Eric Urbani

9.3

A ladder of Cabs from five decades, 1979-2019. This was the group’s #3 and my #2. — 3 months ago

Diana Cristina Patiño

9.0

Tonight we are enjoying some wine from the island of Sicily. A 2012 Puritani Etna Rosso from Azienda Valenti Vini 🍷 The #nerellomascalese grapes from this bottle were planted in 2004. As a literature lover I must share th story behind the bottle's name: 'The father-son team of Giovanni and Alessandro Valenti have embarked upon
the journey to produce the very best
wines from their homeland of Mount Etna
in Sicily. Being avid lovers of literature and
music, the names of their wines reflect
this passion. Enrico IV, Henry IV (Enrico
IV) is an Italian play by Luigi Pirandello;
Puritani – I puritani (The Puritans) is an
opera in three acts by Vincenzo Bellini;
Norma is an opera in two acts by
Vincenzo Bellini. Poesia is Poetry in Italian.' Cheers to Italy! 🇮🇹 — 4 years ago

Annie Brako

9.1

Perfect chilled for a warm summer afternoon — 6 years ago

Peter Sultan

9.0

Had conjointly with a Poesia Malbec, so Interesting to contrast Malbecs made in different hemispheres- this had the juicier mid palate compared to the Mendoza expression-at 12% absolutely charming. Crushed red fruits, bay leaf. — 3 years ago

"Odedi"

9.2

Dirty and dark brick in color with a brick/ reddish rim.

Pronounced nose of blueberries, black cherries, black currants, oak, vegetables, cloves, spices, earth, wet rocks, leather and black pepper.

Full bodied and smooth with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with blackberries, black currants, plums, bell pepper, oak, spice box, chocolates, tobacco, herbs, vinaigrette, cinnamon, earth, wet leaves, beef jerky and peppercorn.

Medium plus on the finish with fine grained tannins and tangy raspberries.

This Malbec Blend from Argentina is still drinking nicely as a 14 year old, but better drink it sooner than later.

Showing nice complexity with a nice mouthfeel. Soft and elegant. Feels like an old world wine at this point.

Wine Advocate 93 points.

Good after 30 minutes of airtime. A good wine to have all by itself and discuss with friends.

A blend of 60% Malbec and 40% Cabernet Sauvignon. These old vine grapes were grown at 2,700 feet of elevation, and aged in 100% New French oak barrels.

92 points.

15% alcohol by volume.

$75. — 4 years ago

Rikki Lally

9.5

Delicious ❤️ — 6 years ago

with John and Shane

Peter Sultan

8.9

Essentially a Bordeaux expression of Malbec. Cassis, dry blackberries. The mid palate is dry- not a bad thing, just wonder if this needs to be a Malbec. — 3 years ago

Kurt Schuster

8.9

Rich and concentrated fruits are available in abundance here. intense flavors of blackberries and plums are present throughout along with clover spices. Fairly acidic, but I think it needs it to keep the structure tight.  — 4 years ago

Fernando Figueroa Sánchez

9.0

Color a zumo de anona y maracuyá, muy suave al paladar pero bien compensado porque no es muy dulce. Aroma de frutas discreto. Deja un sabor a uva con manzanas extremadamente agradable. Ideal para un capellini con piñones y espinacas.😋 — 5 years ago

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

3000th post. 🎉 On the nose; sweet, lush; black cassis, liqueur notes, sweet tarry notes, rich, lush; blackberries, dark cherries, black plum, plum, caramel, mocha, caramel, baking spices, warm, moist, rich, dark soils and fresh dark florals. The body is M and the tannins are round and soft. She is a beauty. Ripe, rich; blackberries, black plum, plum, dark cherries, black raspberries & poached strawberries. liqueur notes, sweet tarry notes, dark chocolate, mocha, caramel, baking spices, menthol, warm, moist dark earth, soft leather, dry rock powder, sweet black tea, fresh violets, dark, red florals, perfect round acidity and a rich, round, elegant fruit driven finish that last and lasts. Photos of; Clos E'Lgise and estate vines, signage, Helen Garcin-Leveque and her husband Patrice Leveque and their barrel cellar. Producer history and notes...Clos L’Eglise is one of the older chateaux in Pomerol dating back to the 18th century. The same time the farmhouse that is still in use was constructed. At the time, Chateau Clos L’Eglise was a larger estate. It once had been apart of the Gombaude Guillot. Eventually the estate was split in half. On one side of the street, you had Chateau Clos l’Eglise; which was owned by the Rouchut family. Across the street sat Chateau Clos l’Eglise-Clinet, which was owned by the Mauleon family. After awhile, Clos l’Eglise Clinet eventually changed its name to Chateau l’Eglise Clinet which also simultaneously gave birth to what we know today as Clos L’Eglise. While the wines are now produced by Helene Garcin that was not always the case with Clos L’Eglise. At one point, the estate produced wines under a leasing arrangement held by the Rouchut family. The modern era of Clos L’Eglise began in 1975, when the property facilities were all redesigned and modernized by the Moreau family. The Moreau’s also owned Chateau Plince. The old, non temperature controlled wood tanks were replaced by stainless steel. The vineyards were also expanded. Instead of buying more vines, the owners simply planted land that was being used as a pasture. Imagine now, Pomerol land being used to feed cattle. In the past, the property was planted with a much larger percentage of Cabernet Sauvignon, near 20%. All the Cabernet Sauvignon vines were eventually ripped out and replaced by Merlot. The next step of it's evolution took place in 1997 when the Right Bank estate was sold to Sylvaine Garcin Cathiard by the Moreau family. If the Cathiard name sounds family, she is the sister of Daniel Cathiard, the owner of Chateau Smith Haut Lafitte. The sale set a new benchmark price for Pomerol when it sold for 12 million Euros! Today that price would be laughable! Prior to 2000, that was considered a huge price for Pomerol. Further investment was needed to replace the aging concrete vats and again modernize the facilities. In fact, the first vintage of Clos L’Eglise made by Helene Garcin was produced at Haut Bergey in Pessac Leognan. Helene Garcin also manages two estates in St. Emilion, Chateau Barde Haut, Chateau Poesia (Mendoza, Argentina) and Branon, which is situated in Pessac Leognan. Helene Garcin was put in charge of the property. She hired Michel Rolland as a consultant and a complete renovation of the facilities took place. Michel Rolland was eventually replaced by Alain Raynaud. Starting with the 2015 vintage, Thomas Duclos recently replaced Alain as the consultant. Their property is nearly 6 hectares. L’Eglise soils are rich clay, gravel and iron. It's located on a sloping hill near Chateau Clinet, Chateau L’Eglise Clinet and Chateau Trotanoy. Clos L’Eglise is planted to 80% Merlot and 20% Cabernet Franc. On average, the vines are 35 years of age. There is one old parcel of Cabernet Franc that was planted in the 1940’s. Vinification of Clos L’Eglise takes place in 55 hectoliter, insulated, stainless steel tanks. The new steel tanks replaced the oak vats in 2012. Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrel. Clos L’Eglise is aged in 100% new French oak for between 16 and 18 months. The property also has a second wine, Esprit de L’Eglise. On average, about 1,200 cases of Clos L’Eglise are produced every year. — 7 years ago