Hands On Wine

Silver Oak

Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2020

When confronted with an open bottle of Silver Oak Cab on a Wednesday night, you step up and finish it, no questions asked. — 2 days ago

Yianni, Ted and 3 others liked this

Château Cos d'Estournel

Saint-Estèphe Red Bordeaux Blend 1983

Shay A
9.3

(Two previous 1983 wine reviews never made it on here, so copying from my CT).

Continuing a run of ‘83s over the last 3-6 months, this not only showed quite well, but it was at its best after almost two hours in the bottle. Whereas the ‘83 Pichon was clean and elegant, this was a bit more dense and powerful. Beautifully expressive aromatics of potpourri, espresso, fig and leather with a flavor profile mostly on the red/black fruit side of the spectrum. The mid-palate showed good weight and continued to bulk-up during the evening. Old cherry-tobacco note at the finish. Honestly, this drank like it was more early ‘90s than it was early ‘80s. Good.
— 11 days ago

Scott@Mister, Jan and 32 others liked this

Stag's Leap Wine Cellars

Artemis Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

Blend of 98% Cabernet Sauvignon, 1% Cabernet Franc, and half a % each of Malbec and Merlot, aged 15 months in 33% new French oak, 51% of fruit from Atlas Peak District, deep Ruby with aromas of vibrant dark fruit, sweet spice and herbs. On the palate flavors of cherry and blackberry with tobacco spice, toasty oak, cinnamon and floral notes. Fine tannins, long finish ending with fruit, spice, cedar, mocha and mineral character, Nice, should age well. — 18 days ago

Juan, Andrew and 7 others liked this

Caymus Vineyards

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2021

Dark Ruby with aromas of ripe berry fruit and floral spice, pure Caymus signature style, easy drinking, approachable as always. On the palate flavors of ripe blackberry, black cherry and currants with complex spice showing notes of cacao, cinnamon and rich vanilla oak. Fine soft tannins, nice mouthfeel, great balance with acidity, long finish, ending with notes of oak and mineral notes. Nice! — 23 days ago

Veronika, Paul and 1 other liked this

Château Ducru-Beaucaillou

Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 1978

When 78 Ducru is on it’s an amazing example of aged Bordeaux but they’re incredibly inconsistent. This was a stunning bottle but two were corked before it. A perfect pairing with black truffle tagliatelle. — 12 days ago

Jan, Tom and 5 others liked this

Dom Pérignon

Brut Champagne Blend 2015

Medium lemon yellow , fine bubbles . Quite restrained and mineral focused on the nose , then lemon confit , quince, touch of orange flowers, with some pastry notes , white flowers , honeysuckle also . Quite intense and mineral on the palate , fills out well with some lemon oil and pastry notes also , but this is reserved and elegant in style , more mineral , chalky and more intense than the 2013 had last week. Really refreshing acidity . Long and complex on the finish , I would imagine this needs more time than the 2013 too. Come back in 5 years , will show well for a further 10-15 years , perhaps longer. Very promising . — 21 days ago

Ira, Bob and 14 others liked this

Château Pichon Longueville Comtesse de Lalande

Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 1983

Shay A
9.3

(Two previous 1983 vintage wine reviews never made it on here, so copying from CT).

My experiences with 1983s has been fairly positive, and this PL certainly is among the better I’ve had from the vintage. Holding color nicely with deep ruby and slight bricking around the rim. Started off a bit dense and muddled, but hit stride about 30mins later with a mix of red and black berry fruit, cassis, a streak of herbal green down the middle (something I always get with PL). Excellent example of the fruit showing lots of flavor without being overly ripe. Leather, sweet pipe tobacco, graphite, and still some vibrancy at the finish with tannin structure. Clean and elegant at this stage. Showed well over the course of two hours. Drink up and enjoy.
— 11 days ago

Scott@Mister, Jan and 32 others liked this

Château Lynch-Bages

Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2021

Deep Ruby red color with aromas of red and black fruits with oak and tobacco spice, blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Petite Verdot and Cabernet Franc. On the palate flavors of black raspberry, currants and black cherry with licorice, toasty oak and tobacco. Fine lush tannins, long finish ending with fruit, oak and earthy tobacco spice. Needs more time to develop! — 10 days ago

Tom, Andrew and 4 others liked this

Dominus Estate

Dominus Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 1986

Flight 2 , wine 1 . Quite deep garnet , less terracotta rim . This had a whiff of oxidation about it at first which seemed to somewhat dissipate with time . Some dark spiced fruits , liquorice and menthol hints , cedar and sous bois . On the palate good ripeness and spiced dark cherry hints . Good acidity and rounded tannin . Nice length also , offering some spiced black fruits and menthol hints . Don’t think this is a pristine bottle but was enjoyable none the less , I was unsure at first if this was Napa , but coming back to it … and reading my notes , it became quite obvious . However I had this down as the Ch Montelena , not the Dominus — 7 days ago

Anthony, Jan and 7 others liked this

Château Gruaud Larose

Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 2010

Slightly deeper ruby with a little narrower , less garnet rim . This is quite deep and slightly more herbal on the nose, floral perhaps , a little more austere. Spicy Cassis , tobacco , herbal touches . On the palate this is slightly more velvety with a riper dark fruits , mixed with a touch of dark cherry , spice and subtler , riper tannin . Quite ripe , more polished tannin. A bit bigger and riper in style , alcohol a bit more noticeable . Quite good dark cherry , dark chocolate, cassis finish . This is a little more polished , but probably needs a little more time , better in 5 years and will last well a further 10 . Overall a good showing , a classy , polished performance — 21 days ago

Ira, Bob and 22 others liked this