It is interesting to read through the notes on this wine. Ten years after the last note, this wine was a surprise and a delight. All the comments from 10-15 years ago how this was over the hill? Maybe so but happily not this bottle. No idea where this was obtained but in great shape. We have other Bordeaux from this vintage and in 2023, this is as good or better than a number of more highly regarded estates. This wine appears younger, fruity, yet classic Bordeaux structure. Well done and even nice on day 2. Hope to stumble on another bottle of this in the basement.
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So super disappointed in this wine. It lacked any character at all. A hint of leather due to its age but overall just a total bland experience. Wine deserves to be better than this.
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While previous bottles of this vintage appeared to have died down already and you would think the wine is way over it's prime, this recent bottle changed my opinion. Looks like the wine was just in a close down phase and now has opened up again. It was much better. Nothing special really, and it should be drunk soon.
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Excellent bottle of Medoc. The color has deepened, but still bright pinot at the rim. Smoother than in the past. No hasrhness, but still some tannin after 15-20 minutes of air. Subtle and complex on the palate, changing in the glass over the ninety minutes I enjoyed it. Only problem is this is my last bottle. Was about $8 bought as future, so cork was perfect, with only the very bottom stained red. 2000 is a special year, and the wines are aging very well.
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Similar thoughts to most. Almost nothing worth commenting on. Biggest issue I had was the weak but odd nose that I couldn't place - barnyard?. Didn't seem corked though. Little fruit and mild overall in taste.
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one of the worst I had in a while. for reasons see other tasting notes, enough said there. maybe this used to be good a couple of years ago (I actually like the 2003 vintage a lot!), but I just don't feel this one. I still have two bottles left. maybe I will use them for cooking.
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bought a case of 375s for a 'quick weekeday glass' w/o any expectation. Light, pinot-color; 1st btl tight and unable to be expressive. Today, casis and lilac jumped quite surprisingly from the glass 2 hours after I decanted (because I know this needed all the help it could get). Not astringent like the 1st btl. This was medium-light intensity but unmistakable wild cherry, casis, and clay made this a terrific surprise to accompany grilled sirloin and asparagus. Okay; it's not classified, but this quick mid-week glass had me wringing the decanter for the last drop.
I think reviews have been unduly harsh on this wine. It is a nice, smooth, quite enjoyable 10 year old bordeaux. On initial opening, interesting nose that mixes apple banana and light oak. Great acidic backbone, and still some real tannins mixing around in there, too. There is far from no fruit - this is heavy in the sweet blue fruit, and th emerlot comes through in its smooth, silky texture.
reallly quite enjoyable, and not even over the hill yet.
Flat. Waited a year or 2 too long to uncork it. Hasn't completely turned. Not unpleasant. But very little structure left, no tannins. Still makes a decent red wine to casually sip.
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Nose: poop. thats it. Taste: this wine has zero tannins left. its flat and watery and really has only astringency left on the palate. you can drink it, but you dont want to. way way way past its prime.
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This is over the hill. Not bad though, and is enjoyable mature wine. Soft structure, less fruit and more earth, barnyard. A 1 hour decant helped remove a nose of stale oak which was the tell tale sign of it's age. Doing so greatly improved enjoyment. Funny that this is a new addition at the local store, as it's done in my book. Glad I tried it but a little too far gone to be back for more.
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Still drinking well! I was very surprised to find the last bottle of this I had was still good. I had forgotten I had it and was sure it was well past its prime, but no. It has softened a bit but still has a nice tannic structure to complement the fruit.
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Decanted for about an hour - still a little harsh. Tannins still present. Still enjoyable to me although my wife didnt like it. The next day it had definitely mellowed. Much easier to drink. Finished the bottle and wife agreed it settled into an easily drinkable wine.
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enjoyable little bottle...initial nose was grape candy welch's, and I was worried...but palate was pure bordeaux with subtle fruit, a little farm and dirt, and simple oak. medium body, medium finish. Ripe acid well balanced by sufficient tanins. On the QPR scale, I say it,s 1:1 - just about what' you would expect from a $13 Bordeaux.
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Frederick's uptown cru bourgeouis clear, violet garnet, slight fuschia rim but mostly one color, medium V clean, neither youthful/developing (meaning drink NOW), grapey-violet nose, rosemary, slight hillside scrub, "perfume of violets" sweet vanilla from oak palate; body is full (not watery), slight grainy tannins, acid/tannin both medium, finish is long, balanced, persistant taste: violet, cloves, black/red fruit, soft spice $48
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After 2 hours of decanting this wine became a pleasant and drinkable wine. For the price ($15), it is well worth it. The taste was subtle, with hints of smokiness, earthiness, and a little fruit. I would buy more as a good everyday wine.
"Lovely aromas of crushed berries, chocolate and smoke follow through to a medium-bodied palate, with fine tannins and a clean finish. 89 WS
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Juicy core of berries and citrus, a bit of earth, discrete oak flavors, high acidity. Smooth and easy to drink, but quite interesting, and great with food.
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This wine is fading away. The nose is still bordeaux, but the flavor is gone. There is a bit of lime rind. On the second day, straight from the fridge, the nose is still nice, just a hint of berry and that is all. Drink it now or pour it down the drain.
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Clear Garnet color with medium intensity. Aroma: light layers of cedar, graphite, and red fruit. May be cherry but hard to tell. Taste of smooth round fruit front to mid-palate. Fruit undefined and the tannins have a slightly bitter taste which smooths out on the finish. Structure has some delicate tannins but they are not very firm. Finish is short to medium short. Not very complex and the fruit is not well-defined.
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Nice wine for the money. Drank at Settabello's in Morristown (BYOB) with pasta with broccoli rhab,sausage and chicken. Initially thought the wiine would be fantastic but never really flowered. At first it had some nice fruit and maybe some toffee/chocalate. After 25 minutes it was honestly a bit disappointing and it bothered me that I could not get the taste/aroma that had opened up in the wine. It was not until dessert that I got it.... Lime Rind. For dessert we had lime mousse with a graham cracker crust. The wine was absolutely fantastic with it. To confirm my impression I saved half a glass and finished it half an hour later at home and again picked up the lime rind. It is wine like this that makes wine so amazing and why we search out and try different wines. Think about how sad a world it would be if every wine tasted like Ch. Lafite.
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I decanted for about an hour and it was still very blah but it opened up alot more after a couple of hours. Maybe I liked it more toward the end because I drank the most of the bottle by myself. Not much body for 45% cab. It was cheap and worth trying but probably wouldn't buy it again.
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Lovely nose of berries and some tar, but not as much follow-through on the taste. The wine had lots of cherry notes, but not much tannin or complexity. Wine Spectator said drink 2006-2008, but my sense is this wine is 1-2 years past its prime, and was better earlier, when it was (evidently) more tannic. While it was improved by our French pate, I did not detect notes of chocolate and smoke, as described by Wine Spectator. Just ok.
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10/20/2023 - MagVino Likes this wine:
It is interesting to read through the notes on this wine. Ten years after the last note, this wine was a surprise and a delight. All the comments from 10-15 years ago how this was over the hill? Maybe so but happily not this bottle. No idea where this was obtained but in great shape. We have other Bordeaux from this vintage and in 2023, this is as good or better than a number of more highly regarded estates. This wine appears younger, fruity, yet classic Bordeaux structure. Well done and even nice on day 2. Hope to stumble on another bottle of this in the basement.
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11/16/2012 - Kraigers1 wrote: 73 Points
So super disappointed in this wine. It lacked any character at all. A hint of leather due to its age but overall just a total bland experience. Wine deserves to be better than this.
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6/10/2012 - billwine5 wrote: 82 Points
Earthy and full-bodied. Excellent color and nose. A little past prime drinking window, good with lamb sausages.
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1/22/2012 - vinedresser75 wrote: 85 Points
Decent wine, very one dimensional, the thing that strikes me with this one is how lacking the wine is given the rich color.
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6/18/2011 - Brainprusnek wrote: 89 Points
Drank with BBQ tri-tip. Well worth the weight in opening. Not many more years left in this one.
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3/19/2011 - cryptochrome wrote: 88 Points
While previous bottles of this vintage appeared to have died down already and you would think the wine is way over it's prime, this recent bottle changed my opinion. Looks like the wine was just in a close down phase and now has opened up again. It was much better. Nothing special really, and it should be drunk soon.
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1/8/2011 - ArtF wrote: 91 Points
Excellent bottle of Medoc. The color has deepened, but still bright pinot at the rim. Smoother than in the past. No hasrhness, but still some tannin after 15-20 minutes of air. Subtle and complex on the palate, changing in the glass over the ninety minutes I enjoyed it. Only problem is this is my last bottle. Was about $8 bought as future, so cork was perfect, with only the very bottom stained red. 2000 is a special year, and the wines are aging very well.
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7/18/2010 - yeti575rider wrote: 80 Points
Similar thoughts to most. Almost nothing worth commenting on. Biggest issue I had was the weak but odd nose that I couldn't place - barnyard?. Didn't seem corked though. Little fruit and mild overall in taste.
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4/14/2010 - cryptochrome Does not like this wine:
one of the worst I had in a while. for reasons see other tasting notes, enough said there. maybe this used to be good a couple of years ago (I actually like the 2003 vintage a lot!), but I just don't feel this one. I still have two bottles left. maybe I will use them for cooking.
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3/29/2010 - punter wrote: 88 Points
bought a case of 375s for a 'quick weekeday glass' w/o any expectation. Light, pinot-color; 1st btl tight and unable to be expressive. Today, casis and lilac jumped quite surprisingly from the glass 2 hours after I decanted (because I know this needed all the help it could get). Not astringent like the 1st btl. This was medium-light intensity but unmistakable wild cherry, casis, and clay made this a terrific surprise to accompany grilled sirloin and asparagus. Okay; it's not classified, but this quick mid-week glass had me wringing the decanter for the last drop.
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3/18/2010 - djhamade wrote: 88 Points
Better than expected given ratings...
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2/10/2010 - CaliCab wrote: 87 Points
I think reviews have been unduly harsh on this wine. It is a nice, smooth, quite enjoyable 10 year old bordeaux. On initial opening, interesting nose that mixes apple banana and light oak. Great acidic backbone, and still some real tannins mixing around in there, too. There is far from no fruit - this is heavy in the sweet blue fruit, and th emerlot comes through in its smooth, silky texture.
reallly quite enjoyable, and not even over the hill yet.
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2/10/2010 - havoc315 wrote: 75 Points
Flat. Waited a year or 2 too long to uncork it. Hasn't completely turned. Not unpleasant. But very little structure left, no tannins. Still makes a decent red wine to casually sip.
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1/24/2010 - oog wrote: 70 Points
Nose: poop. thats it. Taste: this wine has zero tannins left. its flat and watery and really has only astringency left on the palate. you can drink it, but you dont want to. way way way past its prime.
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7/27/2009 - Tuffdawg wrote: 80 Points
Past it's prime. Thin, watery No tannins to speak of. Nope.
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7/23/2009 - lumpyelbow wrote: 87 Points
This is over the hill. Not bad though, and is enjoyable mature wine. Soft structure, less fruit and more earth, barnyard. A 1 hour decant helped remove a nose of stale oak which was the tell tale sign of it's age. Doing so greatly improved enjoyment. Funny that this is a new addition at the local store, as it's done in my book. Glad I tried it but a little too far gone to be back for more.
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6/12/2009 - tutticalvi wrote: 84 Points
Harsh at first. Mellowed over pizza out. Simple wine not a lot of flavors. Some good tannin. Well balanced. Ordinary.
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6/2/2009 - Gwalchgwynn wrote: 88 Points
Still drinking well! I was very surprised to find the last bottle of this I had was still good. I had forgotten I had it and was sure it was well past its prime, but no. It has softened a bit but still has a nice tannic structure to complement the fruit.
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5/18/2009 - dbkitc wrote: 88 Points
(at Petite Louis – Baltimore) Knock out wine for the price. A bit rustic, but pure authentic, mature Bordeaux for a song. (88)
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4/14/2009 - ArtF Likes this wine: 91 Points
When I tried this last year, it was much better the second day. If disappointed, cork it and put in fridge, not down the drain.
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1/15/2009 - pablopicasso wrote: 89 Points
Better than expected. Ripe fruit on the nose. Very bitter at first, but still appealing. Strong licorice flavors, with a nice finish.
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9/14/2008 - wino_tim wrote: 82 Points
Earthy with plenty of barnyard-like aromas and not a lot fruit. Soft, medium bodied with not a lot of structure, either.
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6/28/2008 - slywka7 wrote: 88 Points
Fruit mostly gone. Earth, leather, smoke and a hint of berry.
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6/21/2008 - jbuzek wrote: 86 Points
Decanted for about an hour - still a little harsh. Tannins still present. Still enjoyable to me although my wife didnt like it. The next day it had definitely mellowed. Much easier to drink. Finished the bottle and wife agreed it settled into an easily drinkable wine.
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4/14/2008 - TashNYC wrote: 88 Points
very nice drinking with our loire rind cheese. We are HAPPY taxes are DONE!
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2/9/2008 - TashNYC wrote: 88 Points
Some good berry, leather and earth flavors. Best with epiosse cheese and with goose pate.
This was better than when I had it in 2005.
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10/22/2007 - greenwalter wrote: 89 Points
Very enjoyable. Cedar, tobacco, dark fruit with medium body, great mouthfeel and balance.
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9/23/2007 - CaliCab wrote: 86 Points
enjoyable little bottle...initial nose was grape candy welch's, and I was worried...but palate was pure bordeaux with subtle fruit, a little farm and dirt, and simple oak. medium body, medium finish. Ripe acid well balanced by sufficient tanins. On the QPR scale, I say it,s 1:1 - just about what' you would expect from a $13 Bordeaux.
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5/31/2007 - awinestory wrote: 91 Points
Frederick's uptown cru bourgeouis clear, violet garnet, slight fuschia rim but mostly one color, medium V clean, neither youthful/developing (meaning drink NOW), grapey-violet nose, rosemary, slight hillside scrub, "perfume of violets" sweet vanilla from oak palate; body is full (not watery), slight grainy tannins, acid/tannin both medium, finish is long, balanced, persistant taste: violet, cloves, black/red fruit, soft spice $48
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3/20/2007 - lolo66 wrote: 87 Points
After 2 hours of decanting this wine became a pleasant and drinkable wine. For the price ($15), it is well worth it. The taste was subtle, with hints of smokiness, earthiness, and a little fruit. I would buy more as a good everyday wine.
"Lovely aromas of crushed berries, chocolate and smoke follow through to a medium-bodied palate, with fine tannins and a clean finish. 89 WS
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3/18/2007 - chmd wrote: 89 Points
Juicy core of berries and citrus, a bit of earth, discrete oak flavors, high acidity. Smooth and easy to drink, but quite interesting, and great with food.
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3/9/2007 - sjt wrote:
still a dud
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2/26/2007 - NavyGrog wrote: 75 Points
Drank using new Spiegelau Sommelier decanter. Wine had a meaty nose and somewhat light body.
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12/26/2006 - DanaSr wrote: 85 Points
Good flavor, a little sharp till decanted for a while. A little watery for my taste
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11/26/2006 - sjt wrote: 70 Points
This wine is fading away. The nose is still bordeaux, but the flavor is gone. There is a bit of lime rind. On the second day, straight from the fridge, the nose is still nice, just a hint of berry and that is all. Drink it now or pour it down the drain.
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10/7/2006 - ashegedyn wrote: 86 Points
Clear Garnet color with medium intensity. Aroma: light layers of cedar, graphite, and red fruit. May be cherry but hard to tell. Taste of smooth round fruit front to mid-palate. Fruit undefined and the tannins have a slightly bitter taste which smooths out on the finish. Structure has some delicate tannins but they are not very firm. Finish is short to medium short. Not very complex and the fruit is not well-defined.
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7/6/2006 - espia wrote:
Good value Bordeaux, but like other areas much better at this price point
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6/23/2006 - vinedresser75 wrote: 88 Points
Nice wine for the money. Drank at Settabello's in Morristown (BYOB) with pasta with broccoli rhab,sausage and chicken. Initially thought the wiine would be fantastic but never really flowered. At first it had some nice fruit and maybe some toffee/chocalate. After 25 minutes it was honestly a bit disappointing and it bothered me that I could not get the taste/aroma that had opened up in the wine. It was not until dessert that I got it.... Lime Rind. For dessert we had lime mousse with a graham cracker crust. The wine was absolutely fantastic with it. To confirm my impression I saved half a glass and finished it half an hour later at home and again picked up the lime rind. It is wine like this that makes wine so amazing and why we search out and try different wines. Think about how sad a world it would be if every wine tasted like Ch. Lafite.
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2/4/2006 - dcny wrote: 86 Points
I decanted for about an hour and it was still very blah but it opened up alot more after a couple of hours. Maybe I liked it more toward the end because I drank the most of the bottle by myself. Not much body for 45% cab. It was cheap and worth trying but probably wouldn't buy it again.
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11/25/2005 - TashNYC wrote: 85 Points
Just mediocre and somewhat past its prime.
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11/25/2005 - TashNYC wrote: 85 Points
Lovely nose of berries and some tar, but not as much follow-through on the taste. The wine had lots of cherry notes, but not much tannin or complexity. Wine Spectator said drink 2006-2008, but my sense is this wine is 1-2 years past its prime, and was better earlier, when it was (evidently) more tannic. While it was improved by our French pate, I did not detect notes of chocolate and smoke, as described by Wine Spectator. Just ok.
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