Noah Ross

9.0

Sight: Fully opaque, legs, deep purplish red. Nose: Black fruit forward, plum. Mouth: Full bodied, high tannins, very earthy. — 9 days ago

Alessandro Dalle Carbonare

9.3

92-93 what a sexy nose. A bit austere on the palate but it’ll surely improve. Nice and long aftertaste. — 13 days ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.3

1990 vintage. Excellent fill and halfway saturated cork. Used a Durand but surmise a regular waiter's friend, wielded carefully, could have done the trick with the cork. Decanted and tasted after 30 mins, one hour and two hours. Some obvious sed but not troublesome or overtly noticeable. Original owner-château direct on original release. Super cold cellar because this was lagging noticeably behind other '90's and LB's. Bigger tannic structure (for a generally feminine-styled house) than anything save a Latour, Mouton, Ducru Left Bank property. Even more guts than Lynch-Bages or Pichon-Baron '90's currently stored above 55 or so degrees. Surprising but made sense. Light-medium body. Appropriate color. 3-4 years left in this stage unless larger format in play. Slight, fleeting burst of richness in the frontal palate and a tad brickish and then it just flowed on, without speed bumps. A little cocoa powder and cedar/tobacco. Suspect 750ml specimens not stored as cold/religiously will be showing more in the 9.0-9.1 range and farther down the backside of the bell curve. 10.26.24. — 6 months ago

Ally Wolf

9.2

Cork fell in at some point, but can it drink any better than this still? I don’t think — 20 days ago

Andy Stabile

9.6

Damn good bottle of wine..

Edit… came back as I couldn’t stop thinking about this bottle all night.

California wines were my ‘gateway drug’. I moved away from these wines as I learned about and tried the many many varietals around the world. Ultimately, I fell in love with the quality and, frankly, accessibility of Italian wines. Over the last 5 or 10 years i’ve tried many Italians, travelled to and gotten to know the regions reasonably well. Italy vino is my thing.

But French wine… it eludes me. I know there are great wines — maybe the best. But the country is so large, the regions and varieties so diverse, the price, sometimes too discouraging, that I simply haven’t learned enough about the wines to know my way around the offerings or how to find the wines I love.

But… I know they are there. I’ve had my share. And just how “every now and then a squirrel finds a nut”, so to do I, from time to time find my way to a great French bottle to remind me I’ve leveled up.

This bottle, for me, was one of those reminders. I actually opened it by accident. While bummed it had no age, I was so happy to drink it. I’ll probably buy a few more to cellar… and, yeah, will probably now spend a little more time and money brushing up on my French…

— a month ago

Hiroshi Tominaga

9.0

Balanced wine. Bought at Enoteca for ¥7,800. — 6 months ago

"Odedi"

9.2

What a delicious 16 year old Bordeaux from Saint Julien.

Dark ruby in color with a wide brick rim.

Full-bodied with medium acidity.

Dry on the palate with nice complexity.

Showing black fruits with cedar, licorice, coffee, light earth, herbs, spices, tobacco leaf and dark chocolates.

Elegant and easy drinking once it opens up. Needs 3 hours.

This second wine is drinking very nicely now, although not from a great vintage.

Good by itself as a sipping wine. Would also pair nicely with game meats or lamb dishes.

13% alcohol by volume.

92 points

$80. — 8 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

Welcome to Pebble Beach Food & Wine 2025.

2012 in Bordeaux is a great memory as Sofia & I had a great 5 year anniversary trip to Italy where we were married, ending in Bordeaux. Picking Mouton Merlot for a day, lunch with the Baroness, having steak and sipping 82 Mouton. Pinch me is what I said to Sofia.

Saint Julien is the elegant region on the Left Bank. While 2012 was an ok to good vintage it will always be packed with great memories.

Branaire-Ducru in grand vintages is still a great value. Always elegant with this kind of bottle age and more.

Hour decant starting notes.

Tonight smooth, ripe, round, juicy; brambly blackberries/black raspberries, dark cherries, cherries, black plum, some strawberries, raspberries with blueberry tones. Dry tobacco with ash, leather, spice box with some heat, lightly grilled meats, volcanics, moist clay, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, light vanillin, mid berry cola, dark chocolate bar, forest floor with leaves, sandalwood, steeped black tea, bay leaf, dry thyme, mocha powder, dry caramel, crush, dry rock/limestone, dry river stone, bright red flowers mixed with dark withering flowers, nice round acidity and a balanced, smartly tensioned, elegant finish that lasts 90 seconds & lands on herbs & earth. — 15 days ago

TwiLea Fletcher

9.0

02.15.25
Yum. Friends for life. — 2 months ago

with Sandy

Stefan Dolhain

8.9

2019 vintage. Simple, good value. — 7 months ago