4/22/2024 - KPB wrote:

Pale straw with a nose centered on lemony citrus and waxy yellow-current fruit. Tart, midweight, finish is perhaps a bit short. A good effort but surprisingly soft and unfocused for Forge in a strong vintage. Enjoyed the pairing with an udon / tofu / eggplant dish and a salad with an Asian dressing.

4/19/2024 - KPB wrote:

A delicious Pinot noir and quite a bargain, too: although I paid $90 for one bottle, you can buy six at $66 per bottle now. I might! Deeply colored with a nose showing black cherry, violets, crème brûlée. Elusive hint of cola very late on the nose. On the palate, velvety structured with firm tannins, medium acidity, very long finish. Fantastic aging potential here. 91 now, could reach 93-94 at full maturity.

4/17/2024 - KPB Likes this wine:

I really like this wine, although it isn’t yet at what will be its peak. Light cranberry color, nose showing red licorice, musk, tobacco, spice. Taut in the mouth with a kind of nervous energy, very long, mineral finish.

4/14/2024 - KPB Likes this wine:

Deep garnet - purple, with a soaring nose, rich texture and remarkable depth. Drinks well now but still very primary. I would hold until 2032, then drink up by 2045. 90 now, 92-94 at peak.

4/12/2024 - KPB Does not like this wine:

Dark violet, nose dominated by creosote, lavender, menthol, against a restrained red fruit background. The tarry dimension is also evident on the palate, which seems wild and intense. Should be better with a year or two to integrate in a cool cellar, but kind of awkward now. I initially thought this might eventually merit 91, but over an hour in the glass it felt less and less integrated, so I’ll score it 89 for now.

With more air, I felt that this slipped and developed a vegetal note.

4/10/2024 - KPB Likes this wine:

Cabernet/Syrah/Mourvedre, dominated by Cabernet.

Very dark, almost black core. The nose here overlays a sweet tone reminiscent of cassis sorbet on a brooding, slightly musky backdrop that reminds me more of a lusty CDR red for early drinking. Richly flavorful on the expansive palate. Fantastic choice right now for pasta, pizza, other dishes with tomatoes and olive oil, cheese. But I would drink this soon.

4/10/2024 - KPB wrote:

Past its prime, drinkable but strange.

4/9/2024 - KPB wrote:

Quite nice! Medium yellow, lemony citrus notes on green apple with a touch of vanilla custard, rich but enough acidity to frame the wine.

4/3/2024 - KPB wrote:

Grenache is a curious grape and one aspect is how it behaves when exposed to oxygen. I’ve seen this in the Rhône, but not often in the US. This bottle was light on opening, like a rose, yet today (24 hours later) has become much darker, showing a blackish tint. The nose evolved quite a bit too: muted on opening, but much more complex and extroverted today, showing strawberry and red licorice, violets, scorched earth. The palate was dull and sour on opening, but after a day shows more balance, the vinegar impression is gone, and I find strawberries and a bit of spice.

All this makes this a hard bottle to rate. Certainly, it needs some years to evolve. Once the wine is really ready to drink (this vintage, I mean), I’m visualizing a lighter style of Grenache similar to what you find in the Spanish mountains or in an area like Vacqueryas, for younger vines that tend to give a somewhat excessive yield unless green fruit is dropped, and that haven’t yet developed the really deep, root systems Grenache needs in a hot dry climate. So this probably ripened a bit too quickly, and the fruit didn’t mature as much as you ideally want. The same vines at age 25 could give a wine similar to Charvin’s CDP, but right now the stronger similarity is with Commando G, a wine from Spain that is very trendy but in fact not my favorite. There are people who imagine Commando G to be Rayas, yet cheap. But they are being unrealistic about what a truly great Grenache tastes like when young. This, at any rate, is how Commando G used to taste early in the story of that vineyard and producer, and right on release.

I’m going to score this 87 based on where it is today. Light, drinkable, but too tart to really enjoy without food and lacking the midpalate concentration you look for in a mature Grenache wine. At maturity I would expect a darker, spicier wine, but perhaps still excessively sour. Even so, I might raise my score to 89 or 90, if the spice you want to see on Grenache emerges here. But I think the winery and vineyard has potential and that the issue is some mix of a hot summer and a young vineyard. Not every summer will be hot, and the vines should dial in as they mature. At that point, with full maturity and low yield, we could see something special.

I myself might not wait to find out: I can easily find Grenache reds better matched to my taste from the Rhône.

3/27/2024 - KPB wrote:

Pale gold, with a nose more centered on lemon and white grapefruit than yellow gooseberry — unusual for Chave. But the varietal signature is very evident on the palate, with a saturated and fairly intense yellow fruit cire embedded in a waxy, rich body and trailing to the saline finish one usually finds in a young Chave blanc. Not the very best ever, but very good.

Pair with seafood in a creamy sauce, chicon au gratin (our choice tonight), or a cheese course.

3/21/2024 - KPB Likes this wine:

This is drinking incredibly well tonight. Deep maroon, tawny rim. Meaty aroma on the nose, then reveals red currents, soy, toffee, Asian spices. Rich yet lively, very long finish.

3/10/2024 - KPB wrote:

Medium dark ruby, with a mature nose showing pomegranate, plums, cocoa, beeswax, spice. Midweight palate is somehow soft and lush without the density those terms normally evoke, long, quite lovely. Perhaps not a top vintage for Nacional, but very enjoyable now and positioned to gain a little more complexity over the coming decade.

I drink a lot of vintage port, and have had many vintages of Nacional. I know that some will be unhappy that I’m rating this 93, but you have to call them as you see them! The bottle is perfect, the cork was actually in great shape, and it came from a trusted source. I really have tasted many of the all time great vintage ports of the last decades — I’m not a naive taster.

3/8/2024 - KPB wrote:

Open for business!

Cranberry or pomegranate with a darker core. Nose showing some cola notes, boatloads of sweet spice, red fruits lurking in the background. Very silky and unexpectedly light on the palate, a bit tart, pomegranate flavors. Finish is long and has a saline character that really stands out.

2/26/2024 - KPB wrote:

This wine has relaxed a little and opened up nicely. My prior TN is still a good description, but for this bottle, a 93pt score seems more appropriate.

12/17/2023 - KPB wrote:

The 2017 is deeply colored fading to a saturated plum red near the rim. On opening, very aromatic nose centers on menthol up front layered over sweet cassis and blueberry, lilac, wet stone. Overnight the menthol faded and a crème de cassis aroma became dominant. Tannic but not harsh, tart fruit, extremely long finish: nothing overdone here. On day one the mouthfeel was actually a little more balanced. After a day open, the tannins were slightly drier and the acidity a bit more evident: a signature of a growing season punctuated by really extreme heat spikes. Touch of bitter walnut emerges slowly.

So, very enjoyable now, but needs 3 hours in a decanter. I would say 91-93, but 91 right this minute. I’ll put it in as 93.

If you follow Ketan Mody, this resembles his 2018 Monticello, which is his best wine to date for my palate. I’m also reminded of the 2011 Promontory at an early stage, before they racked it into those huge oak vats from Barolo that finally tamed the tannins, and of the Bond Vecina 2017. Nobody had an easy time in 2017.

The approachability of this bottle has me feeling that the 2016 and 2018 will probably drink well on the young side, I’ll try one of them next.

12/11/2023 - KPB wrote:

One of the rare estates that made and released a 2020, Somnium must have been very lucky. This was a vintage that was looking amazing until the Glass fire broke out and devastated Napa valley. Choking smoke left many grapes tainted and worthless. But Somnium apparently harvested some fruit early and bottled a very appealing 2020.

Opened two hours ago:

Dark, with a lot of baby fat, the 2020 is very aromatic and very appealing. I get cassis and blueberries, hints of menthol, freshly baked brioche, pastry cream. Richly flavorful with a distinctive black olive tapenade note, long, soft tannins. I would drink this now and over the next eight to ten years.

12/6/2023 - KPB wrote:

Needed air. Very darkly colored, with a really fragrant nose of ripe blackberries, dried rose petals, scented geranium, toffee candies. Powerful yet balanced, the palate seamlessly blends cocoa with cassis liqueur, bitter orange and roast chestnuts. Very long finish.

Outstanding, but what would you ideally serve this with? Might pair best with a very garlicky, gamey leg of lamb rubbed with herbes de province and a strong olive oil. Or cassoulet, perhaps.

11/30/2023 - KPB wrote:

Deeply colored, the 2022 TFL is a stunning wine from Sineann with the potential to merit 95-97 once it settles from being bottled and the nose opens up. Deep purple. With coaxing, the nose reveals pomegranate juice, basmati rice, caramel custard. Long and richly flavorful with a tart, juicy, sour cherry palate that trails into a saline finish. 93 now, 95-97 in a few years.

11/9/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

I last tried this in 2016 as a barrel sample yet, 7 years later, it remains remarkably unchanged.

A lovely, seductive wine, the St Eden is very drinkable today. Deeply colored with a restrained nose showcasing ripe cassis fruit, inflected by hints of menthol and garrigue. Rich, soft palate is very long and finishes on a sweet note. Just wonderful!

10/18/2023 - KPB wrote:

With one hour to breath: A good midrange Napa Cabernet, deeply colored, plums and spice on the nose, balanced but a bit bitter and harsh on the palate, which is lively and has a long soft finish. I would put this at perhaps 89 with the potential to merit 90-91 if the stern midpalate resolves. I own one more bottle and will hold it for three or four years before revisiting.

10/16/2023 - KPB wrote:

Ruby colored, with a very elegant nose scented by lilac and creosote. But needs time to open up on the palate, which is light and has a lovely structure, but is also currently a little tannic and closed. I would hold for a few years, but it should be a lovely wine at peak.

10/10/2023 - KPB wrote:

Vivid deep ruby, nose is lively with red currents / cranberries, the barest hint of spice, rose petals, beeswax. Tart and cleanly delineated fruit on the long palate, fades to an endless saline finish.

9/29/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

Thus chenin is light with a nose scented by pineapple, guava, and lemon. You expect it to be a bit sweet but in fact on the palate it is a surprisingly tart and clean wine that shows attractive balance. I like it!

9/22/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

Medium garnet, with an exuberant nose showcasing blackberry syrup, green pepper, mint. Sweet yet tart, tannins very gentle and polished, minerality is striking. Excellent wine!

9/4/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

Very deeply colored with an instant sex appeal, the Rasa Principia is definitely in its zone. The nose centers on red plums and raspberry compote with hints of spice and leather. Tart but balanced, intense fruit, very polished tannins, long finish fades to a distinctive cocoa note. Could merit an even higher score down the road!

8/27/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

My reaction on pulling the cork was centered on a bretty aroma — I don’t love brett, and was worried that it might be pretty dominating. But in fact it quickly blew off. With two hours to breathe, medium violet, and the nose has recentered around sour cherry, leather and crème caramel. If you swirl you pick up lavender and herbs de province, and the bretty aroma is completely in the background and comes off as a sort of waxy note, nothing troubling. Fruit is ripe without losing its acidity… soft tannins and long finish. I’ll call this a 91pt bottle, but I would have scored it lower when I initially pulled the cork. Could reach 92-94 at full maturity around age 15.

8/23/2023 - KPB wrote:

Pale straw, nose starts out musky, then centers on citrus, yellow gooseberry and beeswax. Clean, tart palate. I like this as a food wine. It would be even better without the musky note.

8/21/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

This is great! Medium deep maroon, with an instantly appealing nose of cassis, menthol, crème caramel, grilled chestnuts. Richly flavorful, spreads over the palate and wraps your mouth in cocoa and velvet. Very long finish.

8/21/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

I purchased six of these early in the spring and have been pulling corks once every few weeks all summer. By now the 2021 is in a fantastic place -- if you own it, open one! These wines do age quite well (I've tasted them at 5, 10, even 15 years) but they peak during their first 2 or 3. So the 2021 is hitting its window.

Quite a deep pink -- in this season of Barbie, I would call it a "lurid" pink, too dark for fans of the film. Almost red. Nose is just what I love in Mordoree Tavel -- ripe Griotte cherry, orange essential oils, hints of vanilla and creme caramel. Tangy and yet with intense fruit flavors on the palate and the signature almost saline finish that Mordoree RdB does better than anyone. This is really a tremendously good wine for the domain, and for the vintage too -- a very hot summer.

I don't think anyone makes Rose better than Mordoree. And within their lineup, the Reine des Bois is my favorite. A bargain, too!

8/20/2023 - KPB wrote:

Drank half on day 1, recorked and left it on the counter, tried another glass day 2, finished it on day 3. The Beta Monticello seemed like three different wines.

On day 1 the wine was very closed, rather tannic, not hugely appealing. But it really transformed as time passed, and by day 3 was in a totally different place — I ended up regretting that I didn’t start with just one glass on day 1, to leave more for day 3!

The Monticello is a medium bodied Bordeaux-styled wine, and although it is shown as 100% Cabernet Sauvignon, left me wondering if Ketan might have a bit of Cabernet franc in the blend. On the nose you find sour cherries and mushrooms, some spicy notes, wax. A slightly tart structure frames the palate, which features mature fruit that hasn’t really become at all sweet or heavy. Firm but polished tannins. Long mineral finish.

This is a wine that can reward another decade of aging, but if you give it enough time to breathe is interesting now. Not one to pop and pour, and frankly not a wine to serve to guests who love the sweet, hot style of California Cabernet. But if you want a wine that expresses the site more directly and that was harvested when ripe but not overripe, Beta Monticello is a good option.

I’m scoring this bottle 91 based on current showing. I actually still think it has the potential for a much higher score if given enough time to age,and will hide my last bottle in a corner to try ten years from now. By then, it may merit 95.

8/15/2023 - KPB wrote:

Best of the Chêne Bleu wines i tried, the Héloïse is a profound, complex Syrah-dominated blend that easily could compete with the best wines from Gigondas or elsewhere in the region. Deeply colored, with a varietal nose centered on spicy plum compote, crème caramel, beeswax. Swirling you find more and more here: hints of scorched earth, lavender, musk. Rich yet tart, with a distinctive note of cocoa that emerges on the palate, which is quite long and has a soft finish. Highly recommended and mature now.

8/13/2023 - KPB wrote:

A dark, powerful wine with aromas centered on blue fruits with scorched earth, creosote, garrigue. Palate is intense and alcohol level a bit high. I’m regretting that I opened this bottle: it should be better in a few years. On the other hand I don’t see it as a super long ager unless it somehow finds the balance it currently lacks. If you open it now, either decant for an hour or pull the cork a day early and leave the bottle very loosely covered, like with a tissue, in a cool dark place for 24-36 hours.

8/8/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

An excellent Gigondas! Needed an hour to open up, then shows a complex nose with plums, garrigue, toffee. Soft, long palate. Hint of musk adds to the mystique. I'm very impressed.

8/6/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

I'm an unapologetic fan of this style of Rhone rose. Excellent, with a lovely pale pink color (Barbie fans, this is for you!), fragrant nose showcasing crushed rose petals, sour cherry fruit, orange blossom, and a crisply incisive palate. Fantastic match for chicken, Israeli salads during a hot spell here.

8/4/2023 - KPB wrote:

Great value. Needed two hours to unwind, then medium ruby with a nose dominated by cranberry fruit but with a musky overlay. Behind that, brioche and some sort of sweet liqueur. I could do with a bit less of the musk. On the palate, tasty, tart, rather long, excellent minerality. Even better on day two, just slowly breathing in the half bottle in a cool, dark spot ion the counter.

8/4/2023 - KPB wrote:

Next to the 2014 and 2015 La Singuliere, most of my group felt that the 2010 was a less distinctive Chinon, perhaps a tiny bit past its optimal drinking window. Black cherry with mushrooms and green pepper notes, a touch flabby... quite a good wine, no question, but the two others were better.

8/2/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

Opens with air, but an hour or two really makes a noticeable difference.

Very deeply colored, almost black, with a gentle nose showing ripe plums, mushroom, hints of menthol. Stunning on the supple, endless palate which reveals rich cassis fruit, the fading remnants of an acidic bite that probably was very evident when the wine was released and soft, polished tannins. The mineral lift on the finish carries it out almost endlessly. Mature and exceptionally enjoyable right now. 94 on day one, but I bet I'll revise my score upward after 24 hours to breath in the half-finished bottle.

7/23/2023 - KPB wrote:

Dark in color, fragrant, ripe fruit offset by excellent acidity and soft tannins. A food wine.

7/23/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

Deep maroon… Dark fruits, leather, almonds, mushroom, copper. Tannic but with enough fruit to give balance. On day one I found cocoa and creme caramel, but that aroma fades by day two.

Recommend a gentle one-hour decant before serving.

7/23/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

Deep maroon. Fresh brioche, black currents, mushroom, green peppers. Compared to ‘15, fruit is a bit sweeter, acidity more pronounced. Finish a bit shorter.

Really needed a gentle decant, at least one hour.

7/21/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

We made a soupe de poisson and this wine was an ideal accompanyment. A food wine, pure chenin blanc, the Raffault 2019 is light in color with a varietal nose of yellow gooseberry and beeswax. Crisp and clean, with a hint of reduction that rapidly blows off with air. Pair with any seafood dish.

7/20/2023 - KPB wrote:

An excellent rose. Pale rose, complex floral nose highlighted by bitter orange, toasted almonds, fresh hay. Very clean mineral palate is dry and shows saline notes. Trails off to a slightly bitter finish that works very well with food.

7/17/2023 - KPB wrote:

Rather dull, but absolutely drinkable.

7/4/2023 - KPB wrote:

This bottle benefited from a very long slow-ox. On opening, it was disjointed and in fact I set it to the side overnight, but over 12 hours really came around and after 24 is excellent. Just a closed bottle, one glass consumed, loosely recorded and left in a cool, dark spot..

Deeply colored, with a nose showing black raspberry, hints of menthol, black-olive tapenade. On the palate, full flavored and tart, rich, soft tannins, ends on an agreeably bitter note that complements food very well.

7/3/2023 - KPB wrote:

Brett bomb :-(

6/29/2023 - KPB wrote:

Les distinctive than my very favorite vintages of Cayron, the 2020 is clean and varietal and at this stage, very drinkable. It should age well but I think is unlikely to develop the wild, hedonistic bouquet that this producer achieves in the best years. I’m guessing that one of the grapes normally included into their blend was knocked out by the spring frosts in 2020, but this is purely conjecture. 89 now, should reach 92 in five or six years.

6/25/2023 - KPB Likes this wine:

I agree with other TNs: has a lot in common with a good Pinot Noir from Oregon (although Sangiovese makes more sense). Medium ruby, nose centered on ripe sour cherry with complicating spicy aromas that lend a kind of intellectual heft, light body, tart and food friendly with wonderfully long saline finish. At the price, sensational. I can visualize a group of students in Bologna at a local pizzeria (a high art in that part of Italy), a few bottles of this, in a passionate debate about solving the world’s problems….

6/21/2023 - KPB wrote:

Quite good, and with a year in the cellar, could be fantastic. I’ll write my TN based on the wine right now:

Attractive pink-apricot, with a nose centered on griotte cherry, orange peel, Ceylon tea. On the palate, a concentrated, intensely flavored wine with a slightly bitter note that accents food very nicely and a really long mineral finish. Lacks the finesse of the very best Tavel vintages from Mordoree but is solidly in the family style and in light of the scorching summer, quite a success. Highly recommended.

6/19/2023 - KPB wrote:

A excellent wine!

Straw yellow with a greenish tint. The 2019 has a complex nose dominated by white grapefruit but with nuances that bring the barest hints of honey, hazelnuts, lemon marmalade. The palate has a rich texture, very flavorful, good acidity but not sharp, saline finish that trails out for a solid teo or three minutes.

6/11/2023 - KPB wrote:

An interesting wine: vinified to be quite intense, but then must have been aged in oak - but not at all the kind of sweet oak you get in California Chardonnay. Here, they went with a more austere oak that brought tannic structure, bitterness, and at the same time, a supple mouthfeel.

So, let’s get technical. Open for about a hour now. Straw yellow, limpid texture. The nose centers on varietal fruit with white grapefruit pith, beeswax. On the palate, a rich wine with a slight malty bitterness echoing that grapefruit pith, or perhaps bitter almond. Best with another ten years in the cellar… not bad now but needs time to integrate.

90 now. Down the road, I can see how this could merit a much higher score, but to get there it needs to integrate and I honestly don’t know if it will manage that. Call it 90-93? By which I mean 90 now, as it is, but with the potential to improve and maybe to reach 93 for my palate.

This is drinkable now, but would need to be served with food. I had it with grilled bronzini cooked with garlic and preserved lemon, pretty intense flavors.