Brilliant purple. Exciting aromas of violet, thyme, and spice. Powerful attack but really only medium bodied. Fresh, tangy blueberry and blackberry complicated by soil, licorice, and citrus with a long, harmonious, chocolatey finish. Great acidity for such a warm climate. Fantastic wine that is already displaying tremendous complexity while retaining its verve. This should easily age for another decade.
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Successful pairing with Kalbi-style grilled beef short ribs. After decanting for about 3 hours on day 1 the Syrah notes were the star, leaping out of the glass and featuring prominently on the palate with green pepper notes. Day 2 was much more integrated with blue fruits coming out. Plenty of life left and would recommend a long decant.
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What a beauty! Shows why the GSM (in this case SMG) recipe is so successful. Big and full but smooth and integrated. Nice job from Booker on a classic formula.
4/30/21 Another bottle, this time 93. A big CA version of Chateauneuf, fun to drink. A mouthful!
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Drinking well although a bit too full, sweet and jammy for my taste. My wife loved it so just a function of style preference. We both enjoyed it though and the score is a compromise between the two of us. Worked well with grilled ribeye.
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Extremely well made blend. Totally seamless, with everything from nose to mouthfeel engendering a unique characteristic greater than the sum of it's parts. This is why we don't always drink single-varietal wines!
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Rich, dense and luxurious blend of Syrah 45%, Mourvedre 29%, and Grenache 26%. Integrated so that no one varietal overwhelms. What a wonderful Booker wine.
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Another splendid wine from Booker. So fruity and balanced. Mostly dark berries, leather, licorice, touch of stone. Rounded tannins. Wonderful freshness. OK to drink now, but I guess it will also keep very we'll.
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2013 Vertigo from a favorite producer in Paso, Booker. Smoked meats, leather and wild flowers on the nose + terrific balance with a core raspberry, blackberry and licorice. Still some tannin to resolve but solid after a few hours to open. Hold or enjoy now. Win win.
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PnP, Big and somewhat tart initially, chocolate covered cherries, cigar box, ripe raspberry, licorice and rhubarb. Some dirt is mixed in there as well, there is a ton of oak but it mixes well with the big fruit. This is really nice, but I think needs a couple of years to come together and chill out.
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10/25/2023 - drwine2001 wrote:
Brilliant purple. Exciting aromas of violet, thyme, and spice. Powerful attack but really only medium bodied. Fresh, tangy blueberry and blackberry complicated by soil, licorice, and citrus with a long, harmonious, chocolatey finish. Great acidity for such a warm climate. Fantastic wine that is already displaying tremendous complexity while retaining its verve. This should easily age for another decade.
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1/24/2022 - mvande21 wrote: 93 Points
Blackberries, black cherry, leather and pepper. Smooth and balanced. Full body. Fine grain tannins and a long finish. In it's zone. Delightful wine.
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11/22/2020 - dpolzien Likes this wine: 92 Points
Successful pairing with Kalbi-style grilled beef short ribs. After decanting for about 3 hours on day 1 the Syrah notes were the star, leaping out of the glass and featuring prominently on the palate with green pepper notes. Day 2 was much more integrated with blue fruits coming out. Plenty of life left and would recommend a long decant.
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10/16/2020 - seijaro Likes this wine: 94 Points
What a beauty! Shows why the GSM (in this case SMG) recipe is so successful. Big and full but smooth and integrated. Nice job from Booker on a classic formula.
4/30/21 Another bottle, this time 93. A big CA version of Chateauneuf, fun to drink. A mouthful!
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6/28/2020 - tantotinto wrote: 91 Points
Drinking well although a bit too full, sweet and jammy for my taste. My wife loved it so just a function of style preference. We both enjoyed it though and the score is a compromise between the two of us. Worked well with grilled ribeye.
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10/12/2019 - PinotPaul Likes this wine: 93 Points
Fabulous
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9/19/2019 - ELH wrote: 94 Points
Popped and poured at BYO. Great food wine.
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5/10/2019 - 2loyal Likes this wine: 94 Points
Extremely well made blend. Totally seamless, with everything from nose to mouthfeel engendering a unique characteristic greater than the sum of it's parts. This is why we don't always drink single-varietal wines!
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3/3/2019 - UofM wrote: 92 Points
Well.. that was good. Glad I took the advice of others and popped this gem.
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1/7/2019 - PinotPaul Likes this wine: 95 Points
Amazing GSM from Booker. Layers upon layers. Nicely aged and smooth.
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1/5/2019 - BinVA Likes this wine: 94 Points
Started really good but started to run flat after a little while.
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11/27/2018 - ELH wrote: 94 Points
Rich, dense and luxurious blend of Syrah 45%, Mourvedre 29%, and Grenache 26%. Integrated so that no one varietal overwhelms. What a wonderful Booker wine.
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9/29/2018 - Quiet Lion Likes this wine: 94 Points
Pop and pour. Smooth, silky GSM from this reliable producer. Black licorice with a touch of sherry on the palate. Well balanced. Showing beautifully.
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7/29/2018 - SMagowan wrote: 94 Points
Deep, dark purple in color. A mouthful of cherries, licorice and light tannins. Spectacular.
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6/22/2018 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 95 Points
Delicious! Just great all around, wonderful fruit, nicely structured, wish I had more.
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6/20/2018 - Montana Likes this wine: 95 Points
This was a beautiful, rich wine even with only five years of age and having been poured without being decanted. Wish I had ten more of these.
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1/26/2018 - mattdathan Likes this wine: 95 Points
Luscious, velvety, strong and elegant - all in one!
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8/5/2017 - treesritter wrote: 93 Points
Very nice wine. First glass was the best.
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5/14/2017 - Neras Likes this wine: 96 Points
Another splendid wine from Booker. So fruity and balanced. Mostly dark berries, leather, licorice, touch of stone. Rounded tannins. Wonderful freshness. OK to drink now, but I guess it will also keep very we'll.
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2/9/2016 - El Tej wrote: 96 Points
2013 Vertigo from a favorite producer in Paso, Booker. Smoked meats, leather and wild flowers on the nose + terrific balance with a core raspberry, blackberry and licorice. Still some tannin to resolve but solid after a few hours to open. Hold or enjoy now. Win win.
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12/23/2015 - pakabear Likes this wine: 95 Points
PnP, Big and somewhat tart initially, chocolate covered cherries, cigar box, ripe raspberry, licorice and rhubarb. Some dirt is mixed in there as well, there is a ton of oak but it mixes well with the big fruit. This is really nice, but I think needs a couple of years to come together and chill out.
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10/30/2015 - jeffmudd wrote: 95 Points
Great right out of the bottle!
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8/27/2015 - ddsolomon2000 wrote: 95 Points
Spectacular wine. Agree with the last post, no time needed to decant. Absolutely fabulous.
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8/2/2015 - mliszt Likes this wine: 95 Points
big time full body great and ready almost no decant needed
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