Much better than my last bottle, which in hindsight was perhaps suffering from travel shock. Definitely fruit-forward, but oh so sexy that even my hardened old-world soul is melted by this wine's charm. The nose is reminiscent of a St. Julien, with cassis, brambly black raspberry and a bit of mineral, along with a dollop of vanilla oak. The palate shows more red fruit (cherry, pomegranate) and a touch of heat, but overall this is nicely balanced, finishing with silky tannins.
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I paid about $20/bottle at auction, so the bar was pretty low in terms of expectations. This is billed as the "second wine" of Grand Ciel, hence the "2" in the D2 moniker. Upon opening, there is a blast of vanilla oak, which is unfortunately much in the style of wines from that era. The obtrusive oak abates with air and time, and was more palatable on day 2. Intensely dark purple, this is clearly a heavily extracted wine, and is dripping with boysenberry, cassis and black plum fruit. Not really my style, but appears to be well made. Definitely recommend decanting if you drink now, or better yet, hold for 5-10 years in the hopes that it will become better integrated.
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Nose was decent and palate was decent. Unfortunately this was poured along side an Auclair Left blend from 2017 and there was really no comparison. The Auclair was far more complex and flavorful. On it's own this wine would have been fine and enjoyable.
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Aline’s birthday. Oldest D2. In cellar since 2011. $30.00. Hint of perfume on the nose. Deep dark purple. Leather and Chaulk initially, soft and even long dry finish with hint of tart cherry. Delightful aged wine. 9/10.
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Friday Night Double Blind Tasting $40+ (Bin 75 Alpharetta, GA): Aged core with bricking garnet rim; black currant and tobacco, aging well, high toned oak, vanilla with a more delicate fruit profile, juicy, spicy, red pepper, high toned, clove, decent acids, classic Bordeaux varietals, domestic.
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Served with bbq ribs. No signs of bricking in the glass. Dark to the core. Nose is still quite young. Oak notes and dark ripe fruit predominant. Palate is rich and spicy with full body flavors. Not a lot of complexity. But the notes it does have are well done. Finish is not very interesting. But not offensive either. This used to be my cup of tea.
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Spectacular. Still vibrant and fresh. The oak has integrated some, but this is still all primary. Blue fruit with the acidity peeling back a little. Throws a nice amount of sediment.
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The wonder of a couple of years! Much improved over the last note, but still lots of life left. Nice nose, great dark fruit flavors, good depth and balance. Not much more to ask of a Bordeaux blend.
11/30/14 note: Well made, but a bit tight or austere, even after an hour of breathing. Don't know what to expect for future bottles. 89 pts.
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My last D2. The late 2000's D2s were very fruit forward and quite complex, but lacked the earthiness that later D2s had. I really enjoyed this one though as it had a great overall balance on the palate, although a slightly one dimensional finish. Good stuff though!
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Kicking a lot of sediment right now. Needs a solid hour of decanting and then it starts to open up. Nose: signature Red Mountain iodine, saline and smoke. Dark cherries and blackberries. Moist soil and moss. Nutmeg and Cardamom. Palate: full bodied, full grain tannin gives a ton of structure. Medium acidity with a dollop of sweet fruit. Still a bit chewy, this has many years ahead of it. Warm vintage. Red fruits, almost Jolly Rancher-esque, maybe even Kool Aid fruit punchy flavor. Smoke and tobacco. Finish: saturating grainy tannin coats the mouth, and the fruit eventually gives way to some dirty goodness and baking spices. Overall a real nice wine with a solid 2-3 years of prime drinking ahead of it. Doubt there more complexity that age will coax out of it, but it will smooth out and develop what I imagine will be a velvety texture.
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Dark fruit and lots of oak, tannins have smoothed out quite a bit. Medium finish, nice wine at this point. Not sure where else it will go but very drinkable now.
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Oak is predominantly on the nose loads of spice and dark fruit, in the nose, on the palate way more balanced, loads of acid and dark red fruit mixed with blackberries
Conc: a oaked wine yes, balanced yes, it is what it is and does IT well not good friendly but movie friendly
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Medium garnet, medium viscosity. Not glass staining, not inkly, fairly light on its legs. Decanted 1.5 hours before consumption began, finished 3 hours after decanting begun. Nose: tobacco, touch of cinnamon, bit of alcoholic heat, cherry and raspberries dominate the fruit profile. Palate: very smooth tannins, present but not drying. High presence of minerality and terroir. Dark flavors like chocolate and coffee are obvious. Fruit is dark, with cherries and blackberries. Hit of mint on the back end. Cabernet Franc funk is prevelant with green bell pepper, mushroom, and dry dirt. Palate is much darker than nose. Iron notes come through strongly at the 2.5 hour decanting period. Finish: Columbia roast French Press coffee, slight spice from red peppers. Tannins do dry the finish relatively early. Very good, will have another solid 3-4 years before declining. Not sure if there is enough promise, though, to warrant more than 2-3 years of additional aging. Rating might be a bit higher in a year or two.
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I opened this after our 10/4/13 Sherry tasting. It had a rich, ripe and fragrant bouquet of black cherry, plum, mocha, cocoa and spice aromas. The palate was rich, ripe and plump with flavors that followed the nose. 90+
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Quite rich and powerful. Deep color showing fairly good extraction - in pre-maturity stage. Firm tannins in midpalate with Merlot character being dominant. This is a very good WA state claret.
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On the first night, a nice cola background to a deep cassis taste on the tongue. The next night, it paired nicely with an OG Kush indica blend. No, seriously -- I wasn't expecting that, but the tastes complimented each other.
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Ordered at Kappy's. Deep red/purple color. Nice floral nose with fresh plum, pepper and spice notes. Palate never really opened up or expressed much over the 1.5 hour drinking time. Smooth mouthfeel and finish.
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Washington Wine Trip; 6/15/2012-6/19/2012: 14.7% abv, gorgeous Bordeaux blend (DeLille's 2nd label), marvelous black currant and licorice nose echoed on the palate. Med+ finish
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Friends and I tasted this at the Woodinville tasting room on 6/2/12. It had a rich, expressive bouquet of plum, black cherry, cocoa and spice aromas. The palate was rich and round with flavors that followed the nose. 90+
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Bordeaux blend of 55% Merlot, 39% Cab Sauvignon, 4% Cab Franc, 2% Petit Verdot. 14.7% abv – though it doesn’t seem so. Dark red color. Inviting floral raspberry aromas. Nicely balanced medium-bodied palate showing a blend of plum and cherry flavors alongside some coffee/mocha and oaky spice. Medium-long finish. Still quite young – give this a couple more years and it’ll be fantastic! Served with wagyu ribeye cap in rosemary jus. “Super Cattle in Seattle” American Wagyu dinner at the Herbfarm.
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To me, this needs a little more time. I was drinking a 2001 Right Bank grand cru earlier in the week and this stands up well against it. Nose is a little tight and closed at the moment, cool and supple fruit on the palate, nice balanced finish. Give it 12 months
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Some friends and I tasted this at the Woodinville tasting room on 2/11/12. It had a rich, ripe appealing bouquet of mocha, chocolate, black cherry, spice and mineral aromas. The palate was rich, ripe and plump with flavors that followed the nose.
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Super tight and it should have been decanted. Cherry, spice, oak, vanilla and plum. Firm tannins present. There is a lot that will present itself with age but currently needs a six hour decant to show its stuff.
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Very nice. This is the 4th bottle of various vintages of D2 that I have tried. I'm yet to be disappointed. This started a little tight and awkward (probably not surprising given that it is a 09 and I havent seen many of these from WA yet.) but opened up with time in the decanter and early glasses getting put through an aerator. Good merlot based blend with a mix of red and dark fruit coming through. Very nice structure and layers that leave you with a pleasant finish to think about.14.7% alcohol but I wouldnt have guessed it was this high. Good balance and the alcohol never became a nuisance. I was surprised to already run across the 2009 for this wine on sale at a local wine store and picked it up for $32.00/bottle. I would easily put this up against most of the $40.00+ bottles of Bordeaux blends from WA that I have tried over the past several years and it would compare very favorably esp when you factor in the $32.00 price point.
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Delicious already, with some mineral and very young fruit on the nose with great structure and hints of chocolate on the finish. I'm definitely looking to buy more now.
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5/19/2023 - BcDuncan Likes this wine: 92 Points
Super wine, excelent
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9/13/2022 - GrapeScott wrote: 92 Points
Much better than my last bottle, which in hindsight was perhaps suffering from travel shock. Definitely fruit-forward, but oh so sexy that even my hardened old-world soul is melted by this wine's charm. The nose is reminiscent of a St. Julien, with cassis, brambly black raspberry and a bit of mineral, along with a dollop of vanilla oak. The palate shows more red fruit (cherry, pomegranate) and a touch of heat, but overall this is nicely balanced, finishing with silky tannins.
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3/9/2022 - GrapeScott wrote: 89 Points
I paid about $20/bottle at auction, so the bar was pretty low in terms of expectations. This is billed as the "second wine" of Grand Ciel, hence the "2" in the D2 moniker. Upon opening, there is a blast of vanilla oak, which is unfortunately much in the style of wines from that era. The obtrusive oak abates with air and time, and was more palatable on day 2. Intensely dark purple, this is clearly a heavily extracted wine, and is dripping with boysenberry, cassis and black plum fruit. Not really my style, but appears to be well made. Definitely recommend decanting if you drink now, or better yet, hold for 5-10 years in the hopes that it will become better integrated.
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11/20/2021 - Mr. Magoo Likes this wine: 90 Points
2009 Vintage. Still so good.!
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7/10/2021 - fuko Likes this wine: 94 Points
Very drinkable!
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7/5/2021 - Butsch wrote: 97 Points
Showed tobacco rich dark fruit. Held up well to aging and was probably at its literal peak.
Wish I had more.
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3/21/2021 - hiker_guy wrote:
Nose was decent and palate was decent. Unfortunately this was poured along side an Auclair Left blend from 2017 and there was really no comparison. The Auclair was far more complex and flavorful.
On it's own this wine would have been fine and enjoyable.
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3/14/2021 - norsktorsk wrote: 90 Points
this did not come around.
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11/26/2020 - Brentwjohnston1932 wrote: 93 Points
Crazy good QPR! Wow!
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6/29/2020 - MIRick wrote: 90 Points
While enjoyable, believe that it was past its prime
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3/24/2020 - RDB Wine Likes this wine: 90 Points
Aline’s birthday. Oldest D2. In cellar since 2011. $30.00. Hint of perfume on the nose. Deep dark purple. Leather and Chaulk initially, soft and even long dry finish with hint of tart cherry. Delightful aged wine. 9/10.
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3/14/2020 - Magnolian wrote: 87 Points
Smooth, everything nicely integrated, but not a lot of flavor or interest overall. I used to enjoy these more.
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2/5/2020 - MIRick wrote: 90 Points
Not a lot of fruit, but still a nice balanced wine with integrated fruit, tannins and acids. May have a year left
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1/17/2020 - Rezy13 wrote:
Friday Night Double Blind Tasting $40+ (Bin 75 Alpharetta, GA): Aged core with bricking garnet rim; black currant and tobacco, aging well, high toned oak, vanilla with a more delicate fruit profile, juicy, spicy, red pepper, high toned, clove, decent acids, classic Bordeaux varietals, domestic.
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10/27/2019 - hiker_guy Likes this wine:
Served with bbq ribs.
No signs of bricking in the glass. Dark to the core.
Nose is still quite young. Oak notes and dark ripe fruit predominant.
Palate is rich and spicy with full body flavors.
Not a lot of complexity. But the notes it does have are well done.
Finish is not very interesting. But not offensive either.
This used to be my cup of tea.
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2/17/2019 - RDB Wine Likes this wine: 76 Points
Nose of spice oak vanilla. Deep dark purple. Full body chaulk vanilla long blackberry. A few tannins. Long chewy finish.
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6/21/2018 - om42 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Probably at its peak. Nearly opaque. Good fruit. And tannins. Acid is a little weak so not quite in balance. Good tertiary development.
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3/30/2017 - cwiebe Likes this wine: 91 Points
Spectacular. Still vibrant and fresh. The oak has integrated some, but this is still all primary. Blue fruit with the acidity peeling back a little. Throws a nice amount of sediment.
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3/20/2017 - brianakrin wrote: 88 Points
Rich, tannic, spicy, young. A bit disjointed
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3/14/2017 - Pedroel Likes this wine: 92 Points
The wonder of a couple of years! Much improved over the last note, but still lots of life left. Nice nose, great dark fruit flavors, good depth and balance. Not much more to ask of a Bordeaux blend.
11/30/14 note: Well made, but a bit tight or austere, even after an hour of breathing. Don't know what to expect for future bottles. 89 pts.
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12/15/2016 - aChave wrote: 90 Points
Deep, fruity, but has nice weight and substance. Rather large for a DeLille, with dark berries and some cassis. Very good.
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8/11/2016 - devman wrote: 91 Points
My last D2. The late 2000's D2s were very fruit forward and quite complex, but lacked the earthiness that later D2s had. I really enjoyed this one though as it had a great overall balance on the palate, although a slightly one dimensional finish. Good stuff though!
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5/14/2016 - goodvitis.com Likes this wine: 92 Points
Kicking a lot of sediment right now. Needs a solid hour of decanting and then it starts to open up. Nose: signature Red Mountain iodine, saline and smoke. Dark cherries and blackberries. Moist soil and moss. Nutmeg and Cardamom. Palate: full bodied, full grain tannin gives a ton of structure. Medium acidity with a dollop of sweet fruit. Still a bit chewy, this has many years ahead of it. Warm vintage. Red fruits, almost Jolly Rancher-esque, maybe even Kool Aid fruit punchy flavor. Smoke and tobacco. Finish: saturating grainy tannin coats the mouth, and the fruit eventually gives way to some dirty goodness and baking spices. Overall a real nice wine with a solid 2-3 years of prime drinking ahead of it. Doubt there more complexity that age will coax out of it, but it will smooth out and develop what I imagine will be a velvety texture.
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1/25/2016 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 90 Points
Opened nicely with a medium finish, red and dark fruit, supple and rich
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11/13/2015 - EvanRose Likes this wine: 92 Points
silky smooth, good body, earthy and great with food
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5/31/2015 - Santamonicawine Likes this wine: 91 Points
Great blackberries. Rich color. A pleasure
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4/3/2015 - W2WineGuy Likes this wine: 91 Points
real nice wine, drank over 3 days of being in decanter, held up very well. feel it's in a good place.
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2/22/2015 - Philman15 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Dark fruit and lots of oak, tannins have smoothed out quite a bit. Medium finish, nice wine at this point. Not sure where else it will go but very drinkable now.
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9/4/2014 - Dmax808 wrote: 86 Points
May have been heat damaged
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6/17/2014 - Weston3220 wrote:
Oak is predominantly on the nose loads of spice and dark fruit, in the nose, on the palate way more balanced, loads of acid and dark red fruit mixed with blackberries
Conc: a oaked wine yes, balanced yes, it is what it is and does IT well not good friendly but movie friendly
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4/21/2014 - goodvitis.com wrote: 89 Points
Medium garnet, medium viscosity. Not glass staining, not inkly, fairly light on its legs. Decanted 1.5 hours before consumption began, finished 3 hours after decanting begun. Nose: tobacco, touch of cinnamon, bit of alcoholic heat, cherry and raspberries dominate the fruit profile. Palate: very smooth tannins, present but not drying. High presence of minerality and terroir. Dark flavors like chocolate and coffee are obvious. Fruit is dark, with cherries and blackberries. Hit of mint on the back end. Cabernet Franc funk is prevelant with green bell pepper, mushroom, and dry dirt. Palate is much darker than nose. Iron notes come through strongly at the 2.5 hour decanting period. Finish: Columbia roast French Press coffee, slight spice from red peppers. Tannins do dry the finish relatively early. Very good, will have another solid 3-4 years before declining. Not sure if there is enough promise, though, to warrant more than 2-3 years of additional aging. Rating might be a bit higher in a year or two.
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3/16/2014 - ledocq Likes this wine: 91 Points
Delightful stuff.
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12/20/2013 - forcumba Likes this wine: 92 Points
Still young, but after an hour decant really starting to show nicely.
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10/4/2013 - garambler wrote: 91 Points
I opened this after our 10/4/13 Sherry tasting. It had a rich, ripe and fragrant bouquet of black cherry, plum, mocha, cocoa and spice aromas. The palate was rich, ripe and plump with flavors that followed the nose. 90+
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8/23/2013 - mattyboy_ Likes this wine: 91 Points
Quite rich and powerful. Deep color showing fairly good extraction - in pre-maturity stage. Firm tannins in midpalate with Merlot character being dominant. This is a very good WA state claret.
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8/11/2013 - JJ Mills wrote: 91 Points
Fantastic. From 3.0L magnum, so after opening for an hour it improved markedly, and was even better after a second hour.
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7/5/2013 - NavyVet6874 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Wonderful, as always.
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7/1/2013 - ledocq Likes this wine:
On the first night, a nice cola background to a deep cassis taste on the tongue. The next night, it paired nicely with an OG Kush indica blend. No, seriously -- I wasn't expecting that, but the tastes complimented each other.
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5/26/2013 - johnh1001 wrote: 90 Points
Very rich, expressive nose of dark fruit, mocha and oak. Same on the palate. Big and creamy in the mouth. Medium, smooth finish. Juicy. Great value.
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8/2/2012 - jkopas Likes this wine: 91 Points
Oaky and fruity but balanced, I would agree with other reviews that this needs a little while to develop.
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7/17/2012 - KeithSurg wrote: 90 Points
Ordered at Kappy's. Deep red/purple color. Nice floral nose with fresh plum, pepper and spice notes. Palate never really opened up or expressed much over the 1.5 hour drinking time. Smooth mouthfeel and finish.
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6/18/2012 - csnyder612 wrote: 91 Points
tasted with the Chaleur Estate and found the wines very comparable and excellent. The D2 is the better value for the dollar.
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6/16/2012 - drrobvino wrote: 91 Points
Washington Wine Trip; 6/15/2012-6/19/2012: 14.7% abv, gorgeous Bordeaux blend (DeLille's 2nd label), marvelous black currant and licorice nose echoed on the palate. Med+ finish
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6/2/2012 - garambler wrote: 91 Points
Friends and I tasted this at the Woodinville tasting room on 6/2/12. It had a rich, expressive bouquet of plum, black cherry, cocoa and spice aromas. The palate was rich and round with flavors that followed the nose. 90+
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4/8/2012 - BrandrB wrote: 89 Points
Bordeaux blend of 55% Merlot, 39% Cab Sauvignon, 4% Cab Franc, 2% Petit Verdot. 14.7% abv – though it doesn’t seem so. Dark red color. Inviting floral raspberry aromas. Nicely balanced medium-bodied palate showing a blend of plum and cherry flavors alongside some coffee/mocha and oaky spice. Medium-long finish. Still quite young – give this a couple more years and it’ll be fantastic! Served with wagyu ribeye cap in rosemary jus. “Super Cattle in Seattle” American Wagyu dinner at the Herbfarm.
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3/17/2012 - jmcmchi wrote: 89 Points
To me, this needs a little more time. I was drinking a 2001 Right Bank grand cru earlier in the week and this stands up well against it. Nose is a little tight and closed at the moment, cool and supple fruit on the palate, nice balanced finish. Give it 12 months
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2/11/2012 - garambler wrote: 91 Points
Some friends and I tasted this at the Woodinville tasting room on 2/11/12. It had a rich, ripe appealing bouquet of mocha, chocolate, black cherry, spice and mineral aromas. The palate was rich, ripe and plump with flavors that followed the nose.
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1/20/2012 - 3daywinereview.com wrote: 88 Points
Super tight and it should have been decanted. Cherry, spice, oak, vanilla and plum. Firm tannins present. There is a lot that will present itself with age but currently needs a six hour decant to show its stuff.
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12/29/2011 - WaWineFan in TX wrote: 91 Points
Very nice. This is the 4th bottle of various vintages of D2 that I have tried. I'm yet to be disappointed. This started a little tight and awkward (probably not surprising given that it is a 09 and I havent seen many of these from WA yet.) but opened up with time in the decanter and early glasses getting put through an aerator. Good merlot based blend with a mix of red and dark fruit coming through. Very nice structure and layers that leave you with a pleasant finish to think about.14.7% alcohol but I wouldnt have guessed it was this high. Good balance and the alcohol never became a nuisance. I was surprised to already run across the 2009 for this wine on sale at a local wine store and picked it up for $32.00/bottle. I would easily put this up against most of the $40.00+ bottles of Bordeaux blends from WA that I have tried over the past several years and it would compare very favorably esp when you factor in the $32.00 price point.
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11/18/2011 - forcumba wrote: 92 Points
Delicious already, with some mineral and very young fruit on the nose with great structure and hints of chocolate on the finish. I'm definitely looking to buy more now.
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