Fruity on the nose; fruity on palate. Red berry (cranberry) dominates, with candied red cherry, cassis, and red currant. The profile is. red. With air, it becomes more linear and superficial. The…
The nose is almost feral and wild, like it's gonna blast you with a fistful of Stemmy-McStemminess. Then the palate front-loads the tastebuds with rich berry fruit. There are some rocks and bark that…
Oh bejeezus, this is one seriously stern arm-crossed child who doesn't know how to use its big words when it's cranky. Not much on nose; not much on the palate. Linear and flat-lined, with barely any…
California Chardonnay richness catches you first on the front end, but then the acidity rushes to the party and envelops the inside of the cheeks. Amazingly buttery without being buttery or popcorny;…
A product of the 18/19 vintage, which as a blend should be pretty ideal given the successes of those two vintages. Super fruity on nose, with a predominantly black fruited profile overall. On the…
Compared to the 2019 Vaso served in the same lineup, this Onda shows elevated concentration and precision. Some licorice emerges, along with black cherry and plum. There exists some notable…
Black cherry and black raspberry lead the front end. Plum then begins to overpower the profile, becoming plummy and jammy at times. Mid-palate is medium with a round finish that quickly turns…
Plum and ripe black cherry intermingle with spice and cedar notes, making for a little bit of an old school profile here. The tannins show as slightly elevated, clipping the finish and simplifying…
Chiseled and focused, with the edges slowly (and I mean slowwwwwly) kinda-rounding toward the finish. Less of a plum profile compared to the Vaso and Onda, this Dana is more about tightly wrapped…
A dirt-worshipper funkafication on nose, enough that I would have thought this was a cooked Pegau CdP Reservee. On the palate, biting and nearly fruit-muted, with leather and dusty cherry flavors…
It's no Scarecrow, but the M. Etain isn't necessarily trying to be. Next to its big brother, it's honestly barely worth talking about. But if you can peel yourself away from the notion that it will…
In a lineup of top shelf 2019 Napa Cabs blind, this undoubtedly showed near the top of the heap. Of course the immediate argument is that it should always be the singular one on top (short of a…
In a blind of 2019 Napa Cabs, this performed exceptional, though it is worth noting that it is undoubtedly young and still sorting itself out. My notes on this bottle read, "More sophisticated and…
In a blind with other 2019 Napa Cabs, the Anjea performed especially well; so well in fact, that it was head-to-head with its sibling Voleuse, as well as other heavy hitters like Harlan. Macdonald,…
Though youthfully primary and slightly strict at this stage, the 2019 is packed with sophistication and beautiful potential. It's a serious and stern presentation currently, but it makes its mark…
Linear and superficial in execution, with notes of vanilla, cedar, blackberry seed, and currant which struggle to expand or gain depth. Finishes direct, bitter, lean, and without much personality.…
In a blind of 2019 top shelf Napa Cabs, the Songbook held its own with beautiful persistence and push of flavors. The expansion of dark and almost lush fruit was immediate, with an open and giving…
In a blind amongst some stellar performers (Kinsman, Macdonald, Scarecrow, Colgin), the 2019 Absurd showed as lighter bodied (I mean, for a Realm) and redder fruited than I would have anticipated. It…
I've had this wine a couple of times now. In a blind a few months back, it showed a little older than the other modern Napa Cabs, at least in the sense that the profile displayed some leather and…
Hey now, for as much as Ultramarine can be a hit/miss experience for me, this thing did every right tonight. Offerings from Heintz have produced the most consistent and best lineages from this house.…
My notes from 2019 say to revist it 2024. So, here we are! The good news is that it is not as uber ripe and in your face as five years ago. The just ok news is that, though it has indeed mellowed…
Cutting to the chase, this was a rocket ship on day two. Day one was reserved and a little linear, with red to black fruit dominating the profile. Finished flavorful but a bit strict on the back end.…
Much more chiseled than the 2018 Heintz Rose, though less overtly exuberant, this 2019 Hirsch Rose offers up crisp strawberry, crunchy watermelon, pink grapefruit, orange spray, and travertine notes…
Balanced and smooth, especially for such a young pup. Super fruity, in fact, one of the fruitiest renditions from this site that I can remember. Notes of mixed berry basket, boysenberry, licorice,…
A solid rendition of Eastside, if not understandably juvenile and a bit unresolved. Air broadened the spectrum and expansion of flavors, but had a tendency to flatten the focus as it warmed in the…
