Bob McDonald

9.4

Mid straw yellow in colour. After 10 years still no sign of TDN. Aromas of lime and talc. Ken Helm of Helm wines in the Canberra district would say these are well handled Riesling grapes from a cool growing season where no petro chemical notes have developed. He believes kero/petrol aromas are a wine fault and caused by sunburnt grapes. On the palate lime flavours, a touch of honey and finishes with a slight saline note. Fresh and crisp even in its old age. Proves again that the Clare Valley is perfect for Riesling. Delectable: Taylor’s is the producer. — 8 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.4

Happy New Year! 🎉🎊🎈🎆 🧨

1997 Jones Family, the year prior to TRB taking the helm and yet still a fantastic Napa vintage that is singing.

For me, this is classically styled Napa Cabernet. This is still not descending. Has another 5-8 years of good drinking and perhaps beyond.

Showing dark, meaty, dry, velvety tannins. Dark currants-blackberries, black raspberries, black plum skin, raspberries, plum pudding, chocolate mousse/cake, caramel, mocha powder, dark spice, dry top soil, dry, crushed rocks, anise, cinnamon stick, nutmeg, clove, vanillin, used leather, graphite, dry stone, volcanic clay, withering, dark, red, purple flowers, excellent round acidity and a well made, balanced, nicely tensioned, elegant finish that lasts two-minutes and falls onto earth & spice. — a year ago

Vanessa

9.4

These are the perfect Birthday bubbles!
 
They’re brought to us by one of our favorite “grower” producers – Paul Bara – situated in Bouzy, a grand cru village in the Montagne de Reims ⛰️ region of Champagne.
 
Paul Bara owns the entire production process from beginning to end, carrying forward seven generations of family history and tradition, with winemaker Chantal Bara now at the helm.

This is the 2016 Paul Bara vintage special club rosé.  It was made with mostly Pinot Noir (70%) along with some Chardonnay (30%) for brightness.  

It is pale salmon 👁️ with medium(+) intensity of lemon peel, mandarin pith, white peach, green apple, raspberry, strawberry, toast, pastry, and blanched almond 👃🏻 👄 . The mousse is fine-beaded and well-integrated. It is dry with a creamy mouthfeel and elegant finish.

It’s positively delicious!

Cheers to another trip around the sun ☀️ and Happy Mother’s Day to all of the amazing Mamas! — 2 years ago

with Deked1

Johnno Harris

9.4

Stunning. So linear, light and bright and impeccably balanced. Delicious. — 4 years ago

Jim McCusker

9.3

Our oldest Denner in the cellar, this still had an impressive amount of fruit and structure given its age. Anthony Yount is doing great things at Denner right now...but some of the earlier vintages before he took the helm ate pretty good, too! — 5 years ago

with Vanessa

Bob McDonald

9.5

Pale Lemon in colour. White peach notes on nose and palate along with herbal and Lime notes - a little grapefruit. Overall the impression of ripe grapes in a really good season gives one the impression of almost off dry but it is dry. Not as much tension as a few years ago - this being my last bottle. At its peak if you like mature Riesling with a swipe of cleansing acidity to finish off. Again, little or no kerosene or petrol notes which I am starting to believe is a wine fault and the subject of sunburnt grapes as Canberra Riesling producer Ken Helm once told me. 3 Trophies and many Gold Medals on the Show Circuit. — 6 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.2

See several previous Delectable notes for this wine. This is my last bottle. A lovely mature Riesling developing Kerosene and toasty honey notes. The Canberra district is an ideal district for quality Riesling with neighbours Helm, also a reliable excellent producer. This wine won best Canberra Riesling, Best Riesling, Best White, and Champion Wine of the Show at the Canberra Regional Wine Show. A full house of Trophies! — 8 months ago

Freddy R. Troya

9.4

2013 Kelham Vineyards “Sons” Proprietary Red – Oakville, Napa Valley

Crafted by Rawson Kelham and inspired by his wife Susanna’s love for balanced reds, “The Sons” is a masterful blend of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, and 10% Sangiovese. Lovingly bottled by Rawson’s stepsons—who’ve been at the helm of this line for over 20 years—this 2013 vintage was cellared until 2016, with just 300+ cases produced.

Now, over a decade since harvest, this wine is a revelation. The blend unfolds seamlessly-structured, layered, and impossibly harmonious. Aromatically, it’s a mature tapestry of dark cherries, dried herbs, cedar, and hints of worn leather. On the palate, it’s intense yet controlled: lush black fruit, plum, a whisper of tobacco, and an echo of sweet balsamic reduction that brings complexity without weight.

What’s most striking is its youthful acidity—this bottle feels alive, still pulsing with energy as if it’s just waking up. That freshness paired with age-built depth makes it one of the most compelling wines I’ve had from Kelham (and I’ve had many—see my past notes!).

This is Oakville at its best. Bold, nuanced, timeless.

Speechless after the first glass. Crazy delicious.
Cheers! — a year ago

Bob McDonald

9.4

The 2nd of two vintage Cape Mentelle wines for Sunday lunch. A medium plus crimson red in colour. Notes of mulberry and herbaceous Margaret River characters. Even at 15 years a whiff of French oak. With time in decanter sweet red and black fruits revealed themselves on the medium plus bodied palate. Finishing with velvety tannins. A classic Margaret River Cabernet from a good vintage - the first of 4 bottles from the cellar. Loved this with a Porterhouse Waygu score of 4. Cape Mentelle was one of the early stars of Margaret River, with David Hohnen at the helm they won 3 Jimmy Watson trophies in a row in the early 1980s. Nowadays owned by LVMH. Had another 52 weeks later on 7th January 2024 with consistent notes. Still have 2 left. Have next in 2025 and then the last one anytime up to 2028. I ended up having the 2nd last one on 8th June 2024 with consistent notes as previous. I had the last one on 26/7/25 with consistent notes. No real change from previous tasting. Mulberry. — 3 years ago

Travis W

9.0

Top shelf Riesling. Aging beautifully. Drank over two days. Love aged Canberra district Riesling. Generally I've found that they need at least a decade to integrate. Balance of citrus fruits and talc. So different from Eden and Clare. This will go another decade easily. — 4 years ago

Kevin

9.3

Fantastic cooler graves vintage. Tertiary aromas really coming through with wet leaves and leather taking the helm. Backed up by the primary black fruit all sitting neatly on a clean peppery, vanilla oak. — 5 years ago

Martinez

9.0

La Montesa by trailblazing winemaker Alvaro Palacios at the helm of the family estate Palacios Remondo in Alfaro, Rioja Oriental/Rioja Baja, the sometimes snubbed, southernmost subzone within the Rioja appellation. Fruit is sourced from from Palacios Remondo’s eponymous 90-hectare vineyard on the northeastern slope of Monte Yerga, at an altitude of 1,800 feet. Fresh, elegant, refined, structured. Juicy fruit, spicy finish. — 6 years ago

Isaac Pirolo

9.4

With friends in town during Thanksgiving, I hit up some wineries that I’ve been curious about. Super cool experience at Aonair. Grant Long, Jr has created something special there, and with David Yorgensen at the helm with the wines, it feels all dialed in. Their Grenache was a surprise to me. From El Dorado and there’s some initial funk, but it blows off and what’s left is a balanced, mineral driven, but kirsch laden, and yet still, a bright style wine that’s quite reminiscent of something from Chateauneuf du Pape. — 8 years ago

Ming L

9.2

Aston was one of two Pinot projects by Schrader, Boar’s View being the other. I believe it’s now solely under TRB’s helm.

The winery makes just two bottlings: one mostly from sourced fruit, and this, from 100% estate vines. The nose offers ripe plum, cranberry, black cherry, cedar, a touch of baking spice, and steeped tea. The palate is generous yet lifted by bright acidity, with a hint of sweetness on the long finish. Should have 5–6 more years of prime drinking ahead. — 10 months ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.3

Quite good and a big surprise, this was about as good a red as I have had from Givry/Chalonnais. Talented next generation at the helm! — a year ago

Vanessa

9.1

We’re very sad this is among the last of Kitá Wines on the market… Yet we’re also very grateful to still have a couple of bottles to sip and savor over time.

Kitá Wines was situated in Santa Ynez Valley AVA, within the broader Santa Barbara County of the Central Coast of California, where conditions can range from cool and foggy to warm and dry, depending on your proximity to the coast.

The winery was founded in 2010 by the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians with renowned Winemaker Tara Gomez (a Chumash descendant) at the helm of day-to-day operations. Kitá Wines closed in April of 2022, leaving an indelible mark on the wine industry with a lasting (and award-winning) reputation for impeccable quality and deliciousness.

This wine is the 2014 Kitá Wines “Kalaš” red blend, comprised of 48% Merlot, 38% Cabernet Franc, 9% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 5% Petit Verdot, with 13.5% ABV.

It had a medium garnet hue and vibrant notes of black cherry, blackberry, black currant, plum, violets, green bell pepper, cedar, nutmeg, vanilla, leather, tobacco, and graphite. — 2 years ago

with Deked1

Peter Sultan

9.1

First vintage without the merkalbach brothers at the helm, & I’m not bothered at all- in fact has that blend of mouthfeel intensity, lithe & substantial still going for it. I think this drinks more like the sweeter kabinetts out there (that’s a compliment).For about 20$ a screaming bargain as well. — 4 years ago

Chris McClellan

9.1

Great way to end the nite…plush merlot, black cherry cake, surrounded by American oak….merlot is always winner with Ridge at the helm… — 5 years ago

Sipping Fine Wine

8.9

An 18th century chateau, overlooking the Isle valley, facing Pomerol and the Saint-Emilion limestone hillsides, belonged to the same family for three centuries took over by Michel Rullier in 1955, and his daughter Brigitte took the helm in 2002. Dark Ruby with an array of berry aromas and smoky scents. On the palate plum and cherry flavors with cacao, tobacco and smoky cedar notes with herb spice. Firm chalky tannins, long finish ending with earthy mineral notes. Still tasting ok, but drink now! — 6 years ago

Martinez

9.2

One of the first and most acclaimed vintages since the Frey family – also owners of Domaine Paul Jaboulet Ainé in the Rhône Valley- took the helm at La Lagune. Blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and 10% Petit Verdot from the estate’s 80-hectare estate in Haut-Médoc. Earthy, powerful and complex. Cassis, black peppercorns, leather and forest floor. — 6 years ago