12/17/2023 - BornToRhone wrote:

Brians birthday at Chef Halff (Cibo)

12/17/2023 - BornToRhone wrote:

Brians birthday at Chef Halff (Cibo)

12/17/2023 - BornToRhone wrote:

Brians birthday at Chef Halff (Cibo)

7/27/2023 - BornToRhone wrote:

- Yellow gold color - PnP; Medium yellow color lending to gold soon, fairly restrained nose of lemon curd and flint.
Nice but restrained flavors of lemon custard, limestone, and hints of tropical fruit. Lots of oak on the palate without quite enough fruit IMHO. Easy drinking, medium finish, but just not enough there besides the oak for interest.

2/23/2023 - BornToRhone wrote:

750ml; PnP; Nose: medium intense nose with kiwi and green melon, lime, very small hints of white pepper and ?
Medium bodied with intense flavors of kiwi, melon, lime, lemon. Could be confused for an acidic Alsatian Gevurtz.
Nice enough wine but a bit overpowering to have more than one glass.
I used to remember liking this a bit more than now.

2/12/2023 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP;
Eyes: medium opaque, garnet w/small watery rim, barely showing aging.
Nose: medium tart blackberry/boysenberry, raw meat, Mediterranean spices, olive blend, slight dill.
Palate: Tart and spicy followed by low-med intensity black fruits, Palate: small amount of red meat and very small black pepper.
Palate: Small tannins fully integrated. Alcohol not very noticeable.
Impression: Nice afternoon sipping wine with a bit of Charcuterie.

11/28/2022 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750 ml; PnP; Robust nose of apple and lemon; bold but not over the top flavors of apple, pear, lemon curd, slight vanilla, very slightly yeasty. Very enjoyable new world chardonnay. Sadly, this is my last 2016 Golden Slope. Drinking very well now and will likely last another 3-5 yrs easily. This wine is a true bargain.

4/16/2020 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; Open 1.5 hrs; clear medium garnet with some edge bricking; clean nose, medium intensity with sour cherry, forest floor, vanilla and orange peel; palate is dry with medium+ acidity, well integrated tannins (medium-), medium alcohol, medium- body, medium+ intensity flavors of sour cherry, raspberry, dried cranberry, raspberry, slightly savoury and slightly (raw) meaty. medium+ finish. Drink now or hold 3-5 yrs.

3/24/2020 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

Open 2 hours, about room temperature - Medium purple, semi-transparent color with little to no bricking.; beautiful nose of blueberries, olives, bacon, iron, chalk, wet stone with the slight funk characteristic of the area; slightly tart flavors of blueberries, strawberry, cherry, spice, rare beef steak. Very nice wine - drink now or hold for more tertiary development. This wine is rocking my socks tonight.

3/9/2019 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750 ml; PnP; Deep purple color. Clean, pronounced aromas of black fruit (black currant, blackberry, black cherry), vanilla, toast, slight eucalyptus. Dry, M+ acidity, M+ (fine) tannins, H Alcohol, M+ body, with flavors of black currant, blackberry, black cherry, vanilla, toast. Developing but very good wine - drink now or hold for a while yet.

3/9/2019 - BornToRhone wrote:

750 ml; PnP; Clear, medium pale lemon. Clean, medium intensity with aromas of lemon, lemon cream, pineapple, ripe apple, pear. Medium + flavors of ripe apple, pineapple, sweet vanilla, toast, pear. Medium acidity, medium alcohol, M+ body (Malo or sur lees). Finishes medium, drink now, 3 yr potential.

3/8/2019 - BornToRhone wrote:

750 ml; PnP; Clear pale lemon appearance; Clean medium aromas of lime and green apple, slight honey and pear. M+ acidity, M intensity, M body with flavors os time, green apple. Not earth shattering but good wine - drink now or hold for 3-5 yrs and try again.

3/6/2019 - BornToRhone Does not like this wine:

750 ml; SH decanted, brought to restaurant, and I tried this blind. I picked this as a Napa Chardonnay (which I am not a fan of). I was very surprised to see such a fruit forward malo-butter oak bomb come from Willamette - I would have expected more of a lean experience. Decent wine, but as you can probably tell, not my kind of chardonnay.

2/23/2019 - BornToRhone wrote:

750ml; Decanted and tasted after one hour. Clear, medium ruby barely turning orangey at the edges. Clean nose, light intensity of primary cherry/cranberry. Palate is dry, medium acidity, medium- tannin, medium alcohol, light body, light intensity flavors of cherry and baking spice and very slight tomato-leaf-like herbaceousness. Medium- finish. Good wine, can drink now with aging potential, seems a bit shutdown so hold or decant.

2/19/2019 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; Double decanted about 2 hrs prior; Clear intense purple; Clean and pronounced nose of black cherry, funky composted earth/barnyard, spices. Palate of funky black cherry, soy sauce, mushroom, hints of white pepper. Tasted blind and I was way off on this wine. I could have guessed In the Rocks Syrah.
Nice funky showing if you like that kind of thing. Drink now lest it get too funky.

2/19/2019 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; Double decanted 3 hrs prior; Medium ruby color, no noticeable bricking; Medium nose of red fruit, licorice; Palate of mostly cherry, slight licorice, mint, and cinnamon; Hints of leather; Medium (small) tannin and medium acidity. Nice enough wine with Italian dinner but I would hold longer for more secondary flavors to appear.

1/27/2019 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; Opened, stoppered, then sampled 12 hours later.
Clear, medium ruby appearance. Clean, medium+ nose, primary sour cherry/pomegranate fruit with hints of baking spice and cotton candy. Dry, m+ acidity, m- tannins, m- alcohol, m- body. Primary m+ flavors of cherry and strawberry, orange peel, baking spice, hint of pickle juice with medium finish. Very good quality, drink or hold.

1/13/2019 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750 ml; decanted, PnP, and followed for a few hours. Clean appearance, heavy sedimentation, red-orange color with definite bricking. Aromas of red fruit, orange citrus, forest floor (leaves), leather. Light fruit flavors of cranberry and raspberry with herb de provence, soy/umami flavors. Very fine tannins and medium acidity help fill out out the wine to make everything work. Drinking well now so no need to wait.

Update: 4 hours later...a bit of barnyard is coming out to play. Very nice!

12/29/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750 ml; PnP and then left for about 5 hours and retasted. Nose of roses, dark red fruits, tobacco, leather. Flavors of raspberry, plums, with small orange or tangerine acidity thing going, Bits of leather and dusty earth present as well. Lots of very fine tannins with good acidity. Should be better in 5-10 yrs still, IMHO.

12/27/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750 ml; PnP; Dark opaque red in color; Nose of cassis and dark black blue fruits. Good acidity and lift and a hint of alcohol on the palate. However, this wine was all about fruit at this point. Next time I will try decanting this wine to see if it becomes more expressive beyond the fruits. I would recommend to hold for 5 yrs. and drink then.

12/27/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750 ml; PnP; Clean appearance, medium golden yellow color; Medium+ nose of stone fruits, with hits of citrus background with a slight nuttiness. The wine texture was thick on the palate, with sweet stone fruits and honey predominating backed up by great minerality. It seemed just a touch sweet for me which made it a bit simple but this wine will likely develop more character in the next 10 yrs.

12/27/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

Friend brought to dinner - PnP; Clean appearance with definite burnt yellow coloring. Great nose showing a well aged champagne with some butterscotch and hazelnut background behind a ripe apple core with adjacent orange, lemon citrusy flavors. Bubbles were very present and helped lift this wine to a nice level of excitement. Very enjoyable.

12/27/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

Friend brought this to the restaurant where we met up. He had decanted it for sediment and left open for a bit. Still a very strong purple color with little bricking. Fabulous open nose of raspberry, forest floor, and a slate-like or graphite character. Palate of lots of dark red fruits with earthy, minerals quality, and pretty much perfect acidity. This wine is open for business now but should even get better in 5+ yrs. Fun time!

11/25/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

705ml; PnP; Drinking fairly well, with nose of red fruits and cranberry and similar flavors on the palette. Acids and tannins very well integrated so a smooth wine with a nice baguette and cheese.

11/25/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP; This wine drank very well. Red fruit fruit forward character which paired well with T-Giving turkey. Not a lot of secondary character but drank well.

11/25/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP; Like previous notes, this is drinking very well. It does not have huge acidity but certainly provides great character for the wine at a great QPR. Brioche and apple - who doesn't love that? I wish I had more....

11/18/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

PnP - 750ml; Barrel exposure adds body to this nice sauvignon blanc. However, I think it also mutes the SB acidity and verve as well. Paired well with beet and goat cheese salad. Interesting wine but maybe a bit expensive for what you get.

11/18/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

Decanted about 2 hours in advance. The wine was drinking very well. Nice Cab Franc character with red fruits and medium body with hints of green pepper. Paired very well with the medium rare tenderloin.

11/18/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

Decanted about 2 hours prior to drinking. This wine was rocking! Nice intense fruit, good acidity and structure. Very enjoyable.

10/5/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP; Drinking nicely at the moment. Cranberry, pomegranate, and cherry flavors, bright with medium-light richness. Great acidity to pair with food. Some mild spice. Drink now and hold if you have a few more bottles.

8/29/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

Fantastic wine drank from Magnum. Bready lemon with very slight oxidative character - still early in its life in magnum.

6/29/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP and followed over a few hours; Appearance: clear, medium, lemon; Nose: clean, medium, bready lemon, nectarine skin, slightly unripe canteloupe, white flowers; Palate: dry, medium acidity, medium body, flavors of lemon custard, biscuit, lemon rind; very good quality. Lovely wine - drink now or hold.

6/27/2018 - BornToRhone wrote:

750ml; PnP; Appearance: clear, deep ruby; Nose: clean, medium intensity; sweet black cherry + strawberry twizzler, slightly vegetal, purple flowers; Palate: dry, medium acidity, medium tannin, medium- body, slightly unripe black cherry/strawberry with sprite cranberry, baking spice, slight tartness, slight bitterness, short finish; good quality;

6/22/2018 - BornToRhone wrote:

750ml; PnP; muted nose of ocean air and slight lemon; Flavors of cantaloupe melding to ripe apple with some decent acidity in the followup. Nice wine but not awesome.

6/22/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP; Blueberry on the nose with a bit of saline; Flavors of blueberry, saline and iodine character and slight meatiness with moderate black pepper. Tannins were well integrated and the wine was flavorful. Nice wine, drink now or hold.

4/29/2018 - BornToRhone wrote:

750ml; PnP; transparent ruby color mixed with some slight orange/brown declaring its age. Appearance of medium body. Shy aromas of cherry blossoms and mountain streams - not much fruit there. Flavors of tangy "sweet-tart-like" rhubarb and cherry cobbler without sugar added. Medium light body, a bit watery, and for the most part, uninspiring. Dry leather and dust linger.

4/21/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; 2nd night; This wine is in a great place right now. Slightly sour cherry with lots of smooth well integrated spices. Good but not excessive acidity. Lovely.

4/11/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP first night, 24 hrs under cork 2nd night; Dark, opaque crimson color in the glass, not much noticeable bricking; Aromas of sweet red fruits, overripe strawberry, dark cherry, cinnamon and spice.
Flavors of overripe strawberry (good thing - not rotten), baking spice, a bit of heat and a bit of tannin similar to an alum (drying) feel. Acidity and tannins are strong, fruit is still up there - I will check back on my other bottle in about 2-3 years. Good QPR, good with BBQ meats. Drink or hold.

4/7/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP and drank over 3 hrs; translucent cherry red color; Medium-light bodied; Aromas of bright red cherry with baking spice; Flavors of cherry cobbler(but not nearly as sweet) with a bit of fine drying tannins and certainly enough citrusy acidity. Smoothed out some over the 3 hrs so decant in advance. An enjoyable wine, probably better at this point with food, but still nice on its own.

4/7/2018 - BornToRhone wrote:

750ml; PnP; Pobega's this puppy same day i picked it up at the offsite. Transparent ruby color; Fresh aromas of cherries, flowers, disturbed forest floor; Flavors of red and black cherries, a bit of orange citrus, spice and small tannins. Fun, fresh wine.

4/6/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP; Nearly transparent ruby color, shows a hint of age at the edges; Aromas of red licorice with a bit of forest floor. Flavors seem to be a bit darker red fruit with a small slice of orange and black tea, with the acidity and tannins to keep it going. A nice QPR from Oregon.

4/1/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP; Big fruity nose with very round flavors of dark red berries and currents; Tannins well integrated but still slightly "at large" - good for pairing with our Beef Wellington. Still needs more secondary development but I am not sure the acidity is there to support it long term. I would recommend sampling/drinking this now or in the next few years to get your gauge on this wine. Still - fun with beef!

4/1/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP; Decent bricking at the edges, dark, nearly opaque crimson; Medium body with aromas of plums and dark red fruits with hints of leather; soft tannins surrounded by black raspberry and strawberry, leather, a hint of tomato leaf/stems and some (non-sweet) baking spice. Acidity helps hold it all together. In a good place at the moment.

4/1/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP; A light salmon colored (so apropos) wine with nice tiny bubbles; Muted aromas of sweet cherries. Crisp, cutting tart flavors of grapefruits and strawberries with a flash of burnt toast on the mid-palate. Enjoyable wine and a good QPR.

3/29/2018 - BornToRhone wrote:

750ml; PnP and followed over 2 days; Opaque purple color. Primary aromas of dark red and black fruits, some heat. Flavors are primary red/black fruits with very slight (not enough) interesting meaty/iron character, slightly bitter and medicinal. Huge tannins, high alcohol. Not sure this will turn into much - if so, it will be at least 5 yrs from now.

3/28/2018 - BornToRhone wrote:

750ml; PnP; Popped at the Patricia Green Tasting@Classic. Baked apples, slightly nutty and slightly bread champagne. Finished with good minerality and lingering flavors of lemon lime. Not sure of the age of this but based on the cork and the color seemed ate least 5-10 yrs from disgorgement. Nice wine overall and decent QPR.

3/28/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP; Popped this open at PG tasting @Classic and everyone loved it. Bright cherry fruit, mild funk with mild spice, great intensity, clean with good acidity and mild tannins. Expect this would age well.

3/24/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP as well as tasted 24 hours later. Dark crimson verging on purple, mostly opaque, no bricking. New world body. Substantial aromas of plum, black fruits, slight alcohol. Very open flavors of black raspberry, plum, a bit of Oakville dustiness, and slightly drying tannins. Medium acidity holds it together. A nice drink now and in the next 5 yrs.

3/22/2018 - BornToRhone Likes this wine:

750ml; PnP; This wine seems to be entering its window. Previous bottles had seemed a bit rough around the edges and those edges seem to be smoothing out. Certainly a bit of rocks gaminess is present, with lots of medium bodied black cherry/raspberry fruits, some mild spices. I enjoyed this a bunch.

3/21/2018 - BornToRhone wrote:

750ml; PnP; a tight pinot with red fruits, chewy tannins, slight stemmy character. Basically, not ready to drink. Wait 5 yrs for this baby or decant for 6-8 hours.