Neil Valenzuela

9.2

Recent Malbec release from Laird- Inky purple color. Aromas of blackberry, mocha and cigar box. Fantastic blackberry jam flavors, roasted coffee, tobacco and spice finish. — 2 months ago

Jay Kline

9.5

Opened and decanted about an hour before dinner. No formal notes. The 2007 B. Levet "La Chavaroche" is flat out beautiful right now. The aromatics are off the charts with gorgeous, ripe dark fruits, a bit of the animal, a veritable hillside of lavender, black olives, some deli case, black pepper, some leather and earth. The structure is still firm but everything is well integrated at this point; superbly balanced; great acid. The finish is long and has some ferrous minerals that I simply love. A sublime pairing with a Morgan Ranch Wagyu tenderloin served with corn purée, charred broccolini and juniper ash. The 2007's are absolutely ready to drink now with a short decant (mostly to remove any sediment) however, they will continue to drink well for another 10+ easy from good cellars.
— a year ago

Scott Soren

9.4

Bottle a case on release of mixed Cabs from N&N. The first few bottles that we opened gave me buyers remorse. Wine was flat. As i got through the years, the wine developed beautifully. Now, this was my last bottle of the case. It was glorious. Tannins evened our and from nose to first sip and Long finish, it was a pleasure. Patience is a virtue. It’s true — 5 years ago

Joe Weinberger

9.0

Fully developed, showing its age. Lots of mushroom and umami. I prefer my Chardonnay on the younger side but for something with age, it was interesting and not flat — a year ago

Martin Sher

9.2

Enjoyable if nondescript - flat on the finish. — a year ago

Shay A

9.3

Finally getting around to posting wines from my annual Napa trip from two weeks ago. Always goes by quick! Lots of fun new stops this year.

Our trip ended with a tasting of Lewelling & Hayfork, courtesy of daughter Haley at their family home in the vineyard. Although I’m not posting pics of the Lewelling cabs (2017s and didn’t have labels yet), they are impressive, and the Wight vineyard cab is flat out delicious!

The fruit here is the same as Lewelling’s wines, but there is usually a splash of petit Verdot to give more color and structure compared to the 100% Cabernets that Lewelling bottles. Dense, ripe and chewy. Very dark in the glass showing sweet smoke, blackberry compote, baking spices, and espresso aromatics. Whereas the Lewellings have a beautiful red and black cherry liqueur type profile, this is decidedly darker, but every bit as tannic and age worthy. Added notes of graphite, currant, creme de cassis and mixed berry pie at the finish. — 5 years ago

ESF

9.2

Real treat: RRV SB w/bottle age - fattened up nicely, super expressive nose of tropical fruit mingled w/grass & hay, snap pea some green citrus. Added weight gave it heft juxtaposed w/vibrant acidic backbone. Just flat out delicious, generous really strutting its stuff. — 8 months ago

Sam Shepard

8.9

Low energy wine. Wish I got a hold of this sooner. Aromas still there but taste a little flat — 2 years ago

William Feinstein

9.4

06 Viader - unfortunately kicked 07 Nickel and Nickel State Ranch - flat. 08 Hundred Acre Fortunate Son - third time’s a charm. Inky dark purple in the glass. Fresh roses on the nose with a hint of cayenne. Definitely a fruit bomb but has tons of depth and character. — 5 years ago

with Maryalice

Ron R

9.0

Just ok, but for the money, it’s a pass for me.
Spice box and cola on the nose. Palate displays a heavy amount of sweet oak. The cherry fruit is inviting, displaying moderate sweetness. But the frame lacks tannin and acidity, leaving the broad contours of this wine somewhat flat. — 5 years ago