Bordeaux night: Based on previous notes this wine suffers from bottle variation but fortunately I drew the long end of the stick for this bottle. Savoury leather and deep tobacco notes, some Chinese tea. Very representative of Graves. Terrific length.
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I hope my review helps A lot of people understand this wine better and clears up all the negative and positive review juxtapositions here.
Sight: Beautiful Medium ruby garnet color clearly showing bright orange rim.
Nose: The wine to my surprise was beautifully floral, perfumed dried cherry, strawberry, black current, with secondary notes of Tea leaf, earthy soil, and some graphite.
Palate: On the palate the wine performed similarly to the nose I actually perceived more red fruits in this bottle but yes plum and Black current were present. Great balance and the tannins were at such a great resolve no perceivable bitterness (Somebody mentioned in another review). Just a lovely, pretty wine greeting me with poise and grace not power or austerity.
Overall: Seeing the reviews and drinking these bottles has allows me to see the folly with this vintage; that there is much bottle variation, which is what I suspected from reviews. After a proper decant at L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon and a divine dinner experience at the newly 2 Michelin star rated restaurant I noted how good my final bottle of this was…. For good measure I had the Sommolier as well as the manger have a taste and both agreed this bottle had much life and was not only beautifully aromatic but just a pretty wine showing amazingly well. I hope this maybe gives everyone better piece of mind if you see another bottle you got a 50-50 shot maybe it’s an amazing one like I had for my final bottle and luckily mine was enjoyed over such a good occasion!
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Paul D's Graves Greats (Piccolino, Exchange Square, London): Very classical LTHB. Rich and deep, with some smokiness and subtle tea notes (Russian Caravan perhaps). Also layer upon layer of dark fruits. The palate has more of the same but the tannins are not fully resolved. Lovely as this was tonight with another 5 years I suspect even better. My second favourite wine of the night.
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Glorious Graves at Piccolino (Piccolino, Exchange Square, London): Deep/opaque garnet. Rich, dark fruited nose, smoke, spice, tobacco. Touch of fruit cake. Medium/full bodied, rich dark fruit, tobacco, smoke, vibrant acidity, touch of grip on the finish. Excellent, drinking well.
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After nearly two hours breathing in the bottle, we experience a brownish-red colour with a slightly clear rim visual. Old, leather-bound books with that university library slightly musty smell for which we have bitter-sweet memories, i.e. we love for some of the great authors we met whiling the hours away and detest because, well, we spent a lot of hours studying when we could have been sipping wine ;-). On the palate, the definition of tight, nothing positive/negative to say. Patience. Four hours later and we are starting to experience that for which we hoped. Reasonable amount of light red fruits, soft and subtle tannins, a hint of spice, medium body with a relatively long, lingering flavour of preserved veggies. We will sip for another hour or two with hope for continued happiness on the nose and palate. She is not a Left Bank Bordeaux powerhouse Cabernet Sauvignon at this point in her life, but she is deserving of a sip and we just might wait a little longer to finish the other bottles still waiting in the cellar. Some mature ladies never seem to fall from grace. She is one of them...thanks!
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Decanted for five hours. I can see why this wine has garnered some negative reviews. It's a touch dowdy, with little in aromatics, followed by some surprising and unpleasant bitterness. Then, the wine gets down to business with some sous bois and earth. But--especially given that this is La Tour Haut Brion's final vintage, and that these vines were deemed good enough to become part of La Mission Haut Brion--tasting this juice was a disappointment.
Tannic, rustic, medium bodied and better on the nose than the palate, there is not much fruit left in this wine. I'd opt for drinking this sooner than later.
The wine looks brick colored. The legs are medium. There is moderate sediment in the bottle. It smells like mineral, clove and ethyl acetate, quite astringent (decanted for 4 hours). It tastes like blueberry, raspberry, mineral, medium toast, oak, clove and tobacco. The body is medium/full. The wine has round texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has medium acidity. I do think this still can be enjoyed for another year or so.
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2 bottles drunk over dinner with friends. Dark black, very young colour. Wine approaching early peak maturity. Classic claret nose of lead pencil and some leafy herbal notes in a lovely mouth coating package of dark fruits and just the right amount of tannin to give the wine structure. A little sombre but still a nice showing.
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Nice and open on the nose. Lacks structure and complexity.Watery feeling. Mild Tannins are there for sure and so is the fruit but something is missing. Avg mouthfeel and finish. Drank is L'Aubrevoir in Athens on a nice summer night at 27degrees C with good friends, little decanting.
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3/29/2024 - melvinyeowq wrote: 93 Points
Bordeaux night: Based on previous notes this wine suffers from bottle variation but fortunately I drew the long end of the stick for this bottle. Savoury leather and deep tobacco notes, some Chinese tea. Very representative of Graves. Terrific length.
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6/20/2022 - WyattTheSomm Likes this wine: 92 Points
I hope my review helps A lot of people understand this wine better and clears up all the negative and positive review juxtapositions here.
Sight: Beautiful Medium ruby garnet color clearly showing bright orange rim.
Nose: The wine to my surprise was beautifully floral, perfumed dried cherry, strawberry, black current, with secondary notes of Tea leaf, earthy soil, and some graphite.
Palate: On the palate the wine performed similarly to the nose I actually perceived more red fruits in this bottle but yes plum and Black current were present. Great balance and the tannins were at such a great resolve no perceivable bitterness (Somebody mentioned in another review). Just a lovely, pretty wine greeting me with poise and grace not power or austerity.
Overall: Seeing the reviews and drinking these bottles has allows me to see the folly with this vintage; that there is much bottle variation, which is what I suspected from reviews. After a proper decant at L’Atelier de Joel Robuchon and a divine dinner experience at the newly 2 Michelin star rated restaurant I noted how good my final bottle of this was…. For good measure I had the Sommolier as well as the manger have a taste and both agreed this bottle had much life and was not only beautifully aromatic but just a pretty wine showing amazingly well. I hope this maybe gives everyone better piece of mind if you see another bottle you got a 50-50 shot maybe it’s an amazing one like I had for my final bottle and luckily mine was enjoyed over such a good occasion!
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5/13/2022 - Vinumming & Ahhing Likes this wine: 93 Points
Paul D's Graves Greats (Piccolino, Exchange Square, London): Very classical LTHB. Rich and deep, with some smokiness and subtle tea notes (Russian Caravan perhaps). Also layer upon layer of dark fruits. The palate has more of the same but the tannins are not fully resolved. Lovely as this was tonight with another 5 years I suspect even better. My second favourite wine of the night.
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5/13/2022 - Paul D wrote: 91 Points
Glorious Graves at Piccolino (Piccolino, Exchange Square, London): Deep/opaque garnet. Rich, dark fruited nose, smoke, spice, tobacco. Touch of fruit cake. Medium/full bodied, rich dark fruit, tobacco, smoke, vibrant acidity, touch of grip on the finish. Excellent, drinking well.
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8/13/2015 - BuzzzzOff Likes this wine: 90 Points
After nearly two hours breathing in the bottle, we experience a brownish-red colour with a slightly clear rim visual. Old, leather-bound books with that university library slightly musty smell for which we have bitter-sweet memories, i.e. we love for some of the great authors we met whiling the hours away and detest because, well, we spent a lot of hours studying when we could have been sipping wine ;-). On the palate, the definition of tight, nothing positive/negative to say. Patience. Four hours later and we are starting to experience that for which we hoped. Reasonable amount of light red fruits, soft and subtle tannins, a hint of spice, medium body with a relatively long, lingering flavour of preserved veggies. We will sip for another hour or two with hope for continued happiness on the nose and palate. She is not a Left Bank Bordeaux powerhouse Cabernet Sauvignon at this point in her life, but she is deserving of a sip and we just might wait a little longer to finish the other bottles still waiting in the cellar. Some mature ladies never seem to fall from grace. She is one of them...thanks!
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1/1/2015 - chefdilletante wrote:
Decanted for five hours. I can see why this wine has garnered some negative reviews. It's a touch dowdy, with little in aromatics, followed by some surprising and unpleasant bitterness. Then, the wine gets down to business with some sous bois and earth. But--especially given that this is La Tour Haut Brion's final vintage, and that these vines were deemed good enough to become part of La Mission Haut Brion--tasting this juice was a disappointment.
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8/4/2014 - Jeff Leve wrote: 85 Points
Tannic, rustic, medium bodied and better on the nose than the palate, there is not much fruit left in this wine. I'd opt for drinking this sooner than later.
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7/26/2014 - LESTERTHEINVESTOR Likes this wine: 89 Points
The wine looks brick colored. The legs are medium. There is moderate sediment in the bottle. It smells like mineral, clove and ethyl acetate, quite astringent (decanted for 4 hours). It tastes like blueberry, raspberry, mineral, medium toast, oak, clove and tobacco. The body is medium/full. The wine has round texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has medium acidity. I do think this still can be enjoyed for another year or so.
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12/24/2012 - Tony Dub wrote: 89 Points
Great cassis nose, but wine was rather thin. Quite tannic, tannins possibly overpowering the fruit. Past its best.
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5/29/2010 - joshbryer wrote:
Possible TCA.....will slow ox and see.... Don't think this was corked, just fruitless and dowdy.
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10/23/2009 - DAN BAILEY wrote:
2 bottles drunk over dinner with friends. Dark black, very young colour. Wine approaching early peak maturity. Classic claret nose of lead pencil and some leafy herbal notes in a lovely mouth coating package of dark fruits and just the right amount of tannin to give the wine structure. A little sombre but still a nice showing.
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8/6/2009 - Papies wrote: 87 Points
Nice and open on the nose. Lacks structure and complexity.Watery feeling. Mild Tannins are there for sure and so is the fruit but something is missing. Avg mouthfeel and finish.
Drank is L'Aubrevoir in Athens on a nice summer night at 27degrees C with good friends, little decanting.
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1/10/2009 - SteveStrauss wrote: 85 Points
Wine takes minimum of 1 hour to open - 1-1/2 hours would be better.
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