12/11/23, 8:05 AM - My pleasure. It's clearly a smart wine and consistently good, but the prices these days are bonkers! Good luck.
6/19/23, 6:19 AM - that's great to hear. This was my first tasting of these wines, and we were honoured to have Matt Dees on Zoom - funny guy, charming and i'm totally on board!There is something Kiwi about it - ripe without being jammy, sweet yet poised, and great clarity. He's excited about the 2020s and frankly, I can't wait. I'll be loading up as well as I can! Good luck with your bottle!
6/19/23, 6:46 AM - Those Chardonnays are brilliant. I loved my Ceritas Marena we tasted recently but The Hilt really turn the dial up. Going to be great following them!
5/31/23, 1:36 AM - My pleasure!I've slowed down with putting notes up, so a nice excuse to get back into the swing of things with a vertical like this. Great tasting, always a privilege to get to taste like this... and we should always share the experience if we can.
5/31/23, 1:34 AM - Hi there!I didn't jot the assemblage down during the tasting, just added in when I put my notes up, so it was kind of nice to see there was some CF in the blend on this one :D I don't believe the wines were decanted, they just got them opened about 4 hours ahead of the tasting, and poured into glasses an hour before the guests arrived.Of the 2015, it really felt quite ready to go - Emeline said the same thing. It is nicely balanced and attractive and those 'volatile' elements help with the structure. I do like Cab Franc but it by no means overwhelmed here.We do joke here about picking up on things like 1% Petit Verdot (which we'd never really pick up on). I promise I wasn't trying to sound clever in my note above!Strictly, I doubt anyone would go opening their GPL 2015s but it was enjoyable to drink and in the context of the tasting, felt good to approach. If it were me, like you, 2027 sounds great!
11/1/22, 8:46 AM - Re Comment posted by Roger1972:11/1/2022 8:22:00 AM - How can you assess a wine, giving no negative elements in the description and then rate at 89?Hi Roger, thanks for your note. I really dislike scoring, and i think it's more of a hint as to how I was feeling at the time. Often I taste as part of a line-up and I therefore score within context. Because we had a line-up of Barberas it was easier to score over a broader range according to what I enjoyed best.I don't believe 89 should be a negative score. Nobody wants to get into the same old argument about scoring out of 100 or 20 or whatever... I will comment on obvious flaws in wine but my main gripe with this wine - aside from simply not enjoying it as much as others in the range, is the notable alcohol and the perhaps overly developed nose relative to the age of the wine.Wine is subjective, i've been tasting for 25 years I suppose, and i'm not pretending to be any kind of expert or influencer. These notes are really so I can reference back.I hope that makes sense. I really like Braida, I just didn't enjoy this. Regardless of how good the wine might be (to someone), I have to score according to how I felt at the time, not on reputation (etc). But anyway, 89 shouldn't be an off-putting score!
3/30/22, 1:28 AM - Thanks for the comment, Skifree - really nice to hear from you. I hope we will do more with T-L. I thought the wines were excellent, and dare I say good value.
1/13/22, 11:39 AM - I think retail was approx £28 but I bought some En Primeur. We've got some magnums that are tempting me at £58! We've always loved the PJK wines but I was so impressed by the 2019s... It really is a special vintage.I'm in the industry so I get a little relief on pricing and while everything has crept up, it doesn't feel quite as bad as I feared. Currently in the midst of Burgundy2020 and when you look back at some of those prices... Wow!
7/12/21, 5:25 AM - We've just been discussing the Dönnhoff 2020s, so I came on to double-check my notes, and to compare with others. So chuffed to read your generous compliment.Thank you very much - you have made my day!Aiden
6/23/21, 2:41 AM - Hi John, we actually didn't decant it. But we were coached with regards popping the cork. Musar have issued neck tags to talk consumers through using a butler's thief (wiggle & twist) corkscrew! I think with purchases of x bottles, the corkscrew will be thrown in.I expect, at home, I would decant carefully through muslin cloth (and make peace with a little loss). Not a bad price at all btw!
5/20/21, 2:44 AM - Thanks for your comment- I like Meulenhof, but I think that was the first (or most notable) occasion when there was something odd to be noted. Good value wines.
5/20/21, 7:43 AM - We're lucky, working with these things all the time, but you do get blasé about things. Over the years, I should have stowed away more odd bottles and pairs of things like this! (and not drunk those I did!)
5/19/21, 12:15 PM - Thanks very much. Yep, EP sample (75cl). I do wonder how best to evaluate drinking windows in vintages like this. Some of these wines feel so well balanced, so how do those tannins evolve? There is a real freshness to the tannins in many 2020, which carries wines where the acidities at perhaps a little lower. I don't recall acidity being an issue in Meyney.My instinct, and I've had some old Meyney before, is that this will last 20 years comfortably. Depending on how elevage rounds out, it ought to be approachable fairly young too. I don't recall awkward phases in Meyney...I'd like to reference 2020 versus some great older vintages... Need to get some books out. We had a 1964 double magnum at a tasting a couple of years ago - it was fantastic!
5/20/21, 2:42 AM - Nice! And if you're in the UK cast your eye over the friendly neighbourhood Shropshire Wine Merchant. ahem.
5/20/21, 3:50 AM - We do!Aiden
5/19/21, 1:14 AM - I'm not sure why i underscored it... clearly a good wine, and I have some 2011 in my cellar. Texturally lovely and very neat, I guess it just didn't really express itself. I didn't get any great complexity from it, and this was alongside some more modest wines. I think I wanted it to say more, show some personality.Surely in time, like many good Saint-Emilion 2020s, it will spread its wings, but sometimes one (I) can't get over the price of certain things... you try not to let it sway you! I've probably underscored it tbh.
5/20/21, 2:41 AM - Yeah. No qualms of ability to cellar, and i'm sure it will show more personality with a little development.
5/19/21, 1:22 AM - Second label? HBL is a 5me cru Pauillac. I think there is a second label ("Le Haut Medoc de HBL").La Gurgue used to be part of Ferrière, I think. So you could sort of call that a second wine?Anyway, HBL was super. I was so pleased for Claire and Gonzargue - they often get underscored, and the 2020s were ace! And I love the experimentation in the background (and the want for more Cab!)
5/19/21, 1:19 AM - I'm not too familiar with Laroque, but I tasted a couple of samples, and it was consistently great. I like the power and richness, and very much appreciate those more savoury elements. Will be a long-lived wine, i'm sure.
5/19/21, 1:18 AM - These wines were interesting, because out of all the wines we tasted, there was so little reduction. But all of the Durantou wines had a certain funk. It blew off quickly enough, and the wines showed well, but I noted it each time.Yeah, l'Eglise Clinet, the second wine too, had brilliant mouthfeel. Really nicely balanced wines.
5/15/21, 3:41 AM - Thanks very much!I do appreciate I am lucky, and its so nice that more of my colleagues get to taste at the same time... lockdown has been hard on so many of course, but opening up the Primeurs like this has been more than a silver lining!I would say I prefer more classical styles - that's what I drink at home. I like wines with an edge - no problem with some firmer tannin and higher levels of acidity, and i'm ok with volatility, to a degree. But, at times, its hard not to be impressed by more modern styles as per Valandraud.2020 has been an eye-opener. It is patchy, particularly on the Left Bank, and I would say especially Margaux. We all get coached in to 'Margaux is pretty, 'feminine', and 'perfumed'. But in reality, it is a large and incredibly varied collection of terroirs, and something that we should all aim to report.I found many Margaux to be disappointing in 2020. I think the lack of charm was very surprising, and this really sets '20 apart from '18 and '19. More than that, there were wines that felt 'hollow', 'lean', and overly austere. Then you come across, Angludet, for example and it had that sweetness about it, in perfume and flavour, and when the tannins are managed well, you have to admire it!On Friday, we had a lovely tasting of the Villars/Lurton wines (La Gurge, Ferriere, Durfort-Vivens, and HBL). Their three Margauxs, so often under-appreciated (and sometimes under-performing) pretty much changed my opinion of Margaux 2020 by themselves! Wow they were good!! Notes to appear soon.So, very briefly, and I hope this helps address your other comment:RIGHT BANKSaint-Emilion is tricky overall. Many of the UGC wines were serious, and hard work - there will be some very long-lived wines amongst them. Going up the levels, and you find impressive wines, and towards the top, the tannins are so well managed: so fine, lovely textures... But you'll pay for it.You can spot the wines where they maybe picked (too) early.Pomerol was very successful, and Lalande had some real beauties for early drinking and for cellaring. Yeah, clay soils very important as it was so hot and dry, and picking dates as important. There are a handful of weedy wines, but overall we loved Pomerol, and some seriously impressive wines - Clinet masterful, the grand Moueix wines too, Certan de May, Durantou stable etc etc. So many hits! We do have more we're waiting on.On Friday we tasted some excellent Francs and Castillon too. Impressive colours, great fragrance. Some firm wines from the Cotes, and lots of power, intensity, and personality.LEFT BANKSt Estephe had lots of hits. Good vintage for them on the whole. I struggled with Lafon Rochet, but loads of positive notes out there for it. Haut Marbuzet very smart, I loved Meyney!Pauilllac had some lovely wines of course, but I found a softness in many of them. Perhaps lower acids (higher pH?) but the freshness of tannins really helps with balance... there is some 'green' about - noted in Margaux too, but it feels in check (I like it).Saint-Julien seems broadly great. Some of the top wines will vie for wine of the vintage... i'd say Leoville Barton is right up there.Margaux very patchy, so cross reference notes is my advice. But I have found some beauties recently, so more positive thoughts now.Pessac is ACE! So many lovely wines, elegance and power, but the silkiness in many is what I think of. Olivier really surprised me, SHL has big scores everywhere, and it was good... Domaine de Chevalier, Lespault all brilliant, and I like the Martillac-Lag wines too. Really successful down there.Moulis did ok overall. But Medoc and Haut Medoc very patchy. Really hard to generalise.Personally, I think there are some 'elegant' wines that will age better than we might expect. And these are young, unfinished wines... elevage may shut some of these impressive wines down, it may help the awkward ones...No doubt, the producers that have fared well, see 2020 as excellent, but it was clearly hard work! I think Right Bank had an easier time (eek), and yields were decent; if they got Cab right on the Left Bank, it makes all the difference.Sorry, what was the question?Wines of the vintage, for me?I haven't really lined up the best scorers to refine my thoughts... The grander Pomerols are there for me: Clinet, Lafleur-Petrus, Certan de May, l'Eglise-Clinet (and others) all stand out. 1er gcc Saint Emilion - I wasn't disappointed in any. Pavie-Macquin felt special amongst them, but I loved the likes of Belair-Monange, and the wines from Niepperg are pretty serious... I think full of potential.Crikey, sorry I am waffling! Got to do the shopping now.
5/18/21, 1:11 AM - Hi LIOF, thanks for your kind words.Sadly, we haven't tasted any of the first growths (yet?), but the stablemates from Mouton didn't set any fires within me this year... I appreciated a lighter touch in d'Armailhac - really quite 'serious' yet delicate... Clerc Milon was good; Duhart Milhon was excellent, so i'd expect great things in Lafite.Weirdly, no VCC yet... we tasted l'If (Thienpont Saint-Emilion) on Friday - really smart stuff. The various Thienpont properties have shown very well, from the Côtes and the grand Saint-Ems.I'll keep uploading notes as I get chance. The Gonzargue Lurton/Clare Villars wines (La Gurgue, Ferriere, Durfort-Vivens) have pretty much changed my opinion on Margaux in 2020! Wow, they were so good (so was Haut Bages Liberal).
3/3/21, 12:17 PM - I tasted an enormous line-up of Bx2019s during lockdown last year. It was hectic, and most of my own notes super brief/shorthand. And I lost some too. But this is one that stood out, and my colleagues waxed lyrical.I bought six, and I very much look forward to trying one ten years down the line!! Great note, thanks Jeff!
3/3/21, 12:14 PM - My pleasure! I'm lucky to taste so frequently, so will always aim to make notes and get them on here for interest!
2/20/21, 8:41 AM - No worries! Could have been unlucky with the bottle, but in any case it has the structure to cellar.
9/26/19, 6:49 AM - Thanks very much!
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