Bob McDonald

9.3

Mates Vineyard is considered the best of the Kumeu River Chardonnay Cuvées but to be honest they are all delicious. This has such stone fruit intensity on the palate together with ripe grapefruit and Cashew. All in balance and drinking superbly. An outstanding new world Chardonnay. A few years left in its drinking window. It will always have that superb fruit and will develop a little more complexity - have the last 2019 in a year or two. — 11 days ago

Lyn Farmer

9.3

A lovely melding of Old World finesse and New World exuberance. Green apple, pear, white peach, ripe lemon oil, flint, acacia, and the barest hint of toasted brioche. Mouth watering acidity but not at the expense of texture. Long, beautifully ripe finish. Stunning. — a year ago

tim heyman

9.2

very good fruit forward tastes like new world cab eaten with pasta bolognesa may 29 2021. 2007 Wine well aged!! — 3 years ago

Shay A

9.3

I’m between 92-93 here, but this definitely has upside. Followed over three days.

Very translucent ruby in the glass. Extremely floral on the nose alongside plenty of juicy red fruit (strawberries, raspberries) and savory herbal spices. If whole clusters were used, it was minimal, but this isn’t a brash new world Pinot with overpowering oak. It trends toward a faint kirsch and black tea finish. I always enjoy Lato’s SRH Pinots and this is a good one now and will be for a solid 5-7yrs. — 4 months ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Opened about four hours prior to service and allowed to breath. Two bottles were opened tonight from the same cellar and one of the corks showed some small signs of seepage but both wines showed equally. No formal notes. The 1997 Opus One pours a fairly youthful looking deep ruby color with moderate signs of sediment and a near opaque core. The nose exhibited powerful aromas of dark fruits, organic earth, tobacco, leather, horse blanket (brettanomyces?!), and fine baking spices. On the palate, the wine is dry and the structure remains quite firm but the texture is plush and almost chewy. The notes on the nose are confirmed and the finish is long and satisfying.

But the tasting notes only tell half the story here. This was consumed alongside a 1990 Chateau Mouton Rothschild. Had these been served together double-blind, I would have absolutely understood if someone called both as left-bank Bordeaux. Yes, the texture was plush and yes, the color was dark(er), but only just. It was just waaaay more Old World leaning to me with the earth and presence of brett. Which makes me wonder, why hasn’t brett been noted very often in other TN’s for this wine? Only (Charlie Carnes and OneFive) really address it directly and maybe this is what most are getting at when they mention “Bordeaux-like” and all the Pauillac vibes. What I can confirm is that these notes were consistent between two bottles from the same case, still in their tissue paper, so I’m reasonably confident that this is characteristic of the 1997 Opus One. I digress; I liked the wine. There, I said it. It was a bit of a one foot in Old School Napa, one foot in New School Napa, handled with an Old World touch. I liked it even better side-by-side with the ’90 Mouton, especially considering the relationship between the two. That being said, folks that can’t get down with a little brett will be turned off by this vintage of Opus. In my case, I would enjoy another opportunity to drink the 1997 some time. Great now with some air to stretch its legs and should be enjoyable through the next decade.
— 9 months ago

Anthony Lombardi

9.1

Generous & powerful. Aromatics are a great mix of flowers & citrus notes with some herbal character throughout. The palate is rich, but certainly balanced. New world to be sure, but structured & balanced. Very good wine. — 3 years ago

Austin Hohnke

9.1

Guessed Walla Walla Grenache blind. Beautiful Pinot with lots of purity. Fruit forward. Multiple blind tasters mentioned the “Italian nose” but palate was all new world. Biodynamic. — 5 months ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Popped and poured, no formal notes. Despite its relative youth, the 2017 Sassicaia is showing very nicely right now. To my palate, this does as good a job as any in deftly straddling New and Old World…and just leans enough towards its structure and non-fruit characteristics to give it a sense of place. To be clear, there is plenty of fresh and delicious fruit, it’s just that the structure and the firmness of the tannin and acid is so “favoloso”. Drinking well in its youth but should drink very well through 2042. — 8 months ago

Michael Mallon

9.0

A new world pinot with elements of the old world: some fruit, forest floor, umami notes, spice. — 2 years ago

MICHAEL COOPER DipWSET

Owner TomeVinos wine shops, WSET Level 3, Blogger www.spanishwinesandmore.com, blog.tomevinos.com

9.0

I preferred the Enemigo red much more than this white #chardonnay it is a new world style with some tropical fruit aromas and a new oak undertone with hints of coconut. It is a well-made wine, fine and delicate. #argentina #mendoza — 3 years ago

with Rosario