Shay A

9.3

Love FBalthazar’s Chaillot Cornas but never had his SS offering. I’d rather catch most SS wines in their youth to not roll the dice and get them super fresh.

Splash decanted; followed over two days.

Deep purple in the glass with hallmark Cornas aromatics…smoked meat, charcoal, dark potpourri/florals, cassis, blackberries. On the palate, the typical Cornas rusticity is more elegant, with peppered black fruits, sweet smoke, mocha, savory spices. It undoubtedly has a very “pure” profile, showing Syrah without any sort of mask. Good acid and tannin. Day two showed the mid-palate lose steam a bit, which isn’t a big surprise. Lovely bottle. If I could guarantee its evolution, this seemed like it would cruise another 7-10yrs, but who knows with SS! — 2 hours ago

Delectable Wine

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9.4

The 2020 Chablis Les Clos Grand Cru has a light, quite steely bouquet that gathers steam with aeration, one of the more marine-influenced wines from Les Clos this year. The palate is well balanced with a fine line of acidity, quite taut and focused with a touch of spice lending another dimension on the finish. Composed and classy. Tasted blind at the BIVB tasting in Chablis. (Neal Martin, Vinous, September 2022)
— 4 years ago

Shay A

9.4

2014 Napa cabs are in a sweet spot for the “fruit forward” stage of wines without ripping the enamel off your teeth. TRB is a favorite winemaker of mine for his ability to pull the entire fruit spectrum (red, blue, black), when applicable, which is evident here.

This is a pop and pour for the big fruit loving Napa enthusiasts (which I can enjoy ever so often). It is uber ripe and high toned...not quite sporting levels of EA, but close. With this being Calistoga fruit, it undoubtedly shows that warm profile. There is a kiss of red fruit initially on the nose before it is dominated by freshly squeezed blackberries, creme de cassis, dark chocolate, mocha and dark mixed berry pie. It begins on the palate somewhat lighter than expected before picking up steam and really gaining heft/density on the mid palate. Just oozes fresh and ripe dark fruits, fondue dipped fruits, plenty of baking spices like vanilla and nutmeg, and a sweet finish that sails on for a good while. Completely smooth and soft tannin. Not failing off a cliff for a while, but this style has me thinking earlier consumption is best. — 5 years ago

Matthew Cohen

9.5

Still one of the great alt whites in the world.

N: swirling white and yellow flowers. Almost an echo of tropical fruit.

P: delicious. Clean. Balanced. Juicy. Liquid yellow flowers. Some crunch. Mountain steam. Amazing elegance.

9.5-9.6. Sick value at this price.

Fass selections — 7 months ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.0

2019 vintage. Enjoying the simpler, 2018 vintage of this wine a bit more currently. The 2019 is pretty tight and very youthful. Laying off for a 5-spot might help but a 10-spot would be better. OTOH, if you wanted to pour this btg or drink throughout the course of 4 nights without the worries of it losing steam or going bad, you just might be onto something. 1.24.24. — 2 years ago

Jake Hajer

9.3

Roses, dried lillies, fresh brewed chamomile steam, fermented butter, bruised yellow peaches, Marcona almond. Very good! — 5 years ago

Andrew Cullimore

9.1

Garnet core , wide terracotta rim . Quite aromatic with sous bois , floral hints , spiced dried cherry, iodine , earth and leather . On the palate this has high acidity , fine tannins , orange rind , wet earth, sous bois , dried cherry . Good length . Ready drink now and over the next 5 years , just starting to run out of steam after a couple of hours . Elegant and refined in style — a year ago

Roberto Carli

9.1

Tasted between its sec and molleaux companions it loses steam, neither here nor there but still quite fine on its own — 3 years ago

Matt Perlman

9.1

Muted at first but put on weight with air. Mineral drenched, musky, ripe green tree fruit and spice, honey, some new wood influence which actually nicely refines and softens the intensity. Not losing steam and in fact still integrating — 5 years ago

Robert Torretti

9.2

Enjoyed this wine over Christmas Eve with a Kansas City Ribeye, a salad and some steakhouse bacon. The time really turned this into a very pleasant wine. The fruits were not as forward as is so many modern and young CdP’s, but you could still get some black fruits, along with some tar, leather and dirt. It began to lose some steam later in the evening, say 2.5-3.0 hours after opening. Mostly what I would want and expect from a 16 year old CdP in a vintage like 2004. — 5 years ago