October 31, 2023 - Drank over 3 hours at local steak house - needs a long decant.
October 13, 2023 - Very delicious, buy 2021 and hold for 4-5 years
September 27, 2023 - Popped my second bottle for out-of-town guests that were visiting and unfortunately, this wine was flawed. The aromas were very different from the first bottle we drank a few months prior; it left a harsh bitter and unpleasant note on the palate. I attempted to aerate the wine both by using an aerator, as well as leaving it in our decanter for 2 hours, both of which did not have much effect on the wine.
August 23, 2023 - This is a great wine - rich and powerful. Purple and black fruit balanced by pepper and good acidity. Layered, long, and complex. Delicious.
July 12, 2023 - Natural wine.
June 10, 2023 - Needs a 9 hour decant to show its true colors. Wonderful bursts of terroir on the nose and keeps on delivering in the mouth, through to the complex, long finish. Great with duck or steak.
April 17, 2023 - Slow ox'd over 3 hrs and had over 2 days. Day 2 really started to open up and show its black and blue fruits. This is such a well put together wine. Nose was a little muted until the very end of the bottle but then it got really showy. Still a very young but plush, drinkable wine. I actually thought the 2020 was drinking better at this point, believe it or not. Such well integrated tannins, almost weightless mouthfeel, and such purity of fruit. Quickly becoming one of my very favorite producers and will continue to add to the cellar. I dont know how much better this will get with more age but I certainly look forward to finding out (if I can keep myself from drinking them all now).
January 26, 2023 - Great vintage in general and this wine certainly shows the vintage pedigree. Full bodied wine yet within it seems integrated and well knit at such a young age. There's broad rich deep dark fruit that shows the power of the vintage and its primary nature but the finish is pulled together with plush acidity that gives a long seamless mouthfeel. There's a touch of toast on the backend from the barrel influence, but it's not a distraction. This is the wine I kept going back to. We all expressed surprise at the 15.2% number as the wine just felt balanced and fairly hedonistic in its enjoyment right now.
January 20, 2023 - Even with a 2.5 hour decant this wine's nose is still very shy - Jen agreed, and she is a super-smeller/taster for sure - doesn't give you much, even with a swirl. Everything changes once you take a sip - this is clearly a big boy, blast of blue and black fruits, weighty and silky, nice rocky component and some white pepper, but it's really the texture and grip that impresses most. It's the quintessential wine for those who love cabs that are big in every way, but also interesting - the tannins have started to take on the fruit profile, but are still big and chunky, giving the wine a sort of 'crunch'. Alcohol is pretty high, at 15.2%, but it does hide it well - no hint of heat on the nose, finish has a bit of it, but you'd expect that from a wine this brooding and bold. I'd love to experience what this wine would be like in about 5 more years, see how it ages. Decant it for as long as you can.
December 24, 2022 - lucky to have this and share
still early and primary but oh so good
christmas eve youths wanted to buy for their significant others
they got quiet when I told them the price
beats screaming eagle by a mile but no perspective in this crowd [or too early in their careers and wine drinking life to think about]