4/17/2012 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Another sublime 2009 for a rather modest price. This Grand Cru combined a nose with ripe cherry, plum, licorice and cream with a beautiful palate full of sweet, ripe fruit, chocolate, licorice, good acidity and fine tannins. Long finish. Elegant, but not weak. Even better on day 2.

89+ points

4/7/2012 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Tell-tale delicate nose with apple, pineapple, peach, honey and stones. Love it, always. On the palate a sweet, rich entry. Very ripe and tropical, followed by a lovely mineral, crisp and fresh element that prevents the wine from being 'cloying' at this stage. Slight hint of botrytis? Good finish, again with a mineral touch. This Auslese still is very young and really is about fruit now. But it is so darn tasty... Hard not to drink a full bottle in less than half an hour. For around 13 € local a great QPR, with room for improvement over the next years. Wunderschön!
90+ points

2/1/2012 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Superb young Barsac. Young and fresh, with lots of delicious pineapple, apricot and honey. Very fruit-forward, elegant, but with a huge complexity and concentration underneath. A wine you need to give time and attention. It's sweet, fresh and long. Will live long with potential for the future. 93+

9/14/2008 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

I loved this wine. For a modest price, Tour Canon made a solid 2005. At the end the 2009 may even be better, but at age 3 this '05 was very good. Rich nose with cherry, plum pie, cedar, vanilla, chocolate and some lavender. On the palate chocolate, licorice, ripe plum & cassis, coffee and supported by ripe tannines and a good acidity. I loved the balance of this LdP. Solid finish. Solid wine for 13 Eur... Wow!

4/10/2010 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Not the best Tour Canon I've had. Too much new oak and not enough ripe fruit to compensate. Toasted on the nose, with cherry and berry as well. Too much oak on the palate as well, making the wine unbalanced. Red fruit, good acidity, but nothing special. Not much tannins present. Finish OK, probably due to the dominating oak. Petit Annee - Grand Chateau, my mistake.

3/25/2012 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Another lovely 2009, produced by a 'little chateau' in a 'little appellation'. Pop and pour. Nose immediately was open and inviting. Plum, black cherry, minth, cedar and licorice. Lush and slightly jammy (which I don't mind at all). On the palate first tannic, but the wine settled down quickly. Ripe fruit, medium acidity, plum, sweet licorice, coffee, soft new oak. Became better by the glass. Fine finish. Just a lovely young wine, a glass that offers more pleasure than points can describe. I guess this is just a tell-tale 2009, because it was singing from A to Z and the extra air gave it a notch more character and balance. Good potential if you keep a few bottles for 5+ years, but oh so tasty right now.
90+ for today, potential even for 91-92. Drinking window? I guess now-2018.

3/13/2012 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

A 93RMP for some 16 Eur, is that possible?
Received my bottles today and tonight number 1 was put on stage. Entertain me! Pop and pour. Always difficult (for me) to try a young Bdx. This time, it was not so hard. No hard edges, no green streaks, not too lactic, not too acidic. In fact, this was very nice to try. Sweet and expressive nose (a bit candy-like) with cassis, cherry and sweet licorice. On the palate, of course, very young, but a joy to taste. Lots of ripe and very pure fruit, lovely acidity, great mouthfil and length. A bit creamy too, nice!
No signs of overdone oak-treatment. Ripe tannins appear towards the long finish, but they are gentle.
Biggest compliment I can make is that this wine is not hard to drink at this age. Try that with Bdx in any other year! This Sénéjac still is primary, but it will improve with age and probably end up at 93 (at least) with time.
For now, 91+ seems just right for now.

3/1/2012 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Delicious wine. Lovely nose with ripe plum, cherry, tobacco, cedar and roses. On the palate maybe not very complex, yet still very enjoyable. Cassis, licorice, tobacco, low acidity, ripe tannines and a long finish. Well-crafted, balanced wine without asphalt or tar one sometimes has to deal with in a SA red. Yummy stuff and an absolute steal for 10 Euro/btl. Nice find on the day the wine world went crazy due to the release of RMP's 'Bdx2009-in-the-bottle'- scores.

2/25/2012 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

I've enjoyed three bottles over the last two monts, all with consistent notes. What a consumers wine this is!! Stop talking about wine, let's drink! Enjoy! Enjoyment is written all over this d'Aiguilhe. It is ripe, but not over the top. The 20% cab franc gives a hint of green peppers I just like a lot. Keeps the wine (and the taster) awake. But at the end of the day and bottle, this is a modern wine. Full of ripe fresh fruit, clay, cedar, mint, spice, soft oak, chocolate. Ripe tannins, already in a very good balance and with a long finish. Superb.

5/24/2011 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Beautiful wine with chocolate, creamy ripe cassis, black cherry, tar, cinnamon and soft, ripe tannins. Lovely acidity, but still a luxurious glass of wine. May improve even over the next few years. Great! 92+

5/31/2011 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

100% tannat of 50-year old vines. Black, dark wine. Nose with barnyard, tobacco, licorice, plum, earth, blackberry and cedar. Palate with a lovely freshness, clay, blackberry, cinnamon, licorice, leather and ripe tannines towards the long finish. Exciting wine. Rough, deep, full. Not for the ones who look for elegance and refinement, more for those in need of something rougher than a St. Estephe. This will last for a long time. Yum!

2/22/2012 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

A big surprise! At first a strange nose, with glue, cherry, tea, mushrooms, leather and raspberry... On the palate very alive and with good complexity. Ripe red fruit, great acidity, licorice, tobacco, ripe tannines and with a long finish. Fresh and ripe, very alive and very good after almost 17 years.

2/18/2012 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

My kind of white Pessac-Leognan. Pop and poured. A bit shy at first (served too cold), but with time showing good pear, apple, citrus and melon. On the palate young and and a notch raw, but with a lovely freshness and beginning complexity. Apple, pear, stones, mint and a touch of buttery oak (20-25% new barrels, I believe). Long, dry finish. Excellent QPR for 12-14Eur and worthy to cellar a few years.

Domaine de Grandmaison has 16ha red and just 3ha white (65% sb, 15% sauv.grey and 20% semillon) under vines. Some 15,000 bottles of white wine are made each year. The sauvignon clearly gives that crisp freshness, but the semillon gives it a backbone. Very good.

89+

2/3/2012 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Pop and pour 'sur place'. Low neck/UTS fill and stained cork, which came out in one piece. Sniff...Damn, nice! Nose showing typical mature Pauillac flavours. Lead pencil, tobacco, cedar, plum, tea, cassis. Palate even better... What a force! Complex wine, really full of power yet elegant underneath. Rich red fruit, full of ripe tannins, leather, licorice. Acidity superb. Length superb. Considering the lower fill... I guess my remaining bottles easily will last another decade. But why wait?

12/13/2011 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Pop and pour. At first a bit shy and sharp, but opened up after a few hours. Lots of cherry, cassis, plum. Some cedar, licorice, tobacco leafs and minth as well. A high acidity, but not green and with a solid finish. I would wait 1-2 years for some sort of final resort. Don't know if Derenencourt was working here in '05, but I guess his appearance came a few years later. Terroir here is not so bad, with Charmail and Sociando-Mallet just around the corner. Good wine, needs some food.

12/11/2011 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

The 2002 is not a wine to love. Only one single disturbing TN on cellartracker and really no notes nowhere on the internets... where did all the wine made in '02 go to?

Decanted for an hour or two. Light nose with cherry, berry, roasted pepper and some mint. On the palate compact, fresh (a bit too acidic probably), with modest and not fully ripe fruit. Some sweet cedar on the background. Rather simple and light bodied wine, with a short finish. The elegant style, which does so well in good vintages, is slightly watery and almost pinot noir-ish in 2002. It is not a bad wine and the flaws are only noticable if you care for wine, but it lacks a backbone, it lacks the confidence of a classic Bordeaux and it lacks fun. This tastes like a 3.99Euro Bdx generique.

Pass. 80 points

One bottle left and won't finish this one. Glad a 2003 Chateau La Commanderie from St. Estephe came to the rescue. What a difference.... A wine for big boys. My wife liked the Lanessan and hated the La Commanderie. This is, for me, an indication of the quality of both, as she doesn't like red wine at all....

5/19/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Not complex, but yummy and modern. Rich nose with cherry, chocolate, lavender and soft oak. Drinking nicely. Ripe tannines (in balance with the other elements), ripe cherry, red berry, mocha and licorice. Low acidity and fine finish. Nothing wrong with this 2nd wine that I would drink 2011-2014.

3/9/2010 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

After enjoying a superb '89 Sociando-Mallet last week, it was time for trying one of these famous Meyneys from this terrific vintage. I recall the '03 to be upfront fresh for the vintage, the '89 showed some simular characteristics. Pop and pour, long soaked cork came out in one piece. Complex nose with cherry, cassis, plum, cedar, lavender, chocolate, mud and leafs. What a sniffer! On the palate above all FRESH considering its age of 21. Plum, black currant, mint, earth, mushrooms and just plain sweet and exotic. Superb balance and agreeable length/finish with some remaining tannins. This wine is at its best now. Fresh, alive, with nice secondory aromas and attracting sweetness. Well done! 91/100

6/11/2008 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Plince '98 is a very good bottle of wine, as long as you give it time. At first thin, not much inspiration or rich fruit one looks for in a Pomerol from a great vintage. But after a few hours, the revisit was a complete transformation. Creamy cherrypie, mocha, black pepper, licorice, tobacco, rich plum and some mint. Fresh, sexy and rich. Not extremely long, but what a change it made! Starting to enter it's drinking window. From 86 to 90 points in 3 hours. That's what I call a proper investment!

8/12/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Pop and pour tonight. Lovely nose with cherry, lavender, moccha, plum, licorice and oak. Drinking surprisingly well now. Not that much oak and humble tannins. Lots of fruit. Cassis, cherry, plum. Also some mint, coffee and licorice. A true 'fruit wine', with a solid acidity. Not much complexity at this point, but with pure and clean fruit still a very nice wine. Maybe lacks some filling towards the finish right now. Commercial, good. Just seem to like the older Du Tertres (less merlot?) better. 87/100

7/25/2007 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Primary wine, but full of promise. Fine nose with cherry, yoghurt, red fruits and some tea. Nice. A lot of red fruit on the palate, great acidity, cassis, cherry, some herbs, rather complex. Fascinating (too) young wine. Let it rest for 3-5 years and it will shine. 89-90+ points

7/2/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

A warm night, the wine had to go into a cooler. Great nose with blackberry jam, cherry, lavender, leather and tobacco. An exotic entry with low acidity, yet not too low. Cherry, black forestfruit, mint and a surprisingly fresh finish, giving the wine a surprising boost. A combination of the new and old world in one glass. Great bottle! 91-92/100

7/12/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Pop and pour from a case I bought en primeur years ago. Fresh and alive nose with cherry, cassis, lavender, meat, mocha and coffee. Nice and crisp! On the palate refined, but with a solid concentration too. Cherry, licorice, plum, mocha, leather, minerals. Very elegant, but with great depth and length too. This is a superb wine! Good acidity, fine tannines and showing nicely at age 8. This is not New World, because it has that 'cool' presence. It's not Old World, because it is full of ripe, lush fruit. Great QPR. Long finish. 92-93 points.

6/21/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

I can imagine this is 'too much' for some. A big, black wine. Tones of tobacco, leather, espresso, anise and new oak. Also ripe plum, cherry and some forest fruits. Low acidity, enormous concentration and depth. Just starting to find some balance, but a bit raw now. There is so much material in one sip, some may not identify it as a St. Emilion. I didn't too. It has nothing to do with classic elegance, creamy texture and stuff, it is just a very well crafted ripe, young, big wine. Give it time to settle down more and see if typicity finds its place. At some days, I just love these slighty 'wrong' sorts of wine. 91+.

6/22/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Decanted for over an hour. It really needed the extra time. A young promise, with ripe red berry, cherry and plum. Also tones of licorice, vanilla, mocha and 'terroir'. Great acidity, a bit raw at first but with good length and strenght, with increasing elegance. The fruit is ripe. Tannins are playing all the way, but they are never overwhelming. Give this Corbin a few more years at least. 90+points

6/11/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Nice wine, elegant, classic. Acidity shows the vintage, a 'cooler' style of wine (making). Tones of cherry, black berry, plum, tobacco, earth, ceder, cinnamon and soft tannins. A wine that is loosing its primary fruit. Gentle, fresh, honest, but not too complex. A fine wine that can last for a few more years. Short to medium finish. I would recommend to drink between now-2012.

3/28/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Decanted for over an hour. Lovely, ripe nose with cherry, berry, vanilla, smoke and cinnamon. This really drinks nicely now, though still on the young side. No over-extraction or burned/espresso tones (typical to the vintage). Fine, ripe tannins, oak, tar and later the ripe fruit came in. Black forest fruit, plum and mocha. Good acidity for the vintage, keeping this d'Aurilhac fresh. Mouth-filling, deep and with some complexity for the future. Long finish. I really liked this wine. Hold for a few more years for the best result! 90-91 points.

6/9/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Just 4,56 € in a French supermarket. 70% semillon, 25% sauvignon and 5% muscadelle. Part of the Cordier dynasty. Crisp nose with melon, pine apple, minerals, grass, green apples and citrus. Drinking good now. Bone dry, compact, with melon, yellow fruit, pear and stones. Very good acidity, finishes a bit short. Not an inspiring wine, but a clean and pure one. Perfect daily drinker. 2007 wasn't bad for the white wines, that's clear.

2/8/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

A 'dark' wine. Fresh on the nose, with sweet cherry and raspberry. Creamy. A true sniffer. On the palate still a bit raw and 'black'. Blackberry, coffee, oak, plum and mint. Concentrated, with a lot of ripe tannins playing around and ending in a solid finish (just a littly dry, though). Good acidity. This wine may benefit a bit more from 2-3 years in the cellar. Very well done! 90-91/100

1/19/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

A younger version of the wine I had just a few days ago. The 2004 needed some time in the decanter to open up. Bright and open nose, with loads of cherry, berry, mocha, stones and clay. A true sniffer and o so pure. Drinking nicely, although the wine was young and a bit raw at first. Palate followed the nose. Loads of bright, ripe red fruit. Concentrated and mouth-filling. Soft tannins in support. Some earth, licorice and minerals offering a darker side. Again, pure, pure fruit with a solid acidity. Yumm. Good length, this will improve more... Yet, if you like your fruit crisp and open... Why wait?
91+/100

1/16/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

We loved the '98 some time ago and this was almost as good. A little less 'meat', but with loads of creamy red fruit (raspberry, cherry) and floral tones. Both nose and palate were in line and showed great balance and elegance. Superb acidity and length, wit a certain 'dark' (earthy) side that kept the tension and made the wine interesting to follow throughout the evening. Beautiful!
90-91/100

1/16/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

I expected it to be 'older', but not 12 years old! Classic adult Bordeaux nose with tobacco, chocolate, forest fruit, tea. Drink this now if you like both fruit and secondary impressions. Coffee, blackberry, fully bodied and with a good length.
89/100

1/16/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

This Pauillac Cru Bourgeois needed serious time in the decanter. After a few hours: Bravo! We just found ourselves a 'nose'. Black forest fruit, chocolate, cinnamon, toast. Superb and a true sniffer was born. On the palate it had more acidity than one would expect from a '03. It kept the wine fresh, although it still was a meaty, chewy, big wine. Chocolate, plum, black and dark, but with a great length and promise. Yum!
91-92+/100

1/16/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

WTF? This is fascinating stuff! From old vines, made near Cantenac in both the Haut-Médoc and Margaux appellations in small quantities. Artisan work at its best! Enormous fruit-driven wine. Sweet nose with just red, fresh fruit! On the palate a classic (solid) acidity, cherry, berry, raspberry... Did I mention fruit? Full bodied, concentrated, yet refined. Young and playful, enjoy it now or hold for more years.
90-91+/100

5/25/2008 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Tasted at the château. A big, black nose. Mocha, meat, coffee, minerals, lavender and blackberry. A true sniffer! On the palate très Bordeaux pour moi, despite 80% new oak. Nice acidity, soft oak, berryfruit, ripe tannins and a good finish. This one needs a few more years at least, maybe a bit rough now. 92/100

5/25/2008 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Tasted at the château. Thank you, Jean Michel, for opening this treat. Enormous aromatic profile. Cinnamon, ripe strawberry, roses, cassifruit and o so fresh and exciting. A complex, mouth filling wine. Loads and layers of fruit, very ripe and sweet, but not overdone. Fresh, deep and creamy. Solid ripe tannins. Superb lenght. Wow!! 95/100

5/25/2008 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Tasted at the château. THIS is a 2007? Jean Michel Comme made a great 2007. His extensive work in the vineyards payed of. Great nose with iron, berry, cherry, tobacco and yoghurt. Drinking good now, superb balance, ripe tannins, loads of fruit and a solid acidity supporting the thing. Long finish! 92/100

10/13/2008 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Decanted two hours before serving. Initial nose full of yoghurt and crisp cherryfruit. Later also lavender, oak and some alcoholic heat. On the palate full, intense, but not jammy or overripe. Instead notes of oak, mocha, ripe forest fruit, coffee, oak, mint and a bit smokey. Ripe tannins along the way. Long, looong finish, with some alcoholic heat (14.5%!). A 'muscle wine'.
This Faïzeau needs at least 3-5 more years to settle down. Plenty of potential and material, now it's time to find the balance. But even now....Superb!
91+/100

10/20/2008 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Popped and poured. Lovely, open nose with fresh and ripe red fruit, some vanilla, plum and cherry yoghurt. Pure and crisp. Drinking very good right now too. Primary sweet cherry and cassisfruit, milk chocolate, licorice and without noticeable tannins.

Maybe a bit simple, not too complex, but just very pure and attractive as it is. I found it to be very elegant, but lacking the power of the 'blockbusters' (I don't mind, as I tend to like different styles of Bordeaux wines made in great années). Yet, a wine that gives a smile. Pleasant finish. A fine wine to drink now, or over the next 4-5 years if you love fruit in your glass.

87-88/100

1/27/2007 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Here I went completely wrong. I thought it to be a 2004 Moulis or Haut-Médoc, because it was so young. It WAS still young. A clean nose, giving more with some air. Minth, oak, vanilla and lots of sweet red fruit. In the glass the wine had a lot of potential, but there was no balance yet. Power wine. Tannins were good, oak was there, acidity was very good and there were lots of mostly red fruits playing around. Finish was very decent. This wine may never resolve and integrate into a true glorious glass, but the potential still is there. Very good wine if you like 'em rough.
89+/100

1/27/2007 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

What a meaty nose! Incredibly thick and fleshy, lovely. With some time, more secondary aromas emerged. The nose became better and better and was declared 'nose of the evening' with cassisfruit, floral tones, minth, vanilla, sweetness, licorice... On the palate refined, chocolate, crisp red fruit, soft oak and rather big tannins towards the long finish. This wine was still young, but we were wondering where it should go from here. Still very, very good, though.
90+/100

1/27/2007 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

A refined nose with lots of cassifruit, vanilla, sweet red fruit, minth and some tobacco. This wine was very pure and balanced. We loved the cassis, chocolate, alive acidicity (a true 'fresh' wine), ripe raspberry, licorice and good tannins towards the medium to long finish. This wine was pure balance and still slightly young. May develop even more. and so yumm! I thought it was a St.-Julien, but that was merely because the Pédesclaux offered much more tobacco (called that one an ash trey) than this one.

1/27/2007 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Intense, big notes of tobacco on the nose. Also some black fruits, minth. I never experienced thát much of tobacco in one single sniff, though. On the palate an elegant, sophisticated wine. Again, the tobacco found its way in the glass. A lovely acidity supporting the wine, as were black ripe fruits, soft oak and a decent tannic structure towards the medium finish. Lovely, really lovely. Could have scored even higher with a more intense mid-palate and longer finish.
88-89/100

1/5/2009 - Roel van Gestel wrote:

Decanted for over 3 hours. Initial nose was very tight and I expected a stubborn '95-er.
With some air the wine opened up nicely. Yet, the 'famous' '95-characteristics were not gone.
The nose was très Bordeaux. Tobacco, vanilla, mocha, raspberry and cherry made it a very nice sniffer. On the palate the wine still needed to find more balance, due to the big tannins present. At first I mostly detected notes of red peppers, later these were replaced by chocolate, black pepper, cherry, menthol and licorice. Medium to full bodied appearance. All under the guidance of the tannins. Solid long finish.
The only thing that bothered me were these 'famous' tannins. They will last longer than the fruit, that is already heading into a secondary phase.
Overall, the fruit present was ripe (not green, my initial concern after opening and sniffing). Nose: 89-90, palate: 86. Average score in my book of 87/100.