Tom Garland

9.8

Vins d'Exception Dinner (LVMH winery portfolio) at the French Laundry:
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Chateau Cheval Blanc with Pierre Clouet
Colgin Cellars with Ann Colgin
Domaine des Lambrays - Jacques Decauges
Chateau d'Yquem with Lorenzo Pasquini
8 course tasting menu from chef Thomas Keller.

WINES:
2021 Le Pitit Cheval Blanc semillon
2006 Chateau Cheval Blanc
2015 Chateau Cheval Blanc
2020 Domaine Des Lambrays puligny montrachet
1999 Domaine Des Lambrays Clos des Lambrays
2020 Domaine Des Lambrays Clos des Lambrays
2005 Colgin Estate cab
2016 Colgin Estate cab
2010 Colgin Estate syrah
2021 Colgin Estate syrah
2013 Chateau D'Yquem
1946 Chateau D'Yquem

FOOD
Japnese hamachi sashimi and cavier
Grilled Scottish Langoustine
Herb roasted Poulard with wild morels
Australian black winter truffle agnolotti
Broken Arrow Ranch Antelope
Snake River Farm beef and Mt Shasta porcini
Gruyere cheese tartlette
California stone fruit medley

At The French Laundry. Napa — 21 days ago

with Brenda

Jay Kline

9.5

Popped and poured; enjoyed out of red Solo cups over the course of a few hours. The 1993 “Herb Lamb” pours a deep garnet/purple with an opaque core; medium+ viscosity with moderate staining of the tears and significant sediment. On the nose, the wine is vinous with heady notes of mostly ripe and some desiccate fruit: black currants, blackberries, black plum, a mix of red and purple flowers, tobacco, Poblano pepper, leather, cocoa, some tilled earth and fine baking spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long. Delicious. This was an outstanding showing. Drink now through 2033+ — 8 months ago

Norman

9.6

Inky, dark, rich. I’m saying the Harlan by a mile and then Colgin — 3 years ago

with Mark and Gunja

Shay A

9.3

I followed this over two days. It was initially opened alongside a 2016 Maybach Materium, 2013 Kapscandy Roberta’s Reserve, 2002 Colgin Cariad and a 2006 Dalla Valle Maya.

Aside from BV’s Guest Cottage, this is the only wine from them I haven’t had. Sporting almost a 16%ABV, it poured like motor oil in to the glass. Thick, rich and heady aromatics. This has that classic high quality Napa cab smell to it...smells of expensive toasted oak, espresso, fondue dipped dark fruits, and spiced nutmeg. A meal by itself on the palate, this is a 2013 that is unsurprisingly massive and in need of food to cut through the tannins. Dark initially before it turns slightly red fruit forward at the finish...dark cocoa topped black cherries, espresso sweetness, and black currant. I’d hold at this point. Not sure a decant is doing much at this stage. — 5 years ago

Jay Eagan

9.4

Massive Cabernet that is fantastic dark fruit and tannins after a decade are still very present!!! If you like Pritchard Hill - you should try this next door neighbor of Colgin. The only issue - this is $500 less a bottle! I don’t hate my $ so I’m in. — 7 years ago

with Kristine

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

On the nose; very ruby, floral plum fruits of; blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, Thompson raisins, fresh dates and prunes. Black licorice, creamy dark fruit cola, caramel, milk & dark chocolate, soft beautiful dark spice, touch of eucalyptus, fresh herbs, limestone, soft presence dry crushed rocks, a whiff of pepper, fresh lavender, violets and dark withering floral bouquet.

The body is full and lush. Fine meaty, tarry, tannins. Very ruby, floral plum fruits of; blackberries, dark cherries, black raspberries, Thompson raisins, fresh dates and prunes. Black licorice, creamy dark fruit cola, caramel, milk & dark chocolate, soft beautiful dark spice, touch of eucalyptus, fresh herbs, limestone, soft presence dry crushed rocks, suede leather, dry clay, dry top soil, dry underbrush, a whiff of pepper, fresh lavender, violets and dark withering floral bouquet. The acidity is very nice. There is good structure, tension, length and balance that needs 10 years plus to flush out. The finish is good, well balanced with fine powdery sticky tannins.

Photos of, Cliff Lede tasting facility, wire woven sculptures that decorate the grounds, Owner David Lede and the Beckstoffer To Kalon Vineyard.

Producer history and notes...Cliff Lede Vineyards (pronounced LayDee) was founded in 2002 on what used to be S. Anderson Vineyard, a winery that was founded in 1971 by Stanley and Carol Anderson primarily known for their sparkling wines.

Cliff Lede is from Leduc, Alberta a small town just south of Edmonton. The reason you see a Canadian flag in front of the parking next to the US Flag. David and Cliff helped run their father’s construction company he founded in 1947, Leduc Construction. Later the company was renamed to Ledcor Construction in 1982. They ultimately built the business into one of the world’s largest construction companies. Through Cliff, the company established business in the Napa Valley focusing on wineries, restaurants, premium resorts and private residences. Some of their more notable works include; Morimoto Restaurant, Davis Estate Winery, Lokoya Winery, Marciano Estate and the Riverfront Residences in downtown Napa.

After several decades at Ledcor, Cliff decided to pursue his passion for wine. His first introduction to wine was helping his mother make wine at home. Later he began collecting wines from Bordeaux, and even considered purchasing property there. However, he fell in love with Napa after business took him to Northern California.

Cliff Lede owns 60 acres of vineyards in the Stags Leap District. This includes the Twin Peaks Vineyard surrounding the winery and tasting room. The Poetry Vineyard was acquired a year after Cliff established Cliff Lede Vineyards. It is planted on steep hillsides down to the Silverado Trail. It’s planted with red Bordeaux varietals, mostly Cabernet Sauvignon. The soils there are extremely rocky. Despite being so close to the Poetry Vineyard, the soils in the Twin Peaks Vineyard are dramatically different. They are gravelly loam.

From a viticulture aspect, this diversity of terroir is a good representation of what the Stags Leap District has to offer, ranging from its upper most reaches of 400 feet to the valley floor. Even among their two Stags Leap properties, there are micro-climates. The west facing vineyard hillsides become quite warm during the day in the summer but cool off significantly in the evenings. This diurnal temperature swing is important for growing premium grapes including maintaining acidity.

The winery also owns a 20 acre vineyard in Calistoga at the base of Diamond Mountain planted primarily to Cabernet Sauvignon as well as a small block of Sauvignon Blanc.

Further to the north in Mendocino County is their Savoy Vineyard, which is a 42 acre site in Anderson Valley. It is planted mainly to Pinot Noir along with Chardonnay. It provides fruit for their FEL Wines (a name that Cliff chose to pay homage to his mother, using the first three initials of her full name Florence Elsie Lede.

Cliff’s love for all things “Rock and Roll”, he named all their blocks in their Stags Leap District Vineyards after famous rock and roll songs or albums such as “Dark Side of the Moon”, “Walk on the Wildside”, “Light my Fire” and “American Girl. ”Collectively these are referred to as the “Rock Blocks.”

David Abreu quickly realized the exceptional terroir of the Poetry Vineyard as did Cliff when they initially tried some of the S. Anderson wines from this site. Abreu oversaw its replanting and clonal material sourced from a number of premiere Napa vineyards. While Abreu was the original vineyard architect, he is no longer involved in the management of the their vineyards. They are now controlled by their in-house vineyard team.

The winery, tasting room and the nearby luxury Poetry Inn all opened around 2005. Architect Howard Gillam was hired to design the winery. Cliff’s background in construction and architectural preferences certainly influenced its design. The tasting room has a more contemporary feel rather then some of his more rustic looking designs. It features beautiful views of the Napa Valley. Inspired by the shape of tanks during a visit to Château Latour in Bordeaux, Cliff commissioned Missouri based Paul Mueller Company to create special truncated tanks for fermentation to help submerse more of the cap. Each tank corresponds to a specific vineyard block. During harvest, a specially designed crane gently moves and lowers a hopper full of whole berries into each tank.

Sorting is a big part of their attention to detail before fermentation. After the grapes come into the winery, they are sorted by hand, then run through an optical sorter and then finally put through an additional final hand sorting. Nearby is a 20,000 square foot cave that connects directly to the winery. World famous Michel Rolland was brought on in the early years as a consultant. Philipe Melka also made Cliff Lede wines for several years and today Christopher Tynan is the Winemaker. He was formerly Assistant Winemaker at Colgin.

Total annual production is between 18,000 and 20,000 cases depending on what Mother Nature gives them. The majority of this is comprised of their Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc and their Stags Leap District Cabernet Sauvignon. — 8 years ago

Tom Garland

9.5

1 hour decant(lots of chunky/fine sediment). A splendid still dark garnet color with a little bricking. On the nose: sweet red/blue fruit, pencil shavings, forest floor, little stewed meat, cigar box. Taste: silky, lengthy, deep, polished wine with red berries, charred earth, dark chocolate, tobacco, and a spiced mocha long lingering finish. YUM! — 2 months ago

with Brenda

David Kline

9.4

Inky cab with purple-tinged blood blackness from rim to rim. Glass painter with star bright reflectivity. Viscous Frankenstein hair tears over glacial-carved canyon. Nose of black cherry, raisinated currant, light toast, lighter pepper, carnation, violet, licorice, blackberries with honey. Mouth-coating with a luxurious mouthfeel showing silky tannins with a modicum of grain. Cassis, graphite, baked blueberry, black currant. Sustain. Bold and unabashed.

#colgin #ColginTychsonHill #Cabernet #cab #cabernetsauvignon #napa #napacab #estategrown #estatebottled #2019 #nspavalleycab #napavalley — 3 months ago

Norman

9.6

Gunja says WOTN. I say Colgin. Supper jammy. — 2 years ago

Conrad Green

9.1

Quite alcoholic on the nose. Plum and sweet fruit. Slightly toasted notes. Intense and pure. Very good. Unlike the others in this flight — 3 years ago

with Paul and Ara

Jay Eagan

9.4

What a vintage on Pritchard Hill! This is THE go to in this zip code (way under The neighbors are Ovid & Colgin. I can’t believe this is 7 years from vintage - it’s still very young with lots of currant and blueberry with mocha. Tannins kick in in the mid palate and a lengthy finish. With a rack of lamb - proof God loves us! — 6 years ago

Martinez

9.5

Napa at its best. Blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (60%), Cabernet Franc (22%) and Petit Verdot (18%) from the estate on Pritchard Hill in Oakville, (not far from Colgin and Bryant Family), including fruit from the Mondavi family’s famed and controversial To Kalon vineyard. Silky, opulent, balanced. Well integrated oak. Dried fruit. Hints of vanilla, chocolate — 6 years ago

Mark Flesher

9.4

A very nice bottle of wine. I would say this one is drinking the way it was intended to drink. Ready to go. Full throttle for a Chardonnay. Nose of dried herbs, kettle corn, youthful fruit, minerals. Entry a lot of peach, guava, popcorn kernel. Lots of stone ground fruit, dried herbs, dense. Powerful. I don't think this one could drink any better than it is now. Opened to thank a friend for serving an excellent lineup of Peter Michael and Colgin four days before! This one is at the top of the hill right now. — 7 years ago

with Dan

Justin Wittkopf

9.7

What a crazy awesome wine! It has it all, pure fruit profile, great acidity and a nice grip, with long finish. Everything is balanced well. So much energy for a 24 year old wine. Last month I had the 94 Harlan, 94 Colgin HL, and 97 Colgin HL, and this blew them all away. — 8 years ago

David Kline

9.6

2013. Dark presence with violet-black from edge to end. Unctious. El Capitan tears with solar flare outcroppings linear paralleling across the cliff face. Lovely mushroom and earth interplay here with blackberry bourgeoning and black olive wisps. Forêt Noir leanings with brittle and toffee behind a curious veil of grill smoke. Palate is met with a rush of intense flavor, warm dark chocolate and raw nib, concentrated black cherry, cedar, blackberries and red currant, ripe blackberry, licorice, tobacco, and a drop of treacle. Wild resonance! Flavor permanences.

#Colgin #colginIXestate #2013 #Napa #StHelena — 3 months ago

Bryan Abel

9.3

Delicious and smooth, dark fruit and slight mineral and coffee notes — 3 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.7

This wine is in a perfect place. 2008 is not as regarded as 2007, but this 2008 made by Charles Hendricks is saying differently & absolutely one of his very best. I would say, James & Coleen made a mistake in letting him get away.

It is sort of a Mother Mary of God wine. Not to be religious, just the phrase fits.

Our eyes & ears perk up when we hear Napa names like; Harlan, Scarecrow, Hundred Acre, Bond & Colgin. I’d like to put this in blind and watch the shock & awe in everyone eyes when the wines were revealed.

The palate entry is perfect in every way. It is rich, lush, extremely balanced with well rounded, velvety M+ tannins. The core is dark currants, blackberries, black raspberries, both plums, black cherries, baked strawberries framed in raspberry edges. Some of the most amazing, dark spices with palate heat, melted, dark chocolate to pudding, black licorice to anise, mocha, malt balls, caramel, mid baking spices; clove, nutmeg, cinnamon stick, vanillin, fresh & used tobacco, leathery, graphite, crushed rocks & limestone, sage brush, slightly, candied, dark & withering flowers set in understated violet’s & lavender, warm, summer, rainfall acidity, balance for days, excellent structure/tension with elegance and smart polish that lasts minutes and settles on beautiful spices.

This wine is at its precipice and will hold a few more years with good drinking for 8-10 years. — 9 months ago

Delectable Wine

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9.9

The 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Melanson Vineyard emerges mostly from upper blocks on this site, a striking hillside that faces Colgin, where the steep exposure can yield wines of tremendous pedigree. That is exactly what comes through here. Inky red/purplish fruit, spice, rose petal, cedar and sweet pipe tobacco meld together effortlessly, with silky tannins that wrap it all up. Bold and luscious, but with tremendous nuance, the Melanson Cabernet is a total stunner in 2018. As I have written in the past, farming here has improved tremendously in recent years. This is another superb example of the quality that this site is capable of. Winemaker Thomas Rivers Brown gave the 2018 a relatively short 10 days on the skins. I imagine he thought the site would take care of the rest. It's hard to argue with that. The 2018 is off the charts great. Don't miss it. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, January 2021)
— 5 years ago

Tom Garland

9.3

1 hour decant (some slightly chunky sediment). A beguiling inky ruby red color with some browning. On the nose: red plum, floral, wet forest floor, some blueberry, and a little creme brulee. Taste: red fruit with a touch of blue fruit mixed in, earthy, cedar, and a red licorice mid palate. A soft approachable wine with fine, sweet tannins coating the mouth ending in a cherry espresso medium finish.

Michael Trujillo winemaker with a lower alcohol restrained cabernet for Napa(note: vineyard used for initial Colgin wine launch). 2016 LAST VINTAGE...vineyard now leased to Thomas Rivers Brown going forward...get ready for a TRB HL vineyard wine....more oak, more ripe.....big scores. — 6 years ago

with Brenda

Bill Bender

9.6

A completely different wine than the Dominus. This was full throttle and slams you back in to your seat with its G forces. So ripe, almost over the top; but it decelerates just in time and the finish is so succulent it lingers in your mouth forever. Filled to the tip of the cork with graphite and teeth staining purple fruit. This is the malevolent bastard child of a young Colgin IX Syrah and 2000 Chateau Pavie. Gobsmacker. — 8 years ago