Retail $50 (375ml). Whoa. Dark amber in the glass, really dark. Aromas of caramelized pear, hazelnut, honey, walnut, and a bit of beeswax in the glass. Holy cow. The palate is sweet, tart, honeyed, nutty, and off the charts. Whoa. Yes, it is sweet, almost to the point of cloying, with vibrant (still[!]) acidity and a host of secondary/tertiary flavors. Yowza. I do not drink a ton of dessert wines these days, but when some friends showed up? It was time to pop some good stuff. And this definitely classifies as "good stuff." Whoa.
Yum! Nice dark gold color. Some have called out a lack of acidity but I found acidity to be decent. Just delicious. I think I paid $20 as a Chairman’s Selection in PA, which was a steal. Unfortunately this was my last bottle. Plenty of life left.
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Retail $50. Whoa. Dark Amber with a nose of roasted hazelnut and caramel corn. On the palate, unctuously rich with the slightly burnt caramel aspect that plays excedingly well. Whoa.
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Not as complex as a high end sauternes but for the price this is hard to argue against. Really well done. Sweet but with some acid still to hold it together. Brown sugar, creme brûlée with sweet yellow fruits. Good long finish. Really good sweet wine from California
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Wine & Dine with Robert Mondavi Winemaker Richard Arnold (Restaurant 5, Stuttgart): Well, what should I say: a botrytis SB from Napa. Respect, hard to produce, but compared to other regions where they really have experience with that (Sauternes, Neusiedlersee) a wine, that nobody really needs.. Light amber color, clean botrytis nose with honey notes, but not very complex and lots of volatile acidity (nail polish remover) that vanishes over time. Good acidity, 12% alcohol, fermented in new oak. Sure it is intense and sweet and all that stuff, but it lacks the complexity and aromas I usually expect from a late picked botrytis wine.
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A bit different from my last tasting note of 4 years ago. The colour is slowly leaning on a dark golden hue and the nose is more brown sugars and sweet apricots with some honey undertones. The palate's changed a bit as well as I am getting more of sugared ripe mangoes and apricots with the honey profile lurking in the background. Not as sweet as the last time, but a bit more rounder though somewhat one dimensional though the finish is long; low acidity and I'm not sure about the longevity of this one.
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honeyed apricots, maybe some creme brulee. not enough acidity to offset the sweetness, making it feel heavy and unctuous. prefer a much more balanced sauternes-style wine than this. will age the other for another 5-10 and see what happens.
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Medium honey color, nice viscosity on the glass. Honey, peach, and apricot on the nose. Sweet honey and sweet candy apple on the palate; caramel at the end. Definitely sweet, but maybe a little too sweet? I think I'll start looking for a few Sauternes and compare it with this.
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Dark golden straw color; nose of peach, apricot, honey, and my wife thought overripe passion fruit; nice creamy texture, more peach, honey and apricot, hints of green apple, maybe figs and caramel at the end, perhaps just a little sweet but still good; low acid, moderate finish, very nice for the price we got.
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2/3/2024 - acorelli Likes this wine: 93 Points
Extraordinary.
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1/9/2023 - The Drunken Cyclist Likes this wine: 95 Points
Retail $50 (375ml). Whoa. Dark amber in the glass, really dark. Aromas of caramelized pear, hazelnut, honey, walnut, and a bit of beeswax in the glass. Holy cow. The palate is sweet, tart, honeyed, nutty, and off the charts. Whoa. Yes, it is sweet, almost to the point of cloying, with vibrant (still[!]) acidity and a host of secondary/tertiary flavors. Yowza. I do not drink a ton of dessert wines these days, but when some friends showed up? It was time to pop some good stuff. And this definitely classifies as "good stuff." Whoa.
www.thedrunkencyclist.com
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12/29/2021 - mtaczak wrote: 89 Points
Ten years later and this has barely budged. Still way too sweet without enough acidity to keep it fresh, so it was just pretty heavy.
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8/19/2021 - wilkinsmd Likes this wine: 93 Points
Yum! Nice dark gold color. Some have called out a lack of acidity but I found acidity to be decent. Just delicious. I think I paid $20 as a Chairman’s Selection in PA, which was a steal. Unfortunately this was my last bottle. Plenty of life left.
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5/9/2016 - The Drunken Cyclist wrote: 94 Points
Retail $50. Whoa. Dark Amber with a nose of roasted hazelnut and caramel corn. On the palate, unctuously rich with the slightly burnt caramel aspect that plays excedingly well. Whoa.
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12/26/2015 - Griffeyfan04 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Not as complex as a high end sauternes but for the price this is hard to argue against. Really well done. Sweet but with some acid still to hold it together. Brown sugar, creme brûlée with sweet yellow fruits. Good long finish. Really good sweet wine from California
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11/8/2015 - ChrisAndRob wrote: 91 Points
Notes of smoky caramel.
Well balanced acidity.
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4/4/2015 - ryestraw wrote:
Meh. Lacking acidity to bring it into balance. But nice weight and we all enjoyed contrasting it with a Sauternes.
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3/19/2015 - NoTrollingerPlease wrote: 90 Points
Wine & Dine with Robert Mondavi Winemaker Richard Arnold (Restaurant 5, Stuttgart): Well, what should I say: a botrytis SB from Napa. Respect, hard to produce, but compared to other regions where they really have experience with that (Sauternes, Neusiedlersee) a wine, that nobody really needs..
Light amber color, clean botrytis nose with honey notes, but not very complex and lots of volatile acidity (nail polish remover) that vanishes over time. Good acidity, 12% alcohol, fermented in new oak. Sure it is intense and sweet and all that stuff, but it lacks the complexity and aromas I usually expect from a late picked botrytis wine.
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2/22/2015 - AMC Eagle wrote: 91 Points
A bit different from my last tasting note of 4 years ago. The colour is slowly leaning on a dark golden hue and the nose is more brown sugars and sweet apricots with some honey undertones. The palate's changed a bit as well as I am getting more of sugared ripe mangoes and apricots with the honey profile lurking in the background. Not as sweet as the last time, but a bit more rounder though somewhat one dimensional though the finish is long; low acidity and I'm not sure about the longevity of this one.
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2/21/2014 - europat55 wrote: 91 Points
This was gorgeous!
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12/13/2013 - dontime wrote:
Overly sweet, lacking acidity for balance. Honey flavored.
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1/29/2012 - BoudinNoir wrote:
nice sweetness, round end bouche,notes of apricot, low alcohol on the nose, refined
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7/4/2011 - mtaczak wrote:
honeyed apricots, maybe some creme brulee. not enough acidity to offset the sweetness, making it feel heavy and unctuous. prefer a much more balanced sauternes-style wine than this. will age the other for another 5-10 and see what happens.
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5/22/2011 - AMC Eagle wrote: 93 Points
Medium honey color, nice viscosity on the glass. Honey, peach, and apricot on the nose. Sweet honey and sweet candy apple on the palate; caramel at the end. Definitely sweet, but maybe a little too sweet? I think I'll start looking for a few Sauternes and compare it with this.
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5/22/2011 - mdkraft99 wrote: 91 Points
Dark golden straw color; nose of peach, apricot, honey, and my wife thought overripe passion fruit; nice creamy texture, more peach, honey and apricot, hints of green apple, maybe figs and caramel at the end, perhaps just a little sweet but still good; low acid, moderate finish, very nice for the price we got.
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11/17/2010 - difran wrote: 87 Points
Good desert wines
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