Gregory Fulchiero

9.5

Well … shit. With a slight chill this is just sublime. Much better integration of oak than its other Pauillac neighbors. Charcoal ash, subtle pipe tobacco, dark berry compote. Superb. — 7 months ago

LM Segal

9.5

Rich nose full of charcoal and minerals. So damned primary, beautiful attack of cassis that’s just a tad green, but in a nice way. Lavender, tapenade. Monster with years to go. — 3 years ago

David Koenen

8.9

Charcoal fire, bramble, red berries, underbrush, very, very true to type Bordeaux. — 4 years ago

Kimberly Anderson

9.0

Heavy aromas of tar, charcoal, smokey meat and vanilla. Decanting helped soften and bring out some bright cherry. Mid palate shows plush black fruit and chocolate. The finish is more black olive than I care for, but hoping that softens as it gets air. One of the most interesting wines I’ve had in a while. — 5 years ago

with Chad

Jeff Fennel

9.3

So good at 12+ years — 9 months ago

with Mary

Joe Gillies

9.4

Excellent! One of my favorites. Dark fruit, charcoal, tobacco, and earthy notes. Gorgeous and no rush to drink! — 3 years ago

Tom Garland

9.4

Polished off the 08 Marcassin, knocked back the 1990 Margaux, final b-day bottle to quaff down is a 2012 Screaming Eagle 2nd Flight and cake.

1 hour decant(surprisingly little sediment). A bewitching inky dark red wine with little signs of aging. On the nose: Jumping from the glass are cherries, semi sweet chocolate, cedar, metallic, dried herbs, vanilla wafers. Taste: A rich, lush mouthfeel with cherries and more cherries, pencil lead, pepper, charcoal, and a bitter sweet chocolate cedar long finish....drinking well, but I imagine better things with even more time! — 4 years ago

with Brenda

Diana Eng

9.2

Smoky, charcoal, granite, meat, bacon, black pepper, nutmeg, cinnamon, violets, black olives, red cherries, blueberries, blackberries. Medium plus acid, medium body, medium plus finish, medium tannin. Silky tannins from age, good fruit and acidity still, elegant and high-toned. — 6 years ago

with EatSommThings

Adam Beasley

9.0

Way too young. Still pretty tough after a 5-6 he decant. There’s is a lot of structure here and the dark roasted fruit plays well with the other aromas / flavors like charcoal, pencil lead, and soil. Not my go-to style of wine, but decent with prime rib. — 3 years ago

David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

So, many of you have not had the pleasure of having Dan’s wines. It is largely due to the fact he doesn’t have a US importer. He sells all his mid production level wines through his mailing list. That makes importing from his mailing list as restrictive as the import fees. They are equal to the price of the wines you order. Not something you’ll do. I didn’t. You need to find his wines on the secondary market to be cost effective.

We had the privilege of visiting his Cellar Door in the Spring of 2017. What a fantastic visit and walk of his Estate with him. The age of his Estate vines are 100 plus years old and their yield is less than a ton per acre which, does not make for a lot of wine but, instead a very concentrated wine.

Dan traveled to and worked in many of the key wine regions before settling in as Torbreck’s Winemaker and then marching to his own drum doing his own thing as “The Standish”, his way. No compromises.

The first thing you need to know about Dan’s wines is you can drink them early but, that would be a huge mistake. This 03 is sensational now but, is worthy of more cellaring. It has 10-20 years of life ahead of it...proper storage of course.

This is a second night wine for us and it is still big.

The nose reveals smokey; blackberries, black raspberries, black plum skin, black cherries, blueberries, mulberries/boysenberries, baked/poached strawberries & some raspberries, sweet tarriness, dark berry cola, black pepper, steeped tea, eucalyptus, mint, tree bark with sap, herbaceous, dry crushed rocks, nutmeg, clove, cinnamon, vanilla, moist, forest floor with dry leaves with withering; dark, red, purple flowers framed in violets & strong lavender.

The body is full, round, lush & ruby. The tannins are still big, round, tarry & meaty. The structure, tension, length & balance are just there & yet still not there. It is still a monster on day two. Smokey; blackberries, black raspberries, black plum skin, black cherries, blueberries, mulberries/boysenberries, baked/poached strawberries & some raspberries, sweet tarriness, grilled meats, dark berry cola, black pepper, steeped tea, eucalyptus, mint, tree bark with sap, herbaceous-sage & rosemary, used charcoal, graphite, dark spice with palate heat, burned ambers, incense, rubber toy, dry crushed rocks, moist clay & top soil, dry stone, nutmeg, clove, cinnamon, vanilla, moist, forest floor with dry leaves with withering; dark, red, purple flowers framed in violets & strong lavender. The acidity is round and a rushing river. The extremely long finish is, big, round, elegant, floral, well balanced, runs juicy to dry with persistence for days falling onto earthiness & dark spice on the long set.

Photos of, a plaque that hangs above my kitchen sink that speaks to me always, Dan Standish, his Cellar Door and surrounding buildings. — 4 years ago