Magnum! Very nice and enjoyable Shiraz, the way this grape should be like form the book. Serve it slightly chilled 17-18 degrees should do the trick. — 2 years ago
Simple, light, but full of charm. Clear purple dress, beautiful shine. Nose typical of the cabernets-francs de Loire. Raspberry, geranium, violet, blackwood, green pepper (but not too much). The mouth is fresh and tense, with a beautiful mineral weft reminiscent of rifle stone, slate or chalk. Served at 15 degrees, it’s a nice treat.
Saumur simple, léger, mais plein de charme. Robe pourpre limpide, bel éclat. Nez typique des cabernets-francs de Loire. Framboise, géranium, violette, bois de ronce, poivron vert (mais pas trop). La bouche est fraîche et tendue, avec une belle trame minérale évoquant la pierre à fusil, ardoise ou craie. Servi à 15 degrés c’est une belle gourmandise. — 3 years ago
Perfect wine — 4 months ago
Very dark and deep flavors — 9 months ago
Wasn’t expecting to like English sparkling nearly as much as I’m enjoying this bottle. A truly bizarre combination of ripe fruit and racy acidity (higher than the average for champagne) that can only come from somewhere this far north > 50 degrees latitude (long growing season + long days during growing season). Lemon curd, green apple danish, even notes of pear and passion fruit. Bond may have to trade out his Bollinger for this. — 3 years ago
Smooth and elegant, but a little sweet for my taste. Classic California Cabernet Sauvignon. Very strong blueberry and blackberry flavors. This wine has a number of years left to age but is ready to drink now. A well-made wine. An outstanding value at $42. — 8 months ago
From magnum on Thanksgiving. Unfortunately I broke the cork and had to decant through cheese cloth, which I was really trying to avoid with a twelve year old Crianza. Ended up drinking beautifully and was very well received. Layered with mature red fruit, dried berries, game, tobacco, and vanilla. Maybe a kiss of bret? Acid and tannin still very much intact though the sediment is significant and after several hours the wine becomes a victim of oxygen. Have had this in the cellar for several years and caught the right large format occasion. Pop ‘em if you’ve got ‘em. — 3 years ago
2020/12/22 with pan-roasted venison loin and tenderloin with sauce poivrade (after Richard Olney). This is a tricky one. I love Clape, and this wine was quite nice, in a brambly blackberry and funk vein. It did not, however, have any of the notes you’d expect from a mature Clape. It certainly didn’t feel old or faded - quite the opposite, it was still fleshy and fresh, if not terribly deep. Sometimes this happens, but sometimes I feel it happens a bit frequently with wines from my cellar. Perhaps it’s just too cold - I have heard some views that in cool, stable “benchmark” cellar conditions, wine can age much more slowly than is generally expected. One thing I can say is that my 2004 Clape and Allemand, stored with no cooling with family in the Bay Area, has already started to shown those delicious, gamy aromas. Should I raise my cellar temp a few degrees? As is, who knows how much longer this one could or should have gone, but as it’s my last bottle I guess I’ll never know. — 4 years ago
Colin Cahoon
A big, hot cherry bomb. Bright fruit forward with cherry, ripe strawberry, cranberry, cinnamon, ginger, and ripe plum. Medium body, high alcohol, high acid, a long finish, and light tannins with a hint of American oak. — 8 days ago