Long Story Short

Merus

Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 1815

Inky in color with a short reddish rim.

Fruity nose of black fruits, cedar and chocolate notes.

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

Dry and fruit forward on the palate with nice complexity.

Showing blackberries, black currants, plums, cedar, vanilla, licorice, spices, cooked cherries, herbs and peppercorn.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cherries.

This 14 year old Cabernet Sauvignon from Napa Valley is just delicious. Bold and beautiful, with a great mouthfeel.

Elegant and robust at the same time. The high alcohol is nicely integrated at this point.

Excellent right out of the bottle, and better after 90 minutes of airtime.

I've had many different vintages of this wine, and it always delivers.

Peaking now, and will continue to drink nicely in the next 5 years.

Robert Parker 95 points.

Good by itself as a sipping wine, and will pair nicely with a big piece of steak.

A blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Merlot and 4% Petit Verdot.

14.7% alcohol by volume.

93 points.

$150.
— 2 months ago

Paul, Marc and 8 others liked this

Flora Springs

Trilogy Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2021

Inky in color with a short purplish rim.

Strong nose with black fruits, cedar, licorice, chocolates, light vegetables, wild flowers and peppercorn.

Full-bodied and smooth, with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with blackberries, black cherries, currants, cedar, vanilla, spices, espresso, cola, herbs, licorice, dark chocolates, light earth and peppercorn.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cherries.

This young Cabernet Sauvignon blend from Napa Valley is already delicious.

Rich and engaging. Powerful and dark. Still a little unforgiving. Spicy and fruit forward.

Much earthier on the nose than on the palate. Only after 2.5 hours it balances out, so be patient.

Will continue to age nicely in the next 10 to 15 years, and has good potential to become a 94+ point wine. Would be nice to revisit it in 5 years.

I Had a few vintages of this wine and it is very consistent.

Good by itself as a sipping wine or with food. Will pair nicely with a big piece of steak.

A blend of 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Petit Verdot and 5% Malbec. Grapes were handpicked and aged for 18 months in mostly French oak barrels.

14.2% alcohol by volume.

92 points.

$95.
— 9 months ago

Paul, Ted and 12 others liked this
Jay Kline

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Flora Springs “Trilogy” is low-key 🔥

E. Guigal

Crozes-Hermitage Syrah 2019

2019 vintage. Easy, Tuesday nite Rhônefest. Dark plum, raspberry, cherry and modeling clay (!!) on the nose with some acidity/astringent notes. Medium/medium-light body and lacking the youthful and overt baby fat of some C-H producers/efforts such as/those of Delas. Pretty mid-palate, Burgundy-styled flair. That plum bouquet note transforms into spicy dark plum and ample tannins on a decently long finish. Would simply love to pair with duck or a thumb thick piece of swordfish. Has some pop and short-term (2-12 years) aging potential and can think of much worse fates than pulling the last bottle of this in a decade and opening. Has enuff stuff to cellar dweller. 3.7.23. — 2 years ago

Shay, Jan and 14 others liked this

Herman Story

Casual Encounters Syrah Blend 2021

Delectable Wine
9.4

Darkly floral and intense, the 2021 Casual Encounters blends black raspberries with cedar shavings, tobacco, and exotic spice. This is elegant in feel, with silken textures and decadently ripe red berry fruits. Cooling acidity maintains a fantastic balance as dark chocolate and balsamic spice firm up the finish, tapering off long and gently tannic. The 2021 is juicy yet expertly balanced. (Eric Guido, Vinous, July 2024)
— 4 months ago

Neethlingshof Estate

Short Story Collection The Owl Post Stellenbosch Pinotage 2020

Dark ruby red color, some purple edges, with aromas of dark fruits and sweet spice. On the palate flavors of black cherry and blackberry with vanilla, cedar and cinnamon spice. Fine tannins, medium+ finish ending with fruit, cedar and spice. — 9 months ago

Tom, Paul and 1 other liked this

Pahlmeyer

Napa Valley Proprietary Red Blend 1995

Dark ruby in color with a very short reddish rim. Not showing age at all.

Strong fruity nose with cedar, vanilla, chocolates and black fruits.

Full bodied, elegant and smooth, with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate and very fruity, with black currants, plums, tobacco, cedar, leather, vanilla, licorice, spices, chocolates, herbs and light alcohol.

Medium plus on the finish with fine grained tannins and cherries.

This 28 year old is still drinking beautifully, but was probably better a few years ago.

Nicely balanced and elegant with nice complexity.

Needed 90 minutes of airtime to open up properly.

Robert Parker 96 points.

I Had this vintage almost 2 years ago, and it was even better then.

A blend of 79% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Cabernet Franc, 5% Merlot, 4% Malbec and 3% Petit Verdot. Aged in French oak barrels for 22 months.

14.1% alcohol by volume.

93 points.

$200.
— a year ago

Ira, Tom and 15 others liked this
Ron R

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👀

A. Rafanelli

Dry Creek Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2008

Poured into a decanter about an hour prior to service; enjoyed over period that lasted a few hours. The 2008 pours a deep ruby color with a near opaque core; medium+ viscosity with moderate staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is developing with mostly fresh, tart, vibrant red fruits: red brambles, red currants and tart cherries with some pyrazines, tobacco, some cool herbs, dry earth and gentle warm spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and bordering high acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium+ and the body is perceptibly leaner than both the 1988 and the 2018. That being said, I love its transparency because it is clearly telling part of the story of the vintage. The frost was merciless in Dry Creek in the spring of 2008. So far, the evolution seems slow to me. Drink now with a decant but considering the structure, this has a long life ahead. If I had another bottle, I would open my next after 2028. — 6 months ago

Ira, Aaron and 7 others liked this

La Rioja Alta

Viña Alberdi Reserva Rioja Tempranillo 2019

100% tempranillo, aged in oak for 2 years. Deep Ruby with aromas of berry fruits, spice and herb notes. On the palate flavors of cherry and blackberry with notes of oak and black pepper notes. Fine soft tannins, great balance with acidity, long finish ending with fruit, vanilla, oak and slight earthy spice character. Will age short term! — 8 months ago

Veronika, Juan and 4 others liked this

Bevan Cellars

Ontogeny Oakville Red Wine 2017

Deep purple in color with a short purplish rim.

Beautiful nose with lots of chocolates and light earth notes.

Full-bodied and elegant with medium acidity.

Dry and very fruity on the palate with nice complexity.

Showing black currants, cooked plums, cedar, tobacco, vanilla, dried figs, raisins, licorice, light earth, peppercorn, cola, spices and dark chocolates.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and crushed peppercorn.

This is a gorgeous Cabernet Sauvignon based Bordeaux blend from Napa Valley. Big and bold. Spicy and tangy. Showing nice complexity at this point.

This 6 year old is drinking beautifully now. Rich yet elegant. Extracted and easy drinking. Well balanced and really delicious.

A beautiful surprise. I had the 2016 a few years ago, and this is drinking much better now. I did not expect it from the 2017 vintage.

Good right out of the bottle, and good by itself as a sipping wine. Robert Parker 93 points.

A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

15.2% alcohol by volume.

94 points.

$110.
— 10 months ago

Juan, Sharon and 12 others liked this