Her Mir Tage

9.6

The Legendary 1990 and 2005 Vintages, and the 'Rouge' Aroma They Revealed!

I was meeting friends for a tasting, and I said I would bring a wine with a "rouge aroma" (*Yānzhī xiāng*). My friend also promised to open one with the same scent. If it's a cool vintage, a DRC might not reveal that distinctive rouge scent, but it's more common in warmer vintages, especially older ones from hot years. Of course, 2005 is a legendary vintage—it was warm but with significant diurnal temperature variation, resulting in balanced acidity and concentration, which also creates a very strong structure.

Thankfully, the 1990 Clos de Tart, despite having a very low fill level, wasn't spoiled. Its condition wasn't as potent as a previous bottle I had opened. This one took about 1.5 hours to fully open up in the glass. When it did, it revealed that signature Jiangnan "rouge" scent—very soft, enchanting, and feminine—along with some notes of dried longan. The fruit was balanced, though the acidity was relatively weak.

Today, I'll mainly write about this DRC. Its structure is incredibly powerful. For the first two hours, it was very closed. I believe this wine needed at least four hours of decanting, primarily because the 2005s, despite being a warm year, aren't that easy to open up. The aromas only started to slowly emerge around the third hour, and we were using large decanters and glasses, waiting for a long time. Initially, for the first half-hour after opening, there was a reductive note that was a bit funky. Later, after it opened up, the nose was primarily an interplay of cypress pine, violets, and that rouge scent intertwined. Honestly, this wine felt androgynous to me—it evokes an image of a knight and a princess playing in a forest. It wasn't overly soft, and its layers were incredibly complex.

On the palate, it was abundant: primarily black fruit, sour plum, sandalwood, coffee beans, a hint of dark chocolate, and a touch of earthy notes. The tannins weren't very soft—but then again, I'm so accustomed to drinking old wines. I feel this wine will need another 10 years to truly reach its peak. Its structure is exceptionally strong, unfolding layer by layer, with beautifully balanced acidity.

Comparing these two wines, their styles are completely different. One could say it's a contrast between an iconic Eastern beauty and a Western princess. I personally adore the soft and elegant style, but the 2005 is a wine with immense structure—it possesses a feminine power that is very potent, almost like the vision of a woman holding authority in a man's world.

Drinking such magnificent wines brings me great joy! — a day ago

David Kline

9.0

Red cherry and dried cranberry, rose petal, cherry lozenge, cedar, cherrywood, cypress, fresh tobacco, light black pepper. Firm palate.
Grainy tannins but velvet coated. Red currants, black cherry extract, black olive, resinous black currant, tart red tea. Green tobacco. Fresh oregano, bay leaf, cracked pepper. Prickly, pointed and tart, but keeps the interest piqued.


#barolo #cavalierbartolomeo #cavalierbartolomeobaroloaltenasso
#cavalierbartolomeobarolo
#piemonte #piedmont #nebbiolo #nebbiololife #nebbiololover #docg #docgbarolo #estatebottled #castiglionefalletto — 4 years ago

David Kline

9.3

2016, so, young and wound up. Nose of live cypress, fresh dug hole along a wood, pine one, cherrywood, pressed raspberry; barely broken. Raisin rolls, chanterelle, rose stem. Rocky, with a silken red liquid rose petal moment that turned chewy round tannin and lush burst of plum. A solid nod to graphite immersed in raspberry tartness, red currant and slightest cinnamon and slighter peppercorn. Green in spots but there architecturally.



#margaux #bordeaux #leftbank #chsteaudetricot #tricot #tricotmargaux #grandvindebordeaux #misenbouteilleauchateau #appellationmargauxcontrolée — 4 years ago

Robert Swart

9.1

50% Merlot, 28% Cabernet Sauvignon, 11% Cabernet Franc, 11% Petit Verdot. Refreshing on the nose with pink pepper and cypress berries aromas, which are reminiscent of the Mediterranean shrub. On tasting, the wine is elegant with a lovely acidity and an enduring and savoury finish. — 4 months ago

Teresa S

9.0

Dried fruit, still some tannins, amazing that it’s stood up so long. Pairing well with tomato/lemon pasta. — 3 years ago

Pinotman /// Andreas

9.7

Pocked with a Coravin weeks ago. I thought the 12’ was risky. But when you ‘think you know Enderle & Moll you actually don’t’. Dark cherries, lots of lift and freshness, orange zest, touch resinous, crushed rocks, lime, hint kaffir lime, Japanese cypress. Needs more time but shows now much better. After being disturbed and retried. Definitely wait! 13%. So! So little color - elegant. E&M’s Pinot’s are the most unique and most challenging to taste on the planet. World Class. — 3 years ago

Chase Slay

9.4

Great with cypress grove goat cheeses!
— 4 years ago

David Kline

9.6

2011 vintage, so low expectations, but wine is stunning. Grill aggregation unfolds into violets and cypress, bacon and porcini. Timber yard resins, reishi coffee, baking chocolate, burnt parchment, gunpowder tea, and dried rose petal. Soft, black and bing cherry serrated by black blades of dark tobacco, black currant, cassis, smoldering acanthus, crisp oregano, cardamom, and tart blueberry. Color is brick, edifice is showing cracks, but architecture intact. Don’t hold. Slay and ascend.

#chateauclinet #pomerol, #rightbank #bordeaux #bordeauxrouge — a year ago

sm

8.9

Dinner at ll foire in Collingswood. Not dry but deep — 3 years ago

Romain Fitoussi

9.3

Beautiful syrah that I will really have trouble identifying blindly. Ruby colour almost still purple even after 15 years, suggesting still beautiful years of ageing potential. On the nose, the bouquet is rich and intense, marked by the Bordeaux style, on a beautifully melted ageing with primary notes. The whole is rich and complex, between notes of black fruits (blackberry, blueberry, plum) tobacco ageing, chocolate, vanilla, cypress; evolved undergrowth notes and so on, it's a real taste journey!

Magnifique syrah que j’aurai vraiment du mal à identifier à l’aveugle. Robe rubis presqu’encore violine même après 15 ans, suggérant encore de belles années de potentiel de garde. Au nez le bouquet est riche et intense, marqué par le style bordelais, sur un élevage admirablement fondu aux notes primaire. L’ensemble est riche et complexe, entres notes de fruits noirs (mûre, myrtille, prune) élevage tabac, chocolat, vanille, cyprès; notes évoluées sous-bois et j’en passe, c’est un vrai voyage gustatif! — 3 years ago