a bit pale in comparison to a great btl I had in 2021. Felt slightly hollow and needed to flesh out more. There some meat on the bones but not enough. Guessing the btl showing slightly tired. Kinda tannic and not super expressive.
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The CFO's Birthday: A bit of a weird wine tonight. Dark in color with the appearance of a young wine, but with almost a delicate body in comparison. Didn't improve much in the decanter and it was also being copiously consumed by a wine newbie at the event, so double whammy. Wish I could've followed it over time.
The 1988 was blooming after a hour or so of air in the decanter. The wine is dark and meaty but with a stem profile that creates a spicy bright bump in the wine. It's a powerful mix of campfire, cracked pepper, black fruit, graphite. Normally when you think of those characteristics you think of something a bit heavier and monolithic but this wine was anything but. The acid component created a wrap around the flavor that made it almost seem elegant with such youthful balance behind it. Truly special wine.
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Just magnificent. Like no other wine on the planet. Beguiling, deep, seductive nose. Incredible length and depth on palate. A fascinating seam of stems/greenness which to me keeps it fresh. Also only 12.5% alcohol. Perfect bottle, still in early middle age. Should go another decade at peak. What bliss.
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WOTN in a serious line up of Verset and Gentaz. Amazing youthfulness. Dark red color. Spices, garrigue, meat, grill, campfire, lamb and meat spice, complexity. This was very young and in great shape. Seriously impressive and enjoyable.
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Unicorn Rhones (aka a taste-off btwn Verset and Gentaz with a few bonuses) (Momofuku Ko): Really beautiful wine. Again lots of freshness and get a bit of the stems. There's a bit more of the northern rhone blood and meat profile here. A bit of a kick in the midpalate - maybe a touch of tartness but it feels more just like a burst of flavor. And then ends with some more peppery notes. This wine feels like it's still very young. All of the wine at the dinner had basically perfect provenance and in that state this could have gone for a lot longer.
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88 is great. Dark, intense, complex. Meats, grill, pepper, campfire, wild game, charcoal, loads of black fruits. This is a baby. Graphite and so much nuance. Liquified charcoal. Amazing to see how much nuance there is in these wines.
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Crackling nose giving off beautiful ceramic and acrylic notes in addition to energetic iterations of the classic Northern Rhône smoked meat, bacon fat, rustic earth, violet florals, and blackberry fruit. While this nose with highly expressive and showy the palate was youthful and intense and just opening up. Charcoal and graphite. Served in a spectacular flight of ‘89, ‘88, ‘85, ‘83. ‘88 the clear winner for its crackling nose and balance of power and elegance.
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Perfection. Epitome of balance, depth, complexity, energy and seamlessness, with just a hint of sauvage. The ideal of Syrah. And yet true to itself and not overthought or forced. Sometimes the hype is for a reason.
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Gentaz. Wine of the night, as good a Syrah as any. Lifted with the good stink. Fresh palate that's pre-decay. Antiseptically clean, goes on and on. Bloody brilliant, the end.
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Rare Cote-Rotie Dinner ('91, '88, '83) (Blue Hill (NYC)): Great bouquet with pronounced bouldery minerality, acrylics, smoked meat, and red and blue fruit with mild earth influence. Super expressive and showy. On the palate the fruit here is a little riper and very approachable. Structured and lively. Commanding mid palate and finish, immense flavour and complexity.
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Cellared since original release, Kermit Lynch Import.
About as great as Côte-Rôtie can get with plenty of complexity, bacony dark fruit and overall elegance to go with the depth and penetration. Mature now, but no hurry.
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Dark beautiful color. Absolutely extraordinary aromatics with notes of ripe dark cherries, flowers, sweet earth, baconfat and Eastern spices. Beautiful lacy texture that unfolds in layers with captivating flavors of black cherries, earth and spice. Lovely acids balance out the gorgeous fruit and the wine is so pure and focused, almost like grand cru Burgundy. There are still tannins present and the finish is finely complex with beautiful mineral and spice notes. This is simply incredible juice.
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Impromptu gathering (Washington DC): Expressive red fruit driven nose, red cherry, kirschwasser, a hint of green olives, smoke meat and garrigue. Very polished burgundian palate with bright acidity and nicely integrated tannins. It may be blasphemy for some, but this reminds me the 92 and 94 Raymond Trollat St. Joseph. I also find some similarity with the 04 Rostaing Cote Blonde. Exceptional nose and polished palate. Not sure whether it deserves the lofty price.
Utterly thrilling immediately, with exquisitely beautiful aromatics, such complexity. I drank it with my nose alone. Airy, pure, stable (as opposed to Verset, for example, which feels more volatile), silken, and just gorgeous. As fine a bottle of wine as I have had.
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2012 - Gary's wine bash! (Jade Palace Seafood Restaurant, The Forum Shopping Mall, Orchard Road): Alcohol :: 12.5% Opened for 2.5hrs. Darker garnet core than the Rayas. This is an excellent example of classic CR, loaded with power yet so weightless and boosted with finesse and class. One of the most complex (along with Guigal Lala's) but definitely the most feminine and seductive aromatic profile thus far: rose petal, spices, sweet herbs, mild meatiness, intense core of sweet dark cherry fruits and mineral. First impression of this medium bodied CR was: elegance and finesse. It has great intensity, but it is weightless with complex flavors that are well delineated and perfectly balance by the backbone which formed by the bright acidity and silky tannin. In a word: harmony. I especially enjoy the purity and freshness here. It has such breathtaking personality and utterly delicious. The length of the finish left me speechless, ethereal. Lingering with mineral, dried tea leaves and savory complexity. An extraordinary CR with and one might not able to find the style anymore in the modern day. I'm glad that I had this at least once in my life time.
p/s: my friend who brought the remaining wine back commented that the wine still taste delicious with super finish that left him speechless, too.
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Another delicious bottle, although needed at least an hour to start to show is stuff. Really tarry nose, stern fruit with a hint of rosewater, but good length and structure. This is a style of Cote Rotie that is not made anymore.
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This is everything you would ever want from drinking a bottle of wine. Proper Cote Rotie, not as adulterated by Msr Guigal. No overpowering new oak, just layers of complexity, smoke, hint of spice, tar, smooth tannins, so well balanced, and yet so real and alive. Much closer to a Cornas perhaps, but this is Cote Rotie that is as it should be. A wine that everyone should try.
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8/17/2023 - clayfu wrote:
a bit pale in comparison to a great btl I had in 2021. Felt slightly hollow and needed to flesh out more. There some meat on the bones but not enough. Guessing the btl showing slightly tired. Kinda tannic and not super expressive.
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8/20/2022 - Satoshi Nakamoto wrote:
The CFO's Birthday: A bit of a weird wine tonight. Dark in color with the appearance of a young wine, but with almost a delicate body in comparison. Didn't improve much in the decanter and it was also being copiously consumed by a wine newbie at the event, so double whammy. Wish I could've followed it over time.
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1/5/2022 - tinybubbles Likes this wine: 94 Points
Light funkiness here, not atypical. Good length.
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9/11/2021 - clayfu wrote:
The 1988 was blooming after a hour or so of air in the decanter. The wine is dark and meaty but with a stem profile that creates a spicy bright bump in the wine. It's a powerful mix of campfire, cracked pepper, black fruit, graphite. Normally when you think of those characteristics you think of something a bit heavier and monolithic but this wine was anything but. The acid component created a wrap around the flavor that made it almost seem elegant with such youthful balance behind it. Truly special wine.
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7/2/2020 - tinybubbles wrote:
An overall funkiness here. Underwhelming bottle.
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10/13/2019 - LW31 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Just magnificent. Like no other wine on the planet. Beguiling, deep, seductive nose. Incredible length and depth on palate. A fascinating seam of stems/greenness which to me keeps it fresh. Also only 12.5% alcohol. Perfect bottle, still in early middle age. Should go another decade at peak. What bliss.
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11/8/2018 - Kemo Sabe Likes this wine: 97 Points
WOTN in a serious line up of Verset and Gentaz. Amazing youthfulness. Dark red color. Spices, garrigue, meat, grill, campfire, lamb and meat spice, complexity. This was very young and in great shape. Seriously impressive and enjoyable.
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11/6/2018 - MC2 Wines wrote: 94 Points
Unicorn Rhones (aka a taste-off btwn Verset and Gentaz with a few bonuses) (Momofuku Ko): Really beautiful wine. Again lots of freshness and get a bit of the stems. There's a bit more of the northern rhone blood and meat profile here. A bit of a kick in the midpalate - maybe a touch of tartness but it feels more just like a burst of flavor. And then ends with some more peppery notes. This wine feels like it's still very young. All of the wine at the dinner had basically perfect provenance and in that state this could have gone for a lot longer.
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8/4/2018 - Kemo Sabe Likes this wine: 96 Points
88 is great. Dark, intense, complex. Meats, grill, pepper, campfire, wild game, charcoal, loads of black fruits. This is a baby. Graphite and so much nuance. Liquified charcoal. Amazing to see how much nuance there is in these wines.
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8/2/2018 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 97 Points
Crackling nose giving off beautiful ceramic and acrylic notes in addition to energetic iterations of the classic Northern Rhône smoked meat, bacon fat, rustic earth, violet florals, and blackberry fruit. While this nose with highly expressive and showy the palate was youthful and intense and just opening up. Charcoal and graphite. Served in a spectacular flight of ‘89, ‘88, ‘85, ‘83. ‘88 the clear winner for its crackling nose and balance of power and elegance.
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6/29/2018 - LW31 Likes this wine:
Perfection. Epitome of balance, depth, complexity, energy and seamlessness, with just a hint of sauvage. The ideal of Syrah. And yet true to itself and not overthought or forced. Sometimes the hype is for a reason.
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6/8/2018 - fcxj wrote: 98 Points
Gentaz. Wine of the night, as good a Syrah as any. Lifted with the good stink. Fresh palate that's pre-decay. Antiseptically clean, goes on and on. Bloody brilliant, the end.
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12/13/2017 - lepetitchateau wrote: flawed
Shows bret on the nose, with muddy, earthy but rich notes. Has a brief display of classic Gentaz but quickly falls apart...
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11/17/2017 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 96 Points
Rare Cote-Rotie Dinner ('91, '88, '83) (Blue Hill (NYC)): Great bouquet with pronounced bouldery minerality, acrylics, smoked meat, and red and blue fruit with mild earth influence. Super expressive and showy. On the palate the fruit here is a little riper and very approachable. Structured and lively. Commanding mid palate and finish, immense flavour and complexity.
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7/4/2016 - cfk49 wrote: 96 Points
Cellared since original release, Kermit Lynch Import.
About as great as Côte-Rôtie can get with plenty of complexity, bacony dark fruit and overall elegance to go with the depth and penetration. Mature now, but no hurry.
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11/30/2014 - dcwino wrote: flawed
White Truffle Dinner – 78 Giacosas riservas, 88 Gentaz, 89 & 90 Sandrone, 00 CdM and etc. (Al Tiramisu - Washington DC): I must be a lucky man to have so many generous friends. Unfortunately this was slightly off, every so slightly TCA tainted. Nevertheless, the palate displayed lovely red cherry fruits, smoke meat and Herbes de Provence. Really unique wine with kinda kinky nose.
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9/5/2014 - dream Likes this wine: 97 Points
Dark beautiful color. Absolutely extraordinary aromatics with notes of ripe dark cherries, flowers, sweet earth, baconfat and Eastern spices. Beautiful lacy texture that unfolds in layers with captivating flavors of black cherries, earth and spice. Lovely acids balance out the gorgeous fruit and the wine is so pure and focused, almost like grand cru Burgundy. There are still tannins present and the finish is finely complex with beautiful mineral and spice notes. This is simply incredible juice.
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6/21/2014 - dcwino wrote: 96 Points
Impromptu gathering (Washington DC): Expressive red fruit driven nose, red cherry, kirschwasser, a hint of green olives, smoke meat and garrigue. Very polished burgundian palate with bright acidity and nicely integrated tannins. It may be blasphemy for some, but this reminds me the 92 and 94 Raymond Trollat St. Joseph. I also find some similarity with the 04 Rostaing Cote Blonde. Exceptional nose and polished palate. Not sure whether it deserves the lofty price.
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12/5/2012 - brooklynguy wrote:
Utterly thrilling immediately, with exquisitely beautiful aromatics, such complexity. I drank it with my nose alone. Airy, pure, stable (as opposed to Verset, for example, which feels more volatile), silken, and just gorgeous. As fine a bottle of wine as I have had.
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7/6/2012 - Sleepy Dave wrote: 96 Points
2012 - Gary's wine bash! (Jade Palace Seafood Restaurant, The Forum Shopping Mall, Orchard Road): Alcohol :: 12.5%
Opened for 2.5hrs. Darker garnet core than the Rayas. This is an excellent example of classic CR, loaded with power yet so weightless and boosted with finesse and class. One of the most complex (along with Guigal Lala's) but definitely the most feminine and seductive aromatic profile thus far: rose petal, spices, sweet herbs, mild meatiness, intense core of sweet dark cherry fruits and mineral. First impression of this medium bodied CR was: elegance and finesse. It has great intensity, but it is weightless with complex flavors that are well delineated and perfectly balance by the backbone which formed by the bright acidity and silky tannin. In a word: harmony. I especially enjoy the purity and freshness here. It has such breathtaking personality and utterly delicious. The length of the finish left me speechless, ethereal. Lingering with mineral, dried tea leaves and savory complexity. An extraordinary CR with and one might not able to find the style anymore in the modern day. I'm glad that I had this at least once in my life time.
p/s: my friend who brought the remaining wine back commented that the wine still taste delicious with super finish that left him speechless, too.
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5/8/2011 - bristol411 wrote: 95 Points
Delicious, smoky nose, liquorice, real structure, some pepper, iron in the mouth, long finish.
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11/28/2010 - bristol411 wrote: 94 Points
Another delicious bottle, although needed at least an hour to start to show is stuff. Really tarry nose, stern fruit with a hint of rosewater, but good length and structure. This is a style of Cote Rotie that is not made anymore.
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10/3/2010 - bristol411 wrote: 96 Points
This is everything you would ever want from drinking a bottle of wine. Proper Cote Rotie, not as adulterated by Msr Guigal. No overpowering new oak, just layers of complexity, smoke, hint of spice, tar, smooth tannins, so well balanced, and yet so real and alive. Much closer to a Cornas perhaps, but this is Cote Rotie that is as it should be. A wine that everyone should try.
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3/12/2008 - cellarid wrote: 94 Points
Stunning, super-traditional mineral-driven Cote-Rotie. Absolutely thrilling wine. Great acidic punch, tons of mature fruit and solid structure.
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