Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

Wide open and immediately compelling. Gorgeous nose of sauvage and macerated cherries with that full chord progression of early, mid and late season fruit, plus a touch of black cherry, huge spice, sous-bois, wet moss and earthy minerality. Milk chocolate develops with air and makes the nose even more enveloping. The palate is juicy, fresh and complete, with premium mid-palate opulence, terrific concentration, restrained sweetness and dynamite inner-mouth aromas. Classic Champans. — 5 days ago

Alvaro Bustillos

9.7

Asamblea jorge baeza — 3 months ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

No formal notes. Needed an hour. — 6 months ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

Gorgeous nose of stoniness, sour cherry, herbs, limestone and some mid season ripe cherry. Really potent fruit aromas just jump out of the glass. Terrific stony and grippy Pommard structure. Really dominated by structure out of the gates. But it’s all there. Some deep cherry licorice after some air. On the nose and palate. Unreal fruit and concentration but anchored by freshness and energy. What length. Wow. This is insane. — a year ago

Matthew Cohen

9.5

This got the bones but needs 3 years.

Nose: elegant cherry. Cherry flower. Still has pencil shavings. There’s some density here. But it’s subtle. Early stages of expansive. When the wood integrates should’ve very good to spectacular.

Palate: silky cherry mountain stream. Some pencil shavings. Young.

Floor is 9.4. Could be a 9.7 if it ages well. Lovely balance.

Fass selections. — a year ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

If you like dark, sweet tarriness, dry herb buffet, round meaty, not overdone tannins, you will love this 2013 Tor Howell Mountain.

This 2013 Tor has just started its drinking window. It is really good but better things lie ahead in 5-8 years.

Dark, meaty, heavy, round tannins. Black currants, blackberries, black raspberries, black plum skin, plum, raspberries, sweet dark chocolate baking bar, mocha, caramel, black tea, dry herbs for days, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon stick, vanillin, dry top soil, limestone, volcanic minerals, dry river stone, dry clay, twig with raindrops, iron pan, touch of iodine, dark, withering flowers, lavender & violets, very nice round acidity and a well textured, tensioned, structured, balanced but still shows braun, elegant, polished finish that lasts for days and falls on clays, earth & spice.

Photos of my Pebble Beach Food & Wine tasting with Tor & Andy Beckstoffer. — a year ago

Samuel Wong

9.0

The Beaujolais has a ruby with purple shades colour. Fine and fruity, the nose awakes with small red fruit aromas. Smooth and soft on the palate, it offers a nice fruity aromatic persistence.

Ideal with delicatessen, roasted pork and poultry. — 2 years ago

Cristiano Humberto Naves de Freitas Azevedo

8.9

Spice, strawbwrries, black pepper and fun — 4 years ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Opened about an hour prior to service. The 2023 Clos de la Rougeotte pours a ruby color with a transparent core; medium viscosity with no staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of ripe strawberry, raspberry, cranberry, roses, sous bois, some white pepper and fine warm spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium+. Already impressive, I believe this will need some time before it will show its best. Better after 2030 and through 2048. — a month ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.4

One of the most mindnumblingly brilliant village wines ever. So luscious and stoney with top finesse. Generous but fresh. Gorgeous mid season red fruits. Stoney, meaty, black cherry, red cherry nose. Just awesome. — 5 months ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.5

Such a beautiful, silken, refined Volnay. Just ethereal. As this cuvée always is. — 9 months ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.3

Such a pretty nose. Gorgeous elegant florals, lipstick like intensity and sour cherries and mid season cherries. Gorgeous purity and intensity but a bit closed on the finish but fresh and wonderful acids. Really clear fruit but this clearly needs air as did the Savigny Narbantons but that was more structure dominated and this is more acid - structure doninated. But the nose is singing like nothing else. Gorgeous velvety tannins that coat the cheeks and extraordinary concentration and depth. After many hours this got super opulent and was so seductive. Fresh and zippy combined with opulence. — a year ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.8

Wow. This is one hell of a Taillepieds. Nose is deep, dark black cherry fruit with twizzler, mid season cherry with pitch perfect clarity. Taillepieds always brings the drama and this goes to 11. Dark roses, Dried and fresh. So complex and so darn dramatic, Gorgeous roundness to the nose. Just insane. 9.8 nose. Some wood spice, but more like shavings from 7th grade woodshop. Wow. That palate is just insane. It’s got the cherry fruit, sour, dark, mid season, dark red all on a chord progression and all at the same time. Cherry fruit, everything, everywhere, all at once. Unreal internal aromatic and it has a decadence but outlined by this tart cherry fruit that circles opulent black cherry fruit. Just stunning. More open than the Clos des Chenes. A genius wine. Equal to CDC in 2023. Wow this nose goes hard as air gets into it. My god this is hedonistic but also fresh and energetic like 2008 or 1996 but with the fruit of 2019. This is absolutely a showstopper. Gorgeous tannins. So well crafted. The purity is the star here as is the transparency. The nose goes hard after an hour. It’s hard to describe as it’s got a lot of “non wine” aroma. 9.8 nose. Heavenly. Super sweet and silky now. Gorgeous fruit and opulence. What a finish. Unreal blackberry and black cherry inner mouth aromas an hour in. So structured and young but just incredible. After a day this is just stunning. Deep, dramatic and juicy. Wonderful structure and sexy black cherry fruit. Silky as silky can be. — a year ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.7

Happy Birthday Christina. 🎂 🎉 🥳

I have been holding this bottle for her birthday for about 5 years since we had this vintage last. Worth the wait. So much more complex now.

The fruits are more subtle and the toasted mixed nut buffet has taken hold. Butterscotch hard candy. Round, creamy, subdued lemon & pineapple juice, hints of lime on the long set, Bosc pear, white peach, whipped cream, brioche, some bread dough, some of the most beautiful yeastiness, what amazing, soft chalkiness, sea spray, undertones of white spice, crushed/powdery limestone, fresh, blooming Spring flowers & yellow lilies, excellent, perfect, crisp acidity, layers and layers on the well; knitted, balanced, structured, brilliantly polished, elegant finish that lasts minutes.

I’ve had some nice champagne lately and this beats everything except 02 & 96 Krug. — 2 years ago

Zach D

9.5

Oh shit delectable let me post something!!!? Well this is hedonistic in the best way possible. Dark cherry, cherry liqueur, wet roses, clay. Too young; softened with a 1.5 hr decant. Will check back in 5 years from now. — a month ago

Jay Kline

9.2

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of an hour. The 2023 Volnay pours a deep ruby color with a transparent core; medium viscosity with light staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is youthful with notes of forest strawberry, raspberry, Bing cherry, red flowers, sous bois and mixed spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium+ and the texture is almost chewy. This is a very pretty, but also quite powerful and certainly fleshy Volnay that I expect this will show a lot more with some time in the cellar. Drink now to enjoy its youth and through 2038. Thanks for the assist @Lyle Fass — 2 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

I bought this at K&L recently for $79 to judge their 3rd wine vs the younger Dana & Onda I have. This is made from de-selected fruit from their 3 primary single vineyards.


If you love lush/plush, ripe. bold Napa Cabernets, you will love the 2014 Vaso today. It’s still early but drinking nicely tonight. It took a 3 hr decant. Prior, it was missing a bit of a mid-palate. Not now!

The nose is beautiful. Dark currants-cassis, sandalwood, dry twig, dryish tobacco, mid intensity baking spices, dark chocolate, sweet tarriness, black licorice, dark to mid berry cola, steeped black tea, caramel/mocha, dry crushed rocks, candied to withering flowers framed in soft violets & lavender.

The palate is rich, lush, bold & striking. Dark currants-cassis, wild, ripe; blackberries, black raspberries, black cherries, both plums-black dominate to pudding, a buffet of mixed purple fruits, some baked strawberries w/ haunting raspberries. Bold, dark spices, caramel, mocha, clove, nutmeg, cinnamon stick & a touch of vanilla, anise to black licorice, a mix of fresh & herbs, light cedar to sandalwood, dry tobacco with some ash, graphite, dry river stone, limestone marl, dry crush rocks, dry top soil, dark, withering to candied; dark, red flowers with violets, grand acidity, layered finish that is well balanced-structured, still well tensioned, elegant & smartly polished finish that goes on and on. Delicious, especially the longer it sat in the decanter. 3 hours total.

I bought 13 & 15 Vaso for the same price before finishing my comments.

This has 15-20 yrs of good drinking ahead.

@SimplyRedVirtualLiveHamburg — 8 months ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.8

One barrel every year. Over 100+ year vines. Is the nose a 10.0? I think so. Mint, dark cherry, stones on stones on stones. So much fruit. A hint of bramble. More on the nose soon because I needed to sip it and wow. Stunning depth, detail and vinous architecture. So brute but also so elegant. The contradiction at the heart of great Rugiens. Nose has so many different types of ripe cherry layered it could become its own aroma spectrum wheel. The most elegant, sweetest and wildest expression of forest floor ever. Just so Burgundian. Ok, the power, depth and concentration are next level but it’s all held together by a spider silk bow. What a wine. The Rugiens late breaking tannins are here in spades and they are so ripe, so velvety and so sweet. The balance is just PERFECT. Wow this is insane. As good a Buffet Rugiens as I have ever had. Let’s see what air does but I am at a 9.8 now. And now that air has done its thing the elegance is just next level. The finish is palate staining with the most intense old vine, tiny berry fruit intensity. Unreal inner mouth aromas. Just insane. I see this getting to a 9.9. As this has aired the fruit is sweeter and more aristocratic. The nose is all stones currently. This is so silky and refined but also the tannins are so Rugiens. Nothing like it. — a year ago

Harry Hackett

9.4

Perfect with a Swedish Christmas buffet ( jule smorgasbord? — 2 years ago

with Lesley

Mark S.

8.9

Young vintage, tannic. need to wait. 1 hour drinkable. A bit juicy. Plum, raspberry and cranberry. Red fruits. 2nd day is better than 1st day. Domaine Christian Clerget Bourgogne Pinot Noir 2020 @1440, domaine -, 230418 — 3 years ago