August 4, 2019 - Sunday lunch at mine (My place, Kent Street): from half bottle. Served with homemade orange marmalade ice cream (reaches round and gives self pat on the back) which suited it superbly as it has a lovely marmalade quality itself. Fresh acid keeps things honest. Yum.
December 28, 2018 - Perfectly stored at 55° since inception. Beautiful cork, dark golden hue. Crisp and delicious paired well with cheesy apple pie. Got a few more that will stay percolating for a while!
December 25, 2018 - Christmas Day 2018 (My place, Kent Street): Half Bottle. From Coravin. Apricot jam, orange marmalade, a little funkiness and very slight herbaceous notes. In the mouth it's juicy, rich ,apricot and orange marmalade, medium plus length finishes with slightly drying oaky notes. Simple but lovely.
September 15, 2018 - No formal note taken. Sweet and tasty but not overly complex, even with 13 years of age on it.
December 6, 2017 - Wine was properly stored from purchase upon release until consumed.
Initial bouquet jumps out of the glass. Apricot, honey, nectarine, lovely golden fruit aromas. Beautiful balance of sweet and acid. Excellent match to apple tart.
Will probably stay lovely for a long time, but it is perfectly ready to drink.
November 8, 2014 - from nose over taste to finish: apricot's wonderland. Extremely jammy.
June 10, 2011 - JohnR's "wake": Drank with Phredd and the gang for "JohnR's Wake". Definitely more sugary than honeyed and not very deep- mostly pineapple and not very complex. Tasted on the second day, the wine didn't offer any more than day 1. Budget Sauternes yes but not sure it's value Sauternes if you get my drift. Overall rating- B-
June 10, 2011 - NC Cindy Tasting. JohnR's Wake. (WineKnurd's House): NC Cindy Tasting. "JohnR's Wake". Tasted as the first of three Sauternes on the night, this is pretty light in color for a Sauternes, but was also the only one of the flight to come from a 750ml bottle, and it is still quite young. On the pop-and-pour, the nose was shockingly funky, with primarily moldy apricot for a not-so-appealing opening. After time, the moldy-funky characteristics did drop away, and the wine became lighter with a bit more pineapple. On the palate, this was quite light and sweet, with plenty of pineapple and apricot, but not a lot of botrytis depth of flavor. JohnR described it as cloying, and while I don't completely agree, I do think this tended toward the simple and sweet side of Sauternes. I give it an 89, which in dessert wine is not a ringing endorsement. The really good bit of news, though, is the price. At $25 for a full bottle, this is a nice budget Sauternes, if somewhat lacking in overall quality.
May 14, 2011 - We had this at Ommer and Val's annual party / BBQ in Maplewood. There are a number of sauternes' fans there, and we bring a bottle of sauternes every year. This wine was delicious albeit a little on the young side. Notes of apricot, honey, pineapple and fruit. Perhaps not the most complicated sauternes in the world, it was delicious and appropriate for this casual, saturday afternoon party and a bit hit with attendees. (especially May, who wanted to know where to get it). Also very good with a number of the desserts, including the fruit tart and apricot something. Very good QPR at $25 for a 750 ml bottle. Probably a point higher if I had aged it another 1-2 years and served it in a more serious setting, but oh well.
December 5, 2010 - Just taking inventory, but I remember enjoying this. Verged on cloying, but had just enough acidity to make me go back for more.