5/6/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Drank this to celebrate our wedding (thank you Sameer!). Pleasant to hear a gentle pop upon opening, with some bubbles still present once poured. Still with lively acidity. Oxidative apples, blue cheese. This will always be a special bottle, and will remain on my mantle in perpetuity.

4/24/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

sweet blackberry, graphite, cocoa (don't know the percent merlot, but felt recognizable). some mild tertiary leather notes starting to appear. I think it's firmly in the drinking window now. There's some very, very slight boot polish volatile acidity that detracts from a higher score.

4/18/2024 - yaanik wrote:

far too much tertiary (bacon fat, smoke, olive pit) for a wine so young.

4/8/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

pepper, dark plum, black/blue fruit, cast iron. phenomenal value at 29.99!

4/4/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

a bit green on the nose -- suspect that's from the 20% cabernet franc. blows off with time. lots of iron, iodine, ripe dark black fruit. Revisit in 3-5 years, as the oak needs more time to integrate. EXCELLENT value at $45. Would love to blind taste side-by-side with Sassicaia.

3/31/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Barely legal to be drinking this young. So good. Taut. Eucalyptus / bay leaf. Roasted apple wood. Graphite. Betel nut. Minerals. Oak is so beautifully integrated. Dark black fruit. Revisit in 5-10. Want to see the fruit open up some more.

3/31/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Tasted blind. Warm bread. Lots of stewed plum, stewed red fruit. Palate: cassis, blue fruit, black fruit. Graphite. Also some of the fennel / anise.

3/31/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Tasted blind. Estuary. Black fruit. Bitter black tea tannin. Iodine. Violets. Dark cherries soaked in milk chocolate. Really opens with time in decanter. Feels young and backward. Excellent wine. Improved with time in glass. Needs another 5 years to revisit.

3/26/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Sweet cherry, wild raspberry, wild strawberry, garrigue, tar, bitter herbal liqueur / eucalyptus. SO good. Might have even guessed this to be CDP if I tasted blind. Tannins are nicely resolved, but give it another 3-5 years for the bitter herbs to meld into caramelized glory.

3/24/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Very Bordealais! Very nice wine. Inky black. Cassis, cherry, toasty applewood. Certainly needs time for everything to come together. Revisit in 2028

3/22/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Sweet red cherries, dried herbs, fennel seed, floral bouquet, sweet tar. Very primary, but the tannins are surprisingly silky for nebbiolo. Wish I had more for the cellar, and would love to revisit in 5-10 years.

3/19/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Lime zest, Green apple, pineapple, petrol, honeyed note (noble rot), old book pages (faint -- and the only hint of some bottle age). zippy, zippy acidity. felt very dry, surprised at 7.5 g/dL residual sugar. classic alsace. SO good -- paired beautifully with ginger/garlic stir fried vegetables and tofu with sesame oil / soy sauce. Drinking so well now -- but easily will cruise at least another 5-10 years if seeking a more mature Riesling.

3/18/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Bitter herbal extract, orange peel, spice, oak, slight caramel notes (tertiary from bottle age). The oak is a bit heavy handed, and the bitter herbs are still too harsh. Could this round out in 3-5 more years? Possibly, but I suspect it'll never be a GREAT wine (i.e. the nutty/oxidative notes will become too prominent by the time the oak finally integrates, and the herbal liqueur softens).

If you serve now -- definitely serve it with something bold (duck, as noted in the other reviews, sounds amazing). We paired with mushroom pizza, and the oak overwhelmed.

3/17/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

excellent concentration, zippy acidity. bone dry. great value

3/17/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

fennel, cherry, smoked meat. lovely wine, drinking perfectly at the moment

3/15/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Lemon, golden apple, struck match, roasted nuts.

3/15/2024 - yaanik Does not like this wine:

nearly undrinkable. cherry cough syrup, oak. Would expect rosso di montalcino to pair with eggplant/tomato pasta, but clashed horribly.

3/15/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Out of balance. Too peppery on the nose (though this dissipated by the next day), thin concentration of fruit, yet over-extracted tannin. Had a natural wine feel.

3/10/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Barnyard, leather, smoke, pyrazine, bandaid Brett. Very little fruit on nose. Pleasant palate. Alive. Rust. Lots of smokey barnyard leather. Still some nice juicy acid and tannin. Very much alive. Some mint. Roasted nuts. Toasted / smokey flavors overwhelm palate. Alive, but well past its prime. Interestingly, I had this side-by-side, blind, with a 1991 Chateau Kirwan ($80 at K&L), and I did not think there was a significant quality difference between the two (and may have even slightly favored the Kirwan, which was dominated by notes of black truffle).

3/10/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Subtle / tightly wound. Oak totally integrated. Cranberry, orange rind. Great concentration of fruit. Beautiful wine. Revisit in 3-5 years.

3/3/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Raspberry, strawberry, rose, mint, forest floor / mushroom. All integrated so beautifully on palate without the harshness/bitter medicinal quality I often find in young New World pinot. Love this wine. Drinking really well now, but have another bottle in the cellar to revisit in 3-5 years.

I first heard about Cobb wines during a tasting event with Ross Cobb himself at Ungrafted in Dogpatch, SF. A few months later I saw a fun reference in the Ralph Fiennes movie "the Menu." For my money, Cobb is making the exciting New World pinot noir at the moment.

3/2/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Enjoyed over 3-4 hours from decanter. Dark cherry, dark raspberry, dried fruits and a fair amount of tertiary: olive, rust, smoked meat. Tannins lively but nicely integrated. Paired with carbonara pasta which really elevated the wine.

2/19/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

concentrated round golden apple. tasted side-by-side with La Grand Annee Bollinger, and preferred this!

2/19/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Have been a fan of their wines for several years now, and I visited Castello di Monsanto in 2022, and stood atop Il Poggio itself! This wine on the nose is overpowered by green tomato leaf pyrazines. Blows off a bit with time in the glass, but far too strong right now, which diminishes the quality. On palate, lots of juicy red and dark cherry, with classic acidity and structure. I do wonder how the green notes will evolve with time in the bottle.

2/18/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Tasted this side by side (blind) with a grower champagne, 2017 Michel Arnould Carte D'Or made in a similar style (recommended as a good side-by-side by K&L's chief champagne buyer Mr. Westby). I strongly preferred the Arnould (1/4th the price), which was much rounder, with concentrated golden apple. This tasted much less concentrated in comparison, though sharper, with a more focused acidity for sure. There was an oak / roasted nut aftertaste (which I have heard is classic for Bollinger), that I didn't love. I continue to struggle with QPR in prestige cuvée champagne!

2/15/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

pleasant black truffle, dark black fruit. Drink now

2/14/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Dense, structured. Cannot believe this is 19 years old. Still very primary -- layers of crushed sweet blackberry, floral. Decant for several hours.

2/10/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Mocha, violets, cassis, graphite. Such wonderful acidity. Oak is completely integrated at this point. Classic Bordeaux done so well. Drinking beautifully with 5-6 hour decant (though easily has another decade ahead).

2/3/2024 - yaanik wrote:

cloying aromatics

1/26/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Dark black raspberries, wild herbs, tobacco. Juicy, fresh, with quite a bit of tannic structure. No tertiary flavours right now. I actually don't think the Oak has fully integrated yet. This needs another 3-5 years to revisit.

1/24/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Second wine of Billecart-Salmon. Almond paste, yeast, white peach, allium. Others have noted acidity is hard-edged, but I actually would prefer more here, and certainly more concentration. As much as I love it, Champagne remains the most difficult wine for me to taste / understand.

1/24/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Some brick-colour changes at rim. On nose, dried red fruit, black winter truffle, orange rind, sweet mint, furnace. Some tertiary flavours on palate, but with lively tannin. Drink now.

1/23/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Easily the best chardonnay I've ever had, and probably the highest quality:price ratio of any wine I've had. On nose, there is struck match, toasted popcorn, motor oil/mechanic shop. On palate, waves and waves of concentration without ripeness. The toasty oak on the nose is seamlessly integrated on the palate. If this had less of a monolithic nose, I'd give it 100 points.

1/21/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Elegant nose -- jasmine/white flower. This is a delicate wine. What it lacks is more punch in the mid and late palate. Originially tasted iside-by-side with the Oakridge Henk Vineyard Chardonnay, and it was flimsy in comparison. When tasted in isolation a different day, however, it was able to show its merits. Paired really nicely with spicy Chinese beef noodle soup.

1/14/2024 - yaanik wrote:

revisited this same wine a few weeks later (unblinded). there's too much sweet vanilla/coconut oak -- so i'll downgrade my score a bit

1/14/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Lots of menthol/bay leaf, with red and black fruit. Improves with time in glass. Definitely needs more time - but I must say, for the price, I was not blown away. I have a high tolerance for assertive Chilean pyrazine -- that was not the detractor here; more the lack of savory mineral quality that I want in a wine at this price.

1/14/2024 - yaanik wrote:

graphite and pencil shaving offer an attractive nose; palate is mineral-laden. prosaic, but enjoyable "everyday" claret.

1/13/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

This is a haunting wine. There's sour cherry and a distinct damp mushroom feel, but it's all so subtle and fleeting. Seemed to ever so slightly unfurl with 3 hours in the decanter, but we consumed it all before we could watch it accumulate additional time. I suspect this will be best re-visited in ~4-5 years.

1/9/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Love this wine! On nose, quite Bordelais...damp/estuarial (not sure if this makes sense to others, but for me this is such a classic Bordeaux note...not quite Brett..but some kind of mild swampy funk...in a good way!!!), fresh tuscan bread, cedar box. On palate, gripping tannin that makes you feel ALIVE, mineral, iron, perfect black and blue fruit. I think this is drinking soooo well right now, but it is very, very early in its window! Planning to buy a few more for the cellar.

1/8/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Really disappointing for the price! lacks concentration or finesse...tasted it side by side with a grocery-store-purchased premier cru Fixin 1/4 the price, and the Fixin was the better wine. Perhaps I'm missing something, given the stellar reviews... perhaps it will awaken after some more years of bottle age?

1/3/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Lots of plush vanilla oak on nose, and creamy thick mouthfeel. Juicy ripe blackberries, clove/bay leaf, and lots of pipe tobacco oak on finish . Very youthful. Not my favorite style at all but well made and will improve over at least the next 5 years, as the oak integrates. Will revisit my other bottle around 2029.

1/1/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Tasted blind. On nose, wild peppery herbs, wild red fruit, black pepper, violets, iodine, orange peel. On palate red, black and blue fruit. Tannin through the roof. Because of all the pepper, I guessed this to be an elegant cool climate New World Syrah (but entertained possibility of Barolo given color and tannin). This is nowhere near ready to drink.

1/1/2024 - yaanik wrote:

Tasted blind. On nose classic toasted popcorn with allium note. Knew this had to be Chardonnay. On palate, lemon custard tart -- where baker accidentally added more sugar than they intended. It tastes expensive, and I could tell it's a quality wine, though for me the style is too sweet (which tipped me off to this being New World -- though from the nose alone I would've guessed Burgundy). Would be curious to re-visit this with a proper food pairing. I will say that despite being 11 years old, this tastes incredibly youthful -- and will easily age another decade.

1/1/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Tasted blind. Now this is my kind of wine. Slight rum-soaked raisins, white flowers (believe it or not), pencil shaving, classic Bordeaux estuarial rusticity. On palate, MINERALS, really concentrated black and blue fruit -- perfectly ripe but not overripe. Tuscan herbs. Insane length and concentration. Soooo elegant. This wine shows the power and elegance of Bordeaux (correctly guessed it to be a L bank Bordeaux). Will cruise in the cellar -- but this is very much in its drinking window at the moment. Popped and poured at first, and then enjoyed slowly over the next few hours (improved with time in glass). Paired beautifully with braised lamb.

1/1/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Tasted blind. Mint, mint, mint on nose. Soaked rum raisin, vanilla, pyrizine, sweet black fruit, damp forest floor sous bois. On palate, loads of juicy concentrated blackberry and sweet summer blueberries. Knew it to be Cab sauvignon, but because of the mint I placed it in Australia vs Chile. This is a decidedly New World style with tons of oak -- but it is all comes together with elegance. Would be delicious with some prime rib.

1/1/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Tasted blind. Loads of peach, petrol, lees, jasmine flower, intense perfume. Felt dry (but not surprised to learn there are 2 g/L residual sugar). Ever so slight tertiary note of oxidized brown apple, but mostly zippy green apple. Perfume is almost a little too intense on the palate (verges on soapy -- but not in a bad way). Correctly guessed it to be Riesling from Alsace. This tastes expensive! And honestly, at $90 is a pretty good value.

1/1/2024 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Tasted blind. On nose, cherries (light and dark), violets, raspberries. On palate, lots of juicy fruit with great concentration. Garrigue. Also dark chocolate, baking spice, and the mildest oak. Medium + tannins. Youthful and juicy. Guessed it to be grenache-based blend from southern rhone -- surprised to find it's mostly tempranillo with just 10% granacha. Great value (guessed to be in the $50-80 range when blind to price).

12/28/2023 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Tasted blind. Wow. Lots going on here. Smoke, leather, pepper, auto-repair shop / tire, maple-glazed bacon, juicy blackberry fruit, toasted popcorn. Perfectly aged -- the complex tertiary character really suits the grape! Defintely improves with time in the glass (if I had another bottle, i'd decant for at least an hour). Beautiful tannin, really nicely integrated. I guessed it to be some "rustic Italian wine" -- which I'll take as a win! Drink now and over the next few years.

12/28/2023 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Tasted blind. Pleasant rum raisin on the nose, leather. On palate, loads of plum, with leather and brett. Nice juicy acidity. Impressed that this is nearly a quarter-century old! Guessed it to be R bank bordeaux with lots of Cab franc, but surprised to see it's all Cab sauv and merlot. It's definitely thinning, so wouldn't store for any longer.

12/24/2023 - yaanik Likes this wine:

Tasted blind. Golden. Faint honey note. Very leesy, with a distinctive allium note as well as freshly struck match, cheese rind. On palate has a really creamy texture, which is perfectly counterbalanced by lighting acidity. Fruit is crisp green apple spritzed with fresh lemon juice. Very nice wine. Guessed it to be Loire Chenin -- made in a very French style!