5/21/23, 12:06 PM - maybe still not helpful, but of course the addition is made to the individual glass, not the bottle or decanter. hence the unadulterated barton is still the one tasted and commented on in subsequent days. (Hope does not die, even when repeatedly disppointed.) cheers.
7/5/23, 10:22 AM - Hi Danny. Like you I never imagined mixing wines. Then I started drinking with, and getting educated by a friend, a semi professional, or as he puts it, someone "in the industry".My friend had challenged himself to build a cellar on a budget, buying closeouts, and was not inclined to lose money on a wine that disappointed. He used to say that the younger new world wines were useful to add a bit of fruit to a tired or overly reserved Bordeaux. To be honest, as I recall, he mainly bought and blended inexpensive wines, which were nonetheless very good because so well chosen. With his example to bolster my nerve, I began also to blend my own wines experimentally. It usually only took a few drops of one to enliven, or increase interest in, another. I.e. a tiny bit of new world cab brightened up a dull Bordeaux, or a tiny bit of austere Bordeaux added seriousness to a simple new world choice. Sometimes a wine was overly concentrated and just needed a little thinning, for my taste (as in my review of the 2004 Dunn Howell Mountain).Not everything worked, but I learned just to trust my taste, as to what might improve, or at least blend well with, a given wine. I have no formulas other than my friends' advice which I mentioned. I myself just savor a wine and think whether what else I have on hand might go with it or not, (and of course I only alter my own one glass). That is the only secret, to trust yourself; after all you have spent 40+ years acquiring a palate, which is more than many wine makers. And you are not limited by law or weather as what you can do. Primarily, when I am drinking wine, I want to enjoy it. So if I think a bit of Rioja might improve a disappointing Bordeaux, I may try it. Since I am obviously an amateur, I am not able to give advice, just share my experience. I myself have not blended any wine for some time, but when it seems useful, I am not afraid to. There are some exceptions however, I have never tried to blend what I consider a really fine wine, such as a Latour, on the other hand that has never seemed to require it. So this stratagem is mainly for wines that disappoint, which hopefully does not happen often. And no, it not does always give great results, as some wines cannot be helped. I am just suggesting that it is not unthinkable. cheers!
7/5/23, 11:57 AM - As a specific example, that AW cab franc might well smooth out a number of overly harsh wines, but you might consider that a waste of the AW.
7/5/23, 1:48 PM - You are very welcome. We are indeed back in WA after a long hiatus. We used to hang out with an assistant winemaker at AW. He gave me barrel samples of the two blondes vineyard wine, probably cab sav, extracted from the bung with a long syringe, when they were just beginning to source grapes there years ago. That was fun. At the time I found it too youthful for my taste, but quite flavorful. Now those vines are getting a little more age. About 2010 we hosted a vertical of Sorella from about 1998? up through the 2008, overseen by our winemaker friend, who provided the pre-release 2008. The winery posted photos from that event on their website at one point. We enjoyed the 2014 AW champoux vineyard red last night, (without mixing), very nice. enjoy!Yes I enjoyed Billionaire's vinegar, and some other wine books, like Judgment of Paris, and Wine and War.
7/5/23, 5:42 PM - Thanks to your encouragement Danny, today my wife and I expanded this technique to the whites we are drinking. A $16 pinot blanc from Anne de K smoothed out an overly lemony, but excellent $40 chablis from Pascal Bouchard. And a splash of the AW cab franc definitely helped a bland vasco sassetti Rosso de Montalcino. here's to you!
1/23/23, 6:26 PM - i certainly envy your prices. this is $72 locally.
11/23/22, 3:24 PM - I agree completely, although I enjoyed it. Unfortunately today I believe Latour is not priced comparably to quality, but to demand. This phenomenon, of "trophy wines" marketing to the wealthy rather than to the connoisseur, has changed the wine landscape perhaps forever. I also have not had a "moment" with Latour since my original one with the 1970. I am tempted to try the 2005, but at $1250-$1500, it would be a costly experiment, not guaranteed to succeed. Perhaps climate change has actually meant there will never again be Latours of the quality of those from 40-60 years ago, but this is my (old man's) opinion, and consumers' tastes also change. cheers.
11/23/22, 6:57 PM - would you mind naming some of your preferred wines? I have enjoyed Chateau Talbot 2015 tonight, although not 1st growth, and not preferable to Latour, but 1/10 the price.
11/24/22, 4:13 PM - Thank you very much for this list; I will be on the lookout for Belair Monange in particular. Your experience of Bordeaux seems well beyond mine, but based on what I have had and what you mention, I suspect the flavor of Latour is just not your favorite, and I do not recommend your buying it at current prices. For me, by contrast, few wines from Margaux are pleasing, including the only Chateau Margaux I have tried. I liked one of the two Haut Brion I tried but not the other, so I avoid it now as well (perhaps foolishly). But I have liked every Latour I have had, to a greater or lesser degree, as well as most examples of Leoville las cases and Chateau Lagrange. I also try to avoid alcohol levels above 14%, which seems now to omit Pavie, sadly. Maybe I should venture out again on that front. thank you!
11/22/22, 8:09 PM - thank you. may i ask which bordeaux do you prefer at this price?
7/19/22, 6:59 PM - precisely.
12/28/21, 7:26 PM - Dear GRIDROCKER: from reading your posts I see I have little to tell you about wine. But noting the proportion of "flawed" ratings you have bestowed, I respectfully offer one recommendation: I think you might start opening that cellar more aggressively, in order to profit more fully from your excellent taste in acquisitions. cheers!
9/21/21, 2:37 PM - Thank you for the insights. Unfortunately I live in a rural area and do not have access to those other vintages. I only had a choice of 2015, 2017, or 2018. (Out of state shipping is also illegal here.) Maybe when the pandemic fades away and I can travel I will find some others. Cheers.By the way when you say "splurge", are you recommending specifically the 1994? That's the only 1990's Dominus I see listed on winesearcher for as much or more than I paid for the 2015.
9/25/21, 8:43 AM - Thank you very much for the comment. I am not offended, just trying to understand what is being suggested. This gives me something to look forward to. Cheers.
8/9/21, 1:19 PM - Glad to know at last I am not the only one. We took a bottle of the 1970 to an intimate hamburger cookout at friends' in 1981, without comment. Our host knew nothing about wine but his wife gave us a knowing look, and he may have wondered why I drank mine sitting alone with a meditative look on my face.
3/26/21, 5:35 PM - I admire your sort of patience MagnumPI, willing to wait for years without opening, but not for hours or days after opening. I cannot wait to open wines, but have had success drinking a reticent wine after opening over as many as 14 days, recorking every day until it opened up. Good luck!
3/26/21, 5:28 PM - so at your house, the strategy is to claim I can't distinguish good from bad and let you try to demonstrate otherwise? bless you. and thanks for the note. (maybe I'll spring for one to impress my children.)
3/23/21, 4:36 PM - thank you for the note. would you mind naming some wines you like better at the same price point?
1/20/21, 6:55 PM - I am also not a frequent TJ shopper, but I used to buy 2011 Stag's Leap Artemis there at a good price, so I have found what I consider pretty good wine there. I have since stopped. The brunello I refer to was not my own favorite but was liked by some guests so I bought it when they visited. I bought another tenuta di sesta tonight, but after your note am glad I served my wife the macioche instead for a celebration. Hopefully we will appreciate the tenuta later with some food. cheers, I do recommend the 2015 macioche.
1/20/21, 8:52 PM - I checked on the TJ Brunello I had liked before and found it to be Sommavite 2009 and 2010. Apparently TJ's gives many wine afficionados the shudders, since although the average rating here was over 89, one rater admitted to being embarrassed that he liked it! Forgive me, but I guess I tend to rate my wines more by how they drink than where I find them. Indeed I suggest the best place to find a good wine at a good price is a store where the clientele does not appreciate it. I once found a 1995 Chateau Latour for $250 at an ABC store in Florida, a wine that was selling for $800 at more high end stores in Atlanta at the time. I admit however to having essentially given up on finding more good wines at TJ's some time ago. They stopped stocking the Artemis, but while they had it, it was $20 cheaper than at the other local store. cheers! and good hunting. I also live in a small semi rural area with few choices, so must scavenge.
12/28/20, 10:25 AM - thank you for including your price with the review. in my store this is $45 (≈33 pounds).
9/7/20, 6:41 PM - what price do you refer to? this is $100 in Manhattan.
9/6/20, 7:31 PM - Thank you! But I am guessing you paid less than I did.
9/7/20, 9:18 AM - Yes I agree. I am spoiled for having bought the 2014 at about $32.
2/1/20, 3:35 PM - thank you! i tend to be too impatient.
8/22/19, 1:15 PM - Further research suggests another possible explanation for this particular situation. Some years ago this was a $125 wine, according to one member who purchased it for about that. In my estimation that would be a fair price now, but since then it has been artificially inflated by the high score apparently it given by RP. thanks for the comments!
8/23/19, 8:23 AM - Thanks. I didn't know that about 2009. When I opened my 1970 Latour at 11 years old, it was perfect, and when I opened my 1995 Latour at 10 years it was delightful, so I had the idea 10 years should be fine in general, but I guess it varies from case to case. Oh and also the 2009 Talbots I have had were getting old if anything lately, so I guess it is complicated.I did learn at one point not to buy 2000's as I don't have the patience to wait long periods and those were always too young to drink when I tried them. Of course I am still here and they would have been fine by now. So I have avoided some I heard were slow maturing years like 2000 and 1996 and maybe 2005, but I did not know the 2009 were considered long term wines.
8/31/19, 5:55 PM - @zimmy07, when i visited ridge some years ago, the workers there recommended either the '83 or the '93 monte bello as i recall. Does that ring a bell? I have only had one monte bello, and that was before i understood the importance of giving a mature wine enough air: i.e. it was initially a disappointment, to where I considered pouring it out, but after 30 minutes or so it became wonderful. I am now a lot more patient, sometimes waiting up to 14 days for a wine to open up.
11/16/19, 4:34 PM - i'm happy for you Kevin. especially the price, which is $325 locally here. Enjoy.
8/20/19, 2:45 PM - I know so little about champagne. my favorite was probably my first bottle of dom, the 1964, enjoyed back in the late 1970's. The second 1964 I had 30 years later was madeirized but still enjoyed by me for the memories. The most delicious champagne was one I shared some 10 years ago, whose label i don't even remember, that was aged by a friend in his cellar maybe 15 years or more, and the extra time had mellowed it beautifully. He was not one to spend big on wine, so it was not a famous name (to me) but his cellaring always gave every bottle of wine "added value". I also enjoyed a vintage Mailly rose' l'Intemporelle some 10 years ago, brought to a celebration as a present for me. (Perhaps gift ones seem better, since the QPR is infinite.) I have also enjoyed some NV Taittinger, and Charles Heidseck reserve. My favorite relatively high end choice used to be Veuve la Grande Dame, but the most recent one of those (2008) was also a disappointment. Friends I serve always seem satisfied with NV Veuve or Franck Bonville. Probably I have been insufficiently aware of the specific vintages of fancy champagnes since they are so expensive and so few vintage options are available. Today we got by on a modest Montaudon, but it was not very smooth, and now I realize I should have aimed higher, since this is an occasion for us. Thanks for the reminder!
8/21/19, 2:33 PM - @Dave: After responding to your comment, I chose a Taittinger prestige rose' today for our occasion and it is quite satisfying.After the second glass, it may be a bit sweet, but my take on champagnes is that the ordinary ones are actually more drinkable if they are a little sweeter, e.g. Veuve Cliquot NV, and the more interesting ones like the DP I complained about here, do not realize their superiority until they have a good bit more age and are mellower. Contrary to this statement of course is the fact that my wife and my son's wife both seem to like more acidic and austere tasting champagnes, so as always one must try to match the palates of those one is trying to please. This is why I say I have so little knowledge of champagne, i.e. I don't really appreciate it, hence have much more success serving satisfying red wines that I myself do appreciate. So the bottom line on champagne I like is perhaps that it should be old enough to have that yeasty aroma and flavor that makes it savory. But since we both want our friends to enjoy what they drink with us, we should be glad that a DP reliably does this. So I guess we got our money's worth! Best wishes. Roy
8/28/19, 6:43 PM - In regard to earlier remarks about what one is paying for here, when I revisited the home where I took this DP, I noticed the empty bottle is displayed prominently.
8/23/19, 8:55 AM - Dave, I wouldn't worry long term about your DP purchase. I think time is your friend here, and we both have our experience with our favorite aged champagne taste to encourage us! Roy
7/10/19, 2:25 PM - "sub - $40"? definitely not around here.
7/6/19, 3:18 PM - may i ask what would you recommend instead?
7/8/19, 2:47 PM - thank you! I'll try it.
6/13/19, 3:59 PM - In an interview Mark said he hired Isabell Meunier in 2014 to make this wine. I always liked her wines at Evening Land. Any more info on just who is responsible for this, or how much input Mark or Isabelle has?
5/24/19, 4:43 PM - my experience is a bit like yours. I was absolutely marked for life by the one glass of 1970 latour i had in about 1981, but found both the margaux and the mouton I had so underwhelming that I have never bought those again. I have had both excellent and mediocre haut brions, but at the price the mediocre one put me off those too. The one top wine I continued to buy and drink, at least occasionally is latour, my favorite wine of all time. I have had a couple of 1995's and quite a few 1998's, but none of those came close to the one 1970 from so long ago. At the present price I seldom have latour any more, but was tempted to try the 2005 a few years ago, at around $1,000, but finally concliuded it could not possibly be worth that much money to me (i paid $50 for the 1970). It seems, as with most wines, wise to get the best year you can afford, and drink it before it is too old. All the latours I have had were at least 10 years old but not much more, so maybe a tad on the young side. I still look forward someday to trying a lafite. If you drink your other wines young, I suggest you be prepared to give them ample air time, but you know this.
2/3/19, 11:49 AM - Interesting. I also bought a few bottles of this last year, the first of which was delicious, but a later one of which was corked. I took it back and the replacement was fine, but I suspect some of these are indeed corked.
8/10/18, 4:52 PM - most reputable wine stores in my experience will refund or replace a corked bottle. you should have asked. in fact i have even had one or two refunded that i had already poured down the drain, just by asking. good luck. (and i hope the one i plan to buy tomorrow is not similarly flawed.)
7/11/18, 5:28 PM - since i found this ok, i would be interested to know if there are oregon pinots you would suggest as preferable? i myself liked the 2013 penner ash shea vineyard offering, but that seemed overpriced at $65.
7/12/18, 6:14 PM - thank you! i will look into these. i like ponzi too, but it sems overpriced at $50 for just good not great pinot.well i looked and obviously my problem is my rural location. only one of the five labels you recommend are for sale here, one of the st innocent pinots. i'll give it a whirl. thank you again.how interesting. evesham wood winery is located less than 225 miles from my house but still unavailable in local stores. and antica terra is even closer and also unavaliable.by the way i have also enjoyed several different price levels of evening land $20-$40, but it too is not available here.
7/11/18, 7:46 PM - I agree. This was once my absolute favorite PN of all time, but it has gone down in quality steadily from 2009.
7/11/18, 5:42 PM - thank you. would you be willing to name some right bank bordeaux you like better for less than $40? (i just got burned yesterday on a $100 bordeaux that was unenjoyable, so i could use help. my impression is the good ones are mostly 2-20 times the price of this wine.)
6/23/18, 8:43 PM - @champagneinhand: i can wait, but at 75 years now, may not benefit from the wait! fortunately these too-young wines just get better every day.
7/14/17, 8:58 PM - I agree this is delicious. The QPR depends on where you live though. In NY state it is a deal at $32, but here in WA state it is $40, about right, but not as much a bargain. enjoy!
12/3/15, 12:06 PM - So a $180 bottle of CA wine was not as complex, refined or subtle as bottles of Bordeaux wine costing from $600 to $2,000 a bottle. I am glad much is still right with the world! Was this tasting choice motivated somehow by the results of the 2006 rejudgement of the 1976 Paris tasting? From my reading, that 2006 Ridge winner was a 1971, hence presumably sourced from the Eisele vineyard, never again used for the Monte Bello. It seems also that half the judges were from California, half from the UK, and none from the European continent.http://www.vinography.com/archives/2006/05/the_rejudgment_of_paris_result.html
3/5/15, 4:37 PM - thank you very much, i will be there next week and look. of course chateau lagrange is now $55-$65. i am quickly changing my wine drinking habits in retirement, and trying to convince myself that 35 years of drinking bordeaux is enough, or must be enough.
2/5/15, 4:16 PM - wow. what a pleasure to read your review. this is still my favorite wine of all time and i drank it in 1981. it is wonderful to see it is still providing pleasure. i knew nothing about wine, had no cellar, and just popped it and poured at a hamburger cookout with friends. i only got one glass but am glad i shared the enjoyment. it had amazing depth and subtlety, with a penetrating and powerful flavor.
2/5/15, 3:56 PM - this was on the shelf at $1275 at sun valley wine company. I passed.
8/17/14, 9:53 PM - I declined this today at $300. Indeed i have probably never had a wine worth that amount, except maybe the 1970 latour, for which i paid $50.
4/28/14, 4:23 PM - Thank you for this comment. Tonight we are enjoying another Talbot, the 2004, delicious popped and poured. Again a little sharp at very first pour, but quickly improving. Sweetness and a slight funkiness most bordeaux drinkers appreciate.
3/8/14, 9:03 PM - I am drinking this tonight in March 2014, and it is better than before. This just gets better and better. I think it is maximally good now. $44 at Trader Joe's and $56 at BevMo.
5/4/13, 8:11 PM - Again this was a big hit at Restaurant Eugene with everyone who tasted it, i.e. everyone. it was so good and vanished so fast I forgot to offer it to the excellent sommelier.
5/4/13, 8:10 PM - I bought the 2010 to9day at $35, but it is not as good as the 2009, good but not as rich, barely worth the $35. So my dealer was wise to resist buying it at a higher price.
5/4/13, 8:08 PM - After 7 hours decanting it has lost some sharpness but is less flavorful. Little fruit, boring taste. I do not recommend this for drinking now, and i do not try to predict the future at least for wine with few current virtues. I will not buy again. For that same money, a Penner Ash pinot noir will please most people i know. And a Ridge cab Santa Cruz mountains has more fruit and offers more pleasure. In fact I am mixing a little into the bland and somewhat off putting Potensac to see if it helps. So far not so much.
5/4/13, 1:31 PM - Try it in a store at ≈ $40. It's even better at that price.
3/5/13, 4:26 PM - Wonderful! I would certainly enjoy drinking and discussing wine with you. As the honorable Peshine Smith is reputed to have said: "there are no bad whiskies - some whiskies are better than others." (or was that Faulkner?) to your health.
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