8/28/2022 - Motz wrote:

Drank over three days.

Wow! It still needs air, but it has begun to flesh out. The wine's abundant tannic substance has begun to unwind and in its present form makes for a powerful tasting experience.

Tight on the first day, while delivering tremendous grip. The second day revealed an exceptionally broad and deep Barbaresco, particularly for the release price. The wine has added noteworthy purple fruit elements, along with the bright red fruits that it has consistently shown. Stunning on the third day, achieving striking enchantment and purity. Seamless throughout.

The wine has just begun showing secondary elements, and nothing tertiary. This bottle had no less than fifteen years ahead of it, probably twenty or more. If drinking in the near to medium term, decant for four+ hours and brace for a swift kick in the backside. Tanninphobes beware!

5/4/2022 - Z1nnfull wrote:

No way this is a 94
Barely varietally correct
Tastes like an unknown white wine $5 house glass of wine
Cline (Sonoma) at almost half the price is significantly better.

7/19/2022 - Burgundy Al wrote:

Hotel bar BTG. Lush fruit even if a bit simple, a bit modern, a bit oaky, and then also slightly tannic for optimal near-term enjoyment. Still, a nice enough glass.

5/29/2022 - RSLyss wrote:

Pop ‘n’ pour from 375ml

Nose: Strawberry, raspberry, ripe plum and maybe a bit of rhubarb. Toasty also, but elegant.

Taste: Oh yes. Currant, cherry compote, background hints of blackberry with a good underpinning of minerals and touches of cedar. Such silky texture, tannins are beautifully integrated into the finish where they raise up a bit but that’s to be expected.

What a compelling offering, and at the price point honestly is probably one of the best QPR deals out there. I’ve had many vintages of this bottling and this is one of the very best. Superb now, will absolutely sing with a short to medium term lay down

RSL BS Rating - 94

3/7/2022 - MC wrote:

Decanted 1 hour. Dark, ripe fruit - the warmth of the vintage shows. Tannins still show, and this will probably be better with a bit more age, but drinks okay now with some air. This is a very well made wine and great for the price but I do prefer the profile of the '16 and '17. A-

1/29/2022 - rkww Likes this wine:

With a three hour decant, the 2016 Altagracia showed a gorgeous aroma profile worthy of the Eisele name: black plum, black cherry, dark chocolate, and savory herbs abounded. So too did tannins (ripe, yet astringent) and alcohol (burning high at 14.8%). Those characteristics may come into balance with each other someday, but I can't imagine this wine ever really getting to the place where it feels like a strong $130 buy. It is well-made and pleasing enough, and it has potential to improve slightly with 2-5 more years of bottle age. For my taste, though, Calistoga has once again proven too hot.

12/29/2020 - Fred_Bo Likes this wine:

This is PERFEEEEECTION!!!!! great for lunch and sandwich consumption

1/24/2021 - Fred_Bo Likes this wine:

Incredible and interesting nose

12/20/2020 - camben wrote:

Took a long wile to open
Probably not the best vintage of this wine
However
Super delicious delicate flavors that are trademarks of this producer?
I can’t afford the conterno Barolo
Every time I taste this wine which I think is from 3 vineyards
It has delicious delicate dtrawberry with a touch of kushberry

11/24/2020 - camben wrote:

Soft nose
Bright acid
Starting to open up (2hr)

Would be careful where you buy this
I definitely got a diluted bottle from twm

Not worth it
Js sold out on this

I’d stay away from bacci all together
Till they get their house in order

11/29/2020 - Owlbass wrote:

Ripe cherry, earth, slight mushroom. Great balance of acid and tannins. Nose is very floral

5/2/2020 - bjamesclark wrote:

100% Viognier aged 14 months sur lie in 60% Neutral French oak, 30% Concrete vats and 10% Stainless steel.
Undoubtedly the most terroir driven Viogniers in the states.
Scents are full on the nose that show a chalky edge with hints of saline to the aromas of Meyer lemon, white peach, apricot, nectarine and tropical melon that show notes of rich meringue, lemongrass, jasmine, honeysuckle, acacia and river stones.
The palate is beautifully textured, full and supple. Rich Flavors coat the palate in notes of luscious peach, lemon curd, nectarine, apricot and meringue with notes of jasmine, honeysuckle, chalk and saline that are long on the attack. Juicy and fresh acidity help keep the wine balanced. Long and complex through the finish.
Damn good juice

10/6/2020 - bjamesclark wrote:

100% Tinto Fino from vines averaging 40+ years old.
Brough up in 95% French and 5% American oak (80% new barrels) for 12 months with additional time spent in bottle.
Sensuous on the nose with notes of leather and tobacco that come with scents of coconut, dill, baking spice, vanilla, rose petal, cherry, pomegranate, wild berry, licorice, herbs and earth.
The palate is full bodied with gripping-full tannins and bright acid structure. Spice notes play on entry with notes of baking spice, vanilla, toast, coconut and licorice that mingle with cherry, wild berry, pomegranate reduction, leather, earth, tobacco and herbs. The slightly dusty tannins build through the long finish.
92/93

11/7/2020 - fitzi wrote:

Harkening back to my last note, this wine seems to be settling into the yawn category. Still showing ample, sandy tannins with, really, little to accompany them by way of flavor or aroma. There was no sense of flaw, the wine’s not bad, just kind of a tannic nothingburger. Does not develop appreciably with time, after a little initial loosening up, and there’s no sense of hidden depth or complexity.

Disappointing, considering the reputation of the region and commune, this being a year when the regular Barbaresco and the reserves were blended together. I’ll start working my way through the rest of my bottles with weekday meals, I guess. It’s back to Burgundies and Loire reds for me.

3/23/2017 - camben wrote:

This takes a long time to show itself
Still not sure

3/22/2017 - camben Likes this wine:

Drank over several hours. Got better and better. Bone dry. Not a fruity dolcetto. Complex and fantastic
If you enjoy this varietal
Get some

10/22/2016 - Loren Sonkin wrote:

Ordered off the list at Bistro 501 in Lafayette IN for $98. While a decanter might have been nice, it showed well for its youth. This was the base bottling. Ruby in color with some purple at the core. The nose has nice. Very clean, slightly earthy, plenty of purple fruit with some red. Plums and black berries and slight dark cherries. On the palate, there is a good streak of acidity that comes off as spritzy at first but it is the acidity. With air and food, it settles down. Plenty of black raspberries and plums. Some depth. Firm tannins. Needs time but not a whole lot. Worked well with the food. A nice wine that one doesn't often find on restaurant lists anymore, especially in rural Indiana.

4/3/2013 - camben wrote:

Wow, great purity and freshness. This will be as close to instant gratification as you can get in Bordeaux. Blueberry, raspberry syrup, currant and mocha. Great extraction

5/2/2014 - Collector1855 wrote:

Bordeaux 2009 vs. 2010 - Check in on 50 well known Chateaux: Dark purple. Discrete nose of some dark fruit with lots of alcohol. On the palate rather “hot and hollow”, not much aroma, not enough fruit to support the strong and drying tannins. Despite his success with Chateau Pavie, Gerard Perse still needs to learn that making a great wine is more than concentrating grape juice from a so so terroirs.

10/24/2015 - Purple Tooth wrote:

Big, sweet, dry, balanced, long...raw mushrooms and chocolate ending...it's like an exotic California. DRINK or HOLD....great wine to drink stoned!

8/5/2015 - camben Likes this wine:

tasted like proper pauillac from a great year. good value at 20 bucks. currant spice and oak

4/10/2015 - camben Likes this wine:

Nailed this to the vineyard, vintage and producer in a blind tasting. I did however work for this dude for a brief stint. Awesome wine, great people making it. I think the consistency has improved as well.

6/24/2014 - Ben Christiansen wrote:

Ah, has the wood of brunello on it. What a delightful smell -- chocolate, cedar, wood smoke. This one is very defined and precise. No barrique here - all large Solveniana oak casks. What a nose.

And then the palate is cedary and intense, very young and bright. A bit brighter than I remember it being.

Ciacci and Piccolomini are royal family names. He died in the '70 and she died in the '80, and then the entire property went to the gardener (there were no children). And then the gardener started producing wine. And he was born on the estate.

Comes up with dark chocolate. Just open. Fun to see where it goes!

7/18/2012 - rfm9882 Likes this wine:

This is a tasting note written from memory as an ode to one of the better wines I have ever had.

When I opened my first bottle of this blend the aromas leapt out of the bottle. Flowers, licorice, earth, and an unnamable smell like the last gasps of an empty perfume bottle belonging to an queen of some exotic, forgotten kingdom.
The flavors were fantastic, with dark chocolate, high-toned black raspberry, and a backbone of charcoal mineral all in balance.
As amazing as the flavors were, the texture was even better. How this panoply of grapes could unify into a liquid with the body and feel of cold, molten glass is a magic trick I cannot figure out.
Since the time when I had this wine this past summer, it has collapsed somewhat. The tannins have come out and the fruit is hiding. I have two last bottles. I am hoping with time this will reemerge.
A more bitter sweet example of the ephemeral nature of all things I cannot conjure in my mind, nor would i want to.

7/12/2014 - bullmrkt wrote:

Flat and past prime IMO. From a 375 though...

4/2/2014 - mjnickel wrote:

This is going to be an odd tasting note, but hang with me and don't over think it. But this wine makes me want some biscuits and gravy. You know, the southern staple of fresh homemade biscuits and sawmill gravy.

This is not to say this wine tastes like either of those things, or would go well with either, but there's something here that is fatty and thick, but uplifting enough that you could full yourself with it for half a day.

There's some nice tropical fruit here, with just a hint of a grassy note, that takes a backseat to the oily, oakiness of the, um, well, oak. It's not overbearing, but about 15% more acid would have made this kinda special. As it is, it's still pretty good. I'd drink it again if you gave me a bottle. Hell, I'm drinking it right now as I type this. But I could also pick up a bottle of La Crema at just about any wine shop for $10 less, and enjoy it just as well.

12/4/2013 - Charlie Carnes Does not like this wine:

OK. This was the last bottle of spoof that I ever bought. I was caught up by the score and hadn't yet realized where my palate was heading. With that said, this is archetypical modern homogenized red Bordeaux type wine that can be had on five continents, and gets really high scores from numerous myriad "professional" wine critics. My wife asked for a red wine tonight, something like a 2008 Jordan would have been perfect. Well I was boxing these for the barter holler and took a chance and thought Julie would like it. Her description:

-a little red wine
-a little cigar ash tray
-a little saltwater
-a little flour/roux to hold it together

I told her she has made the perfect description for my mind's eye Modern spoofy wine.

12/15/2013 - erb wrote:

Drinking really well. Black fruit vanilla and baking spices. Well balanced and nice long finish of cigar box

12/10/2012 - billyp852 wrote:

Great full bodied, creamy, buttery chardonnay. Wife loved it!

8/19/2013 - zoom34 Likes this wine:

Excellent and definately planning to purchase again.

5/25/2013 - mojowine wrote:

Finally broke down and tried one. Decanted 7 hours. Rich, creamy, smokey, smooth. Still really young, with tons of oak. Will take years before the fruit shows up. Consensus WOTN against Quilceda Creek, Silver Oak and a Carlisle syrah. That WA guy is an idiot. If anybody wants to sell me theirs based on his rating, I am buying!

4/6/2013 - TashNYC wrote:

Poured by Melissa. Green, effervescent, floral. Delicious. Good with balsamic chicken
$20 retail

10/20/2012 - BobJohnson1 Likes this wine:

Light straw gold. Big nose of pear. Medium bodied, flavors of orchard fruits, honey, flowers, hay and minerals. Long finish with a slight bitter note that I kinda liked. I felt that this grape variety could have easily gone clunky, but the excellent winemaking keep it light and balenced. I was really excited to try this wine, being a hugh Tempier fan and this being the first bottle of white I have been able to lay my hands on. Not at the level of their Rose or Red, but still very good. This wine gave me the feeling of sitting on a large rock in a wild meadow basking in warm September sunshine.

4/27/2013 - tgkswine wrote:

Hoping this will get better with more age but don't really think so. Overextracted and the fruit elements not really in harmony with one another. The finish was a bit bitter as well.
I am emphasizing the least desirable elements because others sharing that are not used to better wines were raving.