The Long Way Round

Smith Madrone

Estate Bottled Spring Mountain District Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

Have It is time for my #FridayCabernetfix


Deep purple in color with a wide reddish rim. 


Nose of red and black fruits with cedar, licorice, tobacco leaf, herbs, cola, Mediterranean spices, light vegetables, earth, dark chocolates and black pepper.


Medium plus in body with medium acidity and long legs.


Dry on the palate with black currants, plums, cherries, cedar, licorice, toast, light vanilla, chocolates, tobacco, diet cola, herbs, coffee, vegetables, pencil lead and peppercorn. 


Long finish with round tannins and tangy raspberries.


This 4-year-old Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley is drinking very fresh and young. Fruit forward with lots of earth notes to compliment it. 


Rich, elegant and not in your face kind of Napa Cabernet. Spicy and tangy. Complex and interesting. 


Showing a really nice nose, once it opened up, with lots of earth notes. Reminds me of a Left Bank Bordeaux. Delicious. 

 

Good right out of the bottle, and better after 2 hours in the decanter. 


Needs more bottle time, and will continue to age nicely in the next 25 years. A good quality wine with good potential to become a 94+ point wine.  


I had a few vintages of this wine, and it truly shines at 20 years of age. 


A good sipping wine that will also pair nicely with a nice piece of steak. Paired really well with my Stilton Blue Cheese. 


A blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17% Cabernet Franc, and a touch of Merlot. Aged in (65% new) French oak barrels for 18 months. 


14.3% alcohol by volume. 


92 points. 


$65.
— 19 days ago

Doug, Ted and 8 others liked this

La Rioja Alta

Reserva Viña Ardanza Rioja Tempranillo Garnacha 2015

This will please some garnacha fans, though I can’t say it’s my ideal Reserva blend. 78% Tempranillo and 22% garnancha, which seems like way too much. Has a sweaty sock aroma that blends with some cherry and vanilla flavors. Almost like a tart cherry pie. The cherry flavors continue throughout with some chocolate and a bit of caramel. Round and silky, and seems loosely structured. Just slightly less dimensional than I would want. — 2 years ago

Jillian Varner
with Jillian
Ken liked this

La Rioja Alta

Gran Reserva 904 Rioja Tempranillo Graciano 2005

Fantastic Aromatics

Traditional Spanish Riojas have the most alluring noses. The cherry fruit smells so sweet and fresh on this. It’s accompanied by American oak which gives it a touch dill and vanilla with brown sugar and cedar.

It’s rich and round and sweet and has no rough edges. The tannins are soft and nice.

If a wine can deliver that same potion on the palate as the nose, well that would be hard to beat. The palate is a tick behind the nose at this point. Maybe a touch closed?
This has a long life ahead…
— 3 years ago

Tom, Daniel and 23 others liked this

R. López de Heredia

Viña Tondonia Reserva Rioja Tempranillo Blend 2011

You're not 40 every day and I wanted a special wine to celebrate that special day. Fortunately the wine bar / open kitchen restaurant we went to had that special wine, amongst 400 references, that I had been desperate to taste for a long while. I didn't take notes so it's all from memory, but the nose is what I liked the most. Coconut notes, leather, cherries, coffee... I spent probably 15 minutes in total smelling that wine. The palate was great with some acid drive, some matter but not in an overwhelming way, some gentle, well integrated tannins in the rear, before a long finish with savoury notes, red fruits, coconut and that gentle grainy tannic layer. A great experience to top up a day to remember.
Oh and if you happen to be in Warsaw, Poland and be looking for a great wine place, make sure to check out Kontakt - wino & bistro.
— 3 months ago

Scott@Mister, Ira and 14 others liked this
Peter van den Besselaar

Peter van den Besselaar Influencer Badge

Congrats Daniel! Fine experience.
Paul K

Paul K

Happy Birthday @Daniel M ! Great wine! Great review!
Daniel M

Daniel M

@Paul K thank you, Sir !

Hubert Lamy

En Remilly Saint-Aubin 1er Cru Chardonnay 2017

Served this beauty on 2 occasions with Vinloq Preservation

DAY 1
👃Precocious yellow fruit (grapefruit and lemon) and green apples, flinty minerals, white pepper, and grassy herbals
👅Lemon oil with white pepper and spirited minerality. The fruit is more round and more restrained than on the nose.
Salty. Great acidity. The oak treatment is spot on. Long dry, mineral laced finish. So good

The remaining wine was Slow Decanted in my refrigerator and finished a week later

DAY 7
Such a glorious nose on this burgundy. Really delightful. White flowers and peach and even some tropical fruit notes. Flinty and expressive. Totally lovely on both occasions

I knew this was likely young but I was curious to try my first bottle. It's clearly drinking well now but it's going to be stellar with more bottle age.
I am looking forward to revisiting another bottle in time🥂
— 2 years ago

Tom, Daniel and 20 others liked this

Château Gloria

Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 2018

Storms have been rolling through non-stop all day with tornado warnings one after another. It is time with a reprieve from the weather to open a 2018 Château Gloria Saint-Julien. This is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 32% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 3% Cabernet Franc.

On the nose there is black cherry, blackberry, black plum, black currant, graphite, violets, chocolate, oak and dark rich soil.

On the palate there is lush fruit of black cherry, blackberry,black currant, cassis, herbs and dark earth.

This is a full bodied wine with a smooth velvety mouthfeel with medium to medium + acidity and medium + smooth round tannins that move seamlessly to a long dark fruit pencil shavings finish. I hope everyone is having a wonderful weekend and as soon as these storms make there way through my weekend will be much better. Stay safe and healthy. Nostrovia! 🍷🍷🍷🍷
— 4 years ago

Aravind, Betsy and 27 others liked this
ESF

ESF

Always love this estate
M. Christopher Roebuck

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Agreed with others... This is always a solid choice!
Peter van den Besselaar

Peter van den Besselaar Influencer Badge

Love every bottle of Gloria

Château Margaux

Premier Grand Cru Classé Margaux Red Bordeaux Blend 2009

Medium deep ruby with thin ruby rim. Quite high toned ripe fruit at first, cassis, blackberry , violet and dry spice. Quite round and generous on the nose still fruit driven. On the palate Ripe fruits, but with good freshness, with cassis blueberry , blackberry and dark cherry . Suave polished tannins and surprisingly fresh acidity. Overall excellent balance. Long with a sweet cassis tinged finish . Rich , round and hedonistic but well balanced overall, just entering its early drinking window where it will probably remain over the next 15 years . — 6 months ago

Tom, Shay and 10 others liked this

Ruinart

Brut Rosé Champagne

Popped and poured; enjoyed as an aperitif prior to dinner. The NV Brut Rosé pours a very pretty pink color with a persistent mousse. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of raspberry, strawberry, spring flowers, some brioche, lemon citrus and minerals. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ acid. The fruit is round in a good way. Balanced. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long and chalky. This is a classy NV Rosé that’s easy for the wine nerd and the crowd to appreciate. Drink now. No disgorgement data. — 9 months ago

Joe, Juan and 13 others liked this

Krug

Brut Champagne Blend 2002

Another night, another insane Krug. Tessa’s palate has certainly been calibrated for this because the blind was instantly untangled by her - this is Krug… 02’ perhaps? Boom! Thanks for sharing this, Toni. Typical Krug opulence, yet so energetic. Just starting to mature, it combined ripeness, great structure, and phenolic grip, with deep mineral drive and acidity. Just hitting it’s stride, but I reckon it still has a long way to go. Love it! — 2 years ago

Josh, Nicolas and 13 others liked this
Severn Goodwin

Severn Goodwin Influencer Badge Premium Badge

Damn 🤤

Joseph Phelps Vineyards

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon

2011 tasted April of 2021. While the flirtatious wines of Bordeaux will, with rare exceptions, betray my trust, I can always depend on Joseph Phelps to provide me with a solid bottle wine.

Year after year, no matter what the stresses of the vintage were, the wine makers at JP know how to produce perfectly balanced Cabs and Cab blends (but they’re not as successful with the non-Cab varietals).

This bottle of JP’s Cab is decade old, and it’s just hitting its stride. Lots of leather, rust, and a hint of mint on the nose. Ripe cherries and pomegranates on the front. The original velvety tannic balance has become just a wee bit tattered over the years. But this new-found roughness provides a youthful and boisterous counterpoint to the rest of the component that are entering a staid middle age (in wine years that is). It’s like your 45-year-old dad going wild and buying a Harley Davidson, then cruising off down the road. You say, “WTF! That’s is the way to live!” Lots of gravely high notes on the mid palate, but the old velvety tannins reassert themselves on the long finish. This is a damn lovely wine!
— 4 years ago

Mike and leon liked this