3/23/2024 - signotim Likes this wine:

Red fruit, floral notes, and light baking spice on the nose. The palate is quite savory with red currant fruit, herbal accents, some grippy tannins, and a medium-long finish. This is a very nice Haut-Bailly and it should drink well through the end of the decade.

12/19/2022 - signotim wrote:

Heavy oak spice. Too much for my liking. But nice dark fruit underneath and a soft, silky texture. I will let my second bottle rest for another few years and hope that the wood spices recede a bit.

12/20/2023 - reeseling Likes this wine:

Some Pauillac characteristic but not showing much depth. The moderate tannins may resolve in a few years but secondary/tertiary development may never happen. My remaining six bottles will be opened one per year. Hopefully will be pleasantly surprised.

10/8/2023 - signotim Likes this wine:

Half a glass at a work dinner and what a memorable half a glass it was. Beautiful nebbiolo with a kaleidoscope of floral notes on the boquet... it almost made me dizzy smelling this wine. And perfectly pure dried cherry fruit with tar on the palate with a soft, delicate texture. I could have put the whole bottle away but this one went very quickly. A heavenly wine even at a young age and I can only image the heights it will reach in another 10 - 20 years. 97+

7/14/2023 - JimHow Likes this wine:

There was a reason why I bought a case of 2016 Labegorce, and it is borne out by my lone remaining free bottle on my wine rack, what a pleasant surprise, I had THIRTEEN bottles, one extra, I could drink this wine tonight after a wild week while still leaving my remaining case untouched (for another 5+ years). I mean, I haven't looked on cellar tracker or anywhere else on what any criticisms may be about this wine, to me, I'm struggling to find any flaws. It is 13%, i.e., unusually balanced by today's standards, still youthful but so full and rich and representative of 2016. I would DARE anyone to put this up against Chateau Margaux and/or Pavillon Rouge in a blind tasting. I dunno, I think this wine is a stunner, showing no age in its deep rich Margaux purple, I've got it easily at the 94 point mark now at age seven, I've got nothing here telling me that modern winemaking is interfering in any way with the quality, to the contrary, this wine is fresh, ripe, balanced, fragrant, very much Margaux, with an obvious but not in any way obnoxious nod to the benefits of modern techniques. Two thumbs up at age seven. Give it another five years, then drink it over the next decade. Lovely. I am thrilled to have a sealed case sitting there in my cellar. Ah 2016. Greatest Bordeaux vintage ever? In my book... Yes. Rating: 94 points.

JimHow
www.bordeauxwineenthusiasts.com

6/27/2023 - John McCabe wrote:

Similar to previous notes. This is in a good spot now and likely won't improve much if at all with more age. The black fruit feels fully resolved. I think this showed better a few years ago (though perhaps this recent case I got from WineBid is a bit affected - not sure).

7/5/2023 - signotim Likes this wine:

Beautiful Syrah. Mostly California but there is a touch of Northern Rhone style here too.

3/1/2023 - 2MLW wrote:

Looking to explore more St Emilion, we had a 2015 Canon last night that blew us away (after a long decant). So, being in the St Emilion mood, I thought we should try this Beausejour, albeit years earlier that we should have. I just wanted to get a baseline.

I am purposely not scoring this wine, even though I love scoring! Given its age (or lack thereof), I didn’t think it was fair. That said, the wine didn’t do that much for me after a five hour decant. It was a little sour on the finish, with what I describe as green tannin aftertaste. As we progressed through dinner, the wine did better.

I think I will try another bottle in a couple years - that is fair. I have a couple cases, so I am really pulling for this wine. I’m not sure it will ever be great, but I’m hoping for very good.

Hope this helps.

2/5/2018 - signotim wrote:

For a young Lafite, there is some pleasure tasting it now. But I think it will be 15 years from vintage before it is time to open a bottle. This will deliver classic Lafite character in time. 2029+

1/14/2023 - signotim wrote:

K&L Saturday Bordeaux tasting. Just a small taste but this was beautifully balanced with pure dark fruit, graphite, and leather. Good structure and strong finish. Lots of class in this tasting and some of the younger wines will likely surpass it in time, but this was the wine of the tasting for me. 94-95

11/30/2022 - signotim Does not like this wine:

Baked, stewed cherry fruit which is not my favorite.

6/30/2022 - wxs2102 Likes this wine:

At Sotheby’s UGC 2019 vintage tasting at Cipriani NYC Midtown. Out of the 50+ wines I sampled this was WOTN. Immediately stood out with its aromatic nose, immense, brooding structure, loads of concentrated dark berries, encased in a velvety mouthfeel. 30-45 second finish. Tremendous young and has the stuff to go 2 decades here. Buyer.

3/3/2021 - signotim Likes this wine:

So pretty for a 2003. Sweet red fruit and beautiful floral notes on the nose. Very perfumed. Medium-full bodied, loads of sweet and tart red fruit, Graves scortched earth character, and an elegant finish with more earthy notes. Quite beautiful and no evidence of the hot vintage. Bummed that I only bought 2 of these and I think I will drink the second bottle in 4 - 6 years.

11/14/2020 - Satoshi Nakamoto wrote:

Made in Pessac, but tastes as glossy and modern as can be.

Decanted this for two hours prior to serving. Smooth and silky on the entry with notes of bubblegum, crushed raspberries, lavender, violet, and sweet plums. Enjoyed the inner-mouth perfume. Finish had a tannic bite and wasn’t as long as expected for a wine with this score.

This is definitely a wine for ratings and for new world palates. People looking for a wine that gives a true sense of place won’t find it here. While I think it could be trimmed 3-4 points (or more) from critics reviews, it’s not a bad wine. Enjoyed sipping it through the hours. Probably won’t buy more, as there’s too much good wine in this price range, but a nice experience nonetheless.

12/14/2020 - signotim Likes this wine:

Nose is full of floral notes and scents of orchard fruit. Medium body and very supple on the palate. Plenty of life on the finish. Seriously good

11/2/2020 - sirpat00 Likes this wine:

Arvi Bordeaux 2018 Arrivage (Dolder Grand, Zurich): Tasting of 2018 Bordeaux in the bottle. A mixed vintage where St. Emilion often ended up over-ripe and cooked while Pomerol seems to have fared better, as did the left bank. Wine of the tasting was Rauzan Ségla, but the Léovilles (Barton and Poyferré), Pichon Lalande and Clinet presented themselves brilliantly as well.

Tasting note:
Delicate and feminine with a beautiful fruit-forward nose. Sugar-coated strawberry, some savoury and spicy bits and cool mineral notes. A classic, firmly structured yet silky palate. This was already my one of my favourite in a barrel sample tasting a year ago and again fully delivered. My sense was the 2018 could turn out to be a vintage with a very early drinking window – whether this comes at the expense of ageability is hard to say.

1/19/2015 - signotim Likes this wine:

This was rustic when first opened... the aroma reminded me of traditionally styled Sangiovese. After a couple of days under pressure, it was entirely different -- sweet, rich, and sappy with nice grip on the finish. Highly enjoyable with beef stew.

7/17/2019 - signotim wrote:

Opened 6 hours before tasting. Plenty of potential here... will be better in 5 years. Try again 2022 - 2025. 91+

1/10/2019 - signotim Likes this wine:

Early drinking window. Shows very well with air but will improve from here and 15+ years of life ahead.

4/29/2017 - Jeff Leve wrote:

Using 52% Merlot, 35% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc in the blend, there is a sapidity of fruit, lift and focus, along with concentration and length that makes it hard to believe this is a second wine. The finish gifts you with luscious fruits for all your sensory receptors to enjoy.

7/27/2016 - misterstarre wrote:

Defrauded by Fox Ortega - Premier Cru. I never received this wine because the owner of the business that sold it to me on futures used my money to support his lavish lifestyle instead of procuring my bottle.

6/22/2016 - signotim wrote:

This was rather ripe and showed some alcohol. I had the same wine back in 2013 and it was quite different. On this night, it had nice cherry liqueur flavor but not a lot of nuance or freshness. Very tasty but not outstanding.

4/21/2016 - signotim Likes this wine:

Perfect cork. Beautiful ruby red color. This does have ripeness to the fruit and, for me, the ripe character shows more strongly on the nose. Aroma is ripe, sweet, and fairly dark. Palate is bright and full with plenty of fresh acidity and fine grained tannins. This was very good with food and the finish lingers for a while. Excellent.