10/1/2023 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Well, CT tells me my last TN on this was 2011 so 12 years later …(SpongeBob narrator voice😆)

Surprisingly light on its feet, really nice but not overly expressive nose, balanced and smooth palate with hints of dark chocolate, black cherry on start and finish (but not fruity finish). Garrigue seems to have faded into background, bit of eucalyptus. It’s not young but it’s really enjoyable. Still a bit (but minor) tannic “grip”. Good example of midrange (upper mid realistically for non wine geeks) aged wine.

9/18/2023 - Squirreljam wrote:

Like some previous notes, I’ve found variability in these - but the one I just had was excellent. (Side note - I agree other vintages haven’t lived up to Garagiste hype (what does?😆), but lol the 04 has for me). Just shy of 19, it had a rich nose, smooth palate - and a lot of sediment. Really beautiful lapsang souchong nose, rich earthy palate, smooth, without the notably tart acidity I get in some other years of this. For me, good to go but will hang for a while.

7/5/2023 - Squirreljam wrote:

Hmm, this was great. Someone else in here said they could just repeat old TN; I agree, in my case from january 2006. It was "extremely smooth" back then, now it's extremely-er smooth-er! Licorice, black cherry and mouthfeel of dark chocolate. This may have been early in the modern single vineyard brunello evolution and got some takes (pans) that it was made for young drinking; well, maybe so, but 26 years ain't chump change and this has aged very well. Wish I had more, CT says a bottle left, but seems to have disappeared sometime in the last 17 years.

6/18/2023 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

12 years in the cellar, fathers day, prime ribeyes, let’s go! Impression only as a drank this a couple days ago. Really liked this, with a little quibble on the nose, not as expressive as could be. That said, the palate was excellent. Well smoothed out, but still juicy acidity, this was/is in a great spot for *my palate*. KL was a favorite and whenever I drink one, I wish they were still around

6/21/2023 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Bought new from list, last one, soft cork, no taint, decanted for maybe 90 mins? Impression only, drank a couple days ago on father’s day.
Really great rich nose that I liked better than younger lewellings; I sometimes find them cloying on the nose when young. Palate smooth, fruit has receded a bit, some aged notes but still fairly big. Pretty well mature now, for *my taste* for *napa cabs*, I would drink in next few years.

4/9/2023 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Hmm last 750 of 3 from Garagiste 15 years ago, wish I’d bought more. Just gently settling into early middle age, still primary but less in-your-face about it than 10 years ago. Beautiful straw-gold color, nose not all that expressive but white fruit and flowers for sure. Lovely balanced acidity, some slate but not a lot, more white peaches and a hint of citrus (there was more a while back).

4/3/2023 - Squirreljam wrote:

‘16 Col di Lamo Brunello

3/8/2023 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

I like this. Nose with a whiff of cigar smoke then eucalyptus. Nice and rich on the palate, not overdone, just without the sternness some 05s still have. Tart cherry, iron, bit of tobacco; has a nice spine so you remember it’s not from Napa😆. Nothing about this says anything other than in the middle of a nice long drive down the fairway, with plenty of time left.

3/7/2023 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

So this’ll be an odd TN…. Opened this last week, had 2 glasses, vacuvin’d, stuck in the fridge, went to bed, forgot to post a note. If I’d remembered, it would have been something like this - big, tannic, tart, acts young, fruit hiding. So tonight I grabbed the bottle, poured and let it warm. Holy cow, did my wife switch out the wine?!? (😂did a helluva job, replaced the sludge and everything). Now it’s warm, inviting, smooth, eucalypty-cherry, bit of cigar ash - still way big, no way this is classic claret but damn it’s good. So what happened? I’m not smart enough to know - but I recommend air if you open this now😆

2/11/2023 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Super good, loved the wine but interestingly it doesn’t come across with a lot of specific flavors for a note. Figured at ~9-10 it was ready for a dinner date w wife while kids all out working, babysitting etc.. Popped maybe an hour before dinner for my wife to have some while I cooked, we both loved it initially. Over dinner, here’s what we came up w. “It’s big” was her first impression; mine was “holy crap this is good”. After a bit, the nose has a strong eucalyptus note, w perhaps a bit of dark chocolate. On the palate, smooth but weighty, with a jolt of dark chocolate cherry liquor on the tip of the tongue. Palate is smooth but dry, no fruit bomb here. Dark chocolate again, maybe dark berries, but nothing stands out except, “damn , I wish I had a case of this.”

1/12/2023 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Cork soft and broke apart but not corked/tca tainted. Drank at a family dinner with a 2003 Leoville Barton; I preferred that but only by a small amount. This was a really nice wine; KL is my favorite/most missed departed winery.
Nose muted but at end of nose, mapley or caramel with also licorice; some sort of creamy sensation at end.
Great palate, nowhere near as rich and is more complex than most Napa fruit bombs. Currants, other tart fruits on palate. Better with air (3 1/2 hours at time of note). This has aged well but is perhaps more restrained than it was when 10 years younger.

1/12/2023 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

First bottle from my now-19 year old son’s birthyear case. Took a picture of him opening OWC😆. Had for combo anniversary/kid goes back to college dinner, drank w a 2002 (marriage year) Karl Lawrence reserve beckstoffer to-kalon and grilled prime rib-steaks (fav dinner evar 😇).
Easy to tell it’s a hot year. Big nose w Pine and eucalyptus. Palate not as strong as nose but tastes great. More complex than KLR (not that that’s a surprise). Fruity still, plummy (not tart). Very smooth. No real aged characteristics except for smoothness.
Really excellent; preferred to the napa.

9/22/2022 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Excellent. Hadn’t given it much thought, just grabbed for dinner with my daughters. Possibly last bottle according to CT, bought on release, but I feel like I saw another in the cellar when I grabbed this. Anyway, at 21, it’s in a prime window - still grabs your attention up front but had the smoothness and flavors of a middle age wine. Nose still exuberant but at the back end has sweet balsamic and the palate still tart and juicy but shows loamy chocolate cherry on the finish. Absolutely worth drinking but can go a few years too (wouldn’t push past maybe 2030? Ymmv).

5/11/2022 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Damn, drinking this takes me back: 23-plus years ago was before the B2K craze, no kids, no wife. RP vintage charts have the ‘98 vintage in St. E. as the same as 2000 but I don’t recall the hubbub anywhere near the same. Anyway, maybe that’s what older wine is for, Proust’s madelines but with alcohol😆.

Anyway, I loved it at the pop, still rich fruit nose that later faded to eucalyptus and loam, hint of maybe sandalwood? On the palate, my kids (all born years after this was grown) commented on how light this was. I loved the still tart acid and earth; my wife did not, calling it muddy. Still rich ruby red with minimal bricking, it’s not likely improving but not at end of life yet. (Edited to add after reading my old tn’s - apparently I read this wrong in 2013 and it was either bottle variation or my bad palate that made me say it was going down 8+ years ago - ymmv)

2/17/2022 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Hmm nice wine, been cellaring for a while, brought home from Italy work trip in early-mid oughts. Cork crumbled but wine is good. Color still vibrant with some (but minimal) bricking. Nose has a bit of petroleum jelly up front tho it faded w/ time, rich fruit at the beginning, bit of eucalyptus, black berry. Nose richer than palate, which I like. Still juicy mouthfeel with great acidity, tart dark berries, cherry, and a long mouthwatering finish; still tannins but not obtrusive, hint of sawdust. There’s also a hide and seek hint of sweetness that I can’t pin down. Overall I love this.
Edited to add - this has a lot of life left, if you have some, no rush.

1/26/2022 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Hmm, I would say needs a few more years in cellar. At first quite tight but after 90 minutes of air/dinner the nose started getting good with cedar, bit of eucalyptus and (hint of) cherry. Mouthfeel’s pretty tart, still cedar and tart cherry. Not super astringent, nor super long so it’s not (imho) decadal, but needs a bit. Liked it for potential and it kept me on my toes looking for its good points.

9/17/2021 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

When i first opened this and sipped, i thought it was amazing, maybe best Italian of the year (purch. on release, from premier cru😆). After an hour, hour:20 or so, I didn’t like it as much, seemed the fruit that mingled with the aged notes at the beginning had faded. Nose has some menthol and burnt sugar notes, palate is super smooth, nice tart acidity, iron cherry, maybe a hint of leather. Still good at the end, but not the elation at the pop.

9/6/2021 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Wow, this was really good tonight. From the pop, huge blackberry flavor (but not cloying like I sometimes get from the regular Lewelling; this has more spine). At the start, the nose wasn’t overly expressive but over a couple hours, got much bigger with plum notes and others - however the nose never got as expressive as the flavors, which were awesome. The palate also got more complex with time from just the blackberry, adding eucalyptus, plum and some other stuff. Tannins not prominent but are there, I think they just match the flavors very well.

8/2/2021 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Really good. This was the “13th bottle” of a birth year case for my daughter and since her two siblings are away at camp, game on😆 (much of this note is her suggestions, edited). 16 years have done well with this; any hard edges are gone, it has a deep rich soft palate but retains enough acidity on the finish to not be cloying. Deep soft dark red fruits on the nose and palate (tho the nose suggested more fruit than the palate delivered), blackberry and plum come to mind, maybe also some red sweet cherry. Some dark chocolate flavors but not the tannins that might go with that. Only quibble is the finish could be longer.

4/4/2021 - Squirreljam wrote:

Impression only, but this is in a good place, easy drinking

3/5/2021 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Hmm, this is good at ~20 years from growing. Great nose (tho note I did drink from burg glasses as they were close and clean😆) with great notes of chocolate and cherries. Smooth on the palate eith front fruit, bit of aged leather and maybe some eucalyptus-y/licorice-y type finish. Only quibble is that the fruit seems short, disappears too soon. Funny note, I chuckled when I saw the Premier Cru strip label; it may have turned into a shitshow but I got some good wines at good prices.

1/11/2021 - Squirreljam wrote:

Impressions only as I drank this last week over a few days. Nose stood out, it soared and really made me anticipate the drinking. Unfortunately, that didn’t rise to the same level. Stefania’s always had a juicy acidity that I love, and that’s still there, but the fruit was missing in action so the wine tasted thin. Not site if it’s in a hollow phase or past prime but I was a touch disappointed.

12/1/2020 - Squirreljam wrote:

Hmm. Three years ago I liked this but noticed a missing nose. That still holds; not as much tho. Unfortunately this bottle’s palate isn’t as good. On the nose, hint of eucalyptus and chocolate covered cherries, while in the mouth, resolved tannins and tart cherries, nice and smooth but not a lot going on. Decent but not special; too bad, as it’s my daughter’s 15th bday and I picked this for dinner so she could have a glass.

7/27/2020 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Nice. Soft nose, cranberry and some chocolate on the palate, no aged flavors but edges have smoothed out. Very nice and typical wine (good value too)

7/21/2020 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Thought this was excellent. Nice rich nose with a bit of bitterness to offset sometimes overly rich (to me) Pride style; also bit of eucalyptus. Hint of vanilla as the nose transitions to palate, strawberry then dark chocolate and cherry. Long smooth finish

7/9/2020 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

2007-vintage daughters’ birthday celebration. Per the new 13-year old, “dad, this is really good!” She’s right, too. Great dark fruit, some blueberry with hint of spice, smooth, long finish. My take is this may/will change but not improve. I know, not a very detailed note since we had it last night but...

6/7/2020 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Really good, this may be the bargain of 01 Barolo, iirc it was under $30 on release. Drinking super well, tannins resolved but (this bottle) still had primary energy, though earth and loam were a little more than a few years ago; lapsang souchong tea still there (apparently that was in a note of mine from 07😆). Juicy and fresh while soft at the same time. In a good place; drink or hold depending on your aging preferences...

Edit - these were $23 in 05!! and it was earl grey in 07 but I stand by lapsang souchong now

4/22/2020 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Damn I miss Karl Lawrence. This is really good, rich without cloying, fruit but with loam, cedar underlying dark fruit (plum, dark cherry), a hint of spice (clove). Tannins still there but in background, a bit chewy on the finish. The only negative is that toward the end of the bottle, after it had been open for a few hours, some of the exuberant fruit fades. CT says I have another bottle of this but didnt see it when pulling this bottle; I hope it’s not “missing presumed drunk” ;-)

3/10/2020 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Wow - I’ve had a lot of Galardi that I acknowledged was good or very good but this is the first one that made me go “holy schnitt, this is tasty.” Still tannic but really great juicy flavors of chocolate covered cherries and raspberries, hint of smoke and licorice. Rich plum-red color with a finish that’s still with me after typing this note, so at least a couple minutes.

2/23/2020 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Pretty much in line with a bottle I had in aug ‘17 (love that CT shows me notes I’d forgotten about); if anything, less evolved. Still felt primary, with juicy tannins, some tobacco, more cranberry, then some cherry and mint. Today’s bottle must be less giving than ‘17’s as I would say 90-91 not 92. Cork was a wee soft on removal.

12/14/2019 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Good wine, not great but perhaps it’s this bottle. After the pop, nice color with moderate bricking. Nose evolved quite a bit over a couple hours: flat at first, then expressive with fruit and pie spices and finally plummy and flat after a couple hours. Smooth on the palate, there’s still tart acidity/juiciness. Length moderate. Felt older than it actually is.

10/14/2019 - Squirreljam wrote:

Last of mine, this bottle was overall just average. Fantastic from the pop with a rich nose and great mouthfeel with no hard edges but some residual sulfur. After an hour or so of air, it seemed to fade to flat, both nose and tastes. It did still retain a sulfur note the whole way thru, so perhaps some bottle variation. One of these I had about six months ago was a better bottle.

10/6/2019 - Squirreljam wrote:

I loved this; wife thought it was jammy/plummy. Purchased around release from premier cru (remember them? :-), the cork on this bottle was pristine, capsule slid right off. From the pop, rich nose of still bright fruit and after a few minutes air, herbs and spices, perhaps a tiny amount anise. Color showed a bit of bricking but mostly a bright ruby red. All harshness had faded and I found lots of fruit, soft, but not descending into cloying or baked fruit (as my wife thought). Nice and juicy still, nice medium-length finish, really just loved this with broiled rack of lamb. I'm not good at exact scores but low-mid 90s for sure. I have one more left and will try to wait a few more years; while I don't think this needs any more time or will improve, it also should hold for a good while.

8/15/2019 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Interesting, drank over two nights, with just a cork in it sitting on a shelf in the cellar in between. First night it felt very primary and still tannic and tart. Second night it had really blossomed into a sassy rich wine, soft mouthfeel with juicy acidity. Based on that, I’d say this has years ahead of it and will stick my 4 remainers back in the stack of longer term storage for another few years.

3/19/2019 - Squirreljam wrote:

Nice wine. I don’t have much experience w Riojas; have generally perceived Tempranillo wines as funky. This one wasn’t. I found a perception of richness without sweetness on top of cranberry tartness and a buttery smoothness on the finish. (edited a couple weeks later to remove mistaken "flawed bottle" flag)

12/15/2018 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Yeah, I really like this - but note, needs air after the pop; I opened and was unimpressed but after 2 hours, a world of difference. After it opened up, nice nose with med.-strong eucalyptus, cherry and a hint of baking spice, clove or mace instead of cinnamon. On the palate, still has some astringency but also juicy acidity with really great flavors of dark-chocolate-covered sour cherries and red fruits. Very long finish that finishes soft with a little reminder of the baking spice. Very glad I bought these on release; sad the original Karl Lawrence is no longer.

11/14/2018 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

(From a few days ago so don’t take this as gospel) Really good, even from the pop; maybe it softened a bit with more air, but no major changes. All rough edges worn off, soft mouthfeel with chocolate notes, hints of loam but also some dark red fruit. Not the longest finish but all in all a very good wine to have with dinner.

11/7/2018 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

This is drinking really well right now, a little aged but still juicy and just really pleasant. Tight from the pop, after maybe half hour of air it rounded out. Milk chocolate mouthfeel, very smooth, resolved tannins. On the palate, round feeling, similar to plum tho not actually tasting that much like plum. Medium length finish.

9/30/2018 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Soft cork, broke on pulling, but no compromise of wine. Nice nose, heavy eucalyptus with notes of cherry and dark chocolate. Great flavor with dark berry, raspberry with again dark chocolate-covered cherries. Medium length, soft tannins, really just a great dinner wine with grilled tri-tip

9/23/2018 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

So... Wine has a way of surprising me, making me think, or even melancholy - grabbed this bottle, been an orphan in the cellar for years, had kind of forgotten its origins, needed something for burgers with kids while wife out. Foil stuck, cork soft with evidence of long past seepage, broke on pulling out. However, first sip magical; soft yet still juicy on the back of the palate,no astringency whatsoever,cigars and sour cherry notes. Finally looked at the label, “wow, 20 years old; should let the kids taste”. My 14 y.o. boy, “wow dad, hella good, no tartness left” (attaboy). My daughters (12,13), “huh, good,not as old as you though” (ugh).

Finish fantastic, this tn took me maybe 10 mins and I can still taste the sip I took when I sat down. Then, it turned out that I noticed that my last bottle of this was 10 years ago, within a month or so - guess stuff aligns sometimes. Anyway sorry for the tl;dr length...

For a $30 bottle from Garagiste in 2007, this was a fantastic view back, and forgetting the nostalgia, a really good bottle of wine

8/27/2018 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Short version - really tasty, a touch overbearing on the sweetness.

A perfect liquid gold color, this is literally beautiful in the glass. A nose of white peaches and pineapple leads to a long palate with viscous mouthfeel and notes of pineapple mango peaches etc. Very balanced on the tip of the tongue, toward the finish it comes across as a little too sweet (maybe adds a guava note or similar); a bit higher acidity would make this one of the tastiest things I’ve had in the last 6 months.

6/18/2018 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Nice wine, very nice. KL came through again, wish they were still around with the same team. This a bit higher toned than some KL reserves, but still hit the right notes with prime strip steaks. Smooth milk chocolate with dark fruit flavors and a long length. Nowhere near over the hill but I don't think it needs more time.

6/18/2018 - Squirreljam wrote:

Hmmm, nice wine, still a bit tannic, not as fruity as I remember tho I could be confusing it with the hot year 2003. Still a bit tight, could go longer in cellar. Given about 90 mins of air before dinner. Notes of cranberry, bitter chocolate, medium length. I always seem to get a sulphur note when first popping a lascombes and that was apparent here too but doesn't persist.

10/18/2017 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Liked this a lot; popped and poured, enjoyed over maybe 90 mins. Young mourvèdre funk on the nose with a bit of rusty cherry. On the palate, chewy feel with cherry, iron and a hint of bitter chocolate on the finish. For me, a good example of what I like in old world wines - how the flavors come across yet seem lighter than new world counterparts. Less sweet, sure, but it's more than that, maybe less dense, more refreshing.

8/17/2017 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Hmm, interesting - in the mouth, this was great, balanced, nice fruit but with excellent acidity and fine tannins on a mid-long finish. The nose however never showed up to the party - essentially nonexistent. If the nose matched the palate, I'd put this at 93-4 but as it was, I'll leave it blank.

8/16/2017 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Pretty classic Bordeaux, drinking well but by no means aged. From the pop, nose of graphite and black fruit immediately strikes and with air, adds dark chocolate and some eucalyptus or mint. On the palate, light on its feet with cranberry a touch of cedar and later a hint of tobacco and some cherry. Medium long finish with some dry tannins in the corner of the mouth. Good enough to drink but there's no rush...

8/15/2017 - Squirreljam Likes this wine:

Excellent bottle. Still young but drank very well, morphing from one set of flavors/noses to another. At the pop, rich nose with black cherry, hint of loam and a very long palate with tons of dark fruit. After maybe an hour, moderately heavy eucalyptus came and went on the nose and dark chocolate appeared on the palate. The one constant was rich dark red to black fruit - it started with the pop and stayed to the end of the bottle.

8/1/2017 - Squirreljam wrote:

My last of a case, this was really good. This note is really impressions only as I'm catching up on CT updates from past bottles - but very nice nose, hint of eucalyptus on cherry and dark chocolate. On the palate, tannins have disappeared the perfect amount for me, leaving a very nice balanced palate with long finish and the juicy acidity I remember from when this was young still there, but as they say, greatly reduced in circumstances... As a side note, interesting to me that the bottle is a smoky gray glass instead of the usual green/brown.

7/31/2017 - Squirreljam wrote:

Not a tasting note per se as I forgot to concentrate enough to remember (I'm posting about a week after I drank these). Had the '11 and '12 mourvedre side by side and the 12 won out decisively - more weight, more balance and better flavors. The 11 came across as a bit thin, and while I like mourvedre's sometimes funk, it had just enough to make the wine taste unbalanced. Aurelian over Cato the Elder here. Wish Paul was making more of this.

7/31/2017 - Squirreljam wrote:

Not a tasting note per se as I forgot to concentrate enough to remember (I'm posting about a week after I drank these). Had the '11 and '12 mourvedre side by side and the 12 won out decisively - more weight, more balance and better flavors. The 11 came across as a bit thin, and while I like mourvedre's sometimes funk, it had just enough to make the wine taste unbalanced. Aurelian over Cato the Elder here. Wish Paul was making more of this.