On opening very tannic and not much fruit. That smoothed out in 30 or 40 minutes and became a great dinner wine with lamb meatballs in tomato sauce. Delicious. I do not think this is a long keeper. Drink up.
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Dark-dark purple color, aromas of dark fruit, menthol, and black olives. Full bodied flavors of blackberry-blueberry and dark chocolate, full-tilt on the front, but nothing on the back, not very balanced. Drink now.
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Dark purple in color, aromas of cedar box, forest floor, and spice. Very smooth, no rough edges left, blueberry and blackberry with a little earthy nuance. All-in-all a good wine, but mostly primary fruit that lacks a complexity that would make it great.
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This is a marvelous, minty CS in the style of the unfiltered 1960s Krug when Mondavi was making it. Very well structured and ready to drink. I think it is good for a few more years but it is perfect now. The second day left nothing to be desired. Wonderful!
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Side-by-side comparison with '09 Doubleback, which was better, but not by much. For $30 less, this wins the QPR test. Dusty tannins and black cherry flavor are salient attributes...and a saline juiciness make this very enjoyable. Appears to have plenty of life left.
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Had this with the Januik Champoux 2008, and both wines were disappointing, with too much sweetness in the fruit, no structure and a fair amount of oak still. Very soft in the mouth, concentrated and a full bodied palate with blackfruits. Both were OK, but were too ripe and didn't have enough acid or structure for me (B+).
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Not the equal of the 2008 vintage...indeed, not even close. Still a nice wine though. Heavy, extracted, inky, oaky, high alcohol. But, there's something about the Champoux fruit and terroir that comes through...it's ridiculously charming.
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Yesterday: decanted and had a quick glass with no air time. Heat on the nose, dark fruits, and oak application that seemed glaring. Seemed a tiny bit disjointed on the palate with acidity slightly out of balance, perhaps because of the alcohol. Pretty significant tannin as well. But I would really liked to have tasted this after it had been open for a while.
Day 2: Seems a bit oxidized today. After getting back to drinking temperature, this has mocha and raspberry liqueur notes on the nose, but tending toward the overripe. Still lots of tannin on the palate, but not as nice as other Fidelitas wines I've had recently. Anyway, this is not an optimal tasting.
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This has a big dark fruit earth nose. The flavors are spicy dark fruit, heavy on the spice with a long dry finish. It's not a "Wow, wish I had tons of this" wine, but it is a very pleasant enjoyable wine. "She" thinks it is a bit "fruit forward/sweet" "He" thinks it is a bit "dry". Don't know what "he" is talking about.. :)
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Wonderful wine for a special occasion. Very dark ruby; only the outer edge lets any light through. Full nose that made me feel like I was in the cellar surrounded by aging casks. Looong finish.
4/10/2022 - PhN Likes this wine: 90 Points
On opening very tannic and not much fruit. That smoothed out in 30 or 40 minutes and became a great dinner wine with lamb meatballs in tomato sauce. Delicious. I do not think this is a long keeper. Drink up.
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12/27/2020 - bluepeter2020@outlook.com Likes this wine: 92 Points
Complex black fruit and spice, full bodied with a long finish. Drinking beautifully right now.
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6/3/2020 - BarryInSeattle wrote: 95 Points
Wow. Velvety, full, rich.
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10/1/2018 - Susaninaustin Likes this wine:
3
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7/6/2018 - kmadamskkz Likes this wine: 89 Points
Dark-dark purple color, aromas of dark fruit, menthol, and black olives. Full bodied flavors of blackberry-blueberry and dark chocolate, full-tilt on the front, but nothing on the back, not very balanced. Drink now.
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4/5/2018 - kmadamskkz Likes this wine: 91 Points
Dark purple in color, aromas of cedar box, forest floor, and spice. Very smooth, no rough edges left, blueberry and blackberry with a little earthy nuance. All-in-all a good wine, but mostly primary fruit that lacks a complexity that would make it great.
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2/7/2018 - Nbkat8 wrote: 91 Points
It was good but I didn't get that great Champoux character out of this one. Will have to wait a year or two to drink the others.
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5/31/2017 - PhN Likes this wine: 94 Points
This is a marvelous, minty CS in the style of the unfiltered 1960s Krug when Mondavi was making it. Very well structured and ready to drink. I think it is good for a few more years but it is perfect now. The second day left nothing to be desired. Wonderful!
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12/3/2016 - Pedroel Likes this wine: 91 Points
Side-by-side comparison with '09 Doubleback, which was better, but not by much. For $30 less, this wins the QPR test. Dusty tannins and black cherry flavor are salient attributes...and a saline juiciness make this very enjoyable. Appears to have plenty of life left.
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11/15/2016 - jeffhqb Likes this wine: 93 Points
Day 2 was excellent. Rich and round with fully integrated barrel effects.
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11/11/2016 - JohnSh wrote:
Lots of reduction in the nose, but the palate seemed relatively unaffected. But this was not a perfect bottle by any means, so no score or notes.
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6/25/2016 - JohnSh wrote: 88 Points
Had this with the Januik Champoux 2008, and both wines were disappointing, with too much sweetness in the fruit, no structure and a fair amount of oak still. Very soft in the mouth, concentrated and a full bodied palate with blackfruits. Both were OK, but were too ripe and didn't have enough acid or structure for me (B+).
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5/30/2016 - spidersva Likes this wine: 89 Points
I like it, but I can't say I'm blown away. Maybe too early in the drinking window?
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5/24/2015 - Francophile Likes this wine: 91 Points
Exceedingly smooth
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1/11/2015 - Motz wrote: 92 Points
Not the equal of the 2008 vintage...indeed, not even close. Still a nice wine though. Heavy, extracted, inky, oaky, high alcohol. But, there's something about the Champoux fruit and terroir that comes through...it's ridiculously charming.
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11/30/2014 - Aravind Asok wrote:
Yesterday: decanted and had a quick glass with no air time. Heat on the nose, dark fruits, and oak application that seemed glaring. Seemed a tiny bit disjointed on the palate with acidity slightly out of balance, perhaps because of the alcohol. Pretty significant tannin as well. But I would really liked to have tasted this after it had been open for a while.
Day 2: Seems a bit oxidized today. After getting back to drinking temperature, this has mocha and raspberry liqueur notes on the nose, but tending toward the overripe. Still lots of tannin on the palate, but not as nice as other Fidelitas wines I've had recently. Anyway, this is not an optimal tasting.
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11/11/2014 - blabbott wrote:
This has a big dark fruit earth nose. The flavors are spicy dark fruit, heavy on the spice with a long dry finish. It's not a "Wow, wish I had tons of this" wine, but it is a very pleasant enjoyable wine. "She" thinks it is a bit "fruit forward/sweet" "He" thinks it is a bit "dry". Don't know what "he" is talking about.. :)
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12/20/2013 - NavyVet6874 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Wonderful wine for a special occasion. Very dark ruby; only the outer edge lets any light through. Full nose that made me feel like I was in the cellar surrounded by aging casks. Looong finish.
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