PnP showed some tightness of bouquet ad taste. Evolved very quickly. Bouquet and taste became more rich than previous bottles of d'Issan Grand Vin back through 1966 vintage. My guess is more and/or riper Merlot. Both of us thought it was fully mature. Classic Margaux elegance in a second wine profile without the complexity of a Grand Vin. First of 4 cellared since release -- will finish others in the next year or two. Fine with roast "Cornish game hen".
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I opened the wrong bottle!!!!! I was meant to be doing my annual test of where the 05s are with a bottle of d’issan. The wine was opened a few hours before drinking and triple decanted expecting the usual oomph. But No in fact not what I was expecting. Fruity, smooth, gentle in fact quite lovely!!!! But equally not the length or complexity I was expecting - and I have 21 bottles of d’issan. Anyway my wife and I tuck in and it is a very nice tipple which is going down very easily. Then I happen to glance at the bottle again and notice “Blason”...... �� quite amusing. Anyway for a second wine this is simply lovely. May crack open the proper one now!!!!!
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This was a very pretty, intact, complex bottle. Deep ruby/light purple color. Lovely aromas of black cherries, red and black currants, sweet yet tangy, with cocoa, earth, anise, cedar and clove. Lush and sweet tannins, still solid grip, fresh acidity keeps it tied up well. Dark plums, currants, sweet yet tangy fruit, laced with mint, cocoa, anise, earthy, tobacco. Lovely concentration, still going, very impressive. I wasn't sure what to expect, but this was lovely.
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My Grade: EX. Into its drinking window now and showing well. Nose of blackberry, dark cherry, vanilla, cedar and spice. Svelt and elegant palate, still has plenty of fruit, silky tannins, acidity right where you want it, long and lush finish. Excellent second-wine, makes me really wish I'd bought more of the Grand Vin (see my profile for grades).
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in good shape right now and doubt any further improvement initial anger settled down in a few minutes demure fruit combined with french earth pretty darn delicious with steaks on the grill
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This is very enjoyable wine that starts to shine after an hour of air. A subtle wine that delivers a medium body and hints of what the grand vin will taste like. Soft and velvety on the tongue with a mellow finish.
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This needed two hours in the decanter to begin to show it's best. Almost no sediment. The wine looks garnet colored. The legs are medium. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like red currant, blackberry, forest floor, cedar, lead pencil, clove and tobacco. It tastes like black currant (cassis), blackberry, cedar and lead pencil. The body is medium. The wine has round texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has medium acidity.
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Very dark color with purple edge. On nose, quite strong alcohol level with some herbs and ammonia notes, still quite nice. On palates, sweet berry, good level of acid, spicy and tannins. Need some fruity to balance out.
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Grade: VG. Still too early for this '05: a bit too much heat and acidity right now, but left decanted for 2 hours it shows promises of greatness and 90+ points should be achievable in 3-4 years. Nose is a little floral with plums and cassis, depth and complexity on the palate, red-currant, bramble, vanilla, good tannins and a long, smooth finish. It's all there, just needs more time to develop
My Grades: EXX-Exceptional, EX-Excellent, VG-Very Good, G-Good, O-Ordinary, P-Poor, U-Ungraded
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Initially rather reticent nose, but with a couple hours in the glass showing rose petals, currants, mocha and toast-- quite floral. Sweet red fruits and flint, but with strong acidity and fine plush tannin background. Lovely earth driven finish with red fruit highlights. Still rather tight, but enjoyable. Lacks just a little "umph" in the middle, but a nicely done 2nd wine. Needs a few more years to really come together.
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Pulled the cork, decanted for sediment and poured back into the bottle. Consumed one hour later at a proper serving temperature. Fresh, showing a lovely perfume with nuances of charred wood. A dark fruit profile, mostly plum, is subdued -- it's part of the bouquet but in the background. Some high notes of juicy red berries break out -- again, reminding me of Hawaiian Punch. Full and concentrated mid-palate with a good underlying structure. The dark fruit carries over into a deep, spicer finish with rubbery mineral notes adding complexity. The finish lingers on with fine tannins drying out on the tongue. The heat I'm picking up on the finish is certainly worth tolerating. I had low expectations for this based on where and why I purchased the bottle and how I subsequently stored it for the last eight months. I'm impressed to say the least. [91+]
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Nice expressive nose of cherry and cassis and plenty of graphite and mineral. Palate adds some dark fruits but fades quickly. Perceptible tannins, but very fine and lush and mostly integrated. Medium body but very dark ruby in the glass. Medium finish, rather thin and primary at this stage, with the oak prominent and some flint and earth coming though. Actually became a little less complex as the acidity faded in the glass, and was never incredibly complex to begin with. Even so, a nicely balanced typical Margaux to drink while waiting on the big boys to come around, and will probably improve in the short to medium term. Will try and hold my second bottle 3-5yrs before opening.
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It takes a while to open up, and the final results may not be worth the wait. Thin and watery on the palate, with interesting flavors of stewed fruit, blackberry, tar, pepper and spice, with a hint of candied raspberry on the finish. The flavors are nice, but the weak structure fails to provide adequate support.
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Very Good - Strong and beautiful fruit nose but a little one dimensional. Very young and seemed a bit hot despite a few hours decanted. Fruit stood out and it was well built with smokey dark fruit and integrated tannins. Slight bitterness on mid-palate (harsh)... hope that goes away with time. Needs time but fuit seems strong enough to last for sure.
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Judgement de Li Hwan (2005 Bordeaux v New World Cabernet): Deep purple. This has obvious cat's pee at the start but blows off after a while to reveal cherries, some indian spice backed by some dark coffee powder / dark bitter choc. Good riipe currants and plums framed with velvety thick and chewy texture from the tannins. At first, I thought it too thick for the fruits and acidity to balance off. But it was a little better balanced after the bottle decanting.
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10/16/2023 - Carlo Sarto Likes this wine:
PnP showed some tightness of bouquet ad taste. Evolved very quickly. Bouquet and taste became more rich than previous bottles of d'Issan Grand Vin back through 1966 vintage. My guess is more and/or riper Merlot. Both of us thought it was fully mature. Classic Margaux elegance in a second wine profile without the complexity of a Grand Vin. First of 4 cellared since release -- will finish others in the next year or two. Fine with roast "Cornish game hen".
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1/2/2022 - ClaytonDave Likes this wine: 91 Points
Dark purple. Smooth and big. Better night two. Dark cherry, blackberry and plum on the palate.
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1/20/2021 - BrooklynZin wrote: 89 Points
Silky smooth, almost frictionless. Dark plum. Appears to be right smack in the drinking window. For a second wine, this is a strong effort.
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4/11/2020 - HENNO1 wrote: 91 Points
I opened the wrong bottle!!!!! I was meant to be doing my annual test of where the 05s are with a bottle of d’issan. The wine was opened a few hours before drinking and triple decanted expecting the usual oomph. But No in fact not what I was expecting. Fruity, smooth, gentle in fact quite lovely!!!! But equally not the length or complexity I was expecting - and I have 21 bottles of d’issan. Anyway my wife and I tuck in and it is a very nice tipple which is going down very easily. Then I happen to glance at the bottle again and notice “Blason”...... �� quite amusing. Anyway for a second wine this is simply lovely. May crack open the proper one now!!!!!
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9/5/2019 - isaacjamesbaker wrote: 90 Points
This was a very pretty, intact, complex bottle. Deep ruby/light purple color. Lovely aromas of black cherries, red and black currants, sweet yet tangy, with cocoa, earth, anise, cedar and clove. Lush and sweet tannins, still solid grip, fresh acidity keeps it tied up well. Dark plums, currants, sweet yet tangy fruit, laced with mint, cocoa, anise, earthy, tobacco. Lovely concentration, still going, very impressive. I wasn't sure what to expect, but this was lovely.
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12/23/2018 - Cafi wrote: 92 Points
Winespectator
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6/16/2018 - Joesap wrote:
My Grade: EX. Into its drinking window now and showing well. Nose of blackberry, dark cherry, vanilla, cedar and spice. Svelt and elegant palate, still has plenty of fruit, silky tannins, acidity right where you want it, long and lush finish. Excellent second-wine, makes me really wish I'd bought more of the Grand Vin (see my profile for grades).
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12/4/2016 - the shrub wrote: 91 Points
Very impressive. Thick, with plenty of complexity and farmyard aroma. Thumbs up
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10/14/2016 - bugdoced Likes this wine: 90 Points
in good shape right now and doubt any further improvement
initial anger settled down in a few minutes
demure fruit combined with french earth
pretty darn delicious with steaks on the grill
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4/4/2015 - JS199 wrote: 90 Points
This is very enjoyable wine that starts to shine after an hour of air. A subtle wine that delivers a medium body and hints of what the grand vin will taste like. Soft and velvety on the tongue with a mellow finish.
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3/28/2015 - JPPeterson Likes this wine: 88 Points
This needed two hours in the decanter to begin to show it's best. Almost no sediment.
The wine looks garnet colored. The legs are medium. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like red currant, blackberry, forest floor, cedar, lead pencil, clove and tobacco. It tastes like black currant (cassis), blackberry, cedar and lead pencil. The body is medium. The wine has round texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has medium acidity.
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12/31/2013 - Sennma wrote:
Classic Margaux nose, not the most complex or deep palate but this has evolved nicely in the bottle.
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7/25/2011 - nick811 wrote: 89 Points
Very dark color with purple edge. On nose, quite strong alcohol level with some herbs and ammonia notes, still quite nice. On palates, sweet berry, good level of acid, spicy and tannins. Need some fruity to balance out.
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5/30/2011 - Joesap wrote:
Grade: VG. Still too early for this '05: a bit too much heat and acidity right now, but left decanted for 2 hours it shows promises of greatness and 90+ points should be achievable in 3-4 years. Nose is a little floral with plums and cassis, depth and complexity on the palate, red-currant, bramble, vanilla, good tannins and a long, smooth finish. It's all there, just needs more time to develop
My Grades: EXX-Exceptional, EX-Excellent, VG-Very Good, G-Good, O-Ordinary, P-Poor, U-Ungraded
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11/2/2010 - Nutty08 wrote: 89 Points
Initially rather reticent nose, but with a couple hours in the glass showing rose petals, currants, mocha and toast-- quite floral. Sweet red fruits and flint, but with strong acidity and fine plush tannin background. Lovely earth driven finish with red fruit highlights. Still rather tight, but enjoyable. Lacks just a little "umph" in the middle, but a nicely done 2nd wine. Needs a few more years to really come together.
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7/10/2010 - SLOPPYdeCHAO wrote: 88 Points
Solid, pretty generic bordeaux; good value and ready to drink; decanted for two hours.
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2/5/2010 - JS199 wrote: 88 Points
Fresh berries, dark, smokey. Initially, smooth and tasty, then finishes weak. Overall, for the money, enjoyable.
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8/24/2009 - Kevin_C wrote: 91 Points
Pulled the cork, decanted for sediment and poured back into the bottle. Consumed one hour later at a proper serving temperature. Fresh, showing a lovely perfume with nuances of charred wood. A dark fruit profile, mostly plum, is subdued -- it's part of the bouquet but in the background. Some high notes of juicy red berries break out -- again, reminding me of Hawaiian Punch. Full and concentrated mid-palate with a good underlying structure. The dark fruit carries over into a deep, spicer finish with rubbery mineral notes adding complexity. The finish lingers on with fine tannins drying out on the tongue. The heat I'm picking up on the finish is certainly worth tolerating. I had low expectations for this based on where and why I purchased the bottle and how I subsequently stored it for the last eight months. I'm impressed to say the least. [91+]
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11/3/2008 - Nutty08 wrote: 88 Points
Nice expressive nose of cherry and cassis and plenty of graphite and mineral. Palate adds some dark fruits but fades quickly. Perceptible tannins, but very fine and lush and mostly integrated. Medium body but very dark ruby in the glass. Medium finish, rather thin and primary at this stage, with the oak prominent and some flint and earth coming though. Actually became a little less complex as the acidity faded in the glass, and was never incredibly complex to begin with. Even so, a nicely balanced typical Margaux to drink while waiting on the big boys to come around, and will probably improve in the short to medium term. Will try and hold my second bottle 3-5yrs before opening.
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11/3/2008 - Davidliss wrote: 84 Points
It takes a while to open up, and the final results may not be worth the wait. Thin and watery on the palate, with interesting flavors of stewed fruit, blackberry, tar, pepper and spice, with a hint of candied raspberry on the finish. The flavors are nice, but the weak structure fails to provide adequate support.
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8/30/2008 - swwchi wrote:
Weak fruit, young and tannic, 84
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8/3/2008 - TimBoDo wrote: 87 Points
Very Good - Strong and beautiful fruit nose but a little one dimensional. Very young and seemed a bit hot despite a few hours decanted. Fruit stood out and it was well built with smokey dark fruit and integrated tannins. Slight bitterness on mid-palate (harsh)... hope that goes away with time. Needs time but fuit seems strong enough to last for sure.
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5/25/2008 - Alex H wrote: 81 Points
Judgement de Li Hwan (2005 Bordeaux v New World Cabernet): Deep purple. This has obvious cat's pee at the start but blows off after a while to reveal cherries, some indian spice backed by some dark coffee powder / dark bitter choc. Good riipe currants and plums framed with velvety thick and chewy texture from the tannins. At first, I thought it too thick for the fruits and acidity to balance off. But it was a little better balanced after the bottle decanting.
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