very tight upon opening. Needs 2 hours to start opening up, but the fruit profile doesn't come out until after the 6 hour mark. The perfect balance of fruit, earth, and interesting complexity. Nice long-sh finish. Pair with short ribs, cream sauce, cheeses.

1/27/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needs an 8 hour decant at a minimum. Fabulous wine. Smoky black pepper and earth. Great with beef, lamb, or blue cheese.

1/14/2024 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needed a 4 hour decant. Very smooth and integrated. Fruity and smoky profile. Suggest drinking with lighter steaks or chicken. Stronger foods would overwhelm the elegance of this wine.

12/31/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 4 hours. Beautiful To Kalon wine. Elegant and fruit forward, beautifully integrated. Fine vintage. Great with steak or chicken.

12/23/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 10 hours. Needed all that time for the full depth of character to come out. Exquisite forest and bell pepper earthy notes of the terroir come together beautifully.

12/8/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Rating is for potential. Currently drinking at 94 points. Decanted 10 hours. Alcohol is overpowering at the moment. Still enjoyable and you can tell it's a well made wine, but needs more time to integrate.

12/8/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 10 hours. Opened up about 8 hours in. Gorgeous expression of St. Emilion. The highly complex integration of Merlot really shines through. Suggest pairing with smoky meats or cheeses.

12/8/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 2 hours. Smoky nose that follows through on the palate. Earthier style of Pinot Noir, similar to some from Burgundy. Very enjoyable with food, especially mushroom dishes.

12/8/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 3 hours in the fridge. Smells of petroleum upon opening, but mellowed out after an hour. On the dryer side, but still a little sweet. Smooth, velvety melon/fruit flavors with just a touch of earthiness. Interesting wine.

12/1/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needs an 8 hour decant. Classic To Kalon. Extra smooth fruity/earthy profile with complexity that evolves as the evening progresses. Versatile wine that held up with Gouda cheese, chicken, pork, potatoes, many more foods.

12/1/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Gave this a 10 hour decant. Still not long enough. Too fruity with no complexity. Still better than a supermarket wine. I'd wait another 3 years to try another bottle. Disappointing from previous Bard vintages.

12/1/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 8 hours. Fragrant nose with flavor bursting in your mouth. Fruity and earthy at the same time. This is a very well made wine. Excellent quality for the price.

11/24/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 5 hours. Amazing wine! Very expressive nose you can smell from 2 feet away. Bursts of flavor in the mouth. Definitely more fruity than earthy at this point. Will continue to evolve. This could possibly be my favorite Napa wine, which is saying a lot given how many wines I’ve had.

11/18/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 3 hours. Beautifully fruity and earthy at the same time.

10/28/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 4 hours. Even better than last year. Very aromatic nose. Roses, bell pepper, earth, and chocolate in the mouth. Extra long, exquisite finish.

10/21/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Still needs a 5 hour decant. Very well made. Earthy, less oak than last year. Beautiful expression of the terroir.

10/16/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Full blast of flavor does not show up until hour 8. Elegant leather and smoke, not too oaky. Fine expression of tempranillo, but not sure it’s worth that much more than the 904.

10/8/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 4 hours. Wonderfully earthy expression of the Howell Mountain terroir. Drink with steak or lamb.

10/8/2023 - happy712 wrote:

Decanted 3 hours. Very interesting blend of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. Smells like old world style Bordeaux, fruit forward taste, but not the Cab makes it more elegant than your average Malbec. Would suggest pairing with a pork dish, perhaps mushrooms.

9/30/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 3 hours. Beautiful fruity, but not too jammy profile typical for Oakville. Nice elegant finish.

9/29/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needs a 3 hour decant. Slightly lower than my previous rating. Still amazing, but doesn't have the same "over the moon" qualities and not as creamy as I remember.

9/23/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needs an 8 hour decant at this point. Nice nose, complex flavors of chocolate and a dash of black pepper. Not fully accessible yet, but you can tell it was extremely well made. Holds up with steak and bleu cheese, parmesan, and many other foods.

9/21/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

This was lovely. Ready to drink. Peaked at 30 minutes in the glass. Elegant and perfumy fruit notes. Goes with bacon and ligher meats/seafood.

9/16/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Ready to drink and continues to evolve in the glass. Strawberries and light elegance. Hard to find this type of quality outside of Burgundy. Went well with red snapper and I assume other types of fish or chicken.

9/9/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 4 hours, but it was likely ready to drink before that. Tastes like a Brunello worth 3 times the price. Evolves from earthy tart cherry to a fruitier profile. Went well with seafood pasta and lasagna.

9/2/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needs a 6 hour decant at this point. Perfume of smoke and medicinal aromas. Taste of black pepper, bell pepper, dark fruits, leather, and a little licorice. Very earthy. Great with steak, BBQ, and bleu cheese.

8/26/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needs a 6 hour decant for the full fruit profile to shine. Definitely more fruity than earthy. Went with every meat we had at the Brazilian rodizio grill.

7/23/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Ready to drink. Elegant and refreshing

7/23/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Needs a 2 day decant or wait 5 more years.

7/15/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Much more open than 7 months ago. Needs a 6 hour decant. Beautiful integration of fruit and smoke. Nice complexity without being overpowering. Will continue to improve with age.

7/14/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

A little more open than last year. Perfumy fruit bursts from the bottle upon opening. Still needs a long decant (4-6 hours) for the earthiness of the terroir to show. Very finely integrated and well made. Lots of character already. Will continue to evolve as it ages.

7/8/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Same score as before, except it might be starting to enter a closed period. Had to decant 3 hours this time for it to be ready to drink. Beautiful integration of earth and fruit. Exquisite.

6/25/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 6 hours. Delightful bursts of earthiness mixed with fruit on the nose and great follow through in the mouth. Fruitier than the typical Howell Mountain. If you prefer the classic earthly vegetable profile, this may be a bit too fruity for you. Went well with short ribs.

6/24/2023 - happy712 Likes this wine:

Decanted 8 hours. Didn’t need that long to be very good. Extremely well made wine. Classy Napa elegance. Fruity, but not too much. Finely integrated with a kick on the long finish.