Ed Chin

9.3

Drinking really nice right now. Dark fruit with a brightness to it. The baby fat is gone and its maturity is starting to show. It rides the line between modern and old school Napa effortlessly. — 3 months ago

"Odedi"

8.9

Reddish in color with a cloudy rim.

On the nose fresh red fruits with light oak and chocolates.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity and fat legs.

Dry on the palate with raspberries, cherries, red plums, currants, light wood, spices, earth, light vegetables, coffee, bitter herbs and black pepper.

Tangy finish with fine grained tannins and tangy raspberries.

This is a tasty Pinot Noir from Oregon. Feels like an old world Pinot Noir.

Still very young and needs a few years in the bottle to mature properly. Showing good potential at this point.

This Single Vineyard Pinot Noir is good right out of the bottle, and better after some air time.

12.9% alcohol by volume.

89 points.

$70. — a year ago

Will Stanley

9.4

Brief notes, but no less justice for this absolutely knockout old-school Stellenbosch Syrah, a wine which transported me to the southern Rhône with its Provençal aromas and full-bodied profile.

Smoked bacon, rendered fat and black pepper give this varietal away, though, and only the faintest bricking of colour give a suggestion of this wine’s age. — 3 years ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.4

2016 vintage. Precious little baby fat left and already plenty of the aged Bordeaux stank in the nose. Supple but has the palate footprint of a pinot. Some blue fruit and cocoa powder on the delicate finish. So much finesse. Drink now or forget for a solid 15-spot…it matters not. Texturally gorgeous and definitely not your average Napa Cabbage-now or then. Ric Forman is the rare producer that straddles the verry old school and new school in Napa and, yet, his wines still remain classical and true vs the 2nd "cult" wave/post-1991 obscenely-scored/fruit bomb/über-extracted/distilled/dance party/reduction sauce-styled ridiculousness so in vogue for the last three damned decades. A welcome respite. 2.28.23. — 3 years ago

Jay Kline

9.1

This was a fun one. A friend of mine, a wine guy that predominately drinks new world Cabernet Sauvignon, was visiting my place and wanted to try something from the old world. I figured it might be fun to try two different expressions of Syrah from the Rhône; one from the North (Auguste Clape’s “Le Vin des Amis” with vines located in and around Cornas) and one from the South (Chateau Fortia “Reserve” from Chateauneuf du Pape). Both bottles were from the same vintage and aged (at least partially) in foudre. Popped and poured. “Le Vin des Amis” appears as a deep, glass staining purple color with medium+ viscosity. On the nose, high intensity with purple flowers and a powerful bacon fat/deli case smell. Funky, but not in a barnyard sort of way; more like a reductive sort of way. The funk eventually blew off after 15-20 minutes. There are blue fruits with a generous amount of black pepper. On the palate, blue and red fruits with black pepper, lavender and iron-like minerals. Medium tannin, Medium+ acid. Medium alcohol. Long, lip smacking finish. A very giving wine that punches way high above its weight class considering this is Clape’s “entry level” wine. Clape’s “entry-level” offering — 5 years ago

Guillermo Gonzalez

9.3

Superb. Needed something to stand up to a bone in rib eye as well as an unruly 1 year old. Deep garnet color. Lot of berries on the nose with hints of smoke and bacon fat. Beautiful long tannic finish. — 5 years ago

"Odedi"

9.3

It's time for my #FridayCabernetfix. Here's a fantastic one from California.

Pretty color of dark ruby with a reddish rim.

Strong nose of blackberries, sweet cherries, black currants, dried figs, tobacco, cedar, leather, vanilla, licorice, spices, dark chocolates, coffee, cola and peppercorn. Great nose.

Full bodied, elegant and smooth, with medium acidity and fat legs.

Dry and very fruity on the palate with blackberries, black cherries, raisins, toasted cedar, leather, vanilla, tobacco, licorice, chocolates, medium roasted coffee, coke, sweet spices and black pepper.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and cherries.

This is a wonderful Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley. Well balanced with nice complexity and a great mouthfeel.

The nose is gorgeous and I just kept on smelling on it for a long time.

This 5 year old is drinking very nicely now, and will continue to age nicely in the next 10 years and beyond.

Good right out of the bottle and better after 90 minutes of airtime.

This Single Vineyard Cabernet is just plain delicious. Tangy and interesting, rich yet elegant.

Aged for 20 months in French Oak barrels (70% new).

14.8% alcohol by volume.

93 points.

$50. — 6 years ago

"Odedi"

9.2

#AgedWineTuesday

Beautiful gold in color.

Strong nose of citrus, lemons, over ripe apples, marzipan, nuts, cedar, spices, light vanilla and herbs.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity and fat legs.

Dry on the palate with apples, pears, light earth, spices, nuts, light honeysuckle, light bitter herbs and white pepper.

Long finish with light almonds and limes.

This 12 year old Chardonnay from Sonoma County is still drinking beautifully. Elegant and rich. Spicy and oily. Nicely balanced with a buttery mouthfeel.

Needs 30 minutes to open up properly, but good right out of the bottle too, and better when not too cold.

Wine Advocate 91 points. Wine Enthusiasts 94 points.

I've had a few vintages of this Single Vineyard Chardonnay, and it is always delicious with age.

Really enjoyed it as a sipping wine, but good with food too.

100% Chardonnay grapes were aged in French oak barrels for 16 months.

14.6% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$100. — 5 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.6

Margaux and Rack of Lamb. I’m in. The 05 vintage…magic!

Lamb w/ just enough fat, spice meet perfect ripe, bright, floral fruits of; blackberries, black plum, dark cherries, strawberries, red & black licorice/cola, perfect mid spice, sweet, lead pencil shavings, charcoal, cedar, not old, not fresh, tobacco, touch of nutmeg, cinnamon, vanillin, pea gravel, dry twig, dry limestone powder, steeped tea, dark, rich soil with dry leaves, herbaceous notes-bay leaf, moist clay, an array of fresh, withering, floral bouquet, amazing, rainfall acidity, perfect, tension, balance, structure and polished finish for days. Absolutely stunning! — 3 years ago

David Kline

9.6

Jumping spider eye bubbles mass in a parabola foam while smaller bubble sheens fill the bursting absences, until the whole becomes an espresso foam, and equally oiled. Unction lacings lean Hebraic but ultimately are the dream fonts writ by the hand of G-d. Mene Mene Tekel Parsin they seem to say before fluttering away as constellations on a starling’s back. Fair warning as this is a heavy purse to carry. Six years in and taking stock. Figs, dates, treacle, raisins, carob, caramel, vanilla bean, sweet potato casserole, bacon fat, mincemeat. Rich on the palate with milk chocolate, molasses, Turkish coffee, gingerbread, candied date, and espresso-tobacco finish. Gloriously integrated and complex complexions.



#oldstockale #oldstock #2016 #northcoastbrewing #bièredegarde #agedbeer #bier #beer #birra #biere #cerveza #northcoast — 3 years ago

Willie Carter

9.2

Dense ruby red with light purple flecks. A wide brim with clear signs of bricking. The nose is certainly not tired with plenty of black olives, licorice, and chocolate cake. Old leather and coffee with dried cherries and plums. A little fat from the grill too just to make it even better.

The American project from Jonathan Maltus of Chateau Teyssier and baby, this is not your standard copy and paste Napa Cab. This is some serious stuff. Big but not huge. Full of depth but not ponderous. Rich and full throttled but not a mess of indistinct fruit. The ripeness of the fruit never crosses the line. Pronounced fruit on the palate with hedonistic cherries and explosive blue fruits. Beautiful vegetal notes along with a burst of green forest. Firm tannins and long finish. Starting to show its age a little so drink them if you got them. I’m not sure these wines are made anymore so if you see any, get them all. — 5 years ago

Richard Portes

9.0

16.5 Good fruit ,m+ length, good acidity, just what you want from a Loire CF. Great with fat fish. Note: 6+ years old, very fresh. — 5 years ago

Aaron Tan

9.0

My first Ardberg and it left quite an impression. Gosh! This was like eating bacon and smoking cigars. Ron Swanson should be drinking this instead of Lagavulin 😂 Truly, it feels like someone decided to bottle up that campfire by the sea that's been drenched in bacon fat from dinner the night before. With water, the marine quality becomes more apparent, but that smoke just remains. Only with great concentration can one discern some fruit notes (citrus). The finish is just all about that endless peat. Surprisingly, this whisky was quite "smooth" despite all the extremities it brought. Definitely need to taste more Ardbegs to understand what's going on - not displeasing, but for now, Talisker's more up my alley in the category of peated whiskies. — 5 years ago

Peter Sultan

9.3

The good: drinking great now, really open knit & accessible, almost pop and pour, and great fruit with just enough of a hint of bacon fat on the finish. Depth too. What I question is its anonymity as a Northern Syrah, & I’m not sure that’s even a criticism. Certainly not old school Syrah, and the delicious factor overrides everything debatable. — a year ago

with Owen

Jay Kline

9.6

Popped and poured but not something I would recommend. The 2017 Cuvée Réservée benefited from some time in the decanter and the Cuvée Laurence would enjoy the same. However, a decanter we had not; nor was the setting appropriate. And while I wouldn’t have described this as shy upon opening, it certainly went from strength to strength with exposure to air and by the last glass, this was sensational. Beautiful dark bramble fruit, salmiakki, black pepper, red flowers, bacon fat, garrigue, old wood, and exotic spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long lasting and ever so sexy. As a reminder, no “Cuvee da Capo” was made in 2017 so there’s no wonder why this is special. Drink now through 2042. — a year ago

Henry Boshoff

9.0

Bok day wine! Very nice wine with best pasta ever! — 3 years ago

with Alicia

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.2

Recently tasted 9.8.21, 7.28.21 and 6.1.21. Like the old Van Morrison album...a period of transition. Mid-palate a tad dumbed-down but the nose is clearer and airy with spearmint and tobacco. Some new cinnamon/clove infiltrating the bouquet and palate now. Still a little richness/baby fat/smoke lurking about but said intensities increasing less every time tasted. Really need to lock and key this until 2030. Good luck. — 5 years ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.1

2014 vintage. Super dry and powerful. Medium bodied but drinking like it’s (ballad of a) the thin man. Smoke/char in the nose. Upfront coffee/tobacco and raspberry flavors but little else. Not a good introductory Bordeaux for the masses. For those already smitten, I can see this going 40+ years but there will never be fat years. This is a (c)lean machine. Monolithic and totally old-school Bordeaux. — 5 years ago

Shengli Hu

9.0

A six-year-old old vine Verdejo. Tastes way more aged than I expected… Dried mango, apricot, strong minerality, salinity, Marcona almond, caramel, dried herbs as well. High levels of linear acidity, full bodied but not fat. 14.5%. Grippy phenolics coating the mouth. — 5 years ago

Anders Berglund

8.9

Fylligt syrligt och lagom strävt. Smak av fat kryddor och vanilj. — 5 years ago