Not quite sure what to make of this. Quite austere and stemmy. Not really giving even after an hour of air. Starting to lose energy as well. Similiar to other notes this hasn’t aged as well as one would expect
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I decided to open this after seeing dbkitc's worrisome note yesterday, and I'm happy to report an entirety different and better experience. On initial opening and for about the first hour, the aromas were red-fruited and sweet -- raspberry and strawberry -- but a little simple. After some air, however, the nose developed a much more intriguing profile, with chalky earth underpinned by blackberry. The palate is fleshy and round with some oak gloss to the texture. It's low in acidity by Rhys standards, and the tannins are fully resolved. A lengthy finish carries this through nicely. This seems to be in its prime drinking window now and was a pleasure.
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Boy, this wine is a huge disappointment. I loved bottles tasted years ago on release - but I think I blew it - based on this bottle it has not aged well at all. This wine is soapy, green mean and devoid of anything pleasant. I don’t see any flaws. It’s just totally fallen apart. What happened ? No idea but avoid. (72 - onlly because there are no obvious flaws. 50 from a pleasure standpoint )
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Wow. This is still going strong. Opened well over a few hours. Better still on night two. It's rich and flavorful - lots of spice, earth and mineral. I have had Rhys syrah and Rhys chardonnay, but this is my first pinot experience. I have to say, I get it now! Drink up, if you like, but no rush on this one.
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Another delicious bottle still drinking beautifully with similar tasting note to previous bottles! Delicious black berry, minerals, and forest floor notes on the open nose and savory palate with refreshing acidity on the long finish.
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Tasted over 2 hrs -saturated med dark red -exuberant sweet stem spice violets rhubarb faint maturity -med/med- acidity, med/med- weight a bit diffuse with some faded though still quite sweet red fruit and notes of eucalyptus licorice and tar, med- tannins and a bit of sweet oak on the long finish -nice marriage of ripe yet mature new world pinot fruit and stems and well-integrated oak, overall works pretty well but the palate is not nearly as pretty balanced or complex as the aromatics; similar to a bottle 4 years ago but with less fruit
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Dark ruby color, with a hint of magenta at the rim still. Effusive nose of sweet fruit notes: black raspberry, cherry, with some rhubarb emerging. This was very attractive, if not particularly complex or showing interesting savory elements. The palate is medium-full bodied, fresh but a little on the low side for acidity, and has some nice bottle sweetness at this stage. The finish is not especially long. I found this very nice but not great, not as complex and delineated as a recent '07 Alpine PN.
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Purchased on release, and according to my records, the first bottle I've tried from this vintage. In all honesty, this was a bit of a disappointment, particularly at this price point. I own a lot of Rhys (almost 400 bottles in inventory...thanks CT), dating back to 2004, and on the plus side, they really seemed to hit their stride beginning around 2012. But the early years are a bit hit-and-miss in terms of ageability. This showed rich boysenberry, black cherry and brown sugar flavors, but was a bit fat and unbalanced, and the high stem inclusion is still not quite integrated. Fell apart by day 2, which leaves me a bit pessimistic about its future. My wife, who usually likes this style of pinot, was also not impressed.
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This is super tasty tonight. It’s pretty dark and saturated in color, with dark fruit but with light body. It has dark earth and strong earth mineral traits. It’s quite crunchy, if I can borrow the term… I really liked it!
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Very spicy nose, then develops some coffee notes (which I'm not wild about, though it's never over the top or intrusive). This is full on the palate, expansive, deep dark fruit, and is very well balanced. While it's not a "big" wine, it is fairly richly textured. I prefer a more elegant style (think Skyline or Swan Terrace), but this is still a very nice pinot! Seems to have a number of years ahead of it, so I don't think there's any rush to drink up. Riedel Burgundy stems.
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-- cork pulled one hour before initial taste; decanted immediately before first taste -- -- tasted non-blind over a couple hours --
NOSE: very expressive; warm red fruits; hint of cola; rhubarb; crushed raspberry; smells pleasantly moderately aged.
BODY: dark ruby color with slight bricking; color is of medium depth; medium-light to light bodied.
TASTE: good acidity; hint of leather/funk; seems to be thinning-out a bit; non-descript baked red fruits --- seems a bit past peak, surprisingly; lightly tannic; 13.3% alc. noticeable a little; the Nose makes promises the Palate can't keep; I see this as already on its downslope. Drink Now.
50, 5, 12, 14, 7 = 88
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Ripe red fruits - very similar to 2005 Gevrey Chambertin with loads of power yet to unfurl with CA density. Has some earthiness on the nose to add complexity. Still has some tannin so I think this will round out but tasty now.
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Dark ruby red, little aroma upon opening but after an hour in decanter dark berry notes started to appear (2-3 hours airtime probably better), dense dark berry and plum fruit, some spice and mineral, smooth tannins, perfect balance, med-long finish. The first of these that we had tried. This was a terrific bottle and indicates that patience was needed. Will try another bottle in a couple of years.
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This was fantastic. Accessible, but still has miles to go. Dark fruits, baking spices and underbrush. Grippy, bright and long. Very nice intensity, yet not too heavy. Good future here.
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Rhys Alpine Virtual Tasting (Planet Earth): In vertical. I found the 2009 and 2010 to be very similar, both rich and ripe with lots of density, just finishing a tad warm.
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Decanted for about two hours and consumed over the following two. Quite dark in the glass with a garnet purple core and slight bricking at the rim. The aromas are dark and exuberant with notes of black cherry, wild berries, forest floor, slate, and mace. The palate is dense, ripe, and still well structured with interesting spice complexity on the back end. The flavors are rich, the tannins are stern yet sweet, and the acids are edgy. I am surprised with how ripe, structured, and youthful this is showing and I think another ten years is warranted before revisiting. Not the greatest Rhys I have had but also one of the more embryonic.
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Lovely nose of underbrush, cranberry and white pepper. Beautifully balanced palate with red fruit, minerals and crunchy acidity. Just getting into its drinking window with plenty of time left.
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This has finally hit its drinking window! Beautiful aromatics, doesn't even need decanting. Red cherry, some black fruits, spice, a hint of herbal. Layers of flavors with cherry, black fruits, spice, black tea, light herbs. Beautiful balance with a long silky smooth finish. Fine sediment at the bottom of the bottle. It seems to have enough to still go a long time, but its finally hit a great drinking window and I would open now and enjoy.
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All of the technical pieces are in place. Great nose, good mouth, excellent length with good fruit throughout. Good overall picture with brambly, slightly tannic fruit that gives structure.
(Great on opening. Doesn’t need much air; seems to degrade a bit with an hour of air.)
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Burgundy Focused Evening at Dave's: [Tasted Double Blind] This was essentially popped and poured just a touch over cellar temperature and was just singing from the get go. Just a spectacular nose right out of the gates. Just so spicy and stemmy. The nose is of saline, ginger, ramen broth, incense, chinese five spice, dark cherry, bay leaf, and pomegranate. Flat out amazing! The palate is still quite structured with medium tannin and medium acid. The finish replays the very spicy nose and lingers nicely. Clearly remarkable and classic wine in my view. The group quickly latched onto Rhys as the producer and Alpine as the vineyard. Vintages ranged from 2007-2009.
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Luis "Bring a good bottle" - Pinot and Bordeaux (Kenwood): The palate is orange marmalade, cherry and cola. The nose and palate are somewhat nuanced. To me, the style is California, I can appreciate it, but the palate is not interesting enough to warrant the current prices or praise given by others.
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Mixed WTDS at The Kenwood (The Kenwood, Mpls, MN): Medium red color. PNP, drank a small glass over 30 minutes. This was good, orange peeel, citrus and deep berry on the nose. The palate is rather astringent and you get that sense on the nose too, black cherry, dark berries, spice and a touch of cola accented by orange zest.
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Craziness. I put this in the freezer. Forgot it, froze solid, cork almost out. Let it defrost on the counter for two days. Drinking tonight ... lovely.
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With apple/bourbon pork tenderloin, Orzo with carrot/onion/celery. Decanted 30 minutes before dinner - very find sediment showing. Beautiful medium ruby. Nose of blackberry, black raspberry, bright/sour cherry, almost perfumed, lovely. As it opened up, hint of earth snuck up. Dry, smooth, integrated tannin, great length, nice acid balance, a rich but subtle wine. Excellent.
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Still congested and can't smell much. Stood up for a week and then decanted off of fine sediment. Now almost 5h later. Nice balance of ripe blackberry and black cherry fruits, minerals, herbs, bark and a hint of sous bois. Some slight heat on the finish is the only nitpick. Much richer fruit earlier in the night and has gotten leaner as the night has progressed. Nicely showing some secondary flavors. This seems to be evolving nicely and open the next bottle in 3-5 years.
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Dinner at Jade Court (Chicago, IL): I don't think this has aged particularly well. There seems to be a bit of an astringency on the nose here, with something that seems a little stemmy. The initial attack on the palate is fairly nice, with some black fruit, but what follows is that the overall fruit sensation here seems to have dried out, leaving a bit of a tannic husk. Drink up.
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Striking aromas of lavender/rose petal, dark cherry, herb. Feminine yet mid-weight on the palate with dark cherry, nutmeg, and a herbal note. Perhaps a bit thin mid-palate but is framed nicely by silky tannin and nice acidity. Rhys provided tonite!
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Weird bottle. Night one very muted, boring, is there tca even? Seems ripe though but almost over the hill. Night two a totally different wine, picks up bright red fruits, tastes fairly young, high acidity. Still not great, but good enough. Maybe something is off...
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PnP. Medium dark red. Complex nose of spice, dark fruits and a hint of a floral (lavender?) component. On the palate this is velvety lovely intensity and a touch of whole cluster influence. Quite distinct from Sonoma and Russian River; lovely wine and drinking pretty well at age 9. This could evolve further I think.
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Another stunner for Rhys. A heavily perfumed nose of lavender and cinnamon/baking spices. Very weighty in the mouth for a Pinot. Lots of earthiness. A solid tannic finish that goes on forever. I'm still thinking about it a few days later. This should continue to evolve for a few more years.
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A beautiful Pinot that is really coming into it's own. Full, lifted nose of black cherry with pine needles and smoke. Palate is concentrated with silky fruit and well-integrated structure. In a terrific spot.
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Typically my favorite bottling from Rhys, but this was more reticent and austere than normal with a slightly smoky finish (along with good red fruit). Good, but not great.
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I totally get everything positive our community says about this wine. But to my palate a low acid Pinot can't be excellent. Good wine though, smooth berry smoky goodness :)
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Tuesday Night Double Blind $40+ (Bin 75): Darker cloudy maroon core with dull maroon rim; sweet aged, candied dense dark red fruit, lots of oak spice, good savoriness, cooked strawberry; larger scaled on the palate, higher alcohol, sweet fruit but good acid, raspberry, blueberry, cooked cherry; called '09 Morlet Sonoma Coast Pinot.
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Stem inclusion still sticks out a bit, but there’s plenty of fruit to pull it all together. Black cherry fruit with spice and herbal lift. Palate is fine, fine tannin and strong finish. Still needs a few years.
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Slow-ox 30 minutes, tasted over 1 hrs -dark red core, mild bricking on edge -almost flamboyant expressive gorgeous spicy stem red fruit mineral -med acidity, med/med- weight, fading red fruit profile with abundant rhubarb-y beetroot CA pinot, well-integrated med- tannins -stunning aromatics
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PnP, explosive nose, cherry, strawberry, a little barnyard, red roots, top soil, raspberry, blackberry, plum, rose petals, incredible mouthfeel, silky with a bright acidity, fine gritty tannins, and a great balance.
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Great sappy fruit with a layer of umami, perfect framing acids with tremendous balance. More tangy fruit with blood orange and citrus zest. Very nice wine.
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Tasted over two days. Among the standouts of a New and Old World Pinot Noir tasting. Ripe to be sure, but delivering much nuance and depth. The wine achieved featured structure and balance. Delicious!
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I've been on Rhys list from the beginning (06 vintage). I figured I needed to start drinking more- especially when you got over 100, it's time.
Sure, this can last a decade or more, but it's damn good now. Complex and flavorful without being heavy. The bright fruit is on balance with the whole cluster flavors. Tannins are not heavy. Beautiful and unique.
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After an hour or so, excellent. Shows massive whole cluster character, but softened nicely with time. Once it shook off the aromatic cobwebs (weird chemical/medicinal notes) from many years in the cellar, it was fruit and spice and earth. Lovely.
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My final bottle, as I work through the rest of my 2009s. This drank nicely. While I didn't take formal notes given the setting we were in, I recall some light stem inclusion aromatics and also a terrific fruit expression that was bright and expansive. A bit of cola, too. What I enjoyed about the wine was that it was approachable, still lively. My advice if you own these, as I know many around here do in CT, is to open one now and enjoy it. Not only do you get a baseline for the vintage and the wine, but you can work against the headwind of people that think they have to age these wines for years in order to discover some buried truth. It's wine, it's made to bring joy and IMO the 2009 vintage for Rhys does that well, now.
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Seven hour decant. A touch of good funk on the nose. Alcohol up front but fades. Initial impression is where is this sweetness coming from? Eventually, it takes its place though. Rhubarb, cherry, strawberry, spice, no sulfur, no wood, clean, pure. Tannins fully resolved. This is drinking very nicely now, although, if you continue to cellar, it should mellow even more. It does have further evolution in front of it. Drinking window 2017-2025 and may keep beyond.
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Dark berries, menthol, spices, and a hint of cedar on the nose. Medium, but drying tannins with great structure, relatively dark fruit, and pomegranate on the palate. Long finish.
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Scrumptious. Rich fruit of dark berries and strawberries with an earthly undertone. Mature tannins, nice acidity, with the fruit still vibrant. mid-weight. Good drinking window.
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this was outright delicious. constantly meanders between ripe berries and tart strawberry rhubard pie. healthy dose of earthy elements. The acidity is in balance. This is in its drinking window for sure.
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Someone wrote "rhubarb" in an earlier note - well spotted! Poised between youth and maturity, with some slightly syrupy, strawberry fruit, good acidity, mature tannins, and a slightly green, but not unpleasant edge, that comes across as rhubarb. Seems like it has a lot of interesting components, but at an awkward stage right now. Good length. I think this needs another five years for the components to integrate. And as a matter of personal taste, I'm not sure i like the character of the slightly sickly sweet strawberry fruit.
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This is coming along nicely! Dark cherry, raspberry, rhubarb fruits, silky smooth with a good balance of sweetness to dryness, yet still structured with some firm geology. Nose is more open since my last bottle...exotic Vosne spice like, dusty cherry wood, kirsch liqueur, coffee, cola...smooth and expressive on the palate...powerful, yet with polish...deep flavors of spice, wood smoke, potpourri florals, little tar, stem funk. Big flavors with a pleasing polished feel...last time reminded me of Chambolle in feel, MsD in dark fruit...now more like a Danial Rion Vosne Les Beaux Monts! Super wine!
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An impeccably made Wine of sweet spice, cherry, a bit of nutmeg and cola but only barely. An overall ripe impression with the tannins already in recession. Certainly more than enough acidity to balance but I'm wondering when the secondary and tertiary characteristics will start to show over the canvas of sweet fruit. I hear a lot of people invoke Burgundy with Rhys, but my impression is that this is just a really good California Pinot and I've never had 6-10yo Burgundy with this sort of sweet-fruited flavor
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Ben's USA @ Brunswick House (Brunswick House): Denser, dark fruit but again with a savoury edge. A touch of flat cola. Similar profile to the Santa Cruz, but currently a little denser and duller. The better wine, but currently lacking a little pizzaz without being completely dormant. ***(*)
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The strength of this wine is its pure and powerful (and tasty) black cherry and blackberry fruit. But there's not much nuance. While I don't find anything offensive about this fruit-forward style--it doesn't strike me as too jammy or glycerin-rich--I prefer a sleeker, more elegant style of pinot.
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interesting nose of rhubarb and citrus. Sweeter than a Burg but certainly not candied or excessively sweet...enjoyed this more than many prior Rhys bottles. Went well with bluefish. Solid wine.
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Very Californian. Tasted next to a Dujac Gevrey 1er Cru 2009, the Rhys felt sweet, lacking complexity, a little jammy. Tasted a little like a syrah to be honest. Meh.
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Atlanta Does Rhys (Aria, Atlanta, GA): Well rounded ripe fruit with a bit of spice and menthol, it is very approachable and is just terrific now, though I don't expect it to fade any time soon.
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Medium bodied. Cherry Coke and cardamon flavors. Generous fruit decently balanced. I'd say this is pretty mature and ready to drink as it seemed to fade on day two.
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This is so good. Medium ruby color, no sign of age but a little translucent on the edges. Explosive lush nose, bit of citrus zest, blue fruits, bit of oak, bit of cardamom. On the palate, juicy acidity fronting ample fruit...but everything in balance. Juicy fruit coats the mouth. You can taste the full clusters, but fully resolved, no green steaminess. Long finish, with continued mouthwatering juiciness. Love this wine!
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integrating nicely. red fruits, spice, sandalwood, a hint of herbs all supported by finely grained tannins and generous acid and a savory lingering finish. years ahead of it but rounding out nicely.
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Had with a 2010 No Girls Grenache which I preferred (table split evenly). More fruit forward than Burgundy, but less than most Cali pinot. Aromatics not close to the Grenache, but nice. Red cherry, cola and spice definitely there - very smooth and easy to drink. Will get better but very nice now.
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13.1% abv. Medium ruby, expressive aromas. Raspberry, black cherry and Asian spice on the palate. Penetrating, with good depth and length. Vibrant and youthful, this wine comes across as on the early side of a long drinking window.
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Very nice, red fruit forward Cal Pinot that paired nicely with Thanksgiving dinner. Medium body, bright cherry and cola flavors with enough flavor and substance to poke its nose through all the complex flavors of the meal. Very versatile pairing wine
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Drank over two days. Great nose with a mix of spicy and forest. Still very stem-y to taste and I find a bit disjointed. There's an underlying red fruit backbone that still struggles to break through. I'm going to leave remaining bottles sit for a bit and see if this resolves with more time.
Ruby. A mix of black & blue fruit, sappy balsamic notes, and mint on the nose. Mixed fruit and spice flavors. The 2009 Alpine Vineyard comes across rather straightforward.
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In a word, delicious. Scents of strawberry preserves, damp earth, and cinnamon. Big bodied, full of medium-ripe, tangy red fruit. I tend to prefer a lighter-bodied, more nimble and nuanced pinot, but I enjoyed the power in this wine, and it's not too rich in glycerin. Good minerality. Very fine tannins. I wonder where this is headed.
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Nose - black licorice , black cherry, touch floral Mouth - cola-esque, dark fruit is nice and I can see the allure, but I can't help agreeing with my dad that it tastes a bit like a flat coke. Clean.
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Very burgundian - lighter style, a little brett (barnyard), and noticeable tannin. Black cherry, berry, bramble, earth. Full bodied, high acidity, medium alcohol. Fairly long finish with the black cherry and soft tannins lingering. Nice!
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Beautiful SC Mts. Pinot Noir. Dark red cherry and black plum in character. Firm tannins which are just now beginning to soften. Great mineral expression of the site which sets this apart...
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I love this winery and this may very well be the best bottle of their wine I have tasted. Black cherry fruit and minerals on the nose. A bit fuller on the palate than some Rhys Pinot but no less balance. This clearly shows its California heritage but maintains classic Rhys equilibrium. Finish lasts and lasts. Perfect wine for the July 4th holiday. (94)
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Clean blue and red fruits, strawberry, great nose, solid stuffing from ripe whole clusters. Damn this is good now but I think it's got a nice life ahead.
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Double decanted and breathe over 2.5 hrs. Dry, delicate & bit restrained. Notes of red berries, forest floor, rhubarb. Mouth-puckering tannins, crisp acidity and a moderate finish. Let this one age at least another 3-5 years.
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Wonderful. Forest berries, forest floor and wild strawberries. Amazing stem inclusion that just layers on the flavor profile and complexity at this stage. Smooth acidity and melted tannins.
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gorgeous. first whiff was wonderful, but got better after an hour open. starting to develop just a bit of secondary flavor - but without mellowing out the energy/tension I consistently find on Rhys pinots (which I love). great on night 2, and still unfolding. no need to rush (even this decade) but drinking wonderfully now.
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Beautiful nose of sweet cherry and sarsaparilla. Medium full body, presents as low-acid, but on consideration seems relatively high in acid and tannin. Yes, the astringent sensation is there for minutes after swallowing. Lingering cherry on the finish as well. Almost certainly is too young, but the nose is beguiling and it's tasty with food.
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Decanted for 2 h. Dark garnet. A-Dark crushed berries, earth, bark with a hint of unsweetened root beer, almost brothy sous bois. P-Equal red/black berries, earth, a hint of unsweetened root beer, bark, hint of damp forest floor/leaves. Mild tannins on midpalate. F- Leaves, earth, bark, fruit, tannins. Long and lingering. Just entering into secondary flavors. Nice to catch this in its evolution. Surprised that it's not shut down. Lovely but wait another 2-5 yrs before opening next one.
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Always spectacular. One of, if not the, best California Pinots there are. Layers upon layers with great complexity of fruit, earth,vegetation and a wonderful mouthfeel
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PnP. Medium dark red. Intense nose of black fruits, mineral, and a floral component which is quite unique. On the palate this is dominated by a mineral quality that seems part whole cluster and part tannins. Intriguing wine that needs more time and air.
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Had high expectations and was a little disappointed. The last bottle was in '12 and loved it. This bottle had a lot more dark fruits going on... not heavy but heavier than I remembered. I found there to be something just a touch bitter and almost metallic on the finish. Throwing out the negatives when really it was a pretty good wine... but my expectations (maybe unfair) were for it to be great.
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This has been a consistently good wine. Drinking young, but quite open and expressive. Deep fruit, minerals, tannins are there but not bothersome. I have no more left, but I would guess that this will age nicely.
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Friday night Cali Pinots (Phil's place, Chicago IL): Nose: The nose really favors the red end of the spectrum with tart red cherries, rhubarb, strawberries, some herbal notes, and a touch of pipe tobacco.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium+ acidity and sneaky tannins. The feel is plush and sexy with tart red cherries, herbal notes, pipe tobacco, strawberries, and some earthy notes.
Overall: This is still very primary. The flavor is very primary in nature with a silky side to it.
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Good, strong blackberry notes with distinct bramble and stem inclusion notes; a bit spicy/brambly, forward blackberry notes, medium+ body; nice, but seemed a bit too much pepper/bramble, blackberry bush on the palate.
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Pop and pour and followed for many hours. Opened up a bit about an hour in. Black cherry, minerals, smoke, violets, a little iodine, earth, and light barrel scents on the nose. Precise black cherry, tart cherry, red cherry, earth, and minerals on the palate. Nicely balanced acidity, integrated tannins, good finish that lands a bit soft. Delicious. My wife's favorite Pinot. It's quite drinkable now, but should improve in a year to two.
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Lioco and Sonoma Coast Tasting (House of Nanda - Chicago IL): Tasted double blind in a flight of 2009s. Cross-section of red berry and cherry aromas with baking spice. Very impressive balance and textures. We were told 1 of the 4 wines in the flight was Grand Cru Burgundy partway through tasting the flight, and I thought it was this wine. Better than I recall from when tasted shortly after release.
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Nicely balanced, multifaceted, and reasonably expressive if understated in places. More back end structure emerged with air. I liked the composition of the nose but wanted a little more power behind the aromas and a more graceful and more saturated mid-palate; I felt like this was still holding something back. Approachable but best to hold. A very good PN, it helps to open your Rhys not expecting a religious experience every time.
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My cellar is rather deep in recent Rhys which makes me nervous as I've opened very few of the SV blends. This was showing very well, however, and met my very high expectations. Needed maybe an hour or so of air to show well. Very expressive nose of deep back cherry, anise, spice, and meaty notes. Palate is a little soft and smooth with a little sweetness on the attack, with subtly coarse tannins on the back side. Concentrated black cherry and maybe a little cola, but everything in balance with plenty of nuance despite the ripeness. Finish is long and complex, with a little sandalwood and mineral note mixed in. Very good and seemingly has some upside. Drink or hold.
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What a nose, as it pulls you in with brooding, dark fruit and balsamic tones and then leaves you guessing as a whiff of fresh mint adds whimsical finesse. There’s a mix of fruit here, showing blackberry, blueberry, and dark cherry; all complemented by earth tones of graphite and crushed stone. On the palate, a dark, silky veil enveloped the senses, with black fruit taking second place to its notes of savory herbs, dark wood, and earth. Part of me craved for more acidity here, yet there’s something alluring about it’s weighty textures. It finished with deep wood tones and plum, yet very little in the way of structure. Instead, this goes down all to easy.
I’m stumped here. I typically score a wine on its nose, palate, finish and then overall performance. Those scores are then complied together and averaged out. Here, the nose was an easy 97 points. Yet on the palate it took a dive to 90 and then the finish to 88. The overall experience is hard to gauge because I wanted so much more on the palate. I’m calling this a 90-point wine, with high hopes that this is an odd bottle and unrepresentative of it’s typical performance.
******* On day two I found more red fruit tones, with a distinct note of pine, woodland stems and hints of cedar. More energy showed on the palate, as its dense black fruit had backed off to a large degree, leaving wild berry and spicy floral notes. It finished fresh with focused red-toned fruit. It’s certainly more enjoyable on the palate than the previous night, but the price you pay is in the loss of the outstanding bouquet.
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Decanted one hour. Beautiful aromatics. The palate was black cherries, baking spices, and minerals with acidity sneaking up on you and making it complete. Very pretty.
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Brought to the Milling Room. Fairly dark ruby. Nose of spice and dark fruits. This became more complex with air. Black cherry and spice on the palate with medium to long finish. Well balanced acidity. It went very well with the food. A powerful but elegant multifaceted wine.
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on pop n our, first sips showed a vibrant full bodied pinot. A lot of upfront pleasure. More in the blue fruit spectrum than red. Will see how it is on 2nd day.
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I've found Rhys pinots to be hit or miss but this bottle was terrific. After just an hour in the decanter we absolutely loved it. A very dark pinot but showed beautifully. This bottle proves to me that the Rhys pinot definitely need at least a couple of years of age to show their best.
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Needs time to open, started out mute, but with a little air it was ready to par tay! Very round and smooth texture.....dark black cherry, raspberry, rhubarb fruit....perfect sweetness to the dryness. Silky Chambolle Musigny like.....with darker MSD like fruit and spice.......LOVE the spice here! Needs a little coaxing....but there is killer dusty earth, exotic wood, cinnamon spice box....dried berry, perfumed liqueured florals. Then on the finish the wine firms and crunches with some great crushed rock minerals. Sneaky good now....needs coaxing, but should gain even more. Love this!
Been over 3 years since I drank one of these, with the last one at the winery, probably not too much beyond when it was first released. So, there is some bottle age here, along with some slow ox time as I opened this yesterday, no decant and simply put the remaining wine into the fridge once the dinner was over. What's here? First, a dark color. Aromatically, a mix of what comes across as dark coffee, menthol/light stem, pepper. The palate is chocked up with dark cherry fruit, and some black fruit actually, which has the riper edges of the '09 vintage showing, along with some menthol/herb. Can't recall getting black fruit on Rhys but it's here, this is a bit of a brooder of a wine. I find this to be quite approachable now, with the caveat that I did open this a day prior. As a closing comment about a drink window here, I'd say let it rip and get a bottle open. There are a lot of us carrying good size inventories of these wines, wondering about drink windows and so why not let get this open and see what you think. Be interested at our next Rhys dinner to get all of the '09s open and see if we can assert some guidance about the vintage for Rhys.
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Decanted about an hour before dinner. Nose is pretty, sweet baked cherries, some florals and baking spice. The fruit is more restrained in the mouth than the nose suggests, nice mix of ripe and tart berries, minerals and just a hint of oaky spice. Tannins are fine grained, this is drinking well now.
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Drank this with Berserkers at Peking Duck House in NYC. Smooth. Tasty. Some warmth. Cherry aftertaste. Elegant. Light. Feminine. It was well received by others at dinner.
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Rhys Vineyards is located in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The Alpine Vineyard is between 1200 and 1400 ft. and is about 10 miles from the Pacific. This vineyard is planted to heritage pinot noir clones such as Calera, Swan, and Wente. Not a lot of bouquet on the nose, hints of strawberry but then kind of flat with an acidic backing. Another interesting contrast in ratings with Antonio Galloni then at RP giving the wine a 95 while James Laube of WS giving it an 86. I thought the wine was below average. I purchased this wine on Winebid.com
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PnP. Medium dark red. Nose of forest floor, spice, dark fruits buried under that. On the palate has a light mouthfeel but intensity at the same time and then a long brooding finish with mineral and tannins; can see a resemblance to Hirsch but lacking the iron/Gevrey component. Definitely needs time but is approachable today. Should go beautifully with a filet.
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13.1% alcohol. Medium dark ruby. Extremely expressive, mostly black fruit aromas. On the palate, black cherry, blackberry, mint, a bit of rock and an interesting herbal element. This wine has a lot of everything - power, depth, length, fruit and emerging complexity.
Reminds me of a young Littorai Hirsch. It is tremendous now, but I think it could be truely special with another 5-10+ years in the bottle.
As my bottles gain a bit of age, I think the "Rhys promise" is beginning to emerge.
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pnp- nose of violets, chilled cranberry and cherry compote with a touch of woody stem. sour cherry, dark red cherry, florals, vanilla, woody earth, nutmeg, sarsparilla root, at times slightly herbaceous. long finish with fresh perfumed raspberry. tannins are velvety and coating. needs air, more later, this is shifty.
Coming back after three hours in the decanter. Less complexity showing, the acidity has dropped off but it's more stony and mineral. The tannins have calmed and become very silky and pretty. Intense, but more closed. This needs several years.
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Fire works. Decanted for two hours. Poured back in the bottle and drank an hour later. Amazing aromatics. Violets, mint, leather. The palate is already doing a great balance dance with bright cherries, pomegranate and that leathery quality. Great wine. Young as hell but already so compelling.
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Absolutely delicious! Opened and decanted for three hours. Dark and opulent blackberry, blueberry, and bing cherry. As dark a pinot as I've probably ever enjoyed. What was really tremendous was that this richness was not over extracted or hot or viscous. Great acids. Some spice. This wine was singing.
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Drank it over three days. On the third day it was at its best. Cool, bright fruit throughout. Interesting notes of leaves and tea? A thinking wine but one I enjoyed.
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Lots of brooding dark fruit and a hint of white pepper, but there's still a very light hint of that "just-bottled wine" smell. This is quite dark and ripe on the palate, with some cherry liqueur notes. Slightly sweet and a very present note of oak. I think this needs some time to get everything knit together. I'm sensing that this will end up as a very well-balanced if slightly ripe pinot noir.
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deeply hued. masculine aromas of wood, spice, and red fruit. bold with a structured mouthfeel and a nice acid spine, this will be better as it mellows but the complexity is intriguing and seductive. a rich and complex wine that benefitted from time in the decanter. glad i have more stashed away...
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Rather rich, fine whole cluster feel, layered aromatics and not so much elegant as it is full and round. Oak is prominent. Very Rhys and nowhere near ready to drink. Fresh, powerful and only good things ahead.
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Rhys and Ceritas Tasting (NYC): This was a quite ripe and bright initially, with a bitter and somewhat oaky palate that needs more time to integrate. After a lot of air, the flavors moderated a bit, and there was an interesting slightly peppery aroma. This wine definitely needs to rest.
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Assertive nose of tart dark cherries, chalk, vanilla, and spice box. The palate, while obviously young and unyielding, boasts lean sweet dark berries over elements of stem and cedar. The wine finishes fresh and long with tart cherry acidity, oak, orange zest, and rose florals. This is rather masculine in style, and could definitely use some time in the bottle. R&M89
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Initially a little tart but really comes around nicely with about an hour or two in the decanter. Given that time, the wine softens, lengthens and develops very well with excellent fruit on the palate combined with some spicy oak notes and a really nice finish. Give this one a few more years in the bottle.
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Quite nice surprisingly on pop'n'pour... but then entered into a weird/closed phase for me after about an hour... then came back into a nice phase again after a few hours. So while this wine can be enjoyable now, as many have said before, it could use more time in the cellar for sure to come together. There is great acidity, fruit and minerality in this wine... I think time will smooth things out and we'll just have to see how it ends up.
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Amazing nose of lavender and dark cherries. Very strong minerality. Really tight and structured, even after a 2+ hour decant. Probably should have decanted all day, or waited another 2 years before touching this.
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Opened and poured, this wine gave an outstanding showing with aromatics of dark cherry, earth, chalk, stone and spice notes. The bouquet does shows an underlying green stem note that on this occasion adds to the overall aromatics complexity. The color is a dark ruby to almost purple. The medium (full) bodied palate shows density and enough youthful front to balance the tannins and acidity. The wine give a medium to long finish that shows a chalky, stone note intermingled with the fruit, tannins and acidity. This does drink well now but will most likely benefit from an additional 2 to 3 years of bottle age.
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Unfortunately this wine is irresistable. Deliciously fruity, while remaining restrained. Not so much elegant as just really well put together. I did pick up a little bit of wood, but nothing to distract from the aromatics/flavors coming from the fruit. A little tough on the back end, but if I had any patience I could let my last bottle rest and see if it smooths out a bit with time. Yeah...right...like that's gonna happen.
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Sacrificed a bottle at this young age for comparison with additional bottles down the line. Decanted and poured directly to glass. Nose of vegetal blueberries with a hint of garrigue and juicy fruit gum. Well balanced and light on the palate. Fantastic finish of cold blueberries, hints of licorice, and cola bottle caps. Opened up and became rounder/fuller over the course of the meal. I suspect this will continue to evolve in bottle and develop additional complexity over time.
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The nose is tight but hints at blue fruits, cedar and spices with a lot of swirling. Crunchy blue fruit at first open up over a few hours to reveal cherries, a hint of cola, and a little wood on the palate. Still tightly wound, this needs a lot of time but a friend wanted to try a Rhys and this is what I grabbed first. He loved it.
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Opened up and let slow-ox for about an hour before drinking with grilled chicken. Very interesting mix of smooth black cherry & cola and some earthiness & leather. Very smooth with good fruit, but also has some tannin on the finish. I would like to see this again in a couple years. I'll let my other bottle rest for awhile.
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Consumed over two nights. Nose was great and expressive from the start with spice, red fruit and maybe a bit of vanilla. At times, I also picked up on an iron-like aroma/taste. Better on day two and a couple of years of bottle age may improve this significantly. 92+
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Damn you, Rhys: your tiny type on the label had me inadvertently opening this, my sole bottle of Alipne, which I'd intended to age for years, toward the end of a humble non-geeky movie night (Putney Swope, for the record) when of course I'd intended to check in on an '09 Santa Cruz Mountains - which is, you know, much cheaper, alleged by some to be far readier, and, well, I have three of 'em. I didn't even discover my error until polishing off the bottle on night two. No wonder my guests remarked how good this was, and I thought, "wow, if *this* is their humbler less complex appelation pinot, I can only imagine the SVDs!" Well, it's plainly a brooding and complex wine which should be really rockin' closer to 2020 than 2012, but I will say it's a heck of a glass even now. First two notes here mirror my experience (and say it far more articulately than I could): there's a lot of elements here, from deep dark sweet fruit with a tart cranberry element to some stem funk and, yeah, gunpowder. Well, as the first Rhys I've uncorked after buying from the last two offerings, at least it helps assure me that I do in fact like their style. Quite a lot.
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On pop and pour, tart cherry and cran-apple were underpinned with shades of warm vanilla and cinnamon. With air, the tart red fruit notes subsided, and the wine then showed more blue fruit character. Green stems lingered in the background but were not very prominent; the finish added a chalky note. Despite all that, this pinot seemed a bit tight, though thinking this should eventually surpass the '09 declassified Santa Cruz bottling in the complexity department. But, the pleasures both wines offered were neck and neck for me at this point with the Santa Cruz offering a more tantalizing nose and this one giving more to ponder on the palate.
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Ripe red cherry aromas with roses and some clove, cinnamon and black pepper. Ripe red and black cherry flavors with same good spice, good length and power, with trace hints of cherry cola coming through on finish.
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Nose: Scorched earth, caramel-soaked cedar, Chinese grass jelly, tar. Behind all the darkness are hints of strawberries, cherries, but the fruit is generally hard to pick up. Palate: Spiced, dark cherries, tar, crushed gravel on the attack. Good tannins and acidity on the mid-palate with hints of dark cherries. Tart cherries, cedar linger on the finish.
So dark and masculine right now, showing all structure with no real evidence of sweetness or ripe fruit behind it. Not even an iota of primary fruit on the nose or palate. This is all with 6+ hours in a decanter. I'm not convinced that there is stuffing here but the other bottles I have will need 5+ years. I will check in on another before then I'm sure but as it is today I consider this Alpine only decent with the possibility of becoming pretty good.
Tasted at the Nov. 12, 2011, pickup day. Highly perfumed nose, with nice intensity, and a very slight backnote of vanilla. Palate is focused, with good energy; the tannins are evident but finely textured; deep and intense red fruit. Engaging, and very nice.
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Tasted at pick-up day. Medium purple; berry fruits, pepper; closed, higher acid, mid weight, light touch on the oak. A thoroughly enjoyable PN that needs some years to open.
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Tasted at the Pickup day. No formal notes taken. Bottles were slow-oxed by the winery elves. Deep red fruit and heavy floral aromas. Medium-bodied with good precision. Stony with spice. (Some may call it stemmy and green, but I don't find it as such). Things are still tight, but it probably will show better earlier than the 2008 Alpine.
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Rhys Visit--All The 2009s From Bottle! (Rhys Estate (At The Winery)): 13.1%, 60% new wood and 90% whole cluster. Aromatic was mix of green stalk and maple. Might sound odd but this is what I got and it was the same for me when I retasted it again towards the end of the flight. Of all the 2009s, this was the most closed of all of them, the tightest. Full of dark raspberry, blueberry and lots of depth. Stony and stemmy with lots of tannin and suavage character, with pine needle and licorice. This wine was the most challenging for me to get my head around but has so much going on in it, really amazing.
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12/16/2023 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Delicious black berry, minerals, and forest floor notes on the open nose and savory palate with refreshing acidity on the long finish. From Magnum.
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12/10/2023 - mclanew wrote: 90 Points
Not quite sure what to make of this. Quite austere and stemmy. Not really giving even after an hour of air. Starting to lose energy as well. Similiar to other notes this hasn’t aged as well as one would expect
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9/3/2023 - jlm wrote:
I decided to open this after seeing dbkitc's worrisome note yesterday, and I'm happy to report an entirety different and better experience. On initial opening and for about the first hour, the aromas were red-fruited and sweet -- raspberry and strawberry -- but a little simple. After some air, however, the nose developed a much more intriguing profile, with chalky earth underpinned by blackberry. The palate is fleshy and round with some oak gloss to the texture. It's low in acidity by Rhys standards, and the tannins are fully resolved. A lengthy finish carries this through nicely. This seems to be in its prime drinking window now and was a pleasure.
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9/2/2023 - dbkitc wrote: 72 Points
Boy, this wine is a huge disappointment. I loved bottles tasted years ago on release - but I think I blew it - based on this bottle it has not aged well at all. This wine is soapy, green mean and devoid of anything pleasant. I don’t see any flaws. It’s just totally fallen apart. What happened ? No idea but avoid. (72 - onlly because there are no obvious flaws. 50 from a pleasure standpoint )
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8/29/2023 - davudvl Likes this wine: 92 Points
Old world style
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4/14/2023 - AJBurt Likes this wine: 94 Points
Prime time for this. Wonderful acidity that keeps all that fruit in check. There’s some earthiness, mushroom, licorice, and wet slate.
Rhys once again proving that their wines reward time in bottle.
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3/20/2023 - Kloseframe Likes this wine: 94 Points
Wow. This is still going strong. Opened well over a few hours. Better still on night two. It's rich and flavorful - lots of spice, earth and mineral. I have had Rhys syrah and Rhys chardonnay, but this is my first pinot experience. I have to say, I get it now! Drink up, if you like, but no rush on this one.
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6/8/2022 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Another delicious bottle still drinking beautifully with similar tasting note to previous bottles! Delicious black berry, minerals, and forest floor notes on the open nose and savory palate with refreshing acidity on the long finish.
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6/2/2022 - Cote d'Or wrote:
Tasted over 2 hrs
-saturated med dark red
-exuberant sweet stem spice violets rhubarb faint maturity
-med/med- acidity, med/med- weight a bit diffuse with some faded though still quite sweet red fruit and notes of eucalyptus licorice and tar, med- tannins and a bit of sweet oak on the long finish
-nice marriage of ripe yet mature new world pinot fruit and stems and well-integrated oak, overall works pretty well but the palate is not nearly as pretty balanced or complex as the aromatics; similar to a bottle 4 years ago but with less fruit
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12/3/2021 - jlm wrote:
Dark ruby color, with a hint of magenta at the rim still. Effusive nose of sweet fruit notes: black raspberry, cherry, with some rhubarb emerging. This was very attractive, if not particularly complex or showing interesting savory elements. The palate is medium-full bodied, fresh but a little on the low side for acidity, and has some nice bottle sweetness at this stage. The finish is not especially long. I found this very nice but not great, not as complex and delineated as a recent '07 Alpine PN.
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11/7/2021 - GrapeScott wrote: 88 Points
Purchased on release, and according to my records, the first bottle I've tried from this vintage. In all honesty, this was a bit of a disappointment, particularly at this price point. I own a lot of Rhys (almost 400 bottles in inventory...thanks CT), dating back to 2004, and on the plus side, they really seemed to hit their stride beginning around 2012. But the early years are a bit hit-and-miss in terms of ageability. This showed rich boysenberry, black cherry and brown sugar flavors, but was a bit fat and unbalanced, and the high stem inclusion is still not quite integrated. Fell apart by day 2, which leaves me a bit pessimistic about its future. My wife, who usually likes this style of pinot, was also not impressed.
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10/13/2021 - Charlie Carnes Likes this wine:
This is super tasty tonight. It’s pretty dark and saturated in color, with dark fruit but with light body. It has dark earth and strong earth mineral traits. It’s quite crunchy, if I can borrow the term… I really liked it!
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10/1/2021 - jbaron wrote: 94 Points
The slight reticence that this wine exhibits in the nose is more than compensated for by the velvet, liquid mouth and the incredible length.
Didn’t need any decanting.
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3/18/2021 - grafstrb wrote: 89 Points
-- decanted 1.5 hours before initial taste --
-- tasted non-blind over 2 - 3 hours --
NOSE: high-toned; dark red fruits; a bit earthy; now some tertiary aspects, too.
BODY: slight bricking throughout; dark ruby color; medium-light bodied.
TASTE: medium to medium+ strength note of sweet oak; red-fruited; a touch bitter; hint of stony mineral; seems to be thinning out. Drink Now.
50, 5, 12, 15, 7 = 89
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2/14/2021 - dbermanmd wrote: 93 Points
Amazing wine.
Great nose.
Delicious fruit.
Strong backbone.
Drinking perfectly now, and no doubt for years to come.
Enjoy.
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12/30/2020 - Jon Mills Likes this wine: 94 Points
Great Pinot. Lovely balance. Drinking beautifully.
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12/18/2020 - xwine wrote:
Very spicy nose, then develops some coffee notes (which I'm not wild about, though it's never over the top or intrusive). This is full on the palate, expansive, deep dark fruit, and is very well balanced. While it's not a "big" wine, it is fairly richly textured. I prefer a more elegant style (think Skyline or Swan Terrace), but this is still a very nice pinot! Seems to have a number of years ahead of it, so I don't think there's any rush to drink up. Riedel Burgundy stems.
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12/5/2020 - bobdobilina wrote: 91 Points
World of Pinot Noir Tasting (13 Pinots from Burgundy, Germany, New Zealand, Oregon and California); 12/5/2020-12/6/2020 (Zoom): Mid and slightly cloudy currant color.
Expressive nose of sassafras, cherry and baking spices.
The (red and black) fruits are showing quite sweet here. There's a good amount of spice and a bit of noticeable oak. The palate is very long.
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10/22/2020 - grafstrb wrote: 88 Points
-- cork pulled one hour before initial taste; decanted immediately before first taste --
-- tasted non-blind over a couple hours --
NOSE: very expressive; warm red fruits; hint of cola; rhubarb; crushed raspberry; smells pleasantly moderately aged.
BODY: dark ruby color with slight bricking; color is of medium depth; medium-light to light bodied.
TASTE: good acidity; hint of leather/funk; seems to be thinning-out a bit; non-descript baked red fruits --- seems a bit past peak, surprisingly; lightly tannic; 13.3% alc. noticeable a little; the Nose makes promises the Palate can't keep; I see this as already on its downslope. Drink Now.
50, 5, 12, 14, 7 = 88
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9/12/2020 - Tree512 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Ripe red fruits - very similar to 2005 Gevrey Chambertin with loads of power yet to unfurl with CA density. Has some earthiness on the nose to add complexity. Still has some tannin so I think this will round out but tasty now.
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6/27/2020 - Schwarzer Hund Likes this wine:
Dark ruby red, little aroma upon opening but after an hour in decanter dark berry notes started to appear (2-3 hours airtime probably better), dense dark berry and plum fruit, some spice and mineral, smooth tannins, perfect balance, med-long finish. The first of these that we had tried. This was a terrific bottle and indicates that patience was needed. Will try another bottle in a couple of years.
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6/25/2020 - azb Likes this wine: 93 Points
Probably at peak, but I expect to hold well for at least 3-4 more years. Needs decanting.
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5/28/2020 - mdefreitas wrote: 93 Points
This was fantastic. Accessible, but still has miles to go. Dark fruits, baking spices and underbrush. Grippy, bright and long. Very nice intensity, yet not too heavy. Good future here.
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5/27/2020 - Burgundy Al wrote: 90 Points
Rhys Alpine Virtual Tasting (Planet Earth): In vertical. I found the 2009 and 2010 to be very similar, both rich and ripe with lots of density, just finishing a tad warm.
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4/13/2020 - Badfish Likes this wine:
Decanted for about two hours and consumed over the following two. Quite dark in the glass with a garnet purple core and slight bricking at the rim. The aromas are dark and exuberant with notes of black cherry, wild berries, forest floor, slate, and mace. The palate is dense, ripe, and still well structured with interesting spice complexity on the back end. The flavors are rich, the tannins are stern yet sweet, and the acids are edgy. I am surprised with how ripe, structured, and youthful this is showing and I think another ten years is warranted before revisiting. Not the greatest Rhys I have had but also one of the more embryonic.
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3/25/2020 - gbauer wrote:
Great red fruit on the nose with some licorice/menthol. In the mouth, beautifully balanced, fruit, savory. No rush but showing very well.
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3/10/2020 - jreis Likes this wine:
Lovely nose of underbrush, cranberry and white pepper. Beautifully balanced palate with red fruit, minerals and crunchy acidity. Just getting into its drinking window with plenty of time left.
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2/11/2020 - gharter Likes this wine: 95 Points
This has finally hit its drinking window! Beautiful aromatics, doesn't even need decanting. Red cherry, some black fruits, spice, a hint of herbal. Layers of flavors with cherry, black fruits, spice, black tea, light herbs. Beautiful balance with a long silky smooth finish. Fine sediment at the bottom of the bottle. It seems to have enough to still go a long time, but its finally hit a great drinking window and I would open now and enjoy.
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1/10/2020 - jbaron wrote: 93 Points
All of the technical pieces are in place. Great nose, good mouth, excellent length with good fruit throughout. Good overall picture with brambly, slightly tannic fruit that gives structure.
(Great on opening. Doesn’t need much air; seems to degrade a bit with an hour of air.)
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10/26/2019 - Wine Canuck wrote: 95 Points
Burgundy Focused Evening at Dave's: [Tasted Double Blind] This was essentially popped and poured just a touch over cellar temperature and was just singing from the get go. Just a spectacular nose right out of the gates. Just so spicy and stemmy. The nose is of saline, ginger, ramen broth, incense, chinese five spice, dark cherry, bay leaf, and pomegranate. Flat out amazing! The palate is still quite structured with medium tannin and medium acid. The finish replays the very spicy nose and lingers nicely. Clearly remarkable and classic wine in my view. The group quickly latched onto Rhys as the producer and Alpine as the vineyard. Vintages ranged from 2007-2009.
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9/18/2019 - galewskj wrote: 90 Points
Luis "Bring a good bottle" - Pinot and Bordeaux (Kenwood): The palate is orange marmalade, cherry and cola. The nose and palate are somewhat nuanced. To me, the style is California, I can appreciate it, but the palate is not interesting enough to warrant the current prices or praise given by others.
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9/17/2019 - alanr wrote: 91 Points
Fairly rich dark fruit, good balance and acidity, this consistent with the Rhys "middle period", and the warmer vintage. Very nice.
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9/12/2019 - rocknroller wrote: 91 Points
Mixed WTDS at The Kenwood (The Kenwood, Mpls, MN): Medium red color. PNP, drank a small glass over 30 minutes. This was good, orange peeel, citrus and deep berry on the nose. The palate is rather astringent and you get that sense on the nose too, black cherry, dark berries, spice and a touch of cola accented by orange zest.
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8/21/2019 - KenK Likes this wine: 91 Points
Nice spices in a more deft, delicate style. Quite good, yet perhaps lacking a touch of depth vs the other 2009 Rhys tasted tonight.
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8/20/2019 - Burgundy Al wrote: 91 Points
Rhys Dinner Following Rhys Tasting (Prairie Grass - Northbrook IL): Rich red cherry and berry coming across riper on nose vs palate with good length and weight, but nowhere the complexity or finesse of the 2008 in the next glass.
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7/1/2019 - jonphillips Likes this wine: 93 Points
Craziness. I put this in the freezer. Forgot it, froze solid, cork almost out. Let it defrost on the counter for two days. Drinking tonight ... lovely.
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6/8/2019 - Vinomnivore Likes this wine: 92 Points
Ready for business, but certainly no rush....Drank well over 4 hours, only improving with time.
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4/21/2019 - bjschmitt Likes this wine: 92 Points
With apple/bourbon pork tenderloin, Orzo with carrot/onion/celery.
Decanted 30 minutes before dinner - very find sediment showing.
Beautiful medium ruby.
Nose of blackberry, black raspberry, bright/sour cherry, almost perfumed, lovely. As it opened up, hint of earth snuck up.
Dry, smooth, integrated tannin, great length, nice acid balance, a rich but subtle wine. Excellent.
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4/20/2019 - James Kim Likes this wine: 92 Points
Still congested and can't smell much. Stood up for a week and then decanted off of fine sediment. Now almost 5h later. Nice balance of ripe blackberry and black cherry fruits, minerals, herbs, bark and a hint of sous bois. Some slight heat on the finish is the only nitpick. Much richer fruit earlier in the night and has gotten leaner as the night has progressed. Nicely showing some secondary flavors. This seems to be evolving nicely and open the next bottle in 3-5 years.
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2/18/2019 - acyso wrote: 85 Points
Dinner at Jade Court (Chicago, IL): I don't think this has aged particularly well. There seems to be a bit of an astringency on the nose here, with something that seems a little stemmy. The initial attack on the palate is fairly nice, with some black fruit, but what follows is that the overall fruit sensation here seems to have dried out, leaving a bit of a tannic husk. Drink up.
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1/21/2019 - dougie Likes this wine: 93 Points
Decanted for an hour. Really nice fruit with a ‘clean’ purity to it. Wait a few years for my last bottle.
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12/27/2018 - rcmccall Likes this wine: 93 Points
Striking aromas of lavender/rose petal, dark cherry, herb. Feminine yet mid-weight on the palate with dark cherry, nutmeg, and a herbal note. Perhaps a bit thin mid-palate but is framed nicely by silky tannin and nice acidity. Rhys provided tonite!
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12/2/2018 - Tubulus wrote:
Weird bottle. Night one very muted, boring, is there tca even? Seems ripe though but almost over the hill. Night two a totally different wine, picks up bright red fruits, tastes fairly young, high acidity. Still not great, but good enough. Maybe something is off...
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11/11/2018 - rosenst1 wrote: 93 Points
PnP. Medium dark red. Complex nose of spice, dark fruits and a hint of a floral (lavender?) component. On the palate this is velvety lovely intensity and a touch of whole cluster influence. Quite distinct from Sonoma and Russian River; lovely wine and drinking pretty well at age 9. This could evolve further I think.
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10/17/2018 - jgreco wrote: 94 Points
Another stunner for Rhys. A heavily perfumed nose of lavender and cinnamon/baking spices. Very weighty in the mouth for a Pinot. Lots of earthiness. A solid tannic finish that goes on forever. I'm still thinking about it a few days later. This should continue to evolve for a few more years.
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9/23/2018 - Nanda wrote: 93 Points
A beautiful Pinot that is really coming into it's own. Full, lifted nose of black cherry with pine needles and smoke. Palate is concentrated with silky fruit and well-integrated structure. In a terrific spot.
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8/12/2018 - Cow Town wrote: 89 Points
Typically my favorite bottling from Rhys, but this was more reticent and austere than normal with a slightly smoky finish (along with good red fruit). Good, but not great.
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8/10/2018 - cartime Does not like this wine:
Found this overly ripe and black-fruited. Enjoyed the 2010 much more, recently.
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8/10/2018 - hankj wrote: 89 Points
I totally get everything positive our community says about this wine. But to my palate a low acid Pinot can't be excellent. Good wine though, smooth berry smoky goodness :)
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7/24/2018 - Rezy13 wrote:
Tuesday Night Double Blind $40+ (Bin 75): Darker cloudy maroon core with dull maroon rim; sweet aged, candied dense dark red fruit, lots of oak spice, good savoriness, cooked strawberry; larger scaled on the palate, higher alcohol, sweet fruit but good acid, raspberry, blueberry, cooked cherry; called '09 Morlet Sonoma Coast Pinot.
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5/26/2018 - cpsmith33 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Well made. Black cherry spice. Nice complexity. Still could use a few more years.
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5/13/2018 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Stem inclusion still sticks out a bit, but there’s plenty of fruit to pull it all together. Black cherry fruit with spice and herbal lift. Palate is fine, fine tannin and strong finish. Still needs a few years.
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5/5/2018 - 560 B&W Likes this wine: 88 Points
Decanted that double decanted. Not getting better. Fruit is gone and oak is still strong. 13.1%
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3/27/2018 - Cote d'Or wrote:
Slow-ox 30 minutes, tasted over 1 hrs
-dark red core, mild bricking on edge
-almost flamboyant expressive gorgeous spicy stem red fruit mineral
-med acidity, med/med- weight, fading red fruit profile with abundant rhubarb-y beetroot CA pinot, well-integrated med- tannins
-stunning aromatics
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3/4/2018 - pakabear Likes this wine: 93 Points
PnP, explosive nose, cherry, strawberry, a little barnyard, red roots, top soil, raspberry, blackberry, plum, rose petals, incredible mouthfeel, silky with a bright acidity, fine gritty tannins, and a great balance.
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2/20/2018 - bajayngo wrote:
Great sappy fruit with a layer of umami, perfect framing acids with tremendous balance. More tangy fruit with blood orange and citrus zest. Very nice wine.
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2/17/2018 - Motz wrote: 92 Points
Tasted over two days. Among the standouts of a New and Old World Pinot Noir tasting. Ripe to be sure, but delivering much nuance and depth. The wine achieved featured structure and balance. Delicious!
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1/29/2018 - dougie Likes this wine: 93 Points
I've been on Rhys list from the beginning (06 vintage). I figured I needed to start drinking more- especially when you got over 100, it's time.
Sure, this can last a decade or more, but it's damn good now. Complex and flavorful without being heavy. The bright fruit is on balance with the whole cluster flavors. Tannins are not heavy. Beautiful and unique.
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1/20/2018 - Gordonium Likes this wine:
After an hour or so, excellent. Shows massive whole cluster character, but softened nicely with time. Once it shook off the aromatic cobwebs (weird chemical/medicinal notes) from many years in the cellar, it was fruit and spice and earth. Lovely.
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12/10/2017 - pjhr Likes this wine: 93 Points
Delicious black berry, minerals, and forest floor notes on the nose and savory palate with refreshing acidity on the long finish.
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10/30/2017 - Frank Murray III wrote:
My final bottle, as I work through the rest of my 2009s. This drank nicely. While I didn't take formal notes given the setting we were in, I recall some light stem inclusion aromatics and also a terrific fruit expression that was bright and expansive. A bit of cola, too. What I enjoyed about the wine was that it was approachable, still lively. My advice if you own these, as I know many around here do in CT, is to open one now and enjoy it. Not only do you get a baseline for the vintage and the wine, but you can work against the headwind of people that think they have to age these wines for years in order to discover some buried truth. It's wine, it's made to bring joy and IMO the 2009 vintage for Rhys does that well, now.
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10/27/2017 - jwsmith wrote: 89 Points
Big and very high in alcohol wine.
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10/11/2017 - Vinomnivore Likes this wine: 92 Points
Nice berry flavors. Elegant with moderate alcohol.
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9/30/2017 - Steve Brickley Likes this wine: 93 Points
Seven hour decant. A touch of good funk on the nose. Alcohol up front but fades. Initial impression is where is this sweetness coming from? Eventually, it takes its place though. Rhubarb, cherry, strawberry, spice, no sulfur, no wood, clean, pure. Tannins fully resolved. This is drinking very nicely now, although, if you continue to cellar, it should mellow even more. It does have further evolution in front of it. Drinking window 2017-2025 and may keep beyond.
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9/24/2017 - glou.sf Likes this wine: 94 Points
Dark berries, menthol, spices, and a hint of cedar on the nose. Medium, but drying tannins with great structure, relatively dark fruit, and pomegranate on the palate. Long finish.
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9/22/2017 - gesusser Likes this wine: 90 Points
So so Pinot..even after one hour decant..this wine just never came through..was not impressed; IMO needs more cellar time if it is to improve
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9/5/2017 - ELH wrote: 93 Points
Scrumptious. Rich fruit of dark berries and strawberries with an earthly undertone. Mature tannins, nice acidity, with the fruit still vibrant. mid-weight. Good drinking window.
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9/2/2017 - lolo66 wrote: 93 Points
this was outright delicious. constantly meanders between ripe berries and tart strawberry rhubard pie. healthy dose of earthy elements. The acidity is in balance. This is in its drinking window for sure.
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7/25/2017 - ccn wrote: 91 Points
Someone wrote "rhubarb" in an earlier note - well spotted! Poised between youth and maturity, with some slightly syrupy, strawberry fruit, good acidity, mature tannins, and a slightly green, but not unpleasant edge, that comes across as rhubarb. Seems like it has a lot of interesting components, but at an awkward stage right now. Good length. I think this needs another five years for the components to integrate. And as a matter of personal taste, I'm not sure i like the character of the slightly sickly sweet strawberry fruit.
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7/18/2017 - Mrbuzz Likes this wine: 95 Points
This is coming along nicely! Dark cherry, raspberry, rhubarb fruits, silky smooth with a good balance of sweetness to dryness, yet still structured with some firm geology. Nose is more open since my last bottle...exotic Vosne spice like, dusty cherry wood, kirsch liqueur, coffee, cola...smooth and expressive on the palate...powerful, yet with polish...deep flavors of spice, wood smoke, potpourri florals, little tar, stem funk. Big flavors with a pleasing polished feel...last time reminded me of Chambolle in feel, MsD in dark fruit...now more like a Danial Rion Vosne Les Beaux Monts! Super wine!
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6/19/2017 - doctornoah wrote: 90 Points
An impeccably made Wine of sweet spice, cherry, a bit of nutmeg and cola but only barely. An overall ripe impression with the tannins already in recession. Certainly more than enough acidity to balance but I'm wondering when the secondary and tertiary characteristics will start to show over the canvas of sweet fruit. I hear a lot of people invoke Burgundy with Rhys, but my impression is that this is just a really good California Pinot and I've never had 6-10yo Burgundy with this sort of sweet-fruited flavor
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5/29/2017 - A.Hansen Likes this wine: 91 Points
Expressive nose of spice, plums and cherries. Ripe pinot palate of red and black cherries.
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5/23/2017 - SimonG wrote: 93 Points
Ben's USA @ Brunswick House (Brunswick House): Denser, dark fruit but again with a savoury edge. A touch of flat cola. Similar profile to the Santa Cruz, but currently a little denser and duller. The better wine, but currently lacking a little pizzaz without being completely dormant. ***(*)
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5/17/2017 - rmalloy Likes this wine: 90 Points
The strength of this wine is its pure and powerful (and tasty) black cherry and blackberry fruit. But there's not much nuance. While I don't find anything offensive about this fruit-forward style--it doesn't strike me as too jammy or glycerin-rich--I prefer a sleeker, more elegant style of pinot.
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5/9/2017 - Mr T wrote:
interesting nose of rhubarb and citrus. Sweeter than a Burg but certainly not candied or excessively sweet...enjoyed this more than many prior Rhys bottles. Went well with bluefish. Solid wine.
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5/8/2017 - CMallard wrote: 89 Points
Very Californian. Tasted next to a Dujac Gevrey 1er Cru 2009, the Rhys felt sweet, lacking complexity, a little jammy. Tasted a little like a syrah to be honest. Meh.
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5/2/2017 - MikeATL Likes this wine: 94 Points
Atlanta Does Rhys (Aria, Atlanta, GA): Well rounded ripe fruit with a bit of spice and menthol, it is very approachable and is just terrific now, though I don't expect it to fade any time soon.
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4/18/2017 - mjf@ulkner wrote: 91 Points
Medium bodied. Cherry Coke and cardamon flavors. Generous fruit decently balanced. I'd say this is pretty mature and ready to drink as it seemed to fade on day two.
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4/13/2017 - shaferguy91 wrote: 92 Points
No decant.
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4/10/2017 - kthornton78 wrote:
stunning. cherry and rhubarb lifted by generous acid and rounded out with sandalwood, eucalyptus, and spice notes. great complexity.
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4/7/2017 - Ben Christiansen wrote:
More stem here on the nose, and hard and kinda hard edged still.
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3/15/2017 - cpsmith33 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very nice bottle - similar to last bottle.
Need to buy more.
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2/19/2017 - blaine Likes this wine: 93 Points
This is so good. Medium ruby color, no sign of age but a little translucent on the edges. Explosive lush nose, bit of citrus zest, blue fruits, bit of oak, bit of cardamom. On the palate, juicy acidity fronting ample fruit...but everything in balance. Juicy fruit coats the mouth. You can taste the full clusters, but fully resolved, no green steaminess. Long finish, with continued mouthwatering juiciness. Love this wine!
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2/5/2017 - kthornton78 wrote:
integrating nicely. red fruits, spice, sandalwood, a hint of herbs all supported by finely grained tannins and generous acid and a savory lingering finish. years ahead of it but rounding out nicely.
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2/4/2017 - Moonie wrote: 90 Points
Much better than the 09 Horseshoe Pinot consumed several days ago. Less sweetness and more acidity.
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12/26/2016 - cpsmith33 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Had with a 2010 No Girls Grenache which I preferred (table split evenly). More fruit forward than Burgundy, but less than most Cali pinot. Aromatics not close to the Grenache, but nice. Red cherry, cola and spice definitely there - very smooth and easy to drink. Will get better but very nice now.
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12/23/2016 - BHP1994 wrote: 93 Points
Consistent with previous notes. Delicious.
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11/30/2016 - Mike Dildine Likes this wine: 93 Points
13.1% abv. Medium ruby, expressive aromas. Raspberry, black cherry and Asian spice on the palate. Penetrating, with good depth and length. Vibrant and youthful, this wine comes across as on the early side of a long drinking window.
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11/25/2016 - Topper wrote: 93 Points
Very nice, red fruit forward Cal Pinot that paired nicely with Thanksgiving dinner. Medium body, bright cherry and cola flavors with enough flavor and substance to poke its nose through all the complex flavors of the meal. Very versatile pairing wine
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11/25/2016 - Acohen Likes this wine: 92 Points
Dark cherry, cola and cinnamon notes with nice balance and length
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11/24/2016 - JoshuaG Likes this wine: 93 Points
Really, really good. Great with Thanksgiving dinner. Glad I have more but will be hard not to open.
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11/12/2016 - amoryb wrote:
Drank over two days. Great nose with a mix of spicy and forest. Still very stem-y to taste and I find a bit disjointed. There's an underlying red fruit backbone that still struggles to break through. I'm going to leave remaining bottles sit for a bit and see if this resolves with more time.
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11/5/2016 - rlove wrote: 90 Points
Ruby. A mix of black & blue fruit, sappy balsamic notes, and mint on the nose. Mixed fruit and spice flavors. The 2009 Alpine Vineyard comes across rather straightforward.
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10/10/2016 - rmalloy Likes this wine: 92 Points
In a word, delicious. Scents of strawberry preserves, damp earth, and cinnamon. Big bodied, full of medium-ripe, tangy red fruit. I tend to prefer a lighter-bodied, more nimble and nuanced pinot, but I enjoyed the power in this wine, and it's not too rich in glycerin. Good minerality. Very fine tannins. I wonder where this is headed.
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9/22/2016 - soyhead wrote:
Nose - black licorice , black cherry, touch floral
Mouth - cola-esque, dark fruit is nice and I can see the allure, but I can't help agreeing with my dad that it tastes a bit like a flat coke. Clean.
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9/2/2016 - Racer117 Likes this wine: 93 Points
A perfect blend between new world ripe and flashiness and Burgundian structure. Thanks ShaneT.
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8/19/2016 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Continues to drink beautifully!
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8/18/2016 - budh wrote: 92 Points
Very burgundian - lighter style, a little brett (barnyard), and noticeable tannin. Black cherry, berry, bramble, earth. Full bodied, high acidity, medium alcohol. Fairly long finish with the black cherry and soft tannins lingering. Nice!
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7/12/2016 - locovino wrote: 93 Points
Beautiful SC Mts. Pinot Noir. Dark red cherry and black plum in character. Firm tannins which are just now beginning to soften. Great mineral expression of the site which sets this apart...
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7/12/2016 - pjhr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Delicious black berry, minerals, and forest floor notes on the nose and layered palate with refreshing acidity on the long finish.
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7/5/2016 - dbkitc wrote: 94 Points
I love this winery and this may very well be the best bottle of their wine I have tasted. Black cherry fruit and minerals on the nose. A bit fuller on the palate than some Rhys Pinot but no less balance. This clearly shows its California heritage but maintains classic Rhys equilibrium. Finish lasts and lasts. Perfect wine for the July 4th holiday. (94)
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6/27/2016 - rralls wrote: 93 Points
Clean blue and red fruits, strawberry, great nose, solid stuffing from ripe whole clusters. Damn this is good now but I think it's got a nice life ahead.
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6/19/2016 - DRS-Inc wrote: 91 Points
Double decanted and breathe over 2.5 hrs. Dry, delicate & bit restrained. Notes of red berries, forest floor, rhubarb. Mouth-puckering tannins, crisp acidity and a moderate finish. Let this one age at least another 3-5 years.
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6/11/2016 - DBunk Likes this wine: 94 Points
Wonderful. Forest berries, forest floor and wild strawberries. Amazing stem inclusion that just layers on the flavor profile and complexity at this stage. Smooth acidity and melted tannins.
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6/7/2016 - Jahull03 wrote:
gorgeous. first whiff was wonderful, but got better after an hour open. starting to develop just a bit of secondary flavor - but without mellowing out the energy/tension I consistently find on Rhys pinots (which I love). great on night 2, and still unfolding. no need to rush (even this decade) but drinking wonderfully now.
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5/31/2016 - winelover1986 Likes this wine:
Beautiful nose of sweet cherry and sarsaparilla. Medium full body, presents as low-acid, but on consideration seems relatively high in acid and tannin. Yes, the astringent sensation is there for minutes after swallowing. Lingering cherry on the finish as well. Almost certainly is too young, but the nose is beguiling and it's tasty with food.
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5/25/2016 - 560 B&W Likes this wine: 90 Points
Decanted. Needs more time for the oak to integrate for my taste. But will probably always be a touch too ripe for my taste. 13.1%
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5/4/2016 - Mike Dildine Likes this wine: 94 Points
Beautiful, well mannered, layered, dark red fruit. Should continue to evolve, but drinking great now.
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4/30/2016 - James Kim wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for 2 h. Dark garnet. A-Dark crushed berries, earth, bark with a hint of unsweetened root beer, almost brothy sous bois. P-Equal red/black berries, earth, a hint of unsweetened root beer, bark, hint of damp forest floor/leaves. Mild tannins on midpalate. F- Leaves, earth, bark, fruit, tannins. Long and lingering. Just entering into secondary flavors. Nice to catch this in its evolution. Surprised that it's not shut down. Lovely but wait another 2-5 yrs before opening next one.
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4/26/2016 - B Paul wrote:
Drinking well now. No rush, but no reason to wait in my opinion.
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4/20/2016 - DBunk Likes this wine: 95 Points
Always spectacular. One of, if not the, best California Pinots there are. Layers upon layers with great complexity of fruit, earth,vegetation and a wonderful mouthfeel
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3/31/2016 - rralls wrote: 93 Points
Great stuff.
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3/5/2016 - d_chism wrote: 92 Points
quite enjoyable. Tasted back to back with 2010 Bearswallow and 2010 San Mateo. Liked it more than bearswallow less than San Mateo.
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1/28/2016 - rosenst1 wrote: 92 Points
PnP. Medium dark red. Intense nose of black fruits, mineral, and a floral component which is quite unique. On the palate this is dominated by a mineral quality that seems part whole cluster and part tannins. Intriguing wine that needs more time and air.
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1/22/2016 - domco wrote:
Had high expectations and was a little disappointed. The last bottle was in '12 and loved it. This bottle had a lot more dark fruits going on... not heavy but heavier than I remembered. I found there to be something just a touch bitter and almost metallic on the finish. Throwing out the negatives when really it was a pretty good wine... but my expectations (maybe unfair) were for it to be great.
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11/26/2015 - Diane (LI) wrote:
This has been a consistently good wine. Drinking young, but quite open and expressive. Deep fruit, minerals, tannins are there but not bothersome. I have no more left, but I would guess that this will age nicely.
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10/27/2015 - lolo66 wrote:
bursting with full berries. This is full bodies full throttle pinot. Interestingly, very much in the likes of other larger fruitier pinots.
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10/26/2015 - B Paul wrote: 92 Points
Drinking well. May be some benefit to holding, but not sure there's a ton of upside here.
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10/9/2015 - KeithAkers wrote: 92 Points
Friday night Cali Pinots (Phil's place, Chicago IL): Nose: The nose really favors the red end of the spectrum with tart red cherries, rhubarb, strawberries, some herbal notes, and a touch of pipe tobacco.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium+ acidity and sneaky tannins. The feel is plush and sexy with tart red cherries, herbal notes, pipe tobacco, strawberries, and some earthy notes.
Overall: This is still very primary. The flavor is very primary in nature with a silky side to it.
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9/30/2015 - arniec wrote:
Gift
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9/7/2015 - jwsmith wrote: 91 Points
Surprisingly supple and elegant excellent
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8/28/2015 - shaferguy91 wrote: 91 Points
Decanted 2 hours.
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7/5/2015 - peternelson wrote: 90 Points
Good, strong blackberry notes with distinct bramble and stem inclusion notes; a bit spicy/brambly, forward blackberry notes, medium+ body; nice, but seemed a bit too much pepper/bramble, blackberry bush on the palate.
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6/12/2015 - rmh66 wrote: 90 Points
Pop and pour and followed for many hours. Opened up a bit about an hour in. Black cherry, minerals, smoke, violets, a little iodine, earth, and light barrel scents on the nose. Precise black cherry, tart cherry, red cherry, earth, and minerals on the palate. Nicely balanced acidity, integrated tannins, good finish that lands a bit soft. Delicious. My wife's favorite Pinot. It's quite drinkable now, but should improve in a year to two.
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6/1/2015 - wineduggery Likes this wine: 92 Points
My first single vineyard Rhys, and it did not disappoint. Nutty08 nailed the flavor profile.
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3/20/2015 - Burgundy Al wrote: 93 Points
Lioco and Sonoma Coast Tasting (House of Nanda - Chicago IL): Tasted double blind in a flight of 2009s. Cross-section of red berry and cherry aromas with baking spice. Very impressive balance and textures. We were told 1 of the 4 wines in the flight was Grand Cru Burgundy partway through tasting the flight, and I thought it was this wine. Better than I recall from when tasted shortly after release.
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3/14/2015 - silton Likes this wine: 92 Points
Nicely balanced, multifaceted, and reasonably expressive if understated in places. More back end structure emerged with air. I liked the composition of the nose but wanted a little more power behind the aromas and a more graceful and more saturated mid-palate; I felt like this was still holding something back. Approachable but best to hold. A very good PN, it helps to open your Rhys not expecting a religious experience every time.
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2/22/2015 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 93 Points
My cellar is rather deep in recent Rhys which makes me nervous as I've opened very few of the SV blends. This was showing very well, however, and met my very high expectations. Needed maybe an hour or so of air to show well. Very expressive nose of deep back cherry, anise, spice, and meaty notes. Palate is a little soft and smooth with a little sweetness on the attack, with subtly coarse tannins on the back side. Concentrated black cherry and maybe a little cola, but everything in balance with plenty of nuance despite the ripeness. Finish is long and complex, with a little sandalwood and mineral note mixed in. Very good and seemingly has some upside. Drink or hold.
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2/22/2015 - Eric Guido wrote: 90 Points
What a nose, as it pulls you in with brooding, dark fruit and balsamic tones and then leaves you guessing as a whiff of fresh mint adds whimsical finesse. There’s a mix of fruit here, showing blackberry, blueberry, and dark cherry; all complemented by earth tones of graphite and crushed stone. On the palate, a dark, silky veil enveloped the senses, with black fruit taking second place to its notes of savory herbs, dark wood, and earth. Part of me craved for more acidity here, yet there’s something alluring about it’s weighty textures. It finished with deep wood tones and plum, yet very little in the way of structure. Instead, this goes down all to easy.
I’m stumped here. I typically score a wine on its nose, palate, finish and then overall performance. Those scores are then complied together and averaged out. Here, the nose was an easy 97 points. Yet on the palate it took a dive to 90 and then the finish to 88. The overall experience is hard to gauge because I wanted so much more on the palate. I’m calling this a 90-point wine, with high hopes that this is an odd bottle and unrepresentative of it’s typical performance.
*******
On day two I found more red fruit tones, with a distinct note of pine, woodland stems and hints of cedar. More energy showed on the palate, as its dense black fruit had backed off to a large degree, leaving wild berry and spicy floral notes. It finished fresh with focused red-toned fruit. It’s certainly more enjoyable on the palate than the previous night, but the price you pay is in the loss of the outstanding bouquet.
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1/27/2015 - Diane (LI) wrote:
Decanted one hour. Beautiful aromatics. The palate was black cherries, baking spices, and minerals with acidity sneaking up on you and making it complete. Very pretty.
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11/28/2014 - winopops3 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Brought to the Milling Room. Fairly dark ruby. Nose of spice and dark fruits. This became more complex with air. Black cherry and spice on the palate with medium to long finish. Well balanced acidity. It went very well with the food. A powerful but elegant multifaceted wine.
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11/23/2014 - lolo66 wrote:
on pop n our, first sips showed a vibrant full bodied pinot. A lot of upfront pleasure. More in the blue fruit spectrum than red. Will see how it is on 2nd day.
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11/23/2014 - Screameagle Likes this wine: 92 Points
I've found Rhys pinots to be hit or miss but this bottle was terrific. After just an hour in the decanter we absolutely loved it. A very dark pinot but showed beautifully. This bottle proves to me that the Rhys pinot definitely need at least a couple of years of age to show their best.
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11/19/2014 - Backdoctor wrote: 93 Points
popped and poured, a bit young but still solid wine
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10/27/2014 - Mrbuzz Likes this wine: 95 Points
Needs time to open, started out mute, but with a little air it was ready to par tay! Very round and smooth texture.....dark black cherry, raspberry, rhubarb fruit....perfect sweetness to the dryness. Silky Chambolle Musigny like.....with darker MSD like fruit and spice.......LOVE the spice here! Needs a little coaxing....but there is killer dusty earth, exotic wood, cinnamon spice box....dried berry, perfumed liqueured florals. Then on the finish the wine firms and crunches with some great crushed rock minerals. Sneaky good now....needs coaxing, but should gain even more. Love this!
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10/26/2014 - Frank Murray III wrote:
Been over 3 years since I drank one of these, with the last one at the winery, probably not too much beyond when it was first released. So, there is some bottle age here, along with some slow ox time as I opened this yesterday, no decant and simply put the remaining wine into the fridge once the dinner was over. What's here? First, a dark color. Aromatically, a mix of what comes across as dark coffee, menthol/light stem, pepper. The palate is chocked up with dark cherry fruit, and some black fruit actually, which has the riper edges of the '09 vintage showing, along with some menthol/herb. Can't recall getting black fruit on Rhys but it's here, this is a bit of a brooder of a wine. I find this to be quite approachable now, with the caveat that I did open this a day prior. As a closing comment about a drink window here, I'd say let it rip and get a bottle open. There are a lot of us carrying good size inventories of these wines, wondering about drink windows and so why not let get this open and see what you think. Be interested at our next Rhys dinner to get all of the '09s open and see if we can assert some guidance about the vintage for Rhys.
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10/11/2014 - zscheiner Likes this wine:
Decanted about an hour before dinner. Nose is pretty, sweet baked cherries, some florals and baking spice. The fruit is more restrained in the mouth than the nose suggests, nice mix of ripe and tart berries, minerals and just a hint of oaky spice. Tannins are fine grained, this is drinking well now.
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9/25/2014 - Mike Dildine Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very pretty and well behaved Pinot. It will be interesting to see if this wine will pick up a bit of depth with more time in the bottle.
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8/21/2014 - dhammer53 wrote: 93 Points
Drank this with Berserkers at Peking Duck House in NYC. Smooth. Tasty. Some warmth. Cherry aftertaste. Elegant. Light. Feminine. It was well received by others at dinner.
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8/6/2014 - Wine_in_HD wrote: 89 Points
Rhys Vineyards is located in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The Alpine Vineyard is between 1200 and 1400 ft. and is about 10 miles from the Pacific. This vineyard is planted to heritage pinot noir clones such as Calera, Swan, and Wente. Not a lot of bouquet on the nose, hints of strawberry but then kind of flat with an acidic backing. Another interesting contrast in ratings with Antonio Galloni then at RP giving the wine a 95 while James Laube of WS giving it an 86. I thought the wine was below average. I purchased this wine on Winebid.com
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7/18/2014 - KeithAkers wrote: flawed
An Epic Night of Rhys (Sun Wah BBQ, Chicago IL): A real bummer. You could sense the real good fruit underneath, but this was sadly corked.
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7/18/2014 - dgriffin3480 wrote: flawed
Brought to Chicago offline and was disappointed that this was corked by consensus judgement.
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7/16/2014 - rralls wrote: 94 Points
Just fantastic stuff -- approachable now but as others have said, the best is years to come.
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7/4/2014 - rosenst1 wrote: 92 Points
PnP. Medium dark red. Nose of forest floor, spice, dark fruits buried under that. On the palate has a light mouthfeel but intensity at the same time and then a long brooding finish with mineral and tannins; can see a resemblance to Hirsch but lacking the iron/Gevrey component. Definitely needs time but is approachable today. Should go beautifully with a filet.
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6/29/2014 - Mike Dildine Likes this wine: 95 Points
13.1% alcohol. Medium dark ruby. Extremely expressive, mostly black fruit aromas. On the palate, black cherry, blackberry, mint, a bit of rock and an interesting herbal element. This wine has a lot of everything - power, depth, length, fruit and emerging complexity.
Reminds me of a young Littorai Hirsch. It is tremendous now, but I think it could be truely special with another 5-10+ years in the bottle.
As my bottles gain a bit of age, I think the "Rhys promise" is beginning to emerge.
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5/24/2014 - Michael Davidson wrote:
Yowza. The fruit is CA, but it's so well balanced! So many good savory elements. This is a stunner.
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4/18/2014 - Baggio wrote: 89 Points
A little disappointing on 1st night. Hoping for better results after breathing.
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2/14/2014 - kenhoeve Likes this wine:
pnp- nose of violets, chilled cranberry and cherry compote with a touch of woody stem. sour cherry, dark red cherry, florals, vanilla, woody earth, nutmeg, sarsparilla root, at times slightly herbaceous. long finish with fresh perfumed raspberry. tannins are velvety and coating. needs air, more later, this is shifty.
Coming back after three hours in the decanter. Less complexity showing, the acidity has dropped off but it's more stony and mineral. The tannins have calmed and become very silky and pretty. Intense, but more closed. This needs several years.
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1/18/2014 - Uglypinga wrote:
Fire works. Decanted for two hours. Poured back in the bottle and drank an hour later. Amazing aromatics. Violets, mint, leather. The palate is already doing a great balance dance with bright cherries, pomegranate and that leathery quality. Great wine. Young as hell but already so compelling.
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1/1/2014 - soyhead wrote:
very pure and clean fruit
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12/1/2013 - soyhead wrote:
clean, with good ripe fruit, and nice minerality. seemingly better than the 2008. enjoy now or hold
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11/29/2013 - BHP1994 wrote: 93 Points
Absolutely delicious! Opened and decanted for three hours. Dark and opulent blackberry, blueberry, and bing cherry. As dark a pinot as I've probably ever enjoyed. What was really tremendous was that this richness was not over extracted or hot or viscous. Great acids. Some spice. This wine was singing.
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11/29/2013 - jpecht Likes this wine: 92 Points
dark fruit (cherries and strawberry) linger on a medium long finish. Very nice.
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11/28/2013 - Uglypinga Likes this wine:
Drank it over three days. On the third day it was at its best. Cool, bright fruit throughout. Interesting notes of leaves and tea? A thinking wine but one I enjoyed.
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9/29/2013 - acyso wrote: 93 Points
Lots of brooding dark fruit and a hint of white pepper, but there's still a very light hint of that "just-bottled wine" smell. This is quite dark and ripe on the palate, with some cherry liqueur notes. Slightly sweet and a very present note of oak. I think this needs some time to get everything knit together. I'm sensing that this will end up as a very well-balanced if slightly ripe pinot noir.
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5/7/2013 - kthornton78 Likes this wine: 92 Points
deeply hued. masculine aromas of wood, spice, and red fruit. bold with a structured mouthfeel and a nice acid spine, this will be better as it mellows but the complexity is intriguing and seductive. a rich and complex wine that benefitted from time in the decanter. glad i have more stashed away...
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4/5/2013 - zscheiner Likes this wine:
The aroma was a conversation stopper. And re-directer. This tasted damn good too. No guilt in opening one young.
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3/5/2013 - EMichels wrote: 87 Points
Big nose; A little heat; Dark flavors; Opens up in the glass
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3/1/2013 - sethmorgenlong wrote:
Rather rich, fine whole cluster feel, layered aromatics and not so much elegant as it is full and round. Oak is prominent. Very Rhys and nowhere near ready to drink. Fresh, powerful and only good things ahead.
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3/1/2013 - rm wines wrote:
Rhys and Ceritas Tasting (NYC): This was a quite ripe and bright initially, with a bitter and somewhat oaky palate that needs more time to integrate. After a lot of air, the flavors moderated a bit, and there was an interesting slightly peppery aroma. This wine definitely needs to rest.
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2/8/2013 - Charlie Carnes Likes this wine: 93 Points
This is an extremely aromatic, bright, and red fruited beautiful pinot noir.
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1/26/2013 - Rob and Meg wrote: 89 Points
Assertive nose of tart dark cherries, chalk, vanilla, and spice box. The palate, while obviously young and unyielding, boasts lean sweet dark berries over elements of stem and cedar. The wine finishes fresh and long with tart cherry acidity, oak, orange zest, and rose florals. This is rather masculine in style, and could definitely use some time in the bottle. R&M89
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1/19/2013 - MusignyBlanc wrote: flawed
Corked.
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11/29/2012 - Rob MacKay Likes this wine: 91 Points
Initially a little tart but really comes around nicely with about an hour or two in the decanter. Given that time, the wine softens, lengthens and develops very well with excellent fruit on the palate combined with some spicy oak notes and a really nice finish. Give this one a few more years in the bottle.
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10/19/2012 - Justin B wrote: 90 Points
Quite nice surprisingly on pop'n'pour... but then entered into a weird/closed phase for me after about an hour... then came back into a nice phase again after a few hours. So while this wine can be enjoyable now, as many have said before, it could use more time in the cellar for sure to come together. There is great acidity, fruit and minerality in this wine... I think time will smooth things out and we'll just have to see how it ends up.
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10/15/2012 - mikeaukenbals wrote: 92 Points
great, but wait. more cali than burgundy.
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9/16/2012 - IamNotDrinkingAny#@!%Merlot wrote: 93 Points
Amazing nose of lavender and dark cherries. Very strong minerality. Really tight and structured, even after a 2+ hour decant. Probably should have decanted all day, or waited another 2 years before touching this.
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8/28/2012 - sehill Likes this wine: 93 Points
Opened and poured, this wine gave an outstanding showing with aromatics of dark cherry, earth, chalk, stone and spice notes. The bouquet does shows an underlying green stem note that on this occasion adds to the overall aromatics complexity. The color is a dark ruby to almost purple. The medium (full) bodied palate shows density and enough youthful front to balance the tannins and acidity. The wine give a medium to long finish that shows a chalky, stone note intermingled with the fruit, tannins and acidity. This does drink well now but will most likely benefit from an additional 2 to 3 years of bottle age.
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8/19/2012 - domco wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for about an hour, then drank over the next 3-4. Light on its feet, bright red fruit, nice acidity, smooth finish. Lovely.
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8/10/2012 - Rieslingfan wrote: 94 Points
Unfortunately this wine is irresistable. Deliciously fruity, while remaining restrained. Not so much elegant as just really well put together. I did pick up a little bit of wood, but nothing to distract from the aromatics/flavors coming from the fruit. A little tough on the back end, but if I had any patience I could let my last bottle rest and see if it smooths out a bit with time. Yeah...right...like that's gonna happen.
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7/28/2012 - vinosean wrote: 93 Points
Sacrificed a bottle at this young age for comparison with additional bottles down the line. Decanted and poured directly to glass. Nose of vegetal blueberries with a hint of garrigue and juicy fruit gum. Well balanced and light on the palate. Fantastic finish of cold blueberries, hints of licorice, and cola bottle caps. Opened up and became rounder/fuller over the course of the meal. I suspect this will continue to evolve in bottle and develop additional complexity over time.
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7/17/2012 - Uglypinga wrote:
The nose is tight but hints at blue fruits, cedar and spices with a lot of swirling. Crunchy blue fruit at first open up over a few hours to reveal cherries, a hint of cola, and a little wood on the palate. Still tightly wound, this needs a lot of time but a friend wanted to try a Rhys and this is what I grabbed first. He loved it.
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7/11/2012 - Wine Sparty wrote: 92 Points
Opened up and let slow-ox for about an hour before drinking with grilled chicken. Very interesting mix of smooth black cherry & cola and some earthiness & leather. Very smooth with good fruit, but also has some tannin on the finish. I would like to see this again in a couple years. I'll let my other bottle rest for awhile.
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5/27/2012 - B Paul wrote: 92 Points
Consumed over two nights. Nose was great and expressive from the start with spice, red fruit and maybe a bit of vanilla. At times, I also picked up on an iron-like aroma/taste. Better on day two and a couple of years of bottle age may improve this significantly. 92+
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4/14/2012 - Charlie Pendejo wrote: 92 Points
Damn you, Rhys: your tiny type on the label had me inadvertently opening this, my sole bottle of Alipne, which I'd intended to age for years, toward the end of a humble non-geeky movie night (Putney Swope, for the record) when of course I'd intended to check in on an '09 Santa Cruz Mountains - which is, you know, much cheaper, alleged by some to be far readier, and, well, I have three of 'em. I didn't even discover my error until polishing off the bottle on night two. No wonder my guests remarked how good this was, and I thought, "wow, if *this* is their humbler less complex appelation pinot, I can only imagine the SVDs!" Well, it's plainly a brooding and complex wine which should be really rockin' closer to 2020 than 2012, but I will say it's a heck of a glass even now. First two notes here mirror my experience (and say it far more articulately than I could): there's a lot of elements here, from deep dark sweet fruit with a tart cranberry element to some stem funk and, yeah, gunpowder. Well, as the first Rhys I've uncorked after buying from the last two offerings, at least it helps assure me that I do in fact like their style. Quite a lot.
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4/8/2012 - wineaux2 wrote: 91 Points
On pop and pour, tart cherry and cran-apple were underpinned with shades of warm vanilla and cinnamon. With air, the tart red fruit notes subsided, and the wine then showed more blue fruit character. Green stems lingered in the background but were not very prominent; the finish added a chalky note. Despite all that, this pinot seemed a bit tight, though thinking this should eventually surpass the '09 declassified Santa Cruz bottling in the complexity department. But, the pleasures both wines offered were neck and neck for me at this point with the Santa Cruz offering a more tantalizing nose and this one giving more to ponder on the palate.
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4/8/2012 - Burgundy Al wrote: 92 Points
Ripe red cherry aromas with roses and some clove, cinnamon and black pepper. Ripe red and black cherry flavors with same good spice, good length and power, with trace hints of cherry cola coming through on finish.
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4/3/2012 - gunpwdr wrote: 84 Points
Nose: Scorched earth, caramel-soaked cedar, Chinese grass jelly, tar. Behind all the darkness are hints of strawberries, cherries, but the fruit is generally hard to pick up. Palate: Spiced, dark cherries, tar, crushed gravel on the attack. Good tannins and acidity on the mid-palate with hints of dark cherries. Tart cherries, cedar linger on the finish.
So dark and masculine right now, showing all structure with no real evidence of sweetness or ripe fruit behind it. Not even an iota of primary fruit on the nose or palate. This is all with 6+ hours in a decanter. I'm not convinced that there is stuffing here but the other bottles I have will need 5+ years. I will check in on another before then I'm sure but as it is today I consider this Alpine only decent with the possibility of becoming pretty good.
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11/12/2011 - yhn wrote: 91 Points
Nose - warm, smooth, nutmeg, hint of clove, licorice, black cherry.
Shy, light body, cherry, clove, dusty wood. Drink '16-'22. 91+ pts
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11/12/2011 - xwine wrote:
Tasted at the Nov. 12, 2011, pickup day. Highly perfumed nose, with nice intensity, and a very slight backnote of vanilla. Palate is focused, with good energy; the tannins are evident but finely textured; deep and intense red fruit. Engaging, and very nice.
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11/12/2011 - Steve Brickley Likes this wine: 92 Points
Tasted at pick-up day. Medium purple; berry fruits, pepper; closed, higher acid, mid weight, light touch on the oak. A thoroughly enjoyable PN that needs some years to open.
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11/12/2011 - jakuda wrote:
Tasted at the Pickup day. No formal notes taken. Bottles were slow-oxed by the winery elves. Deep red fruit and heavy floral aromas. Medium-bodied with good precision. Stony with spice. (Some may call it stemmy and green, but I don't find it as such). Things are still tight, but it probably will show better earlier than the 2008 Alpine.
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3/17/2011 - Frank Murray III wrote:
Rhys Visit--All The 2009s From Bottle! (Rhys Estate (At The Winery)): 13.1%, 60% new wood and 90% whole cluster. Aromatic was mix of green stalk and maple. Might sound odd but this is what I got and it was the same for me when I retasted it again towards the end of the flight. Of all the 2009s, this was the most closed of all of them, the tightest. Full of dark raspberry, blueberry and lots of depth. Stony and stemmy with lots of tannin and suavage character, with pine needle and licorice. This wine was the most challenging for me to get my head around but has so much going on in it, really amazing.
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