May 17, 2023 - Drank over two nights. Dark fruit and hints of coffee on the nose. The palate was dark berries, plums, cherry, coffee and a hint of dried thyme leading to a moderately long finish. Good QPR
February 11, 2023 - Opened up one of my two remaining bottles of J. Bookwalter tonight. Sometimes excessive oak can taste a little like Brettanomyces bacterial infection. As others have noted, I think that this bottle is more than oak, so I’m inclined to call it Brett tainted. I will probably need to pour this one down the drain. I know that the occasional flawed bottle is part of the cost of doing business, but this particular bottle is not an isolated incident based on past comments. So, the winery should have more quality control and better sanitary procedures.
January 3, 2023 - Much much better than the bottle consumed in 2018 (which had a funk which just didn't blow off). This had an integrated mild funk - nice - made me think Bordeaux (with more fruit).
Spice, plum, prune, black pepper, leather, acidity on the finish. Fairly weighty.
October 18, 2022 - Opened two hours in advance. Dark fruit and hints of coffee on the nose. The palate was dark berries, plums, cherry, coffee and a hint of dried thyme leading to a moderately long finish.
August 30, 2020 - Really funky nose on open. Forest, smoke, plum? A little tight on the palate. Better with Venturi. But really really good after one hour. Currants, plums...lots of complex flavors. 92-93.
December 2, 2019 - My my, you are certainly oaked-up aren't you.
October 22, 2019 - Pretty attractive in an understated way.....not that this is not a fullbodied cab dominant blend, but it is not grippingat the moment
Maybe i am put off bythe unnecessary weight of the bottle which adds nothing to my tasting experience, in fact, probably detracts
June 14, 2019 - Prior bottle was 11 months ago and my notes were quite consistent. Nose showed blackfruit, leather, earth and light spices. Medium bodied with black cherry and blackberry upfront, plum and blueberry through the middle and red cherry along with spices, earth and leather on the finish. Like the prior bottle, felt like this was evolving from the youthful, more bright-fruit style to a softer, more balanced and more expressive next phase. The balance between fruit and structure has improved, but it doesn't feel like this has lead to increased complexity. Feels like this will continue to drink well at approximately this level over the next few years, but the evolution will be towards a softer, more integrated wine.
April 23, 2019 - Popped and poured through the vinturi. We waited 30 minutes before sipping, but should have given it longer air time before trying. Lovely wine that really smoothed out as the evening progressed. Faint nose that would have been more aromatic if we had used patience. Integrated fruit with some tannins mid-palate. Nice medium finish. Drank on the 2nd night and the tannins were still present but a little smoother. There was a slight funky edge to the wine that wasn't noticeable the 1st night.
April 7, 2019 - Absolutely stunning wine. Needed about 30 mins of air to open up but then it sang all night long through dinner. Worth the price of admission for sure.