Pretty much Ditto to the tasting notes last year. Maybe a bit of pepper and liquorice has crept in to make the nose and palette a bit fuller, or maybe it's just a variation, the bottle is sealed with cork after all. The good news is it was drunk over 2 days and didn't change much on day 2 so it has a few years ahead of it.
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Medium ruby color. Balanced understated nose of ripe black fruit, cedar, toasted oak and savory notes. Dry, balanced acidity and tannins, palate follows through. Medium+ body, fantastic balance, long finish. An elegant expression.
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Delicious. Silky but full of verve, pure cherry and cassis fruit but a mature oak influence too, supple tannins, ageing most gracefully. I really enjoyed it.
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A typically polished and well balanced example from Craggy Range. At 11 years in the bottle this is drinking fine however I can't see much more flavour development from this point. A sound bordeaux blend and well made, but nothing remarkable. I didn't pay full price for this case so am satisfied with value for money. If I had paid $100+ a bottle I would feel differently The wine looks crimson colored. There is light sediment in the bottle.
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I had a query from Giantram about the acidity in this wine and its drinkability with minimal food. I can't say whether the cabernet component has contributed to the bulk of the acidity profile but I food it overall too hard to have enjoyed it without a solid meal. Maybe it will soften...
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NobleRottersSydney - reds at 10 20 30 (Fix, St James, Sydney): {cork, 13.5%} [DavidH] Merlot 60%, Cab Sav 24%, Franc 14.5% and PV the remaining 2.5%. I always though Sophia to be a Merlot/CF blend. Cabernet’s irresistible call, I guess. Garnet with a purple touch. Developing nose of soft plums and red-fruit spectrum aromas. Subtle french oak too – discreet. Very seductively handing between youthful and maturing. The palate is wonderfully balanced, even and polished, with ripe plum fruit, fine medium chalky tannins, medium acidity and medium weight. The medium/long finish is evenly balanced along the tongue and surprisingly astringent. I hope the fruit holds up here because this seems like it has another decade of majestic aging in front of it. Really impressive.
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Medium depth of colour. Bright. Slight bricking. Nose not especially ripe or complex. Quite light on the palate with rather assertive acidity. Stern rather than inviting. Better with aeration.
Enjoyable but a little short on excitement/interest for the price. Good mouthfeel with ripe and relatively soft tannins and a good food wine given prominent, but not overt, acidity. Flavour profile somewhat ‘mainstream’ although a touch of maturity is adding interest. The issue is that there are plenty of wines that deliver the same for half the price. For that reason it probably won’t be a repeat purchase...
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Very smooth with lovely lingering finish. A bit too much acidity for my liking so not a “unbelievable I have to buy a case” wine but very pleasant winter evening wine particularly with lamb.
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Ruby purple, prosciutto & meaty on the nose, sour cherry with a bit of spice, a bit of nutty hiding behind the dark fruit and liquorice. High acidity, high tanning with a long finish.
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This definitely improved with some air time, and I really enjoyed the last 3 glasses. Our group all sensed paint on the nose, with sour cherries and some cedar to taste - long finish. Elegant, very good but not a WOW! for me. Would buy again, though.
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Deep magenta, very dark at the core. Wiffilicious! This smells amazing! Crushed black berry, black raspberry chalk, a touch of suede and hint of fresh wild mint on the nose. Super long, widely spaced legs. Gobs of black currant pastille, blueberry, and super ripe black berry fruits on the plush palate. Oh my this is good! Impeccably balanced. Satin finish that fades out infinitely! This is crazy good! Wow! Hard to describe how good this is! Easy 96 points!
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Superb wine - decanted for 3 hours - velvet smooth - drinking well now for me - had alongside Chateau Dutruch Grand Poujeaux 2012 which was also very nice - though preferred Sophia
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Zinging red fruits, with some complexity and a medium finish. Quite liked the wine but can't rave about it. It's a Bordeaux blend of grapes, but more new world PN in character.
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Very dense and spicey nose with ripe plum, almost jammy, rosemary and thyme and light oaky notes. Tight and grippy in the mouth, big initially but somewhat gets lighter towards the long aftertaste. Again same flavours with the nose which lead to a bittery finish with dark chocolate notes.
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Liquorice, dark plum and sweet spice on the nose with some scents of graphite. Med-full bodied with multi-layered and vibrant fruit, soft tannins and balancing acidity. Long.
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Russk. Tasted twice. At WIC then at CDC. Finesse Finesse Finesse. Nice nose, great dialed-back balance, rare to find in a new world Bx blend. So far i have liked everything tasted from this producer.
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Initially a terrible confected blackcurrant smell dominating everything else but after a four hours decant it came around. Fruit was much more measured and it was surprisingly lithe, maybe lacking a bit of body mid-palate. Nice, but hard to love.
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Craggy Range Tasting (United Cellars, 100 William Street, Sydney): A little austere initially on the nose but opens to quite ripe and jubey red fruit; quite confected, with some integrated green notes, cream, vanilla. With time a more floral note joins. In the mouth red berries, tight drying tannins closes the palate down very quickly with a whiff of the fruit carrying. Hmm.
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Having just experienced the otherworldly vistas of the hike up to Soda Springs on the Tongariro alpine trail we pan-fried some NZ-bred steaks with mushrooms and paired them with this Bordeaux blend acquired at the winery a few days before. Dark purple hue. Nose of perfumed floral notes, cassis, blackberry, licorice, currant. Buoyant blackberry and black currant fruit on the palate laced with cinnamon and juicy red plum. Moderate acidity and strongly-wired tannins submerged by primary fruit. Long finish of ringing red and black plum fruit anchored in stone and earth. Delicious in its infancy and likely to age well.
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The 2011 Sophia will turn out just as nice as I remember the 2007 vintage. Tonight though, it is completely austere and very harsh. It will need several years to come around. Tannins are harsh and acidity high, but all components are in place to turn this effort into a true beauty. (score is 93-94)
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A big, juicy, yet still varietal Right Bank style wine. Will be a great wine given time. Although it's not cheap, probably a much better bet than many Bordeaux made versions. Easy drinking now or a good one after 19 years in the cellar. Take your pick.
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Appearance - deep red black. Aroma - Soft plummy notes with black current. Hint of herbs. Tobacco and leather. Subtle oak. Taste - full, tart plummy. Tannins, fine but yet to soften. Fleshy with good length. Overall - very good Bordeaux blend, with robust yet complex character reflecting gravelly origins. Still very young and built to age. Good drinkability now if given some air but should get better with cellaring for a few years at least.
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3/9/2023 - corkus Likes this wine: 88 Points
Pretty much Ditto to the tasting notes last year.
Maybe a bit of pepper and liquorice has crept in to make the nose and palette a bit fuller, or maybe it's just a variation, the bottle is sealed with cork after all.
The good news is it was drunk over 2 days and didn't change much on day 2 so it has a few years ahead of it.
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3/2/2023 - jptucker wrote:
Serve with roast lamb, beef, venison, and with semi-hard cheeses.
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12/25/2022 - corkus Likes this wine: 88 Points
Colour: Very dark purple, garnet tinge
Nose: Menthol, cloves, black currant
Palette: Menthol, musk, black current, plum.
Missing a bit of the depth of fruit I'd expected and somewhat acidic, drying finish, a bit short.
Not as good as I'd thought it would be, especially at this price point.
Didn't improve much over the night as it was drunk.
Not overly complex.
Wasn't bad, but more like a $30 wine that a $100+ wine.
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9/23/2022 - Costes76 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Medium ruby color. Balanced understated nose of ripe black fruit, cedar, toasted oak and savory notes. Dry, balanced acidity and tannins, palate follows through. Medium+ body, fantastic balance, long finish. An elegant expression.
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8/12/2022 - gtilley wrote:
Delicious. Silky but full of verve, pure cherry and cassis fruit but a mature oak influence too, supple tannins, ageing most gracefully. I really enjoyed it.
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4/16/2022 - JxE Likes this wine: 89 Points
A typically polished and well balanced example from Craggy Range. At 11 years in the bottle this is drinking fine however I can't see much more flavour development from this point. A sound bordeaux blend and well made, but nothing remarkable.
I didn't pay full price for this case so am satisfied with value for money. If I had paid $100+ a bottle I would feel differently
The wine looks crimson colored. There is light sediment in the bottle.
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2/24/2022 - rwpalmer wrote:
I had a query from Giantram about the acidity in this wine and its drinkability with minimal food. I can't say whether the cabernet component has contributed to the bulk of the acidity profile but I food it overall too hard to have enjoyed it without a solid meal. Maybe it will soften...
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2/14/2022 - Moloko Likes this wine: 92 Points
A fine wine that improved over the session. Earthy red berry framed in subtle oak with fine drying tannin finish on a long length.
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1/10/2022 - Michael Gould wrote: 92 Points
Drinking beautifully. I’d recommend at least 30mins decanter.
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5/5/2021 - graemeg wrote:
NobleRottersSydney - reds at 10 20 30 (Fix, St James, Sydney): {cork, 13.5%} [DavidH] Merlot 60%, Cab Sav 24%, Franc 14.5% and PV the remaining 2.5%. I always though Sophia to be a Merlot/CF blend. Cabernet’s irresistible call, I guess. Garnet with a purple touch. Developing nose of soft plums and red-fruit spectrum aromas. Subtle french oak too – discreet. Very seductively handing between youthful and maturing. The palate is wonderfully balanced, even and polished, with ripe plum fruit, fine medium chalky tannins, medium acidity and medium weight. The medium/long finish is evenly balanced along the tongue and surprisingly astringent. I hope the fruit holds up here because this seems like it has another decade of majestic aging in front of it. Really impressive.
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4/12/2021 - rwpalmer wrote: 89 Points
Medium depth of colour. Bright. Slight bricking. Nose not especially ripe or complex. Quite light on the palate with rather assertive acidity. Stern rather than inviting. Better with aeration.
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4/9/2021 - Alexroy wrote: 95 Points
Rich freshly baked fruitcake on nose. Smooth, silky, blackberry, clove, long. Great wine peaking. Lovely.
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1/11/2021 - sjecrawford Likes this wine: 89 Points
Enjoyable but a little short on excitement/interest for the price. Good mouthfeel with ripe and relatively soft tannins and a good food wine given prominent, but not overt, acidity. Flavour profile somewhat ‘mainstream’ although a touch of maturity is adding interest. The issue is that there are plenty of wines that deliver the same for half the price. For that reason it probably won’t be a repeat purchase...
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8/29/2019 - Drdanz Likes this wine: 90 Points
Very smooth with lovely lingering finish. A bit too much acidity for my liking so not a “unbelievable I have to buy a case” wine but very pleasant winter evening wine particularly with lamb.
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8/29/2019 - Jason Wu wrote: 90 Points
Ruby purple, prosciutto & meaty on the nose, sour cherry with a bit of spice, a bit of nutty hiding behind the dark fruit and liquorice. High acidity, high tanning with a long finish.
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6/9/2019 - RussK wrote: 90 Points
Russk. I did not enjoy it as much this time. Textually really nice but aromatically boring.
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4/16/2019 - Alexroy wrote: 95 Points
Smooth, red fruits, balanced, silky, long. Fantastic.
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3/17/2019 - Geoffy Likes this wine: 90 Points
This definitely improved with some air time, and I really enjoyed the last 3 glasses. Our group all sensed paint on the nose, with sour cherries and some cedar to taste - long finish.
Elegant, very good but not a WOW! for me. Would buy again, though.
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2/15/2019 - Alexroy wrote: 93 Points
Day 2. Pepper and dark fruit on nose. Sweet dark fruit, silky smooth, rich, long.
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12/8/2018 - kfrench150 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Deep magenta, very dark at the core. Wiffilicious! This smells amazing! Crushed black berry, black raspberry chalk, a touch of suede and hint of fresh wild mint on the nose. Super long, widely spaced legs. Gobs of black currant pastille, blueberry, and super ripe black berry fruits on the plush palate. Oh my this is good! Impeccably balanced. Satin finish that fades out infinitely! This is crazy good! Wow! Hard to describe how good this is! Easy 96 points!
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6/28/2018 - SimonHo Likes this wine: 91 Points
Full body red blend with red and black fruit with a hint of spice. Still have years to go but drinks well after decanting.
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12/9/2017 - NZ wino Likes this wine: 95 Points
Superb wine - decanted for 3 hours - velvet smooth - drinking well now for me - had alongside Chateau Dutruch Grand Poujeaux 2012 which was also very nice - though preferred Sophia
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3/19/2017 - Geoffy Likes this wine: 89 Points
Zinging red fruits, with some complexity and a medium finish. Quite liked the wine but can't rave about it. It's a Bordeaux blend of grapes, but more new world PN in character.
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11/3/2016 - tshelton12 wrote: 92 Points
Really great wine but Probably needs to wait another 2-3 years and it will get better.
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2/29/2016 - Yorgos wrote: 90 Points
Very dense and spicey nose with ripe plum, almost jammy, rosemary and thyme and light oaky notes. Tight and grippy in the mouth, big initially but somewhat gets lighter towards the long aftertaste. Again same flavours with the nose which lead to a bittery finish with dark chocolate notes.
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2/29/2016 - Yiannis Likes this wine: 93 Points
Liquorice, dark plum and sweet spice on the nose with some scents of graphite. Med-full bodied with multi-layered and vibrant fruit, soft tannins and balancing acidity. Long.
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2/27/2016 - RussK wrote: 92 Points
Russk. Tasted twice. At WIC then at CDC. Finesse Finesse Finesse. Nice nose, great dialed-back balance, rare to find in a new world Bx blend. So far i have liked everything tasted from this producer.
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1/12/2016 - Mid Palate Tingle wrote:
Initially a terrible confected blackcurrant smell dominating everything else but after a four hours decant it came around. Fruit was much more measured and it was surprisingly lithe, maybe lacking a bit of body mid-palate. Nice, but hard to love.
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12/22/2015 - fournet wrote:
Very tannic and out of balance. Not sure if this will improve.
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6/24/2015 - chatters wrote:
Craggy Range Tasting (United Cellars, 100 William Street, Sydney): A little austere initially on the nose but opens to quite ripe and jubey red fruit; quite confected, with some integrated green notes, cream, vanilla. With time a more floral note joins. In the mouth red berries, tight drying tannins closes the palate down very quickly with a whiff of the fruit carrying. Hmm.
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11/3/2014 - fanglangzhe Likes this wine: 91 Points
dark fruits, coffee, spices, balanced oak. long finish. good depth.
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9/29/2014 - DougLee wrote: 92 Points
Having just experienced the otherworldly vistas of the hike up to Soda Springs on the Tongariro alpine trail we pan-fried some NZ-bred steaks with mushrooms and paired them with this Bordeaux blend acquired at the winery a few days before. Dark purple hue. Nose of perfumed floral notes, cassis, blackberry, licorice, currant. Buoyant blackberry and black currant fruit on the palate laced with cinnamon and juicy red plum. Moderate acidity and strongly-wired tannins submerged by primary fruit. Long finish of ringing red and black plum fruit anchored in stone and earth. Delicious in its infancy and likely to age well.
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7/14/2014 - peterk Likes this wine: 93 Points
Lovely Bordeaux blend - but it needs a bit of time (as everybody says).
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9/2/2013 - Christoffer78 Likes this wine: 93 Points
The 2011 Sophia will turn out just as nice as I remember the 2007 vintage. Tonight though, it is completely austere and very harsh. It will need several years to come around. Tannins are harsh and acidity high, but all components are in place to turn this effort into a true beauty. (score is 93-94)
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6/30/2013 - startinoz wrote: 94 Points
A big, juicy, yet still varietal Right Bank style wine. Will be a great wine given time. Although it's not cheap, probably a much better bet than many Bordeaux made versions. Easy drinking now or a good one after 19 years in the cellar. Take your pick.
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6/29/2013 - northcsurf wrote: 93 Points
Appearance - deep red black.
Aroma - Soft plummy notes with black current. Hint of herbs. Tobacco and leather. Subtle oak.
Taste - full, tart plummy. Tannins, fine but yet to soften. Fleshy with good length.
Overall - very good Bordeaux blend, with robust yet complex character reflecting gravelly origins. Still very young and built to age. Good drinkability now if given some air but should get better with cellaring for a few years at least.
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