Lovely fragrant aromas of cigar box and beige. Blackcurrants are intense on the palate, making way for dark chocolate and supported by smooth vanilla oak. Long finish.
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Showed terrific refinement and caliber, but took about four hours in the decanter to turn the corner and show a core of brightness and sweet fruit to compliment the toasty and more full aspects of the wine. For those looking to find a sweet spot for this wine I would say now with a ton of air or feel free to forget it for another 5-7 years if you're the patient type.
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Visual: Extremely deep inky purple, so deep there is no transparency at all. It is like staring into a dark purple abyss
Nose: Strong tar, oak, vanilla and very, very dark fruits
Palate: This come straight at you. it is big, it is unrepentant, it is an oak and dark fruited monster. No signs of showing any age or secondary flavors at all. Loads of creamy vanilla, wood, dark fruits. It is likes milkshake.
Definitely not in my wheelhouse. I detested this wine. For others,it might be mind blowing. For me it was in a bad way. I am happy to have sold my American cabs from 1997 onward. Not rated, because of my personal biases.
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omfg how much money am i going to waste on this sort of overoaked mediocre indistiguishable highly rated crap before i learn my lesson? there is nothing distinct or interesting about this wine, it's cab and it's way oaked. the finish is not killing, the flavor profile is dull. f*ck you gary vaynerchuck and f*ck you robert parker.
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Very odd note on the nose - dusty or musty stems? A green streak in the palate, but not in the good sense. Fruit here, but not much to like. 86-87 pts?
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The past 16 months of bottle age has helped this Big Howell Mountain effort continue to come together nicely. Still possess lots of red/black mountain fruit and hints of minerals/flowers, but the tannins have begun to soften and add a more lush mid-palette. Still has a lot of tannin structure left for good aging potential A ton of depth and complexity with. Long, long finish.
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I was very excited to try this wine...unfortunately it was less than impressive. Muted nose, an overdose of acid, and poor balance of fruit and oak. Ouch, my brain hurts just rekindling the memories of drinking it.
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Tor produces a very good wine. This particular bottle was well balanced. It had the proper amount of tannc structure and the fruits were neither big and bold nor tight and mysterious.
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Wow!. No decanting just a few swishes in the glass and Voila! Ruby Red, very well-balanced, and delicious yet subtle blueberry and raspberry fruits with a touch of casis. Just a wonderful bottle. Called my dealer and ordered more. My first TOR experience so kudos to the winemaker on this one.
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Might be some bottle variation, but this did not strike us as a heavily tannic wine and was quite enjoyable now. Lots of fruit, good balance, and some resiny characteristics. It will undoubtedly continue to evolve with more age, but we had no regrets about drinking it "young".
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Wine Spectator Grand Tasting (Marriott Hotel, San Francisco, CA): Big Howell Mountain effort. Huge fruit character with blackberry, blueberry, plum, currant with a hint of flowers and minerals. Deep and complex. Layered flavors are wrapped around big tannins that provide a 45+ second finish. Tannins still big but huge fruit helps balance the wine. Great value for $75 release price.
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Christmas tree dried pine nad sap nose. Not super complex somehow. Dry roses and dust with tight tannins that could still blow off. I'd try it agian in 2008, but for the most part I think you could get a lot of nicer wines for the price.
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10/18/2020 - Latch0 Likes this wine: 68 Points
With Vahe and Adele
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10/17/2020 - trastevere Likes this wine: 91 Points
Lovely fragrant aromas of cigar box and beige. Blackcurrants are intense on the palate, making way for dark chocolate and supported by smooth vanilla oak. Long finish.
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2/2/2014 - SevenDayMile wrote: 94 Points
Showed terrific refinement and caliber, but took about four hours in the decanter to turn the corner and show a core of brightness and sweet fruit to compliment the toasty and more full aspects of the wine. For those looking to find a sweet spot for this wine I would say now with a ton of air or feel free to forget it for another 5-7 years if you're the patient type.
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11/27/2013 - coyler Does not like this wine:
Visual: Extremely deep inky purple, so deep there is no transparency at all. It is like staring into a dark purple abyss
Nose: Strong tar, oak, vanilla and very, very dark fruits
Palate: This come straight at you. it is big, it is unrepentant, it is an oak and dark fruited monster. No signs of showing any age or secondary flavors at all. Loads of creamy vanilla, wood, dark fruits. It is likes milkshake.
Definitely not in my wheelhouse. I detested this wine. For others,it might be mind blowing. For me it was in a bad way. I am happy to have sold my American cabs from 1997 onward. Not rated, because of my personal biases.
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3/18/2010 - trastevere Likes this wine: 92 Points
Lovely aromas of blackberry and cedar. Deep berry fruits on the palate along with coffee and cedar notes and a mouthfilling finish.
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5/27/2008 - mike l. wrote: 87 Points
omfg how much money am i going to waste on this sort of overoaked mediocre indistiguishable highly rated crap before i learn my lesson? there is nothing distinct or interesting about this wine, it's cab and it's way oaked. the finish is not killing, the flavor profile is dull. f*ck you gary vaynerchuck and f*ck you robert parker.
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4/12/2008 - winefool wrote: 87 Points
Very odd note on the nose - dusty or musty stems? A green streak in the palate, but not in the good sense. Fruit here, but not much to like. 86-87 pts?
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2/9/2008 - GolferChris wrote: 94 Points
The past 16 months of bottle age has helped this Big Howell Mountain effort continue to come together nicely. Still possess lots of red/black mountain fruit and hints of minerals/flowers, but the tannins have begun to soften and add a more lush mid-palette. Still has a lot of tannin structure left for good aging potential A ton of depth and complexity with. Long, long finish.
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1/16/2008 - napaJ6 wrote: 87 Points
I was very excited to try this wine...unfortunately it was less than impressive. Muted nose, an overdose of acid, and poor balance of fruit and oak. Ouch, my brain hurts just rekindling the memories of drinking it.
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11/10/2007 - PapaBoomBoom wrote: 89 Points
Tor produces a very good wine. This particular bottle was well balanced. It had the proper amount of tannc structure and the fruits were neither big and bold nor tight and mysterious.
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4/25/2007 - PapaBoomBoom wrote: 92 Points
Wow!. No decanting just a few swishes in the glass and Voila! Ruby Red, very well-balanced, and delicious yet subtle blueberry and raspberry fruits with a touch of casis. Just a wonderful bottle. Called my dealer and ordered more. My first TOR experience so kudos to the winemaker on this one.
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1/21/2007 - winekitchen wrote:
Might be some bottle variation, but this did not strike us as a heavily tannic wine and was quite enjoyable now. Lots of fruit, good balance, and some resiny characteristics. It will undoubtedly continue to evolve with more age, but we had no regrets about drinking it "young".
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11/3/2006 - win wrote: 91 Points
This wine was way too young....but showed amazing potential with the requisite tannins and complexity to eventually be fabulous.
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10/19/2006 - GolferChris wrote: 95 Points
Wine Spectator Grand Tasting (Marriott Hotel, San Francisco, CA): Big Howell Mountain effort. Huge fruit character with blackberry, blueberry, plum, currant with a hint of flowers and minerals. Deep and complex. Layered flavors are wrapped around big tannins that provide a 45+ second finish. Tannins still big but huge fruit helps balance the wine. Great value for $75 release price.
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5/6/2006 - trucrime wrote: 91 Points
Christmas tree dried pine nad sap nose. Not super complex somehow. Dry roses and dust with tight tannins that could still blow off. I'd try it agian in 2008, but for the most part I think you could get a lot of nicer wines for the price.
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