6/26/2017 - drycab wrote:

Oxidized. Bummer.

11/9/2014 - drycab wrote:

Madeirized, Dammit!! Possibly got cooked many years ago in transport.

10/17/2014 - drycab Does not like this wine:

Really bitter, nasty finish after aerating, as suggested, for over an hour. Another vote for TRB!

8/16/2014 - drycab Does not like this wine:

I took this to a restaurant based on the reviews in CT. What a mistake! This is an alcoholic mess! I was expecting huge fruit with a little bit of class but got nothing like that! I'm glad I am not buying anymore and will be looking for some unsuspecting soul to unload the rest of them on! Any suspecting folks that like this want to buy it or its kin?

7/11/2014 - drycab Likes this wine:

This bottle was popped and slow oxed for about an hour before being poured from bottle. The wine was initially a little closed, but it opened beautifully and became a complicated, engrossing California Cabernet with a new facet at almost every sip. The bottle went way too quickly!

7/11/2014 - drycab wrote:

Very simple but a little spicey California cab. Won't buy again.

5/24/2014 - drycab wrote:

Getting old and not at all classy!

5/10/2014 - drycab wrote:

Absolutely beautiful with appetizers at a restaurant. PNP out of Magnum.
Not as big a finish as a GC, but liked by all!

4/27/2014 - drycab wrote:

Of the 2 drank from magnum so far, the Blend was OK and this was undrinkable, even by the drunks at the party!

2/18/2014 - drycab Does not like this wine:

Simply put, this was the absolutely least expressive and worst bottle of wine made from BTK grapes I've ever had.

12/22/2013 - drycab wrote:

Badly (if there are degrees of crappyness) CORKED!

11/20/2013 - drycab wrote:

I am sorry to have opened this by mistake! This needs at least 5 more years in bottle to be what it will become and I was a baby killer! I thought it was a regular bottling not the blue label because I am too dimwitted to see/know the difference. It would be really nice if the labels were actually BLUE for us mentally challenged winos!!
But the potential for the wine is there as it was just beginning to be drinkable at the end of the bottle 2.5 hours after opening!

7/31/2013 - drycab wrote:

Drink up if you like this kind of thing that my wife says tastes like it came from a tin can! Maybe it's in a "dumb phase" right now but to be honest, it seems more like a dropout than a genius on vacation! Oh well, just another TRB!

7/21/2013 - drycab wrote:

An amazing 13 year old Zin!! It hides the 16% alc very well and just works.

7/17/2013 - drycab wrote:

Big and jammy on popping that just kind of died and became worse than nothing special and very alcoholic. I couldn't finish mine.

7/5/2013 - drycab wrote:

Wine of the night among some really heavy hitters!

7/5/2013 - drycab wrote:

Best Bottle since the first. Decanted for an hour where it bloomed and was what was expected. A few more years in the bottle won't hurt this at all!

7/5/2013 - drycab wrote:

Corked, but almost drinkable by some. 2nd bad bottle of this in a row!

6/16/2013 - drycab wrote:

I liked it a lot while everyone else at the table thought it was a trifle old! Drank at an Italian restaurant where the "matureness" of the wine went very well with the food. But I was the only one that thought so!

5/27/2013 - drycab Likes this wine:

It needs a few more years in bottle before it is fit to drink!

5/27/2013 - drycab Does not like this wine:

Waaaaay Past its prime which I believe was 5 years ago. Too Bad!

5/24/2013 - drycab wrote:

Big Cab, typical Mark Herold product with a lot going on beneath the huge façade. Perfect with the massive T-Bones on the charcoal Weber! This wine has at least 5 years ahead of it for the secondaries to begin to take on the fruit and become really interesting!

4/29/2013 - drycab wrote:

I find the fruit very nice but the alcohol just knocks you over the taste buds like a mixed drink! Tough to drink at first but as you get drunker, it gets easier!

3/18/2013 - drycab wrote:

Still really young. Tasted when opened and was tight and sour. Decanted at restaurant and let sit for 1.5 hours. Was much more open but still not where I'd expect an 05 California Cabernet to be at this point. Still very backward and needs about 5 more years.

3/18/2013 - drycab wrote:

Really citrusy when opened and got bigger and "sweeter" as it aired. Just kept changing in the glass and is generally a much better wine than it's price would suggest!

Seth,
I suppose I should have stated firstly that I paid $105 and secondly this is a comparison against the likes of 1996 Salon and 1995 Krug and the like. Not against any NV wines as even the MV Krug isn't as good, in my opinion, and costs more. I must do a blind tasting with a couple of these with some champagne heads and see if my opinion holds any water!

3/13/2013 - drycab wrote:

Popped and left open for an hour before consuming. Should have decanted as the wine just blossomed with time and air. Still a youngster, but good!

3/3/2013 - drycab Likes this wine:

It's Awesome!! Glad it's all mine!!!

2/15/2013 - drycab wrote:

Wonderful with the stone crab for Valentines day but after the food, it got tart and hard to drink. So, I'd say great with food but not a good quaffer right now. Needs another few years bottle time.

2/13/2013 - drycab wrote:

Absolutely amazing that a 13 year old zin can mature like this and be so elegant yet still zin-like in all of it's qualities. A great bottle of wine popped, slow oxed in bottle for an hour, then consumed at a restaurant.

2/11/2013 - drycab Does not like this wine:

Slow oxed for 3 hours, then decanted and consumed w/aged NY Strips from the grill. Not what I was expecting based on the other notes as this was a bit tart and unsettled. I wasn't impressed.

2/9/2013 - drycab wrote:

Same notes as last time except more complex secondaries. Wish I had another dozen!

2/3/2013 - drycab wrote:

Absolutely amazing what a little time will do. This has matured into a great bottle of wine! Depth, saturation and a bunch of vibrancy that keep drawing you back to the glass for another sip.

2/3/2013 - drycab wrote:

Just another bottle that proves that Bob Foley knows how to make California Cabs!

1/31/2013 - drycab wrote:

Sappy and over extracted just like his Pinots. Definately not to my taste.

1/31/2013 - drycab wrote:

This is still a bit primary for my tastes but getting better and better. I may wait another 5 years before the next one.

1/31/2013 - drycab wrote:

Just a beautiful wine getting better and better with time.

1/31/2013 - drycab Does not like this wine:

Sweet, sappy, thick and not at all what I drink Pinot for. Glad I have none left!

1/26/2013 - drycab wrote:

"Fresh" out of the bottle it was actually a great merlot! BUT...within 10 minutes, it was gone! Poured out outside against the fence!!

1/26/2013 - drycab wrote:

Miserable over the hill bottle that I am not sure started its life as something I would have bought. I hate gifts of bad wine!

1/24/2013 - drycab wrote:

OH Yea, there is such a thing as a good merlot from California?!
Great bottle!

1/24/2013 - drycab wrote:

No Decanter available but a stellar bottle of wine again!

1/19/2013 - drycab Likes this wine:

Popped and Not decanted but left open for an hour before pouring and drinking. Pleasantly surprised by this. Was expecting a typical big California Syrah but got this Rhone style that was much more complicated and no where near as heavy. Really good but took some getting used to!

1/7/2013 - drycab wrote:

Still lots of time left as there are considerable tannins and acid for the long haul. The fruit is there to hold it too. Now, a full day in the decanter would probably have made it better, but I just couldn't as it is so good now!

1/1/2013 - drycab wrote:

Popped and poured from Mag. Nice but that's about it.

12/30/2012 - drycab Likes this wine:

Absolute Alban! Pepper, Olives, Black Fruits, Smoke, Tar, everything you'd expect and more. Aired in a decanter for aboput 15 minutes before beginning the consumption with lambchops at dinner and finished about 3 hours later while watching movie. Over time the hard edges smoothed out and wine just sang from the glass. Another great Alban Syrah.

12/27/2012 - drycab Likes this wine:

Still really young, needed a couple of hours in the decanter to get enough air to show some real presence. It's actually a typical 2006 in that they all seem to need time and I'll wait a while before I open any more from any producer!

12/23/2012 - drycab wrote:

This was popped and poured. Was really nice upon opening but faded over the next couple of hours. It became a licorice drink and the fruit kind of faded to the background. Not what I was expecting at all.

12/12/2012 - drycab wrote:

Pop and pour, which wasn't a good thing for this stuff. I was thin out of the bottle, putting on weight over time but never matched the expectations. 3 left, we'll see where they go.

12/11/2012 - drycab wrote:

This bottle didn't have any of the class that the last one had. It was kind of an "Oregon Pinot" that I didn't taste before. We'll see what happens with the last bottle in the future.

12/10/2012 - drycab wrote:

Tasted and poured out! Cabernet from Georgia? Glad I didn't pay for it!