October 24, 2022 - In the year since we last had a bottle, this wine blossomed. Big, bold, inky wine. Noticeable plum in both the nose and on the palate. But the wine has come together in a good way. The wine is much better integrated and an excellent QPR. The plum makes it a different kind of taste sensation, but not unpleasant. We both enjoyed it much more than the prior outings.
October 14, 2021 - Started as a generic Rhone-style wine. Plum and cherry, especially on the second night. But the plum was overly dominant, which detracted. It contributed to a slightly strange flavor profile -- we think it was the plum, but can't be sure! Still, full bodied and a decent QPR.
July 8, 2021 - Disappointing, given the hype in the writeup on this wine. We found it to be reflective of a Rhone-style wine, but generic and not particularly appealing. However, at $17, it's a reasonable value. Certainly a drinkable wine, better with food, but didn't meet expectations. I thought that perhaps it needed more time, but our sense was that the wine became more one-dimensional on subsequent days (gassed).
July 7, 2020 - Tasted blind against the 2015 All Blocks (twice the cost). The Fundamental was purple and slightly opaque in the glass, no sediment. The All Blocks was a clear deep garnet, neither had sediment. On the nose, the F had sweet strawberry and red licorice, whereas the AB had less sweet fruit and more earth and berry. Mouthfeels were different, with the F being softer, rounder, more viscous; the AB was more focused, thinner, but in a good way. On the palate, both were good. The F was certainly sweeter, and the AB more refined, and balanced better with a higher acidity. With food (spicy sausages and ribs, grilled), the gap widened; the F really fell flat, coming across as unidimensional (sweet red fruit), whereas the AB's acidity made it much more enjoyable. In the end, 4 of the 5 of us preferred the AB, although 3 of the 5 assumed the F was the more expensive wine. I suppose in the end, it was satisfying that even the cheaper F at around $15 was perceived to be a good quality, easily drinkable wine. The AB, at around $30 was actually quite good, and a good value.
January 12, 2019 - This wine is in a very happy place right now. Meaty, hefty, great flavors.
December 26, 2017 - The poor showing on this wine was likely due in part to the fact that it followed a really good wine. What we got was a very disjunct taste that was dominated by earthiness - not a lot of fruit at all.
I'll be honest, it is the first Tensley wine I have ever not enjoyed.
November 4, 2017 - Same as prior tastings, and valued field blend with flexible profile to fit most grilled meats.
November 4, 2017 - Strong value for this bottling. Well built field blend with character.
September 24, 2017 - Really tasty Rhine blend for the coin.
August 11, 2017 - On day 1: Red fruit on the nose, bright cherry, smooth and easy drinking. Many characteristics typical of Tensley wines, though not nearly as structured (but a fraction of the price).
On day 3: A lot of the brightness was gone. Still drinkable, but nothing remarkable.