Broke out one of my cellared Raffaults for my homeboy who graced me with a home cooked Tuscan styled flank steak w rosemary & arugula, as well as Israeli cous cous w chickpeas, charred tomatoes, feta, & herbs. Light Cadmium red hued & strong color though ( good cork- not a guarantee w Raffault!); dense Hibiscus, fresh raspberry & some bramble on nose; on palate very clean & smooth mouthfeel, with the initial flavors repeated but a deeper blend of red fruits & a stronger presence of under brush. Super fresh & integrated. Elegant, & the Burgundy echo was hard to ignore. Not Uber complex but not monolithic either, which this line of Raffault can be in its youth ( or as it ages). Very impressive, & accessible now. Curious how my ‘02 & 07s will fare… — a month ago
Annual birthday WWC hosting. As normal, 1 sparkler, 3 whites, 4 reds, 1 dessert, all presented blind.
Fun to open birth year wines around your birthday, especially when you can do a Bordeaux and Napa side by side. While not a great vintage, this held up well after a few hours and presented as expected. Clean and zero Brett. Great color! Deep ruby with hardly any bricking. Leather, cassis, vanilla pipe tobacco on the nose. Sporting a good bit of dusty red and black fruits (mostly tart raspberries and blackberries), there was a little savory truffle note mixed with an herbal and mocha finish. Still quite grippy. Pretty. — a month ago
Yeah, what can I say. Nice wine for sure, but for some reason when I see the Silver Oak label my expectations rise. Realizing this is the Alexander Valley version. But 2011! Thirteen years old. Still rather single note, strong oak tannins still overshadowed what maybe underneath it. A bit disappointed I am afraid. We pulled it out with my first ever Tomahawk ribeye… so yeah. — 3 months ago
Super light and refreshing. Perfect summer or seafood partner. Mikey liked too. — 23 days ago
Checking in on my birth year 1978. Still doing well - a bit smoky but not over the hill. Maybe it can last to 50…? — a month ago
Here’s the thing: this is good wine. It’s dense, chewy, and structured. There’s a nice balance of red and black fruit, graphite, cedar, mushroom, soil, and just a touch of Brett funk. It’s fairly tannic, so probably best with food, but can still be enjoyed on its own. I would never be mad if I was offered this. I was lucky to take home an open bottle from a job tonight, but I think the price tag on this is ridiculous. — 3 months ago
Seth Masterson
100% Xarrel-lo from Penedés
Green apple candy nose, other than that pretty neutral aromatically
Surprising mouth feel and structure. Structured how I think of a young Chablis- it feels like a square in my mouth but the edges are filed smooth. My mouth is surprised by the tame acids that greet the tongue compared to the green apple nose. It's almost a Spanish cider like wine in the way that there is very subtle amounts of residual sugar and effervescence remaining in the bottle. (And the obvious apple characteristics)
This wine also has a great example of phenolic bitterness if you are looking for that. This is fun because it's nothing like any other white I've been drinking. Pic-poul.may be the closest comparison that I can think of — 21 days ago