7/29/2022 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Decanted for 30 minutes. Nose Kalamata olives, wet earth and an old library with old growth wide plank mahogany floors. Taste is just as good with flavors of black pepper, black olives, dark fruit, wood and mushrooms. This wine has lots of depth and great length. Was like drinking a story! This was my last bottle. Shared with friends :)

4/19/2022 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Great from the first glass to the last. Fine bubbles, great acidity, light creaminess with toasted almonds. All parts are in great balance. Great for the price.

4/5/2022 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Nose of olives and earth, palate is very strong with similar chewy flavors

11/26/2021 - winebytoth wrote:

Bubbly water

11/26/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Drank from magnum. Forest floor, mushroom, and dark baking berries. Took about 2 hours in the bottle to open up and soften. Great bottle that showed very well after 35 years

11/23/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Lots of peaches and mineralilty. Has a motor oil smell at first but burns off after 30 minutes

11/18/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Drank from magnum, lemon and high acidity upon opening. Started to open up and developing length with crushed rock, lemon, cheesy and bread flavors.

10/17/2021 - winebytoth wrote:

Pop and poured, very clean and precise cab franc. Very well balanced, great acidity. Opened up in the bottle and by the third glass this wine was singing. I think I will decant the next bottle I open. Great to have on hand

10/1/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Lemon, almonds, cheesy and creamy with great acidity and balance. Hold up will for 10 years old.

9/22/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Almond, slight creaminess, great acidity and a full mouth feel. Has a fairly long finish with a lemon zest.

9/20/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Great blend of gamay and pinot noir. Juicy, fresh with great depth.

9/15/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Pop and poured to taste, very ripe with a lot of energy. Put in the decanter and drank over 3 hours. Developed with dark fruits and a silky finish that last for quite some time. The final glass was the best. Very elegant, lavish wine with lots of life left ahead. Can for sure drink now but I think i'll only get better with more time in the bottle. Great balance too

9/7/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Straw like color. Not too many bubbles. Bright green apple, pear, almond with low to medium acidity. The green apple on this really shines. Has some complexities and is very enjoyable. Opened up over about 2 hours

9/4/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Dark berries with lots of black pepper and spices. Very good structure and balance.

8/24/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Soft and elegant after about an hour in the glass. On opening there was a harshness but it softened. Dark fruits and an earthiness flavors

8/23/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Nose of strawberry cheesecake with icing, just a beautiful smell. Taste profile is not quite there yet. Minerally with some nice frutyness but tastes incomplete in a way. Maybe with more time in the bottle it’ll develop, 6 months to a year or so i’ll try another bottle

8/21/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Very good Syrah but not as much power as I would have hoped at the price. Juicy dark fruits and subtle tobacco and cedar notes with medium finish. It never fully developed over 2+ hours to be what I thought it would be. Still very good but drinks at about half of what it retails for. Maybe an off vintage

8/14/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

This is a fun light sango. Very fresh, balanced and best served cool. It can stand up to food or just be enjoyed on its own. Will be buying lots more. The stolpman family does a great job to make quality wines at all levels. Discovered them through somm tv.

7/30/2021 - winebytoth wrote:

Very well balanced, dark fruit, long silky finish. Fantastic for an estate grown napa cab. decanted for 90 minutes

7/17/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Has great potential. After the 3rd glass the wine started to show more depth and some toasted notes. There is great structure but a good amount of tension. Will hold my other bottles for a few more years before trying.

7/17/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Very well balanced, great length, acidity and nice citrus notes. For this being an entry level NV i'm very intrigued in trying their vintage line. Will be buying more of this champagne.

6/22/2021 - winebytoth Does not like this wine:

Sour cooked juice. Stewed plums and an off-putting smell.

6/19/2021 - winebytoth wrote:

Upon opening jucy fruit with a strong cough syrup finish. Very undrinkable. Decanted for an hour and the cough syrup faded but was unbalanced, synthetic and not enjoyable. Past vintages have been enjoyable so maybe 1858 cheaper out or this is just an off vintage.

6/19/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

3rd bottle. Deep dark fruits with lots of black pepper. This nose is beautiful and deep. Tastes is just as good with dark fruits, blackberry, tobacco, cedar, dark fruits and medium long finish. Decanted and drank over 2 hours. Flavors and nose continued to develop. More sediment then the previous bottles.

6/18/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Light and eleglant, plenty of depth and length. Has a smoke/char not that I could not place but it was very plesent. After 2 hours it started to taste more like Beaujolais

6/17/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Fun to drink, crisp and very refreshing. Notes of pear and honeysuckle Drinks more like a yeasty beer than a sparkling wine but fantastic none the less

6/6/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Creamy nose with grapefruit and a floral touch. Pallet is similar with a creamy taste that develops into a white flower floral finish. Acidity is fairly low and the finish is fairly long and carries settle complexities. I prefer this vintage to the 2012.

5/15/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Lemon, honey, cream, minerality, chalky texture. This wine packs a lot in each sip. Super long finish with hazelnut and a medium acidity finish. Opened up over 2+ hours and flavors expanded with lots of depth and complexities. For the price I put this up there with 2008 Dom Perignon and 2011 Perrier Jouet. All are wonderful in their own right but this one stands out for sure. Will purchase more.

5/3/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Wasn't sure what to expect with this one, purchased it from benchmark. Cork was perfect, opened up very pleasant and had great structure and plenty of fruit left, still quite a bit of tannins but after time in the glass it resolved and became a great 18 year old cab.

5/1/2021 - winebytoth wrote:

Toasty, yeasty and bready with a really great balance of minerality notes and an acidity that coats your tongue with a wonderful silkiness

4/30/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Santa Maria Valley! Wild strawberry, black pepper, are up front and then on the back end it has such elegance and grace with layers of complexities. Love the pinot noirs from this region.

4/29/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Hour decant opened up to layers of dark fruits, cedar and tobacco with some black peppercorns. Lots of depth on this wine and its very well integrated with fantastic acidity. Seamed to only get better and better with each glass.

4/28/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Elegant with subtle complexities. Good acidity and a fairly long finish. Really enjoy these wines from Humboldt County.

4/19/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Juicy and elegant with a touch of acidity. Very enjoyable. Good balance between cool climate California pinot and Burgundy style.

4/17/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

This was great. Toasty and bready with medium acidity and some minerality. It was a great balance between floral white flowers and creaminess. Seams to be just starting to open up and drink nicely. Would buy more.

4/10/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Super easy drinker. Great blue fruits and balance.

4/3/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Great for when its hot out. Tropical fruits and clean taste.

4/1/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Drank from 6 Liter! Toasty, butter, dough, almond, lemon, and honeysuckle. This had plenty of time to open cause of the huge bottle it was in. Only got more complex and toasty over time. Was able to use an old cork to cork the bottle and keep the bubbles in. After 5 hours they were still there. Fun time!

4/1/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Nose of a race car on the track, motor oil and petrol. But on the taste is loaded with tropical fruits, Pineapple, mango and apricot. Really high a acadity and a finish that keeps on going. After an hour the nose burns off and is more on the minerality side with tropical fruits. Amazing wine for 30 years of age and not showing any signs of shutting down. Only 7% alcohol. Drank at 50 degrees.

3/29/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Drank from 5L! Bright cherries, baking spices and slate. This wine had great structure and balance. Consumed over 5 hours with friends and wood fired pizzas. Beautiful wine, was purchased from the winery in Montepulciano. Will for sure buy more large format bottles next time i'm in Italy

3/28/2021 - winebytoth wrote:

Surprisingly good for a celebrity wine. Nice fruit and just the right amount of vanilla. Was better to enjoy at a cooler temperature. 55-60 degrees

3/28/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Fresh and clean with some citrus and a minerality that I thought to be wet slate. The minerality and acidity grew stronger and stronger. Wanted more complexity for the price of this but still really good and a joy to drink.

3/21/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Creamy, brioche with good acidity, fine bubble and long finish. Really enjoyed it for the price. Would buy more

3/14/2021 - winebytoth wrote:

Passionfruit, lemon zest and mango skin on the nose. Fresh and clean with a testiness on the taste.

3/12/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Tobacco, soft leather, dried fruit and coffee beans on the nose. Opens up after 15 minutes to a lot of the same flavors on the nose but with a big tannic bight. Decanted longer and the tannins softened and more of the structure developed. Super long finish that coats you mouth. Really good for $20 Bordeaux thats 11 years old. Wish I bought more.

3/11/2021 - winebytoth wrote:

Strawberry and cherries with hints of smoke. Falls flat and thin at the end

3/8/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Toasty, butter, dough, almond, lemon, and honeysuckle.

3/8/2021 - winebytoth Likes this wine:

Fresh and elegant. Notes of white flower, grapefruit, hints of cream on the nose and on the finish, more lighter bodied. Acidity didn't show up till the second glass

3/5/2021 - winebytoth wrote:

Crisp, clean, mild acidity, lemon zest and slight creaminess. Drank at 50 degrees

3/4/2021 - winebytoth wrote:

Very good. Classic Loire valley franc. Very ripe berries and medium long finish with good depth and length. 40 minute decant. At $20 this is very good