Byron C Mayes

8.9

Bright and deep gold. Abundant nose of baked pear and balsam. Full bodied, dry palate yields baked pear, balsam, and freshly cracked white pepper, supported by a firm backbone of acidity and adding a bit of sharp mineral and anise on the lengthy finish. A heartier style of Alsace PG that's a great match for richer dishes (pork tenderloin, cream or mushroom sauces, game fowl). This will even go great with more traditional "red wine" dishes. Try it with a sirloin! Drink now through 2029. — 4 years ago

Byron C Mayes

9.1

Star bright straw gold with rose gold highlights. Dried apple and dried flowers on the inviting nose. Firm acidity leads the medium light palate of baked quince, dried white flowers, white pepper, and a hint of flint all of the way through to the moderate finish. Laser focus on this Austrian beauty. Pork, game fowl, or scallops will have an excellent match. Drink now through 2028. — 5 years ago

Aravind A

9.0

Pop and pour. Still way too young, but a solid Corton-Charly. On the nose: soft mango, lime, oak toast, struck match, charcoal and black pepper. On the palate: good acidity, slightly thin, but lemon oil, green apple, black pepper. Only complaint is that this is slightly hollow on the mid-palate at this stage. Otherwise, everything is in its place..maybe time will set everything straight. — 5 years ago

Ned Gray Creed

9.0

Cold and crisp. A fine quaff as we set up the game room, filled out prop bets, and listened to pre game chatter. — 6 years ago

with Mark

Houdad Javidnia

9.2

Between this and Paolo Bea, I’m turning into a big fan of Sagrantino. Giving this wine time to open up may make my rating even higher. This wine is a good match for beef and other game. — 8 years ago

Lauren Cadell

10

Robust. Offers luscious blackberry, cassis, chocolate, and cedar aromas and flavors. Hints of toffee linger on the fruity finish. The rich, velvety flavors make a dynamic match with grilled steak, roasted game, garlicky lamb chops and aged cheeses. — 8 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.3

Steak, Frites & Claret. I am in heaven this New Year’s Eve. While 03 was a very warm & ripe vintage; which will drink well younger, this still needs 5-8 years. The nose still shows a fair amount of earth & some funk even after an hour & half in the the decanter. Sour dark cherries, ripe blackberries, black plum, roasted strawberries, raspberries haunt the background, light vanilla & cinnamon, light, soft, spice, black cherry cola/licorice, light volcanic minerals, dry stones, rich turned earth, black tea, anise, dark fresh florals with a hint of violets. The body is medium, lush and beautiful. Tannins have baby teeth. Sour & sweet dark cherries, ripe blackberries, black plum, roasted strawberries, blueberries, raspberries haunt the background, light vanilla & cinnamon, light, soft, spice, black cherry cola/licorice, light volcanic minerals, dry stones, rich turned dark earth, dry crushed rock, hints of graphite, cigar tobacco, used leather, black tea, anise, dark fresh florals with a hint of violets. The acidity is round and near perfect. The length, structure, tension and balance are all in good company. The finish is long & beautiful with nice balance, but just a shade more earthiness on the long set. Here a little trivia for your next game of “Wine Trivial Pursuit.” What was the first wine brought into space? In 1985, the 75 Lynch Bages was brought into space by a Frenchmen. Of course, right? I wonder if that drove up the bottle price? I think Lynch Bages is still currently closed for visits as it’s under renovation. They are making serious improvements to their facilities. Should you ever visit, make your appointment either side of lunch and eat at their Bistro...Cafe Lavinal. It’s very good, close and owned by Lynch Bages. Library vintages of Lynch Bages are available by the glass. It’s a very short walk from the Chateau. They also have great accommodations in walking distance, the Cordeillan Bages. The hotel is very nice and has a two star Michelin Restaurant. One of our favorite meals ever! Wish you all peace, success and many nice bottles in 2018!!! Happy New Year! 🎊🎈🎆 🍾🥂 🎉 — 8 years ago

Daniel Bloom

9.3

N: Olive, a bit gamey, very dark berried, but light, forest, souis-bois, minerals. B. Pepper.
P: So well knit and alive, no heaviness, Granitic, small red/black berries.The man has a wonderful touch with Syrah.
Deliciously dry w just a touch of bitter finish…nice. Blackness, but not dense.
Lingers delicately. A great match for non-sauced proteins.30mins out and tannins poking their heads up. The “ color” on your(my) palate doesn’t veer into the red fruited. I dig. Game, olive, repeat.
I’ll have to be be patient with the others🤞
From@fasselections. — 4 years ago

Paul Godard

10

👁️ Wonderful pale tawny colour.
👃 Deep aromas of confites dates, Agent prunes, toffee and torrefied black coffee
👄 Similar aromas found on the nose. Extremely seducing, rich and powerful.

Perfect match: Game meat, blue cheese — 5 years ago

William Feinstein

9.3

Garnet in the glass. Cedar, leather and graphite on the nose. After a four hour decant plum, raspberry and framboise fruit notes set off by fairly intense tannins. Definitely needed the decant to let the fruit shine. Secondary notes of chocolate and bell pepper. Finish is moderately long with game, white pepper and herbal notes. Has plenty of structure for the long haul (5+ more years) though my guess is the fruit will fade long before the tannins. Outstanding effort from one of my favorite wineries. — 6 years ago

with Maryalice

Ferruccio

9.5

Italy vs France, set 2.
This time the match goes to France. Superb wine — 8 years ago

Roman Sukley

10

2005 Sine Qua Non "The 17th Nail in My Cranium" Sta. Rita Hills Syrah
Buckle your chinstraps folks because tonight we’re headed to the wine world equivalent of the summit of Mt. Everest. The absolute pinnacle in the Universe of wine for yours truly. The “it just don’t get any better than this” moment as far as grapes are concerned. Let me begin first with the name of this magic elixir. If memory serves, it was derived from a combination of the fact that this was the 17th Syrah produced in the Garage d’Or otherwise known as Sine Qua Non, and, in that same year, Manfred was felled by a rogue barrel requiring several staples to close the gash to his cranium, hence... "The 17th Nail in My Cranium"
The wine is a blend of 96.5% Syrah and 3.5% Viognier which was aged 38+ months prior to bottling. % alcohol. 4 hour decant at cellar temperature. Achromatic Raven black motor oil in my Zalto. Undoubtedly, the wines I find most compelling are of the “swirl, sniff and contemplate” variety, and this one might just set the benchmark. Explosive aromatic potpourri of blackberry jam, roasted coffee, fresh ground black pepper, graphite and spice with a faint floral arrangement lurking somewhere in the background. On the palate, sweet cherry compote and black currant with undertones of roasted game and black olives. A big, full bodied wine that’s light on its feet. A tightrope walker. A powerhouse with impeccable manners. Elegant and lithesome. A ballet dancer. Mikhail Nikolayevich Baryshnikov in his prime. Complex, with layers of flavors in beautiful, perfect harmony. Crosby, Stills & Nash singing “Suite Judy Blue Eyes.” The Beach Boys, “Good Vibrations.” Perfect balance. Pure, silky mouth feel. Immeasurable finish. And I mean that literally, as in it just continues on and on. Just utter perfection. A wine that is in fact so entirely perfect as to eliminate the need for a search for an alternative. The last word. To paraphrase The Bard, this wine “might (just) be the be-all and the end-all.”

— 8 years ago

Jay Kline

8.9

We brought this bottle up from the cellar and pulled the cork about two hours before dinner simply to let it catch its breath and come up to temperature. In the glass, a very deep crimson robe. Notes of cherry pie, burned toast, a touch of wild game...a bit hot though too and I found that to be a bit distracting. On the palate, dark cherries and plums...just a hint of spice but pretty simple really. Very soft mouthfeel. Tannins have integrated and acid is low-ish so I can't imagine any reason to hold out in hopes of more. Set your expectations, if you have any, to "moderate" and drink now. — 9 years ago

Mike Saviage

9.6

Night 1 of WineBoyz Wineapalooza. I hosted a pre-game before dinner at La Belena in Carmel, and opened two champagnes to kick off the blowout weekend our wine group has set up. This has a straw gold color. Vibrant with great energy in the glass. Chablis-like nose. Notes of citrus, wet river stone, vanilla, some iodine. Chalky with nice salinity in the mouth. Great, long-lasting finish. Got better with an hour of air. Killer juice. 96+ — 4 years ago

Boris

9.0

Total: 08.00 / 4.0 / 90

Great classic and strict Austrian Pinot Noir. My wardrobe doesn't have proper set of clothing to match this wine, but to hell with those suits - I still enjoy this wine even in my shorts. Excellent bouquet: spices, earth, wild strawberry, tobacco leaves, cherry. More volume than I expected, medium+ body, vertical palate.

Tasted on 2021-09-14 — 5 years ago

Victoria C

10

Love this! Perfect match for a steak or wild game. Dry, heavy and clean. — 5 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.6

As with all of the top Cuvées of Sami Odi there is a lot going on with the wine as a product of ancient vines going back to 1912. Ripe plums, black olive, earth, some game and meaty notes and prune. Bold flavours delivered with a trademark silky texture with supple fluid tannins. Rich chocolatey notes on the palate mingling with the ripe plum. Followers of Sami Odi will know that Fraser often blends 2 or 3 vintages but with “Baby Tui” the 2012 vintage was so good that it stood alone. The unusual and attractive label is apparently a collection of vintage match box labels belonging to Fraser’s grandmother I believe. Correct me if I’m wrong. I have one of these gems left in the cellar. — 6 years ago

Scott McCaffrey

9.3

Giving a 9.3 but erring on the low side which might not be fair to this bottle. Drinks way more expensive than it is. Earthy tone on the nose is more spring-like and fresh than plowed field but palate gets hint of caramel/vanilla on the front. Really adds some complexity to a cab without being a sugary mess or taking away from its roots. Not sure I would pair this with game or a nice steak, but this is a great red that can stand on its own and is great to enjoy sitting on the deck watching the sun set — 8 years ago

Ron Siegel

9.3

Perfect match with a grilled steak. This had sweet blackberry & red currant with cedar, saddle leather, earth, game & cigar box. — 8 years ago

Shawn R

9.4

Maggie was once a student under Manfred Krankl, this bottle was her second vintage. Shows a restrained nose even after 3 hours after the decant. Hints of wild game and blackberry compote on the nose. Sweet tannins that integrate well and provide backbone. Layers of cassis, plum and wild flowers set up a stellar finish that sails for over a minute. — 9 years ago