10/28/2023 - James Kim Likes this wine:

Stood up for 1 wk and decanted off fine sediment for 1h then back into bottle. Now 4h after decant. Nice aromas of ripe red cherries, mild VA, herbs, green stems, and bark. Palate w just ripe cherries, greens and brown stems, mild+ tannins on midpalate, herbs, and a bit of medicinal bark. Nice acids w elegant texture. Nice long finish of fruit, stems, and mild+ tannins. Elegant, soulful, and full of character. I'm still learning about the aging curve of E&M's pinots but this is flat out delicious now w complexity and elegance. I'll prob hold my remaining bottles a little longer to see how this ages more. But it's delicious now.

12/10/2023 - James Kim Likes this wine:

Stood up for several weeks. Decanted off fine sediment. Now 35 min after decant. Lovely, elegant aromas of mild VA, green and brown stems, red and black cherries, a bit of blackberries, herbs, and a bit of bark. Palate w elegant black cherries, bark, a bit of sous bois, some brown stems, and a bit of earth. Nice finish of ripe cherries, bark, and a bit of sous bois Medium body w excellent concentration and depth. Excellent acids. Mild tannins.Excellent balance and harmony. Bigger weight than I was expecting based on aromas. But this is E&M - in no way big or heavy. This is coming together nicely and becoming more knit together. But it also feels like there's more underneath that's waiting to show. Still, it's drinking really nicely now. Open next bottle in 2 yrs at age 10. Beautiful w simple roast chicken. 92+

3/12/2023 - James Kim Likes this wine:

Decanted. Now 40 min after decant. Moderate barnyard aromas with some blackberry fruit, mild eucalyptus, and minerals underneath. Palate w just barely ripe blackberries, minerals, mild eucalyptus, herbs, and a touch of earth. Medium body w mild tannins. Very nice acids that lends some freshness to the wine. The oak comes through in a woody texture rather than flavors of vanilla or spice. Nice moderately short finish of fruit, a bit of barnyard and tannins. This is young and hiding more underneath. Accessible now to some degree bur will benefit from several years on its side. Will plan on opening next bottle in 3-5 yrs.

11/26/2022 - James Kim Likes this wine:

From memory. Stood up for several weeks and decanted off fine sediment for 1h then back into bottle. After the 1h decant, the wine was fairly tart with more cranberry and pomegranate flavors. Took about another 2h for the wine to settle down. Lovely red cherry fruit w a bit of bubblegum, herbs, bark. Excellent acids. Light+ body which gives the wine a really nice elegant texture. Drinking well after a healthy exposure to air and I liked this quite a bit. But given how long this took to open up, I think it needs more time. Open next bottle in 2-3 years at age 10 or more. 92+

7/1/2022 - James Kim Likes this wine:

N bottling w no added sulfur.Decanted. Now 1.5 h after decant. Lovely aromas of boysenberry, blackberry, baking spices, herbs, a bit of green stems and bubblegum and nice minerals. Palate w crushed blackberries mixes w spices, herbs and green stems. Nice mineral streak across midpalate. Excellent acids. Nice finish w a bit of medicinal herbs and earth added to the fruit and minerals. Complex. Delicious. Great balance. Lovely. 92+

3/5/2022 - James Kim Likes this wine:

Stood up for 2 wks. Decanted for 2.5h. Almost no sediment. Aromas of black cherries, just ripe plums, medicinal, woodsy bark, herbs, and a bit of earth. Palate w black cherries and plums, woodsy bark, herbs, bits of dark chocolate and black coffee. Lovely, silky, elegant texture. Nice acids on a medium body but still w moderate+ tannins. Nice, juicy moderately long finish. I think there's still room for more evolution but lovely now. Open next bottle in 2-5 yrs. 92+

8/21/2021 - James Kim Likes this wine:

Pop n Pour. Note is 45 min after opening. A bit of funky aromas that eventually blew away then lovely aromas of minerals, herbs, pineapples and unripe peaches. Palate with just ripe pineapples, loads of minerals and some herbs. Fully dry with excellent depth. Lovely, rich texture with excellent acids. An hour later, the wine becomes more concentrated, more intense and yet more harmonious. A fantastic wine and I wish this wasn't the last bottle.

7/12/2021 - James Kim Likes this wine:

Opened yesterday for several hrs in wine fridge but then recorked. Now 30h later. Dark orange/amber color. Expressive aromas of ginger, flowers, peach, ripe apples, minerals, and herbs. Palate w tart apples, just ripe peaches, a bit of unripe pears, fingered, lots of herbs, and minerals w a nice green stemmy streak. Mild tannins on midpalate. Excellent acids. Mesium body. Nice juicy finish w the tannins and and fruit lingering on in the mouth. This is good. But needs plenty of air if this experience is any indication.

5/11/2019 - James Kim Likes this wine:

Wine Tasting Group - Mediterranean - May 11, 2019 (Erik's Home): From Etna, Sicily. Made 95% nero mascalese 5% nero cappuccio. Earthy, spicy aromas with added flowers, cherries and blackberries. Sweet, almost candied, cherries flavors but not overblown. Earth, herbs, flowers, and a hint of stems round out the palate. Excellent acids. Medium bodied. A nice drink for any time of the week.

5/20/2021 - James Kim Likes this wine:

From memory. Double decanted but not sure for how long. Small pour. Strong green tobacco on the palate with graphite, leather, earth with fruit in the background. Less balanced than the 81 Cheval Blanc. Still, it's drinking well and would never refuse a glass.

3/26/2021 - James Kim Likes this wine:

From screwtop. Decanted. Now 45 min later. Expressive aromas of ripe apples, minerals, herbs. Full bodied palate w tart apples, minerals, a bit of herbs. Waxy and mildly viscous texture. Good but not great acids that may represent the warm vintage. Lacking the wet wool that I normally associate w chenin blancs. Finish just ripe apples, minerals, herbs and a bit of heat. 13.5% abv. Granted that I have limited experience w Savanierres but prefer the the higher acid and greater cut of other Loire regions than the heavier textured Savanierres.

2/3/2021 - James Kim Likes this wine:

Decanted. Took about 1.5h to come together. Now 2h after decant. Lovely aromas of bright, mildly candied red cherries, herbs, twigs, green leaves, bark and a bit of loamy, wet earth, and a bit of volatile acids. Palate w bright red cherries, wet earth, bark, green leaves, herbs, sweet black cherries on midpalate w some mild+ tannins. Excellent, juicy acids on a medium body. Nice, moderately long finish. Possibly the most complete young Liaison I've had dating back to the 2011 vintage. Nice. 91+

11/28/2020 - James Kim Likes this wine:

Decanted. Now 2h later. Mild aromas of red and black cherries, unripe plums, and a bit of earth. Palate is more on black cherries and unripe plums, herbs, a bit of bark and earth. Moderate tannins on midpalate with nice acids on a medium+ body. Nice finish. On the fuller side of chianti classicos but still nicely balanced.

5/29/2011 - James Kim wrote:

Orangish-pink. Actually muted on the nose with hints of flowers, strawberries, and cherries and a hint of savory umami notes. Palate is all elegance with a slight oxidative and savory flavors, buttressed by unripe strawberry and red cherries. Great acidity and a nice long finish. Just beautiful, fresh and yet somehow, mature. So unique in the world of roses. Went beautifully with tapas.

11/29/2015 - James Kim wrote:

Essentially PnP. Drank w Janet and Meredith so didn't have much time to focus on this. But nice plums, black cherries, blueberries, herbs, earth, and maybe some tar. Good amount of bass notes. Rich in a slightly rustic way. Nicely done.

12/10/2017 - James Kim Likes this wine:

Pop and pour. Now 1 hour after opening. Pear, apple, honeysuckle, herbs with intense mineral aromas. Bright apple, pear on palate that leads to a rocky, mineral palate. Nice acids keep everything lively but with some weight and slight amount of viscosity that gives the impression of a more serious wine. Young but still delicious.

2 days later, drank leftovers that I had stored in a 375 ml bottle. Delicious. The acids, weight and viscosity were still there but everything had melded together seamlessly. Beautifully balanced with nothing sticking out. Definitely looking forward to this again after a couple of years on it. New score is based on this latest (and last) tasting.