Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.4

Highly drinkable for being so young,
Suckling 97 review as follows

Currant, red-tea, chili, chocolate and lemon-zest aromas. Chalk and crushed gravel, too. It’s medium-bodied with tight, fine-grained tannins and fresh acidity. Sleek and tight with crunchy berry, mineral and zesty notes on the finish. Complex. Pretty center palate to this. Extremely polished. Try from 2025. - James Suckling
Vinous 95

The 2018 Tour Saint Christophe represents a new level of elegance, precision and finesse for this estate in Saint-Émilion's Saint-Christophe-des-Bardes district. Silky and exceptionally polished, the 2018 oozes class. Moreover, the heavy extraction and strong torrefaction notes that marked previous vintages of the recent past have been replaced by beautifully precise, vibrant fruit. Tour Saint Christophe is one of best values in Saint-Émilion. I haven't always loved Tour Saint Christoph, but I love the 2018. It's a fabulous effort from Technical Director Jérôme Aguirre and his team. Don't miss it. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media — 2 months ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.6

Stand it up for a week Major sediment Winery notes, composition
100% Cabernet Sauvignon
aging
21 months in 75% new French oak
cooperage
Treuil, Sylvain, Remond, Orion, Alain Fouquet


500 Chevaux is an automobile racing term; French for “500 horsepower.” Nellcôte founder and vintner Tyler Olbres is an avid car-racing fan, and has himself driven in the Monaco Rallye for Classic Cars. This wine is a high-horsepower Cabernet, meant to be sleek, powerful, and fully able to go the distance.
LAST BOTTLE Notes,

Nellcote was an uber-pricey luxury Cab that recently closed its doors, and, after extensive tasting through all the brilliant, incredibly fine-tuned Cabernets early last year, that none other than Phillip Titus (yep, THAT Phillip Titus, the legend behind CHAPPELLET and others!) made,


— 2 months ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.5

Another 2nd day wine with 3 hour decant. Doesn’t have that typical fruit forward nose like the Sinegal. Distinctive & on par with old school Heitz. Hopefully new ownership keeps this style.
Store notes,

Lot C-91 is a new wine from Heitz, inspired by a very old one! In the fall of 1969, Joe Heitz played with creating a high-end blend of small lots from some of Heitz's top single-vineyard sites. He dubbed it "Lot C-91." Some 47 years later the current team at Heitz has once again taken select barrels of fruit from legendary sites such at Martha's (Oakville), Trailside (Rutherford) and Linda Falls (Howell Mountain), to create this Napa Valley "Super Cuvée." This wine beautifully showcases the incredible 2016 vintage in Napa, which I think will go down as one of the all-time greats. — 2 months ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.8

Caterwaul taste off, Cemetery wins. Not as fruit forward as Regusci. Great complex nose, not a typical overripe fruit bomb.
Jeb 💯 review as follows

Pure perfection in Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon Cemetery Vineyard comes from a tiny, 3.5-acre vineyard located between Las Piedras and Capella. It reminds me of a great vintage of Haut-Brion with its smoked earth, tobacco leaf, iron, black olive, and darker, earthy fruits. Full-bodied on the palate, it's a wine that builds slowly with time in the glass and has a layered, multi-dimensional texture, incredible tannins, a great mid-palate, and a finish that won't quit. — 2 months ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.7

Great with Gourmet Specialty food 🍱 👍🏼 — 2 months ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.6

A tad better after sitting a bit, I don’t remember this being this good in November. Definitely worth the $40-$50 — 2 months ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.3

Needed a 2nd day to come around, I couldn’t finish a single glass yesterday.
Very good for $30.00, wouldn’t pay retail. Thanks for the hookup @Rob Brobst III

Vinous
V97
The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon turned out beautifully. Rich, sumptuous and incredibly alluring, the 2018 will drink well right out of the gate. Dark red fruit, mocha, spice and licorice are some of the notes that build in the glass. I would give it a few years in bottle, or alternatively open it in advance. Aeration and the passage of time did wonders for the 2018. It spent 20 months in barrel, 85% new.
Antonio Galloni, January 2021
Wine Spectator
WS92
This red offers a mix of sassafras, loam and anise notes, subtly inlaid into a core of steeped plum and warmed cassis flavors. A tug of bramble and singed apple wood keeps the finish grounded. Drink now through 2030. 6,000 cases made.
James Molesworth, June 30, 2021
Jeb Dunnuck
JD91+
The larger production appellation 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley checks in as 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 6% Cabernet Franc, and the rest Malbec and Petit Verdot, all aged 20 months in 85% new French oak. Classy notes of ripe darker fruits, bouquet garni, violets, chocolate, and earth all give way to a medium to full-bodied, nicely balanced, lengthy 2018 with good mid-palate depth and present yet ripe tannins. It shows the more tight, reserved style of the vintage yet has lots of potential. Give bottles 3-4 years and enjoy over the following decade or more. — 2 months ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.6

Nice with some Chicken Parmigiana, — 2 months ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.5

Wax top Magnum, who knew🤷🏼‍♂️. Even the entry level priced Torbrecks age fantastically. — 2 months ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.5

Inexpensive enough to pop one straight off the truck after its week long journey from the east coast. Right there with the 16, less botrytis than the 14 & 15 which is what I was hoping for.

VM94
Rated 94 by Vinous Media
The 2017 Viré-Clessé, which will be bottled at the beginning of 2022, has a killer nose with an almost Germanic feel, intense nectarine, melon and damp earthy scents with just a hint of petrol. The palate is beautifully balanced with a line of acidity keeping everything taut and linear. The 2017 is a little waxy in texture with orange rind, stem ginger and white pepper furnishing the very persistent finish. This is superb - a Viré-Clessé with genuine substance and longevity.
Winery
100% Chardonnay. Bongran is Thévenet's original home estate (Domaine de Roally, also in Viré-Clessé, was added later). Cuvée Tradition is its single bottling of dry white wine (in certain vintages, a sweet botrytized wine is made). The old vines are organically farmed and harvested manually and notably late at a very high ripeness level. The grapes are pressed very slowly and gently. After settling, the juice is fermented in tank with indigenous yeasts, very slowly, taking up to two years to finish; there are often a few grams of residual sugar remaining in the wine. The wine is aged in tank only, then in bottle for several years before release. It has an extraordinary richness of flavor and texture along with firm acidity and minerality. — 2 months ago