Ericsson

9.3

Truly, on of the Napa great wines. With the myth himself, Steve Matthiasson. — 3 months ago

BS

9.0

Bright and tart, minerals — 3 years ago

Brandy Markovich

8.9

Nice fruity zin, no pepper, smooth — 4 years ago

Erika Barber

10

We both like!? Smooth and berries — 5 years ago

Shay A

9.3

My bottle of choice for the WNH virtual tasting (@David L , @Shawn R , @Eric LaMasters , @Joe Lucca , @Mike R , @Bill Bender , @Carl Fischer ) with a theme of 10yrs or older, chosen by Eric.

A beautiful bottle of aged Shiraz from a lovely producer. Double decanted in the event there was sediment but there was hardly any (cork was pristine as well). Where some Aussie Shiraz can come across boozy and out of sync, this is a great restrained example. Followed over a few hours and the aromatics didn’t change much...mostly raspberry fig, baking spices, tobacco and smoked meats accompanied by a touch of age. The palate was a reality check...totally youthful. Vibrant and juicy. Tart strawberries, rhubarb and black cherries. Fleshy. Gained some weight as it opened showing liqueur, boysenberries, licorice and overripe mixed dark fruits. Beautiful example of aged Aussie Shiraz. Not getting any better, but not falling off a cliff any time soon. Kudos to the man, myth and legend, Bill B. — 6 years ago

Ron R

9.7

The man, the myth, the legend (Mike Smith, with his wife) decided to throw us a bone and grace our dinner. How cool is that?
This wine is so complete. A meal on its own. Black as the night in the glass. Nose displays maple syrup and a hint of balsam. Huge mouthfeel, with a teeth-staining extraction. So plush and sweet. Still very primary, more bottle age will take this to an even better place. Anne-Marie (my wife) in the middle. From magnum. — 8 years ago

with Mike, Anne-marie and 7 others

Lyn Farmer

9.1

So much for the myth that Beaujolais doesn't hold up over time. This 2009 is vibrant with deep red fruit, soft tannins and we'l-balanced acidity. Forest floor and wild raspberry are in the mix. Long on the palate, a beautiful wine with another few years ahead though irresistible now — 9 years ago

with Harley

Diana Gifford

9.0

This was lovely addition to pizza! — 6 months ago

with Melany

Ellen Clifford

9.3

Honestly I don’t remember the last time a wine made me shriek “F#iK YEAH” so... let’s lead with that this is sapid AF. One of those wines that is so layered but also you get them all at the same time so you are smacked down with I dunno...perfection? Really rich in ripeness that feels like a clove studded orange to me. Something that hits like lemonheads but maybe gold and mysterious incense...gold myth and frankincense? It’s hard to give precise taste metaphors when a wine is unapologetically itself. Why find tasting notes on a wine if the wine could be the taste itself? — 4 years ago

Ellen Clifford

9.1

Pepper, Frankincense and myrrh or is it myth—things I’ve smelled in incense. Perky acid and tannins and...why do we not drink more Jura? We should. — 6 years ago

Amit Srivastava

9.0

C C Ranch ! Great wine . Solid. 2011 myth follows!
And yes Yodlee went ipo that day. — 7 years ago

with Gunja

Alexander Vadas

9.4

This was great! Purity, vivacity, tension, ethereal nose. Must be whole cluster. I heard they insert this blind into DRC tastings...could be a myth. — 8 years ago

Rob Brobst III

9.4

Beautifully balanced. This one disproves the myth on the 2011 vintage. — 9 years ago

GHol

9.0

Very interesting wine. Typical Bollinger style and stuffed full of flavour. Similar to other '04s I've had. First time if tasted VVF and currently holding my view whether it's more myth than fact. Luckily have a few more bottles to test the theory on! — 9 years ago

Shay A

9.4

A group of guys decided to meet up at our Wine Storage facility and bust out some unique bottles! Scores and notes to follow!

I have two of these courtesy of the man, the myth, the legend, @Martin G Rivard . WOW. Out of the 15+ wines that were opened tonight, this was easily in the top half, if not near the top 5. Intoxicating nose. Cork was basically black. Blueberry compote and blackberry preserves on the nose. Vanilla and plum finish. Hands down the best mixed black wine I've tasted to date. Martin, THANK YOU! — 9 years ago

with Mark and Weston

Ericsson

9.4

Myth or Truth? Curious what you all think. — 9 months ago

Her Mir Tage

9.6

Charles Noellat 1976 Richebourg

Each bottle opened is one less in existence; without it, there would be no subsequent legends of Domaine de la Romanée-Conti or Henri Jayer.

Aged yet remarkably robust—it’s surprising how well this bottle has been preserved.

· After opening for half an hour: notes of honey, dried rose petals, and dried preserved fruits.
· After an hour: aromas of red dates, cinnamon, and a hint of spices.
· Overall impression: The fruit profile still dominates, with no woody notes emerging. The structure of Richebourg remains present, showing a rounded, ripe fruit character.

The year 1976 was renowned for its "hot, dry summer." The growing season offered ideal conditions—plenty of sunshine, high temperatures, and almost no damage from hail or other severe weather. These conditions led to perfect grape ripening. The wine is full-bodied and lush, with mature, soft tannins and very ripe, almost jam-like red fruit flavors (such as ripe cherry and strawberry jam). It still has aging potential, and this bottle retains well-balanced acidity.

What’s more, 1976 saw the famous "Judgment of Paris"—a tasting that broke the myth of the Old World’s invincibility, reshaped the hierarchy of the wine world, and established New World regions (especially California) on the international stage. It truly shows how fascinating blind tastings can be!

Next time, I’d love to try a 1976 California wine and compare the experience. — 9 months ago

Ericsson

9.0

I’ve seen mixed reviews on this wine and must advise to properly aerate this bottle. Initially the nose is tight and the pallet a little too acidic. After about an hour though, the wine really opens up to scents of blackberry, raspberry, sweet tobacco and cocoa. On the pallet there is red plum, raspberry, blackberry, and vanilla with a medium plus body, medium alcohol, medium acidity. The wine is dry with a sharp dark chocolaty finish. Definitely not a pop and pour kind of wine despite its youth. If you have the time to spare the wine will pay dividends, both, in tasting experience and value.

PS This a high altitude wine; grapes grown at over a thousand meters above sea level in the Andean Slopes, and I’m tempted to correlate its initial tightness with it; however, there is no evidence to back it up my assumption. May be just a myth, but cheers to myths! — 5 years ago

Ron R

9.6

The man, the myth... his cellar was stormed. This Palmer was opened for 90 mins, and it presents like it was just bottled. Beautiful detail of toasted oak on the nose. Palate shows rich, extracted black fruits, with bold tannins. Bowled over with how this showed today. — 7 years ago

with Andrew and Rick

Roman Sukley

9.9

2005 Sine Qua Non "Atlantis Fe203-2a" California Grenache
15.3% alcohol. 93% Grenache and 7% Syrah. So I return yet again to sing the praises of one Manfred Krankl, the Man, the Myth, the Legend. I originally pulled this bottle for an El Ideas dinner I was unfortunately unable to attend. The bad news is that I missed the artistry of @phillipfoss. The good news is that it’s here tonight. This is a wine that demands your complete and undivided attention which it never would have received in a restaurant setting with other wines. It needs to be doted on like the pretty girl at the dance. It needs to be the absolute center of attention. One of the highlights (and there are legion) of any SQN for me is the aromatic extravaganza I’ve come to expect, and this wine’s initial profile when the cork is pulled is akin to walking into a florist. That perfumed fragrance just floods the room. More swirling reveals sandalwood, anise, dark berries with some orange peel and just a touch of mint. It’s intense. It’s like when the server removes the cloche on an @grantachatz Alinea dish, and that scent wafts up and just engulfs you. You become immersed in that sensory overload. The show continues with an initial palate of succulent red fruits and kirsch, with notes of dark chocolate, espresso and that mint I mentioned on the nose. Subsequent returns to the glass reveal hints of grilled meats, sage and forest floor. Tannins and texture are pure silk. Persistent, fresh and slightly spicy finish of great length. The wine is beautifully integrated. Complex. Elegant. Wonderfully pure. Perfection? Let’s just say that if this wine isn’t first in its class, it doesn’t take long to call the roll.

— 8 years ago