12/22/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Decanted 1hr before first sip. Opaque to dark purple to the rim. Generous aromas of creme de casis, red berries and notes of almond on the nose. Medium-full body with nicely rounded acidity to balance the slightly sweet and milky bouquet. After a couple of hrs. the aromas bloomed further, whereby the Meo Camuzet Corton 1998 was seriously overshadowed when tasted next to it. Not overly oaky, but became more and more "creamy" in smell toward the end. But the palette was not New World-ly at all. On par, if not better than the Hosanna 2005 tasted a couple of weeks earlier. Good QPR at current market price, an absolute steal at the original release price. I am certan it would gain another point or two with some bottle age and additional complexity which come with cellaring. Seek this out if you are a Pomerol lover!!

11/2/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Decided to pop one after reading all about the potential WS WOTY threads. Pop and pour with a friend, the bouquet took about 30mins. to fully open up and bloom, and when it did, the nose was incredible! Absolutely piercing aromas of white spring flowers, cream of vanilla and a touch of cocoa. The intensity of the bouquet was the suprise, it just elevated from the glass and pierced through the nostril and into the brain!!! The palete was a very slightly let down after smelling it for a good 15mins. The body was not full, being a more of less typical Margaux profile, mid-palete slightly hollow, but good acidity and lingering finish was good enough to make up for the slight let down. I have to say 98+ for the bouquet and 94-95 for the palete, for a score of 96+ at this infant stage.

Seek them out now!

9/11/2008 - Motronic wrote:

This is delicous now! Dark in color, almost opaque with deep garnet hues at the rim. Nice and smoky aromas of toasted wood, dark fruit and sweet tobacco. This smells like a man's wine. On the palette, medium body, fine tannin with nice coating and decent after taste in the mouth. This is better than I expected, good to drink now, but should also develope for another 5-10yrs. 92pts.

9/5/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Slightly reticent aromatics, hints of cinamon, herbs and medicinal elements. Dark in color and built with fine but clearly detectable tannins. Nice balance of acidity and sweet fruity after taste on the plaette. Not a hugely complex wine, but good representative of village level '05 Nuits. 90pts

9/5/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Very forward bouquet of fruit and elements of floralness. Seems almost ready to drink. Easy entry to very soft body, felt almost limpy on the palette. This wine does not have a well built structure, in my view, to last more than 15-20yrs. Tannins soft and almost undetectable. Couldn't believe this is a 2005. Slightly disappointed (relative to what I was expecting) after so many outstanding bottles of 2005 Bordeaux. Once again, very easy to appreciate now and drink, but doesn't feel like it will grow up to become a star. 92pts.

9/5/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Inky black to deep purple to the rim. Clinging viscosity on the side of the glass with long and slow legs. Penetrating and clean aromas of dark fruit. Slightly floral, pure in bouquet. On the palette, mid to full body with good structure, balanced acidity and dark chocolate after taste. Fine tannins with very dry (but good) finish. I think this will last easily 20-30yrs in the cellar. Will be in its elements in 10yrs. 94pts.

8/27/2008 - Motronic wrote:

WOW! This is great stuff! This wine performed well above my expectations. Typical Southern French blend of Grenache, Syrah and Carigan. Aromas of dark cherry, blackberry and pepper. Fine and smooth tanins. Great concentration of fruit and juicy mid-palete. This is great QPR! Need to stock up for sure. 93pts.

8/2/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Transluscent "Burgundy" color almost to the core. Little or no bricking at the rim. Armoa of plum and a little cedar wood. Tannin fully intergrated. Bouquet is almost Medoc in profile. Medium bodied, unlike other vintages of Opus one. Short and decent finish. Good to drink but not outstanding in any degree.

7/26/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Tasted in a vertical of PCs, somewhat overshadowed by the '04 which shined, but solid Pauillac with nicely developing eath and leather tones. Body slightly watery. short finish. 90pts

7/26/2008 - Motronic wrote:

This was tasted in a vertical of PCs from 1996 up to 2004. Bottle was opened and recorked 14hrs prior to tasting and uncorked 2hrs before tasting. Opaque inky body with shimmering purple ring. At first shy on the nose, but with some time and air opened up more than I expected. Textbook Pauillac aroma profile, cassis, beautiful floral tones behind the classic lead pencil and unobtrusive oak. Dense and concentrated on the pallete, firm structure with yet-to-be-intergrated tanin with hint of coarse particles. Dry and long finish with sweet aftertaste of vanilla and cassis. Excellent concentration of fruit and precise taste. Outshined the '03 PC tasted side by side. Cannot wait to try another one in a few months time.

New bottling not case-purchase-friendly, too heavy to lift and hard to squeeze into standard Bordeaux-sized case bins. While appearing substaintial and "prestigeous", the thicker glass and wider shoulder are difficult for stacking and storage. Not an advantage in my book.

7/26/2008 - Motronic wrote:

oh boy, this one is shut-down hard! Tasted in a vertical of Pontet Canet from 1996 to 2004. The bottle was opened 14hrs in advance and corked, then uncorked 2hrs before tasting. Whiffs of classic Pauillac lead pencil and violet flowers can be detected as the wine is poured, but the aroma quickly retrenched into its shell. No sign of it coming around even after 3-4hrs in the glass. On the pallete, good structure with decent acidity and fine, round tanin. No hint of harshness or dryness on the finish, but at this stage, a couple of point down on the '04 (hard to belived, but when tasted side by side, the 2004 is actually much more apporachable, despite slightly coarser tanin and a drier finish). Looking forward to trying this in another 12-18 months.

6/22/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Caught this on sale about six months ago for about $30. Drank two of the three purchased, both with same note. I can clearly smell the heat wave of the vintage from this wine. The aroma was of over-ripe grape, raisiny, cooked plums and little acidity to support the fruit. Toasted oak and concentrated fruit juice is what this is, with a dash of alcohol. This does not live up to my expectation from this classified growth Bordeaux.

6/22/2008 - Motronic wrote:

First bottle of three bought. Oh, boy, something is terriblly wrong with this bottle. It's not corked per se, but the first whiff gave me goosebumps from the stink and rotten vegitable smell shooting from the bottle. The cork was quickly put back in hope of some slow-oxigination revivial. Sadly, this bottle is a goner as the stink is still there after checking at 4/6/8hrs. internval. Well....down the drain it goes. I hope the other two fairs better....

6/22/2008 - Motronic wrote:

This bottle was tasted blind against several other bottles from 2005 Bordeaux horizontal. The bottle was open approx. 2hrs. before tasting but not decanted. The aroma bloomed over the following 3 hrs. of tasting, from a slightly shy and reticent nose of typical Right Bank blend to the absolutely gorgeous and sexy perfume of cassis, blackberry, truffles, tobbaco and a hint of licorice. The bouquet was stunning towards the end of the tasting! The wine itself is clearly still pimary with all the components there in spades. Excellent concentration of fruit, good acididty to balance the fruit, but the acidity was cleverly hidden into the background by the aroma and fruit. Nice and fruity lingering finish, just beautiful to drink now. I can only imagine the potential with 5-10yrs. of bottle age. (94+)

6/22/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Typical nose of Aussie SB, tropical fruits, pear, hint of pineapple and passion fruit. Light and easy on the palete. Somewhat diffused in concentration and body. I sensed a slight astringency toward the back plaete. This light straw colored SB was enjoyable as a refreshing starter, but the bottle faded after just 2 hrs. in the ice bucket.

6/22/2008 - Motronic wrote:

This wine has been under the radar since its release last year. Surprisingly approachable since release, I've already gone through 6 bottles in the past years with consistent note. No decanting necesary, the wine opens with blooming bouquet of tobacco, ash, loam and a hint of refreshing citrus aroma. On the palete, the wine is mideum bodies with round tannin and noticable acidity for balance, in a good way. The finish is not long, but no harsh residual tannin or bitterness. Easy to enjoy now as a clearly Merlot domniated blend from the Right Bank. Excellent QPR for approx. $30. This wine is now officially the "house pour" when Right Bank Bordeaux is requested.

6/14/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Bottle was open but not decanted for 2hrs. before tasting. Initially shy and un-forthcoming aromatically, approx. 4-5hrs. after the bottle was opened it started to sing. Elegant bouquet of Margaux elegance, purple flower, hint of anise, fine-grained cedar, whiff of smokiness, lovely! Tannin and structure are obviouly firm, but not coarse at all. Still somewhat primary at this stage. Excellent concentration of fruit, no obvious acidity. Will be beautiful with a few years of bottle age, however, cannot agree with RP95 at this point in time.

6/10/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Bottle and cork was in very good condition, the cork was soaked to less than 1/2 inch. Pop and pour, immeidate bouquet of forrest floor, but not in an over powering way. Hints of cedar and lightly oak. Tannin is already well intergrated. The fruit, however, seemed a bit recessed into the background as there was not any noticable concentration of red or black fruit on the pallete. Only minor evlolution of aroma from opening to finishing, the mushroom and forrest floor slowly retreated to the side and became less obvious. Nice drink, should develope further complexitiy for another 3-5yrs. But would not cellar for more than 10yrs.

6/10/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Initially expressive aromas of toasted oak and smoky perfume, almost right-bank-ish. Clear profile of cassis and purple colored fruits. Soft tannin on entry, not overly grippy. Medium body, nice concentration but not overly extracted. Good persistance of lifting aromas. Layers of complexity not yet developed in its young age. Already approachable and very enjoyable. Should be in its prime with 3-5yrs. of cellaring.

5/3/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Bottle was taken from wine fridge lower bin, already quite chilled (approx. 4-6C) before opening and serving, then put into ice bucket throughout 3hrs. of drinking. Straw color with hints of gold and pink-ish color. Nose was vibrant with a lot of oak and creamy, smoky aroma. Some pear and peach notes developed about 1hr into serving, but bouquet was dominated by the creamy-smoky-oaky aroma. Low in acidity, palette gets a bit tiring after couple of glasses due to lack of freshness. People who like the creamy characteristics in their whites will love this one. Empy glass still filled with buttery cream smell after several hrs.!

5/3/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Bottle was opened for 30min. before chilled in ice bucket and poured. Serving temperature was 8-10C. Color of light 14K gold leaning toward straw color, was a bit worry about prem-ox due to color, but the worry was unfounded. Fresh bouquet of white flowers, shy expression of tropical fruits. Good acidity and freshness, hints of liquid minerality toward to back palette. Succulent and juicy, some oak but not prominent. Went excellent with a plate of grilled mixed-seafood. Good to open and drink now, but the acidity promises cellaring potential.

1/9/2008 - Motronic wrote:

Decanted for two hours in decanter before first sip. Wine was still reticent after 2hrs. Palette was full and filling without astringent tannins. In fact, the tannins were silky and well rounded. Another hr. into the tasting, the nose has finally started to bloom: lightly toasted oak, concentrated bouquet of dark fruit with hints of classic Paullac cassis and crushed stones in the background. Long and sweet finish. I feel this is still too young to drink, despite the talk about 2003 being good to drink now.