What a pleasant surprise. This was my first Italian Merlot and it was delicious despite some of the ratings I reviewed. This is a great change of pace with notes of gravel, limestone, leather, pencil shavings, wild shrooms and black cherry. Decanted for an hour I really enjoyed the uniqueness of this wine given my palate generally gravitates to Napa. Looking forward to a vertical comparison with a back to back tasting of the 2016
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I was expecting a more generous full on wine. This had loads of structure and clearly there is plenty of fruit extraction but it fails to deliver a pleasing wine. Somehow hugely structured and monolithic. Perhaps this will expand with age. Short length, straightforward. Wait for 5 years? Perhaps forever.
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Complex bouquet. Layers of gravel, black fruits, earthy spices and a touch of leather and licorice. Palate echoed the nose. Elegant. Medium-bodied with good density. Smooth transition to a long and lingering finish. Still young even after 2 hours of decanting. Many of the finer elements are hiding behind the huge structure. 94-96 pts.
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Dark blackberry fruit with notes of cassis, violet and plum. Fruit forward with hints of forest floor on the finish. Beautifully balanced and complex at the same time. Needs 30 minutes to decant and then ready to go. Well made wine.
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Power and a mighty body. Lacking definiton to be a Top notch one. Lots of black fruits and garrigue, Refined tannins allow pleasure and yet a long shelf live ahead.
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Opened, poured into a decanter, and then enjoyed with food (spaghetti with meatballs, in case you were wondering). Dark purple color. Wonderful floral bouquet upon opening with a hint of red clay. With some more time open, shows some mushroom and cedar notes along with plum and the red clay notes. Beautiful plum, mushrooms and some sour cherry on the palate. Long finish. Sufficient acidity to give the wine lift. An outstanding bottle of wine.
13.5% abv. Long branded cork with vintage.
The bouquet stood out for me - I was transported to a Tuscan courtyard with terra cotta planters.
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a wine opened before its time I learned that I quadruple decanted this starting 12 hrs earlier but remained mostly impenetrable so hard to score most at vinetasters in agreement and the macchiole messorio was infinitely more approachable
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Very far from great today. Can it become great? Yeah, I'd bet that the stuffing is here to age incredibly well for another 10-20 years. But it's a 92 for me today. I have one more bottle that I don't plan to touch for years. I'd bet on a peak in 2035, age 20, when it'll probably really impress.
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Decanted 2 hours before dinner. Black/red in glass with some fine sediment noticeable. Tobacco, cranberry, black cherry and herbs on nose. Palate had similar flavor profile with medium body, high acidity and medium+ tannins. Very long finish.
1st time with this wine and really enjoyed this. Will buy this again. 93++
No specific notes. This has improved over the past three years, and it shows rich red and black berry fruit with a slight ashy bitter note on the medium to long finish, with moderate tannins and strong acidity. This was an average to good value at about $70.
A typical Super Tuscan Merlot. Plush, rich, off the mill for an international palate but devoid of place and character. Really boring and far away from the complexity of a the leading Pomerols which this wine tries to emulate.
Tasted double blind. At first it seemed not that interesting or particularly enjoyable but digging a bit deeper it became clear that the wine is just not ready to be enjoyed today. Below the surface there is more but today it is not overly expressive. It will need time to blossom. Because of all that my guess was 2016 Tuscan Bdx blend. While the 2016 is a masculine and often closed vintage, the 2015s are more solar and I had some quite great examples right after release (Ornellaia, Redigaffi). But these wines seem to go or have gone into a sleepy phase (more recent encounters with Ornellaia and Redigaffi showed less open and pleasurable). I would lock away these 2015s for at least 5, probably even 10 years. If you open a bottle today, be prepared to give it hours and hours in the decanter (but still, the level of enjoyment will not be as high).
TN: Dark fruits, herbs, leather and mushrooms on the nose. A bit muted but you can sense that there is more to discover. Same picture, same aromatic profile on the palate with additional layers of red berries and minerality. Impressive concentration and density but not open and singing, not overly complex. Finley grained tannins, a high but well integrated acidity but some heat detectable (which should not be a problem once the fruit comes back in full steam). Overall solid at the current stage but not more.
Decanting: Not sure how long this was decanted, but as my notes say nothing about it, I suspect this got not much more than an hour (and could have used much more).
Tasted blind. Distinct earthy and truffle notes, plush dark berry fruit (bramble berries) in a slightly jammy expression as well as layers of fresh, minty herbs. After a while more red berries popping up. A fresh, polished and juicy palate although with still quite harsh tannins. Balanced overall with lots of intensity on all fronts. Characterful and once again a unique demonstration of what Merlot can do.
Opened, and poured into a decanter. Had an initial taste. served about 1 hour later with food (homemade tagliatelle with Bologense sauce, that was absolutely amazing, in case you were wondering). Vibrant dark purple color. Nose offers ripe plums, violets, some wild strawberry and red clay notes. Tasting brings that plum and strawberry with a floral touch flitting around the fruit. Inviting acidity that keeps this fresh. Moderate tannins, mostly of red clay soil. Bottle showed some sediment.
On this night, at this time, this wine is outstanding. Just lovely.
Tasted again the following day, and this remained vibrant and fresh, although taking on a darker fruit profile - adding some cherry notes. Still delicious.
Deep dense red in color. Lots of cinnamon and spice on the nose. Definitely Merlot with a streak of salinity. Massive wine and pretty high in alcohol. Needed a long decant. Not really fruit bomb but getting close. Thought I would like it more than I did. I prefer a lot of other Tuscan merlot
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Consistent with previous notes. Plums, generous red fruit on the nose, tobacco, spices. On the palate well balanced, fresh, spicy, ripe tannins. Dense, elegant, mineral with good depth and a grippy, very long finish. Young, but quite approachable. 94-95+
Too young. Just starts to open. Better after 2022. Could become a superstar. Even closed already almost unresistable. The density is utmost. The color is as dark as possible. The depth is gorgeous. And one thing is there more then enough under any circumstance. Power. Everything in this wine is overdimensioned. But the mix is balanced still. Curious to see where this goes.
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We didn't really give this a chance to shine. Just a quick 30min decant. TONS of sediment already. Hard to rate at this point but I loved the texture of this wine. On the palate and nose, it is closed for business though. Revisit in 5 years+++
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Just delicious but it needs LOTS of air if being opened anytime soon. My rating is from the second day drinking from this bottle (drank half, recorked, in the fridge overnight) when it really started to hit its stride. Day 1 it was wound really tight and a little restrained but had nice fruit. The next day I poured a glass it had all sorts of more subtle leather and earth notes to compliment them and round it out. Make sure to decant cuz the last glass had a ton of sediment!
A world of difference allowing it to sit overnight. Astringent and muted on the first night even with 4 hours of air. Day 2 it emerged not only texturally but flavor wise. Roasted red fruit, cherry chapstick, orange rind, vanilla, and dried herbs. Still tannic and slightly astringent but likely the best not method if you choose to drink it young. Hold 10 years.
Deep ruby with a slight purple tinge. Pretty nose of red cherry and plums, flowers, herbs, sandlewood. High acid and med+ tannins (although reasonably fine grained). Darker fruits on palate, but mostly overwhelmed by the tannins. Mineral finish that's medium in length. Definitely give this bottle some more cellaring or overnight decanting
Opened, had a small pour and taste, and then let slow-ox for about 1 hour before serving. Tasted on its own and then with food. Ruby color. Nose offers some orange peel along with plum and blackberries. Light in texture, there is bright acidity to this wine. Nice plum flavor with evident acidity and citrus peel. Tannins are well integrated. Some notes of mushroom and red clay on the back end.
No decant, but would have been advisable in my view. Maybe try 1-2h first. Full frontal attack with high intensity. Pretty complex with ripe dark fruit (cherry and plum), a bit of spices, fine oak and lots of petrol and tobacco. The latter carried on nicely on the palate where I found a good or even very good balance despite still lots of tannins which were ripe and velvety. Fulld texture and body. This one could become great with more bottle age!
Tasted next to the 2013. Lovely richness without being jammy, crushed stones, spices, licquorice. Silky tannins on the palate, fresh, mineral, oodles of fruit. Great balance and length. Again very promising. 94-95+
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First sip on its way to the decanter: nose exploding with dark berry, oak, and dust. Palate: plum and more plum. Gripping tannins. Very long finish. Wow.
6 hours in the decanter: closed down. Muted nose bit of berry and coconut. Muted palate. Berry. Green notes. Iron. Tongue coating tannin. Very long.
8 hours: opening up but not as interesting as first. Lots of berry.
12 hours: last sip. Disappointed. Tannins softened. This is no doubt an incredible wine. But it never came together.
I opened this by mistake thinking it was an earlier vintage; it's much too young. This shows dark red fruit with bitter tobacco on the medium finish, with moderate tannins and strong acidity. It is obviously going to turn out well, but it needs five years yet.
A bit more restrained than I remember it to be last October. Earthy, mineral, spicy with lots of red and dark fruit and mocha on the nose. On the palate generous fruit, grippy tannins, well integrated acidity. Well balanced already, but quite tight and restrained. Very promising, but I would wait a good 5 years before starting to drink this. 94-95+
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Tuscany wine tour with Tim Syrad Wine Tours. Visit to Petrolo winery in Bucine. Notes by my wife Liz. o Single vineyard – 20k bottles p.a. o 100% Merlot; 8 mth barrel L – rich dark cherry N – complex – sea salt; slight dust; peppermint/blackcurrant leaves; cedarwood; blackcurrant; plum T – Dry, rich & chewy (very young)
Tasted blind, we were guessing modern cab. Certainly a lot of wine here, somewhat roasted, very concentrated, sweet fruit, very dark, very modern, and what will this become? I have no idea, but I am not a big fan. #DMtest
P: Med, poss MF, body; Rndish entry with NICE frt QUICKLY met by an astringency which slowly, SEAMLESSLY morphs into a VERY LONG finish which never even comes REMOTELY close to losing the SWTNESS of the initial frt! DESERVES into '21, then through the rest of the decade? PHENOMENAL! My EXCEPTIONAL! [This vendor's $79.95 is ≈ @ the bottom of wine-searcher's current TOP 1/3 entries.]
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Very primary and fresh with lots of palate-staining dark fruits and a distinct note of menthol. Beautifully delineated with a smooth but steely structure and the flavors are sappy and also very silky and fine. Finishes with grippy tannins that will need time to ameliorate. Tastes like mountain wine to me and it's blessed with excellent balance and freshness and is not at all over-the-top. Tasted blind and guessed 2015 Grand Cru St. Emilion which is a high compliment! 93+
Plush, generous, expressive on the nose - lovely notes of ripe red and dark fruit, spices. On the palate again ripe and quite big, but not heavy or overdone at all. Good acidity, well integrated and polished tannins. Very long. Impressive 94-95+
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{winery visit} I'm not sure ravishing is a proper descriptor, but it's the word that came to mind. This offers a lot of energy, with developing, rich and quite bright aromas and flavors, and of course that long, dreamy, chocolate/cocoa tinged finish. A solid Merlot, with a good sense of place, and enough supporting acidity. I think this should be just fine after a year or so of rest, though no doubt its sweet spot won't begin for another 4-5 years. Good potential, and fans of this label will love it in this vintage. recommended
4/7/2024 - thkim wrote: 91 Points
디캔팅 1시간 필수임
보르도 메를로에 산도와 스파이시함이 추가된 느낌 큰 인상은 못받아서 아쉬움
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2/29/2024 - 50somm Likes this wine: 93 Points
What a pleasant surprise. This was my first Italian Merlot and it was delicious despite some of the ratings I reviewed. This is a great change of pace with notes of gravel, limestone, leather, pencil shavings, wild shrooms and black cherry. Decanted for an hour I really enjoyed the uniqueness of this wine given my palate generally gravitates to Napa. Looking forward to a vertical comparison with a back to back tasting of the 2016
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12/8/2023 - gagrapes wrote: 90 Points
Still not great. Hold off drinking for another year.
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12/7/2023 - Philip67 Does not like this wine: 89 Points
I was expecting a more generous full on wine. This had loads of structure and clearly there is plenty of fruit extraction but it fails to deliver a pleasing wine. Somehow hugely structured and monolithic. Perhaps this will expand with age. Short length, straightforward. Wait for 5 years? Perhaps forever.
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10/27/2023 - Psdycp wrote: 94 Points
Complex bouquet. Layers of gravel, black fruits, earthy spices and a touch of leather and licorice. Palate echoed the nose. Elegant. Medium-bodied with good density. Smooth transition to a long and lingering finish. Still young even after 2 hours of decanting. Many of the finer elements are hiding behind the huge structure. 94-96 pts.
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9/20/2023 - Schiffy Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dark blackberry fruit with notes of cassis, violet and plum. Fruit forward with hints of forest floor on the finish. Beautifully balanced and complex at the same time. Needs 30 minutes to decant and then ready to go. Well made wine.
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8/25/2023 - jusuf Likes this wine: 94 Points
Power and a mighty body. Lacking definiton to be a Top notch one. Lots of black fruits and garrigue, Refined tannins allow pleasure and yet a long shelf live ahead.
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5/14/2023 - t_moderne wrote: 95 Points
Opened, poured into a decanter, and then enjoyed with food (spaghetti with meatballs, in case you were wondering).
Dark purple color.
Wonderful floral bouquet upon opening with a hint of red clay. With some more time open, shows some mushroom and cedar notes along with plum and the red clay notes.
Beautiful plum, mushrooms and some sour cherry on the palate. Long finish. Sufficient acidity to give the wine lift.
An outstanding bottle of wine.
13.5% abv.
Long branded cork with vintage.
The bouquet stood out for me - I was transported to a Tuscan courtyard with terra cotta planters.
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3/6/2023 - bugdoced Likes this wine:
a wine opened before its time
I learned that I quadruple decanted this starting 12 hrs earlier
but remained mostly impenetrable so hard to score
most at vinetasters in agreement and the macchiole messorio was infinitely more approachable
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8/26/2022 - Leidersdorff Likes this wine: 94 Points
I really love these Tuscan wines. Lots of power, rustic and still complex.
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7/14/2022 - Montesquieu wrote: 92 Points
Very far from great today. Can it become great? Yeah, I'd bet that the stuffing is here to age incredibly well for another 10-20 years. But it's a 92 for me today. I have one more bottle that I don't plan to touch for years. I'd bet on a peak in 2035, age 20, when it'll probably really impress.
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6/1/2022 - maxima wrote: 90 Points
Super franc et délicieux.
Des cerises, de l'anis et des herbes.
Les tannins sont charnus et
la finale bien longue.
Excellent.
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2/21/2022 - CWilliam wrote: 93 Points
Decanted 2 hours before dinner. Black/red in glass with some fine sediment noticeable. Tobacco, cranberry, black cherry and herbs on nose. Palate had similar flavor profile with medium body, high acidity and medium+ tannins. Very long finish.
1st time with this wine and really enjoyed this. Will buy this again. 93++
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2/13/2022 - Schubi Does not like this wine:
It is far from ready to drink. Wine stays closed - to much tannin.
Better wait for a couples of years
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1/23/2022 - Raizes Likes this wine: 90 Points
开瓶蔓越莓、覆盆子和草莓的果味十分充足，到两小时开始喝时反而变得平淡。香气变弱凸显了较高的酸度和酒精，带来分离感。再一小时后整体质量回升，单宁变得更丰富也更柔顺，香气中的香料气息更明显，并略带一点花香，完成了从轻纱到绸缎的转变。
（这款的状态没有达到我的预期——相比以往空灵与深邃兼具的状态，这款只展现出了轻盈，深度的变化则只是展现了一小部分。而且因为我对年轻程度的估算不足，醒酒时间也不太够。）
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12/9/2021 - RichardP wrote: 92 Points
No specific notes. This has improved over the past three years, and it shows rich red and black berry fruit with a slight ashy bitter note on the medium to long finish, with moderate tannins and strong acidity. This was an average to good value at about $70.
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9/21/2021 - Collector1855 wrote: 91 Points
A typical Super Tuscan Merlot. Plush, rich, off the mill for an international palate but devoid of place and character. Really boring and far away from the complexity of a the leading Pomerols which this wine tries to emulate.
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12/30/2020 - Cailles wrote: 92 Points
Tasted double blind. At first it seemed not that interesting or particularly enjoyable but digging a bit deeper it became clear that the wine is just not ready to be enjoyed today. Below the surface there is more but today it is not overly expressive. It will need time to blossom. Because of all that my guess was 2016 Tuscan Bdx blend. While the 2016 is a masculine and often closed vintage, the 2015s are more solar and I had some quite great examples right after release (Ornellaia, Redigaffi). But these wines seem to go or have gone into a sleepy phase (more recent encounters with Ornellaia and Redigaffi showed less open and pleasurable). I would lock away these 2015s for at least 5, probably even 10 years. If you open a bottle today, be prepared to give it hours and hours in the decanter (but still, the level of enjoyment will not be as high).
TN: Dark fruits, herbs, leather and mushrooms on the nose. A bit muted but you can sense that there is more to discover. Same picture, same aromatic profile on the palate with additional layers of red berries and minerality. Impressive concentration and density but not open and singing, not overly complex. Finley grained tannins, a high but well integrated acidity but some heat detectable (which should not be a problem once the fruit comes back in full steam). Overall solid at the current stage but not more.
Decanting: Not sure how long this was decanted, but as my notes say nothing about it, I suspect this got not much more than an hour (and could have used much more).
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12/4/2020 - sirpat00 wrote: 93 Points
Tasted blind. Distinct earthy and truffle notes, plush dark berry fruit (bramble berries) in a slightly jammy expression as well as layers of fresh, minty herbs. After a while more red berries popping up. A fresh, polished and juicy palate although with still quite harsh tannins. Balanced overall with lots of intensity on all fronts. Characterful and once again a unique demonstration of what Merlot can do.
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9/16/2020 - gagrapes wrote:
Much better on day two but still needs time to come together. Very astringent right now. No rating at present.
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9/9/2020 - vinhonotte Likes this wine: 91 Points
Fine Wines SG - BYOB "The Best of Merlot" (The Communal Bistro Delicacy - CBD): Deep ruby, with some slight fading edges. Aromas of roses, cherry, and tar, as well as a greenish herbaceous feel. Savoury on the palate, with a bit of cherry but mostly of green fernish tones and tar. Long tar-like finish
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3/29/2020 - t_moderne wrote: 95 Points
Opened, and poured into a decanter. Had an initial taste.
served about 1 hour later with food (homemade tagliatelle with Bologense sauce, that was absolutely amazing, in case you were wondering).
Vibrant dark purple color.
Nose offers ripe plums, violets, some wild strawberry and red clay notes.
Tasting brings that plum and strawberry with a floral touch flitting around the fruit. Inviting acidity that keeps this fresh. Moderate tannins, mostly of red clay soil. Bottle showed some sediment.
On this night, at this time, this wine is outstanding.
Just lovely.
Tasted again the following day, and this remained vibrant and fresh, although taking on a darker fruit profile - adding some cherry notes.
Still delicious.
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12/4/2019 - Coastalnative Likes this wine: 89 Points
Deep dense red in color. Lots of cinnamon and spice on the nose. Definitely Merlot with a streak of salinity. Massive wine and pretty high in alcohol. Needed a long decant. Not really fruit bomb but getting close. Thought I would like it more than I did. I prefer a lot of other Tuscan merlot
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10/4/2019 - J-Sho Likes this wine: 90 Points
Somewhat brawny Merlot - tobacco, plum, dark fruit with grippy tannins. Nice but probably needs a good 4-5 years to loosen up.
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9/23/2019 - rossi.wine wrote: 95 Points
Consistent with previous notes. Plums, generous red fruit on the nose, tobacco, spices. On the palate well balanced, fresh, spicy, ripe tannins. Dense, elegant, mineral with good depth and a grippy, very long finish. Young, but quite approachable. 94-95+
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9/16/2019 - jusuf Likes this wine: 96 Points
Too young. Just starts to open. Better after 2022. Could become a superstar. Even closed already almost unresistable. The density is utmost. The color is as dark as possible. The depth is gorgeous. And one thing is there more then enough under any circumstance. Power.
Everything in this wine is overdimensioned. But the mix is balanced still.
Curious to see where this goes.
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4/27/2019 - jonanator wrote:
We didn't really give this a chance to shine. Just a quick 30min decant. TONS of sediment already. Hard to rate at this point but I loved the texture of this wine. On the palate and nose, it is closed for business though. Revisit in 5 years+++
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3/24/2019 - mattstolz11 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Just delicious but it needs LOTS of air if being opened anytime soon. My rating is from the second day drinking from this bottle (drank half, recorked, in the fridge overnight) when it really started to hit its stride. Day 1 it was wound really tight and a little restrained but had nice fruit. The next day I poured a glass it had all sorts of more subtle leather and earth notes to compliment them and round it out. Make sure to decant cuz the last glass had a ton of sediment!
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2/24/2019 - MAXIMUM SATISFACTION wrote: 94 Points
A world of difference allowing it to sit overnight. Astringent and muted on the first night even with 4 hours of air. Day 2 it emerged not only texturally but flavor wise. Roasted red fruit, cherry chapstick, orange rind, vanilla, and dried herbs. Still tannic and slightly astringent but likely the best not method if you choose to drink it young. Hold 10 years.
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2/4/2019 - akim_hobo Likes this wine: 91 Points
Deep ruby with a slight purple tinge. Pretty nose of red cherry and plums, flowers, herbs, sandlewood. High acid and med+ tannins (although reasonably fine grained). Darker fruits on palate, but mostly overwhelmed by the tannins. Mineral finish that's medium in length. Definitely give this bottle some more cellaring or overnight decanting
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1/6/2019 - t_moderne wrote: 89 Points
Opened, had a small pour and taste, and then let slow-ox for about 1 hour before serving.
Tasted on its own and then with food.
Ruby color.
Nose offers some orange peel along with plum and blackberries.
Light in texture, there is bright acidity to this wine. Nice plum flavor with evident acidity and citrus peel. Tannins are well integrated. Some notes of mushroom and red clay on the back end.
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11/19/2018 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: flawed
Grüner Veltliner & Super Tuscan Tasting (Restaurant Vineum, Rotterdam, NL): Not tasted. Corked.
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11/19/2018 - dvansteenderen wrote: flawed
Grüner Veltliner & Super-Tuscans @ VINEUM (Vineum, Rotterdam): Sadly completely corked...
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11/10/2018 - MC2 Wines Likes this wine:
A Matter of Taste: New York (The Conrad NY | Del Posto): I always like the way the Italians do their Merlot. This was definitely too young to be drinking, but some good stuffing. Lots of red fruits. More refined style.
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11/2/2018 - sirpat00 Likes this wine: 94 Points
No decant, but would have been advisable in my view. Maybe try 1-2h first. Full frontal attack with high intensity. Pretty complex with ripe dark fruit (cherry and plum), a bit of spices, fine oak and lots of petrol and tobacco. The latter carried on nicely on the palate where I found a good or even very good balance despite still lots of tannins which were ripe and velvety. Fulld texture and body. This one could become great with more bottle age!
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10/27/2018 - rossi.wine wrote: 95 Points
Tasted next to the 2013. Lovely richness without being jammy, crushed stones, spices, licquorice. Silky tannins on the palate, fresh, mineral, oodles of fruit. Great balance and length. Again very promising. 94-95+
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9/21/2018 - Plusvini Likes this wine:
First sip on its way to the decanter: nose exploding with dark berry, oak, and dust. Palate: plum and more plum. Gripping tannins. Very long finish. Wow.
6 hours in the decanter: closed down. Muted nose bit of berry and coconut. Muted palate. Berry. Green notes. Iron. Tongue coating tannin. Very long.
8 hours: opening up but not as interesting as first. Lots of berry.
12 hours: last sip. Disappointed. Tannins softened. This is no doubt an incredible wine. But it never came together.
My advice. Pop and pour or hold for 20+ years.
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9/19/2018 - RichardP wrote: 90 Points
I opened this by mistake thinking it was an earlier vintage; it's much too young. This shows dark red fruit with bitter tobacco on the medium finish, with moderate tannins and strong acidity. It is obviously going to turn out well, but it needs five years yet.
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6/2/2018 - rossi.wine wrote: 95 Points
A bit more restrained than I remember it to be last October. Earthy, mineral, spicy with lots of red and dark fruit and mocha on the nose. On the palate generous fruit, grippy tannins, well integrated acidity. Well balanced already, but quite tight and restrained. Very promising, but I would wait a good 5 years before starting to drink this. 94-95+
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5/16/2018 - Keith Cooper Likes this wine:
Tuscany wine tour with Tim Syrad Wine Tours. Visit to Petrolo winery in Bucine. Notes by my wife Liz.
o Single vineyard – 20k bottles p.a.
o 100% Merlot; 8 mth barrel
L – rich dark cherry
N – complex – sea salt; slight dust; peppermint/blackcurrant leaves; cedarwood; blackcurrant; plum
T – Dry, rich & chewy (very young)
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5/3/2018 - beatles wrote: 91 Points
Tasted blind, we were guessing modern cab. Certainly a lot of wine here, somewhat roasted, very concentrated, sweet fruit, very dark, very modern, and what will this become? I have no idea, but I am not a big fan.
#DMtest
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4/14/2018 - srh Likes this wine:
Winebar [4 Whites, 6 Reds, & 2 *shared* Reds] from 4/13/18 (Vintage Wines Ltd., San Diego, CA): Cf. the CellarTracker Article link [lower lft] to get specific info for this vintage, including acclaim.
N: VANILLA with berries & spice underneath?
P: Med, poss MF, body; Rndish entry with NICE frt QUICKLY met by an astringency which slowly, SEAMLESSLY morphs into a VERY LONG finish which never even comes REMOTELY close to losing the SWTNESS of the initial frt! DESERVES into '21, then through the rest of the decade? PHENOMENAL! My EXCEPTIONAL! [This vendor's $79.95 is ≈ @ the bottom of wine-searcher's current TOP 1/3 entries.]
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2/2/2018 - dream Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very primary and fresh with lots of palate-staining dark fruits and a distinct note of menthol. Beautifully delineated with a smooth but steely structure and the flavors are sappy and also very silky and fine. Finishes with grippy tannins that will need time to ameliorate. Tastes like mountain wine to me and it's blessed with excellent balance and freshness and is not at all over-the-top. Tasted blind and guessed 2015 Grand Cru St. Emilion which is a high compliment! 93+
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11/1/2017 - rossi.wine wrote: 95 Points
Plush, generous, expressive on the nose - lovely notes of ripe red and dark fruit, spices. On the palate again ripe and quite big, but not heavy or overdone at all. Good acidity, well integrated and polished tannins. Very long. Impressive 94-95+
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4/19/2017 - Tim Heaton wrote:
{winery visit} I'm not sure ravishing is a proper descriptor, but it's the word that came to mind. This offers a lot of energy, with developing, rich and quite bright aromas and flavors, and of course that long, dreamy, chocolate/cocoa tinged finish. A solid Merlot, with a good sense of place, and enough supporting acidity. I think this should be just fine after a year or so of rest, though no doubt its sweet spot won't begin for another 4-5 years. Good potential, and fans of this label will love it in this vintage. recommended
https://www.ItalianWine.blog
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