Jayna Fontenot

9.5

Cork smelled sort of ripe and bright. Legs, 10/10. Aged 60 days in a bourbon barrel. Syrupy sweet smell on the nose, maple and pecan. Taste is smooth with a delightful oaky and pecan-y finish. Not very much tannin and not very bold, but I think I like this one so much because of how much pecan I get. I'll definitely buy this one again. — 14 days ago

Paul T- Huntington Beach

9.7

If it didn’t have such a weird name I probably wouldn’t have bought it, hefty decant needed but 😳👍🏼
Wine Advocate 95,
Reviewed by Jeb when he was with Parker,


Showing beautifully from barrel and not disappointing from bottle, the 2012 Hommage a Francois Durif No. 1 (I reviewed this last year as the Petite Sirah) is a blend of 100% Petite Sirah that's certainly one of the finest examples of this variety coming out of California. Inky colored and a big, voluptuous and decadent beauty, it offers terrific notes of blackcurrants, plum, toasted spice, leather, graphite and espresso. Full-bodied, concentrated, rich and yet always balanced and light on its feet, it has sensational purity of fruit, a big, rich mid-palate and tons of sweet tannin that coat the palate and lengthen the finish. I wouldn't open another bottle for 2-3 years, but it will have 15-20 years of longevity. — 3 days ago

Jim McCusker

9.2

Reached back a bit in the cellar for this one. From the third vintage released by the folks at Epoch, this is a GMS blend that’s almost equal parts of all three varietals. Definitely on the downslope - some of the vibrancy of the grenache has faded - but it’s still excellent. Stopped getting Epoch wines a while back because of what went down there early on between the original winemaker (Dave Jelinek) and the owners - didn’t think that was too cool - but there is no denying the quality of the wines they produce. — 3 days ago

with Vanessa

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

8.9

This is K&L Wine Merchants private label wine. Named after family, Kay & Linda.

It is always a mystery who’s juice they bottled or who they bought fruit to and made the wine. Regardless, it always over delivers at $21.99.

Might have waited a couple years too long to get its best. Need to let it settle on palate before sharing more thoughts. Starting a little lean on the palate but, what a floral nose. We’ll see what a longer decant and palate coating brings.

As I mentioned, the nose is singing with ruby, candied florals that are; dark, red, purple & blue. The fruits are a little stewed; blackberries, black raspberries, plum, dark cherries, poached strawberries and blueberries that hover. Mid, soft, dark spice, light baking spices of; clove, nutmeg, cinnamon & vanillin, mid berry cola, black & red licorice, caramel, dark chocolate, mocha, steeped fruit tea, dark, rich, moist soil with dry leaves, older tobacco, soft leather, saddle-wood, dry crushed rocks, limestone minerals, dry, river stones, shades of dry herbs, ambers, touch of savory meats & black pepper, & tomatoes with leaf.

The nose is more captivating than the body. It’s complex but at the same time flatter. The palate shows; ripe, stewed & candied fruits of; blackberries, black raspberries, plum, dark cherries, poached strawberries, pomegranate and blueberries on the backend. Mid, soft, dark spice with just the right amount of heat, cherry kirsch, light baking spices of; clove, nutmeg, cinnamon & vanillin, mid berry cola, black & red licorice, caramel, dark chocolate, mocha, steeped fruit tea, dark, rich, moist soil with dry leaves, older tobacco, soft leather, saddle-wood, dry crushed rocks, limestone minerals, dry, river stones, moist to dry clay, shades of dry herbs, ambers, touch of savory meats & black pepper, & tomatoes with leaf. The acidity is a cool Colorado stream. The finish is; well knitted, balanced fruit & earth elegant, lush, despite its complexity, a little hallow yet persisting minutes, falling onto dry soils & spice.

As I stated, still enjoyable but, at its peak two years ago from my secondary storage. However, the longer I sip it, it pushes 9.0 on the long set. Time to start drinking a number of wines I’ve stepped over for bigger experiences & more notable producers.

Photos of, the K&L store in SF, tasting bar & two different photos of K&L Bordeaux Dinners we’ve attended with Owner Clyde Beffa Jr. — 2 days ago

Shay A

9.5

WNH Montelena Estate virtual tasting. Others represented were the ‘94 (evidently corked), ‘01, ‘03, ‘07, ‘15.

I may be an outlier here, but Montelena is one of the few wineries where I not only don’t care for them young, I just honestly don’t enjoy them at all (and that’s coming from someone who enjoys the likes of Myriad, Bevan, Rivers Marie, etc on the young side). For my preference, they are just so vastly better with 15+yrs of age to them. YMMV.

After standing this upright for about two weeks, I gave this about a 45min decant. Starting off fairly thin and having some funk to blow off, it really bulked up after an hour and a half. Dark ruby/tawny in the glass. Reminiscent of left bank Bordeaux (leather, herbs de Provence, only a hint of tobacco), but a sweet cherry liqueur and dried cranberry on the nose bring this back to possibly New World. On the palate it sports underripe and dried black cherries, red clay, cedar, bay leaf, and earthy tertiary notes. Gripping, tannic finish with balanced acidity. In harmony here. I’d say this likely has another 3-5yrs in this beautiful drinking window before evolving more. — 15 days ago

Jamie Price

9.2

Delicious. Medium bodied, luscious fruity notes. — 13 days ago

Frank Kuo

9.2

Color of gold. Nose of ripe fruits like banana and papaya, roasted nuts, mix of flowering note spice and alcohol, and a touch of salty mineral. Very Chardonnay like. Taste is interesting, with good mix of sweetness and acidity. On top of that, jasmine flowering note. Almost like jasmine tea. Sweet citrus and melon on the 2nd sip. Quite soft and clean. Some minerals show up later on. Light on the aftertaste yet done well in quality. — 6 days ago

Steven

9.1

Smells of true Napa. Nice fruit forward, smooth going down, nice (light) amount of tannins for us. Silky. Special dinner night with the fam before my big man goes back to school. — 3 days ago

Sean Smith

8.9

Much lighter in style for Montelena — 4 days ago

Severn Goodwin

9.3

Nose has smokey over-ripe plum, prune, mashed black cherry, strawberry jam, dark chocolate, Finnish licorice, (minor) black pepper, dried meats and wet steel.

Palate has ripe plum, dried cherry, light molasses, wet earth, wet clove, blackberry, black raisin, (minor) moist cedar, strawberry fruit leather with a medium viscosity; Long finish improving with extended airing.

Cork pulled for slow oxidation at 6H, then 2H in the decanter. Considerable sediment in the bottle, as expected. Doing quite well, still some years ahead, but we've had other Turley Zinfandel at about this age with a stronger showing. Perhaps the 'Juvenile' is not intended for a 13-14Y slumber. — 4 days ago