Reviews

Domaine Jamet Côte-Rôtie

Super duper uber primary, with some discernible floral, smoke, bacon, unripe blackberry, and berry seed notes. The viognier component is overly strong at the moment. Don't touch these for at least…

Joseph Colin Saint-Aubin 1er Cru En Remilly Blanc

Lemon and lime, and even some petrol notes, make for a refreshing profile that comes off overly juvenile but still full of verve and energy. Hold for a few years minimum.

Blandy's Madeira Terrantez

Fresh caramel juxtaposed with deeper and nuttier toffee and syrupy flavors, with macerated plums, orange bitters, and golden raisin notes adding to the complex profile, the Terrantez is a solid…

Weingut Keller Kirchspiel Riesling Großes Gewächs

Green apple skin and flesh, dried mango, lemon rind, and slight petrol notes make for a youthful presentation of driven and vibrating flavors. The acid is beautifully honed and framed here without…

Jacques Selosse Champagne Grand Cru Lieux-dits Extra Brut Ay La Côte Faron

Disgorged February 2015. Orange zest, olive oil, clementine poached pear, grilled lemon, bruised red apple flesh, fruit cup, dried apricot, and pretty much everything awesome. If you know Selosse,…

Dom Pérignon Champagne

This really has compelling verve. I continue to be impressed with this vintage of Dom. There is a wow factor for me akin to the 169 Krug to which I'm a fan (also a 2013 base). Great acidity and speed…

La Pelle Sauvignon Blanc

Acid driven and lively. Lemon juice and grapefruit dominate. Too bad it's not August right now. Previous notes from April 2023 apply otherwise. A solid, refreshing sipper!

La Pelle Cabernet Sauvignon

Offering even more profundity than when I last sampled this in April, the 2019 "standard" Cabernet from La Pelle is comprised of deeply pitched black/red raspberry fruit, chocolate, and plum notes;…

La Pelle Cabernet Sauvignon Red Hen Vineyard

Red and black cherry flavors, with powdery tannins that provide requisite frame and speed without becoming too constraining or superficial, the 2018 Red Hen is a beautiful wine. I personally am drawn…

La Pelle Cabernet Sauvignon Alluvium

Blackberry, black raspberry, black cherry, soil, and graphite dominate, with more power and darker fruit than the Red Hen served beside it, the 2018 Alluvium is a bit of a monster. Still, there is…

La Pelle Cabernet Sauvignon Alluvium

This 2021 is a powerful and driven specimen, with sweet, ripe, and dark fruit interweaving with a pronounced propulsion of candied raspberry and cassis notes. The finish is incredibly loooong.…

La Pelle Syrah Bien Nacido Block X

Same as before, with perhaps a more saline purple people eater sea monster from from the shores of St Joseph (that is, if St. Joseph had shores). Super spicy, with black and white pepper, bark, and…

Château Valandraud

I had much to gush about with this 2016 back when I had it in April. My notes still ring true for the most part, but this bottle was a bit more reserved. Clearly, 2016 is a solid vintage for…

Château Valandraud

When in St. Emilion recently, there were a lot of wineries and wine shops pushing out their 2011s, declaring that the vintage had come around and was in a great drinking window. Honestly, I always…

Château Valandraud L'Interdit de Valandraud

The story on this wine (and the subsequent marketing and price push) is more interesting than the wine itself. Essentially, the wine had to be labeled "L'Interdit" because plastic wrap was used in…

Château Valandraud Virginie de Valandraud

A just fine, fun-ish, easy going, smooth, simple, kinda fruity, BBQ on a sunny May afternoon kind of wine. Don't think about it. Nothing for me to seek out necessarily, but it's ok if you just want…

Château Valandraud

The 2006 is a bit reserved, and even tired along its execution of red and some black fruit flavors, with a shorter than expected finish. A 2009 eclipsed this by a mile. The 2006's freshness was…

Château Valandraud

A compelling bottle of wine. In great spot, with smooth tannins but great grip, relaxing just enough to allow the dark and somewhat earthy fruit come in. This obliterated a 2006 Valandraud next to…

Château Valandraud

I was able to try two separate bottles side by side at the estate. The first was a fresh PnP and the other had been open in bottle for 16 hours.

Château Valandraud Blanc de Valandraud

Compared to the 2019 Virginie de Valandraud Blanc, the nose here is muted, with some alcohol aroma masking any other aromas The palate is more vegetal, with grass, lemon verbena leading the charge.…

Château Valandraud Bordeaux Virginie de Valandraud Blanc

The 2019 Virginie de Valandraud Blanc wakes you up with a truly heroic nose of apricot and peach, with the palate very similar but bone dry; pineapple rind and stone fruit add interest. A balloon and…

Next of Kyn No~13 Cumulus Vineyard

Coravin'd over a few weeks here and there and opened the bottle after about half was remaining. A total smooth operator. It's big but it's silky smooth and airy. Blackberry, purple plum, pen ink,…

Schramsberg Vineyards Blanc de Blancs

Pizza dough and lemontini. Bready and cloying. Appeals to those looking for something yellow with bubbles. I know a decent amount about the 2020 vintage in general 'round these parts, but I don't…

Dunn Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley

From magnum. I hate to say it, but this was too young. And this is coming from someone who isn't necessarily a dirt worshiper or lover of cobwebby red wines. This was tight and tannic at first, with…

Beaux Frères Chardonnay Ribbon Ridge

With healthy dollops of roasted/grilled lemon and brassy olive oil flavors, and more advanced than I would've thought, this 2010 also exhibited butterscotch and lamp oil notes that further led to a…