5/1/2024 - ksde wrote:

Develops more complexity with air.

4/3/2024 - ksde wrote:

give it air for a while to appreciate

1/14/2024 - ksde wrote:

If you have the patience to decant and let the tannins soften, this wine grows on you.

9/17/2023 - ksde wrote:

Pure silk having typical cab notes with a touch of black olives and evolving minty notes.

7/1/2023 - ksde wrote:

Dense, exotic and musky.

6/15/2023 - ksde wrote:

Impressive balance with roaming complexity as you give it air. Nutmeg, spices and strawberry notes along the way. Some small sediment at the end for this fine wine in its prime.

5/27/2023 - ksde wrote:

Floral rhubarb notes with some minty fragrances emerging over time. Silky palate.

2/10/2023 - ksde wrote:

I recommend getting this wine down to about 60 degrees before opening. Fifteen minutes in the fridge will get you there. This is a big, highly extracted, high alcohol red wine and it needs to emerge gradually.

1/27/2023 - ksde wrote:

My best Zin this year too but it's only January. Same notes as before. Yum!

1/16/2023 - ksde wrote:

From the decanter, this wine does blossom but it takes a couple hours.

1/4/2023 - ksde wrote:

Evolves nicely with a touch of wintergreen on the nose.

12/3/2022 - ksde wrote:

Decanted and took the journey as it evolved over a few hours. I agree with previous comments and I would add some minty notes with some black olive. Wow!

12/2/2022 - ksde wrote:

Best Zin of this year for me. Intense blackberry nectar with a sweet incense/mint nose as it evolves.

12/1/2022 - ksde wrote:

A smooth and rich palate with lots of complexity on the nose. After a few hours in a decanter, it develops a sweet sandalwood fragrance.

11/22/2022 - ksde wrote:

Decant and take the journey. So much going on here from mouth feel and evolving nose. Lots of intensity with dark fruits and an intoxicating mix of incense/floral notes. Creamy palate after a few hours from the tannins as they evolve.

10/26/2022 - ksde wrote:

Complex and evolving. After a couple hours it reminds me of rich blueberry pie.

10/2/2022 - ksde wrote:

Decant

2/24/2022 - ksde wrote:

Decant and this wine will come alive. Cherry cola nose and a silky palate await you.

2/23/2022 - ksde wrote:

A well balanced Gigondas. After decanting, it expands on the nose and smooths out on the palate. Nice acidity.

2/8/2022 - ksde wrote:

Cherry cola nose with a touch of cinnamon. Nice balanced palate.

2/3/2022 - ksde wrote:

Wonderful blackberry jam

1/27/2022 - ksde wrote:

Decant and you will get some nice black olive and minty notes on top of the nice even palate. My bottle was sealed in plastic that had to be cut to access the cork.

12/29/2021 - ksde wrote:

Decant for the real magic. Dense and aromatic, this wine benefits from air. The nose gets minty and earthy as the wine evolves over a few hours. I love the acidity that keeps this rich wine from appearing flabby. The tannins are elegant here as well.

12/21/2021 - ksde wrote:

I am with Ben here. The nose on this one is not a normal cab nose. I can't rate this one. Very strange

11/11/2021 - ksde wrote:

Stewed plum, fig, lingonberry and baking spices with a creamy finish. Great fruit concentration. A hint of anise on the nose. Velvety palate.

10/16/2021 - ksde wrote:

This is a great merlot/cabernet franc blend with velvety tannins and a beautiful nose. I decanted this wine it it really evolved over time. Wow!

10/6/2021 - ksde wrote:

Dense dark fruit and fig with a nice structured backbone. This is a huge wine!

8/13/2021 - ksde wrote:

Good fruit concentration and a big evolving nose. This is an amazing CdP!

7/16/2021 - ksde wrote:

This wine needs air. The nose explodes and seems out of balance with too much going on. Then, it comes quickly into balance with great intensity. The palate is a bit tight and tart at the beginning but it gets very good as it develops. I suggest decanting to allow this wine to shine.

6/11/2021 - ksde wrote:

This wine benefits from decanting. This is my fourth tasting and they all seem so disjointed at first. Give it some air and it will lose the funkiness as it all comes together. It has great fruit concentration, a full palate (for a Pinot) and a huge aromatic nose. It seems a bit sour at first too but that fades as the palate evolves. It develops a fine texture with that nice cranberry edge to the cherry fruit.

6/6/2021 - ksde wrote:

After decanting, this wine evolves on the nose and palate. The nose is an aromatic mix of fruit and mint fragrances. The palate has chewy tannins with a good mid-palate mouth feel sensation from a good fruit concentration. The tannins soften and the nose develops a cotton candy fragrance over time. The fruit essence reminds me of a warm fruit pop tart.

5/8/2021 - ksde wrote:

A nice chocolate mousse merlot! The nose is classic chocolate and mint. The palate has fine tannins that create the mouthfeel of chocolate that is at least 70% cacao :-)

5/5/2021 - ksde wrote:

Nice nose of cherry cola and baking spices. The mouth feel is fantastic with good fruit concentration, a nice glycerin touch (while not being flabby), and great silky tannins.

4/16/2021 - ksde wrote:

Let it breath and it will sing. A bit simple at first but the nose and palate will evolve if you give it time.

4/14/2021 - ksde wrote:

Big nose and palate. I decanted and it evolved nicely with lots of complexity. The tannins are one step coarser than velvet. They evolved over time to appear less dry and smoother. It has a nice long finish without the astringent feel. Cabernet Franc can be amazing by itself when it is done right. After about four hours this wine was firing on all cylinders. Be patient and decant, you will be rewarded.

4/9/2021 - ksde wrote:

Nice silky palate with good fruit concentration. An evolving nose of blackberry with a hint of wintergreen.

3/29/2021 - ksde wrote:

After a couple hours of decanting, I can smell my first baseball glove as a kid. Fresh leather, mint and spice with a great palate.

3/28/2021 - ksde wrote:

Blackberry nectar

3/20/2021 - ksde wrote:

Still young but drinking well now. Tannins are firm but with a velvety edge. I liked this on the pour and it evolved nicely over a few hours in a decanter. Tantalizing mouthfeel and an expressive nose of dark fruit with minty overtones.

3/18/2021 - ksde wrote:

Good from the start but it slowly opens up to reveal herbal spice and mint nose. Nice blackberry nectar on the palate. Everything comes together after a couple hours in a decanter. Not particularly impressive at first but then it becomes an amazing well-balanced wine.

2/25/2021 - ksde wrote:

Great tannins in this one. They are silky and have a velvety feel after decanting. The nose is expressive cassis, mint, black olive and eucalyptus. Classic cab!

2/19/2021 - ksde wrote:

Great evolving nose and great tannins for a Pinot.

2/18/2021 - ksde wrote:

The nose on this one evolves with bacon fat, wintergreen, black olives, and dark fruit notes along the way. The palate is nice and smooth from the start and it gets a bit silky over time.

2/17/2021 - ksde wrote:

Great evolving nose

2/12/2021 - ksde wrote:

This wine needed time to open up. After a few hours in a decanter, you get a nice spicy-minty nose with a nice silky palate. I like the 2017 better but the 2016 will evolve and reward patience.

2/11/2021 - ksde wrote:

What a wonderful wine! Everything is in balance from the smooth palate to the sweet spicy, partially minty, nose. Not flabby with no perceptible bitterness. Classic Pinot Noir.

2/9/2021 - ksde wrote:

Nice evolving zin with a jammy palate. I decanted and had some sediment. The nose has this aromatic fragrance that seems like some type of blossoms until it goes minty after a few hours. Note to self: Pour through wine filter and decant an hour before drinking.

2/5/2021 - ksde wrote:

Nice mouth feel and earthy nose on the pour. As it decants and warms, cherry and raspberry fruit comes forward with hints of allspice and wet forest on the nose. This is a very balanced Pinot Noir that is drinking really well now. After a few hours, I start getting some wintergreen on the nose and the mid palate becomes very silky.

2/4/2021 - ksde wrote:

Nice velvety structure but average on the nose. My wife loved it.

1/29/2021 - ksde wrote:

This wine can benefit from some air/decanting. Good fruit concentration and a great evolving nose. There is a little edginess on the palate initially that rounds out over time. It eventually comes together leaving you taking micro sips and thinking wow. It has a nice cherry/cranberry and spice nose and a lingering finish. Good acidity so this wine will never feel flabby hours after opening.