Blind. The Harlan was tied for my second/third favorite out of five. The preferential order for me was Colgin, Eisele/Harlan, Bryant, and Chappellet - with the Chappellet not even close to being in…
Wild berry jubilee, cassis, cinnamon, and vanilla Schnapps dominate the profile here. In my previous note a couple of years ago, I characterized the initial experience of this wine as having "a…
A rockstar virtuoso with a Hall & Oats soft soul (or perhaps One Republic - for you Gen Z'er hipsters out there), the Pichon-Longueville Baron presents lovely round edges that caress the black cherry…
Dry and astringent on the initial pull of the cork (we must be in Italy?!), but with about three hours of a decant with a hold on the temperature at a consistent 50-52 degrees, this beauty fans-out…
Boy, this thing was popping off like a fruity Napa cherry bomb for the first few hours of consumption. And...the heat wouldn't quit. Frankly, it was a bit blasted and kinda wonky on first pass.…
Checking in on this wine after a couple of years, I was somewhat surprised how agreeable it was showing. There is a gentle firmness encapsulating the steeped plum and black cherry flavors, but the…
PnP, which was a mistake. A good amount of heat right out of the gate. This bottle was reluctant to let the fruit loose from its youthfully angular frame. A lot of power here that currently overrides…
Seemingly shut down and strikingly less exuberant than its flashier showing back in 2019. Best advice is to leave this alone for a few years. It's a $20 buck chuck (or 'Charles' I suppose, since we…
You might be utterly shocked to hear this, but the 2012 Bevan EE is a big, beefy, and slathering mouthful of black smoothie fruit that completely coats the palate and finishes with gushing viscosity…
This bottle was a shy guy throughout most of consumption. After three hours with the cork off and swirling in the glass, it found depth and a dollop of richness. Otherwise, it was in the friend zone…
Blueberry pie, plum, and black cherry notes make for a ripe and ultra-modern showing. Though it's certainly a big mouthful, its overall intensity of flavor is fairly medium. It's a lush buster for…
No one likes to be told what to do or how to experience something as personal as wine, so I'll couch this by way of some soft metaphors and in a way that is hopefully a bit more palatable…
An old soul, with cedar chest and red currant flavors intertwining with plum, dry dirt, and cigar notes. Finishes extremely dry and dusty. I know I'll take a little heat here, but I'm simply not…
A somewhat polarizing wine among a number of us in the group, with the majority (myself included) not convinced this is on a path worthy of especially high accolade. The black cherry and plum notes…
Purity, balance, and grace are matched with gushing power and an unreal expansion of dark and brooding fruit and earth flavors, the Cappella is a captivating wine that shows just how special this…
A kickboxing production of red and black fruits, tangling with earthy spice and darker, meatier elements that start to fan out mid-palate, but are stopped short at the finish line by a dusty grip. A…
Tiiiiiiight and dryyyyyyy, with crunchy blackberry, black gravelly soil, dark spice, stemmy black cherry, black limestone (like the kind that is underneath a cave waterfall and has that black fungus…
The best young wine I've had from across the Atlantic and the absolute show-stopper of the night. The concentration, sophistication, and complexity, even at such an infant stage, are so compelling…
This is progressing and smoothing out quite nicely since my last bottle a year-and-a-half ago; more seamless and readily willing to find a decent glide after about three hours of decanted air…
Here's a piece of advice... Drink this wine by itself with a nice plate of food in the privacy of your own home while listening to yer boy Yanni. Don't take it to a tasting of great wines surrounding…
Right out of the gate, this puppy was off and rolling with fruit, spice, fruit, spice, and fruit. Decanting a few hours helped to fan and fill out its form, but this barely needed to stretch its legs…
