Rick Phillips

9.7

Just peaking in my estimation. May sill have a couple or three years before its decline starts. Opened and sat in the bottle for 2 hours. Poured a glass which sat another hour. Bold forward fruits. Blackberry, Plums, Black Cherry, hints of spice herbs that quickly fade into a smooth, luxurious taste of velvety tannins. Backend is just as the Front, Luxurious Bold Fruit but just a touch of old earth, lite tobacco and chocolate/cherry. — 14 days ago

with Letha

Christian Fischer

9.6

I am torn with the rating here. We had this after the Dom Rose and man did this need a lot of air. Very closed and tannin forward upon opening and decanting, then slowing opening up - an hour was not enough. It really came together after 3-4 hours and then had an amazing balance. Evolved from 9.0 to something 9.6 through the course of the evening. — a month ago

Jeroen Koenen

9.6

From Magnum.
Very young and fresh…! — 7 months ago

Mark Rosse

9.6

Fabulous 🤩 — 9 months ago

Spencer Fox

9.1

shy even after hours in the decanter. still, a very elegant franc. bramble fruit, mellow baking spice, pepper. have always loved raffault just wished this one was a touch more showy. — 3 years ago

Brett Vanderbrook

9.5

Sitting on the precipice of primary and tertiary. Still has bright fruit notes with high acidity and just enough tannins that it would still pair well with food. But it also has forest floor, mossy stone, leather, cigar box. It will probably age longer knowing Mussar, but this wine has definitely hit its stride and is absolutely singing right now. — 3 years ago

with Raina and Michael

"Odedi"

9.5

Dark ruby/ inky in color with a short reddish rim. Not showing age at all.

Strong nose of black currant, blackberries, black plums, black cherries, cedar, vanilla, licorice, tobacco, light earth, herbs, mediterranean spices, black tea and peppercorn.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with black currants, black plums, blackberries, light cedar, earth, cherries, light vegetables, tobacco leaf, black tea, herbs, light vanilla, mediterranean spices and dark chocolates.

Long finish with round tannins and tangy cherries.

This is a gorgeous Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley. Elegant and nicely balanced with great complexity.

Needs 2 hours in the decanter to open up properly, so be patient. Will continue to age nicely in the next 15 years.

This 17 year old Cabernet Sauvignon based Bordeaux blend from Napa Valley is starting to drink at its peak, although I'm drinking out of a Magnum.

Showing a beautiful nose with lots of complexity. Rich and extracted, elegant and powerful.

Robert Parker 97 points. Wine Enthusiasts 96 points. Wine Spectator 91 points.

Good by itself as a sipping wine, and will also pair nicely with a big piece of steak.

A blend of 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Petit Verdot and 4% Malbec. Aged for 24 months in all new French oak barrels.

14.5% alcohol by volume.

95 points.

$450 (Magnum). — 8 days ago

Brandon Boesch

9.7

2009 at Caruso’s in Montecito. So freaking good. Well balanced. Dark fruit, some hints of pepper, cedar, more fruit, there’s also a freshness of herbs and lighter fruit that was lovely. Had with steak and beets in like 6 different preparations. Perfect pairing. — 4 months ago

Jake Hajer

9.1

Aging well. — 9 months ago

Sarah Scharf

9.1

Fresh but sumptuous. Nice balance. Good with carrot cake — 2 years ago

Conrad Green

9.2

Not Warhol. Lemon and slate. Plush fruit. Good stuff — 3 years ago

with Bex and Major-General

Tero Melasuo

9.2

2009 vintage — 3 years ago

Mark S.

9.2

Fruity aroma. Concentrated. Smooth. Still tannic. More years or decanting makes it much better. La Rioja Alta Gran Reserva 904 Rioja Tempranillo Graciano 2009. @2400, Kping - PEnoteca, 230601-230729 — 3 years ago

Tom Garland

9.2

1st vintage released to the public.

1.5 hour decant(lots of fine/cloudy sediment). A dark brooding magenta color. On the nose: Seductive notes of dark fruit, nutmeg, smokey vanilla, floral, pencil shavings, dark chocolate. Taste: integrated, silky, balanced teeth staining wine with blackberry/dark cherry, dark chocolate, graphite, scorched earth, and a spiced espresso long finish. YUM! — 21 days ago

with Brenda

Joe DAscoli

9.5

Very inky and robust. Shared towards the end of Ackers Autumn Harvest auction

Big dark fruit and great depth that was very smooth. Really interesting expression. You can taste the ripeness from the California sunshine — 21 days ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.3

Medium ruby , medium wide garnet rim . Quite open and exuberante , lots of sweet red cherry, raspberry and touch of menthol and sweet spices, hickory . Quite sweet profile. On the palate this has nice spice and menthol hints , sweet red cherry fruit , ripe tannins , but with good grip, quite gritty with good length . Balanced acidity , touch of alcohol noticeable . Overall quite sweetly red fruit focussed , pure and expressive. This is showing quite well , though still young and fruit focused. Probably better in 3-5 years and will continue to show well over the next 10 years or so . — 6 months ago

Jay Kline

8.9

Splash decanted prior to service and presented to me double-blind. The wine pours a deep garnet color with an opaque core, moving towards a light orange garnet rim; medium viscosity with moderate staining of the tears and some signs of sediment. On the nose, the wine is vinous, with notes of ripe and slightly dried red and black fruits: plum, blackberry, raspberry, dried flowers, leather, cocoa, earth and some 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.

Initial conclusions: this could be a Cabernet Sauvignon-based blend or a Merlot-based blend from the United States or France. Due to the appearance and secondary characteristics, I think this has 15+ years of age. And, because this was leaning heavily towards its fruit, rather than its structure, I’m calling this being from the United States. Final conclusion, this is a Cabernet Sauvignon-based blend from Napa, valley floor, from a warm vintage like 2009. Dammit, I should have clued into the softer tannins from Alexander Valley. Scoring significant points though. Drink now through 2029. — 9 months ago

Severn G

9.4

2009 | Cabernet Franc — 3 years ago

Adam Gäfvert

9.1

In a very nice state at the moment. Stands the test of time without any problems. One of my favourite label designs. — 3 years ago

Gor

9.3

Very linear and primary still but opening up nicely with a rare purity and supple tannins. Good stuff. — 4 years ago