September 1, 2023 - ABV: 13.0%. Syrah & Cabernet Sauvignon. Upon opening, the nose is showing a lot of earthy notes of hay and barnyard (possibly brett?), but as it blows off over the next hour, a gorgeous bouquet of roasted Herbes de Provence appears in the foreground with hints of red and black fruits in the background. There's ample acidity on the mid-palate, keeping everything intact, and the tannin level could use some more years in the cellar. This wine is still very tight so I'm hoping that it'll open up and get better tomorrow.
9/2/2023 - Raised the score by three points (from 90 to 93). The earthy and herby notes have blown off on the nose, revealing dark red fruits and some cassis from the Cab. Lots of raspberry and cherry tones on the mid-palate, supported by good acidity that pushes the profiles to the finish. There's a lot of potential in this wine and I think it can easily cellar for another 5-10 years. If you're planning to open your bottle, decant it for at least an hour.
June 3, 2016 - This bottle is really good... the best I've had. It starts out a bit awkward but then gets quite good after just 15 minutes in the glass. The aromas show some wood spice, pepper, lovely spiced bramble berries. Absolutely lovely and luscious notes. Palate texture is quite soft, but tannins do immediately attack on the palate and build as its held in the mouth. Flavors are dark fruited and mellow, not too strong or deep. Finish has lovely acid, then 2 seconds later tons of tannins. These subside after 10 seconds to reveal mid toned dark red fruit and lots of herbal components that are lovely. Honestly this wine could continue to go on another 5+ years, based on this showing. If I knew this would have wound up here I wouldn't have stopped buying the new vintages years ago, when those early bottles weren't all that impressive.
February 8, 2016 - Retains plenty of density and power. On the nose, black currant, black cherry, damson plum, hints of fennel and a iron edge with suggestions of white pepper. Nice mouthfeel with velvety tannins and good balance. Rich flavors of dark berries, black plum, licorice, roasted clove, bay leaf, herbs de Provence, touches of black olive and ending on nice mouth-watering acidity and a lengthy finish. Would be a lovely wine with a meal.
October 26, 2015 - A much better bottle than the last two opened within the last couple months. More color, more body, more flavor, with good balance between the cab and syrah. So happy at last, but disturbing bottle variation.
September 22, 2015 - Needed an hour to fully wake up, but the cabernet component was out in front with bright cherry fruit along with some actual tannins--soft, but they were there unlike last month's dullard bottle.
September 15, 2015 - Soft and devoid of tannins. Maturing but not old flavors, pleasantly drinkable but not especially interesting with little typicity from it's two components, cabernet sauv and syrah. In fact, could be any old nero d'avola.
September 4, 2014 - flabby, unremarkable
April 20, 2014 - Very cherry tasting. Could be a good sipping wine. Probably not big enough for red meat.
December 8, 2013 - when opening was greeted with nice fragrance; upon pouring, it was smooth with nice finish. This continued on through the night. a great wine was the hit of the party.
October 20, 2013 - This one is quite a bit better than the bottle I had last year, and similar to the bottle 2 years ago. Aromas are very seamless and complete, offering cherry compote, graphite, and a sexy, soft, subdued elegance to it while still offering some nice juice. Palate is soft and medium bodied, offering smooth fruit, nice tannins, and a grittiness that deepens as it's held. Finish is gritty and tannic still, with nice dark cherry flavors and a bit more graphite. This is definitely killing it on the nose today, but I suspect it could continue to unfold a little more. I'll try to hold my last bottle for 2 more years. Again, what a different experience from my previous bottle. Amazing how these have changed, and not in a linear direction.