A star at a dinner with friends that included a 2007 Sassacaia, 2002 Dunn Napa, 2006 Pavots, 1987 Mondavi Reserve, 2004 Hillside Select, 2010 Pegau, 2008 Lewelling Wight, 2002 Huet 1ère Trie Le Mont. Purchased on release and stored at 55 degrees. Opened 6 hours ahead. Silky and opulent with black cherry, cedar and crushed rock on the palate. Full bodied and dense with black cherry, current and spice. Great balance and terrific finish. This has at least 15 years ahead of it. Fabulous! 96 points
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Less convincing than on a a prior showing. I could not pick up the truffles and mushroom on the nose. Bottle variation may be and also tasting alongside because a good left banker in the form of Sociando-Mallet Cuvee Jean Gautreau 2000 did not help. For me left bank always eclipses right bank at a similar quality level with the more regal structure. So not the fairest of assessment but my tasting companions enjoyed it very much and observed this is at beginning of plateau with lots of life left.
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Dark red to rim. Red fruits, forest floor, mocha on the nose. Full body, lots of ripe fruit, good balance, tannins have mellowed, no significant complexity, moderate-long finish. Not over-ripe or gloopy - last vintage before going to the dark side? Should hold for years. Will it develop true aged Bordeaux complexity? Excellent.
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Had another bottle of the 98 Pavie this weekend. It is firing on all cylinders. Soft tannins, great complexity, wonderful bouquet. It's in a perfect drinking spot right now.
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tasted blind. A hint of tomato on the nose. in the mouth coffee, rich fruit, smooth, and sexy. Alexander the great guessed Bordeaux, but i was pretty sure its california; i mean who makes this style of wine in Bordeaux? Oh yeah, i guess Perse does. Seems i last tried this just over a decade ago, and i think its in a lovely place now, though the '99, last night, had a leg up on it in richness. coming on the heels of several more recent and disappointment Pavie tastings (younger vintages,tight &tannic ), my conclusion is that this cuvee needs 25 years in bottle to be approachable.
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This continues to be my favorite Pavie. It was WOTN at a charity dinner featuring a 1998 horizontal of Pavie, Pavie Macquin, Cheval Blanc and Ausone, along with a vertical of Leoville Las Cases from 1986, 1989, 2000 and 2003. So wow.
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PnP. Big and extracted but balanced with alcohol at only 13.5%. Dense and rich, with milk chocolate and some dark cherry. It’s got polished, thick velvery tannins, but some plum and spice as well for interest. I enjoyed this quite a bit
Out of the bottle: This is a big wine, lots of ripe fruit, silky smooth, a lot of tannin still that bites a bit on the finish, but there's enough fruit here to make it all good.
Two hours later: Coming together a bit more in the glass for sure, could probably use even more time, and will likely continue to evolve in the bottle for many years to come.
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3rd of 6, opened an hour then decanted 90 minutes, perfect cork and level, step up on last bottle in December 18, big, dense wine as ever, showing more nuance but au fond a monolithic, fleshy, cherry fruity number with attractive sweetish core hiding decent fine tannic structure, limited upside now but ok for 10 if not 20 years. F+ (18).......pushing extraction at expense of grace!
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Dark reddish purple in color. Lovely aromas of dark red fruits, mocha, tobacco and baking spice. A very well balanced palate shows sweet and savory dark berry fruits with hint of smoky meat, good acidity, melting tannins and a long tobacco and spice inflected finish.
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Plum, candied apples, melted chocolate, with mild floral notes; luscious, vibrant, sinuous, simple, but well developed, a little sweet, extravagant, with a long lingering finish
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Brought to the table by good friend Leon....decanted for about 40 min before/during dinner. Enjoyed with rack of lamb and crispy duck. Nice florals and strong fruit on the nose.....the merlot component stands out with dark blackberry fruit and gentle spice. This has plenty of life ahead of it, especially when compared against the '02 Cos d' which would seem to be drinking 5-10 years older than the Pavie at this moment in time.
Opened two nights ago. And took almost that long to really open up. From a magnum. Good dark red, more or less opaque, with only a hint of browning at the rim. Copious, glass-staining legs. Fine red berry fruit with a certain plumpness to it. Quite fragrant. Excellent fruit in the mouth, very full and ripe, but not at all overripe. Big chewy body, then finishes with fine, long-lasting chocolate and cocoa notes. Doing beautifully at 23 years from the vintage. There are fine-grained tannins present, but this is clearly in its prime drinking window. Shows no sign of impending decline, although this bottle was large format. Very attractive right bank that is identifiable as such. Glad I have another. 5-12-18-9: 94/100. (After reading the comments, two more observations: the fruit nose was cherries, and the wine is dense; wish I had wrote, that at first, but others certainly caught it.)
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Rich red-garnet. Unbelieveable transfixing nose of cellar must and mixed red and black fruits along with red cherries. The first sip hits you like a bolt of lightning with myriad fruit notes hyper-charged with umami and notes of banana and blueberries.
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Decanted this wine for 2hours. The wine is still highly tannic despite its age. The complexity is mild, and the fruit is minimal. The acidity is high. If you like tannic, astringent, sour wines, this is the wine for you. 91 points.
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East side neighbourhood hangout. Aired in decanter for about an hour and then enjoyed over the next. Drank in Zalto Universal. Appearance is clear, deep intensity, ruby colour. Legs. Nose is clean, medium+ intensity, with aromas of truffle earth, ripe grilled herbs, blackcurrant, blackberries, black cherries, licorice. Developed. On the palate, dry, medium+ acidity, medium+ alcohol (13.5%), chewy high tannins that smoothened out plushly with more air, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of chocolate, licorice, blackcurrant, blackberries, black cherries, grilled herbs, truffle earth, some dark red cherries. Rich plush mouth-feel. Long finish. Very good quality. Nicely developed Right Banker drinking in a good place now. Should be nice over the next 4-5 years as well, but I wouldn't age it beyond that.
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A lighter style of Pavie. Without a doubt showing some age in color and flavors. Writing this after 3 hours open and not seeing a major development in the glass. Hoped for more, not disappointed though. Solid for the age that it is. Enjoy now! Tannins are still strong at hour 4.
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Bouteille ouverte pour l’anniversaire d’un de mes fils (1998). Le bouchon est dans un état impeccable, garant pour ceux qui le souhaitent conserver leurs bouteilles quelques année de plus. À l’ouverture, la robe du vin est à peine évoluée, son bouquet exhale les fruits noirs (pruneau), menthol, la vanille et dès la première gorgée le vin se montre des plus civilisé. En bouche, la matière est belle, pleine, avec tanins polis, d’une belle fraîcheur … qui s’égrenne durant de longues caudales. Un tout qui signe là une bouteille très attachante. Superbe vin avec du potentiel de vieillissement (bouchon impeccable), 10 ans de plus assurément. 95/100
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Decanted and drunk over several hours.....needs a good deal of air and some time to rally show its stuff. Happy to drink this at my purchase price...not sure about today's pricing
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Relatively tight knit when initially poured, this became very very good after 90 minutes in the decanter. Dark cherries, coffee, cigar box, leather, chocolate, rocky mineral notes.
Bursting with exuberance on the initial sip. Tannins were quite soft, palate was well resolved. Good concentration, medium-full body with a long finish. A friend noted how filled in the palate was from start to end of each sip - great structure. The only knock on it was that as we continued to drink over another 2 hours, the fruit slipped away faster than expected and the last glass was significantly more austere.
Ready to go in my opinion, but no rush to drink as it should keep for easily another 5 - 10 years before cresting its peak.
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Decanted 1.5 hours. Boy, is this good. A big, beautiful cassis/dark fruit nose. The palate is complex and consistent with the nose. Silky fruit. Very long finish. The wine is beautifully harmonious; it manages to be huge but yet not over-the-top. Just an outstanding Saint-Emilion that seems to be at its peak. I wish I had more.
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Blind. Felt very Pomerol on the palate with lots of high quality dark fruit, oak, vanilla and spices. I have guessed the age to be quite a bit younger, so no hurry to drink. the only worry I have is that it matured rather fast once it was in the glass.
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Drank from decanter last nite with a red pasta dish. Lovely wine! Soft and very approachable. Clearly a right bank wine with the charm, ease and generosity of its majority merlot shining through. Extremely generous nose of espresso, black cherries and chocolate exuding from the decanter as we poured. Medium to full body, age showing ever so slightly on the rims of the glasses, lots of black cherry, some plums and plenty of smokey herbs on the palate. Sweet, ripe fruit is still plentiful, tannins are soft and fully resolved, and the length on this wine is stellar. This was one of those wines that make you sad when the bottle is empty. Loved it!
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Tasted double blind. I guessed it to be a left bank due to the immense dark fruit profile and power. This is a wonderful wine with high complexity, not too much extraction or ripeness. All is in place but the wine needs certainly at least another 10 or 20 years to reach maturity. At this point the tannins have softened and the different elements have beautifully integrated but there is hardly any tertiary development and it is still a youthful heavyweight. This will only get better. 96+ points.
TN: Blue, black fruit, a distinctive left bank profile, very good terroir expression with lots of crushed rocks, earth and some cedar, intense, clear, sharp and crispy. Satin-like, ultra-fine tannins and superb freshness and good length. All is in place, it’s just far too young and will be much better once all the complexity can increase with tertiary aromatics kicking-in.
Decanting: Decanted for one hour and followed over two more hours. It definitely needed more time, 3-5 hours in the decanter is advised, better just wait 10 or 20 years.
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Hannah’s 1st Birthday @ MD’s: My first Pavie ever - Black fruits, leather, tobacco, fig, cloves, sandalwood, slight medicinal notes, espresso, with a minty finish. Complex - probably one of the more “exotic” Bordeaux I’ve tasted but not in a bad way. This left a great impression. To more Pavies to come!
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50min double-decant which was a bit too short. Barnyard and leather coupled with a ripe, jammy bramble berry fruit. Intensity and concentration, full bodied, round tannins but with grip and fresh acidity. Lots of earth and forest floor on the palate as well. Added menthol and mint complexity. This is a great Pavie, once again showcasing in my view two things: 1/ how muscular and virile the right bank can be, and 2/ in what great spot the 1998s from the right bank are currently. Although there were definitely 98 moments here as well, the overall experience wasn't quite there and I preferred the 2005 which just entered the drinking window but is offering already so much pleasure.
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With a nose of smoke, licorice, dark chocolate, espresso, herbs, black cherry, plum and a tiny background note of fig, the wine is full-bodied, rich, soft and stony. The wine ends with sweet, deep red fruit, salty tannins and licorice in the finish. With about 30 minutes of air, the wine continued filling out as it remained in the glass. This is showing close to full maturity. There is no hurry to drink it. But if you have been waiting to pop a cork, your wait is over.
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I had much higher expectations for this wine and again just didn't really deliver. It came across as quite tired. I had opened and decanted prob 60 minutes before we started in on it. A bit gritty. This had been shipped in that day and I think the sediment prob got all mixed up in it. But even without that there was something just a bit off. Not a bad wine, just not a great one.
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One of my all-time favorite Pavies. Absolutely precise balance features full merlot fruit without any of the smokiness that pollutes some StEmilions. Lively but serene tannins. Decanted for 20 minutes and it evolved beautifully over the next hour. Fabulous.
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This wine was singing tonight, and was the best red Bordeaux of the night, which included a 1993 Margaux and 1986 Rausan-Segla. It is easy to see why Pavie ranks as one of the top Chateaus in Bordeaux. The nose was seductive with sweet blue and black fruits, wild flowers, and a woodsy scent that was intoxicating. The palate followed suit with silky tannins and a medley of flavors dancing on the palate, including plums, fig, blackberries, cassis and milk chocolate, with toasty oak and asian spices floating in the background. Drank with a 1996 Harlan, and this wine held its own (which is saying a lot!) Drinking wonderfully right now, but still has plenty of life. I would not be in a hurry to open a bottle, but if the opportunity presented itself, I wouldn't hesitate. This wine is definitely worth the money.
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Jason turns 60 (Tilia): Decanted 45 minutes. There is a lot of minerals and red fruit. This didn't seem like a traditional Bordeaux, maybe a modern Bordeaux (don't know, don't have a lot of experience there), or maybe just young? The nose is rich dark earth and violets. While this didn't meet my expectation, it was a joy to drink.
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Jason's Big 6-0 Bash (Tilia, Mpls): Very dark red/puprle color. Double decanted for 45 minutes; unsealed rubber stopper for 2.5 hours after. Drank a glass over 2 hours plus. Drank this next to a '96 Harlan Estate. Definitely the flight of the night. Wow, just another great perfume, lovely dark berry fruit, cassis, blackberry, tobacco, excellent spices. The palate is so silky, full bodied with layers of creme de cassis, cassis, tart blackberry, velvety tannins, graphite, bright, just some subtle earth, with wonderful spices on the back end. This is delicious. Still youthful, but drinking extremely well. No hurry. 95+pts.
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An old friend. Encountered many times and always rated between 94 and 96pt. For me these first years of Gérard Perse ('98 through '01) produced the very top of Pavie, reflecting the terroir and the appelation, not yet over-concentrated and dense. Very much seems to be at the very beginning of its maturity with a long life ahead. Tannines smooth and integrated, dark fruit dominating the nose. Almost on par with its celebrated sibblings Cheval Blanc and Angélus, lacking a tiny little bit of elegance compared to those giants. Looking forward to meet again!
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Regular dinner group (@ JK): Beautiful bouquet with dark berries, herbs, chocolate and forest floor impressions. On the palate dark berries, licorice, cinnamon, beautiful acidity, a firm amount of sweetness and round tannin. Really beautiful and complex wine. 96 – 97
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Another bottle, another 97 for me... around the table a 95, a 96, and two 97s. Sweet Bordeaux, a lovely Saint Emilion at its peak of ripeness. What a treat!
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2nd of 6, decanted an hour, perfect cork and level, flavour profile as in my May 16 note, more developed and nuanced if still a tad too extracted for my taste, hint of something like rot on back palate which seemed to come and go, plenty of life. F (17.5).
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Alinea Retrospective 2011-15 (NEXT in Chicago): Unfair, but I had really high hopes for this wine. On the high end pairing list at NEXT for the Alinea retrospective this was I had hoped something that would make the list feel like it was more worth it. Instead, there was something just a bit off. Wine was totally fine, but almost a bit tired. Either it had been in the bottle for too long and was fading (more likely since we were told the pairing was changing over and there wasn't much of this one left) or it was still quite tight and hadn't opened up. Either way, not very expressive. Mostly just get that Bordeaux leather but with out much else.
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Decanted 3 hours and what a difference versus the last time drinking this wine, more nuance and complexity. Elegant and balanced, polished and a bit racy. This should continue to improve for many years.
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Dark and brooding, fruity and funky, this is a solid right bank. Decant for a couple hours, this greatly benefits from air, softens and becomes more expressive.
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Cellared since release, perfect cork and fill. Decanted for 45 min. Forward nose of dark fruits, plum, bit of leather and earth and vanilla-y oak. Full bodied, lush ripe fruit, low acid but not flabby, long finish. Many years to go but not sure if it will develop true complexity. Definitely in the modern ripe fruit style but excellent for what it is.
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Expressive nose that spans roast beef, currant, cassis, blackberry, cigar tobacco, spent coffee grinds, damp earth, dark chocolate, and chocolate covered cherries. Lush and ripe palate, loads of black fruit only beginning to give up some leather nuance. Thick and chocolatey. Some herbal details, like mint, that approach Cheval and Ausone, but probably still not quite on that plane.
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It took a while to open. The nose was mostly warm spices, and a hint of BBQ for a while. The palate was completely balanced with some complexity and a nice finish before the bottle was finished. Should be good for a while. This is not a PnP currently.
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I see Lisa P-B at WA just retasted it and gave it 97! I decanted one and it is indeed terrific right out of the bottle. At two hours it was an absolute delight, a classic Saint-Emilion at 20 years of age. Lisa was right on the money, a 97 with blips to 98 from one sip to another. Began to fade a bit after two hours, nothing really overt, just the fruit began to subside. Wowee, thrilled that I have two more!
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After the reception with 2006 Taittinger Comtes and MV Krug 164eme...
With a theme of 1998 Right Bank and Graves/Pessac, there was an embarrassment of riches. I may not have gotten to them all but this is what I recall of the 1998s: Angelus Conseillante Evangile Figeac Pavie Pavie Macquin La Fleur Perus La Mission Haut Brion Haut Brion Pape Clement Ducru Beaucaillou (we aren’t too picky about the rules)
Then of course SDR pulled out an 82 and 86 Mouton and 76 Yquem and no one was too upset about these not following the theme...
The wines were all fully mature and drinking well. The Pavie and Angelus clearly on the more modern, ripe side of the spectrum but still very well balanced, the Angelus was WOTN for a number of people.
The L’Evangile was best of the Pomerols for most, with a classic structure and profile. Figeac came closest in style but didn’t have quite the same presence. La Fleur Petrus was also outstanding. Conseillante was a step behind but would have rated excellent without the stiff competition.
The Haut Brion and La Miss were both outstanding. I preferred the La Miss for a bit bigger mouthfeel and lushness. The Pape Clement was very good but well behind these two.
The Ducru had a killer nose but I didn’t get to it until the end of the night and didn’t actually taste it.
The two Mouton were both fantastic. They split the group almost evenly for which was preferred, the 82 with it’s lush complexity and mouthfeel or the 86 with its power and finish. I was in the mood for what the 82 was dishing.
There was also a Léoville Poyferre vertical and numerous other wines I couldn’t keep up with. Oh well...
Sweeties making an appearance were 1970, 1976 and 1995 Yquem and 200? Climens. The 76 Yquem was fabulous, everything an Yquem should be. The 1995 and 1970 were not too far behind. The Climens was excellent but a couple of steps behind.
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Wow! Spectacular modern Bordeaux. With an emphasis on Bordeaux! This is not a new world wine, not any longer anyway. Still on the youngish side with many years to go. Ripe, yes. Decadent, but balanced. Ripe plum and black cherry fruit with tobacco development, well integrated woodsmoke and great energy. Absolutely not a monster. Closer to 96 than 94. Very happy with its performance and imho better than a 1996 Haut-Brion and 2000 Pichon Lalande tasted same evening.
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- view: cherry red, few to no evolution - nose: intense nose, hints of black fruit, prune and chocolate - palate: soft in the mouth. Hints of cassis, prune, chocolate and spices. A little bit alcoholic. High acids, but nicely balanced with the tannins.
Still a very powerful and fruity wine. Thought this wine would taste much older. Wine opened up after a while. Improves a lot after receiving some air!
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A new world nose with black fruit, oak, vanilla and velvet. Palate is almost napa like with so much fruit and volume. It was a pnp. It would have definitely benefitted from a 2 hr decant.
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Drinking well with 4 hours of decanting. Its a mix of modern and classic wine-making style. A lot of black fruit, chocolate, cassis and licorice. It lacks the right bank elegance, but still enjoyable.
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Elegant nose of dark fruits with an earthy undertone. The palate was very silky which faded into some remaining tannins. Unfortunately, the mouthfeel was not as long as I was expecting. It's a very nice wine at this stage. As this was the last of three bottles in my possession, my opinion would be to consume these over the next few years.
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An Exceptional Afternoon (at JM): Pavie 1998 has further gained intensity. Dense, concentrated and rich on the palate with dark cherries, kirsch and iron notes. Lingering finish with well-integrated tannins (showing no sign of drying).
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Dark red; fresh nose, dark cherries, light smoked cedar; nice soft well balanced, some pepper, very fine tannins at the end, blackberies, long concentrated aftertaste; a very fine wine at a very good place in time
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The nose is terrific, super dense black and blueberry fruit with damp earth and roast beef notes. However, this palate wasn't in line with past experiences with this '98, very bitter and tannic. Less fruit than recalled. Remarkable density, but tougher and less pleasurable than remembered. Still quite good.
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Right Bank Premier Grand Cru Classe "A" Bordeaux tasting (Karl's house): Another excellent 1998 from the right bank. Dark ruby color. A lovely nose of dark fruits, Asian spices, licorice, truffle, and fruitcake. A really nice, smooth mouthfeel. Excellent concentration. A long finish, but does show a slight amount of heat. Medium level acidity. Just starting to hit its stride, this has many years to go. Nicely structured and lots of pure, ripe fruit to give this a lot of longevity.
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The 1998 Pavie is a bit of a disappointment in the context of what was a magical vintage on the right bank and in the Graves. A pretty typical pre-Perse Pavie bouquet (though this was of course the first vintage under new ownership) of dried currants, dark chocolate, tobacco leaf, subtle saddle leather and a subtle framing of new oak is followed by a wine which is rather hard at the core, without much flesh on its rather desiccated structural bones. The wine is complex, savory and properly balanced, but hardly possesses the excitement which this great terroir should routinely achieve, and which plenty of addresses in Saint Emilion did achieve in the 1998 vintage.
Drinks very much like a balanced Napa wine....smooth broad with mellow but present tannins. Medium to full body velvet cherry and currant. Red fruit...
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from 750ml. No time to stand the bottle, dumped straight into decanter. Perfect cork and TS+ fill. Fabulous, young looking dark garnet color. This needed an initial 20 mins of air to become accessible. Gorgeous nose of rich, black cherry and parfum. Very ripe, dark fruit on the palate. Not overly extracted, but I would definitely guess New World if blinded. Nice structure, good acidity and a medium-long finish. Certainly very enjoyable, especially when shared with a close pal alongside fancy burgers. Poor QPR at this price level, though. While I agree with Leve's posit that there is no reason to further age these, I will likely do so with my final bottle........you know, just because!
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Similar to the last bottles tasted, the wine lacks excitement. More interesting on the floral, licorice, earth, dark cherry, plum and stone nose than on the palate. There is no reason to hold this wine any longer hoping for further development.
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Sorry no notes other than truly amazing, balanced, still young showing its infancy but a GREAT wine. Dinner with new wine buddy over beouf Burgogne. OUTSTANDING
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1st of 6, decanted 2 hours, perfect cork and level - deep garnet, purple rim, leggy; whack of plum and cherry fruit, slightly baked, touch of iron and cocoa, lacking nuance; full bodied for claret, decent length and persistence, quite sweet mid palate, dryish tannin under a whack of fruit, potentially silky but currently quite burly, feels slightly concocted and pushing extraction. Generally I prefer a more relaxed style which sets the fruit off in a more nuanced structure......yet there is plenty of fruit in there but will it ever settle. Just about fine (17.5).
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Opened and tasted immediately, much to my surprise it was quite expressive. Let sit about an hour before getting into it, the nose kept improving along with robust black/plum fruits throughout. Extremely well balanced with long silky finish. Still holding 9 bottles from an owc & given how it was singing thinking time to start enjoying especially at the value price paid...
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This was opened standing 24-hour before, double decanted for about 12 hours. Wine was flawless...still punchy, has the dense ripe plums, cedar & tobacco, smoke flavor, chocolates..lots of it. Stays on your palate, linering on for a while 20-30 seconds or more. It took time to open up as the wine was just right after having opened it for 24-hours! The body is full with polished texture.
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95-97: a true stunner! Had it been served blind, we would have never guessed its age. Purple hue with a lively fruit driven nose, this bottle is in early maturity. Tannins are fine, and acid is receding, but the fruit is still powerful. Has a long, long finish; outshone the 2003 Haut Brion that followed. By far one of my favorite Bordeaux.
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Classic Bordeaux. Double decanted before traveling to Blue Duck, D.C. Decanted there for almost an hour before serving. Minimal fine sediment. Garnet, black raspberry, cassis, and lead pencil. Mild tannins, with suave mouthfeel, and extended finish.
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This is very modern in style for a Bordeaux. Breathed it in the bottle for 30 mins and poured afterwards. The nose had caramel, mocha, red fruits and dark fruits. The palate was very silky. Although this is a bit modern, it is so ready to drink. Great effort!
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Disappointing. 30-45 min double decant was good, with wine opening in the glass. Very mineral nose and rich mouthfeel, with particuarly broad mid-palate. The smokey notes I love from Pavie took a while to emerge. Not as thick as expected. The wine evolved in the glass - at one point was v hedonistic, then became flat with some heat on the finish. Not sure where this is heading, will drink my case soon and with food. I much preferred the 2001 Pavie a few years ago.
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Deep garnet, intense nose of dark cherry, oak vanilla and beautiful floral aroma. Painfully concentrated, tannin beginning to soften, bit dry and grippy, plummy on palate. Bitter aftertaste made this wine less enjoyable. Better to go with food.
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St Emillion First Growths (Chez Bruce, London): A bit more intensity on the nose. Mineral with a good pinch of garriguey thyme. Similar on palate. There's a cool elegance to the plushness here. With air, significantly drier on the finish. A slight edge to it. Still, a very pleasant surprise though and a very decent wine. ****
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I'm shocked to give this wine 93 points, given the hype and noise surrounding this producer. This was Pavie's first vintage in its new direction, a full five years before it split Parker and Jancis apart. Happily, it's nothing more offensive than modern-styled, very good right-bank Bordeaux. Granted, Cab Franc must feel like the actor whose scenes were cut from the film, but this is not a port-like effort. Ripe, but not silly. Big. Still primary. If you're looking for a syrup-bomb, find another vintage. If you prefer old-style claret, this might not work for you. But it's impressive.
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I really love this wine- getting better and better...full bodied, excellent red fruit, plums, minerality, distinctly at. Emilion with a new world bent... Long finish... And very complete on a lovely drinking plateau...
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Tasted alongside the '98 Cheval Blanc and Angelus. This has bigger bones and riper fruit and I liked it at first because it showed a really high-class texture and was thick and rich but with plenty of refreshing acids. However, with food and further air, it began to deviate from the other two more classic wines showing more angular notes, sharper tannins and hints of over-ripeness. In the end, this wasn't aging as well as the other two wines which makes sense given the higher extraction level and I think I sense the manipulation here. We'll see what more time does but I wouldn't want this in my cellar. 88?
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A very well made wine, the first vintage made by Gerard Perse after he bought the property and the quality is immediately apparent. Beautiful colour, medium red an amazingly classic bordeaux nose of earth, dark fruits, supported by still-firm tannins. Did not decant and would not recommend you do so, its just not necessary. We drank the wine over 3 hours and it never lost a beat so decanting would not improve. I'd especially recommend this vintage (and 2001) for those who want to try Pavie but can't pay 2000 or 2005 prices. Best 1998 right bank wine I have tasted in a while.
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A disappointing experience. First bottle was corked and second bottle had seen it's prime. Having had four bottles, flawed or not memorable, my recommendation is to drink sooner rather than later.
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This Pavie was the first from a case purchased at auction last summer. I didn't expect it to be so ready to drink, but I just can't imagine it getting any better. Plenty of fruit, very gentle tannins, and a long, long finish. It was opened for about 1 hour and served at a Bourbon Steak in Washington DC. The whole group loved it, including the som. Hurrah for corkage!
By far the best St. Emilion I have ever enjoyed. I'm so happy to have 11 left to share over the next decade.
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This is phenomenal stuff! Decanted for 30 min...Robe shows no signs of aging...Such a complex, deep and powerful bouquet paired with great persistant flavors that coat the palate is a rare tasting experience...kept improving during the tasting as it got more air in the decanter.. The tertiary aromas are not quite there yet, but there is no reason not to drink this addictive wine now! At that level of magic, nothing really matches a grand bordeaux which is hitting a perfect drinking phase..It's the improbable mixture of incredible finesse, class , complexity and persistant aromas only found in great Bordeaux! Still has enough tanins and structure to further evolve for another decade..relieved after a corked bottle opened 2 years earlier..Certainly my best 1998 drank so far (even better than Haut brion 1998 drank 2 months ago).
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Plumish, blood fruits, deep black cherry, slight forrest floor. On the palate, medium-full body, elegantly structured, lively acidity on the back end with well integrated tannins. A pleasure to drink, but there's no WOW here that would move it into higher point range. Drunk or hold, not falling off any cliffs any time in the next decade.
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Drank from magnum. I just love this wine. Still dark red in color and nice youthful vibrancy. Some secondary flavors but this still has a long life ahead of it.
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The 1998 Château Pavie is medium garnet in colour with a very slight tawny rim. An opulent, expressive, layered nose of red currants, dark cherries, rosemary, slight clay and dusty cedar. Nonetheless, an integrated bouquet that also displays another dimension of roasted coffee beans, which was attractive for sure.
An initial entry of sweetness on the palate with red currants, dark cherries and underlying cedar. A mid-end palate of roasted coffee beans and thyme before sour cherries slowly start to dominate at the finish with a rising back-end alcohol. Pleasant sweetness yet powerful intensity in a rather big-styled wine. Intense structure and good drive. Tannins are still grippy and powerful, displaying quite a character despite its age - a wine that is definitely still alive.
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Still somewhat tight and not revealing all it's got, even after a decant of an hour+. Last few sips were the best. I'll wait another 3 years before opening next bottle.
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There is probably no reason to hold this wine any longer. The secondary aromatics are in full force, with their licorice, stone, smoke and dark plum with red berry profile. Concentrated, full bodied and rich, the only draw back to the wine is a touch of bitter olive in the finish, which some tasters are going to like more than others.
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Nose - cedar, tobacco Mouth - dark cherry dry tannins very lovely fruit punchy flavors, good complexity, juicy deliciously ripe and dry fruit. Impressive stuff.
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Big Bordeaux V: Stars of the Right Bank - St. Emilion (including '96 Cheval, '98 Ausone and Pavie, '90 Troplong, '98 d'Yquem and more) (Rocknroller's (Kevin's)): Purple/red/inky color. Decanted for 4 hours. Drank 1 glass over 2 hours. Nose is ripe, blueberry, cassis, blackberry, plum, lead pencil, smoke, earth, tar. This nose is quite expressive, but you get the sense that there is more yet to come. The palate though is stunning, a WOW palate. Absolutely amazing concentration, deep, full bodied, black and blue fruits in layer upon layer, graphite, nice acids, very long and intense finish. The tannins are round and silky and the balance here is about perfect. This was my #3 WOTN. Still very young, I think that ultimately this will be the best wine of the group. 95(+)pts.
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Aromas and flavors of black cherry, blackberry, sweet black currant, earth, some chocolate and licorice, coffee, spice and oak. Rich, soft and full bodied; dense and concentrated fruit. Smooth and velvety in the mouth. Great balance and acid. A very long and extended finish. Consumed at the SAFW Reunion II.
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Beautiful dark fruit, explosive nose, polished tannins, long finish. Perfect pairing with pan seared veal chops. Give this at least 3 hours of air before drinking. WOTN.
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decanted sevral hours before heading to the restaurant....this wine still drinks fairly young and it is quite dark and almost savoury...meat flavors and ripe fruit but I did not find it porty or especially heavy although hardly classic claret...none of the funk that marred the first bottle I had years ago...very pretty and developing as one might expect
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Dark ruby with a garnet rim. This nose of this wine is like you would imagine a well-oaked Port wine: very, very ripe blackberry fruit, somewhat volatile acid and warming alcohol. This is a big, supple modernly styled Bordeaux. It is drinking well now but it has enough power and vibrancy to hold through 2018.
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Vanilla, licorice, chocolate, coffee bean, black cherry and earthy aromas were in abundance. The ripe, round tannins delivered soft, textures and a plush mouth feel, but the wine was over-oaked. The chocolate, plum and vanilla finish was not dry, but it was a bit too sweet and the oak was mildly intrusive. Served blind, it was obvious the wine was from a great terroir, but that while this vintage was good, I was willing to bet later vintages showed a marked improvement in quality. Pavie, thanks to the spare no expense attitude of Gerard Perse did not become one of the stars of St. Emilion until 2000. In 1998, he was just getting his sea legs. There is no hurry to drink the wine, it was still young and fresh. But the 1998 Pavie is not at the level achieved by later vintages.
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First Day of Autumn with Friends (Lake Forest IL): Lush, ripe black fruit with some liqueur hints, plenty of new oak spice. Similarly bold and lush black fruit flavors, fun and easy to enjoy, just a little one dimensional.
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GJE CRD 2008 and EP 2011; 3/29/2012-4/4/2012 (Bordeaux, France): It is always fascinating how the same wine shows different personalities even on the same day in this case from the chateau. No mint, sweet black fruits, truffle, dark caramel and leather. Silky palate, excellent concentration and nicely integrated tannins. Good showing.
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GJE CRD 2008 and EP 2011; 3/29/2012-4/4/2012 (Bordeaux, France): This also show some mint. Definitely bigger and riper than the 97. The nose displays truffle, caramel and black fruits. Mostly secondary and tertiary flavor. Nice dense and silky palate with still noticeable tannins.
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Wine showed great balance for its age. Sweet red fruits on the nose and firm tannins. Wine may not be at its peak but offered an incredible experience.
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Pop/pour. Brooding nose that mixes a fairly bright, spicy fruit with an earthy funk. The longer in the glass, the less the "funk" is apparent. On the palate, a sup rising hint of sweetness relative to other vintages I've tried, and a bit of cinnamon spice. Nicely balanced, with some tannins showing up on the finish. Approachable now, but I should have decanted this for several hours. Seems extremely age worthy.
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This must have been a lesser than usual bottle, so no score. I previously rated this wine consistetly between 94 and 96 poimts, but this one would get no more than 90 points; even the Rol Valentin 1998 scored better this afternoon...
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Tasted in double-blind fashion at Vintage Wines, Ltd., with the bottle generously being provided by Rob Norberg. The bottle was well-cellared and decanted approximately four hours prior to the tasting. It was then serially tasted over the ensuing three hours. The robe is opaque garnet and the nose shows intense aromas of black raspberries, potpourri, licorice, cocoa and earth. Full-bodied on the palate, with medium acidity, medium supple tannins and well-integrated alcohol. The flavors are luscious and in line with the nose. A silky mouth texture persists throughout the solid middle palate and the smooth finish is very long. Bravo to this early Perse offering! Drink now-12/20.
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Rich and deep nose, sweet cherries, tar, balancing minerality, drying oak; concentrated, full, powerful, rather firm tannins; good finish, marked by the new oak of the new cuves and barriques. An early example of the new-style Pavie - not necessarily my style.
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I think this one may have needed more time to open up. Very good but definitely not worth the high price! Ok, I had a little left over for night two and it was better by a couple of points. 93pts tonight but still not worth the fare. If you drink now give plenty of air time.
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Not very impressed. Too closed, although four hours of decant. Nose was careful, was it even so slightly corked? However, taste was pure and long without cork. Will save my next bottle for 5+ years.
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Still deep in color,with a pungent nose of chocolate, plums, coffee bean, smoke and truffle, this rich, ripe and close to mature St. Emilion ends with a chocolate covered boysenberry, vanilla and black cherry finish. Compared to wines from Pavie starting in 2000. this is a beefier, less opulent style of Bordeaux wine.
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Wow, this is still an outstanding bottle of wine! Beautiful smooth silky tannins, wonderful nose - classic St. Emilion flavour. Only one left - wish I had cases more of this one.
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13.5% alcohol! not decanted, and followed in the glass 4+ hours. lest we lament the cartoonish freak this wine has become, let's set the way back machine to 1998, and remember how the perse era began, with a, dare i say, elegant finesse that keeps evolving. there is a nice, slow expansion occurring and the texture is remarkable. i'll be damned if there still isn't a bit of primary fruit hanging around. i don't characterize this as classic right bank, and i frankly don't fret over it. i had the 2000 just one week ago (note not yet posted), and this 98 can hold it's head up pretty high in comparison, at a better price. well stored bottles like this one will reward for up to 20 years. drink or hold.
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Deep black garnet core, starting to brown slightly around the edges.
Sambuca (licorice), Vanilla (french oak) - these two are still dominating the fruit - not to easy to make out, but perhaps I'll go with black cherry. Although the Merlot clearly places it as right bank, there is almost an italian whiff, raisiny like Amarone - is it possible that this bottle was not kept perfectly before I got it?
On the palate, lots of fruit - along with the above-mentioned players - dense, layered, though you have to look hard to find it through the still-strong resin. Good acids down the side of the tongue. Tannins not smoothly resolved, still quite rough.
Medium to long finish.
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Angelus and Right Bank Dinner at Frits house with exceptional pirate (Amsterdam): One of my favorite Right Bank wines. Smooth and sultry on the nose with licorice, chocolate and dark red fruits. Powerful and warm on the palate with iron, dark red fruits as cherry and cassis. The iron and classic tones is what this wine differentiates from wines like the Monbousquet 1998.
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With an expressive bouquet of licorice, smoke, juicy black plums, blueberry and fresh black cherries, this richly textured, elegant, plush wine has turned the corner. On several occasions, this seemed like a good wine, but with the proclivity towards being chunky. This was the first time the felt sophisticated on the palate, The suave finish ended with chocolate covered plums and cassis. If you have more than a few bottles, it's time to crack one. However, the wine will only get better from here.
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98 Pavie - With its chocolate, black raspberry, licorice, mineral, coconut, floral coffee, caramel and earthy scented nose is easy to notice. Full bodied and concentrated with fruit, but the tannins are a little rustic. The finish displays a mix of red and black fruit sensations and fat textures along with chocolate covered licorice and black cherry. While this is a good wine, it's not in the same league as the wines produced by Perse starting with the 2000 vintage.
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We had '98 Pavie, '98 La Fleur Petrus, and '95 Cheval Blanc together in a little right bank flight with cheese. The '98 Pavie was showing some development from when I last had it a few years ago, but it has a long way to go. As Art said, this wine is "not controversial." It is not too big, not too fruity, not too modernized. Maybe not the complexity of the latter two, but a strong effort nonetheless.
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Deep garnet. Nose was impenetrable. Shy, closed whatever. Swirling and time helped a smidge. Taste showed tannin still present, but there is a good backbone that needs another 10 years to show its stuff.
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4th of 4 - I love this wine, however wrong choice following the big cabs - a little too sweet, too fruity and lacking structure. On it's own, it's crowd pleaser.
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Eleven 1998 St Emilions and a Lone Pomerol. Maybe some Yquem too (Bethesda, MD): Another less than stellar showing for the Pavie. Nobody really thought it was worth 99 points (recent HG scoring) while some wished that the wine was able to see more air than it had. Somewhat reticent out of the gates, it shows soft notes of mocha with ripe (but not stewed) plum and blackberry briar. The pallate is hallmark Pavie with superlative balance but lacks the structure and firmness of tannins one would hope for in a more primary wine. As of recent experience, I'd say the 2001 Pavie drinks the most accessibly/enjoyably, with better evolution in terms of its secondary black truffle driven aromatics, while still holding a primacy and depth of concentration in the fruit. The 2005 shows the most explosive, with depth and firmness of tannin and richness in red and black fruit, while the 2000 was the most shy and humble of its endowment. The 98 was a restrained more subtle 2000, that may develop into something more substantial but to my palate is less appealing than the 2001. I'd hold onto these for 3-5 years hoping for better evolution.
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Drank with 10+ other '98s, this, not near ready to drink. If you've got them, wait at least another 5 years. However, it seems like this will be a great wine at some point as the balance it there, dark fruit and a good backbone with the tannins coming around. Score likely to be higher in several years.
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Agree w Ive Marx; not remotely ready - despite 5 hours in the decanter - though very promising. Don't plan on touching another bottle for at least 7-10 more years.
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Occasional tasting group: "Terroir or bottles with a story" (@ TBa): Something completely different than 1997. Expressive bouquet. Chocolate, licorice, a lot of cassis juice, leather. A mouth full of wine. Firm amount of acidity and still youthful tannin. Very extracted. A modern made, almost a-typical Bordeaux.
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opened at the venue, and poured shortly after. very fine showing, better than my last experience. lots of great table discussion about the wine. all eight tasters found it to be terrific, but a couple lamented the californication of right bank merlot by perse. not me. i'm willing to accept this for what it is, a delicious bordeaux that maintains a fruit forward profile despite it's age, and blends in enough secondary characteristics from the old world to keep it real enough. this was very smooth, drinking at virtual peak.
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Chocolate covered plums, a little freshly turned earth, sawn, resinous wood. Voluptuous, full and rich in the mouth. The long finish has a slight harsh wood tannin edge. Very good but needs another 5-7 years at least to integrate the heavy oak. Hopefully the fruit lasts.
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Decanted for about an hour and half. Deep, dark purple, almost black in the glass. Nose of ripe, dark berries. Fruity, jammy on the palate w/ well integrated tannins. It had an initial sweetness to it that I found very interesting. Nice long finish. There is some future enjoyment left in this class.
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Drunk at craftsteak in Vegas with a medium rare bone in ribeye. Mouthfilling ripe fruit, purple to the rim and elegant on the tongue. Many years left of this beauty.
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Pavie Vertical: Brick red rim, not so dense as the others. Mature nose with almonds, leather, nail polish, iron and cherry and strawberry (?) fruit. Soft, round taste.
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13.5% alcohol. not decanted. one of my first multiple bottle purchases, i have been drinking this since release, and have 5 bottles left. the evolution has progressed from a thick, fruit forward blockbuster to a more subtle bordeaux with secondary/tertiary nuances. all it's incarnations work for me. blind to jane, she guessed french merlot. that's my girl! tannins persist, ever so slightly gritty on the finish, my only real complaint. the wine harbours nice character, even within it's modern style. great framework of fruit which gently cascades from midpalate to finish. wines such as this that meld power and grace are always special. i've read some recent non critic reviews that this wine is fading. don't believe it; however, i do think it is near peak. drink or hold 5+ years.
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Absolutely wonderful. Creme de cassis, chocolate covered cherries, mint leaf, eucalyptus, and smooth, sweet oak. Drinking very youthful, but "ready." Wine Searcher shows this wine around the country at $175 - $200. It would be worth it.
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Really thought this was a new world wine when served blind. Dark fruits and vanilla oak influence. Weighty with fine tannins. Drinking very young. Enjoyable.
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Deep ruby no age what so ever. Very rip black fruit Christmas cake prune this pushing the ripeness to another level. In the mouth it has excellent balance of tannins and acidity this is one for the long haul this wine has multi dimensions to it the amount of flavour in the mouth is so complex all do it is so Morden for Bordeaux I like this wine.
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A 10-Years-Out Retrospective of 1998 St. Emilion Premier Grand Cru Classe B (Vancouver, B.C.): (I should say that my score on this one is a score for "wine". If I had to score it as Bordeaux, it would do considerably worse. Utterly lacking in typicity.) Nose that is a dead ringer for Cali-cult wines. Someone nosed it and quipped "who brought the Harlan?" Very sur-mature. Port-like sweetness. Cloying. Intense confected fruit. Raisins and sugar. Jammy. Hot chocolate powder. At this tasting, the wine reveals itself as a caricature. Finishes long, but simple and sweet. Not for me at all.
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This is a powerful, full bodied wine that needs 5 or more years to reveal all its charms. Layers of concentrated deep dark fruit and a complex perfume make this wine a treat to taste. Similar to Ausone in that the wine is less opulent and does not deliver the same level of intensity as do subsequent vintages.
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Opened and briefly decanted before serving. Nose of green beans, pepper and maybe some plum. Simple flavors of berries. Light acidity, light to medium tannins, medium body. Drink or hold? Not sure on this one.
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Was decanted for 6 hours prior evening fore dinner party. Never got to it. Next evening, I would have to agree with Eric, the wine seems closed, and hopefully is in transition. Muted bouquet, dark fruits, and moderate finish. I expected more, and much preferred the leftover 97 Phelps Insignia from magnum.
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Flock Tasting - First Editions: Deep dark ruby. Killer nose is rich and loaded with complexity. Aromas of youthful currant fruit, tobacco, herbs, spice, minerals, coffee, licorice and toasty oak leap from the glass. Palate has rich fruit and firm tannins to match. Layers of complexity and flavors that echo the nose. Outstanding. Better by a margin than an 01 consumed earlier in the week. My #1, Group #1. Perse's first Pavie.
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Popped at home with AR. Quite tight and cedary at first, this doesn't even begin to resemble the last time I had this wine (where it was much more lush and Aussie in character). Not much of the heavy toast espresso but a rather 'cool' and aloof aspect to the fruit. The class and finesse here are obvious, taut, clean, quite beautiful. Not big points from me at this stage, and this seems to be trapped between primary and secondary right now, but I was still glad for a chance to give this a try. I would opt for 1999 or 2001 for current drinking pleasure instead of this.
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Drank this bottle over two days. Doesn't give much straight out of bottle and it's quite a lot of heat there. After getting some air it starts to come around. Lovely! Blackberries and blueberries nicely integrated with the oak, very concentrated, this will age well.
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Double decanted for 3 hours, then siphoned back into bottle for travel to the Solo home. First sip right after poured is tight and closed. 2nd taste is 1 1/2 hours into decanting and still isn't open much. By the time we arrive at the party and start pouring for friends, the wine has opened up tremendously (about 4 hours after uncorking). A powerful nose is followed by smoky pears and pomengranates (sp?). About a 20 second finish goes smoothly down the gullet. Very nice and will only improve with another 3-5 years.
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Amazing as ever...best after open for about an hour. We didn't decant this time, and it really was singing with black fruit, glycerin and cassis. Just a great wine.
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"Very Special" Dinner at Picholine OL (Picholine Wine Room, NYC): Mystery wine, served blind. Very concentrated nose with some wonderful floral elements. On the palate, this is pillowy soft and silky. No way this nose and this palate go together. So little structure and a bit too much oak for my taste. Some nice spice notes on top. I enjoyed the flavor profile, absolutely loved the nose, but the silkiness and softness of the palate left me wanting more.
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Decanted over 6 hours, enjoyed over the next two (still some left for the next day ). This continued to evolve in the glass. The nose offered a little something new each time, with hints of mild spice as a consistent aroma, wonderful mid palate that filled the month with favors, tannins present but not overwhelming, a very nice smooth finish, surprising for such a young wine. Consumed along side a 1998 Clos de Sarpe, which in its own right was showing very well. Regarding the controversy surrounding Pavie a it’s departure from the old style wine making, while some slight difference were noted, but I’m a fan. This will age wonderfully IMHO.
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Dinner with Steve Sigmund and Jeff Samuelson (Insignia and Pavie): Double decanted about three hours before serving. Dark purple/red color. Opaque. Very similar to the 01 Insignia. On the nose this shows a compelling blend of dark fruit, chocolate, smoke, and fresh herbs/spices. Very nice. On the palate a strong minerality adds to the dark fruit and chocolate with an added hint of coffee and vanilla. Mouth coating. The tannins are extremely fine grain and plenty sweet. They are not really a distraction even at this stage of development. Long finish. This is very well integrated at this stage (at least compared to the 01 Insignia). It will be interested to follow this wine over the years -- it should be a beauty.
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Dinner @ Restaurant Alma. Double decanted; Jeff's bottle. This was absolutely rocking, showing rich black fruit, smoke, charcoal, coffee, and pencil lead. Great minerality and structure. Concentrated; long finish. The tannins are ripe and grippy, but not green or unpleasant. While this wine undoubtedly needs more time, it showed quite well.
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Dain Wines Barrel Samples (and others) (Springfield, MO): Impossible to rate this wine as it years from showing its full glory. Impossibly monolithic and tight. Massively tannic. Totally backward. Initially a nose of graphite and hints of mineraliy. After 2-3 hours it had opened a little and there was some currant notes. Don't drink this wine for 10-12 years unless you want to trace its development. The 2002, tasted side by side, was much more approachable tonight.
6/21/05 update: A small glass left in the bottle from Sat. night. Slightly more approachable with a nose of fruit cake and plums. Still searingly tannic and consumed without food which was an error. My earlier impressions were confirmed. Cellar any remaining bottles and keep the locks on this until 2015 at least.
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A 98 point dinner at Steve Cramer's (West Seattle, WA, USA): This was my first taste of the 1998 Pavie (I have had the 1999 and 2000), and wow what a blockbuster wine. I would never, ever guess this as Bordeaux from the nose with some heat, raisins and raspberry. However, the palate screams of Bordeaux with amazing minerality and structure, powerful.
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This deeply colored wine filled with black fruit, plums and coffee is already approachable. The flavors and complexity married to the plush texture your palate experiences are what great Bordeaux is all about.
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Long Island Wine's VS. The World... Who was the winner? You will be surpriced (Paumanok Vineyards, North Fork, Long Island, New York): Dark broodingly red. Tannic Beast is all I kept saying to myself. What a tannic beast.. This wine was sporting little more than some barely legal fruit under its thick skin of tannin. Parker writes this is a 50 year old wine and I think he is dead on and this should be opened in 2050. I asked Manlin how long to decant this wine and he said no more than 30 minutes, well I handed Jim my bottle and hadn't realized that he decanted it and it was open for almost 3 plus hours. I am not sure if it tightened up or what the deal was but to me this wine was too difficult to get a read on. With its thick tannic shell I was confused as I have read many times how much people have loved this wine and how ready to go it really is. I scratched my head and humbly moved on.
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Opaque, black, purple ink. No lightening at the edges. An intoxicating perfume of plums, blackberries, licorice, mocha, spicy oak and floral scents say hello! Huge, dense, elegant layer of fruit envelopes your palate. Concentrated, full bodied, packed and stacked with ripe fruit. There is no mistaking this wine for anything other than Bordeaux. Mouth drying tannins. :40 second deep, rich finish.
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Splendid. By no means a fruit bomb monstrosity. Yes, it’s big, extracted and packed but the cedar, earth and structure are classic Bordeaux. A complete success.
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The nose, showed off lavish smells of licorice, coffee, spice, ripe red and black fruits. The palate is dense and concentrated with layers upon layers of fruit. Thick and full-bodied with a clean, pure, black fruit filled finish.
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On the nose, this has similarities to a premium shiraz. Even based on color, viscosity, and aromas, it's an imposter for Fox Creek reserve or Kay Brothers Block 6. On the palate there are similarities as well—the lush kirsch and blueberry flavors and mouth-coating texture. But this wine takes it to another level. It has intrusive tannins that you can feel on your teeth and every step of the way to a long finish. Enjoyable now, but shouldn't be touched for another 10 years. Potentially a 96-97.
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Dinner @ XXXX: Big, rich, aromatic, plenty of toast oak -- but with the fruit to back it up. A bit new world at first, but it became a lot more elegant with some air. Gorgeous.
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Dark red. Nicely spiced on the nose. The bouquet also revealed notes of mint leaves. Strong in the mouth and slightly more hot than the previous two wines. Quite herbal flavour profile. Most certainly a largely scaled wine, and the impressive size did seem to be balanced out by the fruity, juicy ripeness. One taster noted that the underlying taste was of "old Bordeaux" which I would agree with. Maybe lacking a little bit of class and style, but certainly impressive.
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4/25/2024 - sastewart wrote: 96 Points
A star at a dinner with friends that included a 2007 Sassacaia, 2002 Dunn Napa, 2006 Pavots, 1987 Mondavi Reserve, 2004 Hillside Select, 2010 Pegau, 2008 Lewelling Wight, 2002 Huet 1ère Trie Le Mont.
Purchased on release and stored at 55 degrees. Opened 6 hours ahead. Silky and opulent with black cherry, cedar and crushed rock on the palate. Full bodied and dense with black cherry, current and spice. Great balance and terrific finish. This has at least 15 years ahead of it. Fabulous! 96 points
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2/21/2024 - palfr2 wrote:
Less convincing than on a a prior showing. I could not pick up the truffles and mushroom on the nose. Bottle variation may be and also tasting alongside because a good left banker in the form of Sociando-Mallet Cuvee Jean Gautreau 2000 did not help. For me left bank always eclipses right bank at a similar quality level with the more regal structure. So not the fairest of assessment but my tasting companions enjoyed it very much and observed this is at beginning of plateau with lots of life left.
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12/22/2023 - brianakrin wrote: 94 Points
Sweet, balanced, rich, and surprisingly fresh and youthful.
Not particularly complex but who cares, it’s beautiful!
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12/2/2023 - dbg wrote:
Dark red to rim. Red fruits, forest floor, mocha on the nose. Full body, lots of ripe fruit, good balance, tannins have mellowed, no significant complexity, moderate-long finish. Not over-ripe or gloopy - last vintage before going to the dark side? Should hold for years. Will it develop true aged Bordeaux complexity? Excellent.
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11/5/2023 - Sfflyer123 wrote: 96 Points
Had another bottle of the 98 Pavie this weekend. It is firing on all cylinders. Soft tannins, great complexity, wonderful bouquet. It's in a perfect drinking spot right now.
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9/13/2023 - NEducatedGes Likes this wine: 94 Points
Great, need a 2*hr decant. 94+
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6/24/2023 - soyhead wrote:
tasted blind. A hint of tomato on the nose. in the mouth coffee, rich fruit, smooth, and sexy. Alexander the great guessed Bordeaux, but i was pretty sure its california; i mean who makes this style of wine in Bordeaux? Oh yeah, i guess Perse does. Seems i last tried this just over a decade ago, and i think its in a lovely place now, though the '99, last night, had a leg up on it in richness. coming on the heels of several more recent and disappointment Pavie tastings (younger vintages,tight &tannic ), my conclusion is that this cuvee needs 25 years in bottle to be approachable.
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1/3/2023 - Vish67 wrote: 98 Points
Shared with friends on New Years Eve - thoroughly enjoyed by all - surprising body, flavor, and structure
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12/8/2022 - alamoave Likes this wine: 96 Points
This continues to be my favorite Pavie. It was WOTN at a charity dinner featuring a 1998 horizontal of Pavie, Pavie Macquin, Cheval Blanc and Ausone, along with a vertical of Leoville Las Cases from 1986, 1989, 2000 and 2003. So wow.
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10/2/2022 - RojoVino24 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Enjoyed at Pappas steakhouse in Dfw. Superb bottle. Beautiful black fruit, baking spice. Pure velvet.
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8/6/2022 - jviz wrote: 94 Points
PnP. Big and extracted but balanced with alcohol at only 13.5%. Dense and rich, with milk chocolate and some dark cherry. It’s got polished, thick velvery tannins, but some plum and spice as well for interest. I enjoyed this quite a bit
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3/3/2022 - rralls wrote: 93 Points
Still young imo.
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8/19/2021 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 94 Points
Out of the bottle: This is a big wine, lots of ripe fruit, silky smooth, a lot of tannin still that bites a bit on the finish, but there's enough fruit here to make it all good.
Two hours later: Coming together a bit more in the glass for sure, could probably use even more time, and will likely continue to evolve in the bottle for many years to come.
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8/5/2021 - liber Likes this wine: 93 Points
3rd of 6, opened an hour then decanted 90 minutes, perfect cork and level, step up on last bottle in December 18, big, dense wine as ever, showing more nuance but au fond a monolithic, fleshy, cherry fruity number with attractive sweetish core hiding decent fine tannic structure, limited upside now but ok for 10 if not 20 years. F+ (18).......pushing extraction at expense of grace!
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6/9/2021 - devraj Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dark reddish purple in color. Lovely aromas of dark red fruits, mocha, tobacco and baking spice. A very well balanced palate shows sweet and savory dark berry fruits with hint of smoky meat, good acidity, melting tannins and a long tobacco and spice inflected finish.
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6/2/2021 - wineappreciation wrote: 93 Points
Plum, candied apples, melted chocolate, with mild floral notes; luscious, vibrant, sinuous, simple, but well developed, a little sweet, extravagant, with a long lingering finish
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5/18/2021 - lesz Likes this wine: 94 Points
part of a vertical tasting. itwas the oldest and wotn.
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5/15/2021 - Mark1npt Likes this wine: 95 Points
Brought to the table by good friend Leon....decanted for about 40 min before/during dinner. Enjoyed with rack of lamb and crispy duck. Nice florals and strong fruit on the nose.....the merlot component stands out with dark blackberry fruit and gentle spice. This has plenty of life ahead of it, especially when compared against the '02 Cos d' which would seem to be drinking 5-10 years older than the Pavie at this moment in time.
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4/27/2021 - MicklethePickle Likes this wine: 94 Points
Opened two nights ago. And took almost that long to really open up. From a magnum. Good dark red, more or less opaque, with only a hint of browning at the rim. Copious, glass-staining legs. Fine red berry fruit with a certain plumpness to it. Quite fragrant. Excellent fruit in the mouth, very full and ripe, but not at all overripe. Big chewy body, then finishes with fine, long-lasting chocolate and cocoa notes. Doing beautifully at 23 years from the vintage. There are fine-grained tannins present, but this is clearly in its prime drinking window. Shows no sign of impending decline, although this bottle was large format. Very attractive right bank that is identifiable as such. Glad I have another. 5-12-18-9: 94/100. (After reading the comments, two more observations: the fruit nose was cherries, and the wine is dense; wish I had wrote, that at first, but others certainly caught it.)
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4/16/2021 - TexasBob Likes this wine: 96 Points
Rich red-garnet. Unbelieveable transfixing nose of cellar must and mixed red and black fruits along with red cherries. The first sip hits you like a bolt of lightning with myriad fruit notes hyper-charged with umami and notes of banana and blueberries.
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2/22/2021 - Sfflyer123 wrote: 91 Points
Decanted this wine for 2hours. The wine is still highly tannic despite its age. The complexity is mild, and the fruit is minimal. The acidity is high. If you like tannic, astringent, sour wines, this is the wine for you. 91 points.
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2/21/2021 - Derek Darth Taster Likes this wine: 94 Points
East side neighbourhood hangout. Aired in decanter for about an hour and then enjoyed over the next. Drank in Zalto Universal.
Appearance is clear, deep intensity, ruby colour. Legs.
Nose is clean, medium+ intensity, with aromas of truffle earth, ripe grilled herbs, blackcurrant, blackberries, black cherries, licorice. Developed.
On the palate, dry, medium+ acidity, medium+ alcohol (13.5%), chewy high tannins that smoothened out plushly with more air, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of chocolate, licorice, blackcurrant, blackberries, black cherries, grilled herbs, truffle earth, some dark red cherries. Rich plush mouth-feel. Long finish.
Very good quality. Nicely developed Right Banker drinking in a good place now. Should be nice over the next 4-5 years as well, but I wouldn't age it beyond that.
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12/26/2020 - KTelaak_Buffalo Likes this wine: 90 Points
A lighter style of Pavie. Without a doubt showing some age in color and flavors. Writing this after 3 hours open and not seeing a major development in the glass. Hoped for more, not disappointed though. Solid for the age that it is. Enjoy now!
Tannins are still strong at hour 4.
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12/10/2020 - chull Likes this wine: 93 Points
Inky purple, no bricking, fine grain tannins prominent, berry flavors and nose. Decanted and drank over 6 hours now,
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12/4/2020 - stefad Likes this wine: 95 Points
Bouteille ouverte pour l’anniversaire d’un de mes fils (1998).
Le bouchon est dans un état impeccable, garant pour ceux qui le souhaitent conserver leurs bouteilles quelques année de plus.
À l’ouverture, la robe du vin est à peine évoluée, son bouquet exhale les fruits noirs (pruneau), menthol, la vanille et dès la première gorgée le vin se montre des plus civilisé. En bouche, la matière est belle, pleine, avec tanins polis, d’une belle fraîcheur … qui s’égrenne durant de longues caudales.
Un tout qui signe là une bouteille très attachante.
Superbe vin avec du potentiel de vieillissement (bouchon impeccable), 10 ans de plus assurément. 95/100
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11/21/2020 - merlotsmile wrote:
St Emilion 1st Growths & those that deserve an upgrade!: 67 Pall Mall Zoom Webinar
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10/10/2020 - Zweder wrote: 97 Points
Bordeaux 1996 Left bank versus 1998 Right bank (more or less) (By SK In Vught Aan het Fornuis): Beautiful bouquet with some barnyard, forest floor and autumn impressions. On the palate dark berries and graphite, some dark chocolate, beautiful acidity and round, still powerful tannin. A great beauty! 96 – 97
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8/30/2020 - RusisWine wrote: 93 Points
2 hours of decanting. Balanced fruit with dark berries and plums.
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7/31/2020 - CHarder wrote: 96 Points
This is just excellent. Beautiful bordeaux
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7/21/2020 - Mr T wrote:
Decanted and drunk over several hours.....needs a good deal of air and some time to rally show its stuff. Happy to drink this at my purchase price...not sure about today's pricing
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7/9/2020 - Sean Tay Likes this wine:
Dried blackfruits, cedar, spices, toast, medium+ acidity, high tannin. Able to age easily 15 years or more. Still youthful.
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6/28/2020 - ieatprawnsss Likes this wine: 94 Points
Relatively tight knit when initially poured, this became very very good after 90 minutes in the decanter. Dark cherries, coffee, cigar box, leather, chocolate, rocky mineral notes.
Bursting with exuberance on the initial sip. Tannins were quite soft, palate was well resolved. Good concentration, medium-full body with a long finish. A friend noted how filled in the palate was from start to end of each sip - great structure. The only knock on it was that as we continued to drink over another 2 hours, the fruit slipped away faster than expected and the last glass was significantly more austere.
Ready to go in my opinion, but no rush to drink as it should keep for easily another 5 - 10 years before cresting its peak.
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6/14/2020 - GBFan Likes this wine: 97 Points
Decanted 1.5 hours. Boy, is this good. A big, beautiful cassis/dark fruit nose. The palate is complex and consistent with the nose. Silky fruit. Very long finish. The wine is beautifully harmonious; it manages to be huge but yet not over-the-top. Just an outstanding Saint-Emilion that seems to be at its peak. I wish I had more.
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6/7/2020 - raf_lacelle@hotmail.com Likes this wine: 92 Points
Great pomerol wine!
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5/30/2020 - Collector1855 wrote: 94 Points
Blind. Felt very Pomerol on the palate with lots of high quality dark fruit, oak, vanilla and spices. I have guessed the age to be quite a bit younger, so no hurry to drink. the only worry I have is that it matured rather fast once it was in the glass.
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5/2/2020 - cephomer Likes this wine: 95 Points
Drank from decanter last nite with a red pasta dish. Lovely wine! Soft and very approachable. Clearly a right bank wine with the charm, ease and generosity of its majority merlot shining through. Extremely generous nose of espresso, black cherries and chocolate exuding from the decanter as we poured. Medium to full body, age showing ever so slightly on the rims of the glasses, lots of black cherry, some plums and plenty of smokey herbs on the palate. Sweet, ripe fruit is still plentiful, tannins are soft and fully resolved, and the length on this wine is stellar. This was one of those wines that make you sad when the bottle is empty. Loved it!
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3/20/2020 - Cailles wrote: 96 Points
Tasted double blind. I guessed it to be a left bank due to the immense dark fruit profile and power. This is a wonderful wine with high complexity, not too much extraction or ripeness. All is in place but the wine needs certainly at least another 10 or 20 years to reach maturity. At this point the tannins have softened and the different elements have beautifully integrated but there is hardly any tertiary development and it is still a youthful heavyweight. This will only get better. 96+ points.
TN: Blue, black fruit, a distinctive left bank profile, very good terroir expression with lots of crushed rocks, earth and some cedar, intense, clear, sharp and crispy. Satin-like, ultra-fine tannins and superb freshness and good length. All is in place, it’s just far too young and will be much better once all the complexity can increase with tertiary aromatics kicking-in.
Decanting: Decanted for one hour and followed over two more hours. It definitely needed more time, 3-5 hours in the decanter is advised, better just wait 10 or 20 years.
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3/14/2020 - dnnk88 Likes this wine: 94 Points
Hannah’s 1st Birthday @ MD’s: My first Pavie ever - Black fruits, leather, tobacco, fig, cloves, sandalwood, slight medicinal notes, espresso, with a minty finish. Complex - probably one of the more “exotic” Bordeaux I’ve tasted but not in a bad way. This left a great impression. To more Pavies to come!
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3/7/2020 - sirpat00 Likes this wine: 97 Points
50min double-decant which was a bit too short. Barnyard and leather coupled with a ripe, jammy bramble berry fruit. Intensity and concentration, full bodied, round tannins but with grip and fresh acidity. Lots of earth and forest floor on the palate as well. Added menthol and mint complexity. This is a great Pavie, once again showcasing in my view two things: 1/ how muscular and virile the right bank can be, and 2/ in what great spot the 1998s from the right bank are currently. Although there were definitely 98 moments here as well, the overall experience wasn't quite there and I preferred the 2005 which just entered the drinking window but is offering already so much pleasure.
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1/18/2020 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 94 Points
Académie des Cinquante Saint-Emilion Tasting (Restaurant Bolenius *, Amsterdam, NL): Tasted blind twice. (1, wine 22): has depth, playful and refined, beautifully integrated oak, elegant tannins, 94. (2) Volatile nose, rich but unknit and with drying tannins. Not correct? Not rated.
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12/25/2019 - alamoave wrote: 95 Points
Superb again. Don’t wait on this though.
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12/25/2019 - Frank Schneider wrote: 93 Points
Rather rustic even after 4 h of decanting. Expected more on chrismas eve. Good but not worth the money.
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9/15/2019 - Jeff Leve wrote: 94 Points
With a nose of smoke, licorice, dark chocolate, espresso, herbs, black cherry, plum and a tiny background note of fig, the wine is full-bodied, rich, soft and stony. The wine ends with sweet, deep red fruit, salty tannins and licorice in the finish. With about 30 minutes of air, the wine continued filling out as it remained in the glass. This is showing close to full maturity. There is no hurry to drink it. But if you have been waiting to pop a cork, your wait is over.
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9/12/2019 - MC2 Wines wrote:
I had much higher expectations for this wine and again just didn't really deliver. It came across as quite tired. I had opened and decanted prob 60 minutes before we started in on it. A bit gritty. This had been shipped in that day and I think the sediment prob got all mixed up in it. But even without that there was something just a bit off. Not a bad wine, just not a great one.
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8/7/2019 - alamoave Likes this wine: 96 Points
One of my all-time favorite Pavies. Absolutely precise balance features full merlot fruit without any of the smokiness that pollutes some StEmilions. Lively but serene tannins. Decanted for 20 minutes and it evolved beautifully over the next hour. Fabulous.
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7/14/2019 - For the Love of Wine Likes this wine: 95 Points
This wine was singing tonight, and was the best red Bordeaux of the night, which included a 1993 Margaux and 1986 Rausan-Segla. It is easy to see why Pavie ranks as one of the top Chateaus in Bordeaux. The nose was seductive with sweet blue and black fruits, wild flowers, and a woodsy scent that was intoxicating. The palate followed suit with silky tannins and a medley of flavors dancing on the palate, including plums, fig, blackberries, cassis and milk chocolate, with toasty oak and asian spices floating in the background. Drank with a 1996 Harlan, and this wine held its own (which is saying a lot!) Drinking wonderfully right now, but still has plenty of life. I would not be in a hurry to open a bottle, but if the opportunity presented itself, I wouldn't hesitate. This wine is definitely worth the money.
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7/14/2019 - galewskj wrote: 93 Points
Jason turns 60 (Tilia): Decanted 45 minutes. There is a lot of minerals and red fruit. This didn't seem like a traditional Bordeaux, maybe a modern Bordeaux (don't know, don't have a lot of experience there), or maybe just young? The nose is rich dark earth and violets. While this didn't meet my expectation, it was a joy to drink.
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7/11/2019 - rocknroller wrote: 95 Points
Jason's Big 6-0 Bash (Tilia, Mpls): Very dark red/puprle color. Double decanted for 45 minutes; unsealed rubber stopper for 2.5 hours after. Drank a glass over 2 hours plus. Drank this next to a '96 Harlan Estate.
Definitely the flight of the night. Wow, just another great perfume, lovely dark berry fruit, cassis, blackberry, tobacco, excellent spices. The palate is so silky, full bodied with layers of creme de cassis, cassis, tart blackberry, velvety tannins, graphite, bright, just some subtle earth, with wonderful spices on the back end. This is delicious. Still youthful, but drinking extremely well. No hurry. 95+pts.
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6/23/2019 - svdheijden wrote: 96 Points
An old friend. Encountered many times and always rated between 94 and 96pt. For me these first years of Gérard Perse ('98 through '01) produced the very top of Pavie, reflecting the terroir and the appelation, not yet over-concentrated and dense. Very much seems to be at the very beginning of its maturity with a long life ahead. Tannines smooth and integrated, dark fruit dominating the nose. Almost on par with its celebrated sibblings Cheval Blanc and Angélus, lacking a tiny little bit of elegance compared to those giants. Looking forward to meet again!
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1/12/2019 - Zweder wrote: 97 Points
Regular dinner group (@ JK): Beautiful bouquet with dark berries, herbs, chocolate and forest floor impressions. On the palate dark berries, licorice, cinnamon, beautiful acidity, a firm amount of sweetness and round tannin. Really beautiful and complex wine. 96 – 97
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1/5/2019 - seijaro Likes this wine: 96 Points
Another bottle, another 97 for me... around the table a 95, a 96, and two 97s. Sweet Bordeaux, a lovely Saint Emilion at its peak of ripeness. What a treat!
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1/5/2019 - strijbosmh Likes this wine: 95 Points
Drank with Faaf. Just amazing. Nothing compared to the closed beast of 2005.
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12/22/2018 - liber Likes this wine: 92 Points
2nd of 6, decanted an hour, perfect cork and level, flavour profile as in my May 16 note, more developed and nuanced if still a tad too extracted for my taste, hint of something like rot on back palate which seemed to come and go, plenty of life. F (17.5).
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12/21/2018 - MC2 Wines wrote:
Alinea Retrospective 2011-15 (NEXT in Chicago): Unfair, but I had really high hopes for this wine. On the high end pairing list at NEXT for the Alinea retrospective this was I had hoped something that would make the list feel like it was more worth it. Instead, there was something just a bit off. Wine was totally fine, but almost a bit tired. Either it had been in the bottle for too long and was fading (more likely since we were told the pairing was changing over and there wasn't much of this one left) or it was still quite tight and hadn't opened up. Either way, not very expressive. Mostly just get that Bordeaux leather but with out much else.
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12/15/2018 - Alex G. Likes this wine:
Decanted 3 hours and what a difference versus the last time drinking this wine, more nuance and complexity. Elegant and balanced, polished and a bit racy. This should continue to improve for many years.
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11/20/2018 - Alex G. Likes this wine:
Dark and brooding, fruity and funky, this is a solid right bank. Decant for a couple hours, this greatly benefits from air, softens and becomes more expressive.
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11/10/2018 - dbg wrote:
Cellared since release, perfect cork and fill. Decanted for 45 min. Forward nose of dark fruits, plum, bit of leather and earth and vanilla-y oak. Full bodied, lush ripe fruit, low acid but not flabby, long finish. Many years to go but not sure if it will develop true complexity. Definitely in the modern ripe fruit style but excellent for what it is.
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8/23/2018 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 93 Points
Expressive nose that spans roast beef, currant, cassis, blackberry, cigar tobacco, spent coffee grinds, damp earth, dark chocolate, and chocolate covered cherries. Lush and ripe palate, loads of black fruit only beginning to give up some leather nuance. Thick and chocolatey. Some herbal details, like mint, that approach Cheval and Ausone, but probably still not quite on that plane.
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8/13/2018 - edjBoca Likes this wine: 94 Points
It took a while to open. The nose was mostly warm spices, and a hint of BBQ for a while. The palate was completely balanced with some complexity and a nice finish before the bottle was finished. Should be good for a while. This is not a PnP currently.
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6/15/2018 - seijaro Likes this wine: 97 Points
I see Lisa P-B at WA just retasted it and gave it 97! I decanted one and it is indeed terrific right out of the bottle. At two hours it was an absolute delight, a classic Saint-Emilion at 20 years of age. Lisa was right on the money, a 97 with blips to 98 from one sip to another. Began to fade a bit after two hours, nothing really overt, just the fruit began to subside. Wowee, thrilled that I have two more!
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6/14/2018 - M.S.L. wrote: 85 Points
Bordeaux right bank 1998 tasting. 16 wines including Petrus, Cheval Blanc and VCC (Copenhagen, Denmark): Maybe I just don't understand this style of wine or maybe this was not the best example of this wine. To me it felt alcoholic (I'm sensitive to that) and just over the top in a not good way. The Angelus in the same flight was also modern, but in a much more charming way.
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3/24/2018 - dbg wrote:
After the reception with 2006 Taittinger Comtes and MV Krug 164eme...
With a theme of 1998 Right Bank and Graves/Pessac, there was an embarrassment of riches. I may not have gotten to them all but this is what I recall of the 1998s:
Angelus
Conseillante
Evangile
Figeac
Pavie
Pavie Macquin
La Fleur Perus
La Mission Haut Brion
Haut Brion
Pape Clement
Ducru Beaucaillou (we aren’t too picky about the rules)
Then of course SDR pulled out an 82 and 86 Mouton and 76 Yquem and no one was too upset about these not following the theme...
The wines were all fully mature and drinking well. The Pavie and Angelus clearly on the more modern, ripe side of the spectrum but still very well balanced, the Angelus was WOTN for a number of people.
The L’Evangile was best of the Pomerols for most, with a classic structure and profile. Figeac came closest in style but didn’t have quite the same presence. La Fleur Petrus was also outstanding. Conseillante was a step behind but would have rated excellent without the stiff competition.
The Haut Brion and La Miss were both outstanding. I preferred the La Miss for a bit bigger mouthfeel and lushness. The Pape Clement was very good but well behind these two.
The Ducru had a killer nose but I didn’t get to it until the end of the night and didn’t actually taste it.
The two Mouton were both fantastic. They split the group almost evenly for which was preferred, the 82 with it’s lush complexity and mouthfeel or the 86 with its power and finish. I was in the mood for what the 82 was dishing.
There was also a Léoville Poyferre vertical and numerous other wines I couldn’t keep up with. Oh well...
Sweeties making an appearance were 1970, 1976 and 1995 Yquem and 200? Climens. The 76 Yquem was fabulous, everything an Yquem should be. The 1995 and 1970 were not too far behind. The Climens was excellent but a couple of steps behind.
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2/11/2018 - SineQuaNon Likes this wine: 95 Points
Wow! Spectacular modern Bordeaux. With an emphasis on Bordeaux! This is not a new world wine, not any longer anyway. Still on the youngish side with many years to go. Ripe, yes. Decadent, but balanced. Ripe plum and black cherry fruit with tobacco development, well integrated woodsmoke and great energy. Absolutely not a monster. Closer to 96 than 94. Very happy with its performance and imho better than a 1996 Haut-Brion and 2000 Pichon Lalande tasted same evening.
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11/30/2017 - jmoon Likes this wine: 94 Points
Wonderful, full dark ripe plummy fruit and lovely velvety texture after 1 hour decant, peaked at 2 hours. Drink nowish as unlikely to improve much.
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6/24/2017 - Mr Coone Likes this wine: 96 Points
- view: cherry red, few to no evolution
- nose: intense nose, hints of black fruit, prune and chocolate
- palate: soft in the mouth. Hints of cassis, prune, chocolate and spices. A little bit alcoholic. High acids, but nicely balanced with the tannins.
Still a very powerful and fruity wine. Thought this wine would taste much older.
Wine opened up after a while. Improves a lot after receiving some air!
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6/24/2017 - brianakrin wrote: 89 Points
Hard as nails. Took 3. Days to soten a bit. Will it ever come around.? Frustrating.
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5/6/2017 - Smart Likes this wine: 94 Points
It's now 19 years old, time to drink. Ruby red, full bodied and fruity with secondary aroma of blackberries
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3/27/2017 - Burgnick wrote: 91 Points
A new world nose with black fruit, oak, vanilla and velvet. Palate is almost napa like with so much fruit and volume. It was a pnp. It would have definitely benefitted from a 2 hr decant.
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3/1/2017 - Edclr Likes this wine: 95 Points
Decanted for half hour, then drank it. Great example of '98 right bank wine. Still very fresh, lots of life left.
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1/11/2017 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 92 Points
Drinking well with 4 hours of decanting. Its a mix of modern and classic wine-making style. A lot of black fruit, chocolate, cassis and licorice. It lacks the right bank elegance, but still enjoyable.
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11/27/2016 - sevo wrote: 92 Points
Elegant nose of dark fruits with an earthy undertone. The palate was very silky which faded into some remaining tannins. Unfortunately, the mouthfeel was not as long as I was expecting. It's a very nice wine at this stage. As this was the last of three bottles in my possession, my opinion would be to consume these over the next few years.
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11/4/2016 - Ary Likes this wine: 96 Points
An Exceptional Afternoon (at JM): Pavie 1998 has further gained intensity. Dense, concentrated and rich on the palate with dark cherries, kirsch and iron notes. Lingering finish with well-integrated tannins (showing no sign of drying).
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10/30/2016 - Miceri Likes this wine: 96 Points
Dark red; fresh nose, dark cherries, light smoked cedar; nice soft well balanced, some pepper, very fine tannins at the end, blackberies, long concentrated aftertaste; a very fine wine at a very good place in time
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10/8/2016 - The Vines That Bind wrote: 91 Points
The nose is terrific, super dense black and blueberry fruit with damp earth and roast beef notes. However, this palate wasn't in line with past experiences with this '98, very bitter and tannic. Less fruit than recalled. Remarkable density, but tougher and less pleasurable than remembered. Still quite good.
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9/23/2016 - DrinkBordeaux wrote: 95 Points
Right Bank Premier Grand Cru Classe "A" Bordeaux tasting (Karl's house): Another excellent 1998 from the right bank. Dark ruby color. A lovely nose of dark fruits, Asian spices, licorice, truffle, and fruitcake. A really nice, smooth mouthfeel. Excellent concentration. A long finish, but does show a slight amount of heat. Medium level acidity. Just starting to hit its stride, this has many years to go. Nicely structured and lots of pure, ripe fruit to give this a lot of longevity.
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8/25/2016 - William Kelley Likes this wine: 90 Points
The 1998 Pavie is a bit of a disappointment in the context of what was a magical vintage on the right bank and in the Graves. A pretty typical pre-Perse Pavie bouquet (though this was of course the first vintage under new ownership) of dried currants, dark chocolate, tobacco leaf, subtle saddle leather and a subtle framing of new oak is followed by a wine which is rather hard at the core, without much flesh on its rather desiccated structural bones. The wine is complex, savory and properly balanced, but hardly possesses the excitement which this great terroir should routinely achieve, and which plenty of addresses in Saint Emilion did achieve in the 1998 vintage.
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8/18/2016 - edjBoca Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drinks very much like a balanced Napa wine....smooth broad with mellow but present tannins. Medium to full body velvet cherry and currant. Red fruit...
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8/15/2016 - nortonnose wrote: 94 Points
from 750ml. No time to stand the bottle, dumped straight into decanter. Perfect cork and TS+ fill. Fabulous, young looking dark garnet color. This needed an initial 20 mins of air to become accessible. Gorgeous nose of rich, black cherry and parfum. Very ripe, dark fruit on the palate. Not overly extracted, but I would definitely guess New World if blinded. Nice structure, good acidity and a medium-long finish. Certainly very enjoyable, especially when shared with a close pal alongside fancy burgers. Poor QPR at this price level, though. While I agree with Leve's posit that there is no reason to further age these, I will likely do so with my final bottle........you know, just because!
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8/8/2016 - Jeff Leve wrote: 92 Points
Similar to the last bottles tasted, the wine lacks excitement. More interesting on the floral, licorice, earth, dark cherry, plum and stone nose than on the palate. There is no reason to hold this wine any longer hoping for further development.
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7/9/2016 - BillyT wrote: 94 Points
Sorry no notes other than truly amazing, balanced, still young showing its infancy but a GREAT wine. Dinner with new wine buddy over beouf Burgogne. OUTSTANDING
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5/21/2016 - liber Likes this wine: 91 Points
1st of 6, decanted 2 hours, perfect cork and level - deep garnet, purple rim, leggy; whack of plum and cherry fruit, slightly baked, touch of iron and cocoa, lacking nuance; full bodied for claret, decent length and persistence, quite sweet mid palate, dryish tannin under a whack of fruit, potentially silky but currently quite burly, feels slightly concocted and pushing extraction. Generally I prefer a more relaxed style which sets the fruit off in a more nuanced structure......yet there is plenty of fruit in there but will it ever settle. Just about fine (17.5).
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5/13/2016 - dsiii wrote: 96 Points
What it's all about. Bordeaux at its best. Youthful but still quite profound. Drank in 375, decanted, drank after 1 hour. Superb. Need to get more.
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5/11/2016 - Motox Likes this wine: 94 Points
Opened and tasted immediately, much to my surprise it was quite expressive. Let sit about an hour before getting into it, the nose kept improving along with robust black/plum fruits throughout. Extremely well balanced with long silky finish. Still holding 9 bottles from an owc & given how it was singing thinking time to start enjoying especially at the value price paid...
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3/23/2016 - dannyg Likes this wine: 98 Points
This was opened standing 24-hour before, double decanted for about 12 hours. Wine was flawless...still punchy, has the dense ripe plums, cedar & tobacco, smoke flavor, chocolates..lots of it. Stays on your palate, linering on for a while 20-30 seconds or more. It took time to open up as the wine was just right after having opened it for 24-hours!
The body is full with polished texture.
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3/12/2016 - alamoave Likes this wine: 93 Points
Better than the 2000 IMO for half the price
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2/3/2016 - Mr T wrote:
aging well....very nice the first night and even better on second...very balanced wine and not especially modern...92-93
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1/15/2016 - rhanke wrote: 94 Points
Great. Nice and smooth
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12/26/2015 - Edclr Likes this wine: 96 Points
Great right bank wine. Gobs of black fruits, great mouthfeel, long finish. Now ready to go but long life ahead also.
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8/9/2015 - BBinSC wrote: 96 Points
95-97: a true stunner! Had it been served blind, we would have never guessed its age. Purple hue with a lively fruit driven nose, this bottle is in early maturity. Tannins are fine, and acid is receding, but the fruit is still powerful. Has a long, long finish; outshone the 2003 Haut Brion that followed. By far one of my favorite Bordeaux.
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6/6/2015 - markellen.foodies@gmail.com Likes this wine: 95 Points
Classic Bordeaux. Double decanted before traveling to Blue Duck, D.C. Decanted there for almost an hour before serving. Minimal fine sediment. Garnet, black raspberry, cassis, and lead pencil. Mild tannins, with suave mouthfeel, and extended finish.
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6/2/2015 - Burgnick wrote: 93 Points
This is very modern in style for a Bordeaux. Breathed it in the bottle for 30 mins and poured afterwards. The nose had caramel, mocha, red fruits and dark fruits. The palate was very silky. Although this is a bit modern, it is so ready to drink. Great effort!
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5/23/2015 - JulianSkeels wrote: 92 Points
Disappointing. 30-45 min double decant was good, with wine opening in the glass. Very mineral nose and rich mouthfeel, with particuarly broad mid-palate. The smokey notes I love from Pavie took a while to emerge. Not as thick as expected. The wine evolved in the glass - at one point was v hedonistic, then became flat with some heat on the finish. Not sure where this is heading, will drink my case soon and with food. I much preferred the 2001 Pavie a few years ago.
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3/18/2015 - conviction buy wrote: 91 Points
Deep garnet, intense nose of dark cherry, oak vanilla and beautiful floral aroma. Painfully concentrated, tannin beginning to soften, bit dry and grippy, plummy on palate. Bitter aftertaste made this wine less enjoyable. Better to go with food.
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1/14/2015 - DAN BAILEY wrote:
Ripe, creamy, black fruit, figgy. Still very young but seemed to fade in the glass.
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1/14/2015 - SimonG wrote: 92 Points
St Emillion First Growths (Chez Bruce, London): A bit more intensity on the nose. Mineral with a good pinch of garriguey thyme. Similar on palate. There's a cool elegance to the plushness here. With air, significantly drier on the finish. A slight edge to it. Still, a very pleasant surprise though and a very decent wine. ****
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1/5/2015 - jjwala wrote: 88 Points
medium nose. short finish. disappointed as was expecting a lot more.
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1/3/2015 - Evan Dawson wrote: 93 Points
I'm shocked to give this wine 93 points, given the hype and noise surrounding this producer. This was Pavie's first vintage in its new direction, a full five years before it split Parker and Jancis apart. Happily, it's nothing more offensive than modern-styled, very good right-bank Bordeaux. Granted, Cab Franc must feel like the actor whose scenes were cut from the film, but this is not a port-like effort. Ripe, but not silly. Big. Still primary. If you're looking for a syrup-bomb, find another vintage. If you prefer old-style claret, this might not work for you. But it's impressive.
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10/25/2014 - RussK wrote: 91 Points
Russk K&A's Group at Vienna Cafe. Still to tight. Touch green. Pavies don't move me.
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9/24/2014 - jonnyoro wrote: 96 Points
I really love this wine- getting better and better...full bodied, excellent red fruit, plums, minerality, distinctly at. Emilion with a new world bent... Long finish... And very complete on a lovely drinking plateau...
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9/18/2014 - dream wrote: 88 Points
Tasted alongside the '98 Cheval Blanc and Angelus. This has bigger bones and riper fruit and I liked it at first because it showed a really high-class texture and was thick and rich but with plenty of refreshing acids. However, with food and further air, it began to deviate from the other two more classic wines showing more angular notes, sharper tannins and hints of over-ripeness. In the end, this wasn't aging as well as the other two wines which makes sense given the higher extraction level and I think I sense the manipulation here. We'll see what more time does but I wouldn't want this in my cellar. 88?
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2/23/2014 - gsquireh Likes this wine: 94 Points
Lovely again!
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2/2/2014 - hrazdiiv Likes this wine: 94 Points
A very well made wine, the first vintage made by Gerard Perse after he bought the property and the quality is immediately apparent. Beautiful colour, medium red an amazingly classic bordeaux nose of earth, dark fruits, supported by still-firm tannins. Did not decant and would not recommend you do so, its just not necessary. We drank the wine over 3 hours and it never lost a beat so decanting would not improve. I'd especially recommend this vintage (and 2001) for those who want to try Pavie but can't pay 2000 or 2005 prices. Best 1998 right bank wine I have tasted in a while.
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1/10/2014 - thomas.bagge@me.com Likes this wine: 92 Points
A disappointing experience. First bottle was corked and second bottle had seen it's prime. Having had four bottles, flawed or not memorable, my recommendation is to drink sooner rather than later.
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12/14/2013 - Sandbar Likes this wine: 97 Points
This Pavie was the first from a case purchased at auction last summer. I didn't expect it to be so ready to drink, but I just can't imagine it getting any better. Plenty of fruit, very gentle tannins, and a long, long finish. It was opened for about 1 hour and served at a Bourbon Steak in Washington DC. The whole group loved it, including the som. Hurrah for corkage!
By far the best St. Emilion I have ever enjoyed. I'm so happy to have 11 left to share over the next decade.
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12/9/2013 - sablep wrote:
Give 2 hours
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12/6/2013 - Philou68 Likes this wine: 98 Points
This is phenomenal stuff! Decanted for 30 min...Robe shows no signs of aging...Such a complex, deep and powerful bouquet paired with great persistant flavors that coat the palate is a rare tasting experience...kept improving during the tasting as it got more air in the decanter.. The tertiary aromas are not quite there yet, but there is no reason not to drink this addictive wine now! At that level of magic, nothing really matches a grand bordeaux which is hitting a perfect drinking phase..It's the improbable mixture of incredible finesse, class , complexity and persistant aromas only found in great Bordeaux! Still has enough tanins and structure to further evolve for another decade..relieved after a corked bottle opened 2 years earlier..Certainly my best 1998 drank so far (even better than Haut brion 1998 drank 2 months ago).
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11/18/2013 - WendyS Likes this wine: 97 Points
This wine was spectacular in 9/13.
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10/12/2013 - stealthman_1 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Plumish, blood fruits, deep black cherry, slight forrest floor. On the palate, medium-full body, elegantly structured, lively acidity on the back end with well integrated tannins. A pleasure to drink, but there's no WOW here that would move it into higher point range. Drunk or hold, not falling off any cliffs any time in the next decade.
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10/7/2013 - cubswinws Likes this wine: 94 Points
Drank from magnum. I just love this wine. Still dark red in color and nice youthful vibrancy. Some secondary flavors but this still has a long life ahead of it.
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9/17/2013 - jetfan wrote: 95 Points
Drinking amazingly
Nose a bit muted but great complexity and great time to open
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9/16/2013 - Average Wine Guy (MH) wrote: 92 Points
The 1998 Château Pavie is medium garnet in colour with a very slight tawny rim. An opulent, expressive, layered nose of red currants, dark cherries, rosemary, slight clay and dusty cedar. Nonetheless, an integrated bouquet that also displays another dimension of roasted coffee beans, which was attractive for sure.
An initial entry of sweetness on the palate with red currants, dark cherries and underlying cedar. A mid-end palate of roasted coffee beans and thyme before sour cherries slowly start to dominate at the finish with a rising back-end alcohol. Pleasant sweetness yet powerful intensity in a rather big-styled wine. Intense structure and good drive. Tannins are still grippy and powerful, displaying quite a character despite its age - a wine that is definitely still alive.
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6/20/2013 - patwjr Likes this wine: 94 Points
Still somewhat tight and not revealing all it's got, even after a decant of an hour+. Last few sips were the best. I'll wait another 3 years before opening next bottle.
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6/15/2013 - Jeff Leve wrote: 92 Points
There is probably no reason to hold this wine any longer. The secondary aromatics are in full force, with their licorice, stone, smoke and dark plum with red berry profile. Concentrated, full bodied and rich, the only draw back to the wine is a touch of bitter olive in the finish, which some tasters are going to like more than others.
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5/9/2013 - soyhead wrote: 94 Points
Nose - cedar, tobacco
Mouth - dark cherry dry tannins very lovely fruit punchy flavors, good complexity, juicy deliciously ripe and dry fruit. Impressive stuff.
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4/27/2013 - 3daywinereview.com wrote: 94 Points
Right Bank Bordeaux Tasting; 4/27/2013-5/5/2013 (Kevin's House (Minneapolis)): Dark in color. Cigar, charcoal, rose petals and cherry. Complex and packs a punch. Medium to long finish and will improve over the course of a decade. 94+ Decanted 3 hours and consumed over 2.
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4/27/2013 - rocknroller wrote: 95 Points
Big Bordeaux V: Stars of the Right Bank - St. Emilion (including '96 Cheval, '98 Ausone and Pavie, '90 Troplong, '98 d'Yquem and more) (Rocknroller's (Kevin's)): Purple/red/inky color. Decanted for 4 hours. Drank 1 glass over 2 hours. Nose is ripe, blueberry, cassis, blackberry, plum, lead pencil, smoke, earth, tar. This nose is quite expressive, but you get the sense that there is more yet to come. The palate though is stunning, a WOW palate. Absolutely amazing concentration, deep, full bodied, black and blue fruits in layer upon layer, graphite, nice acids, very long and intense finish. The tannins are round and silky and the balance here is about perfect. This was my #3 WOTN. Still very young, I think that ultimately this will be the best wine of the group. 95(+)pts.
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4/2/2013 - LGunning wrote:
Super. Full of fruit. Years to go
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1/26/2013 - Chainthroer wrote: 95 Points
Aromas and flavors of black cherry, blackberry, sweet black currant, earth, some chocolate and licorice, coffee, spice and oak. Rich, soft and full bodied; dense and concentrated fruit. Smooth and velvety in the mouth. Great balance and acid. A very long and extended finish. Consumed at the SAFW Reunion II.
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1/19/2013 - Sniffy-Sniff Likes this wine: 94 Points
Beautiful dark fruit, explosive nose, polished tannins, long finish. Perfect pairing with pan seared veal chops. Give this at least 3 hours of air before drinking. WOTN.
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12/18/2012 - Mr T wrote:
decanted sevral hours before heading to the restaurant....this wine still drinks fairly young and it is quite dark and almost savoury...meat flavors and ripe fruit but I did not find it porty or especially heavy although hardly classic claret...none of the funk that marred the first bottle I had years ago...very pretty and developing as one might expect
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10/18/2012 - Julia7ich wrote: 90 Points
Dark ruby with a garnet rim. This nose of this wine is like you would imagine a well-oaked Port wine: very, very ripe blackberry fruit, somewhat volatile acid and warming alcohol. This is a big, supple modernly styled Bordeaux. It is drinking well now but it has enough power and vibrancy to hold through 2018.
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10/15/2012 - Jeff Leve wrote: 92 Points
Vanilla, licorice, chocolate, coffee bean, black cherry and earthy aromas were in abundance. The ripe, round tannins delivered soft, textures and a plush mouth feel, but the wine was over-oaked. The chocolate, plum and vanilla finish was not dry, but it was a bit too sweet and the oak was mildly intrusive. Served blind, it was obvious the wine was from a great terroir, but that while this vintage was good, I was willing to bet later vintages showed a marked improvement in quality. Pavie, thanks to the spare no expense attitude of Gerard Perse did not become one of the stars of St. Emilion until 2000. In 1998, he was just getting his sea legs. There is no hurry to drink the wine, it was still young and fresh. But the 1998 Pavie is not at the level achieved by later vintages.
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9/22/2012 - Burgundy Al wrote: 92 Points
First Day of Autumn with Friends (Lake Forest IL): Lush, ripe black fruit with some liqueur hints, plenty of new oak spice. Similarly bold and lush black fruit flavors, fun and easy to enjoy, just a little one dimensional.
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7/24/2012 - Humpymac wrote: 95 Points
This wine big and bold, still very young despite decanting for 3 hrs before drinking. Big fruit.
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7/20/2012 - mwanasheria wrote: flawed
Badly corked.
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4/1/2012 - dcwino wrote: 95 Points
GJE CRD 2008 and EP 2011; 3/29/2012-4/4/2012 (Bordeaux, France): It is always fascinating how the same wine shows different personalities even on the same day in this case from the chateau. No mint, sweet black fruits, truffle, dark caramel and leather. Silky palate, excellent concentration and nicely integrated tannins. Good showing.
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4/1/2012 - dcwino wrote: 94 Points
GJE CRD 2008 and EP 2011; 3/29/2012-4/4/2012 (Bordeaux, France): This also show some mint. Definitely bigger and riper than the 97. The nose displays truffle, caramel and black fruits. Mostly secondary and tertiary flavor. Nice dense and silky palate with still noticeable tannins.
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3/18/2012 - toms123 wrote: 97 Points
Wine showed great balance for its age. Sweet red fruits on the nose and firm tannins. Wine may not be at its peak but offered an incredible experience.
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3/9/2012 - vanpe003 wrote: 94 Points
Pop/pour. Brooding nose that mixes a fairly bright, spicy fruit with an earthy funk. The longer in the glass, the less the "funk" is apparent. On the palate, a sup rising hint of sweetness relative to other vintages I've tried, and a bit of cinnamon spice. Nicely balanced, with some tannins showing up on the finish. Approachable now, but I should have decanted this for several hours. Seems extremely age worthy.
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3/9/2012 - vanpe003 wrote: flawed
Horribly corked.
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3/7/2012 - svdheijden wrote:
This must have been a lesser than usual bottle, so no score. I previously rated this wine consistetly between 94 and 96 poimts, but this one would get no more than 90 points; even the Rol Valentin 1998 scored better this afternoon...
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12/9/2011 - La Cave d'Argent wrote: 95 Points
Tasted in double-blind fashion at Vintage Wines, Ltd., with the bottle generously being provided by Rob Norberg. The bottle was well-cellared and decanted approximately four hours prior to the tasting. It was then serially tasted over the ensuing three hours. The robe is opaque garnet and the nose shows intense aromas of black raspberries, potpourri, licorice, cocoa and earth. Full-bodied on the palate, with medium acidity, medium supple tannins and well-integrated alcohol. The flavors are luscious and in line with the nose. A silky mouth texture persists throughout the solid middle palate and the smooth finish is very long. Bravo to this early Perse offering! Drink now-12/20.
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9/21/2011 - Xavier Auerbach wrote: 91 Points
Rich and deep nose, sweet cherries, tar, balancing minerality, drying oak; concentrated, full, powerful, rather firm tannins; good finish, marked by the new oak of the new cuves and barriques. An early example of the new-style Pavie - not necessarily my style.
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9/16/2011 - Jack wrote: 91 Points
I think this one may have needed more time to open up. Very good but definitely not worth the high price! Ok, I had a little left over for night two and it was better by a couple of points. 93pts tonight but still not worth the fare. If you drink now give plenty of air time.
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9/15/2011 - cnordstr wrote: 91 Points
Not very impressed. Too closed, although four hours of decant. Nose was careful, was it even so slightly corked? However, taste was pure and long without cork. Will save my next bottle for 5+ years.
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9/9/2011 - Jeff Leve wrote: 93 Points
Still deep in color,with a pungent nose of chocolate, plums, coffee bean, smoke and truffle, this rich, ripe and close to mature St. Emilion ends with a chocolate covered boysenberry, vanilla and black cherry finish. Compared to wines from Pavie starting in 2000. this is a beefier, less opulent style of Bordeaux wine.
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7/8/2011 - King JR wrote: 95 Points
Wow, this is still an outstanding bottle of wine! Beautiful smooth silky tannins, wonderful nose - classic St. Emilion flavour. Only one left - wish I had cases more of this one.
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6/12/2011 - jeff nowak wrote: 94 Points
13.5% alcohol! not decanted, and followed in the glass 4+ hours. lest we lament the cartoonish freak this wine has become, let's set the way back machine to 1998, and remember how the perse era began, with a, dare i say, elegant finesse that keeps evolving. there is a nice, slow expansion occurring and the texture is remarkable. i'll be damned if there still isn't a bit of primary fruit hanging around. i don't characterize this as classic right bank, and i frankly don't fret over it. i had the 2000 just one week ago (note not yet posted), and this 98 can hold it's head up pretty high in comparison, at a better price. well stored bottles like this one will reward for up to 20 years. drink or hold.
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5/26/2011 - Papies wrote:
1998 Right Bank Red Bordeaux with Richard Brazier (Handford Wines, London): Mild rotten leaves, some sour tannin, but otherwise very classic wine for it's style. Shame had to try it in a rush
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5/9/2011 - Wamrod wrote: 92 Points
Deep black garnet core, starting to brown slightly around the edges.
Sambuca (licorice), Vanilla (french oak) - these two are still dominating the fruit - not to easy to make out, but perhaps I'll go with black cherry. Although the Merlot clearly places it as right bank, there is almost an italian whiff, raisiny like Amarone - is it possible that this bottle was not kept perfectly before I got it?
On the palate, lots of fruit - along with the above-mentioned players - dense, layered, though you have to look hard to find it through the still-strong resin. Good acids down the side of the tongue. Tannins not smoothly resolved, still quite rough.
Medium to long finish.
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5/5/2011 - Ary Likes this wine: 94 Points
Angelus and Right Bank Dinner at Frits house with exceptional pirate (Amsterdam): One of my favorite Right Bank wines. Smooth and sultry on the nose with licorice, chocolate and dark red fruits. Powerful and warm on the palate with iron, dark red fruits as cherry and cassis. The iron and classic tones is what this wine differentiates from wines like the Monbousquet 1998.
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4/22/2011 - patwjr wrote: 94 Points
One year ago not ready, tonight it worked. Everyone loved this bottle, though many more years to improve. Can enjoy now with a decant.
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2/5/2011 - Jeff Leve wrote: 95 Points
With an expressive bouquet of licorice, smoke, juicy black plums, blueberry and fresh black cherries, this richly textured, elegant, plush wine has turned the corner. On several occasions, this seemed like a good wine, but with the proclivity towards being chunky. This was the first time the felt sophisticated on the palate, The suave finish ended with chocolate covered plums and cassis. If you have more than a few bottles, it's time to crack one. However, the wine will only get better from here.
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1/19/2011 - King JR wrote: 95 Points
Excellent, smooth, still needs to time in decanter. Awesome.
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10/17/2010 - pablopilot wrote: 98 Points
Very clean and pure, red berries. Big but balanced acidity. Love it!
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10/5/2010 - pdemaio wrote: 93 Points
Definitely a pretty wine, with out too much funk, for a solid bordeaux. chocolate, berries. full bodied...
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9/11/2010 - Jeff Leve wrote: 94 Points
98 Pavie - With its chocolate, black raspberry, licorice, mineral, coconut, floral coffee, caramel and earthy scented nose is easy to notice. Full bodied and concentrated with fruit, but the tannins are a little rustic. The finish displays a mix of red and black fruit sensations and fat textures along with chocolate covered licorice and black cherry. While this is a good wine, it's not in the same league as the wines produced by Perse starting with the 2000 vintage.
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9/11/2010 - JimHow wrote: 93 Points
We had '98 Pavie, '98 La Fleur Petrus, and '95 Cheval Blanc together in a little right bank flight with cheese. The '98 Pavie was showing some development from when I last had it a few years ago, but it has a long way to go. As Art said, this wine is "not controversial." It is not too big, not too fruity, not too modernized. Maybe not the complexity of the latter two, but a strong effort nonetheless.
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7/4/2010 - gsquireh wrote: 94 Points
Full-bodied and velvet smooth rich succulent tannins and ripe blackerry fruit and lovely hint of violets in a fresh spring forest.
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6/14/2010 - cparkhurst wrote:
NOT ready! Check back in 2-5 years
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6/8/2010 - Rupert wrote: 90 Points
Chateau Pavie vertical 1959 to 2006 (Institute of Directors, London): Not much on the nose, resolved, fresh, smooth, not fully expressive, but decent enough - enough fat to buffer the tannin
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5/8/2010 - Harry Cantrell wrote: 92 Points
Deep garnet. Nose was impenetrable. Shy, closed whatever. Swirling and time helped a smidge. Taste showed tannin still present, but there is a good backbone that needs another 10 years to show its stuff.
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4/3/2010 - Tight Lines Likes this wine: 91 Points
4th of 4 - I love this wine, however wrong choice following the big cabs - a little too sweet, too fruity and lacking structure. On it's own, it's crowd pleaser.
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2/21/2010 - Faryan wrote: 93 Points
Eleven 1998 St Emilions and a Lone Pomerol. Maybe some Yquem too (Bethesda, MD): Another less than stellar showing for the Pavie. Nobody really thought it was worth 99 points (recent HG scoring) while some wished that the wine was able to see more air than it had. Somewhat reticent out of the gates, it shows soft notes of mocha with ripe (but not stewed) plum and blackberry briar. The pallate is hallmark Pavie with superlative balance but lacks the structure and firmness of tannins one would hope for in a more primary wine. As of recent experience, I'd say the 2001 Pavie drinks the most accessibly/enjoyably, with better evolution in terms of its secondary black truffle driven aromatics, while still holding a primacy and depth of concentration in the fruit. The 2005 shows the most explosive, with depth and firmness of tannin and richness in red and black fruit, while the 2000 was the most shy and humble of its endowment. The 98 was a restrained more subtle 2000, that may develop into something more substantial but to my palate is less appealing than the 2001. I'd hold onto these for 3-5 years hoping for better evolution.
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2/20/2010 - Kevin_C wrote: 94 Points
1998 Right Bank Bordeaux Dinner (Rockville, Maryland): Very tight, a touch of plum sauce, a smoother more even palate from mid- to finish. This needs time to reveal more. [94]
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2/20/2010 - KingSlacker999 wrote: 91 Points
Drank with 10+ other '98s, this, not near ready to drink. If you've got them, wait at least another 5 years. However, it seems like this will be a great wine at some point as the balance it there, dark fruit and a good backbone with the tannins coming around. Score likely to be higher in several years.
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2/15/2010 - Pearls_b4Swine wrote: 92 Points
Agree w Ive Marx; not remotely ready - despite 5 hours in the decanter - though very promising. Don't plan on touching another bottle for at least 7-10 more years.
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2/5/2010 - Zweder wrote: 92 Points
Occasional tasting group: "Terroir or bottles with a story" (@ TBa): Something completely different than 1997. Expressive bouquet. Chocolate, licorice, a lot of cassis juice, leather. A mouth full of wine. Firm amount of acidity and still youthful tannin. Very extracted. A modern made, almost a-typical Bordeaux.
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1/16/2010 - Ive Marx wrote: 94 Points
young and unevolved; oak dominance; made for the long haul- leave alone for at least 5 years.
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1/6/2010 - jeff nowak wrote: 94 Points
opened at the venue, and poured shortly after. very fine showing, better than my last experience. lots of great table discussion about the wine. all eight tasters found it to be terrific, but a couple lamented the californication of right bank merlot by perse. not me. i'm willing to accept this for what it is, a delicious bordeaux that maintains a fruit forward profile despite it's age, and blends in enough secondary characteristics from the old world to keep it real enough. this was very smooth, drinking at virtual peak.
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12/24/2009 - mwanasheria wrote: 90 Points
Very nice, still very young and somewhat closed. Heavy tannins did not open up the way I had expected. Maybe have to give it more time.
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12/17/2009 - presterjohn wrote:
spicy blue fruit, thick, heavy, inky. very interesting for st emilion. 7
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11/27/2009 - pgordon62 wrote: 92 Points
Chocolate covered plums, a little freshly turned earth, sawn, resinous wood. Voluptuous, full and rich in the mouth. The long finish has a slight harsh wood tannin edge. Very good but needs another 5-7 years at least to integrate the heavy oak. Hopefully the fruit lasts.
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11/22/2009 - Tight Lines wrote: 93 Points
Decanted for about an hour and half. Deep, dark purple, almost black in the glass. Nose of ripe, dark berries. Fruity, jammy on the palate w/ well integrated tannins. It had an initial sweetness to it that I found very interesting. Nice long finish. There is some future enjoyment left in this class.
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11/17/2009 - ed-d wrote: 94 Points
Pretty lush sweetness & awesome depth. Has a wierd, puckering finish.
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11/15/2009 - winestem wrote: 92 Points
Drunk at craftsteak in Vegas with a medium rare bone in ribeye. Mouthfilling ripe fruit, purple to the rim and elegant on the tongue. Many years left of this beauty.
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9/26/2009 - peblin wrote: 93 Points
Pavie Vertical: Brick red rim, not so dense as the others.
Mature nose with almonds, leather, nail polish, iron and cherry and strawberry (?) fruit.
Soft, round taste.
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8/1/2009 - jeff nowak wrote: 92 Points
13.5% alcohol. not decanted. one of my first multiple bottle purchases, i have been drinking this since release, and have 5 bottles left. the evolution has progressed from a thick, fruit forward blockbuster to a more subtle bordeaux with secondary/tertiary nuances. all it's incarnations work for me. blind to jane, she guessed french merlot. that's my girl! tannins persist, ever so slightly gritty on the finish, my only real complaint. the wine harbours nice character, even within it's modern style. great framework of fruit which gently cascades from midpalate to finish. wines such as this that meld power and grace are always special. i've read some recent non critic reviews that this wine is fading. don't believe it; however, i do think it is near peak. drink or hold 5+ years.
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5/18/2009 - babnik wrote: 96 Points
Absolutely wonderful. Creme de cassis, chocolate covered cherries, mint leaf, eucalyptus, and smooth, sweet oak. Drinking very youthful, but "ready." Wine Searcher shows this wine around the country at $175 - $200. It would be worth it.
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4/18/2009 - 5sensi wrote: 94 Points
Intenso, aromas de ameixa. Ainda jovem na boca. Típico Bordeaux.
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1/17/2009 - psmith wrote:
Really thought this was a new world wine when served blind. Dark fruits and vanilla oak influence. Weighty with fine tannins. Drinking very young. Enjoyable.
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12/13/2008 - gsquireh wrote: 94 Points
Full-bodied and beautifully concentrated, the black fruits and lead pencil merge with the smokey earth. The finish is intense and pleasureable.
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11/24/2008 - LEOCORP wrote: 94 Points
Deep ruby no age what so ever. Very rip black fruit Christmas cake prune this pushing the ripeness to another level. In the mouth it has excellent balance of tannins and acidity this is one for the long haul this wine has multi dimensions to it the amount of flavour in the mouth is so complex all do it is so Morden for Bordeaux I like this wine.
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10/31/2008 - quigley13 wrote: 96 Points
Buy more! This is great stuff built for the long haul.
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10/25/2008 - Blair Curtis wrote: 85 Points
A 10-Years-Out Retrospective of 1998 St. Emilion Premier Grand Cru Classe B (Vancouver, B.C.): (I should say that my score on this one is a score for "wine". If I had to score it as Bordeaux, it would do considerably worse. Utterly lacking in typicity.) Nose that is a dead ringer for Cali-cult wines. Someone nosed it and quipped "who brought the Harlan?" Very sur-mature. Port-like sweetness. Cloying. Intense confected fruit. Raisins and sugar. Jammy. Hot chocolate powder. At this tasting, the wine reveals itself as a caricature. Finishes long, but simple and sweet. Not for me at all.
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10/14/2008 - Jeff Leve wrote: 94 Points
This is a powerful, full bodied wine that needs 5 or more years to reveal all its charms. Layers of concentrated deep dark fruit and a complex perfume make this wine a treat to taste. Similar to Ausone in that the wine is less opulent and does not deliver the same level of intensity as do subsequent vintages.
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9/30/2008 - Thralow wrote: 85 Points
This wine sure has been uneven. This was the worst bottle yet. Certainly not special.
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8/13/2008 - wineismylife wrote: 89 Points
WIML89
Tasted August 13, 2008 at an offline.
Opened and briefly decanted before serving. Nose of green beans, pepper and maybe some plum. Simple flavors of berries. Light acidity, light to medium tannins, medium body. Drink or hold? Not sure on this one.
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6/14/2008 - MRichman wrote:
1998 Bordeaux horizontal POURED BLIND (Morton's NYC): Round, thick. Lots of purple fruit. Nice.
B+
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4/9/2008 - NAA2586 wrote: 93 Points
This wine is going to be great. A classic bordeaux, but still tastes very young. Keep this in the cellar a while longer. 5 more years?
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3/22/2008 - markellen.foodies@gmail.com wrote: 90 Points
Was decanted for 6 hours prior evening fore dinner party. Never got to it. Next evening, I would have to agree with Eric, the wine seems closed, and hopefully is in transition. Muted bouquet, dark fruits, and moderate finish. I expected more, and much preferred the leftover 97 Phelps Insignia from magnum.
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3/2/2008 - drogers wrote: 98 Points
velvet chocolate tobacco. Soft tannins, best bottle of this year I have yet sampled
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12/19/2007 - Nanda wrote: 96 Points
Flock Tasting - First Editions: Deep dark ruby. Killer nose is rich and loaded with complexity. Aromas of youthful currant fruit, tobacco, herbs, spice, minerals, coffee, licorice and toasty oak leap from the glass. Palate has rich fruit and firm tannins to match. Layers of complexity and flavors that echo the nose. Outstanding. Better by a margin than an 01 consumed earlier in the week. My #1, Group #1. Perse's first Pavie.
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12/13/2007 - Eric wrote: 93 Points
Popped at home with AR. Quite tight and cedary at first, this doesn't even begin to resemble the last time I had this wine (where it was much more lush and Aussie in character). Not much of the heavy toast espresso but a rather 'cool' and aloof aspect to the fruit. The class and finesse here are obvious, taut, clean, quite beautiful. Not big points from me at this stage, and this seems to be trapped between primary and secondary right now, but I was still glad for a chance to give this a try. I would opt for 1999 or 2001 for current drinking pleasure instead of this.
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10/8/2007 - PatrikO wrote: 93 Points
Drank this bottle over two days. Doesn't give much straight out of bottle and it's quite a lot of heat there. After getting some air it starts to come around. Lovely! Blackberries and blueberries nicely integrated with the oak, very concentrated, this will age well.
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8/31/2007 - Jeff Leve wrote: 94 Points
Thick, rich, palate staining fruit please the senses. This is a very powerful, full bodied wine that needs time to reach full maturity
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6/7/2007 - Thralow wrote: 93 Points
Elegant
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5/11/2007 - Jack wrote: 95 Points
Wonderful. 3 hour splash decant and continued to improve over 2 hour dinner.
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5/5/2007 - mfkidd wrote: 94 Points
Double decanted for 3 hours, then siphoned back into bottle for travel to the Solo home. First sip right after poured is tight and closed. 2nd taste is 1 1/2 hours into decanting and still isn't open much. By the time we arrive at the party and start pouring for friends, the wine has opened up tremendously (about 4 hours after uncorking). A powerful nose is followed by smoky pears and pomengranates (sp?). About a 20 second finish goes smoothly down the gullet. Very nice and will only improve with another 3-5 years.
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2/25/2007 - Jeff Leve wrote: 93 Points
Inky black in color. A nose filled with black fruit, fennel, stone, herbs and spices. Full bodied with a lasting palate presence.
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2/17/2007 - jeff nowak wrote: 97 Points
i've never had a bad bottle of this. elegance and power unrealistically joined at the hip. how does this happen? man, this is one delicious wine.
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2/4/2007 - toomuchwine wrote: 97 Points
Amazing as ever...best after open for about an hour. We didn't decant this time, and it really was singing with black fruit, glycerin and cassis. Just a great wine.
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1/24/2007 - trankin wrote: 92 Points
"Very Special" Dinner at Picholine OL (Picholine Wine Room, NYC): Mystery wine, served blind. Very concentrated nose with some wonderful floral elements. On the palate, this is pillowy soft and silky. No way this nose and this palate go together. So little structure and a bit too much oak for my taste. Some nice spice notes on top. I enjoyed the flavor profile, absolutely loved the nose, but the silkiness and softness of the palate left me wanting more.
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1/20/2007 - winefool wrote: flawed
CFTG Dinner at Mark Pecken's (Mark Pecken's): Corked!
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12/24/2006 - RWilkinson wrote: 95 Points
Decanted over 6 hours, enjoyed over the next two (still some left for the next day ). This continued to evolve in the glass. The nose offered a little something new each time, with hints of mild spice as a consistent aroma, wonderful mid palate that filled the month with favors, tannins present but not overwhelming, a very nice smooth finish, surprising for such a young wine. Consumed along side a 1998 Clos de Sarpe, which in its own right was showing very well. Regarding the controversy surrounding Pavie a it’s departure from the old style wine making, while some slight difference were noted, but I’m a fan. This will age wonderfully IMHO.
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9/20/2006 - Dave Dalluge wrote: 95 Points
Dinner with Steve Sigmund and Jeff Samuelson (Insignia and Pavie): Double decanted about three hours before serving. Dark purple/red color. Opaque. Very similar to the 01 Insignia. On the nose this shows a compelling blend of dark fruit, chocolate, smoke, and fresh herbs/spices. Very nice. On the palate a strong minerality adds to the dark fruit and chocolate with an added hint of coffee and vanilla. Mouth coating. The tannins are extremely fine grain and plenty sweet. They are not really a distraction even at this stage of development. Long finish. This is very well integrated at this stage (at least compared to the 01 Insignia). It will be interested to follow this wine over the years -- it should be a beauty.
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9/20/2006 - Siggy wrote: 95 Points
Dinner @ Restaurant Alma. Double decanted; Jeff's bottle. This was absolutely rocking, showing rich black fruit, smoke, charcoal, coffee, and pencil lead. Great minerality and structure. Concentrated; long finish. The tannins are ripe and grippy, but not green or unpleasant. While this wine undoubtedly needs more time, it showed quite well.
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9/13/2006 - Thralow wrote: 91 Points
Started drinking it too soon should have let it breath. 84 when opened turned into a 92 by time the bottle was half gone.
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6/13/2006 - nopaindr wrote: 88 Points
heavy, flavorful, tannins begining to thaw out a bit
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6/18/2005 - mdstenner wrote:
Dain Wines Barrel Samples (and others) (Springfield, MO): Impossible to rate this wine as it years from showing its full glory. Impossibly monolithic and tight. Massively tannic. Totally backward. Initially a nose of graphite and hints of mineraliy. After 2-3 hours it had opened a little and there was some currant notes. Don't drink this wine for 10-12 years unless you want to trace its development. The 2002, tasted side by side, was much more approachable tonight.
6/21/05 update: A small glass left in the bottle from Sat. night. Slightly more approachable with a nose of fruit cake and plums. Still searingly tannic and consumed without food which was an error. My earlier impressions were confirmed. Cellar any remaining bottles and keep the locks on this until 2015 at least.
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3/19/2005 - Eric wrote:
A 98 point dinner at Steve Cramer's (West Seattle, WA, USA): This was my first taste of the 1998 Pavie (I have had the 1999 and 2000), and wow what a blockbuster wine. I would never, ever guess this as Bordeaux from the nose with some heat, raisins and raspberry. However, the palate screams of Bordeaux with amazing minerality and structure, powerful.
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2/28/2005 - Jeff Leve wrote: 94 Points
This deeply colored wine filled with black fruit, plums and coffee is already approachable. The flavors and complexity married to the plush texture your palate experiences are what great Bordeaux is all about.
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2/13/2005 - jamiekutch wrote:
Long Island Wine's VS. The World... Who was the winner? You will be surpriced (Paumanok Vineyards, North Fork, Long Island, New York): Dark broodingly red. Tannic Beast is all I kept saying to myself. What a tannic beast.. This wine was sporting little more than some barely legal fruit under its thick skin of tannin. Parker writes this is a 50 year old wine and I think he is dead on and this should be opened in 2050. I asked Manlin how long to decant this wine and he said no more than 30 minutes, well I handed Jim my bottle and hadn't realized that he decanted it and it was open for almost 3 plus hours. I am not sure if it tightened up or what the deal was but to me this wine was too difficult to get a read on. With its thick tannic shell I was confused as I have read many times how much people have loved this wine and how ready to go it really is. I scratched my head and humbly moved on.
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1/10/2005 - MRichman wrote:
1998 Right Bank Bordeaux Horizontal (Inside, NYC): Thick, big fruit with lemon center.
B+
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12/30/2004 - Koods wrote:
Drinking great out of the chute. Expresso beans, vanilla, tons of currant, great structure, cerebral. Awesome. Own it.
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12/4/2004 - Jeff Leve wrote: 94 Points
Opaque, black, purple ink. No lightening at the edges. An intoxicating perfume of plums, blackberries, licorice, mocha, spicy oak and floral scents say hello! Huge, dense, elegant layer of fruit envelopes your palate. Concentrated, full bodied, packed and stacked with ripe fruit. There is no mistaking this wine for anything other than Bordeaux. Mouth drying tannins. :40 second deep, rich finish.
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8/1/2004 - sdr Likes this wine: 95 Points
Splendid. By no means a fruit bomb monstrosity. Yes, it’s big, extracted and packed but the cedar, earth and structure are classic Bordeaux. A complete success.
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5/26/2004 - Jeff Leve wrote: 93 Points
The nose, showed off lavish smells of licorice, coffee, spice, ripe red and black fruits. The palate is dense and concentrated with layers upon layers of fruit. Thick and full-bodied with a clean, pure, black fruit filled finish.
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3/31/2004 - Peter Hirdt wrote: 95 Points
On the nose, this has similarities to a premium shiraz. Even based on color, viscosity, and aromas, it's an imposter for Fox Creek reserve or Kay Brothers Block 6. On the palate there are similarities as well—the lush kirsch and blueberry flavors and mouth-coating texture. But this wine takes it to another level. It has intrusive tannins that you can feel on your teeth and every step of the way to a long finish. Enjoyable now, but shouldn't be touched for another 10 years. Potentially a 96-97.
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1/25/2004 - mdefreitas wrote: 95 Points
Dinner @ XXXX: Big, rich, aromatic, plenty of toast oak -- but with the fruit to back it up. A bit new world at first, but it became a lot more elegant with some air. Gorgeous.
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3/20/2002 - Joe Belmaati wrote: 94 Points
Dark red. Nicely spiced on the nose. The bouquet also revealed notes of mint leaves. Strong in the mouth and slightly more hot than the previous two wines. Quite herbal flavour profile. Most certainly a largely scaled wine, and the impressive size did seem to be balanced out by the fruity, juicy ripeness. One taster noted that the underlying taste was of "old Bordeaux" which I would agree with. Maybe lacking a little bit of class and style, but certainly impressive.
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