November 19, 2023 - Lovely classically styled aromas of black raspberry, pencil lead, leather and youthful oak spice notes lead to a medium bodied, mouthful of blackberry and tobacco flavors that linger.
November 11, 2023 - Poised and seductive bouquet, featuring equal parts red and purple fruits, violets, blackcurrant, wafting hints of berry liqueurs, wintergreen, blackstrap molasses, and graphite. Appealing nuanced, noteworthy range.
Generous, and revealing subtle power, in the form of serious acid and medium tannins. Compact and inflection changing. The finish lingers nicely.
Seven to ten+ years from maturity. Recommend holding bottles for three to five years. Improvement seems possible. 93-94.
March 19, 2023 - Good potential. Quite decent already but more should come with time
January 29, 2023 - Felt a bit closed and brooding like many of the '14s, this one probably needs more time to show more charm.
January 17, 2023 - Aus der halben Flasche. Jetzt wunderbar auf dem Punkt!
October 17, 2022 - Great balance. Start to show finest and it has what you want for this wine. Interesting aroma of violet and berries, medium body , long finishing.
August 12, 2022 - Coravin into small decanter 1 hour before drinking but did have an initial initial taste and swirl taste and all seemed ok but a little closed at first.
Drank a small taste and then a glass from the decanted and it was nice, tried to go back to Coravin for another sip and it was still tight so it needs a good hour (or more). Nice Garnet color, lighter it seems to me than the LP or Gloria recently tasted from same appellation and vintage. Aroma comes out a bit with a little air and is a light one with some smoke, earthiness and a tiny bit of wood. Lighter in style by color and on first mouthfeel than I expected on the first sip. Seems to get a bit more body with air as well but just not a dense wine at this stage. Flavor profile does vary with time in the glass. There are some tart red fruits in the background. Medium acidity. Fine tannins which I think some might call "dusty". Some pepper comes through. I suspect this wine will improve. Frankly at this stage, I prefer both the LP and the Gloria so I will probably hold the rest of these for a while and follow others who are tasting over time and then decide when to try again. I'm not convinced this one has the stuffing to go the long haul but it's hard to say. That said, even though I'm no expert, I have read that Gruaud has a reputation for inconsistency. While I have little experience with recent vintages, certainly there is a huge difference across vintages in this wine in my experience having had the privilege of tasting the amazing 1982 in the past and also unusual vintages such as the 1981 and 1996. I find this variety interesting and I do enjoy the funkiness this wine sometimes has to a point but I suspect that the style of some of the vintages of GL (like the 1996) will not appeal to many people, even lovers of St. Julien. Will update this when I open the bottle and pour the last half or more of this bottle which will be soon but for now-91+
November 7, 2021 - Loved it
July 4, 2021 - Wonderful Bordeaux that's drinking beautifully. Pleasant fruit, nice acidity with balanced tannins that play well with food.
June 4, 2021 - Leathery tobacco and pronounced Oak notes aplenty for this St Julien, perhaps it was the lesser 2014 vintage or the fact that this wine was served at room temperature (too warm!) that didn't allow it to showcase its values. Great nose nevertheless and wonderful Seapark ???? Hokkien Mee helped!
Thanks for the treat KN, lockdown Day 4 over here ??