Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.2

What a nose. Soy, hoisin, stunning deep cherries, tar, leather, game, feral elements. Chestnuts and dust. So clean. What clarity. Mineral. Soupy cherries. Palate is so Fassy! Fresh as a daisy and so pure. Terrific energy and lovely clearly defined soppy cherry fruit. Long and such goof acid. This is so mature but can last 5-6 more years. Really balanced and engaging. The freshness is off the charts. Just an amazing wine at its apogee.

Update. : cork did crumble and was not as translucent as 2000. Thinking it was off. And after an hour it’s. 9.2 now. Was a 9.5 before it went down to just very good. Don’t age this longer. — 3 days ago

Jay Kline

9.2

Opened about 30min before serving; consumed over a three hour period. A wine that seems to be mostly about aromatics at this point. Initially, the nose was bing cherry, alpine herbs, tar, wet river rocks…but that shifted after about an hour when fresh raspberries and chocolate covered citrus candies entered the mix. And then, after about 90 minutes of air, then…came the roses accompanied by watermelon Jolly Rancher™️. Really quite captivating!

On the palate, things were a bit more subdued: tart dark cherries, blackberries, tar and minerals were the most obvious…but I have found many 2010 Barolo’s remain pretty reticent, locked behind a giant wall of tannins and really, this is no exception. Lovely acidity. This finish is quite long and, notably, quite saline. While this is enjoyable now, I believe the best is yet to come. Drink now, with some patience, through 2035+? — 16 days ago

Richard Smith

9.2

Decanted before tasting... great nose and tasting — 12 days ago

Sharon B

9.3

Paired nicely with after dinner chocolates — 8 days ago

with Eric

Daniel M

8.9

At first it was a bit harsh around the edges, very acid driven and with very young, lively tannins. After a while it settled down and is much more approachable and enjoyable.
Blackberry, licorice on the nose. The palate is made of very strong and dynamic acid drive, a nice big bold blackberry juice is complementing the acid drive with a bit of width but a rather thin matter on the sides. In mid palate come some tannins that create a drying effect before a very long fruity finish with that dryed layer on top. Not bad! — 2 days ago

Jeremy.Buss

9.2

Have to give a big thanks to @Ron R for this selection. Cant recall having a 20+ year old wine and this was memorable. Candied cherry when we popped the cork. After an hour decanting, there was dusty raspberry. Another hour and musty dark berries mixed with earth tones, slight spice and still a remnenant of the cherry flavor. Medium tannins and finish on this. Haven’t had this before so not sure how this performs with another 5-10 years in bottle. Color is still dark purple with very little rust on the fringes. Would definitely have again! — 14 days ago

Keith Crump

8.9

Relaxed after a while — 6 days ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.7

This is crazy. One of the most expressive noses I’ve ever smelled on any wine ever. An assault like no other. Lime, white flowers, and I mean serious white flowers. Some slate. Apple, discreet wood. So refined. This is so smelly I love it. So airy, mineral and expansive. Sick, sick, sick. Wow. Wow. So juicy, super concentrated but ultra refined and super juicy. It’s got a level of refinement I’ve never encountered on Pinot Blanc before. No hard edges at all. Very very discreet oak. Man he is a genius with wood. The elegance and completeness is top notch. The sap is wonderful and even the sap on the mid and finish is elegant. This is refined like only a *** from Molitor can be. Just sick. Some swimming pool aromas after air. It is maddeningly clean. So sleek, so juicy, lime zest and pith flavors and a slathering of slate on the super precise and amazingly delineated finish. And man is it long. There is nothing like wine in Germany. Genius. 9.7 for now. Ok after some air the nose is crazy. Super crazy. Pungent, complex and beautiful. — 4 days ago

Meg Herring

9.1

Needs a few hours of air before it opens up. At first it is like a prune rolled in dust. But after a bit it opens up a lot and expresses a range of black fruit - plums and berries - and the dust turns into integrated minerality. — 22 days ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Before we get into the notes on this wine, let’s get something out of the way first: the labeling on the Ultreia branded wines by Raul Pérez is downright confusing. The entry-level is designated “Saint Jacques” (which is a fabulous wine and incredible QPR)…and then comes this plain label “Ultreia” before you step up to the other designations of “Valtuille”, “La Claudina”, etc which are higher-end??. It’s really tough to understand the hierarchy. The good news? It really doesn’t matter when all the wines are really quite stunning. And this bottle is absolutely representative of Señior Pérez's impeccable style.

Popped and poured; consumed over three days. Best on Day 2. On the nose, blue berries, dark cherries, brambles, exotic spices…giving way to spiced lamb after a lot of air, roses, incense, and underbrush. On the palate, red fruit which transitions to more of a darker fruit profile after Day 2, with some mushrooms, deli meat and minerals. Really sound structure. Medium-plus acid, medium plus tannin. The finish is long and satisfying; tongue smacking. Even at $35, this is a killer deal. What a wine. — 21 days ago