6/19/2013 - Will5304 wrote:

Opened bottle and re-corked for 2 days. Drinks really nice after the 2 days.

4/28/2013 - Will5304 wrote:

Hour decant and this wine was amazing

10/3/2012 - Will5304 wrote:

Wine has made a great turn around from the first bottle I had about a year and a half ago. I think I will save the last bottle for 2-3 years and see what happens. Really enjoyed this after about 2 hours decant.

4/20/2012 - Will5304 wrote:

Took time to openup and develop into a good wine.

2/10/2012 - Will5304 wrote:

Great Syrah. Smoked meats with leather and tobacco on he nose. Deep black fruits with vanilla and oak on the palate. The tannins seemed to linger, but would be expected from a young wine. The finish showed spiced earthy flavors that seemed to be well balanced

2/11/2012 - Will5304 wrote:

Dark fruits with integrated oak/tobacco finish. While acidic on the nose, it did not translate to the mouth. The tannins are still present and clamp down on the finish, which to me seemed to cut off the finish.

2/7/2012 - Will5304 wrote:

Ripe deep dark red fruits with hints of espresso. Silky mouth coating with a long finish. The tannins were well integrated and left small hints of minerality. My first experience with Lewis Merlot (have had the Cabs and Syrah/blends in the past) and was impressed how muted the oak flavor was compared to some of the cabs I have had young, which can be very oak heavy. Lewis wine

11/16/2011 - Will5304 wrote:

Could have possibly been an off bottle. Very awkward nose when first opened. Eventually blew off after being open about an hour. The wine showed CdP characteristics, but with an edge. Not familiar enough with this producer to determine if it was in fact a flawed bottle or just not my style of CdP.

10/7/2011 - Will5304 wrote:

Bottle showed a port like quality, almost raisin flavor when first opened. It didn't show over extracted or hot alcohol heat that some have suggested. In fact, I felt the finish showed the components of great cab after you got past the initial taste. Left in the decanter for 4 hours and came back to it later that night. The initial flavors of port/raisin had diminished and more typical cab components started to show. It never did reach what you would expect from a great cab, but it was drinkable and not a complete throw away. With the components of a great cab, which we all expect from Lewelling subtly revealing themselves throughout the night, I think and hope this wine is going through a phase and will eventually reach its expectations in 2-3 years.

1/26/2011 - Will5304 wrote:

After 2 hours in the decanter the wine really opened up. The nose was a great aroma of red fruit with some spice. On the mouth it had a slight sense of alcohol, but that quickly faded to a mouth full of ripe red fruit with cherry and red plum. The finish while muted in the first hour of drinking, eventually came around to hold on for 10-20 seconds.

Simply one of the best pinots I have had in the last couple of years. Very interested to see where this wine goes in the coming 5-10 years.

11/23/2010 - Will5304 wrote:

Decanted for 4 hours -- wine really opened up with time.

2/2/2010 - Will5304 wrote:

I will echo the comments of previous reviews. I was disappointed in this wine right out of the gate, but after being open for 3-4 hours this wine transformed into a great wine. I have a glass or two left and will be interested in seeing its development tonight.

4/21/2009 - Will5304 wrote:

After being open in bottle for about 5 hours, the wine was stunning

10/23/2008 - Will5304 wrote:

Needed about 4 hours to reach its full potential

7/27/2008 - Will5304 wrote:

Let decant for 7 hours

5/21/2008 - Will5304 wrote:

Took 3 hours in decanter to finally open up like the previous bottles

2/26/2008 - Will5304 wrote:

Needs to decant for 2-3 hours before it shows its true colors, but should be expected with an 05

1/18/2008 - Will5304 wrote:

The wine seemed to have a corked/oxidized taste to it. Let it sit open for almost two hours and nothing about the wine improved. Opened another 04 before this one and it was corked/oxidized as well. I bought all of my 04's from the same place, so I think there might have been something wrong with the way they were stored before my purchase.

1/18/2008 - Will5304 wrote:

This bottle seemed off compared to the one I had just two weeks ago.

11/11/2007 - Will5304 wrote:

I wanted to try the 2003 Brancaia IL Blu since I have two bottles of the 04. It was a little young to open now, but after decanting for almost 2.5-3 hours the wine really opened up and was drinkable. I will for sure be keeping the 04's in the cellar for some time.

3/30/2007 - Will5304 wrote:

Never really opened up. It gave hints of the potential, but never reached it despite being open and decanted for 3 hours prior to consumption. The strong blackberry flavors made it enjoyable and its balance made it easy to drink.