5/4/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

95% Pinotage / 5% Syrah - tasted just as good in the UK as it had in South Africa. Good body (quite full bodied) and lovely fruit.

4/27/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

NB this was the 2011 Aalto PS. Incredibly fruity (blackberry) and very full bodied - not showing its age at all - still a super-charged wine.

4/20/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Fantastic - start white wine of recent South African whites. Full bodied and rich, peach fruit. Quite golden colour but taste of oxidisation

4/20/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Still lovely, fruity and full bodied - classic St Jean de Bebian

3/20/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

This had gone

3/31/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Tasted against Leoville Barton 2006 - didn't show as well. Not flawed or gone but less fruit, so not as well balanced

3/31/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Excellent - better than the previous time we drank a bottle. Smooth and well balanced (fruit and tannins) - tasted against La Lagune 2006 and this one was fuller and more balanced

4/20/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Excellent - distinctly Barsac, not overly sweet/cloying but very full bodied

4/6/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Delicious, smooth, soft fruit

3/15/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Not flawed or tired - still characteristic Coume Gineste nose and taste (which is not for everyone) - mineral and grapefruit.

3/15/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

It is actually 2018 not 2017 as logged in the Cellar. Second bottle we have drunk - it had evolved nicely. Fresh and floral, pale straw colour - no hint of oxidation

3/24/2024 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

EMC - lovely wine

3/15/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Drank with Jonathan G and Matthew over dinner at home. Still very powerful and full bodied. D found it a bit monolithic.

2/2/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Not defective but a bit disappointing - lacked flesh, a bit tough. Maybe leave the other two bottles for a bit to see if it comes out

3/2/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Brought by Duncan Ash when Duncan and Kate came for dinner - and drank with them. Fantastic wine - dry but rich peachy taste; long finish; not oxidised at all.

2/9/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Duncan drank with Jonathan Goodwin

2/3/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Fantastic - rich barley sugar. Very golden in colour.

2/3/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Light and fresh. Floral and peach notes. Much lighter in colour than the Tin Soldier Semillon.

2/3/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Lovely orange peel on the palate. Quite orange/gold in colour as per the previous Tin Soldiers. Perhaps not quite as fine (yet?) as the 2018.

2/3/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Holding up well - soft but fruit and tannin still good and balanced and plenty of length. Probably best to drink up.

1/21/2024 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Excellent - very fine indeed. Drinking beautifully now, but plenty of life ahead.

1/21/2024 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

An absolutely lovely wine which went down a treat on Christmas Day (never an easy occasion to serve and enjoy fine wine chez Holden). Vibrant and uplifting, juicy black fruit and a rounded mid-weight palate. Not particularly complex, but a real pleasure to drink.

1/21/2024 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Not a blockbuster, but restrained and elegant, probably classic mature MdG. Mid-weight, soft berry fruits, rounded tannins and balanced acidity.

1/21/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

A real treat. Very rich on the palate (as you'd expect from the high levels of residual sugar which is characteristic of Schloss Lieser), but crisp acidity too and uplifting citrus fruit.

1/21/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

This is the second bottle which I've opened from a six-pack and it had exactly the same faults as the first. A spritzy funkiness which was just unpleasant.

1/21/2024 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Not sensational, but still very good.

Dark-ish red. Lots of funkiness, garrigue and herbs. Mid-weight and rounded. I wonder how much better this is going to get, so I'm planning to drink up our remaining three bottles.

1/21/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Simply excellent. Very dark red, intense and youthful. Many years of life ahead. Powerful and complex. Really looking forward to seeing how this develops - will aim to open our final bottle in 4-5 years.

1/21/2024 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Deep, bright amber in colour, but not oxidised. Mrs and our guest loved this even more than I did. Apricots on nose and palate with a very rich, mouthfilling palate, but with balancing acidity. I reckon this is at its peak now so drink up.

1/21/2024 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Simply one of the best red wines I've drunk in recent years.

Decanted two hours in advance - and I'm glad we did as it was a bit closed initially, but opened out beautifully. Still quite dark red and full of vibrancy and life - you'd never guess this was 23 years old! Well-round dark fruit, not at all tired, mid-weight with balanced tannins and good acidity.

An absolute treat. Difficult to see how much better this could get - we plan to drink our final bottle in the next 12 months to two years.

1/9/2024 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Very good indeed! Vigorous and vibrant - perhaps at its peak, but will keep for absolutely ages.

1/9/2024 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Very good, but not sensational. Full, but not particularly complex. Plenty of life left in this, I reckon.

1/6/2024 - Duncan H wrote:

Still dark red and very cabernet nose (even slightly new world) but lacking a bit of flesh on the taste - a bit underwhelming and quiet. Relatively austere - dry tannins

12/25/2023 - Duncan H wrote:

Balanced, even better after a couple of days or so (EMC) - apricot and grapefruit

11/26/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Less wild and bestial than usual! But still plenty of lavender/garrigue in relatively smooth, midweight wine. Very enjoyable indeed, but not a blockbuster.

12/28/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Surprisingly good! A lovely soft, warm resin-y fruit.

12/28/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Lovely - not complicated but floral and strawberries. We much prefer the non-rose Gusbournes tho.

12/28/2023 - Duncan H wrote:

Clearly defective - a slightly petillant bubble-gum flavour...

12/28/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Beautifully full and lemony.

12/15/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

A big wine - in my view a bit monolithic, but Mrs H loved it (probably because of the 46% syrah!). Lots of weight and cool dark fruit. We're planning to keep this for another three to four years in the hope that more complexity develops.

12/15/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Very pleasant, but slightly underwhelming. We almost wanted to say "nice for Pinotage", but realised this might sound a bit patronising. Lovely warm ripe fruit, but perhaps lacking a bit of body and power.

12/15/2023 - Duncan H wrote:

Completely gone!

12/15/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Supple and midweight - initially not as powerful as the 2016 vintage, but still full and vibrant. Raspberry with a minty herbiness. After three hours in decanter, this became more full-bodied. Plenty of life in this yet!

12/5/2023 - Duncan H wrote:

Completely gone!

10/28/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Very rich yet slightly Barsac style; candied lime (Duncan); delicious

10/7/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Good and not over the hill; Liz slightly disappointed with the fruit

10/28/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Quite light in colour. An initial minty, herbiness on the nose. A porty-style fruit emerged - absolutely delicious; quite an alcohol burn; a bit sweeter and more unctuous on palate

10/28/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Classic viognier - full, apricot; marzipan - delicious

10/21/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Full, fruity, soft, well balanced, delicious. Don't leave the others too long though

9/22/2023 - Duncan H wrote:

Excellent

10/8/2023 - Duncan H Likes this wine:

Supreme - a contender for my favourite red wine of the year! Demonstrates the benefits of ageing fine South Africans.

Still brooding, but full and complex with lovely dark fruit. I have two more bottles of this and plan to drink the next one towards the end of 2026.