8/4/2023 - Czara96 Likes this wine:

Opened up with cherry cola and stewed plum. Robust yet displays a smooth finesse finish. Needs 30-45 mins to breathe.

11/2/2019 - Czara96 Likes this wine:

This is a beautiful example of old school Amarone and this vintage ‘07 is in the zone with a deep ruby purple colour smooth with very balanced tannins and acidity. Plum, berry and a little spice. Flavour long lasting in the mid palate.

Big bold Veneto red paired very well with a calabrese chile followed by a striploin.

Drink up!

9/18/2019 - Czara96 Likes this wine:

Spectacular big bold jammy top shelf Shiraz. This is a wine that evolves over time. Intense berry, liquorice and graphite. A great example of where finesse meets punch your tonsils with intensity. Great with grilled Spinalis.

12/27/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

This wine is still a little tight upon opening but quickly comes into a luscious zone with superb acids, full on fruit of dark berry, tobacco and charred oak. It is in a great spot and drinks like a cross between Grenache and Syrah! This wine is absolutely spectacular and very underrated for such a finesse play on a french classic! Drink up and enjoy.

12/26/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

A beautiful example of an Aussie Cabernet Sauvignon with great acidity, smooth with vibrant tannins. Fantastic wine that delivers on deep ruby and pomegranate colour with blackberry, earth, with hints of eucalyptus. Superb wine in a great place. Served with grilled lamb and roasted potatoes tossed in bacon bits with truffle aioli.

12/26/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

Decanted for 2 hours - deep blue purple colour. Brimming with dark fruit, blueberry and stewed plums! This is a classic Aussie Syrah that is absolutely spectacular 16 years on. Great acidity with very little tannins yet a long lasting finish. Paired with beef tenderloin wrapped in prosciutto. This wine is one of the best I’ve ever had and it’s a drink now phenomenal bottle.

8/19/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

Don’t agree with last 2 reviews. PNP to a beautiful deep purple colour with super legs, big bold berry, jammy blueberry with a touch of leather. This was paired with 5 year old smoked cheddar and goats cheese on crusty olive bread. Just luscious and a good tonsil punch. It’s in a zone for pure pleasure enjoy and respect this true value player.

8/19/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

Double decanted for 1 hour. Absolutely spectacular with a deep ruby colour beaming with notes of dark berry, plum, graphite and some alcohol that quickly dissipated. Paired with beef tenderloin. This was the best 19 year old Shiraz I’ve had and it was in a great spot. Drink now and see what this Aussie big red is really made of.

8/19/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

Good minerality and acidity. Notes of citrus, straw and lemongrass. Tight but opened up after an hour. Classic county Chardonnay but was more vibrant and zesty at the tasting at the winery in 2016. Drink up as I don’t see it improving over time.

7/14/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

An exceptional example once again from Campaccio of why this is a hyperwine! Last reviews and suggested drink window (09) all tell a tale well past its time - absolutely not the case. This is a sleeping giant, a great evolution of IGT to the power of 3. Smooth and silky with soft tannins, some berry and luscious dark fruit with plum and cassis lining the walls.

Double decanted and ladies & gentlemen a 21 year old star is born ⭐️ ⭐️ �� �� ⭐️
This hyperwine goes beyond pushing the boundaries of age and stability to an out of bottle experience that as the root of hyper suggest is over or beyond the norm, simply put extraordinary. That is the ‘97 work of liquid art. Paired with striploin and grilled zucchini potatoes and sweet peppers calabrese style! Drink up

7/14/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

This Campo decanted 1 hour is now drinking at a 93 - so smooth super finesse, very dry but super well rounded with dark fruit and some blueberry with mellow tannins - just spectacular. I can tell you for a 15 year old wine apparently past its window, I say no way! Definitely a drink now.

Paired with NY striploin and couscous - spot to the perfect balance served with grilled broccoli.

7/8/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

Spectacular CDP - drink now and prosper. Decanted 1 hour and it was ready. A small amount of sediment at the bottom but the colour was a deep ruby and aubergine tones.

Blackberry huge minerality and tar deep in the tooth. Superb balance with rhubarb and some leather. It had a Pinot feel to it early on but then moved to a classic CDP profile with some passionate expressions of dark berries.

Paired with Portuguese Bbq’d chicken and a farro salad and it was spot on for a warm summer evening.

5/11/2018 - Czara96 Likes this wine:

This wine was spectacular. Pop and pour to a vibrant ruby colour with intense cherry. dark berry and a little earthy leather. Beautiful complexity with great acidity and subtle tannins. This wine is drinking like an Aussie big red with lots of life left.

I would suggest that the tonsil punch was vivid with a smooth silky finish by hour 2. Paired with Bbq’d beef tenderloin and baked sweet potato fries. Shazam - this was a smashing pairing and if you want to experience the gifts of Bacchus - this juice is kool aid on red bull without the sugar.

5/4/2018 - Czara96 Likes this wine:

Ok I learned from a great wine maker when I lived in Italy that if you profile a great wine based on varietal, region, climate, and winery, you can push the envelope by aging beyond the norm. There is inherent risk in the wine going off but if you store properly and take a calculated risk, well baboom - magic in the bottle. I have the algorithm for this - shhh.

The Tranformational Wine Experiment:

This ‘06 Pillar Box Reserve Shiraz at 16% alc. opened up with a pop and pour to a beautiful dark plum colour with a pronounced dark berry, plum and liquorice profile. Very balanced and stable with good tannins and great acidity. Remarkable wine for 12 years and given the suggested drink window was through 2011. This is well beyond the drink window but this is drinking like a big bold Aussie! Paired with butter chicken and basmati rice - spectacular.

4/27/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

Off - past it’s useful life.

4/27/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

Unique dessert wine with strong raspberry and strawberry with a hint of royal gala apple and honey. Don’t taste the champagne at all. Paired very well with cantucci - dried almond biscotti. Prefer a late harvest Riesling or a vin santo.

4/20/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

A true classic Syrah - deep purple with good acidity, very balanced brimming with plum and berry. Long finish with great depth and subtle undertones of cedar and tobacco. The ‘08 is in a good place with some years to go. Paired with lamb chops and jerk chicken. A great Aussie representation and definitely a star.

4/13/2018 - Czara96 Likes this wine:

This is a finesse wine - absolutely incredible with big fruit - dark berry and plum with some forest marsh and a little leather. Decanted an hour and this had silky tannins deep dark colour like blood pudding. Paired with grilled tenderloin and this paired up like a Wimbledon doubles tennis championship. By hour 2 this wine became an amazing Shiraz in the true classic form of what is should be. Drink up now it’s ready!!

4/7/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

After the Molly shake opened up with big bold strawberry, plum and dark fruit. Very intense but settled after 2 hours. This wine should sit another few years. Spectacular vibrant punch on the tonsils with great lingering flavour.

3/2/2018 - Czara96 wrote:

Big Syrah flavours and depth- blueberry, leather pepper and some licorice. This wine is evolving by the glass!

A solid Syrah with great bottle potential over the next few years

11/26/2017 - Czara96 Likes this wine:

Paired up with pasta al cingiale (wild boar). Big red tons of tannin great acidity but decanted for 3 hours opened up but needed more time. Deep rich dried fruit with blackberry, plum and tobacco. At hour 4 really came into a zone with great lingering pronounced earth and leather - following pasta came beef short rib with nice marbling truly supporting this unique red with years to come. A great journey.

12/4/2016 - Czara96 Likes this wine:

Classic style Brunello with a rusty colour. Decanted for 2 hours - spice tobacco, deep plum and sour cherry. Great acidity and tannins. This is a wine that will still give a little more in the coming years.