1/27/2024 - Louvin Likes this wine:

Waited too long for this; loss of fruit but retains an excellent body of tannins and acid and more forest floor elements. Very enjoyable and delicate.

5/11/2023 - Louvin wrote:

last one oxidized too, i'm not really voting neutral

12/30/2022 - Louvin wrote:

Last of this vintage and vineyard

7/1/2022 - Louvin Likes this wine:

much improved since last bottle, tannins have nearly resolved leaving the tart cherry the predominate flavor w/ pomegranite. Good future for this

6/13/2022 - Louvin Likes this wine:

Decanted an hour, this was not enough as the first tastes were very odd indeed, while showing darker fruit profile there were other elements that didn't sit well with me. Rubber/smoke like and more. However, given another hour in glass this lost those outlier elements and settle into a darker, bigger style of pinot I'm not that appreciative of. When I say bigger I'm not talking alc, just fruit profile.

5/28/2022 - Louvin wrote:

Moving glacially, the deep cherry notes abound with great attack, however the finsih is marred by a tart tannic note that doesn't subside. Not sure how long it will take to resolve if ever. I have hopes as the deeper flavor profile surely can last for 10 years if the acids hold.

3/7/2022 - Louvin wrote:

couple hr open then an hour decant. This bottle is pretty much missing any structure, like drinking a soft mushy cherry drink. Flavors are a bit muddled and though drinkable it offers little enjoyment.

9/18/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

just opened a bit before tasting this beauty, then over an hour plus just enchanted of the elegance and grace of this. So clear in the glass you knew right away no pox on this. Enjoyed with halibut over a bed of summer corn. I had had this two years ago and new at that time it was a wine to seek out. So glad I had bought one previously. Slight honeyed tones graced this wine with depth and power. Sadly, last one, but one to remember.

8/26/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

pnp, evoliving slowly but nicely, fruit is still massive and holding, tannins are receding slowly. A few more years and this should be quite nice. Now it's a bit tart due to tannins but i'm liking the trajectory.

8/21/2021 - Louvin wrote:

Old Wente Clone fruit, aged 12 months in
barrel. Jancis Robinson praises the wine's
"exciting tension and real depth."
54 cs made. $125*
WA 95 | IWR 96
Jancis Robinson 17+/20.

8/21/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

hour decant. Agree w/ Rossi about how good this was. My mistake was the short decant as it took a while longer for more of the complexity to show.

8/17/2021 - Louvin wrote:

open an hour, lush soft blue/black almost milkshake like. Easy to drink but due to little acid or tannins present not very winelike. Easy to like for some but not my preferred style.

8/13/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

double decanted for an hour, initially some fig notes that subsided quickly. beautiful clean body, clear miniscus, sweet and savory flavors. Really good. no signs of decay but at a point it's hard to see a reason for waiting.

8/9/2021 - Louvin wrote:

1 hr decant, while rich and flavorful it was lacking a bit of acid to make this more interesting. As it was, kinda boring

8/7/2021 - Louvin Does not like this wine:

having had the '01 at ten years sets my basis of appreciation. I had hope this vintage would be nearly the same. Different years different wine. This one is just too large in every category, and while somewhat fairly balanced it's still to rough around the edges and isn't much fun to drink, being harsh as an ending thought. Possibly time can make this a bit more restrained but the ingredients make me doubt that.

7/26/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

an hour open, starts with light bodied fruits of strawberry/cherry and sous bois notes, nice silky tannins carry this to an elegant and firm finish. Just lovely and sadly my last.

7/24/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

just open and hour and this is showing lovely balance of tannins and fruit/ red/browning with clear rim. I'd say in a great spot now, long life too. On the more elegant side of B&B, with tannins firm and clean.

7/14/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

decanted an hour, cork dry and crumbly, loads of sediment. Bit of an effort cleaning this up, should have use my Durand, next time. Browing rim, dark and tarry w/ chocolate and cherries. In a peak spot. No signs of fading. Why we collect wine!

7/9/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

after losing these in my cellar for a long while i was finally able to locate and extract them. Nicely surprised as this was showing quite a bit of development and a honeyed age, but also had a very nice saline finish. If drunk very cool i'd have no problem hanging on a bit, however this showed somewhat flabby as it warmed past cellar temps. I'd say drink up.

6/10/2021 - Louvin wrote:

double decant prior to tasting, pretty much gone, figgy and developing some VA, not a lot and did diffuse some with time. A memorable wine for me as first tasted on trip to Alba in '04 which cause a stir within me. Waited a bit too long.

6/5/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

just opened an hour and served a bit chilled; lovely wine, mild fruit flavors and moreso earth notes, svelte and so ready. Glad to have waited.

5/11/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

an hour open, having had this before with just pnp, I'm unsure if the early opening made the difference. This was just a perfect every day house wine, crisp lemon, with perfect acid and flavors, no oak, no buttery notes. My last of this vintage sadly.

4/27/2021 - Louvin wrote:

Having had the '07 and found it interesting, at best, though a different beast. This wine, 2 hr decant, was pretty undrinkable, a combination of creosote and brett. Only an hour later the ingredients combined a bit and while still odd, was interesting. Possible palate conditioning was the help, it was drinkable for those interested in masochistic traits. I'm sure many would call this "flawed"

4/3/2021 - Louvin Does not like this wine:

hour plus decant, very dark and brooding, not fun as the finish is all VA, sharp and not very enjoyable. A little longer open the sharpness sensed seems to fade making this better, though still over ripe. I'm thinking of it's like smoking a cigar at the end of the day and savoring the special notes by itself. This reminds me of this, though not a wine I prefer, I can see a purpose of savoring by itself while lounging at the end of the evening.

2/28/2021 - Louvin wrote:

opens nicely with a vibrant clear color and intriguing nose, as it opens further the underlying oak starts to show with vanilla and cinnamon dominating. Overall just too young but a great future. Sadly I don't have any left but if I did I'd wait another 3 to 5 years as there is no sign of oxidation.

2/20/2021 - Louvin wrote:

Sorely oxidized, VA, mahogny. One more in the cellar, fingers crossed.

1/28/2021 - Louvin wrote:

couple hours open and 1 hr decant. more syrah like than pinot, very dark with more non pinot fruit than normal for great pinot IMHO. Certainly ready to drink. No downside showing.

1/27/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

2 hr decant, a very food friendly wine, easy to drink with good overall structure. Makes a great companion to dishes with tomato. While not very complex or deep in body it does well. With proper treatment this is going to drink well for a number of years.

1/19/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

short decant, love this. Had many and it's consistently lovely. Intense fruit being a lighter bodied wine, good tannic structure and and great nose to boot. Fun wine.

1/17/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

an hour decant revealed a very good wine and while all the requisite elements of a cab franc from the Loire are there in good amounts, the only thing this needs is time, so very young and a bit of astringent. I'd give this another 5 years for my next. Oh yeah... way too expensive compared to what the market has to offer.

1/13/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

short decant and got to say of the bottles I've had of this wine, this is by far the best. Very resolved with integration tannin and acid, good fruit and none of that "beet root" flavor, enough tartness to make very good wine.

1/3/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

opens with a sweet, possibly oak signature; tastes move all over the place seemingly typical of chablis then not, while enjoyable, more so for my wife, my final thought was it just was a bit too sweet to be my typical chablis of interest.

1/2/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

a second bottle, 6 year apart. Knowing the trajectory of this, being light weight I expected just what I got, in the beginning. Opened one hour
then started off with a mainly sous bois component and a plum like tea flavor/texture, some fruit but mainly a tannin of very fine texture. Very enjoyable for me as I love structure and not so much big fruit. However, over the course of dinner, another hour + from initial tasing this wine developed so much bigger in fruit and texture it became a very complete wine, very elegant with great presence of fruit and overall balance. So good to let this develop over time. Wish I had more.

1/1/2021 - Louvin Likes this wine:

new years eve; 1 hr decant; such a great wine here, resolved tannins, no sense of heat just lush and so flavorful, dark cherry, leather and lightly bound sweet figs. So great to have waited this long. Perfect moment. Paired with osso bucco greatly.

12/19/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

open a couple hours, good character of valpo w/o being over the top with fig/raisin character. Drinking nicely now.

12/10/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

6 hrs open and 2 hr decant. Very strong showing for a young wine, the flavors were deep and penetrating red w/ a tar and rose element. The holdback from a higher score is just that the tannins were very prominent, not harsh but not for the faint of heart. This wine should continue to evolve in a very good manner. I love the fact that I bought quite a few and look forward to watching its evolution. Easy wait 5 years, but fun to have now.

12/9/2020 - Louvin wrote:

hour plus decant, darker colored with the traditional fizz, this started rather slowly but eventually reached a great spot of apricot/orange flavors mostly and just the perfect amount of acid to keep everything in balance. This is not your normal flavors of wine but very unique. Not the same as Valentini but so good.

12/4/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

2 hours open 1 hr decant. Got to say, this has really come around in the 5 years that i've had it. First couple bottles were terribly disjointed and just about cooking wine for me. Today that sense has gone away in a big way; while not particularily good out of the gate it came into its own quickly showing the blend of darker CS and a more lifted, red like fruit from the CF. A nice blend and actually nothing going down hill. Now if I can just find that last bottle I supposedly have somewhere.

11/18/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

This is finally coming into it's own. Decanted 1.5 hrs and drunk over the next 1.5 hrs, a great wine, big in fruit extract and acid to make this astounding in the mouth. Primarily higer acid orchard fruits, not much in tropical nature, but peach, grapefruit, tangerine, pear in big amounts. Love this and wish I had more.

11/13/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

open. just shortly before beginning of consumption. everything about this wine is elegant, from the beginning nose with hints of sous bois and the color of transparent rose. while the fruit is playing second fiddle its the tension and balance that send this soaring. Perfect timing. Just a great wine now.

11/12/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

about 6 hrs open and 1 hr decant; slow out of the gate but kept getting deeper and more brooding in a very good way. Best of and sadly last of 8 bottles.

11/1/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

nearly a year has done wonders to this wine for me, maybe its just bottle variation but with a couple hours open then a short decant this wine goes from a very light and thin wine to one of nice substance and more complex flavors, some sous bois and generally deeper mouthfeel. Liking a lot now.

10/26/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

last bottle a year ago, this is similar, deep black and red fruit, with great blending, all tannins pretty much resolved. Black fruit, like CS is moderated by the red higher acid red fruit. Lovely wine, deep and so flavorful.

10/25/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

couple hour open then 1 hr decant, much needed. Previously, 3 yrs ago, this showed next to nothing, so the ensuing years and the time allowed to open made this wine everything it should be: rich, complex with perfect balance, slight honeyed, nuts, slight petrol notes. A very long and unctuous finish. Drink now or wait.

10/18/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

couple hr decant, great nose of dark cherry; at first pour seemed a bit of VA coming thru, tasting is full of chewy tannins and good fruit, this never changed with the less than elegant nature I would have expected. Overall a disappointment for me.

10/13/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

1 hr decant...first taste is so great, honeyed with snap pea bitterness combined, finishes with bitter and sweet viscosity. Great for me and so typical for the GV's I love. I do believe youth in these wines are key to keeping the freshness and vitality alive.

10/7/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

a couple hrs open then decant as there is so much fizz. Tasting is another thing altogether, more of an orange rind flavor with such excellent texture in the mouth, great depth of fruit and acid balance, the spritz in the mouith adds another point of interest. Fun and different experience and so together. Good to drink now.

10/2/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

2 hr decant. started slowly and was quite a varied opening showing multilevel flavors and balance. Once this came together the predominate notes are a darker berry fruit, a soft almost cream like texture, acid/tannins were in balance. An odd combination of things going on. In the end a deep but flavorful wine with creamy texture as opposed to most tannic structured wines. Not my favorite but pretty good.

10/1/2020 - Louvin wrote:

2 hrs open and an hour or so over dinner. So big dark fruit starting out very dark and young (purple notes), then over the course of dinner it seems to come out a bit of more red fruit. All in the context of very ripe and lush, easy tannins and unfortunately next to no acid structure. Easy to drink but not one that I would say "I've could drink all night". Gets kind of boring after a bit.

9/30/2020 - Louvin Likes this wine:

couple hour double decant and drunk over another two hours. Only the last hour was this singing the tune of depth with great character of CF, still in need of another 5 years minimum to reveal it's best.