Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

One of the best wines and Cabernets in the tasting. Made by Sam Kaplan. 95-97 with 10 years of proper cellaring.

It is blended from the following sites; Beckstoffer Dr. Crane Vineyard, Beckstoffer Las Piedras Vineyard, Vine Hill Ranch Vineyard, Weitz Vineyard, and Oakville Ranch Vineyard. Not inexpensive $300.

The name, Memento Mori, is taken from an ancient Latin philosophy that reminds us of our mortality and the inevitability of death. So, forgo patience, I guess?

WS Grand Tour Las Vegas 2025. — 18 days ago

Ron from VA

8.9

It was ok - it lacked style & polish — 6 months ago

KRISTIE

8.9

Longevity is…A lifestyle. It’s about loving what you live, and living what you love. The heart on our label represents this love of life and family. Our family practices this philosophy everyday in developing our wines. Ultimately it’s about the experience, it’s about living, loving, and sharing that experience with others. — 2 years ago

Jay Kline

8.9

While this doesn’t make an impression like Saint Cosme or charm quite like Gour de Chaulé, this is noteworthy for its accuracy and QPR. Let’s try not to overthink this wine. It’s quaffable and tastes like Gigondas from 2017 i.e. abundant red and dark fruit with good structure and silky texture. Continuing the trend towards higher quality, this is yet another example of Caroline Frey’s philosophy taking over at PJA. — 4 years ago

Ericsson

9.6

If you know, you know.

Just eying the bottle evokes a sense of mysticism—these are increasingly rare sightings, relics of a winemaking philosophy nearly lost to time. Opening it after a recent visit to the winery feels familiar, almost fated.

The color holds strong despite its 20+ years, with a core of garnet that defies its age. On the nose, memory takes over: the scent of the underground cellar, the mold-covered walls, the rustic perfume of wood and brick. Then come the classics notes—dried rose petals, red berries, and a whisper of spice.

The palate surprises with more volume than the bottle’s vintage muster’s. Lively red fruit mingles with savory earth and warm spice, carried by silken tannins. The finish lingers with a trace of wet oak, grounding the experience in place and time.

This is a wine of lineage, character, and quiet perseverance—a style too uncommon today. Most importantly, it was opened, shared, and deeply enjoyed. — a month ago

Jay Kline

9.2

One of my favorites in the in Bourguignon-style of Beaujolais are those of Thibault Liger-Belair. What I adore about Thibault’s approach is that his winemaking philosophy seems to suit M-à-V so well. Popped and poured; no formal notes. The 2016 “Moulin-à-Vent VV” is full of the undeniable dark fruit and structure and yet, incorporates a funky charm that seems to bridge Nuits-Saint-Georges and Beaujolais perfectly. To my palate, these 2016 VV’s are just entering the early part of their drinking window. I still think this is developing and it will take another few years before the secondary characteristics begin to show and that’s when the magic really starts to show with these wines. All of the pieces and parts are there…all that is required at this point s a little more patience. Good now but better with a little patience and after 2026. Should be awesome well through 2036 — 2 years ago

Delectable Wine

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9.8

When I tasted the 2018 Pontet-Canet in barrel I described it as a "freak of nature." The 2018 is more than that, it is a freak of nature. Made from yields of just ten hectoliters per hectare, the 2018 possesses off the charts richness, phenomenal balance and head-spinning intensity. Crushed red berries, flowers, mint, cedar and rose petal saturate the palate in a Pauillac of breath-taking richness. The silkiest of tannins frame the phenomenally pure, long finish. This is a towering achievement from the Tesseron family and former Technical Director Jean-Michel Comme, who together spearheaded biodynamic farming in Bordeaux and built the present-day estate around a philosophy of non-interventionalist winemaking. In 2018, grapes were crushed solely by hand. Because of the tiny yields, the entire production was vinified in Pontet-Canet's new smaller concrete vats. All winemaking was done manually, without the aid of external temperature control or electricity. Put in another way, if Lalou Bize-Leroy made Bordeaux, it would taste like this. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, March 2021)
— 4 years ago

Jay Kline

9.3

This is the standard Côte Rôtie from Agnes Levet that’s a blend of different parcels. However, the philosophy and approach remain the same as “La Chavaroche” and “Les Journaries”. In the past, this bottling was known as “Améthyste” and only recently became more widely available in the US. “Widely” is a relative word, lol.

Opened about an hour prior to service. The 2021 pours a deep garnet/purple with a transparent core; medium viscosity with moderate staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with a gorgeous bouquet all of the different varieties and colors of brambles your heart could possibly desire along with all of the seeds and stems, freshly cracked black pepper, dried herbs, some of the animale, purple flowers some hints of old wood and yes, perhaps a kiss of brettanomyces. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is forever long, drying and loaded with even more black pepper. This is giving me total 2014 vibes and if you liked that vintage in the Northern Rhône (as I did), you’re gonna absolutely love this. Drink now through 2036. — 5 months ago

Bob McDonald

9.0

The first of 12 and an annual purchase for me. Must be the best value red wine on the planet - $24 AUD per bottle. 50% Syrah, 40% Grenache, 10% Mourvèdre. I don’t know what the annual production would be but it would have to be well over a million bottles. I love Phillipe Guigals philosophy in that he says the CDR is the most important wine they produce because it is the wine most people will first be introduced to the Estate. Fresh savoury red fruits with raspberry to the fore. Quaffable and smashable. — 3 years ago

Palmer Emmitt

Owner/Winemaker Judge Palmer

9.0

My philosophy on aging wine - wait until the winery sells and changes its name, then wait another 8 years! Most would assume this wine is over the hill but it shows really well. Lots of red fruit to offer along with some dust, mushroom and other tertiary character. — 5 years ago