Severn G

9.2

Dried peach, moist golden raisin, faint green herbs, ripe apricot, nectarine peel, lime peel, under-ripe mango, warm slate and saccharin-like powdered sugar on the tailing ended of the nose.

Go Nahe!!!

Paired with Taiwanese Five Spice Pork (Lu Rou Fan | 卤肉饭) over Jasmin rice with lightly fried eggs from our private egg factory in the backyard. Locally raised NY pork (Highland Farm, Old Chatham, NY). — 5 years ago

David Kline

9.6

The Jolly green giant! Ho ho ho. Wow! This heavy chocolate toast head hangs around, stuck like steamed milk. Rich coffee and Belgian chocolate compete for dominance, a lovely harmony to their struggle. Raw chocolate chunks mixed with cacao nibs, and refined dark chips. Pure aromas of chocolate factory meets shop. Sips as rich and delicious as chocolate syrup, mocha coffee, decadent, dark ice cream and caramel, toffee, brittle, chocolate wafer rafting through a subterranean river of Mississippi mud, encompassed by wet espresso grounds, black as basalt. There is an electric streak of hot wire running through the middle to keep it buoyant. Fig purée, dates, black raisins and licorice. Unimagined depth of interplay between the creaminess from barrel and the acidic heart of coffee. Immense. Colossal, Jacked, black as giant squid ink, and twice as thick. If we are going to get stomped, let’s do it together, you Philistines! — 7 years ago

with Courtney

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.7

Superb aromas. Just jump out with with their purity and clarity. Gorgeous green apple. Huge slate. Other minerals. Hint of clean vulcanized rubber. So clean and so pure. Hint of creaminess as well. Also some confectionary aromas as well. So stunningly clean and pure. Can smell this all day. And will. Palate is just brilliant. So clean and crunchy but also sleek, delicate, finesse driven and deep. It’s playful and so nimble but also some hidden force and structure. The balance is absolutely brilliant. So even. The linearity of the flavors is just mind boggling. As nose opens it gets more rubbery and it’s the cleanest rubber I’ve ever smelt. Like being in a rubber hose factory. But the crisp apples are always there and getting more expansive. Amazing mouthfeel. Really it’s got that Keller level of purity, precision and depth. God this is clean. Easily the best dry WS I’ve ever had. It’s not bone dry, but it’s not sweet it’s just Wehlener Sonnenuhr. Chewy and dense but ethereal and nimble all at the same time and the finish comes crashing like waves at the low tide. Man does this bring me back to the Mosel. Huge mineral complexity and such shimmering persistence. This wine shimmers. It’s so beautiful and pure. The balance is extraordinary. So complex. So pure. There are no hard edges here. As it airs the intense and jagged minerality becomes more expressive on the finish. That finish is one for the ages. It’s so tender, so dissipating and so energetic while being so nimble. A brilliant wine. Age will only make it better and boy will it age. After some air the minerals become incredible. A confectionary mineral stank. It’s so complete on the palate but also has so much material and structure. Really impressive.

9.6 to 9.7 overnight. Just so gorgeous today. Nose has more breadth and depth and the palate is more complex and round. The harmony is a knockout. — 5 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.0

Medium intensity petro, lemon, lime and white florals on the nose. Semi-sweet in style. Tropicals, lemon/lime, fruit blossoms, underripe green melon, light petro quality and beautifully soft minerals. d'Arenberg is like a 1920's factory. They push out around 3 million bottles a year. I'm not sure how they do it in such a dated facility that is so extremely tight quartered. They built this new crazy cube building. I'll show it in an upcoming post. It's all dedicated to adding various different visitor experiences. It's sort of an eyesore considering the McLaren Vale landscape. It also must have cost a fortune. I would have spent the money on new winemaking facilities first in an effort to continue to push the wine quality. To date, this was one of the more dated but also unclean winemaking facilities I've seen and I've seen a lot all over the world. Very surprising and even more surprising choice how to prioritize their Estate investments! Photos of their branding tent as you drive in and their old 1920's factory look. — 9 years ago

Severn G

9.2

Nose has amazing Gardenia aromas, sweet honey, freshly milled white pepper and cold wax.

Palate has over-ripe cantaloupe, honey drizzle on green melon, (light) lemon/orange zest and juiced Clementine (faint). Light on the acidity and a bit long on the finish. Decanted 60m. (92-93 points, very nice)

Spectacular pairing to fried eggs (backyard egg factory paying its dues even in the cold of winter) over toasted couscous, softened garlic & red onion, fresh green onion and the star of the dish za'atar (I could eat this on cereal!). — 6 years ago

Severn G

9.2

Nose has cut nectarine, lime pith, ripe white peach with a squeeze of lemon juice and wet slate.

Palate has Clementine zest, fresh green apple peel, cold pineapple, light salinity, lingering lime flesh notes with a long finish. Lovely bottle, as always.

Paired with Taiwanese Five Spice Pork (Lu Rou Fan | 卤肉饭) over Jasmin rice and lightly fried eggs from our private egg factory in the backyard. Decent pair, but really needed a slightly sweeter wine to help lift the dish more. — 6 years ago

Geoffrey Turnbull

9.0

Somm Factory II - Evolution
Session 3 - Germany vs Ontario
Ac: H
Alc: M-
B: M
T: -
S: Off-dry
Gold appearance, floral nose w green fruit, honey and brown apple flavours. — 11 years ago