9/16/2022 - Brolawa Likes this wine:

This wine is phenomenal. Drank with a 2000 Chapoutier Ermitage Le Pavillon and 2013 Bionic Frog and it was the WOTN. Unbelievable nose of black and red fruit, earth and graphite. So fresh on the palate and finish with added elements of pepper and smoke. Everyone picked it as their favorite, and it stood up to something as big as the Bionic Frog. UU4

1/27/2022 - Brolawa Likes this wine:

M&PD dinner at Vendemmia. Final flight of the night (Bordeaux):

1989 Château Haut-Brion
1990 Château Beausejour (Duffau Lagarrosse)
1990 Château Cheval Blanc

I was dealing with a little long-haul covid, and felt weirdly intoxicated during this flight. So, I’m not going to rate the wines and just offer my limited notes.

My recollection was that all of these approximated 100-point wines; but I was feeling too weird there to be precise here.

1989 Château Haut-Brion

Very much reminded me of the nirvana of the 1990 H-B (which is one of the greatest wine of all time imho). When this wine is on, there is nothing better. How can something be so sophisticated but, at the same time, so sweaty and sexy. Pure but loaded with so much tar and earth.


1990 Château Beausejour (Duffau Lagarrosse)


I’ve been lucky enough to have more bottles of this wine/vintage since my last note. This felt like it was a perfect representation of the vintage. It is very concentrated but still light on the palate. The finish is full of fruit and tar. An amazing wine.

1990 Château Cheval Blanc


I have not had much Cheval Blanc, so I was very excited to try this and it did not disappoint. The fruit, smoke and earth all hit you on the nose and don’t let up. I would call this classic Bordeaux but with a complexity that was impossible for me to parse in my weird state. My goal is to have this bottle on its own to focus on everything that is going on.

4/1/2022 - Brolawa Likes this wine:

Took about 30 minutes to straighten out. Tasty but unremarkable. Nice notes of aged fruit, mineral and salt.

9/2/2021 - Brolawa Likes this wine:

Tasty but not phenomenal. Classic Beaucastel notes of dark fruit, wood and plum. Drank with a 2001 Lynch Bages and it totally held its own. Wouldn’t run out and buy this vintage but was very satisfying with the mixed grill on this night.

5/12/2021 - Brolawa wrote:

M&PD Zoom Tasting night of following white Burgs and red Bordeaux:

2013 François Raveneau Blanchot

2011 François Raveneau Valmur

2008 Vincent Dancer Chevalier-Montrachet

2000 Domaine Leflaive Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru Les Pucelles
1990 Château Troplong Mondot

1990 Château Montrose

2009 Château Smith Haut Lafitte

This wine is incredible. How can a wine have so much density on the nose without it being overdone on the palate? It just exploded out of the glass with raspberry, dusty floral notes, earth and smoke. There is some barnyard (and apparently it was all barnyard upon opening) but it was faint. According to Eric (our resident Bdx expert - see his note below), Brett is an intentional element of this wine, and it drives that elegant earthiness, smoke and, yes, barnyard. Mixed with the fruit and floral, it was a perfect balance on the palate. This wine made the the other reds taste linear if not flat.

7/23/2020 - Brolawa wrote:

Outside and socially distanced, blind wine tasting of young burgundy 375s for a future Chevalier dinner. Wines and comparative notes as follows:

2017 Mongeard-Mugneret Vosne-Romanee: Not much of a nose and very strong tannins - so strong that it finished at a screechy halt on the palate. It's a burley wine - almost like a young Bordeaux. Didn't taste like Burgundy. 87

2017 Mongeard-Mugneret Vosne-Romanee 1er Cur Les Orveaux: Strong notes of mineral and red fruit throughout vertical. Notably superior to the village wine. 91

2016 Domaine Hervé Sigaut Chambolle-Musigny 1er Cru Les Sentiers Vieilles Vignes: Very respectable wine. A nose of red fruit, floral and mineral with a touch of smoke. This held up through the entire vertical. Tasty wine, but outclassed by the Esmonins. 91

2016 2016 Domaine Hervé Sigaut Morey St. Dennis 1er Cru Les Millandes: This wine has strong notes of cherry and mineral throughout the entire vertical. Reminded me of a young NSG. 90

2017/2018 Frederic Esmonin Ruchottes-Chambertin: These wines were very similar and I picked them both as from somewhere in Chambertin. Surprisingly complex nose of fruit, smoke, mineral, wood for such young wines. I really enjoyed them both, with a nod to the 2017 which had more complexity and more flavor. The 2017 was the winner on the night, and I personally liked the 2017 so much that I bought a case. 2017 = 93; 2018 = 92

2/7/2021 - Brolawa Likes this wine:

If you love California cabs, this is as good as it gets. Very Screaming Eagle-esque. Perfume on nose is exquisite with a mix of dark fruit, tabacco and rose petals. This continues onto the palate; but instead of Bordeaux-like earth you get more fruit and sugar. This is where I prefer Bordeaux over CA cabs, but I understand why some worship this wine. Perfect balance. Long finish. 95 would be 98 if I loved this flavor profile.

7/4/2020 - Brolawa wrote:

This is another typical Washington Cabernet. Jammy with some oak and chocolate on nose but nothing complex on the palate or finish. A well-balanced wine and enjoyable quaff; but if you love Bordeaux this wine and 95% of its WA Cab brethren will simply pale in comparison.