Nathan Renfro

9.9

Wow! What a nice clean nose of dark fruit. On the palate loads of ripe black and blue fruit. Big and bold wine. Very silky mouthfeel. Minerality, chocolate covered berries. Medium finish. This was my first taste of the ‘15, and I love it! Drinking great now! Purity of fruit is exceptional. — 2 months ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.1

2006 vintage. Lean and mean. Decanted and tasted after 1.5 hrs. Not too much sed. Nice little sprinkling of cocoa powder in a feminine nose but, otherwise, all business and very transactional. Difficult to love and hard to understand with this effort being pretty linear vs what we've come to know/expect/love from this property. Plenty of concentration but lacking that extra oomph of finishing depth and seems like it has topped out/not improving. 9.23.23. — 7 months ago

Sony

9.2

Wow what a generous gift which retails for more than $250. Definitely less nose than expected but super complex! Regarded as one of the finest bottles available on the market today, we were nervous to drink it. That said, the 13 years in the bottle give it a strong alcohol start but finishes smooth and complex. — 9 months ago

Jay Kline

10

Served double-blind as a sort of epilogue to an already epic night. This was served alongside another red wine that was also presented double-blind. Immediately, I called this Southern Rhone and the other wine, Sangiovese from Toscano (it ended up being a 2012 Biondi Santi Riserva). This presented a bright ruby color in the glass with a transparent core. This wine…had an OMG nose. The kind of aromatics that could end all wars and bring a century of peace to all mankind. It’s both powerful and elegant. Both ripe and fresh. An androgynous wine that represents both masculine and feminine with a grace that would make Prince or David Bowie envious. Gorgeously layered red and dark fruits, exotic spices, licorice and garrigue wrapped in the most beautifully textured package imaginable. It reminded me of something similar a previous experience; like Fonsalette…but this was different, there was more here. When you taste this, everything becomes clear. You look at everyone at the table differently; for what you have more in common instead of what makes us different. An experience akin to an Odesza show on MDMA. It’s that profound and then you are forever changed. You wake up the next day, and the day after that, and the day after that and weeks go by and your worldview is different. You see love in everything. And then it was revealed to be a 2010 Chateau Rayas. *Insert expletive*. A magnificent wine. An epiphany and, as far as I’m concerned, perfect. This is not merely a great Chateauneuf du Pape. This transcends the appellation. It should be its own AOC. Drink now or whenever you’re reading this note. — 10 months ago

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

15 person Champagne tasting with friends.

We inserted what we all feeling is more or less the gold standard of n/v Rose’ to pair with duck and goat cheese on crostinis. — 5 months ago

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

There are good steak wines and then there are steak WINES! Not that this is the best wine or steak wines I’ve had. It was simply birthed for steak. Allen Brothers Strip Steak. Seasoned with coarse Garlic Salt/ Pepper and Napa Valley Rub from wholespice.com. If you haven’t had your steak this way, my highest recommendation. The fat & gristle are perfect w/ the 08 Belle-Vue. If you olive oil, heavy coarse salt & pepper your bake potato at 475 for an hour & a half, you’ll discover how great, crispy/crunchy/complex a potato shell can be. Older Bordeaux can be good on its own but with beef or lamb, it’s just a marriage made in heaven. Here’s the rub for my friends & I, we can’t find a steak better than we make. That’s what the Covid years firmed up for us. The 08 vintage was saved with late good weather. It sits somewhere between the good and very good vintages. Drinks better earlier than great to grand vintages. Slightly over achieving its young critical reviews.

The palate shows; drier dark currents-blackberries, black raspberries, black plum dark, not quite ripe cherries, raspberries edges. Dark chocolate baking bar (that’s what French oak does), lead pencil shavings, dark rich earth with dry leaves, limestone powder, dry river stone, dry tobacco, chewy leather, dark, intense spices, nutmeg, some cinnamon, vanillin, caramel hues, saline, fresh & withering, dark, purple flowers with lavender hues, nice acidity with a well structured & balanced, rounded meaty tannin, floral finish that lasts minutes. Medoc is always the place to look for nice wines with value…even better in excellent vintages. Even better in 5 years.

It has another 10 years plus of good drinking ahead properly stored. — 7 months ago

Jay Kline

9.4

Served blind alongside what was eventually revealed to be a 1997 Freemark Abbey. This was the easiest of the pairings to get our heads collectively around as we felt confident this was Bordeaux and the other was from Napa. Unfortunately, I no longer have my notes for that wine but this was particularly memorable because I had held back a glass of the 1970 Montrose and had a lovely time tasting the two of those wines side-by-side. It was remarkable how much they had in common with one another. In fact, the only real difference between the two was that the 2000 just had more of its structure in tact. Other than that, the Montrose DNA was undeniable with loads of all the darkest, blackest fruits: currants and blackberries with coffee, tobacco, and graphite. At nearly 23 years young, the structure remains positively monumental. Despite all of that, it was ever so winsome. The finish was long with wonderful acid and lovely, ferrous minerals. Drink now with patience and over the next handful of decades. — 10 months ago

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.6

Happy birthday Honey. 🥳🎂🎉 🌹

This is absolutely as exquisite as when we had it for Christina’s birthday March 1, 2023. The benefit tonight is time & attention to focus on it. Delicious.

Green apple, lime, lemon pineapple, stone fruits, slightly bruised golden apple and pear, leans into apple cider, cream, ginger ale, nuts w/ skin, very fine powdery chalkiness, limestone, saline, biscuit dough, sea fossils. Amazing body and acidity, fruit blossoms, jasmine, yellow florals and well; structured knitted, balanced, extremely well polished finish that lasts two-minutes. Drinking beautiful now & with time & life for 10 yrs or more. Love you Sofia.

#MaxwellThisWomansWork — 5 months ago

Ericsson

9.5

This is my third and youngest encounter with this elusive Y, and as always it is tastes like the epitome of hedonism. I had to take a moment alone with the wine just to acknowledge that, those who truly love wine, will know exactly what I’m talking about. The predominant flavours on this wine are orange marmalade, orange peel, and fresh tangerine… All working in unison on the palate, no single element ever outshining another. Creating harmony. — 8 months ago

Jay Kline

9.2

Served blind alongside what would later be revealed as the 2005 Mouton. This wine looked, smelled and tasted like mature wine; in all the best of ways. But was it Bordeaux or Napa? The wine alongside it wasn’t really giving us any clues either. There was friendly debate at the table as we vacillated between the two regions. Ultimately however, we seemed collectively set on this being from Bordeaux with some suspecting Mouton. I lack experience with First Growths in general so I couldn’t really offer much to the discussion other than I liked what was in both glasses and one seemed a lot younger than the other while both being lovely. Lo and behold, this was revealed to be the ‘71 Mouton. At this stage, the fruit is mostly desiccated with dried tobacco, graphite and earth. A charming, old Pauillac. I would drink now but this could hang on for longer because Bordeaux. — 10 months ago