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Tasting Notes for vinocerus

(144 notes on 124 wines)

1 - 50 of 144 Sort order
Red
Past its prime and drinking rather unwell. Quite awful actually, no fruit, no leather, no secondary or tertiary character. Not sure I'd even use it for cooking. Disappointing. Drink up and hopefully your bottle will show some semblance of the southern Rhone.
Red
9/3/2022 - vinocerus wrote:
Previous note nails it on the head. Minimal fruit, all earth/leather with faint bretty character. Noticeable tannins somewhat surprising. Tasted a bit tired for my CDP wheel house.
Rosé
Usually one of my favorite rosés every year. This one is downright funky but in an unpleasant way. The green vegetal notes are overwhelming reeking and tasting of bell pepper and jalapeño pepper. The nice crisp mouth feel is completely obscured by the green notes. Doesn’t improve with air or after coming up to room temp. Just not good for my palate on 2 separate nights. Rarely do I ever do this, but down the drain it went. Will look for the ‘20 version.
1 person found this helpful Comment
Red
Drinking very nicely with strongly persistent fruit and strong mineral backbone. The interplay is well done. Fruit is pleasantly at the forefront. Ridiculous QPR.
Red
Completely different from the typical Carlisle style that iI've enjoyed for the past 10-15 years, but utterly delicious. Bright red fruits as opposed to the usual dark blue/black fruit. Zesty on the palate, acidity deftly balanced with minimal tannins. Excellent wine and ridiculous QPR. Not sure if this is the style Mike is exploring or simply a result of vintage characteristics. Either way, will drink with pleasure.
3 people found this helpful Comment
Red
Drinking surprisingly well given the recommended drinking window. Classic aged CDP color and nose, palate a bit oaky but with nice tertiary characteristics. Finish is straightforward, nothing special or of note.
White
Floral nose with some honeyed-fruit in the background. Unctuous texture with mineral elements apparent on the palate; the fruit gathers some spice accents as well. Nice interplay bringing everything together on the finish. Very nicely done.
Red
Stupendous "entry-level" CDP. Impressive nose, palate follows suit, just loads and loads of fruit with nice mineral backbone. Ridiculous QPR from this vintage.
Red
Drinks much better than an entry level zin. Deep ruby with a hint of purple at the edges. Classic zin aromas with peppery zip framing red/black fruits. Nice mouth feel with light tannic structure but very approachable. A little heat on the end but overall a great example of a robust, exuberant Cali zin. Great QPR. Drink up if you have any in your cellar..
Red
Nicely aged CDP. No raisiny fruit as can appear with 2003 CDPs. Still with some red fruit aspects but giving way to herbal/earth elements. Odd collagenous sediment in addition to the typical residue with aging bottles. Drink up.
White
Light transluscent yellow, a bit deeper than a SB. Interesting nose with floral, citrus, mineral components. Easy drinking as an apperitif, paired nicely with cream-based pasta dish. Desceptively full-bodied with luscious palate notable for ripe fruit and persitent mineral notes. Delicious and serious bang for the 12 bucks. Bought 6 more.
Red
Holding strong. Bright ruby red, beautiful nose with all-spice/clove hints and orange citrus. Somewhat soft palate, easy drinking with persistent spice notes. Paired quite well with multiple dishes on Thanksgiving day. Very good SB pinot.
White
Light, transluscent yellow- starting out well. Crisp aromas of citrus fruit with mineral background. Tense palate witn strong mineral component easing into a complex mouth-filling finish. With air and warming in the glass, a slight salinity comes about. Everything I look for in Chablis.
2 people found this helpful Comment
White
Still nice, but best drunk early
Red
Light/pale brown color is worrisome. Nose is restrained but quite nice and surprising given the color. Palate is medium bodied with mature fruit and a hint of spices. CDP-lite at this stage but still very nice wine.
My handful of '98 CDP will be gone before the end of the year. Drink up.
1 person found this helpful Comment
Red
Past its prime. My other '98 CDP have been drinking nicely but this bottle was DOA. Light brown on the edges and not in a nice bricking tyoe of color. Muted nose with over-ripe fruit, quickly fades on the palate. Tried about 1-2 hours later to see if any nicer tertiary characteristics developed to no avail. I say drink up and good luck.
Red
8/1/2017 - vinocerus wrote:
flawed
My oldest Carlisle zin and looking forward to it.
Corked!! Dammit. Probably the lowest percentage of corked wines than any other producer in my cellar. Rotten luck.
Red
Odd tasting pinot, if it was an off-bottle I couldn't discern the problem. Not bretty, not corked just not good. Color was a nice light ruby, nose was off-putting without much fruit or mineral notes, palate consistent with aromas. Not a good pinot tonight.
1 person found this helpful Comment
Red
Beyond awful. Didn't think it could get worse than my previous bottle 4 years ago. The only discernible traits as wine are the color and alcohol content. Absent aromas, flavor, structure...in short an absolute shell of a wine. I would not use this even as a cooking wine. It is difficult to understand how anyone could enjoy this.
Red
Popped and poured, drank it over 1-2 hours. Glorious CDP with fading/bricking color, soaring aromas of herbs, lavender, leather with subtle red fruits. Palate does not disappoint with gamey notes and nice interplay between the spice and fruit duet. Didn't even check alcohol content as it did not matter with this majestic bottle of wine. Held up well over the 2 hours. Quite a bit of sediment as expected. Would not wait to open if you have some.
1 person found this helpful Comment
Red
WS 92 at $12.95? Top 100, why not? I'll tell you why not: weird nose with minimal fruit but not corked or bretty, flabby palate with that annoyingly syrupy sweet characteristic found in "QPR" reds (think Apothic Red). No discernible tannins, no finish and certainly nothing to identify it as Malbec. In short a red concoction with no pleasant scents, no body, no finish. Barely qualifies as wine. Brings thoughts of the Sierra Carche debacle with JM at the WA. No, me no likey.
Red
11/28/2013 - vinocerus wrote:
Rather unmemorable. Had it with a flight of 4 other pinots including Anthill Farms, Brewer-Clifton, Demetria, Rivers Marie and really did not stand out as much as I expected having heard the raves with the AR style. Did not decant but opened a few hours prior to drinking. It's good and definitely on the subtle side of the fruit spectrum but not overly earthy. How else can I express how pedestrian this wine was drinking? I admire what these guys are doing but the more I drink their wines the more I realize the subtlety is lost on my palate.
1 person found this helpful Comment
Red
Dark rich fruit, with that typical Sonoma nose that is unmistakable. Not a blockbuster for me but improved significantly over the evening. Last 1/2 glass was the best. Would give it a bit of air next time.
Red
11/8/2013 - vinocerus wrote:
Had it in a blind tasting of 14 Cali pinots. To sum up my notes, "not memorable". Typical Cali pinot nose and palate just not much going on. I had it #9, group had it #6. Seems to be my least favorite Copain pinot. Rusack 2010 SB County was group's #1.
Red
5/18/2013 - vinocerus wrote:
Hard to remember any previous corked bottles from Carlisle but this one was badly corked.
Red
Ah yes, this is the wine that stole the show during my Paso weekend a few months ago. Deep crimson hue, beautiful nose with dark red fruits, palate pulls it all together for a great wine. Well balanced despite lofty alcohol (15.8%) content. For me, better than Buxom syrah and the GSM. One of my favorite Grenache wines to date.
1 person found this helpful Comment
White
Mouth puckering acidity with unmistakable lemon accents. Mineral notes reminiscent of Chablis but frankly this is a bit difficult to drink.
1 person found this helpful Comment
White
Was expecting a leaner more mineral driven wine, this is voluptuous with full bodied mouth feel, rich on the palate ; nice tropical fruit with adequate acidity. Quite nice.
White
2010 Sine Qua Non The Monkey California White Rhone Blend (view label images)
2/19/2013 - vinocerus wrote:
Deep golden yellow hue, tropical notes on the nose. Nice full bodied and viscous on the palate without any detectable heat noticeable. Nice but somewhat clipped finish which improved significantly toward the end of the evening.
Red
1/26/2013 - vinocerus wrote:
Consistent with prior note. Dark inky magenta color with boisterous nose of dark/blue fruit. Full bodied, fruit-filled palate with some underlying pepper/spice. Nice prolonged finish with no alcohol to obscure the fruit. Well balanced wine with fine structure to balance a fruit forward wine. Preferred over Copain Brousseau on same evening.
Red
1/26/2013 - vinocerus wrote:
Not your fruity bombastic Cali Syrah. Very restrained nose with pepper/garrigue element. Light bodied with brisk acidity; nice red fruit and olive on the palate. Unique syrah compared to my usual suspects (Saxum, Jaffurs, Tensley, Carlisle) and, although not unpleasant, not in my wheelhouse right now.
White
1/26/2013 - vinocerus wrote:
Deep yellow, unctuous texture with medium body. Surprisingly but pleasantly crisp on the palate with nice mineral undertones and stone fruits.
Red
1/26/2013 - vinocerus wrote:
WAAAAY too young.
Red
2008 Saxum Broken Stones Paso Robles Red Rhone Blend (view label images)
1/12/2013 - vinocerus wrote:
This is a monster right now. Decanted for an hour, drank it over the next 2-3 hours with one glass (literally in the glass) saved for the next day. Unyielding on night 1 with nice nose but very tight on the palate. 2nd night was softer with mild tannins and nice mouthfeel; more on the earthy rather than fruit-forward profile. This one needs a few years more.
Red
1/12/2013 - vinocerus wrote:
Very approachable at this time. Decanted for an hour ,, enjoyed over the next 2. Plethora of classic Saxum fruit along with some spice elements. Full bodied with quite a long finish. In a very good place right now. Alcohol not noticeable but the JB packs a wallop.
White
Light pale yellow, restrained mineral aromas, utterly refreshing with crisp acidity and a mineral-infused palate with stone fruits.
White
12/5/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
Very young at this stage. All mineral and bracing acidity.
Red
Took a chance on this on WTSO a few months ago. Light red color, absent aromas, light-bodied, thin, acidic with complete absence of fruit. No earthy funk or any other discernible flavors. Decanted for 4-5 hours, not much improvement noted. Complete waste of money. Don't see any upside in waiting on this.
White
11/24/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
More restrained than prior vintages with notable acidity and structure rather than the prominent fruit in previous years especially the 2009 vintage. Quite good.
Red
11/20/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
It puzzles me why I don't buy more Tensley wines. Every time I drink one it over performs to my expectations. Had this one with an Epoch and Jaffurs Syrah and was easily my favorite. Copious dark red fruits, full bodied, endless finish. Great wine especially for the price.
Red
11/20/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
Not subtle by any means. Huge fruit-forward nose, full bodied, big mouthful of kirsch, spice, and deft touch of oak. Old school big bruiser from Paso.
Red
11/20/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
Interesting nose that is becoming typical of NoCal syrahs. More herbal than fruit or floral on the nose. Palate is thin and the finish lack-luster. Not a favorite.
Red
11/23/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
Best of 4 pintos tasted blind: Rhys alpine '08, Copain Kaiser en Haut '06, and Anthill Abbey Harris '09. Nice bright red color, complex nose with red fruit/cherry, spice, and slight floral anise component. Drinks well upon opening and holds its components overnight. Excellent pinot.
Red
11/20/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
Nice aromatics and mouth feel with distinct red fruits and interesting herbal (not greenies) structure. Quite good.
Red
11/20/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
Painfully young. Dark red color, restrained nose and firm tannins on the palate. Not giving up much on day 1; a bit softer on day 2 but still very tight. My remaining bottles will rest for a few years.
Red
11/23/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
Last of my 3 bottles. Nice bright red fruit with an elegant mouth feel. Better on day 2 after sitting overnight in the open bottle. Would hold for a few more years or decant vigorously.
Red
11/22/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
Wow are my maturing CDPs drinking nicely. Soaring yet gentle aromatics with nice peppery undertones. Medium bodied with great palate and finish. Gorgeous wine in prime drinking window.
Red
11/22/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
In a very awkward place right now. Dark as night, very reticent nose, not much on the palate. First time I've detected any heat on any Saxum wine as this one was completely closed in all other aspects. BIG mistake with the pop and pour and not much change after 2-3 hours in a decanter. Interesting experience as my prior bottles have been much more enjoyable. It would be interesting to hear if any others have noticed a similar shut-down phase.
Red
11/10/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
So I write on CT that my only bottle of O Brother zin was corked. Within 1 day I get a message that Morgan wants to replace the wine. Less than1 week later the wine arrives via cold pack. Dare I say, an elegant zin? Light ruby color, restrained nose with full spectrum of red fruits, medium bodied on the palate with excellent structure. Not cloying or with any hint of alcohol, just a well balanced wine which is what I'm always looking for, alcohol levels be damned. As much as I've on joyed full-throttle Zion's in the past this one seems to be right in my wheelhouse at this time. As I look to trim mailing lists, with product and customer service like this Bedrock won't be one of them.
1 person found this helpful Comment
Red
11/17/2012 - vinocerus wrote:
My favorite Carlisle zin so far. Interesting that I found it a bit clumsy ôn day 1 with abundant fruit but not much more going on. Day 2 after a night in the fridge reveals a structured, exuberant, and well-balanced wine. I've decanted Carlisle syrahs in the past but don't remember doing it with a zin. It's makes me rethink my approach.
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  • Tasting Notes: 144 notes on 124 wines
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