Brad Jensen

9.3

Held up well over the last 28 years! Took a gamble on some birthday wine and it payed off well. Prominent bricking and the cork obviously fell apart, but the wine maintained the rustic, leathery notes of age, with hints of black tea, overripe plum, and some lingering acidic energy, like a ripe strawberry with some dark chocolate. Medium bodied, with some leathery, smoky ash over the dark cherry like fruit, there’s notes of cranberry and strawberry compote still alive in here. The finish lingers for a while, fresh, but not acidic with tannins that only really started to show after a few hours of opening. Grippy, but well integrated. If the measure of a great wine is in its ability to last, this wine has earned the title despite poor storage conditions and lack of faith from its sellers. — 6 days ago

Will Stanley

9.5

Just rock-solid Châteauneuf, this is exemplary and for me personally my exact sweet-spot in terms of the varied styles from this region. The nose takes a little coaxing, but has a great yin / yang profile of pure, fresh blue fruit, liquorice, violets, and garrigue, versus seared meat, iron and loamy earth. This all puts it square in the middle of the ‘old’ and ‘new’ schools, broadly speaking, and it’s a wine that has the best of both worlds as a result.

The palate is huge, an iron fist in a glove of velvet and so much more, but in no way imbalanced or over-extracted - not overtly alcoholic, at a modest 14%. It spreads out in waves across the palate, ripples which are felt long after the finish. This is clearly a baby now, but it drinks well and will see its 20th birthday in damn fine fettle. Excited to have a case in the cellar.

Decanting not required nor recommended. — 2 years ago

MaJ CappS

8.9

Smells like a spiced pastry

Lively! Red stars dance across the tongue for only a meaty mingling moment, before the tannins start smacking every part of the mouth, up, down, left, right, Jab, Jab, Ka-pow! Those knock out tannins longer on and on.. and on..
Wish I had bought 2 bottles, this needs at least 5 years to relax those teen tannins.
I mean, don’t close your mouth for too long on these tannins, as they act like a vacuum and super glue. You’ll never get your jaws apart.. — 5 years ago

Seiichi Kurumizawa

8.9

サンフランシスコ　angler — 3 months ago

Bill Morgan

9.3

Full bodied with soft tannins — 2 years ago

James Mosman

9.0

Liked the combination blend. Best of two worlds. — 3 years ago

Jake Hajer

9.2

Aged wonderfully, especially considering the cork fell apart and I don’t think this has been stored perfectly= currant, plum, dried potpourri, good acidity. — 4 years ago

David White

9.3

This is the third bottle each two years apart and this opened very nicely after about an hour or so
I’ve increasingly liked this wine although given it the same rating
It’s well structured aromatic and just an all round good expression of well made Central Otago Pinot
Probably open the next three each with a year or less further age — 9 months ago

Neil Cornish

9.3

A little bit between worlds at this point. Still great primary fruit, boysenberry, black currant, but also with secondary cedar and tobacco. Surprisingly fresh. I’d like to see this again in 2033. — 2 years ago

with Jon

Katie Fester

9.0

Very drinkable at Love & Salt — 4 years ago