Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.2

2022 vintage. From a 375ml bottle. The St. Estèphe exception that proves the rule. Super-delicate cocoa powder with sumptuous richness throughout. Light-medium body. Cos is an outlier on the right. This is on the left. Nearly everything else is in between, hammer and nail 3D BDX...dry, dirty and distinctive. Excellent quality BDX to woo initiates with. 6.26.26. — 2 days ago

Eric Urbani

9.0

100% gewurztraminer for Oktoberfest! Half of the grapes were immediately pressed and cold fermented in stainless steel, the other half foot stomped left on skins overnight then pressed and fermented cold. Results in a wine with depth of texture and aromatic complexity that Larry Schafer considers his best to date. aBV 13.5%. Santa Barbara county fruit. — 8 months ago

Ron R

9.2

As with previous tastings, the nose comes across as compressed. Palate displays butterscotch, caramel and unusually for this producer. a hint of wet paper. Mid palate is dense and weighty with moderate sweetness and acidity. Nice citrus fruit profile with a hint of pears. Good, but I consider this bottle to be an outlier. — 2 years ago

with Anne-marie

Brent Young

9.1

I love Australian Shiraz, especially with 10+ years of age. However, this bottle was advanced more than I expected

👀Purple color with clear browning
👃Dried cherries, anise, dark chocolate with a hint of volatility
👅Same dried cherries, maybe slightly stewed, and anise/allspice. Good acidity. Was generally drinking pretty well

I have a few bottles so I will check in on another one soon to see if this was an outlier. I was expecting this to be at the front of a long drinking window. Was this a volatile acidity issue? — 4 years ago

Jay Kline

9.0

Served double-blind. Deep, glass staining ruby red with an utterly opaque core. On the nose, decadent, sightly confected, red fruits...almost red rope licorice like...mixed with spiced dark fruits (plums and currants) and cocoa. The palate is more dark fruited with semi-sweet chocolate chips…the ones made with the natural vanilla, and some coffee but there is good acid and the tannins, which are quite fine, are also quite sneaky. Long, satisfying finish. This comes across as a fairly extracted wine and I wondered if there as some residual sugar, possibly some appassimento?? I was totally stumped. Revealed to be this blend of Nerello Cappuccio and Gaglioppo; the latter I had zero experience with but, apparently, related to Sangiovese. This is a wine of intense concentration and proved to be most enjoyable on Day 3 once everything became a bit more integrated. I don’t have a whole lot of experience with Calabrian wines so I’m unsure if this is truly representative or an outlier. I’m intrigued and I think that the quality is certainly there. Paired very well on Day 1 with Osso Bucco and saffron risotto. — 5 years ago

Ely Cohn

9.3

I’ve heard for years about the wildly extroverted and extra-ordinary Sancerre wines from Sebastien Riffault. His wines are an outlier of ripeness in a sea of lean high acid chalky juice. Rich with an amber glow.

He picks his Sauvignon Blanc at the last minute to reach a level of ripeness you’d never expect could come from the tiny cold pocket of the Loire.

Now I like both styles, but this is super fun and something completely new to me.

Think juicy peach, fresh apricot, and bright yellow pineapple. But still with high acid - nothing flabby. — 6 years ago

Shay A

9.5

After a couple months of hiatus, the Friday City Club group was able to get back together (albeit a smaller, more spread out group) for an epic hosting by @joe leatherwood . 1 sparkler, 2 whites, 5 reds and 1 dessert wine, all served blind.

The first of a monster lineup of 5 incredible red wines. For the first 10-15mins, this was actually my favorite. Very high toned and lifted. Bright. Rich red fruits, spicy black fruits, kirsch, sage and potpourri jump from the glass. On the palate, it was the most elegant of the five with Black Forest cake, mulberries, cedar, dark chocolate shavings and baking spices. I called this 7-10yr old Napa cab (but it certainly seemed a bit of an outlier compared to the next 4!) — 6 years ago

with Jid, joe and 3 others

Jocholla

9.1

Cherries for days, big fan! — 2 months ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.5

2014 vintage. Excellent cork and fill. Decanted with minimal sed and tasted after 1.5 hours. One of the few outlier exceptions (Haut-Bages-Libéral, Pichon-Lalande, et al) that proves the general, big and bold, Pauillac rule. Delicate impressions from start to finish with impeccable balance. Medium body. Plenty of flavors and sensations without big, overt commitments to any of them. Playing the field and we are all the better for it. Drinking beautifully now without any perceived or obvious Scylla/Charybdis pitfalls in the next decade. 01.16.26. — 5 months ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.3

2022 vintage. @Somm David T has a most excellent, in-depth and recent review on this vintage and wine dated April 19, 2025 (9.3). Couldn’t agree more with his assessments. He didn’t tackle the nose because of the wine serving temp then. It had a curious 3-5 year old Condrieu super floral, super stone fruit nose. I expected and wanted more acidity; got a veritable spring garden and lighter body/less acidity. Flavors and scents constantly shifting so impossible to pigeonhole. ADD in a wine glass. First time with this producer’s white wines and sincerely wondering if this is an outlier/region specific feature or how the whites generally show. 08.22.25. — 10 months ago

romo

9.6

Otherworldly. An outlier in this group. Layers of deep red roses and sweet cigars. Saline mineral fruity pebbles. Wow. — 5 years ago

Severn G

9.1

Nose has juiced red cherries in stainless steel tank, dried grape vine, ripe black cherry, ripe blackberry, dry potting soil with trailing alcohol (13% ABV, seems more to us).

Palate has tannic cherry, ripe black currant, dried blackberry and steely notes. Still showing somewhat aggressive tannins, likely looking for another 10+Y in bottle or more extensive decanting time. We have noticed some mellowing of the more outlier traits in the past hour.

Decanted 4H. — 5 years ago

Bob McDonald

9.2

On Saturday I conducted a Cabernet tasting at home with 8 mates. The theme was 2009 vintage Bordeaux v Margaret River with this outlier from NZ included. This had leafy minty notes with a touch of coffee. A medium weight palate with a certain hardness which was a negative. Still a good future. Ended up being out classed in the company to follow. I will drink my remaining 6 bottles over the 5 to 10 years. — 6 years ago

Jay Kline

9.3

Oh yes, this is exactly what I want in my Chardonnay. More Chablis than Côte de Beaune. A sublime mix of tropical fruit, lemon and minerals. Super crisp and wonderfully refreshing. The acid plays on the palate for over a minute. Impeccably well done and such an outlier from other Napa and Sonoma Chardonnays. — 6 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.1

This is one of the values you buy in futures in excellent vintages (2005 is) and hold it until now & the next 5 yrs for its best. Yet, will drink another 5 yrs. 2005 I believe is the best Bordeaux fruit in nearly three decades I’ve noted.

Also, this one is not to be confused with the same name Chateau that is Pomerol. Think this was around $20 on release.

If you note the Right Bank map I posted, you’ll see the region of Cotes de Castillon is an outlier region just east of St. Emilion. While a lesser region than SE, it still makes some nice wines like this one.

This bottle has been well stored for nearly 20 yrs. Cork like new with next to no wine stain on its side. One of the prettier 91’s I’ve had in memory.

The color is still deep opaque with a lighter glass edge. No brickish tones.

The nose shows ruby, floral, candied; dark currants, blackberries, black cherries, black raspberries, black plum, poached strawberries & raspberry hues,, dark tarriness, black licorice, mid berry cola, steeped tea, coffee, some lead pencil, dry tobacco, dry river stone, dark, rich forest floor w/ dry leaves, light caramel with understated/layered baking spices & soft dark spices, red, dark florals framed in liquid violets.

The tannins are medium, well rounded, plush & velvety. Palate shows a more pronounced ruby quality, floral to just candied; dark currants, blackberries, black cherries, black raspberries, black plum, plum, poached strawberries & raspberry hues, dark tarriness, black licorice, mid berry cola, steeped tea, dry crushed limestone, moist herbs w/ a sage lead, coffee, some lead pencil, dry tobacco, dry river stone, dark, rich forest floor w/ dry leaves, charcoal w/ ash, warm, dark chocolate sliding into milk chocolate, light caramel with understated/layered baking spices-clove, nutmeg, cinnamon, vanillin & soft dark spices, red, dark florals framed in brilliant, liquid violets, perfect acidity, balance for days, softly knitted, mid tension, very good length with an elegant finish that lasts 90 seconds and long sets on gentle, mid spices and beautiful earthiness.

It is an elegant beauty. It’s a gentle, even palate tug of war with the wine & Wagyu Ribcap. 91-92 with the Ribcap. More 92 w/ the steak. — 3 months ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.3

20018 vintage. More concentration throughout than most NSG's. yet not the most delicate. A definite tradeoff. Nice to have an outlier from the region. — 3 years ago

Roger Ray

9.3

"This wine is dense and concentrated in a way that makes it an outlier among most Crozes wines". I should have let it cellar until 2025. — 4 years ago

Eric Urbani

9.3

We tasted seven white wines from Campania and Sicily, all single grape varietals, 2009-2012. I was the outlier on this one - loved the caramel, surprising meatiness. The others did not like it.
— 5 years ago

Kat Kaster

9.2

Great value, ripe cherry, touch of oak maybe?
Fave — 5 years ago

Shay A

9.2

This was a head scratcher. My plan on opening this was due to a craving for some savory/funky Syrah, but what I got was a nice aged Syrah minus any sort of herbal/savory/meat type characteristics. I’m not really sure why? No technical flaw to the wine, but my experience seems to be an outlier...

I followed this over two days and it stayed mostly the same the entire time. Perfumed aromatics of potpourri, high percentage cherry infused dark chocolate, and grilled, underripe black cherries. It is nicely balanced at this point in its evolution, showing power without much weight. Red currant, tangy grilled rhubarb, plum, cocoa dusted dates, and mocha show up on the palate.

For the glass nerds out there (of which I am one of), I tried this out of the Zalto Universal and the Glasvin Universal (pictured). I found the Zalto to have slightly better aromatics as it showed more complexity, but the balance and bowl of the Glasvin were preferred. Similar drinking experience from both. — 6 years ago