April 22, 2019 - Cork failure, broke apart. Oak cork nose. Deep dense purple. Burst oak cork. Past prime, no fruit.
My rating 2/10. Shared with Mike Condon and Amy DeJong.
February 4, 2017 - Deep garnet and brick red. Layered nose with tomato leaves, red cherry tomatoes, red cherries and damp leaves. Lots of red tones and greenery and a little medicinal. Moderate tannins (5/10) and medium bodied. Medium finish too. Drink now.
December 14, 2015 - Served to me blind. I guessed Cabernet or Cab dominant blend, California, and 20-30 years out in that order. Bingo. Garnet color, sweet red fruit with mint and cinnamon on the nose, and cherry and leather on the palate. The second glass was better than the first which means it rewarded an approximately one-hour decant. Great showing.
January 24, 2013 - light to medium red in color. mineral, herbs, black fruit, tobacco on the nose. black currant, cherry, nuts, tar, cedar on the palate. low acid, medium tannins on the finish.
September 8, 2012 - Bill's Summer Garden Offline (Vancouver, BC): Mature and developed aromas of red fruits and leather with fully resolved tannins and a soft and smooth mouthfeel. There’s ample acidity and while there was a good dose of oak here, it was well integrated and not dominating. This was really nice to sip on while listening to Jeff Beck. Excellent.
July 25, 2012 - Very good. Fully resolved, with a lovely combo of licorice-n'-strawberry jam. Silky smooth with good persistence, an elegant mouthfeel, it's nicely aromatic with a pleasant savory base note, good acidity (key for older Cali cabs), and wholly integrated oak. Not particularly complex and lacking the "seriousness" of Cali's finest, it nevertheless reminded me of a Montelena Estate cab. After a few hours of air, the oak sticks out a bit more with anise-coconut, but this was surprisingly alive and well.
February 11, 2012 - Nice nose....Very mellow with a long finish. Despite being properly stored, the cork fell apart when opening the bottle.
February 11, 2012 - Nice nose of mature cassis with a bit of leather and band-aid. I normally hate band-aid but this is tolerable. Nice smooth entry with rich cherry, cassis, tobacco, and saddleback. Yeehaaa! The finish is a little spicy, but nice and long. This is still youthful and tastes pretty nice. Well worth the $25 I paid for it. Giddy up!
April 26, 2010 - Dark color, medium body. When opened nose had delicious fruit and nice hints of spice. Initial taste was a little disappointing, with little fruit, residual tannins and hints of spice. After one hour it began to open although the nose receded. On the palate old style Bordeaux like flavors with subtle fruit and warm spices, hint of cedar and tobacco, very well balanced and soft tannins but structure nonetheless. remained true to taste the next day with gas in the bottle. Ready now. Do not decant.
April 4, 2010 - Deep garnet. Nose just at the border of overripe. Nose was a 50/50 mix of Bordeaux with age and Cal Cab with some age. Plums, tobacco and anise. Still can age a bit more.