December 6, 2020 - It has been 8 years since I had this one. Acquired a bottle to hold. After having a couple of these, I was wondering how they fared up to the Beringer Private Reserve that he was a part of for a billion years. This wine tonight just seemed to be a bit off. Not sure what it was, as it really did improve quite a bit after an hour, but did not have the same expressive notes that I recalled from 2012. The blackberry was sorta kinda there. The black pepper was there. But there was something on the backbone of this (not an aged quality) that was enough to make you contemplate opening up something else.
January 7, 2019 - Raisin toast, black cherry, black currant, and a Davidoff Double R cigar. Deep dense purple ink color. Probably peaking now but great for a few more years. Still tart, balanced and impressive. Ed does it again.
December 19, 2018 - Black fruits, earth, long finish.
October 25, 2018 - Clear slightly pale garnet, with slight rim browning. Cedar,leather, toasted oak. Low acids, medium tannins. Dried cranberry. Long, balanced finish.
July 22, 2018 - PNP (then consumed over 3 days). Nice complexity- vanilla, sandalwood and back fruit on the nose. Carries to the palate where tart cherry comes forward. Fine grain, almost dusty, tannins lead a pleasant, long finish.
August 10, 2017 - 5+13.5+8+8.5+7=92. Deep, vibrant garnet with a pleasant nose right out of the bottle. Fruit was a bit muted with a medium to long oak finish. Certainly not as bold as a Napa Cab but a nice approachable offering from Ed. I almost wish I'd held it for longer because I think it would have been fine.
January 29, 2017 - Very smooth, but fruit is fading fast and the oak is showing through more. On the second night, the oak was drowning out the other flavors. Score based on first night, when this was still quite tasty.
September 23, 2016 - black fruit, cherries, cedar, tobacco, smokey oak. A-/A
March 6, 2016 - Woody, oaky nose. Very nice blueberry and cassis flavors on introduction. Bitter cocoa at mid-palate. A very big robust wine with very serious unresolved tannin. I like the suggestions of fruit that I get, and, while I generally like this wine. I think most would find the tannin is just a tad over the top. Further aging may resolve this. I’m really not sure.
December 29, 2015 - Delicious wine, smooth from start to finish.