Jay Kline

9.6

Splash decanted immediately before service; enjoyed over the course of an hour. The 2018 pours a deep ruby/purple color with an opaque core; medium+ viscosity with significant staining of the tears and some sediment. On the nose, the wine is developing with gorgeous notes of blackberry, fig, black pepper, bacon fat, lavender, aromatic wood resin, warm spices and minerals. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long. This is already an absolute banger and hides its 15% alcohol as well as any wine I have ever encountered. I almost gasped when I saw the ABV on the label because I couldn’t believe it. This is beautifully balanced, and I feel privileged to try this wine in its relative youth. Drink now with a splash decant and through 2052+. Bottle No. 15902. — 12 days ago

Ericsson

9.2

Chávez. But not that Chave. At Petit Comptoir. Reims FR. — 2 months ago

Ron Siegel

9.4

Epic night of Chave tonight with JL leading the tasting direct from his cellar. Group liked the newer 16 & 18 although the 04 was youthful & fresh — 3 months ago

David Samples

10

Beyond beautiful! Immediately soft upon opening—had planned to decant for 4-6 hours but decided against. Open and had small taste with Maggie Harrison around noon. Decided to re-cork it and decanted at 4PM.
At noon I got (very unexpected) cranberry notes on the nose and the palate was considerably more gentle than expected.

After two hour decant: Soft (cat tongue), integrated tannins, pomegranate, black cherry begins to emerge. Herbs, smoky/meaty notes emerge


Tasted: 5.20.26
Attendees: Mark Cerimele, Maggie Harrison, Steve Pfancuff, Lorne McClelland, Andy McCray, Denise Casino, Randy Nelson — 6 days ago

Ron Siegel

9.4

Youthful & rich from a hot year — 2 months ago

Alvaro Bustillos

9.8

Jlchave tasting @modern — 3 months ago

Shay A

9.5

My contributions for a fun right bank Bordeaux dinner. This ended up being a standout amongst the group but others included ‘95 Cheval Blanc, ‘05 L’Evangile and ‘89 Figeac (the starter whites may have stole the show…mag of ‘10 Chave Hermitage Blanc, ‘08 Dom, ‘21 Magi’s CdP Blanc…this ‘04 ZH I brought was an excellent bridge to dessert…good r/s but not cloying; incredible vineyard).

I’ve only had TR once before but it was infanticide many years ago. At roughly 20yrs, I was excited to catch this on what I expected to be near peak. Very tight upon opening but after 45mins in the bottle, this really strut its stuff. Red and purple floral aromatics, bay leaf, and leather. Beautifully elegant on the palate but everything is in its place…supremely balanced. Clean (no brett), multi-layered fruit spectrum (red, purple, blackberries), sweet tobacco, espresso, little cassis. No roasted or over ripe profile, and also not a lean/green machine. Balance balance balance. Lovely. Wish I had another. — 3 months ago

Adriana Fabbro

9.7

1985. 40 years young. Gave it an hour to open up before dinner (paired orange ginger glazed duck with pistachio apricot farro). Thankfully my partner is a master of the Durand. There’s very little for me to compare this too - most aged whites are preserved by acid; Chave relies on glycerol here. It gives the wine gravitas but also life and freshness. Pleasant wood veneer/wood shop notes, dried apricots at first (become fresher with time), yellow plum, truffled earth. Salty poached apricots and timelessness. In a perfect world, we’d be sharing this with my dad. Strange & sensational. — 2 months ago

Alvaro Bustillos

9.4

Jlchave tasting @ the modern — 3 months ago

Ryan Colthorp

8.9

Big fruity nose. Dark purple hues. Big, but easy drinking. Plums. Cherries. Vanilla. — 3 months ago