Vanessa

9.3

Ambrosial bouquet with expressive notes of dried cherry, wild strawberry sauce, kirsch, mulberry, blueberry compote, violet, black tea, potpourri, black licorice, star anise, clove, vanilla, crushed stone, leather, and forest floor.

Highly structured, with broad shoulders, on the palate. It’s delicious now, even as a baby, with runway to age, soften, & gain additional dimension. 😍 — a month ago

with Deked1

Jenks

9.0

Back on track, this is tasty. — 10 months ago

Vanessa

9.1

This wine has a deep ruby hue with medium(+) intensity of ripe and supple black plum, red plum, fig, black cherry, blackcurrant, blackberry, violet, licorice, leather, sweet tobacco, cedar box, nutmeg, cardamom, coconut, and dill notes.

On the palate, this wine is dry with medium(+) acidity balancing smooth medium(+) tannins and the ripeness of aroma and flavor characteristics. It is delicious!!! And complex. It has runway for further aging in bottle. — 2 years ago

with Deked1

Ron from VA

8.9

Note: this rating is for this vintage when in its prime (secondary development)… as I pull this from the cellar it is clearly in 25% decline from tertiary development.  as I have come to learn, very hot, high sugar vintages do not work long-term for 100% PV bottlings. There simply is not enough tannin and acid to contend with the higher alcohol/sugars for long term aging - so 2010’s are out of runway at about 8ish years. I pushed this one to 11… But that is the purpose of my experimentation in East Coast wine aging. So what did it taste like: Mulberries and leather with sweet prune finish - quite similar to an UNFORTIFIED PORT. served admiral Voy with our fatty brisket as a stand in for California Zinfandel. All was not lost ;) — 3 years ago

Vanessa

9.4

The Rocca family makes Barbaresco wines today from various places, but their Rabajà vineyard is a PRIZED family heirloom, first acquired by Luisa and Francesco’s grandfather in the 1950s. The Nebbiolo vines now have an average age of 50-60 years. 🍇

Here we have the 2007 Bruno Rocca ‘Rabajà’ which is pale garnet in appearance.  Nebbiolo can make unexpectedly pale wines, despite having such a strong structure of tannins & acidity that provide runway for aging in the bottle 👀

As a ‘Barbaresco DOCG’, we know this wine was legally required to undergo extensive aging before release, softening tannins and lending complexity through secondary characteristics. 🪵

Indeed, this wine is layered in aromas and flavors including fig, red plum, black cherry, pomegranate, potpourri, rose, dried orange peel, black licorice, sandalwood, vanilla, nutmeg, cardamom, clove, star anise, tobacco, cigar, forest floor, mushroom, and leather.  It’s gorgeous and in an amazing place 😍

Cheers to the talented Rocca family and the deliciousness of this Rabajà Nebbiolo expression!!
— 2 months ago

with Deked1

Jason Keefer

9.1

Christmas spicy and but mellow, integrated, and smooth. Had aged very nicely and drinking great, but near the end of the runway. — a year ago

with Natasha

Ron R

9.5

Truly outstanding Independence Day after burner. Broke my mid week fast for this Spanish domination.
Ethereal and focused. Still plenty of runway ahead of it. — 3 years ago

Ron R

9.6

I showed this wine some respect today. First I carefully decanted it, as I rarely do. The nose displayed spice box with cardamon, cloves and a hint of cedar. The palate was powerful and dense. Loads of mature blueberries and black fruits. Tannins are bolt upright. Acidity is perfectly poised. Finishes sweet and with texture. For a second wine, it’s a crime. Has another 5-10 years of runway ahead of it. This is a serious wine. — 4 months ago

with Anne-marie

Ron R

9.4

My favorite Cali pinot. 2015 and still has runway ahead of it.

Presents sandalwood, barrel toast and coffee notes on the nose. Crunchy and somewhat gnarly texture on the mid palate. Overripe cherries are the dominant theme. Tannins and acid are prominent. Drink up if you have em as I consider this to be close to fully mature. — a year ago

with Anne-marie

Rich Huber

9.7

One of the best chardonnays I have had in quite some time. Sea air and beach bonfire on the nose. Beautiful balance of fruit on the palate. This is a 2014,which by the way is one of Runways current releases. It’s amazing to find a producer releasing such established — 3 years ago