1/14/2017 - darky999 Does not like this wine:

VA. I have opened several bottles and all VA.

I love BP wines but this is a gigantic screw up.

Tried decanting for 4 hours and even worse.

Avoid.

7/28/2016 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Tons of fruit still, lead pencil, great balance. Some eucalyptus, menthol. Wonderful.

I have known for 15 years this is an exceptional wine, no less than Peter Gago (the Penfolds chief winemaker) and I had a discussion about how good it was back in 2002 or so. He said at the time that it's one of their best wines ever (of ALL their wines).

It has a beautiful sweet entry, the colour is still pretty dark, some ageing but not much.

This will last a long long time. I was lucky to buy 6 bottles with great provenance a few months ago. It's a joy to drink. I had drunk my first batch of 18 bottles that I bought in 1998 or so :)

BRAVO!

11/21/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

The only reason this is not 100 is the nose, whilst incredible, is trounced by the palate. It is so rich, balanced, and the length is insane.

The friends that tried this with me were all stunned into silence.

Including a winemaker!

And the bottle had been open for months.

It's the best port I have ever had no question.

11/21/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

It's a wonderful sauvignon blanc. It is rich, unctuous (for sauv blanc) and tropical.

I doubt I will drink it many more times for obvious reasons!

Put it next to Haut Brion blanc - that would be fun as whilst the Screaming is sauv blanc, it has a semillon feel to it.

Not bad for a side project :)

11/21/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

My second 100 pointer on CT. and I had it right after my first (Bionic Frog 2006).

This wine is simply perfect. There is no point describing it.

Screaming is amazing at the best of times, and the worst of times. But the 2012 is just a different class.

And you can drink it right now with immense pleasure. Of course it will age. I have no idea for how long. But you will never find out as you will drink all your bottles long before it starts to tire.

A privilege to drink.

11/21/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

This wine just gets better and better and better. I have never given anything 100 on CT but I genuinely feel that this wine is perfect Syrah.

It has the classic Cayuse nose that is super funky, even tropical. Deep fruit of course. Perfect balance.

Give this another 10 years if you can, but I bet you drink it as its so wonderful right now.

It's not Chave 90 or La Chapelle 78, it's Bionic 06. And it is that good.

11/7/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

It's a good wine. For sure. Deep fruits, fruitcake and spice and menthol.

Very noticeable alcohol (15.5pc at least). Bit out of whack to be honest.

Super long.

A really good wine, just not enough finesse.

11/7/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Pineapple, honey, minerals. Expressive right from the cork pop.

Wonderful balance and mouth feel as always.

Drinking excellently now. Can of course age for 5 or more years.

10/25/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

It's a very good wine, not a great one. It needs some time to open up, couple of hours in decanter is fine.

Nose pretty classic black fruit, cedar, tobacco. It's not a wow nose tho. Not that complex.

Good balance on palate, tannins nicely integrated. Lots of life ahead but would drink if you only have a bottle or two.

You know those wines that are perfectly good, but not memorable. This is exactly that.

(I have many vintages of Coleraine so have a lot of experience tasting it)

6/19/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Wow.

So fresh! 68 years old and pristine level - 0.5cm from cork. I know this wine had perfect storage for its life.

Great nose, raspberries, fruit cake and mature wood. It's just great.

Balance is perfect. Almost sweet yet delicate and moorish.

A classic wine. Which is best? The 1947 or the 1942?

6/7/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

As fresh as a daisy! Great level - like a new wine. Long decant for 3 hours. Duly mature however totally alive and will last another 50 years for sure.

Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the wine.

6/7/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

My second bottle of this (and last). Great nose - fully mature, wet leaves and forest floor. Still some red fruit on the palate. Great balance.

1980 has some cracking Burgundies.

6/7/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Good wine - but was soundly beaten by the Latour 1999 we had next to it.

Needs plenty of decanting time, well balanced, just not delivering a 'wow' factor.

Drinking well now will last for a long time

6/7/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Excellent wine. Kicked the crap out if the 1999 Palmer we had next to it.

Lots of lead pencil and tobacco. Wine opened up after 2 hours. Lovely to drink now, will keep for 10-20 years no problem

6/7/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Have cellared this since release. Wow wine. Previous bottles were more closed, this one was magical.

Three bottles left - a long way ahead of it, another 10 years no problem

6/5/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

It's good, perhaps very good, for sure not as good as the 1995 which I had last night. Classic nose which needs a few hours decanting time to open up. Lots of cab franc in this one, tobacco and some green pepper.

It's the palate that disappoints a bit, it's a bit thin, it is well balanced from a tannin and acidity angle, but the fruit is not as voluminous as I would want.

Still a good wine, would drink it up

6/4/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Look this is a really good wine. But it's not great. I saw a 100 point review of it on CT - that doesn't make sense. Nose is fun with plums, yes some earthiness, and prune. But it's not amazing. Drank it over 3-4 hours post decanting.

Palate is again really good, it's got great balance now, integrated tannins and acidity, really pleasing to drink.

But is this a GREAT wine?

It's not.

It's a very very good wine.

Or of course the bottle I had (which came from the winery straight to myself) might be slightly dud. But as I read the other reviews I can see that some people are not convinced by the wine. I suspect many of the others are giving a rating that is just similar to other ratings as it's a famous chateau.

Don't get me wrong, I would happily drink this wine every week and be happy, but does it excite me like a Margaux 1996, or Haut-Brion 1989.

It does not.

(I would love to try it again to see if it was the bottle of course which was not quite at top form!)

5/16/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Went great with a homemade cheese fondue.

Not the most expressive wine, however great balance and it has lots of life ahead of it

5/16/2015 - darky999 wrote:

It's just imbalanced...

At 6 years old I get it's still young but it's just impregnable and too over the top.

All primary fruit. No subtlety.

Yes is hugely big and the extraction is impressive but will this age well?

I have many more bottles so I hope so however I fear not.

Nothing wrong with it just not in the same class as a great Rhone or Sine Qua Non.

5/15/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Tasted over 6 hours. At the end it was singing even more.

Wonderful balance. Earthy, still fruity, tobacco, iron notes. Just incredible.

I wonder what the reserve red label is like!

The best barbaresco I have had. This was my second bottle. Both were incredible.

1978 is superlative.

5/15/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Wine doesn't get much better. Decanted for 2 hours although I tried a glass upon pop too. Magical aroma of flowers, chocolate, lead pencil, red fruit, but it just had something different. This was not Bordeaux, it was magical.

The palate is just insane. Silky smooth. Supremely balanced. It's drinking wonderfully now but will last for 2 decades or more.

Finish last forever.

The only reason I don't give 100 is that i bet this will be better in 10-20 years.

4/2/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Dense purple colour but some reddishness on the rim, just showing signs of some age.

Notes of coffee, liquorice, violets, plums, some smoke - is this the start of a more roast meat character in its later years?

Super smooth on palate, really good acidity will see it age for a long time, tannins are smooth but present - although like some other reviewers they are clearly not abundant.

Lovely to drink now, I have three bottles and six magnums left, will try another bottle in a couple of years, the wine will easily last for another 10-15 years or more

3/25/2015 - darky999 Likes this wine:

Brooding St Henri - which is a slight oxymoron as in the past these have been a bit less full on as this is. But it's a wonderful wine. Clearly too young now but I wanted to try one of the 24 bottles in my cellar. Deep deep purple, black fruits, violets, menthol. All flavours to be expected.

Of course, being St Henri there is no overbearing oak, and it's why it remains my favourite of all the Penfolds range (including Grange). It's crept up in price recently, but it's still great value for money.

2020 and onwards