What a stunner! At twelve years of bottle age this is still in great condition. A recent purchase from BWG proved a great decision as this purchase was a trio of Keplinger bottlings. Caldera, Basilisk & Red Slope. All from 2010.
The 4% Syrah created a nice backbone of structure that provide some complexity to this Grenache. Unfortunately this will be hard to come by as this was the last vintage of Red Slope.
Drink or Hold
95+
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Pure joy! On the nose I had the same funk as the rock district. The palate was silky smooth with raspberries and strawberries. The flavors went on and on, with wanting a refresh to keep it going. Loved this and I’m glad I have one more.
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Beyond a little heat, if I was tasting this blind, would have guessed a first class CDP. Grenache color, but surprisingly rich showing black raspberry, forest floor, clove, holiday spice, and a little white pepper. Smooth and balanced with tons of fruit remaining. Tannins present but not overpowering. The presence of the fruit and tannin bodes well for another 3-5 years. Great job Helen!!
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Still a tad too tannic but really nice nonetheless. Great nose. Nice finish, particularly the first few seconds. Lot of reliable Syrah attributes are present here. Likely will improve with 3-5 more years to the extent you would like the tannins to settle a little more.
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Agree with the notes from others. A beautiful wine and one of my favorites from Helen Keplinger. Don't miss red slope if you are on the list. You can drink these after a couple of years, but five to 10 years seems to perfect. Day four and the wine is full bodies and showing no sign of fading. Well balanced with black and red rasberry fruit plus cassis. No hard edges. This might age 10 years, but why wait as it is perfect now.
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Decanted. Showing intense aromas right on decant. After air time this wine is no less intense and displays complex aromas of cardamom spiced strawberry preserve, bergamot, raspberry fruit roll-up, dark cherry, linzer torte, marzipan and jasmine with underlying notes of blackberry, eucalyptus and rock. Absolutely beautiful on the palate displaying intense and complex flavors of linzer torte, cardamom and baking spices, raspberry and strawberry fruit paste, marzipan, white pepper, citrus oil, jasmine tea, rock and hints of mint, apricot and tobacco. The texture is plush and open with great balance and structure. The finish linger with intensity.
This is Grenache in one of its purest expressions, showing complexity, femininity and the subtleties of the varietal that many winemakers can and do cover and obliterate.
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Popped and poured. Great nose of red fruits, Mouvedre funk, herbs, and spice. Very much Cali meets Southern Rhone. On the palate, rich with raspberry, cherry, spice, and sage. Long finish with the tiniest bit of heat. Really good stuff, should get better with a couple more years in the bottle. Drink with a short decant or hold.
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This blossomed since my last tasting 16 months ago. Laser like, expressive, fruit driven nose with macerated strawberry and raspberry. Floral notes and subtle spice adds interesting layers to all the fruit. The palate is much fuller showing spice, orange peel and red fruit. Over time this began to shut down. Hefty wine, though I am impressed with how well it carried the weight. Screams CA in a classy way. This will continue to mellow with age.
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A floral nose of cherry and fresh raspberry. Cherry, raspberry, slate, herbs tobacco and oak. Very well balanced wine with fine tannins and complexity. Extremely long finish as the primary flavors peeled away to reveal layers and layers of additional flavors. Wonderful stuff.
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DO NOT OPEN yet wait at least 2 to 3 yrs min. This beast was disjointd at best. It took 5 days for it to calm down and reveal only a glimpse of its potential. Nose is only showing some slight sweet red fruit. Tannin is fine but still huge. Red fruit and hint of spice. Acid is apparent, but not overly done. I wish I had another bottle to try later on.
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This is my first experience with Keplinger wines and it was a very pleasant one. This Grenache is a very bold and complex wine. It has a very deep purple color and an aromatic nose of dark berries, red berries, and spice. This wine is fruity, with tastes of berries from dark to light: blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries - all present. There is also plenty of spice and oak noted. It is complex, balanced, and medium to full bodied with an ample finish.
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Intense. Improved significantly with time in decanter. Massive blueberry at first, showed a hint of heat on the finish which was no longer present after 45 minutes in decanter. Overall well enjoyed but we preferred the 2011 Lithic which we had open at the same time.
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Nice blend, smooth mouthfeel, maybe a touch on the sweet side but overall not a bad wine. Raspberries or strawberries, on the nose with a decent finish. Much better then the last bottle of this I drank, which makes me wonder if the other bottle was maybe off somehow.
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Vintage Helen! Spices, red currant, iron, dark fruit with structure and complexity. Classic Keplinger nose that carries with consistency to the silky palate and lingering finish. Should improve with more time in bottle. Great effort here.
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Delicious, glossy purple fruits with dank plum and redcurrant wrapped in strawberry and floral aromas; structured and hefty (one glass left overnight in a decanter was intact the next day) but surprisingly approachable due to its ripe flavors and modest acids, which also limit its definition and range of expression, at least for now.
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Really showing well with nose of red and dark fruit and a little bit of Mourvedre funk along with hints of anise. On the palate, blackberry, blueberry, licorice. Long crisp finish.
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Popped 1 hour before first pour, consumed over 3 hours. Nose: Medium expressiveness, complexity abounds here - raspberry, elderberry, spice, rusty earth - iron component, also hints of shoe leather and ice tea - very interesting and immensely enjoyable. Palate: Medium-full bodied, clean and smooth mouth-feel, spicy red fruit attack joined by tobacco and tea, great mid-palate density, nice acidic balance, the flavor joy ride just builds in intensity all the way thru the back-end. Finish: Lengthy sense of rich and spicy red fruit which persists for a minute plus.
This has Helen stamped all over it. There is just a wonderful commonality of purity and balance with all of her wines no matter the fruit source, in this case Knight's Valley.
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Okay opened this bottle fully prepared to love it, as I do many of the wines made by this producer and I love a well done Grenache. However, just couldn't get past what I thought was the over done quality of the wine. Gassed and corked the wine and not much changed the next day. Nose is Strawberries and light fruit, palate was a bit over extracted for my tastes. Will sit on my other bottle of this and hope it gets better.
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First Keplinger experience... Wonderful nose of raspberry and strawberry fields. A bit of spice with candied red fruit on the nose as well. On the palate, after decanting for two hours, it is soft, round, siky, with red fruit, a finish which builds with time. This is all about bright fruits and some herbs and burnt-end bbq on the end. Toasty and big, yet light and balanced. Great wine.
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Very good even in it's youth. All the makings for an outstanding bottle in the years to come. Went fabulously with wild boar fettuccine at Trattoria Pasquale in Tampa, FL.
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1/1/2023 - MJP Hou TX Likes this wine: 95 Points
What a stunner! At twelve years of bottle age this is still in great condition. A recent purchase from BWG proved a great decision as this purchase was a trio of Keplinger bottlings. Caldera, Basilisk & Red Slope. All from 2010.
The 4% Syrah created a nice backbone of structure that provide some complexity to this Grenache. Unfortunately this will be hard to come by as this was the last vintage of Red Slope.
Drink or Hold
95+
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9/17/2022 - ccotton8 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Pure joy! On the nose I had the same funk as the rock district. The palate was silky smooth with raspberries and strawberries. The flavors went on and on, with wanting a refresh to keep it going. Loved this and I’m glad I have one more.
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10/23/2021 - Fugu Me Likes this wine:
PnP, this was liquid silk. Absolutely delicious.
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12/23/2020 - Crunge Likes this wine: 91 Points
Nice aged Grenache. Earth and spice backed up by cherry flavors. Not past its prime yet but drink up, as I can't see it improving.
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12/2/2020 - papabluez wrote: 94 Points
Beyond a little heat, if I was tasting this blind, would have guessed a first class CDP. Grenache color, but surprisingly rich showing black raspberry, forest floor, clove, holiday spice, and a little white pepper.
Smooth and balanced with tons of fruit remaining. Tannins present but not overpowering. The presence of the fruit and tannin bodes well for another 3-5 years. Great job Helen!!
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12/18/2019 - Castle Peak wrote: 93 Points
Big, rich and powerful. Drank over 2 days. This has backbone to age for a decade and beyond.
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3/24/2019 - fournet Likes this wine: 93 Points
Still a tad too tannic but really nice nonetheless. Great nose. Nice finish, particularly the first few seconds. Lot of reliable Syrah attributes are present here. Likely will improve with 3-5 more years to the extent you would like the tannins to settle a little more.
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5/7/2018 - Castle Peak wrote: 91 Points
Drank over 3 days. Consistent notes.
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8/16/2017 - Jimaronson Likes this wine: 95 Points
Agree with the notes from others. A beautiful wine and one of my favorites from Helen Keplinger. Don't miss red slope if you are on the list. You can drink these after a couple of years, but five to 10 years seems to perfect. Day four and the wine is full bodies and showing no sign of fading. Well balanced with black and red rasberry fruit plus cassis. No hard edges. This might age 10 years, but why wait as it is perfect now.
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7/30/2017 - bjamesclark wrote: 94 Points
Decanted.
Showing intense aromas right on decant. After air time this wine is no less intense and displays complex aromas of cardamom spiced strawberry preserve, bergamot, raspberry fruit roll-up, dark cherry, linzer torte, marzipan and jasmine with underlying notes of blackberry, eucalyptus and rock.
Absolutely beautiful on the palate displaying intense and complex flavors of linzer torte, cardamom and baking spices, raspberry and strawberry fruit paste, marzipan, white pepper, citrus oil, jasmine tea, rock and hints of mint, apricot and tobacco. The texture is plush and open with great balance and structure. The finish linger with intensity.
This is Grenache in one of its purest expressions, showing complexity, femininity and the subtleties of the varietal that many winemakers can and do cover and obliterate.
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7/14/2017 - jstrovel@gmail.com Likes this wine: 95 Points
Almost a perfect grenache. Drinking well after 2 hour decant.
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7/4/2017 - kcp Likes this wine: 92 Points
Full bodied, though not overly extracted. Nicely balanced. A pleasure all the way through the bottle.
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8/14/2016 - DavidDay Likes this wine: 92 Points
Still holding up very well, balanced, probably at least five more good years ahead
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7/14/2016 - GalvezGuy Likes this wine: 93 Points
Popped and poured. Great nose of red fruits, Mouvedre funk, herbs, and spice. Very much Cali meets Southern Rhone. On the palate, rich with raspberry, cherry, spice, and sage. Long finish with the tiniest bit of heat. Really good stuff, should get better with a couple more years in the bottle. Drink with a short decant or hold.
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12/28/2015 - jpaul1 wrote:
This blossomed since my last tasting 16 months ago. Laser like, expressive, fruit driven nose with macerated strawberry and raspberry. Floral notes and subtle spice adds interesting layers to all the fruit. The palate is much fuller showing spice, orange peel and red fruit. Over time this began to shut down. Hefty wine, though I am impressed with how well it carried the weight. Screams CA in a classy way. This will continue to mellow with age.
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3/13/2015 - mcsac67 Likes this wine: 93 Points
A floral nose of cherry and fresh raspberry. Cherry, raspberry, slate, herbs tobacco and oak. Very well balanced wine with fine tannins and complexity. Extremely long finish as the primary flavors peeled away to reveal layers and layers of additional flavors. Wonderful stuff.
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1/25/2015 - etc Likes this wine:
DO NOT OPEN yet wait at least 2 to 3 yrs min. This beast was disjointd at best. It took 5 days for it to calm down and reveal only a glimpse of its potential. Nose is only showing some slight sweet red fruit. Tannin is fine but still huge. Red fruit and hint of spice. Acid is apparent, but not overly done. I wish I had another bottle to try later on.
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12/1/2014 - Endodr Likes this wine: 90 Points
This is my first experience with Keplinger wines and it was a very pleasant one. This Grenache is a very bold and complex wine. It has a very deep purple color and an aromatic nose of dark berries, red berries, and spice. This wine is fruity, with tastes of berries from dark to light: blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries - all present. There is also plenty of spice and oak noted. It is complex, balanced, and medium to full bodied with an ample finish.
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8/15/2014 - grayfont Likes this wine: 89 Points
Intense. Improved significantly with time in decanter. Massive blueberry at first, showed a hint of heat on the finish which was no longer present after 45 minutes in decanter. Overall well enjoyed but we preferred the 2011 Lithic which we had open at the same time.
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7/10/2014 - SkeBum Likes this wine: 91 Points
Nice blend, smooth mouthfeel, maybe a touch on the sweet side but overall not a bad wine. Raspberries or strawberries, on the nose with a decent finish. Much better then the last bottle of this I drank, which makes me wonder if the other bottle was maybe off somehow.
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5/18/2014 - Ilikadajuice wrote: 92 Points
Vintage Helen! Spices, red currant, iron, dark fruit with structure and complexity. Classic Keplinger nose that carries with consistency to the silky palate and lingering finish. Should improve with more time in bottle. Great effort here.
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3/9/2014 - silton Likes this wine: 91 Points
Delicious, glossy purple fruits with dank plum and redcurrant wrapped in strawberry and floral aromas; structured and hefty (one glass left overnight in a decanter was intact the next day) but surprisingly approachable due to its ripe flavors and modest acids, which also limit its definition and range of expression, at least for now.
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2/5/2014 - elshml@verizon.net wrote: 90 Points
This is one serious bottle of wine. Very intense, maybe I'm not used to drinking pure Grenache. Very complex, felt it needs a long decant.
Tried the next day and WOW, this blew me away. Tannins and alcohol had smoothed out. I've been converted.
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1/25/2014 - GalvezGuy wrote: 92 Points
Really showing well with nose of red and dark fruit and a little bit of Mourvedre funk along with hints of anise. On the palate, blackberry, blueberry, licorice. Long crisp finish.
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12/11/2013 - prasm Likes this wine: 94 Points
Popped 1 hour before first pour, consumed over 3 hours. Nose: Medium expressiveness, complexity abounds here - raspberry, elderberry, spice, rusty earth - iron component, also hints of shoe leather and ice tea - very interesting and immensely enjoyable. Palate: Medium-full bodied, clean and smooth mouth-feel, spicy red fruit attack joined by tobacco and tea, great mid-palate density, nice acidic balance, the flavor joy ride just builds in intensity all the way thru the back-end. Finish: Lengthy sense of rich and spicy red fruit which persists for a minute plus.
This has Helen stamped all over it. There is just a wonderful commonality of purity and balance with all of her wines no matter the fruit source, in this case Knight's Valley.
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12/10/2013 - SkeBum wrote: 87 Points
Okay opened this bottle fully prepared to love it, as I do many of the wines made by this producer and I love a well done Grenache. However, just couldn't get past what I thought was the over done quality of the wine. Gassed and corked the wine and not much changed the next day. Nose is Strawberries and light fruit, palate was a bit over extracted for my tastes. Will sit on my other bottle of this and hope it gets better.
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5/10/2013 - STM82 wrote: 93 Points
First Keplinger experience... Wonderful nose of raspberry and strawberry fields. A bit of spice with candied red fruit on the nose as well. On the palate, after decanting for two hours, it is soft, round, siky, with red fruit, a finish which builds with time. This is all about bright fruits and some herbs and burnt-end bbq on the end. Toasty and big, yet light and balanced. Great wine.
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3/30/2013 - 1964vintage wrote: 91 Points
Very good even in it's youth. All the makings for an outstanding bottle in the years to come. Went fabulously with wild boar fettuccine at Trattoria Pasquale in Tampa, FL.
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3/28/2013 - RMundell Likes this wine: 93 Points
First time trying this and liked it very much.
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