Pretty Paddock

Domaine de la Romanée-Conti (DRC)

Échézeaux Pinot Noir 1985

Fading at the edges. Beautiful soft dried herbs, wild strawberry, tang. Translucent and precise on the palate. Complex and delicious and long mature note and hauntingly pretty — 10 days ago

Walker StrangisDavid Schachter
with Walker and David
Jay, Jan and 10 others liked this

Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé

Cuvée Vieilles Vignes Musigny Grand Cru Pinot Noir 2005

Intense and pretty with a bit of VA on the nose at first that blows off. Very pure fruit but still young and quite gnarly. Serious stuff, dark and intense. Will this ever dance lightly? I don’t know… impressive but less drinkable now that the 2000 alongside. — 2 months ago

Steve PollackAmanda Crawford
with Steve and Amanda
Juan, Jay and 9 others liked this
Alan Weinberg

Alan Weinberg

I’m not a fan of the Millet era Vogue. Too Cabernet-like. Older ones can be mind bending.

Château de Beaucastel

Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhône Blend 2019

Pretty.
Glassy Cherry leather stone.
Too pretty. Could use some more personality as it matures. Half bottle.
— 4 months ago

Doug, Austin and 6 others liked this
Austin Hohnke

Austin Hohnke Influencer Badge

“Glassy”, I love that. An apt descriptor for many a CdP.

Château Léoville-Las Cases

Grand Vin de Leoville du Marquis de las Cases Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 2009

Pretty deep , narrow ruby rim. Quite rich , almost exotic nose , dark cassis , dark plum, rich spiced blackberry, touch of cocoa , vanilla, smoke. On the palate this is quite rich but also very elegant with balanced refreshing acidity . Cassis , mineral , grafite , dark cherry. Ripe but very present tannins . Long and refined finish . After a while becoming more mineral and quite serious . Needs time , better in 5-10 years and last well a further 10-15 . This is a very successful showing and though obviously very young is enjoyable and involving to drink at the moment. — 7 months ago

Daniel, Jan and 14 others liked this

Marcel Lapierre

Morgon Gamay 2017

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of a couple of hours. The 2017 (S) pours a garnet color with a translucent core; medium viscosity with moderate staining of the tears and signs of fine sediment. On the nose, the wine is developing with pretty notes of mostly red, tart fruit: strawberry, raspberry, Montmorency cherry, licorice, dried green herbs, menthol, and rocky earth. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium+ and just a touch mousy but within the acceptable range. Refreshing and a lovely pairing with burgers on a warm Spring evening. Drink now through 2032. — 10 days ago

Ceccherini, Lyle and 14 others liked this

Produttori del Barbaresco

Barbaresco Nebbiolo 2018

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of two hours. It’s been almost a year since my last visit with the 2018 vintage and it’s in a very pretty spot right now. All notes previously apply though I should point out that the florals are especially showy right now. The nose is simply beautiful to experience. The fruit remains fresh and mostly red fruited. The structure is still firm. Very, very easy to enjoy on its own or with a meal. Drink now through 2038+. — 3 months ago

Tom, Douglas and 16 others liked this

Salon

'S' Blanc de Blancs Le Mesnil Brut Chardonnay 1997

Medium lemon colour . Very little perlage . This is quite mature on the nose with some orange rind , touch of honied brioche , dried chanterelles and some oyster shell . Some roasted almond , really quite intense on the palate , high refreshing mineral tinged acidity , orange peel , nutty , slightly honied long and quite electric finish. This holds up pretty well in the glass becoming more chalky and mineral. Drink now and over the next few years, at least on this showing . — 4 months ago

Vino, Ira and 6 others liked this

R. López de Heredia

Viña Tondonia Reserva Rioja Tempranillo Blend 2004

Medium ruby garnet quite narrow terracotta rim . Quite herbal , dried strawberry and red cherry nose , touch of iodine , sous bois , dried mushroom notes , discreet roasted coffee note after a while. Quite pretty red fruits on the palate with good freshness , strawberry , earthy cherry and a marine , iodine like note , sous bois underneath . Quite elegant and well balanced acidity with fine tannic grip . Good red fruit , earthy tinged finish . This is showing more advanced than the 2001 Reserva , and would like to try another bottle of this , as I suspect this half is a bit below par. On the basis of this bottle drink now and over the next 5 or so years . — 24 days ago

Tom, Shay and 4 others liked this

Domaine du Pegau

Cuvée Réservé Châteauneuf-du-Pape Red Rhone Blend 2022

Decanted about an hour in advance and enjoyed over the course of a few hours. The 2022 Cuvée Réservée pours a deep ruby color with a near opaque core; medium+ viscosity with light staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with powerful notes of ripe and tart bramble fruits: blackberries, Marionberries, raspberries, “Oops All Berries!!”, garrigue, red and purple flowers, black pepper, licorice, a balance of cool and warm spices, river rock. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from nose; particularly the power and quality of fruit. The finish is long. Early days for the 2022 Cuvée Réservée but holy smokes is it already pretty special. The ABV is a scorching 16% but you would never know it. The power and freshness of fruit with the titanic structure keep everything in balance. Drink now through 2042. — 3 months ago

Andrew, Lyle and 15 others liked this

Ridge Vineyards

Three Valleys Sonoma County Zinfandel Blend 2019

Very pretty color of ruby with medium intensity and a wide reddish rim.

Pretty nose with nice complexity.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity.

Dry on the palate and complex.

Showing red and black fruits with wood, light licorice, spices, chocolates, tobacco and herbs.

Nice finish with soft tannins and cherries.

This 6 year old Zinfandel based Red blend from Sonoma County is drinking at its peak, and will continue to drink nicely in the next few years.

Elegant and fruit forward. Nicely balanced and soft with a nice mouthfeel. Showing nice complexity at this point.

Wine Enthusiasts 90 points. Wine Spectator 93 points.

Easy drinking and good by itself as a sipping wine.

A blend of 73% Zinfandel, 13% Petite Sirah, 10% Carignan, 3% Mataro and 1% Alicante Bouschet.

14.5% alcohol by volume.

91 points.

$35.
— 6 months ago

Juan, Tom and 9 others liked this