October 1, 2022 - Could not believe the structure of this wine, even after a lengthy decant this wine tasted more like a ‘16. Amazing.
March 7, 2022 - Return to Napa; 3/6/2022-3/13/2022 (Wineries and various restaurants): Very similar to my last note on this. This was a bit more tired than you would expect although again I think that might be the year coming through (I don't think the 97s have stood up quite as well). Still has some darker fruits. Just missing a bit of the vibrancy.
May 23, 2020 - It's been a while since I've had this wine. I love Lokoya (especially before it doubled and tripled in price). This bottle, while showing well did seem to be nearing the end of its ideal drinking window as the fruit was a little more subdued than I remember. Nonetheless, this very smooth wine with beautiful layers of black fruits and some vanilla Oak was still a beauty.
February 3, 2020 - Had this side by side with a 1997 Mondavi Reserve and both were in great shape. I've had a few of the more recent Lokoya releases (2012/2014) and was excited to try this one with some age. To say we were shocked at how young and big this wine was would be an understatement. Huge dark fruit, tannins in great shape and nice finish. This bottle has plenty of age left but a pleasure to drink now.
November 16, 2018 - incredibly deep midnight red color, an elegant and broad- yet still undefined- nose of fruits from the red and purple sides of the spectrum, dark plums, a good bit of oak still, on the palate quite youthful and a bit hot on the tail end for me- but there is also a really fine depth of blueberry and cassis fruit, for me this wine is a lot like the Bond offerings- love the fruit but not so much the structure and wood, that said- this has less raw oak than the few Bonds I have tried, slight creaminess to the fruit, fine long balanced finish that brings it all together nicely, chocolate and cherry liqueur notes in time, it will be interesting to see what comes in time- this is far more primary and young than I would have imagined for even a 1997, at this point it seems secondary development is either a long way off or never destined to be, meantime it does make a very attractive drink if you like this heavier style (even with the heat on the end- I have to confess I did like this very much.) ***(*)+?, if I had a case of this I would plan to enjoy a few now and save several for a decade or two, whether it develops further or not- it is showing nicely now and has time in hand.
March 10, 2018 - It's entirely possible this was flawed - a friend we drank it with was sure it was corked. Opened and decanted. For me it was a just ok wine, but I wasn't sure actually bad. Fits a bit with how the '97s seem to be aging. I thought fine, but not as compelling as a Lokoya typically is. Fruit more muted. Balance reasonable. Little less layered and complex. Too bad. Was looking forward to it.
October 11, 2017 - Definitely some life left here but at the same time prime drinking now. Appreciated not overpowering. 95-96 for me.
September 30, 2017 - Corked unfortunately.
September 30, 2017 - Retrospective: California 90s (Restaurant Bottles, Sas van Gent): Corked...
June 30, 2017 - In a blind tasting, there is NO WAY I would have guessed this one was a 97. Tastes like an 08 or 09. Very youthful fruit. Diamond Mountain fruit, very dark, smoky almost, with a nice leathery note. This wine in the middle is good black fruit with a hint of age towards the back. This is the only indication that this wine is aging. The finish is still stiff tannin, youthful oak. Nice and balanced wine. Great structure. This one will hold another 5-10 years.