Andrew Cullimore

9.1

Medium deep garnet with a terracotta rim . This has some sous bois , earthy tobacco , coffee grinds , herbal touches , cedar and dried currants . On the palate this is quite dense and classic in profile , still quite a lot of tannin , sous bois , cedar , some cassis , tobacco and a little herbal. Quite stocky and chunky . Medium length , and balanced acidity . This is still quite dense on the palate , with grippy , slightly rustic tannins . Probably just past peak , but will hold over the next 5 years or so . Tasted at Hedonism Wines , London …. No label on the bottle ! — 8 days ago

Janhavi Prasada

9.3

A blast of strawberries on the nose! Opens up to perfectly balanced tannins after a good hour…smooth finish great with spicy oriental cuisine! — 5 days ago

Ron Siegel

9.3

Enjoyed this showing red & black fruits with notes of cedar, leather, spice, earth, floral & tobacco — 3 days ago

Jeremiah Diaz

9.3

Clear, deep ruby in color; on the nose, it's clean with pronounced primary and secondary aromas of black currants, black plums, and cedar. On the palate, it's dry, medium acidity, high tannins, medium alcohol, medium body, and a pronounced intensity of primary and secondary flavors. It tastes like blackberries, eucalyptus, graphite, and black cherries with a long finish. This wine is a little off balanced (the eucalyptus flavor is a little too intense), complex, and intense. Overall, I would rate it as very good. Nellie liked it with steak. — 3 days ago

with Nellie

Martijn

9.6

Wow! Still so much fruit in this wine. Great to have a nose with black berries, cherries, marzipan. Combined with cedar wood. Fantastic wine at 20 years. — 9 days ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.3

1996 vintage. Last tasted 5.8.25 (9.5), 9.29.24 (9.5) and 8.2.24 (9.6). Decanted with some sed and tasted after an hour. Solid cork and fill. This was the worst showing of the last visits with less tannic structure and slightly more richness. Tasted a bit more like their "Au Paradis" offering. Not totally dissuaded from picking up another few bottles for enjoyment in the few 5 years or so tho. Three out of four bottles surveyed were fabulous and this wasn't a total swing and a miss. 07.18.25. — 8 days ago

Jason Phillips

9.0

Deep ruby color and great nose. Velvety on palate with rich dark fruits. Soft tannins and a lasting finish. Good blend of Zin, Cab, Petite Syrah, and Syrah. — 17 days ago

Andrew Cullimore

8.9

Medium deep garnet , medium terracotta rim . A very healthy looking colour. Quite mature and venerable on the nose , sous bois , iodine, plum, old wood , earthy with herbal touches and fresh tobacco . Reasonable volume on the palate with light sous bois and nori notes , quite fresh acidity and slightly gritty tannins still. Tobacco , grafite slightly short finish. Quite a good showing for a wine of almost 80 years old, enough interest and volume on the palate . Probably better a few decades ago , but certainly more than a curiosity as the wine stayed with us well for over 2 hours . Drink now . This was an ex chateau bottle that had been reconditioned at some point , I would imagine by the looks of the cork , about 20-25 years ago. No mention of this on the bottle however . Into neck fill. — 12 days ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.1

No formal notes . This is quite a deep colour still , medium deep garnet with medium garnet rim . On the nose this shows some ripe fruits , sous bois , tobacco and coffee , really quite rounded and generous , reminds me somewhat of Napa from the 70s . On the palate though this is more Bordeaux with a drier profile , sous bois , tobacco and grafite , quite generous mid palate and a well balanced if slightly short finish. Rounded tannin and balanced acidity . Quite a generous and user friendly 1982 , shows its charm and the ripeness of the year . I’m sure this was enjoyable a couple of decades ago and still shows well today and over the next 5 or so years though won’t improve . — 3 days ago

Stephany Morales

9.0

Pessimist — Un brindis entre amigos
Probamos el Pessimist una tarde cualquiera.
El vino abrió su alma como nosotros la nuestra: oscuro, profundo y un ligero toque dulce de sinceridad.

Al servirlo, su color "chicha morada", denso y casi misterioso como las mejores conversaciones. En nariz, fue un abrazo de moras, ciruela, un toque de vainilla y esa nota ahumada profunda que parecía venir de alguna historia que ya habíamos vivido.

Al probarlo, todo se ensambló con naturalidad... la potencia del Syrah, la dulzura del Zinfandel y la estructura del Petite Sirah fusionaron nuestras personalidades en la mesa.

Taninos suaves, redondos pero con la firmeza justa que te envuelve el paladar sin imponerse. Vino con carácter, pero sin arrogancia que supo acompañar mientras hablábamos de la vida,
y celebrar.

Pessimist no nos pareció pesimista... nos recordó que el tiempo bien vivido se mide en copas compartidas, y que algunos vinos, como algunas amistades, se sienten mejor cuando se dejan abrir con calma! — 11 days ago