1/2/2023 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

5th time I come across this bottle whose price has now skyrocketed

Extremely rich nose between candied orange, curry, hazelnut and grilled almonds.

On the palate, the wine is less structured than the previous bottles. In fact, it's a V6 that runs on 5 legs as they say. Once the nose settles down a bit, the mouth takes on volume with an obvious vinosity and roasted aromas of coffee beans. Then the nose takes over and the mouth runs out of steam. And vice versa. In fact, it is quite frustrating since there is no harmony between the nose and the mouth. The bitters remain beautiful on the finish, which opens the way to a grand, saline and intense finish with great length, more in line with the pedigree of the wine.

It is sometimes necessary to accept that certain bottles of a cuvée which is now 35 years old are weaker than others. It remains excellent, but other vintages are at their peak now, I remain very happy to have drunk this vintage at its best moment.

12/15/2022 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

Incredibly rich nose of lemongrass, pencil lead and black fruits.

The mouth is still very young and of a magnificent freshness. This is all the more remarkable as the juice has an enormous density. The touch is textured, very noble and silky. The wine glides like velvet. It is layered with that dominant lemongrass, something I haven't noticed on any of the Penfolds I've tasted so far. The eucalyptus side in particular is absent. Then came the graphite, then the cherry and the plum which intertwine in this wine which ultimately turns out to be more fine than concentrated. Magnificent spicy finish that sparkles on the tongue to coat the throat for long minutes.

Great Penfolds.

1/19/2022 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

In this acclaimed vintage, shiraz clearly dominates with 97% for 3% Cabernet Sauvignon.

A nose of crazy complexity, on blackberries, crushed raspberries, barbecue, pepper, spices ... Everything goes with aeration where aromas of coffee beans will be added.

On the palate, the wine is massive, especially with its 15% alcohol, but to be honest I expected worse. It is a perfect balance and with a freshness, what a treat! The juice is dense and loose on bright fruit blended with meaty flavors and roasted coffee. It's textured and smooth at the same time, with a hint of vanilla, the complexity and presence on the palate is there, it's almost too easy! The wine benefits from the aeration in the glass with the appearance of flavors of figs, violets, and smoke. Eminently complex, everything is there to make a great wine, starting with the massive, almost carbony finish that unrolls like a steamroller over an enormous length.

It is a great wine objectively, kaleidoscopic, intense and tasty at the same time.

8/1/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

It took 6 hours for the wine to reach its level, 6 hours during which it worried me, as the acidic tip on the finish gave me the prospect of the worst, totally unbalancing the wine ...

A very aristocratic nose, in the purest Bordeaux classicism: graphite, tobacco, smoke, truffle, earthy, spicy… The list goes on.

Superb texture in the mouth. It's velvety and silky, with an XXL juice of great maturity, all this exudes Bordeaux at its zenith. It's rich, sexy, black as ink with still fiery fruit on black currant and plum. The wine is layered so that the fruit gently leaves its place, like a veil that rises, on chocolate, cedar, all sprinkled with sweet spices. It's voluptuous but focused. Noble, serene finish with melted tannins, which oscillates between coffee, herbs and cedar, the whole lining the throat for a long time.

A charismatic wine. It's great.

2/19/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

dsg 02/2020

7 grape varieties: Pinot Noir, Pinot Meunier, Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay, Arbanne, Petit Meslier, Fromenteau.

Lively and deep nose on chalk and citrus fruits. The palate is extremely mineral. It's chalky, with flavors of wet stone. Then the juice comes to take the top with a bright fruit, very pure, stretched by a fine acidity which allows the wine to be delivered and to unfold quietly. I thought it was going to be very straight, but it's already ready, the aeration gives it a winey touch, it is a supple champagne, comfortable and above all, multifaceted. The aeration will give it a very fine winey side, it is deep and balanced with a magnificent finish, a mixture of chalk and fruit which is distilled in a great and beautiful length.
It’s really excellent and already ready to drink.

8/28/2021 - CHBD Likes this wine:

Superbe nez toasté avec des fruits exotiques. Frais en bouche ,belle acidité
mais manque d'ampleur et de longueur pour un R.D. Probablement une bouteille en mauvaise forme ?

11/18/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

Opened to Cantinetta Antinori without particular ventilation, the wine immediately expressed itself with fullness and strength.

Intense nose on black fruits, spices and leather.

The palate is intense but open with extremely well integrated elements, starting with an elegant woody note on diffused cedar. The wine is deep, on captivating aromas similar to the nose, with a textured and silky juice which provides a lot of pleasure. I don't know if the wine is at its peak, but it is already delicious, on a perfect balance which gives freshness and flavor to an ensemble that is nevertheless rich and dense. Magnificent powerful and serene finish on sweet spices and tannins which trace the furrow to a very good length.

It’s just great.

10/16/2021 - Benoit Hardy wrote:

Nose on leather, spices and brandy cherries.

On the palate, the key word of this wine is concentration. It begins with the attack where the juice is very concentrated, powerful but balanced by an acidity that carries the wine and avoids the heaviness of 15 °. The texture of the wine remains silky so that it remains supple and digestible, on black fruit mixed with tobacco. The wine has a good depth and has a definite potential. Final with melted tannins, quite warm on the leather and the cherry.

Excellent, but in a transition phase, in a mid-world where the tertiary phase has not yet asserted itself in favor of deep and powerful fruit. I will wait 5 years for my next bottles

10/13/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

Nose of a crazy class bringing together all that Bordeaux classism can do best: it is subtly earthy, grassy, leather, black fruit and cedar.

Surprisingly fine on the palate where I expected power. The whole is still stunningly youthful, with aromas of undergrowth, truffles and spices. It's silky and complex, with incredible freshness, almost lace. A pure, racy and juicy wine, of great complexity with incredible depth and suppleness. It's still a great moment spent with a mature Bordeaux. Masterful finish on tobacco which combines power, softness and length.

A grandiose, serene wine that imposes itself quite naturally.

8/27/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

Open only 1 hour before, it did not take more to shine, a real rockstar.

This wine has everything I love about Barolo: race, floral and spicy aromas, but above all it remains easy to digest and elegant.

The nose explodes on white pepper. From then on, I expected a massive mouth, but it didn't. With a velvety touch, the wine settles and is sovereign with delicious floral aromas, cedar and sweet spices. The juice is massive but its perception is sweet. Pure and powerful at the same time, it unfolds its complexity with opulent balsamic notes at the end of the mouth and an explosive finish so intense the leather is. Wrap-around length.

I loved this wine, it is a great Barolo for me.

5/19/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

On opening, the nose was bizarre, on a mixture of medicinal herbs and not fresh meat. Opening 4 hours allowed this bottle from a vintage described as "legendary" in California to demonstrate its full value.

After 4 hours, the nose is of magnificent purity, there is bright fruit, with cedar, tobacco and a little mint.

On the palate, the velvety attack is striking. The touch is delicate while the juice is as textured as it is dense. The wine is precise and harmonious, feeling of "cold light" while the Californian wines that I have tasted so far have all been a little warm for my taste. Aromas of dried flowers, eucalyptus, sweet spices, black fruits and leather come together to create a flourishing whole. The wine is singing, it unfolds serenely on a perfect balance. Great finish, pure, minty, almost saline because it is so fresh and which stretches endlessly in a crystalline length.

Great California wine!

1/30/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

the nose smells of tobacco.

The palate is of rare density. There is juice, it is undeniable. Unparalleled balance, to give an amplitude of madness. The tannins are noble, the touch silky, it is deep. And the final, powerful, on black fruits.

Excellent.

1/23/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

Drunk for the first time in 2017, I had the pleasure of meeting this wine again.

The nose has changed little since the last time, candied almonds, hazelnuts and smoky wood. This forms a very classy whole.

The palate is still so refined from the last time. The touch is velvety, the material enveloping. The acidity and the fat form a perfect balance and the juice occupies the palate while increasing in power. I noted in 2017 "powerful and airy at the same time", which is still the case. The buttery, nutty finish explodes and stretches giving the wine incredible length.

Always so magnificent, he has not moved.

1/22/2021 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine:

delicious notes of leather, tobacco and spices.

The mouth is sanguine and franck. Large, loose and tempered by the years, the fact remains that this is a rich wine with its 14.5 °. The tobacco and leather aromas largely dominate with a very nice balance which gives the wine great drinkability. Intense spicy finish with polished tannins that allow the length to stretch remarkably.

Very nice wine