Old tasting note. Nose: Delicious. Raspberries, Cassis. A hint of strawberries, too. Mouth: Subtle barrique aromas melt into the fruit. A slight appetizing sourness.
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When am I ever going to learn? Or better yet, when will wine producers ever learn? It seems the 2005 was the year of the plastic cork - not only do I find them plugging and gumming up the works of Ontario wines, but I also find them on bottles of 2005's from around the world. This wine was the first meritage blend Mondavi did under the "Private Selection" label - and you would have hoped they'd've use a better closure for such an occasion. But alas they did not. The good news is that their lack of forethought and foresight did not ruin my enjoyment completely. The wine was still very dark when opened - the underside of the corked was stained black. The fruit was still very dark and slightly peppered with hints of plum also present. That lasted through while I was making dinner (about 15-20 minutes) ... then it began to show it's oxidative side very quickly and within 40 minutes of opening the wine was undrinkable and unrecognizable from my first sip. Alas, I hope that Mondavi have fixed this error in judgement for this wine because something tells me it would age rather gracefully given the proper treatment.
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This is probably the darkest, and richest of all wines I have tasted from the Robert Mondavi Private Selection. It starts out almost purple in color. It even tastes heavy in the mouth. We can tell this a blend, as there are little if any distinct varietal characteristics. The extra bottle age has beneficially helped integrate all the flavors, especially the oak. There is a very nice silky dry tannin structure for a wine in this price sector. Not particularly fruit driven, this one more relies on balance. Also more of those secondary flavors, like cedar and evergreen than expected. A little light on the finish which does not match the nose and first hit on the palate, and costs it a point or 2. Still nice effort.
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The nose put me off...almost burned my sinuses....but the taste was better. a little dry, fruity...easy drinking...some slight tannins..went well with pizza and by itself..would not open to impress, but for a daily drinker with no expectations, it worked....
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great purple color. dark fruits and jammy on the nose...i wouldn't think Bordeaux blend in a blind tasting, but maybe a Shiraz. decent fruit on the palate. definitely oak flavors. needed a bit of decanting. medium tannin. not much of a finish. i drank it with some dark chocolate. not a bad deal for the money.
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Purple with a ruby rim. Inviting nose of cassis, with some plum and a background of oak. Powerful flavors of cassis, plum, oak, with some coffee. The oak stands out a bit, so the balance is decent, but could be better; still quite nice. Solid finish, with low tannins.
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Opened and poured using a Vinturi. Nose is open, with a nice earthiness and berry, actually smells intriguingly complex. I'm mostly getting blackberry and a smooth mouthfeel, with a little pepper and some nice drying tannins. Very Decent QPR in my opinion. This is the second time I've had this, enjoyed it more this time around.
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This is the first wine that I am rating and therefore do not want to start to high. I give it an 87 because I liked it however my wine did not. I thought it had a berry taste.
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Had a very tight nose and heavy alcohol taste before decanting, good color. Shows much improvement after decanting for 2 hours but goes flat at the finish.
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Lacking any sort of complexity. Some red berries on the nose. Palate is unbalanced with lots of mouth drying tannins with little acidity and some overwhelming alcohol. The finish is short and the body is light. Nothing too impressive going on here. Would not try again. It does go down very easily though.
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Good nose but not much in the mouth. Somewhat bitter finish. Drank two glasses and decanted into 375ml bottle. Had remainder next day. Was notably off after only 24 hours in refrigerator. Would serve again, especially for $8.99/bottle.
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Kind of a rough blend of too many varietals. Seemed interesting at first, and does have an appealing nose and flavor profile, but kind of falls apart in the finish. Not a firm integration. May lead to a headache afterwards.
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I was quite pleased with this bottle. Nicely blended; I could taste the presence of the Zinfandel, which added a nice spice element to the wine. I would definitely buy this again.
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decent color, nose of black cherry and hints of oak. it has some simple dark fruits that are tasty with some big tannins and a bit of oak. it's not very well integrated though and the finish craps out and leaves you with some bitter berry flavors. won't buy again.
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5/12/2017 - wineaficionado Likes this wine: 90 Points
Old tasting note. Nose: Delicious. Raspberries, Cassis. A hint of strawberries, too. Mouth: Subtle barrique aromas melt into the fruit. A slight appetizing sourness.
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10/29/2012 - owr wrote: 79 Points
When am I ever going to learn? Or better yet, when will wine producers ever learn? It seems the 2005 was the year of the plastic cork - not only do I find them plugging and gumming up the works of Ontario wines, but I also find them on bottles of 2005's from around the world. This wine was the first meritage blend Mondavi did under the "Private Selection" label - and you would have hoped they'd've use a better closure for such an occasion. But alas they did not. The good news is that their lack of forethought and foresight did not ruin my enjoyment completely. The wine was still very dark when opened - the underside of the corked was stained black. The fruit was still very dark and slightly peppered with hints of plum also present. That lasted through while I was making dinner (about 15-20 minutes) ... then it began to show it's oxidative side very quickly and within 40 minutes of opening the wine was undrinkable and unrecognizable from my first sip. Alas, I hope that Mondavi have fixed this error in judgement for this wine because something tells me it would age rather gracefully given the proper treatment.
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11/5/2011 - Mike Kopanski wrote: 87 Points
This is probably the darkest, and richest of all wines I have tasted from the Robert Mondavi Private Selection. It starts out almost purple in color. It even tastes heavy in the mouth. We can tell this a blend, as there are little if any distinct varietal characteristics. The extra bottle age has beneficially helped integrate all the flavors, especially the oak. There is a very nice silky dry tannin structure for a wine in this price sector. Not particularly fruit driven, this one more relies on balance. Also more of those secondary flavors, like cedar and evergreen than expected. A little light on the finish which does not match the nose and first hit on the palate, and costs it a point or 2. Still nice effort.
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10/3/2011 - Hsgroves wrote: 77 Points
Smell: oak. Cherry. Blackberry. Taste: oak. Blackberry. Cherry. Slight alcohol finish.
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7/16/2010 - mikev101 wrote: 84 Points
The nose put me off...almost burned my sinuses....but the taste was better. a little dry, fruity...easy drinking...some slight tannins..went well with pizza and by itself..would not open to impress, but for a daily drinker with no expectations, it worked....
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5/15/2010 - Piexe226 wrote: 85 Points
Gruber brought it for steak pairing
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11/21/2009 - arass wrote: 80 Points
very easy to drink, but not particularly memorable. a flat taste but a nice body
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8/2/2009 - nickoliva wrote: 80 Points
Used for sauce and had a glass too.
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2/15/2009 - brigcampbell wrote: 82 Points
Boring says it all.
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12/3/2008 - JoeTom wrote: 84 Points
great purple color. dark fruits and jammy on the nose...i wouldn't think Bordeaux blend in a blind tasting, but maybe a Shiraz. decent fruit on the palate. definitely oak flavors. needed a bit of decanting. medium tannin. not much of a finish.
i drank it with some dark chocolate. not a bad deal for the money.
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11/9/2008 - pwarms wrote: 85 Points
Was suspicious, but it was cheap - turned out to be a perfect 2nd or 3rd bottle for the night. Light but not fruity. Would buy again.
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11/8/2008 - THaas wrote: 86 Points
Purple with a ruby rim. Inviting nose of cassis, with some plum and a background of oak. Powerful flavors of cassis, plum, oak, with some coffee. The oak stands out a bit, so the balance is decent, but could be better; still quite nice. Solid finish, with low tannins.
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9/22/2008 - bigdomer wrote: 87 Points
Each bottle is better. Absolutely the greatest deal out there right now for an everyday blend.
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9/7/2008 - bigdomer wrote: 86 Points
This opened up fairly well after an hour of decanting. At this price point I would at least give it a try even with the low CT rating.
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8/19/2008 - LynnMJ wrote: 85 Points
Opened and poured using a Vinturi. Nose is open, with a nice earthiness and berry, actually smells intriguingly complex. I'm mostly getting blackberry and a smooth mouthfeel, with a little pepper and some nice drying tannins. Very Decent QPR in my opinion. This is the second time I've had this, enjoyed it more this time around.
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8/9/2008 - Huber-Larson Inc wrote:
Blackberry jam with a hint of smoke and brown sugar. Surprisingly soft tannins for the vintage. Nice wine for the price.
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7/15/2008 - zoulodi Likes this wine: 85 Points
Offers a mouthful of dark fruit flavors of plum and blackberry, with spice, mineral and toast notes that are tasty and straightforward.
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6/21/2008 - n8540 wrote: 80 Points
Very interesting nose and initial flavor. Finish was weird and not so great. For the price, I guess this wine was OK
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6/12/2008 - maxmanx wrote: 88 Points
Tasted it again the second day, and liked it more. Still not great, but decent wine for the price! (I think I bought it in at Longs drugstore on sale)
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5/25/2008 - treedog wrote: 89 Points
For the price this wine was outstanding, flavor, nose, and color was more then worth the price.
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4/17/2008 - wertyu wrote: 86 Points
Liked a little better than last time - up to 86
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3/31/2008 - wertyu wrote: 85 Points
Will try again - good bordeaux blend, bit rough and tannic but worth keeping/ decanting next try.
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3/16/2008 - reed0728 wrote: 87 Points
This is the first wine that I am rating and therefore do not want to start to high. I give it an 87 because I liked it however my wine did not. I thought it had a berry taste.
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3/2/2008 - joeher133 wrote: 82 Points
Had a very tight nose and heavy alcohol taste before decanting, good color. Shows much improvement after decanting for 2 hours but goes flat at the finish.
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1/25/2008 - RPerro wrote: 82 Points
Cabernet Blends Tasting (Cornell Wine Company): Somewhat weak, interesting flavors, but seems fairly disjointed. Berry, cherry and slight coffee on the palate. Not my style of wine.
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12/13/2007 - jdmartin wrote:
Boring. No body or fruit.
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11/25/2007 - mpholiday wrote: 83 Points
Agreed with previous tasting notes. Would serve only to guests of less-discerning palates.
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10/28/2007 - beezer6 wrote: 83 Points
Lacking any sort of complexity. Some red berries on the nose.
Palate is unbalanced with lots of mouth drying tannins with little acidity and some overwhelming alcohol.
The finish is short and the body is light. Nothing too impressive going on here. Would not try again.
It does go down very easily though.
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10/13/2007 - annette and david wrote: 80 Points
We agree with the rough blend. Seemed to be a bit better after decanting for a 1/2 hour or more. Not sure if we will try again.
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9/29/2007 - bravenec wrote: 84 Points
Good nose but not much in the mouth. Somewhat bitter finish. Drank two glasses and decanted into 375ml bottle. Had remainder next day. Was notably off after only 24 hours in refrigerator. Would serve again, especially for $8.99/bottle.
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9/21/2007 - JonGray wrote: 88 Points
Enjoyed
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7/19/2007 - Capt M wrote: 85 Points
Kind of a rough blend of too many varietals. Seemed interesting at first, and does have an appealing nose and flavor profile, but kind of falls apart in the finish. Not a firm integration. May lead to a headache afterwards.
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6/23/2007 - CDStrombom wrote: 89 Points
I was quite pleased with this bottle. Nicely blended; I could taste the presence of the Zinfandel, which added a nice spice element to the wine. I would definitely buy this again.
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5/22/2007 - messiahmoose wrote: 88 Points
Very good, the wine is a bit tannic but is drinking wonderfully. Will get better over the next 2 years or so.
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5/16/2007 - isaacjamesbaker wrote: 82 Points
decent color, nose of black cherry and hints of oak. it has some simple dark fruits that are tasty with some big tannins and a bit of oak. it's not very well integrated though and the finish craps out and leaves you with some bitter berry flavors. won't buy again.
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