Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.3

2019 vintage. Opened and decanted. Tasted after 15 minutes and one hour. Medium body. Sleek and silky intro and mid-palate funneling much of the concentration and carnival into the back-end impressions. Picked up the various chocolates, earth. tobacco and cedar notes just before graduation. Obviously much much too premature but showing serious promise and composure after the first recital. 5.22.26. — a month ago

Freddy R. Troya

9.3

Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste 2023 – Pauillac, Grand Cru Classé en 1855, BDX France 🇫🇷

Overview
A benchmark Pauillac delivering depth, precision, and classical balance at a very high level, driven by a 75% Cabernet Sauvignon–dominant blend with 20% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Franc as a support. The wine shows beautifully layered red fruit, refined structure, and seamless integration, expressing terroir purity and composure from start to finish.

Aromas & Flavors
Blackcurrant, red cherry, wild raspberry, cassis, graphite, cedar, pencil shavings, subtle tobacco leaf, gentle cocoa and crushed gravel.

Mouthfeel
Medium-plus to full-bodied with finely polished tannins, excellent mid-palate density, vibrant yet controlled acidity, elegant grip, and a long, harmonious finish that remains lifted and precise.

Food Pairings
Prime rib, grilled ribeye, rack of lamb, beef Wellington, mushroom-forward dishes, aged hard cheeses.

Verdict
A beautifully executed Pauillac that balances power and finesse effortlessly. Everything feels aligned, fruit purity, structure, tension, and length, making this a top-tier reference for the appellation and vintage.

🍷 Personal Pick
This is Pauillac done right, deep fruit, flawless execution, and a finish that feels complete and satisfying rather than forced. A wine that earns admiration through balance and quiet authority. Hard to pass, even harder to forget. — 5 months ago

Clay Bullwinkel

9.1

Citrus, sharp composure, well rounded — 5 years ago

Martijn

8.9

2011 vintage on 6.11.18
Somewhat closed nose. But drinking smoothly. Very good composure. Long finish and it ticks all tastebuttons on the palate. Enough bitters and acids to make it interesting. Paired perfectly with the tagliata. — 8 years ago

Michael H

9.5

Instant hit of lovely fruit and smooth but structured composure. Plenty of tannins dancing around but smooth and integrated. Leave in glass an hour and heads towards a pomerol feel. Fantastic and a real star. Love this and excellent value at £60 a bottle. — 9 years ago

Miguel Ostrowski

9.1

Showing great composure, plenty of true varietal character not masked by a ton of Oak. — 9 years ago

Scott Taddeo

9.5

All Barossa and McLaren Vale fruit this year, 2% Cabernet and 17months brand new American oak. Whiffs of fine mahogany, spiced plums, blackberry, some dried fruit, mettwurst, slight florals and a lick of vanilla. Just coming into the realm of full bodied, not coming across over bearing at all. Not defined by resolute tannin it's amazingly approachable now, showing amazing balance and composure, but the tannin is there, dragging long and fine with harmonious acid. A beauty of a wine. — 10 years ago

Freddy R. Troya

9.4

Caiarossa 2020, Red Blend – Toscana IGT, Alta Maremma, Italy 🇮🇹

Overview
Flagship a 7-varietal-blend composed of 28% Cabernet Franc, 23% Syrah, 18% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Merlot, 13% Sangiovese, 4% Petit Verdot, and 1% Grenache. Farmed biodynamically and vinified via gravity flow, emphasizing balance, depth, and refined extraction.

Aromas & Flavors
Black cherry, cassis, dried rose, Mediterranean herbs, graphite, cocoa, crushed stone.

Mouthfeel
Layered and expansive with silky tannins and vibrant acidity. Long, mineral-driven finish with elegance and composure.

Food Pairings
Game meats, truffle pasta, aged ribeye, Tuscan stews.

Verdict
Complex yet harmonious. Structured for evolution with Mediterranean finesse and Bordeaux discipline.

🍷 Did You Know?
The estate is co-owned by the family behind Château Giscours (Margaux), blending Left Bank philosophy with Tuscan terroir. — 4 months ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.1

2016 vintage. Last tasted 02.07.24 (9.4). Still medium-heavy body but the alcohol/flavors enduring a bit of angst currently. Hot alcohol hits front palate, then fruit, then 18-wheeler tannins. Tasting as if it fell apart and needs a magic wand to meld it all back together. Still, fairly impressive tasting the holy trinity simultaneously, yet separately, and with unexpected composure given the lack of quality pavement for this 1974 De Tomaso Pantera. 01.20.25. — a year ago

Spencer Spetnagel

9.1

Black cherry, red currants, bramble, iron, turned dry earth, cardamom. Ripe and filling across the palate. Stays lithe throughout. Gorgeous texture and composure. A warm vintage handled skillfully by Mr. Doerner and team. Per usual. — 4 years ago

Jordan Wardlaw

9.3

Smoky minerals, black cherry, orange peel, violets, spice cake, licorice- just a few notes. There’s a lot going on here and it’s intensely satisfying. Grainy tannins, very lengthy finish. Just a superb young Morgon with effortless style and composure whose best years are still well ahead. — 7 years ago

Mark Flesher

9.1

I think this wine is starting to lose a bit of composure. But, just when I say that, it seems to make another tour of duty. This wine had some sharper acid, definitely less refined in the front, middle and finish. The notes I was getting were dried worn leather and some metallic notes. This wine did settle down, but I think this was long after I decided to move on. If you have this wine, at this point it is probably way past optimal drinking window and I would do everything in my power to schedule the corks to come out of these bottles! — 8 years ago

with Shay, Dan and 1 other

H

9.0

A big red but with nice composure. Somewhat wild in nature but should improve with a couple of years in the cellar. — 10 years ago

Freddy R. Troya

9.4

Château Léoville Barton 2023 – Saint-Julien, Grand Cru Classé en 1855, BDX France 🇫🇷

Overview
A classic Saint-Julien expression showing clarity, harmony, and structural polish, driven by a 77% Cabernet Sauvignon–led blend with 20% Merlot Merlot, and 3% Cabernet Franc as a support. The wine balances ripe fruit concentration with restraint, delivering precision, finesse, and a seamless flow from attack through finish.

Aromas & Flavors
Blackcurrant, ripe blackberry, red plum, cassis, graphite, cedar, subtle baking spice, crushed stone, light tobacco and gentle floral lift.

Mouthfeel
Medium-plus body with finely woven tannins, excellent balance, fresh integrated acidity, supple texture, and a long, graceful finish that feels effortless rather than forceful.

Food Pairings
Herb-crusted lamb, roasted duck breast, grilled filet mignon, mushroom risotto, aged Comté or Gruyère.

Verdict
An elegant, dependable Saint-Julien that delivers purity, structure, and drinking pleasure without excess. Refined, polished, and quietly authoritative, a wine that rewards both immediate enjoyment and patient cellaring.

🍷 Personal Pick
This is the kind of wine that wins through composure and precision rather than horsepower. Easy to enjoy today, yet layered enough to keep you leaning back into the glass. Subtle sophistication done right. — 5 months ago

Delectable Wine

Follow to learn about our favorite wines & people.

9.5

I tasted the 1982 Lynch-Bages twice within a month, both at a private dinner in London and at the château, from bottle and double-magnum on separate occasions. Both vindicate an exceptionally fine 1982, perhaps a bit overlooked in a vintage full of stars. Curiously, the bottle in Bordeaux does not fully deliver the mesmerizing freshness and energy compared to the bottle in London: pencil-lead-tinged black fruit intermixed with clove and freshly-rolled tobacco. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins, perhaps just a little austere compared to its peers. Yet, indeed, the bottle in London exudes class and composure with a detailed, mineral-driven vintage belying that year's unseasonably warm period. Superb. Tasted both in London at a private dinner and at the château. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2023) — 3 years ago

Annie Ford

9.5

Delicious! Lots of flavors. Very different what what I usually enjoy. It’s a great balance of dark and spicy yet fruity. — 7 years ago

Saman Hosseini

Writer Maison Abattoir

9.0

An Italian who made his fortunes supplying Italian fashion houses with textiles miller in Bulgaria. Grippy red fruits, dried leaves and game meats, gaining more composure with airtime. Soulful. — 8 years ago

Kevin Sidders

President VinConnect

9.3

Delicious. Seems much younger — many guessed 2010 or 11. Lots of juicy ripe fruit, good composure, and perhaps a touch of heat. Super enjoyable... — 9 years ago

David Lieberman

9.5

I sent off all but a few bottles of the 1990 Bollinger Grand Année to auction because they were just too far along for my taste before I broke into the case. With that in mind, I dug through to the case of 1996 to see where we stood on the aging curve. Happily for me, this seems to be at its moment for my palate. Yes, bread dough and marmalade, advanced, but with sufficient composure to keep the wine rich, mouth filling and satisfying. Keeping these for drinking and maybe christening the occasional yacht. — 9 years ago

Anthony Lombardi

9.6

This is a "wow" Sherry. A fantastic juxtaposition of delicacy and energy. The acidity is the unifying element that brings together the briny, nutty & fruity elements which permeate the nose and palate alike. The body is ethereal & as it breathes the richness of the hazelnut & apricot notes pick up, again creating a captivating tension for a the senses. There is a mystery to this as it shows an unrelenting smoky/caramel note on the back of the palate which lingers beautifully on the finish. This is a fully realized, authentic wine of composure. Get ahold of some. — 10 years ago