Decanted for 3 hours, and this wine was magical. The bouquet was so decadent that I was hesitant to drink the wine. Bold floral aromatics with dark fruit, mocha and graphite. It hit the palate with black cherries and dark chocolate and an earthiness that was carried through a 20-second finish.
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Expressive nose of strawberry, blueberry and cocoa/mint. This tastes very primary to me, with the fruit and other elements still integrating. Some drying tannins on the finish. I would say this needs more time in the bottle or a longer decant. Interesting contrast with the '18 Bard, which was much more open but the younger wine.
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Drank like it was older than 2013. Delicious but slightly muted of ripeness. Big Napa elements of anise, cassis, milk chocolate…are here but just flat. Moderate tannin and acid. Still good for a second wine.
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Decanted and drank over an hour or so. Drank this to see where it's at. You can really tell this comes from Coombsville area. Nothing extracted or over opulent about this at all. Very aromatic on the nose with cassis and blackberry. A noticeable floral note of violets and gravely dust. On the palate, the tannins are there but they are dusty and fine so it is pretty drinkable now. This will be dynamite in a few years. A stunning effort from Futo and relatively affordable at that.
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Probably the most amazing nose on a wine I've had for quite a while. Smells like crushed gravel and lavender. Needs about 4 hours of slow ox to open up. Blackberries and menthol through the mid palate. A hint of smoke and worn leather balance it out. A touch of sherry on the finish. It can use at least another 2-3 years to integrate but this will be able to age quite a bit longer. Very enjoyable right now with some air.
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This has it all in my opinion. Perfect combination of fruit flavors and tannins. Not a huge wine but not weak or thin at all. Balanced. Purple in the glass. Dark fruit, cassis, a touch of expensive oak. Glossy finish.
This is definitely on the young side but is not backward or in a dumb phase right now. It is drinking well with food but is a bit tight for drinking on its own.
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You're going to love it. But this wine is too young to drink now. It has a lot going on but is wound up tight. Lay it down for at least 2 years then watch out - it will be fantastic. Buy a case then forget about it until 2020.
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Just a giant of a wine in the body of a child. Avoid temptation and do not open these for several years. That said I did and we really enjoyed this massive wine. Decanted for 2 hours before serving and it pretty much drank the same for the next 1 hour. Smooth is the term I would give it. Very similar to the Futo wine where elegance takes precedence over boldness.
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Very nice - better early and then closed down a bit after a couple hours. Just needs some time. Opened this bottle tonight as I decide what to buy from my 2014 mailing list allocation. Definitely will order more.
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This dense and tightly-coiled Cabernet-blend has a promising future - but it is nowhere near ready to drink. Dark purple in color, full in body, nose of charcoal, tar, and black cherry. Tastes of boysenberry, graphite, pepper, espresso, and cedar, with a tannic and tart finish. 14.4% alcohol. Similar to the Futo wines, this will probably blossom into something impressive and graceful in a few years (with a much higher score), but hands off for now - it is just too grippy and tannic at the moment. (And it remained pretty impenetrable on the second day.) Blend of 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 18% Petit Verdot, and 4% Cabernet Franc.
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11/24/2023 - jcampano Likes this wine: 95 Points
Decanted for 3 hours, and this wine was magical. The bouquet was so decadent that I was hesitant to drink the wine. Bold floral aromatics with dark fruit, mocha and graphite. It hit the palate with black cherries and dark chocolate and an earthiness that was carried through a 20-second finish.
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5/15/2022 - cmartinelli wrote:
Expressive nose of strawberry, blueberry and cocoa/mint. This tastes very primary to me, with the fruit and other elements still integrating. Some drying tannins on the finish. I would say this needs more time in the bottle or a longer decant. Interesting contrast with the '18 Bard, which was much more open but the younger wine.
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5/8/2022 - SparkyMI Likes this wine: 90 Points
Needs more time or long decant
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4/21/2022 - MAXIMUM SATISFACTION wrote: 92 Points
Drank like it was older than 2013. Delicious but slightly muted of ripeness. Big Napa elements of anise, cassis, milk chocolate…are here but just flat. Moderate tannin and acid. Still good for a second wine.
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3/29/2021 - Niagara wrote:
love it or hate it. this wine is HUGE and jammy
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3/11/2021 - timdrex wrote: 90 Points
Still has very aggressive tannins. Needs to age several more years.
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11/19/2019 - batas wrote: 91 Points
Drinking much better now than last year. Seems to have softened up quite a bit
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12/28/2018 - blarmston Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted for two hours, but really needed another 2.5 to really start to strut.
At first, tannins were too pronounced, prompting me to reach for a sip of water after every other sip from dry mouth.
Dark purple in glass, with that typical Coombsville dark fruits shining through.
This will be great in 3+ years, hold for now.
Solid QPR at around a buck twenty five. Kudos to the folks at Futo...
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8/20/2018 - batas wrote: 90 Points
Big big wine. Too young to drink, hold
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4/13/2018 - cridershow Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted and drank over an hour or so. Drank this to see where it's at. You can really tell this comes from Coombsville area. Nothing extracted or over opulent about this at all. Very aromatic on the nose with cassis and blackberry. A noticeable floral note of violets and gravely dust. On the palate, the tannins are there but they are dusty and fine so it is pretty drinkable now. This will be dynamite in a few years. A stunning effort from Futo and relatively affordable at that.
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12/30/2017 - Etonian Likes this wine: 94 Points
Probably the most amazing nose on a wine I've had for quite a while. Smells like crushed gravel and lavender. Needs about 4 hours of slow ox to open up. Blackberries and menthol through the mid palate. A hint of smoke and worn leather balance it out. A touch of sherry on the finish. It can use at least another 2-3 years to integrate but this will be able to age quite a bit longer. Very enjoyable right now with some air.
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6/27/2017 - Mech-E Likes this wine: 96 Points
This has it all in my opinion. Perfect combination of fruit flavors and tannins. Not a huge wine but not weak or thin at all. Balanced. Purple in the glass. Dark fruit, cassis, a touch of expensive oak. Glossy finish.
This is definitely on the young side but is not backward or in a dumb phase right now. It is drinking well with food but is a bit tight for drinking on its own.
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5/23/2017 - dogwood Likes this wine: 93 Points
You're going to love it. But this wine is too young to drink now. It has a lot going on but is wound up tight. Lay it down for at least 2 years then watch out - it will be fantastic. Buy a case then forget about it until 2020.
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5/13/2017 - tomoem Likes this wine: 93 Points
Just a giant of a wine in the body of a child. Avoid temptation and do not open these for several years. That said I did and we really enjoyed this massive wine. Decanted for 2 hours before serving and it pretty much drank the same for the next 1 hour. Smooth is the term I would give it. Very similar to the Futo wine where elegance takes precedence over boldness.
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1/25/2017 - jpmo Likes this wine: 90 Points
Very nice - better early and then closed down a bit after a couple hours. Just needs some time. Opened this bottle tonight as I decide what to buy from my 2014 mailing list allocation. Definitely will order more.
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12/14/2016 - msuwine wrote: 92 Points
This dense and tightly-coiled Cabernet-blend has a promising future - but it is nowhere near ready to drink. Dark purple in color, full in body, nose of charcoal, tar, and black cherry. Tastes of boysenberry, graphite, pepper, espresso, and cedar, with a tannic and tart finish. 14.4% alcohol. Similar to the Futo wines, this will probably blossom into something impressive and graceful in a few years (with a much higher score), but hands off for now - it is just too grippy and tannic at the moment. (And it remained pretty impenetrable on the second day.) Blend of 57% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, 18% Petit Verdot, and 4% Cabernet Franc.
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10/12/2016 - timdrex wrote: 90 Points
Showed well upon opening but 1 1/2 hours in, the fruit faded and the tannins became overly prominent.
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7/23/2016 - jeffmudd wrote: 90 Points
Still young, giving it 2 more years.
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