Barrel sample. Beautiful and polished, especially considering it was right out of barrel, with a finesse and seductiveness that harkens back to the 2012 Wildfoote. The 2016 Wildfoote is currently the…
PnP, with purple/black core fruit. Streaks of dark red/black raspberry and bruised strawberry added elevated complexity, along with notes of fresh vanilla bean, blackberry, asphalt, and some dried…
From a bottle opened nearly 24 hours. Even more dark chocolate chunk, dark coffee grounds/espresso, blackberry mocha, scorched earth, tar, asphalt, and a hit of DARK red raspberry. An incredible…
From magnum. Funky purple plum, asphalt, mulch, licorice, and some blueberry. Slightly bitter on the finish, which made for a somewhat clipped experience insofar as the display of fruit was…
From magnum. An extraordinary wine whose distribution of flavor had so much to do with temperature control. When I first tasted it on PnP, it was operating in that 94-ish point range. The bottle was…
From magnum. Dried strawberry, bitter plum, kirsch, cherry water, and some underbrush. Strawberry and blackberry seeds on the finish, making it bitter on the back end. Purity of fruit was notable,…
From magnum. Kirsch/cherry water, strawberry seed, red brick, Kauai red dirt, prosciutto, and hints of wet wood. Similar flavor profile to the '00 Flagrante and '01 Ventriloquist, but with more…
From magnum. One of my favorite wines of the night. Off-the-charts intensity, concentration, and power (especially for a decade-old wine). Unbelievably complex. Notes of wild blackberry, camphor,…
From magnum. Purple/red plum, deep kirsch, raspberry, strawberry, and wild red and black cherry. Some garrigue and underbrush on the finish. Seemingly higher on the acid spectrum, with a formidable…
From magnum. Purple/blue/black core fruit, with specific notes of purple plum, blackberry liqueur, blueberry, blue river rock, asphalt, black peppercorn, saline, purple licorice (whatever that is…
From magnum. Moving from the 2000, 2001, and 2002 SQNs and skipping a few years to embark on the 2007s and 2008s in the lineup, this is where I really started to find pleasure and excitement. Though…
From magnum. This was a fascinating wine indeed. Some were very drawn to it; others thought its flavor profile was almost too unique and a greater departure from its intended varietal makeup to be…
Huge blackberry and black raspberry core fruit, with waves of boozy red and black licorice, black cherry liqueur, currant, and spice. Delivering flavor like a hussie barrel sample from a brothel in…
From magnum. Kirsch, over-ripe strawberry, red cherry, bruised/brown red raspberry, tobacco leaf, warm leather, and some incense. A ton of energy here, with the spicy over-ripe strawberry note…
From .750. While the David's Cuvée was noticeably less intense in .750 than from magnum the day before, the Danger D was fairly similar between the two bottling sizes. Possibly a hair less…
From magnum. Plum, kirsch, brick, tobacco leaf, leather, wood, and some red/black cherry. Missing some seamless as far as flavor delivery and an overall smoothness/glide, but otherwise an array of…
From magnum. Quince, lemon peel, lemon seed, and white rock. Fairly bitter and linear, this wine never fully came around for me, even with hours in the decanter. It was good, but missing some of the…
From .750. Interesting the differences between this bottle and the magnum from the day before. This bottle was just as smooth and beautiful, but noticeably less intense and more medium in its…
From magnum. Strawberry seed, red dirt, orange rind, and terra cotta. The least expressive when compared to the '00 Flagrante and '00 Incignito. Some interesting flavors, but overshadowed by a…
From magnum. After about 4-5 hours of decanted air, this wine blossomed into a massively concentrated beast, with sexy, deep kirsch, ripe raspberry, bruised strawberry, soft-warm leather, garrigue,…
From magnum. Cherry, brick/terra cotta, prime rib, soil, and some wood. A decent attack on the front end energy-wise; medium weight mid palate, with the flavors watering-out to a more lithe and short…
From Magnum. Not surprisingly, the initial pull was pretty tight and linear, with higher register funky plum popping out in the front end. Finish was clipped and somewhat bitter. It essentially took…
White stone and high-pitched yellow citrus core fruit. More linear in its delivery when compared to the 2010 Ultramarine served next to it. A little bit of the usual saline funk I associate with this…
From 3L. Similar to previous notes. Huge, plush, ripe attack, with black/red/purple fruit liqueur, black cherry, plum, and vanilla. A fantastic flavor profile; a little plump and doughy on its…
Funky yellow citrus, quince, chalk, seaweed, bruised lemon rind, and some wet hay. An interesting display of flavors across the palate, offering a unique complexity certainly not seen with domestic…
