Both crisp and fulfilling, delivering a nice dollop of white and yellow fruit wrapped up in a grippy, tangy housing that presents medium speed and weight. Finishes a little round (not sure of the…
This was a bit of a dud overall, with some overly oxidized characteristics that were confusing at best. Everything seemed intact and there were no overt signs of a technical flaw, but the fruit was…
Almost a year since my last note, with the Eastside coming along quite nicely. More fruit and unctuous flavor expansion this go-around. However, some if the typical Aubert glycol peeking through and…
Light and a little tart on first PnP. With air, it completely woke up. Alluring notes of grass, yellow citrus, honeydew, quince, hints of pumice, and slightest tinge of alkaline, but then a beautiful…
Similar to all of my other notes. Needed an hour or so to start delivering a less manipulated and confectioned advancement of flavors. Lemon meringue and curd, vanilla, and mojito dominated the…
About an hour of direct air allowed this wine to shake off some of the heavier coconut pie crust and vanilla flavors from its coat, allowing the lemon curd and pear notes to take center stage. Some…
So this silly chameleon has gone 180 with its flavor profile since I last had it in 2017. What was once a balled-up mineral-first-fruit-second Chardonnay has now become a vanilla tropical Carmen…
Yellow citrus, vanilla, honey, and melon. Round and a bit sweet, with a vanilla glycerin-laced finish that stomps on the citrus, taking away some of the energy behind the acid. Drink now.
Initial pull was a linear delivery of subdued red raspberry and pumice. With some air, additional notes of red and black cherry, graphite, strawberry cream, and faint bark emerged. Mid-palate…
Creme brûlée all the way! Also gushing with lemon curd, apple pie filling, olive oil, hints of passionfruit/guava, and fresh whipped cream notes. More relaxed on the acid and grip this time around.…
Behaving like a younger version of the 2013 Oracle's Whisper served before it, the Shadow Voices displayed a bit of booze on the front end of the attack on the initial sips, but then kicked into…
From magnum. The best showing of the Oracle's to date. Dark and earthy black cherry and black raspberry, forest floor, incense, evergreen, orange citrus sencha green tea, burnt orange rind, bark, and…
Upon service, and once the wine warmed up to around cellar temperature (initially served at refrigerator temp - too cold/muted for me for the first 15+ minutes), the Ritchie displayed its familiar…
Green apple skin, vanilla glycol, and lemon seed on PnP gave way to more unctuous flavors after about 30 minutes of air, with apple pie, poached pear, honeyed lemon oil, vanilla bean, and an enticing…
Earthy black cherry, wild strawberry, mulch, evergreen, tree bark, stems, forest floor, and some wet rock. Clearly an earth-driven type of Pinot, with a nice dose of fruit flavor to hold interest and…
Big on the vanilla, creme fraiche, and lemon curd flavors, with a notably rich attack on the front end. Tropical fruit and glycol round out the profile here. The flavors are wonderfully decadent, but…
Crisp and dry, with quince and lemon juice dominating. Displaying a bit of a reductive quality on the tail end, but not heavily oxidative the way a Krug or aged Champagne can be. Overall light and…
I fully concur with fellow CT'er Air Guitar in that this wine really seems to be coming along nicely since I last had it over a year-and-a-half ago. It carries a more cool climate profile overall,…
Revisiting this wine after a Coravin pour a week prior. With a little air, this filled out even better than my initial experience. Previous note applies, except that it displayed increased depth and…
Red cherry, kirsch, red raspberry, rhubarb, and subtle Tab cola. Clean and pure flavors, with a straightforward attack; especially focused on the back end, with a purposeful and studious finish.…
Coravin pour. This is really starting to find its glide. A bit fruitier than I recall from the beginning of the year, with an inviting attack of red raspberry and cherry, cola, rhubarb, and subtle…
Previous notes apply, though this is quickly becoming my favorite Chardonnay of the vintage; each time I have this wine I experience more layerings of flavor and depth. This particular bottle was…
Previous notes apply. I still recommend holding this particular wine well into 2019. Decanting and vigorous swirling brought out more depth of flavor. PnP was initially pretty tight and linear. After…
PnP was all about green apple skin on the front end, but after about 15-20 minutes of air, cinnamon and cardamom flavors peeked out, creating a warm apple crust effect; some vanilla also showed its…
