Allison Frazier

10

Oh loved loved loved it! Gift from Radek, Piotr, Marcin. — 10 days ago

Jay Kline

9.5

Opened about 90min prior to service; enjoyed over the course of a few hours. The 2001 Monte Bello pours a deep garnet with a near opaque core; medium+ viscosity with moderate staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with lovely notes of black currants, blackberries, plum, tobacco, purple flowers, an intoxicating mix of exotic Eastern spices, some cocoa, inorganic earth and minerals. On the palate? The wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose, the finish is long and impeccably balanced. To my palate, this bottle has reached the age when Monte Bello starts to really become interesting. What a delight! Drink now with some air, through 2051. — 7 days ago

"Odedi"

9.2

Dark ruby/ inky in color with a short purple rim.

Red and black fruits on the nose with cedar, chocolates, spices, tobacco, coffee and black pepper.

Full-bodied and elegant with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with sweet raspberries, cherries, black currants, black plums, cedar, licorice, chocolates, herbs, coffee, light earth, spices, tobacco leaf and light pencil lead.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cherries.

This young Cabernet Sauvignon based Bordeaux blend from Napa Valley is starting to drink beautifully now. Rich and easy drinking.

Fruit forward and complex, soft and smooth. Spicy and entertaining, powerful yet refined. Showing good balance albeit a little hot at the back of the throat, at this point.

Will continue to age nicely in the next 15 to 20 years and shows good potential to become a 94+ point wine.

A great sipping wine that will also pair nicely with food.

A blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, and 4% Petit Verdot.

15% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$250. — a month ago

Jay Kline

9.2

From magnum. Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of several hours. The 2012 pours a garnet color with a translucent core; medium+ viscosity with no staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with punchy notes of Morello cherry, raspberry, pomegranate, orange rind, red flowers, and a mix of cool and warm spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with high tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium+ and the texture is almost chewy. The 2012 is still an awesome value; really tasty stuff. Drink now through 2042. — 3 months ago

Joe Flo

9.7

Outstanding Saturn from Château d’ Yquem  — 3 months ago

Jean-Louis Carbonnier

9.3

From late 1990's; Premiere wine merchants, nyc — 3 months ago

Conrad Green

9.3

From mag. Dark plum, cherry and still fresh oak. A little young — 4 months ago

with Walker and David

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.6

1990 vintage. Last tasted 1.29.25 (9.5). Same conditions as then. Reconditioned/Château refurbed bottle with high fill and newish cork (only 20% saturated). That nose tho…H-B fer sure. Opened with a Durand. Not decanted. Tasted after 30 minutes, 1.25 hours and 2.5 hours. Phenomnomenal. Everything. Everything. In its right place. In its right place. A refurbished bottle from Le Château from this vintage in a 750ml format…another decade at this high. For mere mortal bottles, likely half that. 4.17.26. — 4 months ago

Joe Flo

9.3

Great improvement from the last btl. Unfortunately my last & not on the top of my list to replace. — 5 days ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.2

Better with the Rib-cap. The 08 vintage was spotty to good. This one shows the shortcomings of the 08 vintage. Really good fruit, but lacks typical, depth, mid palate, and length.

The nose is class Bordeaux.Ripe to ruby fruits of, black plum skin, slightly syrupy blackberries, plum, dark cherry liqueur, strawberries, dark currants. Dark chocolate cake with glaze, screaming, lead pencil shavings, tobacco, leather, dry riverstone, limestone marl, forest floor with dry leaves, soft, incense, black, licorice, red, cola, dry herbs, tomato, leaf, with dark and red flowers, framed in violets.

The palate is ripe to ruby fruits of, black plum skin, slightly syrupy blackberries, plum, dark cherry liqueur, strawberries, dark currants. Dark chocolate cake with glaze, screaming, lead pencil shavings, deep, dark spice that expands wide, nutmeg, cinnamon stick, caramel and vanillin, dry tobacco with ash, leather, dry riverstone, limestone marl, dry crushed rocks, forest floor with dry leaves, moist clays, soft, incense, black, licorice, red, cola, savory dry herbs, tomato leaf, dry oak barrel shaving to cedar with dark and red flowers, framed in violets, acidity is ok, just not right, finish is good, not great, it falls hard on spice and is short of a minute.

93 with the Rib-cap. Green Bean from my organic gsrden. Drink now through 2035. — 11 hours ago

Jay Kline

9.1

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of an hour. The 2018 “S” pours a slightly hazy garnet/purple color with a near opaque core; medium viscosity with light staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of pomegranate, cranberry, strawberry, licorice, purple flowers, green herbs and crushed rock. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose, the finish is medium+. I love me some Lapierre. Drink now through 2038. — a month ago

Jay Kline

9.2

Popped and poured; enjoyed over the course of a two days. Better on Day 2. On the pop and pour, this bottle was backward and really seemed resistant to show much. I didn’t detect any real flaws or faults…just sort of, “meh”. On Day 2, it had opened considerably. The 2017 pours a deep garnet with a near opaque core; medium viscosity with light staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with notes of tart and ripe blackberries, currants, mixed flowers, black tea, ferrous earth and a mix of cool and warm spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium+. Drink now with patience and through 2042. — 2 months ago

Jan de Weerd

9.6

And now a Bordeaux blend expression from… well Bordeaux! Left bank that is. Our favorite left bank Bordeaux fantastic quality for reasonable price. This wine was intense, still rather edgy tannins but already great complexity of waves of dark and red fruit laced in subtle pipe tobacco and spiced oak. — 3 months ago

with RoAnne, Tammy and 2 others

Doug Powers

9.4

Another absolutely fabulous older CdP, I saw @Jay Kline’s excellent tasting note from a few years ago on the 1990 (thanks for the info, @Jay Kline!!), this is amazing, amazingly a little better than the 1989 Beaucastel, what a trio of 1988-1990 CdPs!!! — 3 months ago

with Jim

Jay Kline

9.6

At this point, with this group, a Legends dinner simply wouldn’t be appropriate without at least one bottle of Chave Hermitage.

Opened about 90min prior to service; enjoyed over the course of a few hours. The 1994 Hermitage pours a slightly hazy garnet with a near opaque core; medium viscosity with moderate staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is vinous with perfumed notes of dried brambles, dried blueberry, dried purple flowers, black olive, mushroom, espresso, leather, stony earth. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long and slightly sanguine. Delicious with the 5 Spice Cured Duck prepared with marinated Bing cherries, crispy shallot and Olathe corn polenta. It was such a pleasure to taste the ‘94 Chave next to the ‘85 Gentaz. Two Northern Rhône Legends working with their respective terroirs. Where the Gentaz was all about the aromatics of Côte Rôtie, the Chave was brought more of the power from the Hill of Hermitage. Drink now through 2056. — 10 days ago

Gabriella Boros

10

A perfect wine. Balanced and complex. A gorgeous first hit of plum with a hint of cherry. So broad fruit at first but then settles on the tongue with a noise terror of tannin. No bitterness just smooth and lovely. Girgeous wine. 2010 vintage gift bottle from Donna and Anders — a month ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.5

2018 vintage. From magnum. Last tasted 3.19.26 (9.4), 12.5.25 (9.4), 1.31.25 (9.4) and 10.26.23 (9.5). Decanted and tasted after one hour. Yeahhh. 7.1.26. — 2 months ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

There are a number of things I can say about Leoville Barton. For me, it is a storied property and experience.

To this point, I have had quite a few 2000 Bordeaux’s, none of them ready as this one. Given what I know about Anthony & his legacy, most of his good vintages were made for your children. So, color me surprised.

While this 2000 is drinking well, it is far from its precipice. There is another 20 yrs plus of road here.

Sofia and I have had the pleasure of dining at the same table with Anthony Barton and his wife in the early teens of 2000. He was a salt of the earth gentleman. His wife, lovely. At dinner that night, he told us a story I will not forget. A story prompted by a question from my wife. He and his wife drove from France to Switzerland. They were stopped at the border and asked to get out of the car as they had a case of wine with them. At that time and maybe still now, you can’t take wine over the border into Switzerland. The border guard called the powers to be and recanted the story of them trying to bring wine into Switzerland. He told them their name. The person on the other end of the phone said, who? They said, Anthony Barton. The reply, was let him through. That’s respect!!!

His daughter Lilian has taken the helm. She is also salt of the earth and a great Bordeaux Ambassador. May Anthony RIP.

This 2000 is classic Bordeaux in every way.

The nose shows steeped & candied fruits that are; blackberries, black raspberries, both plums, poached strawberries, black cherries, purple & blue fruit hues (classic Barton). Graphite, dry tobacco, dry leather, dry limestone bits, dark Asian spices, dry herbs, dry river stone, dark, rich, forest floor, anise to black licorice, mid colas, fresh, candied to withering florals that are; dark, red, blue and violets.

The palate shows, M+ rounded, fine grain tannins. The nose mirrors the palate in many ways. Steeped, candied, ripe, juicy fruits that are; brambly blackberries, black raspberries, both plums, poached strawberries, black cherries, raspberries, purple & blue fruit hues. Leoville Barton shows purple & blue fruits more than most other left bank producers. Graphite, dry tobacco, cedar, dry leather, dry limestone bits, dry top soils, saline, caramel, mocha powder, German chocolate cake, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanillin, dark Asian spices w/ some heat, dry herbs, touch of black pepper, grilled meats, dry river stone, dark, rich, forest floor, anise to black licorice, black tarriness, mid colas, fresh, candied to withering florals that are; dark, red, blue and framed in liquid violets, acidity is grand, well balanced/structured, highly toned, elegant & smartly polished finish that lasts minutes and settles on earth & dark spice.

Decanted 90 minutes and enjoyed over nearly three hours.

Appreciated the 12.5% ABV. Many would say that is not possible in the modern wine era. Anthony says otherwise w/ his 2000.

95-96. — 2 months ago

Doug Powers

9.5

Super clean and still quite youthful, this is a GREAT example of a 1980s CdP from a vintage of little surmaturite, so awesome balance and perfect acidity suggests this vintage will easily last another 5-10 years!! — 3 months ago

with Jim

Hans Stockmann

9.9

From magnum. — 4 months ago