A Day At The Vineyards

Louis Roederer

Cristal Brut Champagne Chardonnay Pinot Noir Blend 2009

Perfect splurge for quick getaway to paradise for Presidents Day. The wine is medium gold in the glass… vibrant and alive with balanced acidity. Open and generous on the palate… smooth, silken, with vibrant citrus and cream notes. A lively and lovely dinner companion at this stage of development. Happy President’s Day, y’all. — a month ago

"Odedi", Billy and 13 others liked this
"Odedi"

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Caymus Vineyards

Special Selection Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1980

Nice clear bro fruit at the front. Plum and black cherry with a hint of pepper and an inky poise. Very good. — 13 days ago

Paul WoollsAra Aslanian
with Paul and Ara
Tom, Shay and 6 others liked this

Château Léoville Barton

Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 2016

David T
9.4

Leoville Barton is one of my favorite St. Julien producers and still one of the best values upon release of Left Bank Bordeaux’s. If my memory is correct, I think this was WS’s wine of the year a few years ago.

I haven’t had this since the release at UGC. It was so fresh then. It has definitely put on weight and showing some nice evolution. But, Anthony made his wines for the ages. This will rise 2-3 points with 20 years bottle age.

It is round and lush. Blackberries, black plum, black raspberries, purple fruits, blueberries, some creamy raspberries & dark cherries. Anise, light graphite, tobacco ash, leather, dark, rich earth with dry leaves, dry river stone, limestone marl, dark spice, dry herbaceous notes, hints of black olive, black licorice, dry stems, mix of dry & candied dark flowers, very nice round acidity and a well; balanced, structured, tensioned and polished finish that last minutes.

Would open this in 2032 and beyond.
— 10 days ago

Shay, Sage and 16 others liked this

Château Latour

Premier Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 2001

Jeremy Shanker
9.3

A baby still. Bottle recorked at chateau in 2014. Lighter bodied than expected. Cassis & Graphite. — 13 days ago

Bob, Juan and 9 others liked this

La Rioja Alta

Gran Reserva 904 Rioja Tempranillo Graciano 1998

Dark plum with a hint of sweet butterscotch at the edges. Lovely purity — 18 days ago

Paul Woolls
with Paul
Juan, Iwan and 7 others liked this

Opus One

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2005

What a treat to enjoy a perfectly aged Opus One with friends over dinner. The wine was gorgeous, great color, classic nose with black fruit and spice, lovely weight and texture with a long satisfying finish. I wish more people had a chance to taste this wine when it is at this age, outstanding! — 15 hours ago

Ira and Bob liked this

Olga Raffault

Les Picasses Chinon Cabernet Franc 2014

Worth a check in at 10 years. Always an outstanding nose. Needed hours of air and still pretty shy, fruit in particular is closed. Paired with NY strip tonight. Have half a case left of this vintage and will check in again in a couple years. — 23 days ago

David, romo and 3 others liked this

Joseph Phelps Vineyards

Insignia Estate Grown Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 1985

A slightly medicinal note at the front. Good savory fruit. Mint and bloody iron plum. Lucid and distinctive. — 13 days ago

Paul WoollsAra Aslanian
with Paul and Ara
Shay, Jan and 6 others liked this

Château Pontet-Canet

Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 2015

We visited there in the early summer of 2015 and now we got to try the fruits of their labor in the vineyard we witnessed at that time. A bio-dynamic vineyard with horse and plow 😁. Their wines are fantastic. This wine was richer in fruit and more expressive than perhaps characteristic for the Pauillac region. But the layers of earth infused flavors and the most subtle hint of ‘barnyard’ made it a sensation. Topped off with a grippy finish keeping the flavors lingering in your throat. www.spokenwines.com. — 4 days ago

Tammy de Weerd
with Tammy
Peter, Ted and 11 others liked this

Château Ducru-Beaucaillou

Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 1986

Still shows some lovely primary redfruits, cassis, currants, quite tannic as well (characteristic of the 1986s I cellared), long, lingering finish, should show even better after my wife’s grilled lamb and my grilled steak come off the grill. I will say I was nervous when the final 1/8-inch of the cork severed off my old Ah-So cork puller, but not a problem!

Interesting sidebar — I purchased this upon arrival in 1989 at K&L in SF — by that time there were widespread reports of bad corks in Ducru from (at least) 1985 and 1986, so when I visited the shop I explained the situation and committed to purchasing 6 bottles, but only if I knew this batch didn’t have the cork problems — so, I said I’d pay for another bottle and we could open it together in the shop, I’d pay and also buy the other 6 bottles if it was NOT corked, and said if it was corked, then they’d pay for the opened bottle and I wouldn’t take the 6 other bottles — they agreed, we mutually tried the bottle then and there, no cork taint so I paid for 7 bottles total.

Telling the story in part because K&L has always been, IMHO, one of the classiest wine shops in the U.S., and they deserve credit agreeing to my deal (BTW, Wine Advocate had written about the cork taint issue within the preceding 3-6 months, so they were aware of the potential for it) — anyway, they’ve gotten a lot more of my business in the past 35+ years since!!
— 9 days ago

Jim Powers
with Jim
Severn, Bob and 12 others liked this
David T

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K&L is the gold standard Wine Merchant example for the rest of the country!
Doug Powers

Doug Powers

@David T, I cannot disagree!!
Jay Kline

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@Doug Powers great story. Thanks for sharing!