Possibly one of the best Estate Cuvees from L'Aventure that I've had. PnP had a good deal of dark, pure fruit and mineral flavors surrounded by a tight, encompassing grip. After about 30-45 minutes…
Same notes as last year. Could do with another year in the bottle, but drinking pretty darn well now. This was bested by a 2012 Lewis Syrah. Both were good (and tasted similar on the initial PnP),…
PnP was tight and a bit off-putting. Linear flavors of purple and red fruit. A total of 2 hours in the decanter allowed for some more focused and flavorful notes to emerge. Some deeply pitched…
Young but fairly approachable given its youth. Tight purple and red berry, black raspberry, deep black cherry, kirsch, stone, and some alcohol flavors. A lot of potential, but only in third gear at…
Stems, stems, and more stems. The 60% whole cluster on this wine was currently displaying in a way that was so distracting, I could barely get a sense of the purple berry fruit hiding in the…
About what I expected from the Estate Cuvée, with more broad shoulders than the Cote a Cote, but with a little less focus at this point in its infancy. The young Syrah components are most evident,…
This and the Estate Cuvée were the top wines in the lineup, with the Cote a Cote probably inching ahead with the best concentration and mid-palate overall. The sweet tannins were in perfect balance…
Not surprisingly, the youthful Mourvèdre component dominated over everything else. The mid and back end were especially bitter and immediately clamped down on any other identifiable flavors. It was…
Super young and wrapped up, with primary notes of black raspberry, tart blackberry, brush, herbs, and some pumice. Mid-palate was thin and linear, but likely has the potential to broaden its profile…
Good for what it is. Started off the L'Aventure lineup as expected, with a refreshing kick of strawberry, watermelon, and hints of citrus and minerality. A little more body than a lot of wines in its…
Some plum, black cherry, and faint kirsch. A little bitter and sour on the back end. This came off as pretty young and a little tight (not surprisingly), but also seemed to lack depth and complexity.…
Fruity, jammy, and a bit disjointed. Unfortunately this seemed to encompass all the things that I find troublesome about Zinfandel. This had a muddled grapey profile about it coupled with a bitter…
Unfortunately I am growing more and more bored on this wine. I popped it along with a number of other FAR superior wines. The Club QPR of the Optimus is indeed decent, but at some point it doesn't…
High-pitched and almost undrinkable at first. Needed about an hour in the decanter before it was ready. Previous tasting notes apply. A 2012 Hartwell Cabernet totally destroyed this wine when served…
Same as all my previous notes. Good enough. Not amazing. The Estate Cuvee is far superior. Decent QPR on the mailing list, but I'm becoming a little bored with the Optimus.
Same as my notes from 3/4/2016. Anyone with remaining bottles should hold until late 2017 at minimum. Still very tight, with a total of four hours of air in a wide-bottomed decanter still not helping…
92 points this showing. A little short and clipped on the finish, with a thinner mid-palate. This wine was not decanted and was served out of the bottle at a restaurant; it could have used just a…
Performing as it has been over the course of the last year, the Estate Cuvee displayed its typical electric purple color; immediately accessible on the first sips. Notes of dark purple and black…
Same as all my other previous notes. Good stuff. No decant. Served at a cooler 54 degrees, which I preferred (an earlier pour made it to room temperature, but I found that a little too warm). The…
Nearly identical to my notes on 8/23/2015. A little smoother and rounder than I remember from almost a year ago, especially after a two hour decant. Has notable finesse and depth that made me keep…
Same notes as last month. Always a crowd pleaser, a great QPR, and ready to drink now. A little air always helps, but it's smooth and lush with a bit of swirling in the glass after a PnP.
PnP with notes of red and purple berry fruit, kirsch, red and black cherry, plum, cured meat (like peppered salami), and limestone. A couple of hours in the decanter helped to broaden out the…
