April 15, 2024 - The darkness of Mysterons continues, with lots of black cherries, cassis and black raspberries providing a beam of acidity in addition to the tannic backbone which has been prominent throughout. Classic LPV notes of dark soil and rocky minerality along with a whiff of dark florals add further interest. Just went back to look at my notes for the ‘19, and they’re remarkably similar, with the additional 3 years (consumed 2 years later, 1 year earlier vintage) providing just a bit more openness. Like the Mysterons and the Mag 7, I’d be more a holder than a drinker of this at this point, but if you go the other way, aerate the dickens out of it. 97+
June 1, 2023 - 2018 LPV Showdown - Carter La Verdad vs. Vice Versa
Opened these on Thursday to celebrate my promotion to partner at my company. Overall, I preferred the Vice Versa a bit more. Carter was a touch hotter, and just a bit more finesse in the VV bottling. Of course, we are splitting hairs as both bottles were excellent, and LPV continues to be one of my favorite single vineyard expressions.
October 27, 2022 - This sample was actually a bit subdued (comparatively to other vintages of VV LPVs at least), but certainly with enough potency and drive that there is little question of its origin and of the stylistic preference from the producer and winemaker. It's black and modern, carrying a plush center surrounded by signature LPV minerality - though perhaps less so in the rocks and gravel department than this site's typicity tends to usually show. Notable glide, with a softer punch of flavor in the mid-palate push. Air helps to bring out a bit more intensity. Hold for a few more years, as this seems to have some sleepy eyes going on at the moment.
October 2, 2022 - This is great wine! Creamy polished and rich but not a blockbuster, a plush generous elegant wine. There is a lift on the gorgeous palate - perfume and cassis, hint of menthol, with some cake spice and white pepper. Long finish with some complexity. Fine and ripe tannin. Leave for another 5 years, then drink over the following 20+.
September 8, 2022 - Guy's Night: Open Your Last Bottle (Jason P's, St. Paul, MN): Bonus pour, and I will echo galewskj's comments. Bracing, with bold black fruits that yet are less descript, glycerin, oak, somewhat angular now with a fair bit of volatility. This is obviously young and not really ready. Lets see this in another 4 to 5 year and then see what we have. Score reserved.
September 8, 2022 - Open your last bottle (Jason and Mariellen's house): This was a bonus half pour while waiting for people to show up. Full-on in your face modern napa cab with a lot of fruit, spice and earth. This had been open for a few hours and the alcohol seemed to be peaking out. This is a powerful wine and I can appreciate the quality, but it isn't my preferred style.
September 8, 2022 - Guys Night Out - Open your last bottle of something you had multiple bottles of at one time!: Decanted 2 hours in the cellar initially, then poured a couple glasses, then back in the cellar for another 3 hours, poured another couple glasses, then back in the cellar overnight (about another 12 hours). I opened this for my sister-in-law who loves fruit forward wines and we drank some of this as we prepared for tonight's wine dinner!
At this young age, this is all about the fruit! Very enjoyable at cellar temperature, but alcohol shows up when it warms to room temp, which is a negative for me. At cellar temp, the nose is slightly muted, but still shows plenty of dark fruit and some lavender notes. Palate shows gobs of delicious dark fruit, some red fruit, and cocoa notes. The purity of fruit is delicious. Unfortunately, as it warms up, the alcohol starts to rear its ugly head. The good news is that cooling the wine back in the cellar gets rid of the alcohol (but it keeps coming back as the wine warms up to room temp). The tannins are there, but fine grained and more silky that harsh or drying. I have mixed emotions about opening this wine so wine. I have 2 more bottles, which I will not touch for years (at least 5...I hope!). I am drinking the wine as I write this note...it is at cellar temp now and alcohol is present, but not abrasive, yet! The fruit has melded together, and some secondary notes of bramble are present. I hope the alcohol resolves, the fruit remains and the secondary notes develop down the road....I think they will, but time will tell for sure. If opening now, I recommend drinking at cellar temp and keeping the wine cooled down, at least that is where I found it most enjoyable. Based on my limited experience with this wine, and my best guess from this tasting, I would say this wine should drink well at around 7 -10 years old. I am giving it a 95 based on the purity of fruit and drinking it close to cellar temp. However, I do see tons of upside potential!
Addendum....the alcohol on the wine (after over 12 hours decanted at cellar temp) actually started to calm down as it warmed, giving me even greater hope for this wine down the road!
July 3, 2022 - Simply outstanding. I couldn’t wait another 2 years but I wasn’t disappointed.
April 4, 2022 - This is really, really good. The comparison between Napa Cab and Burgundy is over done, but this is a wine that points in that direction.
November 24, 2021 - That’s a bomb but young Cal Cab …