David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

With BBQ Chicken & Roasted, Rosemary Potatoes on opening night of the D&S Lounge.

John Alban’s wines remind me most of all the California producers/versions of North Rhone or Côte-Rôtie wines. Côte-Rôtie translates into for us as “Roasted Slope.” I assume that’s why his craft was dubbed as the “Original Rhône Ranger.”

Although this has the roasted characterizations of those wines, this certainly has more ripe, ruby style fruits. Also, more purple & blue fruits.

John’s higher end wines, Reva & Pondora remind me of the a French producer, Rostaing. Those two vineyard productions more closely mimic the Rostaing style.

The Patrina is a good intro into Alban wines. You can tell it is a direct descendant but, for far less money. The others are better but, this carries the best wine value in their line up.

The nose reveals; roasted & candied fruits of; blackberries, dark cherries, poached strawberries, black raspberries, black plum, black cherries, creamy raspberries & blue fruits. Used, French expresso roast grounds, anise to black licorice, purple fruit cola, coarse, ground, black pepper, dark spices, fresh tobacco leaf, cigar smoke, dry stems, dry crushed rocks, limestone & volcanic minerals, bay leaf, some sage, black tea, black olives, bandaid notes, saddle-wood to cedar, graphite notes with dark, fresh & withering, red, blue & purple candied florals, violets framed in a field of candied lavender.

The body is; lush, ruby, big and like velvet. The tannins are round but, still pack, chewy, tarry, meaty tannins that are 45-50% resolved. The structure, tension, length and balance are in a good place but, will hit a peak in five to seven years. The 2010 Patrina still has room for improvement and will last another 10-15 years. It is simply wine candy. Roasted & candied fruits of; blackberries, dark cherries, poached strawberries, black raspberries, black plum, black cherries, creamy raspberries & blue fruits. Used, French expresso roast grounds, anise to black licorice, purple fruit cola, coarse, ground, black pepper, dark spices with just the right amount of palate heat, grilled meats, chestnuts, fresh tobacco leaf, cigar smoke, dry stems, dry crushed rocks, moist clay, limestone & gritty volcanic minerals, dry stone, bay leaf, some sage, black tea, black olives, Steeped black tea, bandaid notes, saddle-wood to cedar, graphite notes with dark, fresh & withering, red, blue & purple candied florals, violets framed in a field of candied lavender. The acidity is phat & round. It holds the slightly elevated alcohol level nicely. The finish is excellent & consistent wire to wire. It’s long, ruby, candied fruits with just the right balance of earth that persists endlessly.

Just misses 9.4.

Photos of; the best room in our house for 6+ months of the year, our backyard. Aka, the D&S Lounge on Memorial Day Weekend 2020. — 11 days ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.3

Nose is a bit subdued out of the gates. Some mineral, some feral, some spice. But palate is full blown awesome 15 in full glory. Dense, juicy, meaty and so packed with dense berry fruit. Long and so fresh, I mean really long. This is so good. I’ll be back as the nose opens up.

After 12-15 hours open nose is meaty, minty, granitic, spice, feral, herbs and a hint of sauvage floral. — 8 days ago

Bob McDonald

9.6

As with all of the top Cuvées of Sami Odi there is a lot going on with the wine as a product of ancient vines going back to 1912. Ripe plums, black olive, earth, some game and meaty notes and prune. Bold flavours delivered with a trademark silky texture with supple fluid tannins. Rich chocolatey notes on the palate mingling with the ripe plum. Followers of Sami Odi will know that Fraser often blends 2 or 3 vintages but with “Baby Tui” the 2012 vintage was so good that it stood alone. The unusual and attractive label is apparently a collection of vintage match box labels belonging to Fraser’s grandmother I believe. Correct me if I’m wrong. I have one of these gems left in the cellar. — a day ago

Lee Pitofsky

9.4

From one of the King’s of Rhône, JL Chave, and from the great ‘03 vintage. A real pleasant surprise how well this showed. A true representation of terroir and it’s region. Still alive and well and maybe not even peaked. Animalistic, powerful and intense. Black fruits, camphor, dried herbs and spices. Really impressive depth and complexity. Finishes with excellent length as well. Thrilling. — 7 days ago

Chris Shultz

9.6

This is really fragrant and perfumed, but wild as hell. There’s not a fruit in here that isn’t wild: wild strawberries and raspberries, and maybe even watermelon at first. But meaty and wild. Savory rich florals: curry plant and violet and rose. Really soulful and organically balanced. Unique as all hell, has a human feel. I’ve never had a cote rotie like this one. Really drinkable tannins. Excellent. — 3 days ago

with Lyle

Eric Núñez

9.2

Inky red. Lots of fruit on the nose, jammy almost. The mouthfeel is slightly fruity with pronounced notes of tobacco and leather. Sleek peppery finish, of course. Decanting for a couple of hours is highly recommended with this (2012) vintage. It is at its peak: it is bold, tannic, dry and slightly acidic. Amazingly savory Napa Syrah! — 2 days ago

Eric Guido

9.0

Ripe blackberry, cherry, sweet tobacco, cola, smoke and hints of vanilla, all waft up from the 2015 Ampelos Syrah Gamma.  It's soft on the palate, mixing minerals with ripe dark berries as zesty acids tug at the cheeks and hints of savory herbs resonated toward the close.  The finish is long, yet this is no blockbuster, instead wonderfully pleasant and poised, still showing blue and black fruit with gentle tannins and a hint of tart citrus.  Don't overt think it, just enjoy. — 2 days ago

Chris Shultz

9.6

Wow. Super perfume right away. In the first 10 minutes it’s changed five times. Now it’s really tingly in the nose. There are none of the super black austere fruits I’m accustomed to with the northern Rhône. Really rich and fragrant raspberries and black raspberries and purple florals. It’s like candied but without sugar. There is a feral edge, like great sweet charcuterie. The finish is really long and clean and mineral with good full tannins. Really in a class by itself (For me). Wow. — 3 days ago

with Lyle

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

What a nose. Gorgeous leather, flowers, beef blood, smoked meats, gamey, floral like crazy, so so aromatic. Superb aromas. 9.5 on the nose. So clean, layered and pure. Just a stunning nose. Truly a thing of beauty. Palate is silky, deep, substantial and gamey. Velvety tannins and terrific freshness. Long finish and super pure fruit on the palate. Significant tannins. So so elegant. What a wine. Terrific inner mouth aromas and so pretty. Inner mouth florals mixed with meats. Commentated and exquisite fruit. Totally whack wine. Best 14 CR I’ve had. — 7 days ago

Eric S

9.3

Blackberries, meaty minerals, and cheesy socks. Big acid and almost hot but not in a bad way. Big big wine in great shape. Nose is slightly corked or would have rated higher. Nothing of the kind on the palate. Weird Coravin experience- when I pumped it the cork came about 1/3 of the way and the nozzle spit wine at me. Guess I’m killing the whole bottle tonight. — 2 days ago