Anthony James Marr

9.5

Supremely elegant with plenty of life left, but likely peaking (if it hasn’t already) - loamy soils, dried tobacco, interesting and subtle spice and chocolate on the palate. — 25 days ago

Bob McDonald

9.7

I had this a week ago but didn’t take any notes at all at a friends tasting last Sunday afternoon. Have always been a huge fan of Dominus and this was from an exceptional vintage. I recall an excellent left bank Cabernet dominant style but presented as a Napa style - rich and plush but not overly so. Thoroughly enjoyable. — a month ago

K. Syrah

9.5

2007: Wow. Phenomenal Chateauneuf with tons of character. Viscous, very rich, nicely concentrated with plenty of minerals and funk to balance the still-persistent purple fruit. Can’t imagine this getting any better with more age but plenty left. — 5 months ago

Erica Gamble

9.4

First impression of lush dark fruit that transitions to strong, earthy gravel with a dry and spicy finish. Really impressive. — 6 months ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.3

1990 vintage. Excellent fill and halfway saturated cork. Used a Durand but surmise a regular waiter's friend, wielded carefully, could have done the trick with the cork. Decanted and tasted after 30 mins, one hour and two hours. Some obvious sed but not troublesome or overtly noticeable. Original owner-château direct on original release. Super cold cellar because this was lagging noticeably behind other '90's and LB's. Bigger tannic structure (for a generally feminine-styled house) than anything save a Latour, Mouton, Ducru Left Bank property. Even more guts than Lynch-Bages or Pichon-Baron '90's currently stored above 55 or so degrees. Surprising but made sense. Light-medium body. Appropriate color. 3-4 years left in this stage unless larger format in play. Slight, fleeting burst of richness in the frontal palate and a tad brickish and then it just flowed on, without speed bumps. A little cocoa powder and cedar/tobacco. Suspect 750ml specimens not stored as cold/religiously will be showing more in the 9.0-9.1 range and farther down the backside of the bell curve. 10.26.24. — a month ago

Bob McDonald

9.5

Cassis and oak - the latter quite noticeable. From a ripe year where the fruit should be apparent but at the moment the oak dominates - mocha notes, but then again still has a huge future. Amazing what a solid core of self contained full body this has for 16 years of age, but still of profound intensity - dark chocolate and black currant. Will go on for literally decades - only have 2 left. Penfolds “Rewards of Patience “ say through to 2050! That is not as crazy as it sounds. This wine is close to immortal Next one in 10 years. — 4 months ago

Delectable Wine

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9.6

The 2012 Insignia is in great shape today. Bright acids lend tremendous energy to a mid-weight Insignia that is more about finesse rather than power. Sweet red-fleshed fruit, cedar, tobacco, mint and rose petal are all beautifully delineated. There's not much left to say. The 2012 offers tons of pure pleasure. (Antonio Galloni, Vinous, May 2024)
— 7 months ago

Scott Kahn

9.4

Deep color, balanced acidity and palette, with an extraordinary bouquet. Black currents and other dark berries, smokey, toasted vanilla oak - with mellowed tannins. Lots of cellaring time left for this vintage! — a month ago

Jan de Weerd

9.2

Okay. Again the same dilemma. If a wine does not meet expectation is it basically bad (for me)? 🤔 because in life everything is relative, right? Any thoughts on puzzling matter??The wine was well balanced, dark red fruit flavors, polished, smooth tannins, good intensity and concentration, but limited length and lacking any meaningful complexity… Eight year old left bank Bordeaux. A fourth or fifth growth winery, maybe not, can’t remember for sure. Do remember what I paid though, $120. Definitely too much for what we experienced this evening…. as to our expectations. — 2 months ago

with Tammy

Jay Kline

9.4

Opened around 8pm the evening prior, double decanted and left in room temperature until service on Friday evening. In total, this was opened 24hours before service. The 1995 pours a beautiful garnet with transparent core; medium viscosity with moderate stating of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with surprisingly boozy dark fruit. Brambles, cassis, bell pepper, licorice, spearmint and baking spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannins and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is long with great acidity. Overall, remarkably youthful. While it’s certainly ready to go, it will likely continue some positive evolution over the next couple of decades. Drink now with a long decant through 2045. — 5 months ago