Kevin Løk

8.9

This isn't amazing but cool climate reds speak to me. — 9 months ago

with Caroline

Alexandre Pagliano

9.2

We think something has changed at Montrose after the departure of Jean Bernard Delmas. Its not a bad wine by any means but the style is modern and extracted. At ten years this ie very drinkable and great quality but does not speak to its terroir as it used to. Hope its just one year… — a year ago

with Jose, veronique and 1 other

Kurt Schuster

9.0

Waxy and chewy, crisp, floral, and mineral notes with delicate flavors. Not much of a nose to speak of.  — 3 years ago

Marc Fagelman

8.9

Speak easy, drink easy! What a great BBQ wine — 3 years ago

Lauren Golanty

9.0

Delightful! Full bodied, no green pepper to speak of, earthy and layered. Some pepper and Cassis notes. Very tasty. — 5 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

If you have not had this producer of Shiraz from Barossa, you are missing out on some special wines from very old vines. In the case of “The Relic” 100 year old vines. We walked the Standish Estate vines w/ Dan in April 2017. They yield a paltry 500 pounds of fruit per acre. Normally, very high quality wine are around 2,00-2,500 pounds of fruit per acre. So, his wines are from small concentrated berries.

You won’t find his wines in the US except on the secondary markets. He doesn’t have or need a US importer as he sells everything he makes through his mailing list. However, worth seeking out. Also, his wines need to age and you can find them this old. I have numerous times.

Dan started out in Barossa and then gathered much of winemaking knowledge working his way through Europe for several producers and a majority of them in France.

When he returned to Australia, he became the Winemaker at Torbreck before starting “The Standish Wine Company.”

I’ve posted several of his wines with detailed notes and will let them speak here. Cheers!

— 5 years ago

Jonathan Cullum

9.3

I really like this. I went into the wine shop in Belfort France, the guy didn't speak English but I told him I wanted something from the loire and this is what he gave me. Medium body with elegance and substance. — 7 years ago

Randy Fuller

9.3

This wine is a medium garnet in color. The somewhat muted nose offers aromas of jammy blackberries, a bit of earth, some black pepper and anise. The palate is loaded with dark fruit and cherry, with very fine tannins. It’s a smooth sip. It’s also a fresh sip, as the light touch of oak lets the grapes speak for themselves. — a year ago

Brad Jensen

9.5

This was really unique and special. A nose that has some proper wild hints, like a natural wine, but with big bold fruits and an underlying musk, like a wet mulch, that playing in the background. Medium bodied with a deep red/purple color, the palate is more red fruit than the blue on the nose, with hardly any tannins to speak of. The palate has no sign of age, with prominent tart cranberry, rich minerality, slight smoke, and hints like Concorde grape, and some jammy raspberry or blueberry in there as well. Dry, fruity with a mineral spine, with a weight that plays lighter than it looks or smells. — 2 years ago

Shay A

9.3

Love what Epoch is doing at the estate, and have always been a fan of the wines. This 2013 is 82 Syrah/18 Mourvèdre, all from Paderewski vineyard. Followed over two days.

From start to finish, everything about this is Paso. Any time a wine can speak to place, that’s a checkmark for me. As most high quality Paso wines do, this has a weightless yet jam-packed fruit profile. Decidedly dark, but with 11yrs, it’s fading from black fruits to a kiss of red fruits. Mixed berry jam initially on the nose before it shows a spiced profile of cherry jerky, espresso, red and black currant and a sweet dark fig at the finish. Day 1 showed the spice upfront whereas day 2 showed the softened fig profile. Both enjoyable, just different. Enjoy over the next few years before this sheds its classical fruit. — 2 years ago

Aravind A

9.1

Pop and pour. Bottle sputtered open. A bit tired, but not lacking in interest. On the nose: faded, but apricot preserves, lemon, loads of honey. On the palate: solid acidity, little mousse to speak of, but lime, vanilla, honey, almond, apricot preserves. Would probably have been better 10 years ago, but fascinating nonetheles. — 3 years ago

Ron R

9.4

Wifey is out of commission, so to speak, so I had to hunt and provide. Locked in on jerk chicken with roasted veggies.
She wanted something light in the glass (relative to cab), so I opted for Aston. Nose presents cinnamon. Mid palate is gnarly, rustic and textured. Loads of barrel toast and a hint of tart cherries, with prominent acidity. Finish keeps going… we may have under clubbed our rating. — 5 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.0

Mid Lemon in colour. Aromas of White Citrus flowers and a note of Mandarin. Lime and lemon on the palate with the citric acid having settled down from its youth. Not particularly complex - just a refreshing German dry Riesling 12% ABV. Good QPR at about $35AUD. Tasted again 18 weeks later on 16th January 2021 with similar impressions. There was mandarin, citrus oil and honey. No complexity to speak of but fresh and well presented - from an excellent producer. — 6 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.6

2002 is such a beautiful vintage IMHO. In many ways, I think even better than 07. We’ll see in five years from now as I lack a time machine.

I’ve said this a couple of times over my nearly 4,200 Delectable notes. There is no amount of decanting a young wine that can reproduce the beauty, elegance, florals, integration, balance and finish as long bottle age. If you are buying expensive Cabernets and drinking them young, you are simply short changing yourself out of your deep investment.

This largely under known Napa producer is a shining example of that tonight. Proof in the pudding so to speak.

The nose reveals, sweet, ripe, lush, ruby, slightly baked/liqueured fruits of; blackberries, black raspberries, black cherries, black plum, understated blueberries and baked strawberries haunt the backend. Dark Asian & Indian spices, black licorice to anise, sweet tarriness, black tea, dark expresso, crushed dry rocks, limestone minerals, herbal notes, mint, incense, graphite, dark chocolate, caramel & mocha, dry top soil, moist clay, dark rich, turn earth with fresh & withering; dark, red, purple, blue flowers & just a touch of violets.

The body is; round, rich & luxurious. The tannins still have baby teeth and show chewy tarriness. The tension, structure, length and balance have hit their peak. It’s not going to improve, it will simply show you descending changes which, can be quite enjoyable but, not necessarily for the ones that appreciate wines young. Interesting, none the less, for the ones that enjoy all sides/aspects of wine evolution. Sweet, ripe, lush, ruby, slightly baked/liqueured fruits of; blackberries, black raspberries, black cherries, black plum, mulberries, boysenberries, more blue fruits than the nose, cherries and baked strawberries haunt the backend. Dark Asian & Indian spices with just the right amount of heat, black licorice to anise, sweet tarriness, black tea, dark expresso, crushed dry rocks, limestone minerals, herbal notes, mint, graphite, dark chocolate, caramel & mocha, dry top soil, moist clay, dark rich, turn earth, fresh tobacco, suede style leather, saddle-wood with fresh & withering; dark, red, purple, blue flowers & just a touch of violets. The ABV on this wine is really nice given today’s hotter wines. Climate change, it’s a bitch. The round acidy is as good as it gets. The long, excellent, elegant, rich, ripe, ruby, gorgeous, sexy, floral, perfectly balanced finish falls into persistent heaven.

This is a gorgeous example of what Napa Valley is capable of in grand vintages, if you have good storage & can show patience.

Photos of; an arial view of Jones Family Winery, patio tasting area, beautiful Jones Family Cabernet fruit and their amazing vineyards. — 6 years ago

Ron R

9.3

Going back to my roots…
I cut my wine tasting teeth (so to speak) on Bdx’s like this, and the good memories come flooding back.
This is a squeaky-clean example displays little signs of age on the nose or palate. Cherries and soft tobacco on the nose give way to ripe tannins and bright acidity on the mid palate. Blueberries and plums are the dominant fruit notes. Expands on the palate becoming ethereal. Peaking now but could sail on for at least another 5 years or so. Predominately Merlot in this excellent blend. — a year ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.4

2019 vintage. Last tasted 10.22.24 (9.4) and 3.20.24 (9.3). Tasted side by side with the 2018 vintage (9.5). Medium-heavy bod. Biggie, encompassing nose. Showing very well currently for an exalted vintage. Finish could use a touch of denouement as it's a bit wild as we speak. Yet, the entire package is fairly formidable currently. Another 4+ years should find this steering into smoother waters and drinking phenomenally. — 2 years ago

Spencer Fox

9.4

where to even begin. feels silly to claim any producer as a "favorite" but how could i not? these wines speak to me on a deep deep level. i prefer the previous vintage, much more precise, touch more elegance, but the '22, a bit more broad but wildly expressive, took me to the same heights that every other enderle pinot has taken me. — 2 years ago

with Austin

Kurt Schuster

9.2

Smooth like Coltrane. No tannins to speak of, wonderfully round and inviting with smooth and wonderful perfectly ripe fruit shot through with vegetable tanned leather and smoked baking spices. It’s interesting because this wine exists outside of the ideas of cooked pies and food and everything in between, it exists a wine. We had it with perfectly cut steaks, asparagus, and sweet potatoes. It complemented it well but at the same time it could stand on its own. This wine slaps you back if you try to push it down. — 4 years ago

Will Stanley

9.1

Really good nose, very inviting and so unmistakably left-bank. Aromas of blackberry, plum, cedar, pencil shavings, earthy quality, tiny hint of vanilla - all round an excellent, well balanced nose.

Palate a little less impressive, with quite a noticeable ‘hole’ in its middle, and some green pepper and tomato vine flavours. That fruit just disappears! Mostly sour cherry, cranberry, and quite a stalky palate with ample acidity, gentle tannins but not great depth to the fruit. It’s still enjoyable, though, and at this price £18 represents v good value.

I feel like this wine is an illustration of how it can hurt to be analytical about wine - dissecting a wine’s qualities and its flaws - as this is really a perfectly good Bordeaux in many aspects and does speak to its terroir. A little more body to the palate and this could’ve been a great wine. — 5 years ago

Josh Morgenthau

9.5

Vivid. All sorts of little purple flowers, the type that bloom early in the spring. Also, some just-ripe cherry, leaf litter, a little leather and pencil shavings. But so so floral. All the hallmarks of this bottling in astonishing balance here. Good acid, supple texture with just the silkiest of tannins. Wowing me already at the young age of 6 (for this wine), I think in time it will be a classic.

This is not a showy wine and won’t please everyone’s taste. But the class and finesse here speak volumes. — 6 years ago