Bob McDonald

9.6

The final wine at the First Growth Bordeaux Lunch at the Downs Club last Saturday…. and what a great way to finish a wonderful lineup. I recall Apricot and Pear on a palate of profound intensity which delivers on the powerful nose. An obviously sweet palate with enough racy acid to keep things interesting and fresh. Will last until the late 2030s at least. Terrific! — 23 days ago

"Odedi"

9.2

It's time for my #FridayCabernetfix.

Dark ruby in color with a wide reddish, cloudy rim.

Red fruits on the nose with light oak, tobacco leaf, herbs, earth and light chocolates notes.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity.

Dry on the palate with black currants, black plums, cooked cherries, herbs, light vegetables, earth, dark chocolates and peppercorn.

Nice finish with round tannins and tangy raspberries.

This 10 year old Cabernet Sauvignon from Saint Estephe is starting to drink beautifully now, but still feels young.

Needs a couple of hours to open up properly, and will continue to age nicely in the next 10 to 15 years. Showing good potential to become a 94+ point wine in 10 years.

Rich, but not extracted. Soft and elegant. Fruity and complex. Nicely balanced and interesting.

Good by itself as a sipping wine, and will pair nicely with food too.

A blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 16% Merlot and 2% Petit Verdot. Aged in all New French oak barrels for 20 months.

13.5% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$180. — 2 days ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.6

From magnum. Slightly deeper ruby , thin ruby rim . Quite a lot more dense and darker fruits , cassis , violet , red plum , blackberry, warm earth . On the palate this is denser and more tannic , more body , dark cassis , summer fruits , violets , hedgerow fruits . Hugely elegant and long , balanced and refined . Mineral and earthy but bright and vivacious . Again shows pretty similar to last year , more dense, intense and bigger boned than La Mission , but still supremely refined and balanced . Come back in 10 -15 years , and will surely show well for another 15-20 — a day ago

Tom Garland

9.4

+2 hour decant(decent chunky/fine sediment). An amazing dark garnet color. On the nose: You must breathe in this captivating nose of dark red fruit, herbaceous, smoke, sweet florals, worn leather, licorice. Taste: layered, balanced, silky wine with brambly raspberry/cherry, peppery tobacco, gravel, smoked leather, tar, and a long drying finish. YUM! No need to hurry plenty of time to go. — 14 days ago

with Brenda

Conrad Green

9.4

Really expressive and dynamic. great light and bright fruit. Lemon, honey and electric acidity — 21 days ago

with Rick

"Odedi"

9.2

Getting ready to leave France, so let's go out with a bang! It is time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday.

Dark ruby in color with a reddish rim.

Fruity nose of black currants, black plums, black cherries, tobacco, cedar, light vegetables, licorice, chocolates, coffee and light peppercorn.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with black currants, cherries, plums, light oak, spices, chocolates, licorice, light vegetables, black pepper, tobacco leaf, earth and black tea.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and tangy raspberries.

This 8 year old Merlot based blend is still very young. In most vintages, it is a Cabernet Sauvignon based blend, but in the 2017 vintage it was a little different.

Spicy and entertaining. Well balanced and complex, but a little tight and restraint right now. Much earthier than I expected it to be.

Needs 5 years in the bottle to mature properly, and will continue to age nicely in the next 20 years.

A good food wine right now, that will pair nicely with a big piece of steak.

A blend of 56% Merlot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 4% Cabernet Franc. Aged in (70% New) French oak barrels for 18 months.

14% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$450. — 3 days ago

Vanessa

9.5

Château Latour is an iconic estate in the Pauillac commune on the left bank of Bordeaux, achieving coveted ‘First Growth’ status in the 1855 Bordeaux Classification.

The estate has roots dating back to the 14th century and derives its name ‘La Tour’ from a fortress tower built during the Hundred Years’ War, which no longer exists but is prominently featured on the label in recognition of its history.

We weren’t sure what to expect, as many have predicted these 1983s are likely past their prime, but this wine was a masterpiece. 🤩

It was medium garnet in color with expressive notes of cedar box, cigar, clove, peat, leather, forest floor, fig, prune, dried black cherry, plum, cassis, blackberry compote, cardamom, cinnamon, star anise, dried violet, potpourri, kalamata olive, pencil shavings, graphite, & bacon fat.

It had the most velvety, fine-grained tannins that washed across the palate with ease, with a gentle but notable acidity that maintained lift and balance. It was concentrated, complex, and had a long, elegant finish. — 20 days ago

with Deked1

Jay Kline

9.3

Presented to me double-blind at Tasting Group. The wine pours a deep garnet color with a near opaque core and rust colored rim; medium+ viscosity with moderate staining of the tears and some signs of light sediment. On the nose, the wine is vinous with notes of ripe and drying fruits: lightly stewed blackberries, black cherry, plums, tobacco, dried green herbs, old fine wood, vanilla and warm spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long.

Initial conclusions: this could be Tempranillo, Malbec, Merlot (or based blend), or Zinfandel-based blend from Spain, Argentina, France or the United States. However, the staining was a bit much unless there was a lot of PS in the blend so I eliminated Zinfandel. I also didn’t think this was purple enough for Malbec. This left me with Tempranillo or Merlot and I felt that this leaned more towards its structure than fruit so I was leaning Spain or France with 15-20 years of age and from a solar vintage. Ultimately, I chose Tempranillo, from Spain, Rioja, Gran Reserva from 2006…from a quality producer like C.V.N.E. Yeah, I can see Pomerol. Shoot. This is stuff and ready to drink now and will drink well through 2032+. — 10 days ago

"Odedi"

9.3

Dark ruby in color with a reddish rim.

Beautiful nose of blackberries, black currants, plums, tobacco, cedar, leather, vanilla, licorice, chocolates, herbs, earth, Mediterranean spices and peppercorn.

Full-bodied and elegant with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with black plums, cooked cherries, currants, light cedar, earth, herbs, chocolates, peppercorn, tobacco leaf and black tea.

This Second Growth Margaux is delicious. Nicely balanced and elegant. Fruit forward and complex. Rich, but not extracted.

This 7 year old Cabernet Sauvignon based blend is starting to drink beautifully right now, and will continue to age nicely in the next 10 to 20 years. Would be nice to revisit it in 5 years. Has good potential to become a 94+ point wine.

Good by itself as a sipping wine or with food. Loved the complexity on the nose.

A blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot.

14.5% alcohol by volume.

93 points.

$110. — 14 days ago

Jakub Kalinowski

9.1

Classic nose with black currant and cassis, some damson plum and notes of cedar wood & mint. Fresh, pure and very seductive & enticing.
Medium bodied in the palate, very elegant and with great balance. The tannins are velvety fine but still give a nice frame to the dark fruit. Juicy & fresh and with good length.
This is in a very nice place right now and is drinking beautifully.
Such a classic Margaux. — 12 days ago