Peter van den Besselaar

9.1

Vintage 2010 | gave it two hours in decanter, a barnyard stinky in smell (not everyone appreciates this, I do), cedar very present, hints of spices and a good concentration. When accompanied with food it is ready to drink now. Fine right bank wine, neighbour of Cheval Blanc (I take a special interest in neighbours of the priceless top domaines). — a month ago

Jan de Weerd

9.2

Okay. Again the same dilemma. If a wine does not meet expectation is it basically bad (for me)? 🤔 because in life everything is relative, right? Any thoughts on puzzling matter??The wine was well balanced, dark red fruit flavors, polished, smooth tannins, good intensity and concentration, but limited length and lacking any meaningful complexity… Eight year old left bank Bordeaux. A fourth or fifth growth winery, maybe not, can’t remember for sure. Do remember what I paid though, $120. Definitely too much for what we experienced this evening…. as to our expectations. — 7 months ago

with Tammy

web bond

9.4

Absolutely brilliant. Sensational combination of richness, concentration, and freshness. — 9 months ago

Sean Grullon

9.4

Classic CdP and an iconic producer. Blackberry, dark fruits, herbs, spice, olive, earth. Full bodied, but low-to-medium tannins and great concentration. Fantastic with Mediterranean food. — 2 months ago

Anthony Cammarata Jr.

9.3

This old Napa wine was superb. The longer the decanting the more flavorful it became. Spicy at first sip with bursts of flavor from dark berries, leathery tannins, currant, earth and strong blackberry. Gains intensity and shows its depth and concentration on the finish, which is long and detailed. — 4 months ago

with Daniel

Lee Pitofsky

9.4

Love these wines. 2015 is excellent tonight after sufficient air, densely concentrated and a clear child of the solar 2015 vintage, wafting layers of dark fruit, olive tapenade, camphor, bacon fat and black truffle. The palate shows exceptional balance and detail despite the massive concentration and warm vintage with great acidity, melting tannins and superb length. Beautiful wine, but very young. — 8 months ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.5

1990 vintage. Finally...tasted a bottle that confirmed both the excellence of this particular vintage and this particular producer. Was 0 for 10 prior to this with a few 9.0's, 9.1's and a 9.2 being the highest score. Still much more sleek than the '86, '88 or '89 vintages and currently pretty close stylistically to the linear '96 vintage. Soft yet intriguing nose. Light-medium body. Better than good concentration mid-palate and through a 30-second finish. Some of that beguiling cocoa powder and blueberry feminity confirming a beautiful effort. 4.22.23 — 2 years ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

The new vintage! Yay! Just a stunning nose that is at once confectionary, opulent and chiseled. Just insane. It has that aromatic roundness that very very few wines get. Like an orb of Cassaneas. Lime zest, sea salt, green apple skins. Unreal clarity. What a palate. Concentrated and deep but showing a bit of shock (arrived 5 days ago) and seems a bit clipped on the mid and finish. But man the length tells me this will expand like a peacock’s tail. Unreal density and concentration but is light as a feather. So juicy and acid is very good but it’s no 22 or 21. Think 19 or 17. Nose is so saline. Man the energy and almost tannic grip on the palate is brilliant as it fleshes out. This will be tracked tonight. Wow with a few hours of air this is like a better 18 Cassaneas and that’s the best one ever. This now has an icing on cake texture and outstanding purity, depth, texture and freshness. 9.6. Wow. On Day 2 this is even more elegant and is so close to a 9.7. What a wine! — 2 months ago

Doug Powers

9.3

Medium-dark-red color, very little browning at rim, this shows a little of the “overripe” notes I’ve found in 1990 Bordeaux (and CdPs), nice concentration and depth, long finish, the ripeness carries into the finish and detracts just a little. — 5 months ago

with Jim

Delectable Wine

Follow to learn about our favorite wines & people.

9.5

The 2005 Vieux Château Certan was picked from September 12 after cool nights had led to a slow accretion of concentration. "There was a lot of drought in 2005," Alexandre Thienpont recalls, "and it was a season a bit like 1982." This has a winsome bouquet, more powerful than the preceding 2004, as you would expect, laden with predominantly red fruit laced with anise and wilted rose petals. Impressive delineation and focus. The palate is medium-bodied with slightly grainy tannins, fresh and sapid in style, more open than the bottle tasted four years earlier. It veers towards a more savory finish. Subtle, ferrous, almost meaty notes lend complexity and typicité. Persistent on the aftertaste, this is a VCC that is just getting going. Tasted at the VCC vertical in Etikhove, Belgium. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2024)
— 9 months ago