December 24, 2023 - Wow nose is so funky, all sorts of poop on the nose, even after a healthy decant. Like falling face first into a muddy horse yard. Palate seems to have lost its fruit, no real acidity, lots of tannins, no balance. Tastes past its prime; I don’t think it’s flawed, just over the hill.
November 23, 2022 - This baby has been wedged in my wine cellar for years. I found it while digging for another wine. I thought I'd have an early Thanksgiving day celebration so I popped the cork and decanted it. My first observation was that the wine was opaque. I poured and then I sniffed noting that there were the usual Rhone aroma's but they were not very strong. I smelled tobacco, old leather, and Nutmeg. The wine itself was a bit chalky and somewhat earthy. Perhaps a bit past its prime and nothing spectacular, at least for me.
May 1, 2021 - Decanted 4 hours. Still quite dark purple, no signs of browning.
Nose has tart red fruit, pine forest, smoke, raw meat, along with some tar.
In the mouth is it quite elegant yet powerful, smooth like a velvet glove. Layers of dark cherry, plum, and pomegranate meld with earth, garden herbs, black olive, and lots of white pepper spice. Delicious. Great effort.
Mature, but should hold through 2025 or longer.
November 20, 2018 - Monthly Tuesday group "The Dead Sparrow" #033: Northern Rhône red (By JWS): Coffee, tea and soy in the bouquet. On the palate chocolate, dark berries, good acidity and concentration. Celery and soy and unfortunately the wine deteriorates quite quickly in the glass. This must be a faulty bottle. No score.
August 28, 2018 - The last bottle from my case purchased at auction in 2015. This has been consistently good and a pleasure to enjoy over the past three years. Or course, these bottles had plenty of life in them, but there is no need to wait: drinking perfectly now. Tonight with pasta and garden salad.
July 29, 2018 - Gorgeous, consistent with my previous notes.
March 28, 2018 - Gorgeous. Dark purple in the glass. Nice fruity nose. The palate is complex and gives a lot of fruit. Powerfull, a bit sturdy and tight, with a very long and a bit dry and tannic finish. A masculine wine, drinking superbly now. More gentle over the coming years.
February 15, 2018 - Full bodied with medium acid. The nose is full of olive and dark chocolate covered black currants. Dark, stewed fruit and earthy, olive compote continues on the palate. Very earthy and meaty. One of the most tannic syrahs I've had. Really nice wine that's bold enough to hold for a few more years, but for my taste, I wish I had opened it a couple of years ago when it was a little livelier.
February 12, 2018 - Opened to breathe for 2h. Dark fruit, baking spices on the nose, some hints of tobacco. Very dry black fruit on the palate, oak, earth, black pepper, nicely balanced acid on the finish with soft tannins. Singing now, some headroom for aging if you have the patience.
February 3, 2018 - Another Saturday at Chevalier...Mostly Blind (Chicago, IL): Tasted blind. Almost New World richness with more classic, Old World structure. Modern stylings, some roasted meat. Powerful black fruit, certainly good, just slightly one dimensional.