8/16/2017 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:

My second time with this, and it's not really budged at all. Very dark color, tannins still pronounced. Behind all of this dark-matter mysteries lies a very pure, and correct wine of impressive structure. There's elegance here, it just needs time before it's going to emerge; can last for decades. HOLD. highly recommended

https://www.ItalianWine.blog

12/14/2019 - cookiefiend wrote:

Rich and round, much better than the 2013 Vilmart & Cie Grand Cellier D'Or. Fun to do a comparison between the 2 since Vilmart is often called Baby Krug.

8/26/2011 - cookiefiend wrote:

Well - evidently I expected way too much of this wine. I did not like it, I did not drink more than a few sips. Oh, it's not corked, that's not the problem. The problem is excessive acid. It's so out of balance, it's undrinkable. Since I have FIVE more, I will leave them alone for at least a year before trying another.

9/23/2016 - Tim Heaton wrote:

Lots of good, and helpful notes here already. Not sure how much I can add to the discussion but I will try. My impressions were that this wine seems a bit conflicted. Yes the dosage sticks out a little bit, as do the plump yellow apple fruits. These seem to run counter to the chalky, linear backbone, and at the end of the day render the package as a whole as somewhat muddled. I love the fact that different Champagne have different personalities, can serve different purposes. In the instant case, a casual/weeknight dinner of moules et frites or fried chicken sounds about the proper pairing. Nothing serious, with a few more cons than pros for my palate. Still, a decent drop.

Served non-blind.

5/11/2016 - fingers wrote:

Notes after following for a day open. Color is garnet heading into brown, about 70% opaque with very minor sediment. Aroma is a bit lacquered and oxidative, hanging on to florals while the fruit is slipping away. The palate is mature and smooth with fully resolved tannins presenting a nice glycerin feel, but the fruit won't be much longer for this world. I can't imagine this is going to see a dumb phase like it's French counterparts.. I think it is just heading over the hill and needs to be consumed in the near future. The CT drink window is much too optimistic (and the Galloni window even worse) judging by my experience from my first bottle in January to this example. Both bottles had perfect storage conditions all along, yet the dropoff in a mere 5 months is substantial. 4+10+17+6 = 87

1/18/2016 - Jeff Leve wrote:

What's not too like? Inky in color, with a black and blue fruit profile, made even better by the notes of espresso, flowers and blackberry liqueur. On the palate the wine is thick, rich, supple, opulent and also elegant. This is a really great style of wine. The wine is produced from a blend of 93% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot and 2% Cabernet Franc.

11/18/2015 - cookiefiend wrote:

Ran through the Vinturi and decanted over the evening, on the day we received it - bottle shock be damned. While this is just a baby - it's a big'un and it's only gonna get better. Already really approachable, it's rich and opulent, loaded with fantastic dark fruit - blackberry and cassis - and did I say rich? From the nose to the palate - it's smoking good and marvelously balanced now.

6/12/2015 - cookiefiend wrote:

Really seemed faded, flavors were very 'meh'. Glad this was our last bottle

8/13/2015 - Abstract Likes this wine:

Sweet cherry flavor.

10/22/2014 - cookiefiend wrote:

Decanted for an hour - for me this is a shy, mousey wallflower of a wine. Some chocolate and tobacco, currants, some minerality and a hint of musty-ness. Light in body, with very little tannins, the acid is fine. A little disappointing compared to the last Bordeaux we had (which I shouldn't do - different year, different chateau, different appellation), too delicate and fading away, a bit too little of everything i like in Bordeaux.

3/23/2014 - pjaines Likes this wine:

A bit of time in the decanter is required before this one loosens up a bit and starts pumping out essence of chocolate, spices and plums - clichéd Pomerol notes, and none the worse for it - this is excellent and has the guts for many more years of aging. Deep and muscular right now, but additional years will reward.

9/17/2014 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:

Chicago: wine, food, friends...cigars!; 9/17/2014-9/20/2014 (Blackbird, Les Nomades, Naha, with lunch at Shaw's Crab House): {375ml} Holy cow, was this ever good. Still managing some decent freshness, notwithstanding its advanced color. But really, the strong suit here was complexity, the type that comes only with age and from really good raw material, too. All around, an excellent example of the variety, style, place and time. drink thru 2022, highly recommended

Slow-O 30 minutes, served non-blind; continued to open up through the final sip.

9/18/2014 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:

Chicago: wine, food, friends...cigars!; 9/17/2014-9/20/2014 (Blackbird, Les Nomades, Naha, with lunch at Shaw's Crab House): An absolutely delicious wine. But its life in the winner's circle is very short lived as the '00 Pegau Capo and '98 l'Ermite are poured directly afterwards, which made this a very distant memory in no time at all. Full-bodied, chewy at times, this has a good amount of depth and considerable purity, but the acidity may not be enough for the long run -- perhaps best over the next 10 years or so. Delicious, and not too serious, so have some fun with it. 13,0% abv., recommended

Served non-blind. Slow-O 6 hours.

9/17/2014 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:

Chicago: wine, food, friends...cigars!; 9/17/2014-9/20/2014 (Blackbird, Les Nomades, Naha, with lunch at Shaw's Crab House): My first Littorai in some years, and, IIRC, my first ever from this vineyard. Served alongside a magnum of Peter Michaels' Point Rouge, the two had less in common than one might think, though each had just as many attributes in its favor. This was lighter, and brighter than the 2006 PM, more oily and citrusy, too, with really unique mineral and honeycomb character that tantalized the mind and palate alike. I seldom use the expression 'crunchy fruit', but it sure seems appropriate here; exciting stuff. Original, balanced, refreshing -- what's not to love? Thru 2021, highly recommended

Slow-O 1 hour, served non-blind. Many thanks to the cookies for sharing :D

7/14/2014 - LARich wrote:

Drinking beautifully right now, this luscious Cabernet blend hits all the right notes. Dark fruit nose and rich plum color give way to a smooth and balanced palate of currants with a hint of soft pine. Medium long finish and well integrated tannins keep the structure in place. Terrific.

6/23/2014 - cookiefiend wrote:

PnP - a bit woody, still a bit hot with the alcohol poking out - so slightly out of balance. That said - it's pretty damn good. It's rich with black fruits but not over the top, tannins are evident. Acid is low though. Last bottle, not sorry I drank it, but not sure I'd make an effort to re-purchase.

5/6/2014 - portman63 Likes this wine:

This is a great wine tonight. Needs some air for about an hour, but then flowers and crisp apples with lip-smacking fruit and acidity. Don't know if John Gilman is a 10 year old to put a 2020-2070 drinking window, but obviously no one on this forum will be able to verify it. He should get real and realize there is no bad time for Huet.

4/6/2014 - caeleric Does not like this wine:

this has never been a very good wine. it opened pleasantly enough by the end of the night, but its lack of structure and overall imbalance made for another disappointing showing. some cherry and spice, but not enough to justify $50. if scoring, 82-84.

1/11/2014 - cookiefiend wrote:

Corked! :-p

11/1/2013 - alr6767 wrote:

Disgorged 8/12. Really enjoyable, large scaled sweet fruit, huge chardonnay fruit and long finish. Not for the AFWE seeking something to ponder over, this should be enjoyed for it's unapologetic voluptuousness.

11/22/2012 - Musedir wrote:

Based on memory alone this wine is always about fumbling around in the back seats of cars and surveying the inside of porcelain bowls. With such a rich heritage it would be a travesty to even open such a library wine and deprive it of its evolving elixir of life. So my score is based on cherished childhood memories of faked I.D.s and furtive grabs from parents' liquor cabinets.

7/14/2013 - The Gilded Sage wrote:

My dear friend, the Vicomte André de Toulouse, likes to celebrate Bastille day each year with the sort of feast that would surely have landed all participants in the guillotine.

This particular vintage of Yquem (which I have tasted on only one other occasion, after far too much Champagne to have formed a coherent note) was served at the end of this year's meal with a pan-seared foie gras of most singular provenance. The name and location of the farm from which it had been procured were kept steadfastly secret by my host and his butler. I was told only that it was not AOC classified, owing to the fact that its fowl had been raised exclusively on a diet of black truffles. One can imagine, but can scarcely describe, the richness and complexity such feed imparts. "Qu'ils mangent du foie gras!" bellowed the incorrigible Vicomte, and silver plates of this magnificent preparation were brought round with glasses of the amber Sauternes.

The wine: Well, it too was magnificent, caressing the palate as fine silk sheets do the body—deliciously, richly, and yet rather coolly. While mature, it remains taut—even severe. I was reminded of a stern, aging matron of French who used to come to the manor for my weekly lesson; age had softened her, but not very much; she wore scarves and smoked long and thin cigarettes; unused to nonsense she employed a firm touch. Well, you can imagine...

A final note: for all the whimsy of this particular feast, there was also admirable care taken in its preparation and design. The final dish, described here, brought full circle a progression of almost architectural intricacy, and echoed earlier courses of duck a l'orange (served with a '45 La Romanée) and a consommé of juvenile truffle hog.

I am most grateful to my host for arranging this event. He really is a most remarkable sybarite. What a happy miracle that his noble line should have escaped the proletariat's blade!

6/30/2007 - twoamps wrote:

great mouthful of fruit, chocolate, leather, and currents. Big finish with lots of tannins. Had calmed down consoderably the second day. I’m with parker on this one; I don’t know what wine spectator is talking about

2/4/2013 - Mbellware wrote:

I felt like we waited too long. Wine had a very yeasty note that I don't remember the initial bottles we opened had (2009/2010).

11/29/2012 - zoopals wrote:

**Moved from CT to ME**

11/5/2012 - ChrisinCowiche wrote:

Blood, meat, yet light and playful on the palate, crisp finish. Delicious in every way and fantastic Yak Syrah in the hands of a skilled winemaker. Best wine we've had in a while.

11/4/2012 - cookiefiend wrote:

Corked :-P

11/5/2012 - copdyke wrote:

Not sure how this got 95 points but still pretty good.