3/21/2022 - Neecies Does not like this wine:

Mine. Decanted for about three hours in advance in which the following elements were unphased by oxygen: cloying jammy fruit, Vitamin B6 and tire shop aromas. Like Warren and his Jaboulet, I could cry over the years this loser took up space in my cellar waiting for its perfect moment. (Important fact: this is the first bad Ogier I've ever had.)

10/8/2021 - Tim Heaton Likes this wine:

Wonderful. This Monferrato Cabernet Sauvignon shows just a little age in its color; dark ruby core, watery edge. The nose (this was a PnP, with the first glass allowed to breathe for ~ 15 minutes prior to consumption) is wildly complex, and offers all the hallmark notes I look for in CS. A half glass left on the counter on day 2 showed virtually no oxidation and in fact was one of the rare times (completely uncovered) a wine actually showed even more impressively than on day one. Med/Med+ body, very fine tannins still offering good framing; red fruits take a modest backseat the crème de cassis, tobacco and rich plum notes. I'm very glad to have two more left; will consume before 2027. Consistently, and brilliantly opened up over the course of the ninety minutes that followed. Cork 1/4 soaked, great fill, and the 14,5% abv is more like 13,5%-14,5%. At this stage in its development, and if this bottle is representative, it's highly recommended

http://www.italianwine.blog

4/8/2022 - Fractalage Likes this wine:

Gorgeous wine!
I would never have chosen this wine except that today, when I was in K&L RWC with my daughter, I asked her to pick her top 5 wine labels and explain why they deserved her pick.
She pulled this one.
I don't normally go with Aussie wines, though they are fantastic, but this one sported what I eschew: Cabernet Sauvignon.

I bought it for $40, as my daughter chose its label.

Wow, what an excellent wine.
Come to find out that it's the ONLY biodynamic wine in the Wilyabrup area.

Nose: Flowers, black fruit, with a quality of density that astonished.
Palate: Lush black fruit, flowers, levity of natural acid, tasted like a white and red wine blend, length, soft, luxurious, couldn't put it down, kept wanting to taste and drink.

Excellent wine.

"In 1998 the change to total organic viticulture was made. Diana and Vanya went intuitively towards healing the soil by putting back what had been taken out. Organics is about soil health – drains were put in, cover crops, and composting resulted in A Grade Organic Certification in 2003 being gained by the Biological Farmers Association (BFA) of Australia."
https://www.cullenwines.com.au/philosophy/

Biodynamic wine making, natural wine is the future.
In my opinion, the future is genetically unique plants. No more clones off rootstock, but natural, from seed plants. That, in my opinion is the ultimate terroir of wine, as the seed will connect to the soil, to the electromagnetics of the local earth to become, literally, the plant of the root connected to place and time.

7/2/2022 - Wine Canuck wrote:

An Epic Summer Wine Weekend; 7/1/2022-7/3/2022 (Muskoka, Ontario, Canada): This pours medium ruby with light bricking at the rim. The nose shows cassis, dried blueberry, animal fur, light pickle brine, smoked meat, animal fur, and sweet old cedar shavings. The palate is still youthful showing lovely dried blueberry turning to medium tannin and medium plus acid. The finish lingers nicely on dried blueberry and old sweet cedar.

7/2/2022 - Justinwine wrote:

Breathtaking. Wonderfully mature example of petite Syrah .

1/31/2022 - Sid_Loves_Wine Likes this wine:

Very tough for me to rate- pretty much my first Corvina, but also because the notes available for it vary WILDLY- I found it pretty unusual and tough to fully parse, so not surprised there. I did like it- already wins points for feeling like an actual, real wine for the price and I did find it very "drinkable" and cute - but then again, "easy drinking" isn't really what I look for to determine if a wine is good or not. There were some really unusual and incongruous aspects to it that I didn't really enjoy, although there were also some moments of harmony and beauty.

Nose was pretty odd, maybe my least favorite part. On the pop and pour and most of the rest of the time, I got a really present bitter herbal thing - reminded me of a quite underripe Bordeaux blend from South Africa or something with lots of harsh green tones, super bitter dark cacao. However, even though it was super earthy, at times I got glimpses of what felt like CRAZY ripe fruit, baked cherry and nearly prune- when this showed up it actually worked pretty well with the bitter tones, but it was a strange combo. The previous commenter wrote "amaro", which genuinely makes a lot of sense to me, even if I didn't quite love it.

The palate was really different, and equally difficult to assess. The main theme here was softness, with very soft fruit, soft tannins, soft medium low acidity. This kind of softness is truly not my thing in most wines, but I still kept drinking it and enjoying it, at least for the $12 I paid. It coats the mouth with herbal tinged sour cherry. It was tasty, and I'm not really sure where to go from there.

I don't think I would buy it again, but I could see how it would have fans. I think I much prefer the greater energy of inexpensive Chianti or Langhe Rossos, let alone Côtes du Rhone options.

3/19/2022 - Fractalage Likes this wine:

Excellent wine.
This will go down as the most Burgundy-esc Brunello I've had, to date.

If you get this bottle give it a minimum 6 hour decant before drinking, at this stage, as it only barely started to show with that much air.

If you love fine Burgundy, you'll get into this bottle as it was subtle in its flavors, elegant in its composure, but assuredly needed at least 5 more years in the cellar for those complexities to shine as intended.
I regret that I killed this baby.

At first decant it was very closed, but faint tart and earth poked through. Its initial palate was quality, with length but obviously needed air.

3 hours in it had some plums and raisins on the nose with musk and exotic spices.
In the mouth is had very dry, fine and elegant spices with bits of powdery silk that held roughness that needed to be aged out.

6 hours later it seemed very Burgundy-like in its complex subtlety. A very expensive, tight-knit French oak influence was detected. Licorice and other herbs started to show.
I had the impression of fine teas, hibiscus and light tobacco.

At heart, I’m a barbarian, harkening back to my Viking roots with my love of funk and real in my wine and beers. I like my mouth to grip onto something not as subtle as this, though it’s not lost on my palate, it’s just not what I normally enjoy or crave. It’s a great fine wine for sure, unique in what I’ve so far encountered in this DOCG, but will not buy again. I must give a huge, hearty congratulations to the winemaker though, for having made a fantastic wine for this price. Burgundy fans should snag this up for it will be enjoyed 10-20 years from now with critical acclaim for its finesse.

8/1/2021 - Derek Darth Taster wrote:

Middle East Wine Zoom Tasting. Drank in Gabriel Standart.
Appearance is clear, deep intensity, purplish ruby colour. Legs.
Nose is clean, medium+ intensity, with aromas of green + black olives, black berries, dark plums, fresh animal leathery meat with a hint of blood. Developing.
On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium alcohol (13.5%), initilly fine high tannins that get grainier with more air, medium+ body. Medium+ flavour intensity,with flavours of leathery meat with bit of bloodiness, dark green + black olives, blackberries, black cheries, dark plums, black pepper background. Long finish with graininess and bitter dark fruit lingering.
Very good quality. Really does feel like a Northern Rhone Crozes. Bravo. Can age over the next few years.

3/26/2022 - Zinslut Likes this wine:

A beautiful , intense, but elegant and round nose of blackberries, dried currants, blueberries , black licorice, dried ancho Chile, & crushed Vietnamese black pepper. Additional citrus notes, coco & coffee bean… I could just enjoy the aroma of this wine for hours and be satisfied but I have to force myself to go in for a taste. It is 100% Tempranillo, macerated for 23 days ( just like I would do) and you can smell all the phenomenal items above. Ok I must taste…more of the similar described flavors, a chalky mouthfeel from full extraction, more dominate citrus notes , just less intense or complex experience in the mouth with further time the taste comes close. Notes of tar and crush dark spices with above modest tannins. The leather mentioned in other reviews reveal itself beyond the 2 hour decanted and aeration point yet not as dominate as others described, but only adds to the complexity. This is where your nose and mouth need to be in unison for maximum sexuality. The length of the finish is a crescendo to a wonderfully made wine from a terrific 25 year old low yielding vineyard. I had no food available to pair but I can only see this as an enhancement rather than a distraction. At this price point, $28 , 2018 was an excellent vintage , if Covid didn’t make me workless, I might consider buying every bottle I could steal. Oh Ribera Del Duero, I will never cheat on you again with a Rioja. Enough said

7/21/2021 - Rani Likes this wine:

Dark inky purple. Animal fur, boysenberry and ink on the nose. Gripping, lots of acidity and black fruit. Nice finish. Rather kicking right now, would be better in a year or two.

8/12/2021 - Fractalage Does not like this wine:

Skip it!
This might be the worst wine I've ever had from Italy.
Obvious manipulation.
Rough, but cheaply so. Paid $22. Obviously overpaid from the Utah State Liquor Store.

Don't buy.
Skip this.

There are PLENTY of incredible under $20 wines.

12/17/2021 - Fractalage Likes this wine:

A real wine, authentic, approachable now, loaded with fruit and meats reminding me of the Rhone.

Purchased off the recommendation of Eben Sadie. Great winemakers tend to hang together.
I had returned from Cappadokia with bottles and pics of the ancient vines in the white sandy soil, monasteries, recounting stories to Eben who then turned me onto Tegan and Olivia Passalacqua's project: What an excellent endeavor. Their goal struck me right through the heart with desire to support and taste of it.
About | Sandlands (sandlandsvineyards.com)
Look at those images of ancient vines in sandy soils of California: Real wine! These days the term real wine is dubbed raw wine, but I still like to say “real wine”, because the rest are just crafted beverages. Let’s debate sometime if you disagree. Essentially there is a God of wine. Most of today’s vintners offend that God. The book is to be soon published. I exhort those reading to quit imbibing poison.

Each sip of this excellent juice brings joy to my mouth and soul.
There’s energy, lift, balance of fruit to meats with perfect acid to palate reset of the best of meats. This is very excellent style. Mouthcoating is delicate and rich with lots going on. It will be interesting to see how this will lasts in 5. (My tasting started after a 4 hour decant. There was considerable sediment smoke at the bottom leaving a full two glasses in the bottle.)

I have not yet tasted any other Sandland’s cuvees, but anticipate taking the dive. While this is practically unobtainable due to very small productions, I will have to buy directly upon release.

After Reginald wrote this review, he sat back down to take a deep breath, another swig of the wine and smile in enjoyment. Large chunks of the roasted lamb leg remained on his plate and he cut into it to take of another bite. The wine’s goodness coursed through him and he began that journey again. His vision took him to a very bright world where fantastic light backlit every molecule to where the entire scene glowed: Deep blues of sky, white and creams of worlds in that sky, similar blues of water, cascades of white splashes, greens of lush grass, browns of bark branching up to more greens with flowers of reds, golds and violets. Then there were the robes: Groups of beings in ornately adorned clothes of flowing brilliance. Then they spoke.
“We are Tallus. We gave to you this wine. It has come to you through the ages to be born again to come to you in that glass. The winemaker was of our choosing, though he knows it not. You are here to receive of our knowledge of the whys. You are to assist us to awaken the world to the offence that is taking place in the production of what was brought from this world.” Their hands waved toward the expanse of vineyards growing up groves of unique trees. The leaves of the vines shimmered and revealed gold and silver creatures jumping from leaf to leaf continually.
“As you have surmised, they are the Leolon. They are also on your world and they too facilitate the same action, yet when the vines are dishonored, they are ruined and flee the vineyard. Tell those of your world, who will listen, to bring the Leolon back to their vines as they will flourish and bless the fruit thereof to the benefit of humanity.”

Reginald shook his head. He could not believe what had just transpired. He looked at the bottle and wondered who the winemaker was. He thought about how this juice could have been created and why he had been contacted in this way. He had had plenty of deep experiences to know that this was something unique. He felt in his heart that it was true, that he was chosen. He tasted of the wine again. This time the vision of that glorious world immediately came back to his vision. What was this? Was this juice magical or drugged to have provided this insane experience. His disbelief immediately closed the channel, and that magical feeling faded. After it had gone, he yearned for it to return. It didn’t.

Winetrip is coming.

10/16/2019 - forceberry wrote:

The grapes are transferred to open-top fermenters where the grapes are foot-trodden through 2/3 of the fermentation, after which the must is basked-pressed and racked to a mixture of new and old French oak barriques to carry out the rest of the fermentation. Aged on the lees in these same barrels for up to 18 months, until the final blending. Bottled unfined and unfiltered. 14,5% alcohol, 1,8 g/l residual sugar, 6,7 g/l acidity and pH 3,51.

Quite deep and moderately opaque blackish cherry color. Ripe, dark-toned and subtly sweet nose with rich, brooding aromas of black cherries, some blackberry jam, a little bit of plummy fruit, a hint of savory spice and a green, herbal touch of mint. The wine is ripe, dense and full-bodied on the palate with dry flavors of juicy blackberries, some tart red plums, a little bit of peppery spice, light savory wood tones, toasty hints of mocha oak and sweet smoke and a cool, green touch of minty herbs. The wine is wonderfully high in acidity for its size, whereas the medium tannins feel quite ripe and gentle, contributing more to the rich texture than to the firm structure. The finish is long, ripe and complex with some tannic grip and rich flavors of juicy blackberries, a little bit of dark plummy fruit, light notes of pipe tobacco, toasty hints of smoke and charred red meat and a touch of extracted woody bitterness.

A rich, nuanced and quite complex McLaren Vale Shiraz. Poised and sophisticated for an Australian Shiraz, but surprisingly easy, ripe and mellow for a d'Arenberg wine. Shows good freshness and depth of flavor, but to me this is a bit too oaky and sweet-toned (even jammy!) - and I've always loved d'Arenberg wines in that they normally don't feel too sweet nor show much (or any) wood. All in all, this is a solid, well-made Shiraz, but lacks the toughness, structure and aging potential I look for in d'Arenbergs. Perhaps some aging might make the wine drop some of the sweeter tones and integrate the wood better with the fruit?

2/10/2020 - Fractalage wrote:

Such high ratings.
Hmmmmm, I just don't agree.
It's nose was closed, tight, withholding what might be there later.
It was cool and minty, just so so, with big tannings.
Did not really like.

If you're stuck in Bordeaux, sure, I get it, but leave and find excellent quality in Northern Italy for fractions of the price.

12/13/2020 - Fractalage Likes this wine:

Oh man, Porter Creek is so legit.
Jonathan DeMichael sold to me all my purchases since 2010. Such a perfect manager, as he remembered me when I showed up this year and it had been at least 5 years since my last visit.
Porter Creek was my first real Russian River wine experience on Westside Road back in 2010.
Just love these guys. Alex knows his stuff. Biodynamic viticulture and wine making are a gem to find in USA. It’s rather obvious the quality when you taste any of their wines.

Porter Creek is a must visit winery when in Sonoma.
Do whatever you can to make it to the Westside Road wineries and stop here for sure. The area is gorgeous! The classic rolling hills and absolutely romantic: Wine tasting in Russian River is a dream!

This wine for me, when tasted shouted, yes, get a case.
This bottle was my first since purchasing in February of 2020.

Obviously unfiltered as there were copious amounts of sediment.
Just a great taste, very reminiscent of Languedoc-Roussillon. Took a full 2 hours to even start to show a nose, but then it had excellent mulberries and elderberry with dust and a core of herbs, that reminded me of soft garrigue.
Its texture was endearing, soft and robust with energy and grip. It paired very well with herbal salad and pan seared lamb chops.

This wine I could drink every night.
Such a value for the quality.

8/26/2021 - Invinoverytas wrote:

Simply amazing

8/26/2021 - Fractalage Likes this wine:

24 Aug 21
2018 Marsannay, Louis Latour,
Costco $23
6:50pm decanted to very little smoke at the bottom.
Muted classic Pinot with more dry leaves, touches of honey, tart berry, good finish.
Touch of sweet confit, that comes around with essence of bay leaf, meyer rind, subtle, needs time.
7:12pm
More candy comes out: Hard Candied cherry and blackberry with a big floral component.
Palate has a delish fungal/earth length with some stars.
There’s a crunch that shows up after 3 naked sips.
Going to pair with pan seared lamb t-bone, so we’ll see how this changes.
7:24
Still naked palate. More grip and energy coming forward. Getting better and better.
7:43
Fresh pour: Still naked.
Nose of funk, which was shocking. I guess there’s more to reveal! Dry stones, cherry, wet barn with neighboring greenhouse with certain flowers in bloom, strawberry.
On the palate an astringency, dry stones, tart fungal strawberries with a dash of cherry, there’s that bay leaf essence with chalky dryness. Tasted of decomposed limestone.

Pairing with pan seared lamb t-bone:
It did change on the palate, but for the better. Yes, this did pair well and I loved this bottle with the lamb and salad of mix greens and butter leaf.
But I think I preferred it solo better.

2/15/2020 - Fractalage Likes this wine:

Had Vina Enoteca open this in 5 hours in advance of meal.
Perfect cork - ahso opened from Rocco.
Gorgeous clear red orange with a touch of brown
Nose of tart prunes with dusty cutrus. Smelled rich at first then went flabby. It should knit back together. There's a caramel note too.

Big energy on the palate. Perfect acidity with prunes and dried apricots and dusty cutrus with a caramel note on the finish.
Energy fades quickly tho. But amazing.

Coco dust, cigar and a spicey cake starts to show.

New pour
Opening fast!
Lots of caramel plums nose.
Palate is denser and more full and round. Great balance.

6:11pm
Bigger fuller nose slightly metallic, smoke, cigar, with a dried cherry dust and blackberry touches. There's orange rind and very subtle spices
Palate is full! Not flabby at all. Bigger dense. Balanced. Amazing juice.

Lots of flowers with spices and aromatics of elegant baking with a sharp crisp tannin that lingers and burns off the spices with a rather large herbal of baking herbs displayed.

What I really love about this is the dense rich spices. Just an amazing unique taste typical good Barolo.

There's some great anise lurking in there. But love that tart and the herbal finish

That herbal concentration keeps getting stronger.
I lament that I can't keep till tomorrow, as it's a restaurant pour. Vina Enoteca - best Italian on the Peninsula - let this bottle rest upright for 6 months. Thanks Rocco.

3/12/2021 - Fractalage Likes this wine:

CORKED!

GDMFB, I hate buying one bottle at auction to find this out.
Crud, just disappointing.

Christophe, let's get some cred for this, please.

Despite the crazy TCA smell and taste I can tell this was a fantastic bottle of dry, northern rhone style juice. Rocks, stones with delish earthen notes.

I'm trying to see if this blows off.
Day 2, nope.

2/25/2021 - Fractalage Likes this wine:

Amazing wine!
Almost perfect.
Texture, aroma, notes, a symphony in my mouth.

12.5%, etheric and fleeting yet solid and congealing into fantastic herbal delicacy with anise, wild hot herbs, ephemeral texture, complex as the middle, not heaven, not hell, but right there in between with a juice that baffles my palate. I will have to revisit.

I feel as though I don't deserve this, as my Viking ancestral palate craves the rugged and funky. This is like an elegant thing for a refined individual, while I am a fat wide tire on a Hummer rolling across rocky terrain deserving of something far more wild, yet I enjoy this for its finesse. I can pretend that I am of this ilk. Yet it is only pretending.

When Rocco showed this to me for the price of $75 I couldn't say no!

it needs at least a 5 hour decant, and will obviously last many more years.
Low alcohol wines are a joy to find, especially of this quality.

3/5/2021 - CMN wrote:

Purple fruited some harsh wood notes and a lot of vanilla. The vanilla recedes substantially with air, but it’s still far too prominent on the palate. Rounded mouthfeel, low tannins and adequate acidity. 15%abv, but the alcohol is well-hidden.

There are rumors that this wine was made my Morgan Twain Peterson, which attracted me. Nonetheless, this is fairly anonymous with far too much vanilla and this would not be a re-buy for me, even at the Costco price of $9.99/bottle. Disappointing.

2/10/2020 - Fractalage wrote:

Prices here are crazy. Don't pay this, please. There are so many more better wines to be had for fractions of this.
It was indeed a smooth oak bomb with notes of plums, rich and unctuous with notes of cola and lots of easy tanins.

I only hope that one day someone will say this about my paintings.

Hey,
If you like this wine and want to immortalize it in a painting, call me, please because I will paint a masterpiece with this just for you.

2/9/2020 - oakville72 wrote:

Tart and acidic. Some tannis and flavors of old oak puncheons. Hard to recognize as Barolo. Langhe Nebbiolo maybe. 2014 was better. Maybe it'll soften with time. $15 at Trader Joe's. Tasted over several days.

12/2/2020 - Eric wrote:

M&PD Zoom Tasting: Burgundy & Barolo (Zoom): I was a little stumped on this one. Murky, muddy and cloudy, is this right? Tangerine elements throughout. Surprisingly soft and resolved. This has no obvious flaw, but it feels like it is not an ideal example, throwing tons of fine sediment.

1/4/2021 - jordanj Likes this wine:

Stinky in every way. Barnyard, soy sauce, leather, and Asian spices. I can’t get fruit to save my life. Fairly cloudy medium amber. Same as last few bottles. Puts on a little weight with air and it needs every bit as the palate is pretty weak - acidic. I love stinky but not at a total expense of the fruit and balance.

12/17/2020 - kosmik Likes this wine:

90-91
Revoir sur 5 ans.
Besoin de beaucoup d’aération pour se déployer.

1/2/2021 - TVG wrote:

I want to like this wine but I can't get past the nose and taste of blood sausage.

12/30/2020 - pgm wrote:

My last of the three bottles, and the first one I thought was really special. The funk on the nose is nicely delineated into tobacco and farmyard alfalfa and a bit of new leather, but good fruit too, dominated by fresh blackberry and huckleberry. Quite complex and delicious in the mouth, where the leather and black fruit and dusty baking spices show the Tempranillo varietal character really nicely. Sweet fruit and spice on the finish.

Opened this to see if I wanted to buy another allocation, pretty sure that I wouldn’t, but I think this bottle might’ve convinced me I wanted more.

9/15/2020 - slanum wrote:

Viewed as the $40 wine that it was on release: a solid and indeed typical Saint-Joseph displaying the traditional side of Northern Rhône Syrahs. Nice fruit that isn't over ripe, some leather and olive, no overt oak, but I don't find it the most interesting vintage of this particular wine that I've had. I'm inclined to put that down to the vintage, not the Gonons. At the current going rate, which seems to have approached Cornas-like levels, this wine is not there in terms of depth or complexity.

6/4/2017 - OmiyaDrinker Does not like this wine:

Yet Another Wine Group: Cote Rotie & Cornas: Masses of sweet vanilla on the nose. Christmas cake aromas with caramel, white pepper. Many new oak characteristics on the palate also. The Cornas characteristic is there but masked by the makeup of the oak. This seemed completely out of place in this lineup and while the quality is evident I don't like this at all. I felt annoyed drinking this.

8/20/2020 - jlgnml wrote:

Muddy color, not the best representation of Syrah. Past it’s drinking time.

9/20/2020 - Robmcl920 Likes this wine:

The '07 Bartolo comes across as a dark, exotic, hedonistic wine from the first whiff. On the nose, I found black cherry and plum fruit, licorice, sweet baking spices, a hint of dark chocolate, balsamic, and earth. The palate remains largely primary, with dark cherry and plum fruit and sweet spices, but stands out primarily for the lush texture and richness. The fruit is dense and glides across the palate like velvet. There is minimal tannin, with a small amount of slightly grainy tannin appearing on the finish, which is long with plenty of spicy, dark fruit. I didn't find the '07 Bartolo to be in any way actually sweet on the palate, as some reviews indicated, but it does show a dark, rich, hedonistic expression of Nebbiolo, certainly very different than most vintages of Bartolo Mascarello. It's enjoyable today, but should improve a bit as the final bit of tannin fully integrates and some more tertiary complexity opens up. It is a very good vintage of Bartolo, standing out for its richness, even if it lacks the complexity of the surrounding '06 and '08 vintages.

9/30/2019 - Judith wish wrote:

This wine smelled of sulfur and tasted even worse. It clearly was bad. We washed it down the drain. Too bad. I have not had many really undrinkable wines from Garagiste, but this was one of them.

10/3/2020 - wayfarer Likes this wine:

Opened for 45 minutes, no decant. Definitely grew richer and more expressive over course of dinner. Deep purple in glass. Dark red/purple fruit, black cherry, blueberry, stone, hint of spice, herb & earth. Integrated tannin with a bit of acid zip, nice moderate full body and length, polished but with good backbone. Not especially expressive nose, but present and complementary with palate. Pleasure to sip and savor, outstanding with brined/grilled pork chops, baked herb/parmesan acorn squash, wild rice. Enjoyable style.

9/28/2020 - PMJak11 Likes this wine:

45+ minute decant and could have benefited from more. Mix of red and purple colors. Amazing nose! Floral, earth, cow shit, and smoke. Resembled some very high end Bordeaux’s. Wine gets interesting from there. Lots of spice, minimal fruit, and a smooth texture. Short finish. Pretty good value and I want to try again.

10/10/2020 - John McCabe wrote:

Had a couple of months ago but forgot to record the tasting note.

8/28/2016 - lolo66 wrote:

very dark. i get mocha, coffee, stewed fruit. some tannic structure. on the ripe side and a bit modern. not poorly made. just not my style anymore.

Lo and behold on the 2nd day this somehow has become integrated, with bright cherries, spices, touches of oak, and somehow vibrant. Granted I am drinking this below 60 degrees F but this just goes to show you Rioja needs a shit load of air to truly understand and appreciate what it holds.

5/17/2020 - Fractalage Does not like this wine:

Horrible wine.
Was definately ripped off by Whole Foods for $25 for this kakashka. I should have checked, because when a wine is priced higher than Vivino here to the right, then it's really overpriced, and by 20%. Whole Foods is a racket. I will forever avoid that store.

Banshee, take your name off this obviously manipulated wine. It tastes crafted to American palates. Too much added acid left my mouth burning: The classic imposter of a long finish.
The overuse of oak, probably some sort of extract or wood chips added left me wondering why, but knowing that only in America can we find such crap.

I don't hate Banshee, as most I've tasted was worth writing about, even buying as I've purchased their Syrah direct from their Healsburg tasting room, but this a is neighbor give away bottle, which I did give to my neighbor who can't taste what this really is. Maybe I will serve some karmic time in hell for that, but at least someone can drink it instead of dumping. But maybe it really deserved to be dumped.

I'm quite pissed because there were easily 3 other wines in the same price range that would have been delish, but of course, all from Italy.

Maybe I owe Banshee some thanks, because once again I realize that quality to value is never in America, at least for wine.

If you're American and like this sort of obvious manipulation, then this is the junk for you.
Enjoy!

(This is not even worthy to pour into a sauce creation.)

10/14/2019 - HowardNZ Likes this wine:

Some wines at Thierry's place (June 2019): Served non-blind. Cloudy, looking a little like an amber, natural wine. Not a very appealing bouquet. Maderised with dry sherry, toffee, orange peel and some dried cherry and fig aromas. If you don't look at or smell it too much, in the mouth, it's surprisingly alive! It still has some lively fruit, with old Barolo or Barbaresco flavours of Campari and blood orange, with earth and sottobosco elements. Savoury and umami. Quite poignant. Drinking very well for a 52 year old! The WoTN.

3/13/2020 - VINNICK wrote:

So good! This is stellar and even more so when adjusted for the price. Beautiful wine and a true representation of a Chianti riserva. Amazing but this could easily go another 10 years or more! Perfect balance and still youthful.

12/23/2019 - Chef B wrote:

Decanted. Cloudy with mud left in bottle. Smells of RC cola, sour cherries, and crushed fresh herb, maybe menthol. Slight sweetness and building intensity on palate. Medium finish.

5/19/2020 - Fractalage Likes this wine:

Now this is a very good wine.
I don't agree with these reviews saying that it needs 10 years, but 10 years won't ruin it. It was very enjoyable after several hours of decant. It's quality, with a capital Q.
The texture was luxurious, reminiscent of those finest of Napa and Bordeaux, but for fraction of the cost. This is that $150 bottle for $45.

Double decant 5 hours before serving blind to wine lovers to get them to guess what this is. Betcha no one will even come close.

This is case worthy at this price.

I really enjoyed this, and might just buy a few more bottles, which I rarely do because my money always goes to exploration of new juice.

3/10/2020 - Michigan Mostberg Does not like this wine:

Deep color and nice blackberry nose. Black cherry palate but finish is too short as the fruit disappears. Almost a "dumb phase" sensation. Simply doesn't cut it for a $90 pinot, and I even own Dexter's clingy, long-sleeve t-shirt.

2/28/2020 - Michigan Mostberg Does not like this wine:

Like the 2015, just not a lot going on in this wine. Dilute and totally devoid of fruit. Should not have been released under the TGE label.

Day 2: Softer and showing slight dark berry notes, but still lacking terribly any appreciable fruit or finish... POOR DEXTER!

9/3/2019 - jeremyshanker1@gmail.com Likes this wine:

Wow. This wine was majestic. Decanted for about 30 minutes. Was showing some slight funk for thew first 45 minutes. I was worried it might not have been the freshest bottle. It blossomed right in gront of us and changed with every glass. Indeex, the last glass was the best glass, which for me is the sign of a truly great wine. Dark, sweet black cherries, smoked and spiced. Almost like brandied manhattan cherries. Sichuan peppercorn, anise, dried mint, lavender, peat, and charcoal. This was a big monstrous wine, seeming to be just entering its drinking window... but it could probably go for another 50 without losing any freshness whatsoever.

7/29/2015 - jeremyshanker1@gmail.com Likes this wine:

A wine drunk at its peak! So complex and integrated. Little known, old school producer whose wines are equally majestic and age worthy as the bigger names.

5/14/2020 - Geoffy Likes this wine:

This is apple and blackberry crumble on a stick, but with the right level of acidity to make it a proper wine rather than alcoholic fruit juice. Complex brambly fruits and a little spice on the nose and the initial taste, and then a long slightly caramelised finish. Lovely. Shame Ridge wines have become so expensive in the UK.

10/22/2019 - Rabaja Likes this wine:

Very tight upon opening as the tannin and acidity are strong. Over many hours in the glass it begins to show its stuff. Rosemary, cherry cough syrup, gummy fig, blood orange. The palate (eventually) is all dark, ripe, wild strawberry. The tannin relaxes with aeration but the acidity remains making this quite fresh. Should age for many years. Decant for two or more hours if possible. But it's still fun as a pop and pour, just very intense.

6/20/2017 - Red Don Likes this wine:

Restaurant purchase @ BLT Prime Restaurant by David Burke, Washington, DC (I won't mention the (outrageous) price, but avg retail is $24). Sommelier suggested this wine to accompany an entree of Porterhouse Steak.

Served @ room temperature, wine is Deep (Royal) Purple in glass; actually imbues the stemware with color. Thick legs, Nose is of Plums & dark red fruit, with alcoholic overtone (14.0% abv). Very Hearty and Full-bodied; more than Hearty enough to stand up any strongly-flavored meat or game, such as Wild Boar or Venison.

Palate of Dark fruits; Plums, Black cherries and earthy spice. Wine features prominent tannin's, but not harsh, although I did notice some fuzziness on the tooth.

Bold, complex structure yet smooth and well-balanced acid. Lingering tart, rather pleasant finish.

Good choice for any strongly-flavored dish, meats, or wild game. Rather like a Blaufränkisch, on steroids (please may I have just one more sip!).

The (glass) bottle seems double thick, and twice the weight of most 750 ml bottles. I've heard some wine producers use heavier bottles just to enhance the illusion of quality, but I think this instance is only because of it's region of origin. This wine may also be available in a ceramic container.

Drinking this wine reminds me of the Grape Crushing scene in 1996's beautifully-photographed, academy award-nominated, Best Foreign Language Film from the Georgian Republic, "A Chef in Love" ('Shekvarebuli kulinaris ataserti retsepti' original title) with Pierre Richard, Micheline Presley & Nino Kirtadze. See it and you'll know what I'm talking about. (Lovers of Georgia should see it.)

EDIT: Some research reveals that Georgia is one of the oldest, if not the oldest, wine producing regions in the world. I acquired some more to see if this young wine benefits from cellaring.

11/7/2017 - Fractalage Likes this wine:

Let stand for a month before opening.
Initial pour had color of translucent blood. Slight brown edges.
It's bouquet had big fruit of plum and musty grassy leaves soaked in an old wooden barrel.
On the palate I was expecting big fruit but to my pleasure had no sweetness: It was bone dry, salty savory. As it opened up and the rare ribeye consumed the flavor of tobacco and tar emerged. Crushed rocks and asphalt were a joy to imbibe. The finish was spicey with a carribean type bite of island heat. I counted 40 seconds of interesting evolution of finish taking a dry mineral spice into a touch of banana peel end.
Excellent real wine.
8/10
With wines like this to be imported at such a low price, why ever try a Cali wine and roll the dice on manipulated tastes? I swear, almost EVERY time I buy Cali I'm disappointed and feel ill at imbibing deleterious chemicals. (I'm talking about the supposedly good $50+ wholesale types, such as Mondavi) Wine should NEVER make you feel sick or give hangover!
Real wine will uplift and give vitality. The next day make you feel refreshed and energized. Real wine is medicine: good for your health!
USA - clean up your act! Quit poisoning your consumers!