Raveneau MdT and Chapelot (Chicago, IL): I love these old LdH whites so much, even though they are admittedly weird and honestly a touch hard to pair. But there's something about that waxy complexity here that I really dig. It's saline in the way a sherry can be, but without all the alcohol. Salty and funky with a furry type of quality, this actually reminds a little of Allemand in the way that the feral notes are also restrained and slightly domesticated. But just a little bit.
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What wine goes with Chinese food? Dinner (Phoenix Palace London): So much going on here - perhaps the number of fonts on the label is reflective of the different facets of the wine. Gorgeous, almost nutty nose, real length - the wine gods smiled on this bottle tonight.
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Wow, this is an incredible wine! Really complex nose with some nutty flavors, minerals, lemon, and orange blossom. Nice acidity on the palate with high intensity, more lemon flavors, orange, mandarin, and dried chamomile. It feels like all the flavors on the nose are present, but turned up a notch (if that's even possible). Very long finish. What an experience, this is really outstanding. 98+
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Interesting and delicious but finish was much shorter than typical Tondonia. Still amazing how there is so much flavor variety in a wine that feels so light.
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Klar, dyp gyllen. Intens og svært kompleks på duft. Bare det å stikke nesen i glasset er en opplevelse i seg selv. Aroma av gule og røde epler, pære, fersken, hylleblomst, tørket mango, tørket aprikos, honning, voks, vanilje og toast. Kompleksiteten fortsetter i munnen, med en fyldig og fantastisk munnfølelse med høy smaksintensitet og nydelig balanse mellom frukt, syre, fedme og alkohol. Smak av epler, pærer, plommer, fersken, tørket mango, tørket aprikos, vanilje, brent tre, nøtter og krydder. Toastsmaken fra fatet tar litt mye plass, men med mer tid og integrering vil dette bare bli bedre. Veldig lang. En fantastisk vin.
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Unique and wonderful, this is one of the most complex whites you'll find. Aged yet fresh. Super deep. Really unique. Lemons and earth and spice and nuts and so much else. Every sip brings new wonders. Just wish it were easier to find.
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The return to The Ledbury, (The Ledbury, London): After having our Herat broken by a cork 1994 Chardonnay Terlan Rarita we looked to this wine for solace. And it came in spades. Aromatically this is a superb wine in a way that only old ( and this is young relatively) Tondonia G-Rs can be. Soft noble oxidation, light nutty, bright stone fruit, sweet citrus, good and well assimilated oak and indeed that sweet cream the French call creme patissiere that was probably a result of induction into our thoughts by the sommelier at The Ledbury , London. Exceptionally beautiful 94-95 and with lots of life ahead here.
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Utregs Wijnhuis tasting Exclusief (Utregs Wijnhuis, Utrecht, NL): [Tasted blind] Difficult, called white Hermitage, although the acidity was too high for that call. What a beautiful wine and so amazingly young at 21 years. Keeps developing over the 2 glasses I tasted over the course of the evening. Wow, WOTN for me. Clearly oxidative (but fresh), with candied fruit, apricot, sherry notes, nutty. Medium+ acidity, (very) long finish
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Deep golden without amber hue. First I've been a bit disappointed, because of the under-delivering nose which only give hints of pome fruit and some nutty components. On the palate it has been more powerful, but not near as the gravonia crianza e. g. Thankfully this changed after a decant and 15-30 minutes of time. The nose is now fruity with oxidizing pears and apples, dried peaches and a lot of umami, shoeshine, smoke, minerals, hazelnut, minerals, pork fat, and a flowery component, I can't precise, mustard in order of appearance. On the palate it is outstanding balanced with nuanced flavors and acidity, not as pungent as the Gravonia white from the same producer first, but very elegant and poised, more fruit, with a long finish and getting more intense with airtime. I would not recommend this with food. It is unfair and a pity since the complexity and nuances can't be tasted with food in a dignified way. 5/14/19/10. -2031+? 98 from Suckling and 99 from Gutiérrez for the WA.
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Pronounced on the nose with apple and pear fresh and bruised, lemon peel, orange peel, dried herbs, apricot, dried apricot, honey, caramel, hazelnut, chamomile, mushroom, wet stone, melon, golden currant, toast, nutmeg, almond, hay, beeswax, savoury notes. I guess fully developed but still seems so fresh.
Pronounced and dry on the palate. Medium body, high acidity, medium alcohol, long finish.
Incredible wine. Insane concentration, complexity and length. Amazing. Finish goes on forever. What a wine.
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A private lunch with a friend (The Ritz Restaurant *, The Ritz Hotel, London, UK): The current vintage. Decanted, enjoyed near room temperature. Incredible freshness and energy, warmth from the wood but relatively little aromatic influence, lemon cream, hints of leather, bergamot, subtle bitters, firm but ripe acidity, flowing and elegant, long and dreamy finish with a hint of crème pâtissière. Just stunning in a restrained, understated way.
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Montréal; 9/23/2022-9/24/2022 (Montréal, QC): Probably among my favourite wines this trip. These can be inconsistent and weird, but when the bottles are on, they really can be super compelling. This is one of those. Obviously a little boring and pedestrian right upon opening, it's the benefit of time that causes this wine to become increasingly opulent and rich. There's a classic, oily, lanolin component to this, but also a hint of salinity and plenty of waxy yellow fruit. Lots of acidity to cut through all of the weight, too. A pretty distinctive wine that demands special decisions with regards to pairing, but a very compelling drink, too.
Delicious and typical - intense, complex and balanced. Opened and decanted and first taste was stunning, almost overwhelming. Let it breathe in decanter and then drank over 2.5 hours. The intensity subsided and the balance and complexity showed nicely. You can enjoy this immediately after opening or give it some air. I have a second bottle I will try in about 5 years.
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Lagrat 10 år på fat och 10 år i flaskan innan vinet släpptes på marknaden.
Tydligt oxiderad stil, inslag av äppelskrutt, saltkaramell, apelsin och brynt smör. Relativt hög syra, medel kropp och en oljig munkänsla. Lång eftersmak.
Kräver mycket luft i dagsläget, gärna några timmar i karaff. Blev bättre och bättre under kvällens gång. Kan säkert växa i många år till.
Hög kvalitet och en kul upplevelse m även om det inte riktigt träffar min personliga smak.
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Tastes very young to be honest. Probably a current release (despite its age) Slight oxidative notes, some candle wax, some mint notes Give this a long decant or better still another 5-15 years of bottle age
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This is transparent with a warm, yellow color. You get the aged aromas of slight oxidation: raw almonds and fino sherry. This is precise and has good acid, a touch of candle wax, and bright fruit.
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Very bizarre mouth, on a certain greenness, it is sorely lacking in depth and the acid line at the end of the mouth jeopardizes the balance of a whole that if we judge by the pedigree and the tariff claims which result from it, is far too fair.
Could be a bottle problem.
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In line with expectations from other recent tasting notes. Orange peel, dried walnut, a saline element, and stone fruit with crisp acidity and a notable finish. Overshadowed a bit by the Loire Chenin and Special Club Champagne tonight. I wonder how this will age, it certainly doesn't seem young.
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One of the greatest white wine experiences of my life. All the descriptors you may see in previous and future notes - yeah. Interestingly I also get a vanilla note on the nose, which, rather than off-putting, is a wonderful addition to the melange. Outstanding +.
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No detailed notes...which is criminal because this is an insanely great and silence-creating wine, especially when paired with a big jet-flown crab from Alaska we ate 'two ways' with lightly grilled legs and then a simple risotto from the body meat. There is a totally beguiling wave after wave of citrus, vanilla, very slightly oxidative almond and pistachio(?) and a steady mounting thunder of resonance and reverberance on the finish that just made a grinning fool of me. I rarely score a wine at 96pts and use a personal Richter-type exponential scale.. so this was 50% better than the Verget Batard-Montrachet 2004 I brought, which was a very respectable 94pts. I have drank the 1991 with very fond memories and need to re-visit after this experience. Thanks, Pierre!
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My favourite Rioja producer and their newly released (previous was 1996) GR Blanco. Made from 90% Viura & 10% Malvasia, fermented in 153 year old oak vats, aged for 10 years in used barrels and 8 in the bottle. Deep and layered aroma of candied peaches, mushrooms, honey, yellow flowers, beeswax, hints of petrol and walnuts. Palate is complex, harmonious and seductively meditational. Velvety attack braced with incredible fragrance, fresh, pungent and youthful, tangy & zesty acidity, everlasting finish.
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Medium yellow color. Stable, fermented soft cheese, and whiff of petroleum on nose. Dry, noticeable acidity, palate follows through. Medium body. Good balance. Medium finish.
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4/12/2024 - acyso wrote: 95 Points
Raveneau MdT and Chapelot (Chicago, IL): I love these old LdH whites so much, even though they are admittedly weird and honestly a touch hard to pair. But there's something about that waxy complexity here that I really dig. It's saline in the way a sherry can be, but without all the alcohol. Salty and funky with a furry type of quality, this actually reminds a little of Allemand in the way that the feral notes are also restrained and slightly domesticated. But just a little bit.
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3/23/2024 - lozatron Likes this wine:
What wine goes with Chinese food? Dinner (Phoenix Palace London): So much going on here - perhaps the number of fonts on the label is reflective of the different facets of the wine. Gorgeous, almost nutty nose, real length - the wine gods smiled on this bottle tonight.
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2/8/2024 - glou.sf Likes this wine: 98 Points
Wow, this is an incredible wine! Really complex nose with some nutty flavors, minerals, lemon, and orange blossom. Nice acidity on the palate with high intensity, more lemon flavors, orange, mandarin, and dried chamomile. It feels like all the flavors on the nose are present, but turned up a notch (if that's even possible). Very long finish. What an experience, this is really outstanding. 98+
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10/8/2023 - lovanc@outlook.com wrote:
Interesting and delicious but finish was much shorter than typical Tondonia. Still amazing how there is so much flavor variety in a wine that feels so light.
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7/18/2023 - vetlehs Likes this wine: 96 Points
Klar, dyp gyllen. Intens og svært kompleks på duft. Bare det å stikke nesen i glasset er en opplevelse i seg selv. Aroma av gule og røde epler, pære, fersken, hylleblomst, tørket mango, tørket aprikos, honning, voks, vanilje og toast. Kompleksiteten fortsetter i munnen, med en fyldig og fantastisk munnfølelse med høy smaksintensitet og nydelig balanse mellom frukt, syre, fedme og alkohol. Smak av epler, pærer, plommer, fersken, tørket mango, tørket aprikos, vanilje, brent tre, nøtter og krydder. Toastsmaken fra fatet tar litt mye plass, men med mer tid og integrering vil dette bare bli bedre. Veldig lang. En fantastisk vin.
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7/9/2023 - rc@ughey wrote: 94 Points
Second bottle consistent with prior note.
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7/9/2023 - rc@ughey wrote: 94 Points
Unique and wonderful, this is one of the most complex whites you'll find. Aged yet fresh. Super deep. Really unique. Lemons and earth and spice and nuts and so much else. Every sip brings new wonders. Just wish it were easier to find.
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4/4/2023 - Papies wrote: 94 Points
The return to The Ledbury, (The Ledbury, London): After having our Herat broken by a cork 1994 Chardonnay Terlan Rarita we looked to this wine for solace. And it came in spades. Aromatically this is a superb wine in a way that only old ( and this is young relatively) Tondonia G-Rs can be. Soft noble oxidation, light nutty, bright stone fruit, sweet citrus, good and well assimilated oak and indeed that sweet cream the French call creme patissiere that was probably a result of induction into our thoughts by the sommelier at The Ledbury , London. Exceptionally beautiful 94-95 and with lots of life ahead here.
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1/7/2023 - ThijsV Likes this wine: 95 Points
Utregs Wijnhuis tasting Exclusief (Utregs Wijnhuis, Utrecht, NL): [Tasted blind] Difficult, called white Hermitage, although the acidity was too high for that call. What a beautiful wine and so amazingly young at 21 years. Keeps developing over the 2 glasses I tasted over the course of the evening. Wow, WOTN for me.
Clearly oxidative (but fresh), with candied fruit, apricot, sherry notes, nutty. Medium+ acidity, (very) long finish
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12/22/2022 - Caruso Likes this wine: 98 Points
Deep golden without amber hue. First I've been a bit disappointed, because of the under-delivering nose which only give hints of pome fruit and some nutty components. On the palate it has been more powerful, but not near as the gravonia crianza e. g. Thankfully this changed after a decant and 15-30 minutes of time. The nose is now fruity with oxidizing pears and apples, dried peaches and a lot of umami, shoeshine, smoke, minerals, hazelnut, minerals, pork fat, and a flowery component, I can't precise, mustard in order of appearance. On the palate it is outstanding balanced with nuanced flavors and acidity, not as pungent as the Gravonia white from the same producer first, but very elegant and poised, more fruit, with a long finish and getting more intense with airtime. I would not recommend this with food. It is unfair and a pity since the complexity and nuances can't be tasted with food in a dignified way. 5/14/19/10. -2031+? 98 from Suckling and 99 from Gutiérrez for the WA.
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11/1/2022 - Irish_Wine wrote: 97 Points
Deep gold.
Pronounced on the nose with apple and pear fresh and bruised, lemon peel, orange peel, dried herbs, apricot, dried apricot, honey, caramel, hazelnut, chamomile, mushroom, wet stone, melon, golden currant, toast, nutmeg, almond, hay, beeswax, savoury notes. I guess fully developed but still seems so fresh.
Pronounced and dry on the palate. Medium body, high acidity, medium alcohol, long finish.
Incredible wine. Insane concentration, complexity and length. Amazing. Finish goes on forever. What a wine.
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10/28/2022 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 95 Points
A private lunch with a friend (The Ritz Restaurant *, The Ritz Hotel, London, UK): The current vintage. Decanted, enjoyed near room temperature. Incredible freshness and energy, warmth from the wood but relatively little aromatic influence, lemon cream, hints of leather, bergamot, subtle bitters, firm but ripe acidity, flowing and elegant, long and dreamy finish with a hint of crème pâtissière. Just stunning in a restrained, understated way.
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9/24/2022 - acyso wrote: 95 Points
Montréal; 9/23/2022-9/24/2022 (Montréal, QC): Probably among my favourite wines this trip. These can be inconsistent and weird, but when the bottles are on, they really can be super compelling. This is one of those. Obviously a little boring and pedestrian right upon opening, it's the benefit of time that causes this wine to become increasingly opulent and rich. There's a classic, oily, lanolin component to this, but also a hint of salinity and plenty of waxy yellow fruit. Lots of acidity to cut through all of the weight, too. A pretty distinctive wine that demands special decisions with regards to pairing, but a very compelling drink, too.
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9/17/2022 - OrthoPrez Likes this wine: 95 Points
Delicious and typical - intense, complex and balanced. Opened and decanted and first taste was stunning, almost overwhelming. Let it breathe in decanter and then drank over 2.5 hours. The intensity subsided and the balance and complexity showed nicely. You can enjoy this immediately after opening or give it some air. I have a second bottle I will try in about 5 years.
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9/16/2022 - shallowdrift wrote: 93 Points
Rich and multifaceted but felt quite young! Beeswax, lemon peel, hazelnut, salt, apricot, leather, mustard, VA. Excellent.
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7/30/2022 - Sebran wrote: 93 Points
93++
Lagrat 10 år på fat och 10 år i flaskan innan vinet släpptes på marknaden.
Tydligt oxiderad stil, inslag av äppelskrutt, saltkaramell, apelsin och brynt smör. Relativt hög syra, medel kropp och en oljig munkänsla. Lång eftersmak.
Kräver mycket luft i dagsläget, gärna några timmar i karaff. Blev bättre och bättre under kvällens gång. Kan säkert växa i många år till.
Hög kvalitet och en kul upplevelse m även om det inte riktigt träffar min personliga smak.
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7/28/2022 - Alykhan V Likes this wine: 91 Points
Tastes very young to be honest. Probably a current release (despite its age)
Slight oxidative notes, some candle wax, some mint notes
Give this a long decant or better still another 5-15 years of bottle age
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5/16/2022 - misterstarre Likes this wine: 95 Points
This is transparent with a warm, yellow color. You get the aged aromas of slight oxidation: raw almonds and fino sherry. This is precise and has good acid, a touch of candle wax, and bright fruit.
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4/19/2022 - Benoit Hardy Likes this wine: 88 Points
Fairly vague and varietal nose.
Very bizarre mouth, on a certain greenness, it is sorely lacking in depth and the acid line at the end of the mouth jeopardizes the balance of a whole that if we judge by the pedigree and the tariff claims which result from it, is far too fair.
Could be a bottle problem.
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3/10/2022 - SoundinBetween wrote:
In line with expectations from other recent tasting notes. Orange peel, dried walnut, a saline element, and stone fruit with crisp acidity and a notable finish. Overshadowed a bit by the Loire Chenin and Special Club Champagne tonight. I wonder how this will age, it certainly doesn't seem young.
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2/27/2022 - theRealPepe Likes this wine: 98 Points
One of the greatest white wine experiences of my life. All the descriptors you may see in previous and future notes - yeah. Interestingly I also get a vanilla note on the nose, which, rather than off-putting, is a wonderful addition to the melange. Outstanding +.
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2/7/2022 - Iskama wrote: 98 Points
Crazy wine. Should go for 30-40+ years. Wish I could get more
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1/7/2022 - Goldstone Likes this wine: 96 Points
No detailed notes...which is criminal because this is an insanely great and silence-creating wine, especially when paired with a big jet-flown crab from Alaska we ate 'two ways' with lightly grilled legs and then a simple risotto from the body meat. There is a totally beguiling wave after wave of citrus, vanilla, very slightly oxidative almond and pistachio(?) and a steady mounting thunder of resonance and reverberance on the finish that just made a grinning fool of me. I rarely score a wine at 96pts and use a personal Richter-type exponential scale.. so this was 50% better than the Verget Batard-Montrachet 2004 I brought, which was a very respectable 94pts. I have drank the 1991 with very fond memories and need to re-visit after this experience. Thanks, Pierre!
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12/26/2021 - Jonne Likes this wine: 92 Points
Persika, honung och burgundisk smörighet. Doften klår smaken som är lite vek i syrligheten. Väldigt trevligt men saknar det där extra, något eget.
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11/18/2021 - Ernestas Likes this wine: 100 Points
My favourite Rioja producer and their newly released (previous was 1996) GR Blanco. Made from 90% Viura & 10% Malvasia, fermented in 153 year old oak vats, aged for 10 years in used barrels and 8 in the bottle. Deep and layered aroma of candied peaches, mushrooms, honey, yellow flowers, beeswax, hints of petrol and walnuts. Palate is complex, harmonious and seductively meditational. Velvety attack braced with incredible fragrance, fresh, pungent and youthful, tangy & zesty acidity, everlasting finish.
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7/11/2021 - levicn wrote: 90 Points
闻香是明显的重桶奶油味，一点点坚果，还有果干的味道，入口酸度中高，矿物感强烈，结构感很强，桶味重，口中的果香不明显，感受最突出的是橡木桶影响，口感略微空洞了一点，酒体稍微偏薄一些，应该是一个老年份的酒，目测十五年左右，虽然很老，却依然保持着坚实的骨架，给我的感觉很像老年份夏布利 Grand Cru
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6/22/2021 - MarshallLi Likes this wine: 99 Points
Medium gold,medium(+) lemon,orange,nectarine,pineapple,dried fruit,wed stones,candy,cream,orange marmalade,petrol,caramel,dry,high acidity,medium alcohol,medium body,long finish,outstanding wine,suitable for bottle ageing
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6/20/2021 - Costes76 Likes this wine: 96 Points
Medium yellow color. Stable, fermented soft cheese, and whiff of petroleum on nose. Dry, noticeable acidity, palate follows through. Medium body. Good balance. Medium finish.
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