December 26, 2019 - Musty upon opening. Faded w a decant, came around for a while, deep rich coco puff flavors, earth, then seemed to fall off.
July 28, 2018 - Decanted 4 hours before drinking at Hollywood Bowl, smooth with decent nose. Was past its prime as some flavors were subdued but still enjoyed by all.
July 19, 2014 - Nice concentrated fruits and good balance. Nothing wrong with it but nothing special either. Probably won't improve much.
May 12, 2013 - Opened and decanted for an hour. Nose was quite full with spice and oak. Interesting color dark but a bit on the the golden side. Rich taste with notes of citrus and spice. Processes strong oak influence. Definitely opened at exactly the right time
February 26, 2011 - I read some of the other tasting notes and I disagree. I drink a lot of Sterling Reserve wines, and I think the 01 blows the 02 away. I was a big fan of the 00 Reserve C/S, but I think the 01 is drinking better at this point in time. The 01 still had some backbone and structure with some solid fruit. I have one or two more bottles of this wine and I will drink in the near future.
February 24, 2011 - ditto my last comment
February 17, 2011 - Perfectly pleasant, not the least bit interesting.
February 2, 2011 - Just not very good. This, flat and boring. Lot's of wines are bad because they are over-manipulated - too much oak, too much ripeness. This wine is poor because there just isn't much there. Even at the price I paid (less than half price through a "friends and family" sale at Diageo), not a good wine at the price.
December 24, 2010 - Decanted due to lots of sediment. Paired with a spectacular medium rare prime rib from our local butcher. The wine was very pleasant, but have to say that it just didn't have that wow factor I was hoping for. Dark fruit aromas and flavors along with nicely resolved tannins. But nothing sang. Have had this wine in other vintages and it was a standout. The 2001 was just "nice". Would not purchase this vintage again.
February 27, 2010 - Sweet cassis with red currents. Medium bodied with fresh mushrooms interwoven into the oak. Fruit will probably start to fade in a year so drink soon.