Tristan

9.5

Great fruit forward red, smooth — 4 months ago

Jeremy.Buss

9.1

Full confession. . . I’ve driven by this winery in past trips to Sonoma and failed to enter because of the name. But when I saw this bottle on winespies I decided to try. And. . . I wish I had stopped at the winery in prior visits. This 2015 drinks smoothly with soft, medium tannins. A nose that brings cherries and over ripe strawberries to the front with a small spice hint. Palate has the slight earth/chalk tones along with the fruit. A bottle that pairs well with simple homemade pizza or could go with something more elegant. Glad I have more bottles for the future. — 3 years ago

Ellen Clifford

9.1

Velvet as can be I picture wrapping up in a purple velvet cloak (okay confession sorta-former goth I could do that right now), hiding in a cedar closet with a glass of creme de cassis, bouquet of lavender and dark music but not to dark. The more air it gets the more interesting things come out. This is the Joy Division of Stellanbosch cabs? Dark and deep yet consumer friendly. Not pop but not quite goth. — 6 years ago

Tom Garland

9.0

1.5 hour decant(decent chunky/cloudy sediment). A delightful deep murky dark garnet color with slight bricking. On the nose: Nice muted nose of forest floor, cigar, strawberry, burnt coffee, floral, start of that sweet aged perfume. Taste: smooth, fresh, medium body wine with big cassis, earthy, minerals, plum, crushed rocks, and spiced tobacco medium plus finish.....still a little austere and thin on the end with some unresolved tannins. Will it come together with more time?

Confession: these notes may not be reliable......bought a case of this off vintage wine.....going to like it whether I did or not — 3 years ago

with Brenda

Mike Mayer

9.5

Upfront confession. This is my absolute most favorite winery in Napa. The Clarke family are super people (not to mention Spencer and Amizetta are from Texas). This wine is a beautiful deep ruby leaning almost to purple in color. Great hints of dark fruit, baking spices, cedar and leather on the nose. On the palate there are fantastic flavors of blueberries, black plums, dark cherries, cocoa and dark chocolate. The tannins are fully ripe and sweet. A very balanced wine with a long fruity finish. On top of making great wines they have an unparalleled view of Lake Hennessey from their outdoors tasting area. The only thing that would make this wine better is if I was sitting there enjoying it with the Clarke’s. — 5 years ago

with Lisa

P A

9.7

Delectable friends: full confession I am not a vodka drinker but last night at the Ice Bar in the Lizard Lodge with friends we enjoyed this Swedish hand crafted vodka that blew us away. Smooth with a peppery mouth feel this vodka could make me a convert. Cheers to the Sweden 🇸🇪🥃 — 6 years ago

Tim Hinck

9.0

Confession: it’s hard for me to take something so fun seriously. Beautiful floral bouquet (dried),seaside breezes, fruit popping off the brambles. The carbonic making it a little too glou glou for me. — 3 years ago

Andrew Lohse

9.1

First off, the confession: I love and embrace Hofgut Falkenstein with little reserve. They produce Rieslings of serious individual character and precision which are also tasty, approachable, absolutely brilliant with a range of dishes, and of tremendous, in some cases absurd value. This 2018 Krettnacher Euchariusberg kabinett—quite pointedly off-dry—was no deviation from the mean: stony and fresh with notes of ripe white peach, green apple, petrol, and rubber, it showed a sharp attack, ethereal mid-palate, and a fresh, sweet-leaning finish. I suspect these prices to catch up to other more widely-vaunted names. — 5 years ago

Peter van den Besselaar

9.2

Vintage 2008 / Confession: I am really bad in recognising #tempranillo. So I ‘punish’ myself regularly to taste and drink it 🤨 Today it makes me really happy. A nice roof tiles colour, a smell with spices, warm cooked summerfruit, but above all: E L E G A N C E. Beautiful mouthfeel, satin, smooth. A wine you can easily underestimate, with finesse. Probably I would not recognise it as #rioja tasted blind, it is such a fine wine. Great effort of this Spanish winegrower. / technical: 85% tempranillo 10% graciano and 5% maturana. 30 months aging in French oak barrels. — 6 years ago

Christina Hansen

9.2

Confession: I am not a huge fan of Australian wines. However, this is a really good wine! It is an inky, full bodied, high alcohol shiraz with strong tannins. The fruit is primarily blackberries and black plums, it's the other aromas I am digging though. It has a lot going on actually but is incredibly balanced! The other strong aromas are tobacco, mushroom, eucalyptus, and olive. Hang on, there is a tertiary aroma of cured meat! Someone get me a rack of lamb, STAT! — 6 years ago