Fruit forward, with notes of cherry, strawberry, and spices transitioning to some grassy notes and some minerality, with oak influence apparent on the finish. 13.3% ABV. Holding up well at 13 years old.
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My recollection of this from 10 years ago that it was heavy on oak, somewhat monolithic, and toward the heavy body spectrum. While the bouquet now reminds me of the same wine, the oak has largely receded except on the finish, and this has a lively mouthfeel. Well done!
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In a really good place. PnP, no need to decant. aromas of black fruit, raspberry, pepper, herb, and earth. Still loaded with flavor. Medium bodied. Blackfruit, plum, raspberry, spice, herb, pepper, and earth flavors.. smooth , silky tannins in the long finish. Very good now, not sure it will improve, but I see no decline in the near future.
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PnP. Opens with black fruit, raspberry, pepper, herb, earth. Flavors of blackfruit, plum, raspberry, spice, herb, pepper, earth. Medium body with a smooth finish.
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Lots of ripe black fruit throughout with even more spice. Good weight. Shockingly fresh, and my only nit is that I wish the whole cluster spice character softened more in the decade since release.
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As with Ceritas, I buy mostly their single vineyard wines. But like the Ceritas Costalina, every time I open the Rhys San Mateo I’m surprised how good it is. This was showing so signs age. Loamy black cherries, a little sappy but crisp.
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Slow oxed for 20 minutes. Very attractive nose of plums, raspberries, violets and herbs. Medium bodied, with good poise, energy and acidity. At a great place right now. An excellent entry level wine.
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Tasted over 2 hrs -nearly semi-translucent mild clearing -fragrant stemmy spice rhubarb fruit and a whiff of maturity -med acidity, med/med- weight gentle ripe sweet red fruit slightly smoky with a touch of spice and minerality, med- tannins -drinking very well now with just a touch of maturity - has several more good years ahead of it
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My first Rhys and now I am on the hunt for more. One of those pinots that tastes delicate on the entry palate, but then the long, mouth-coating finish really grabs your attention. Nose and flavors of ripe cherry, strawberry, Asian spices. Finessed and voluptuous.
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From magnum on Thanksgiving. Slow ox. Bit of bricking but still vivid ruby and slightly cloudy core. Initially tart and closed, opened and softened throughout the night and into the next day. Red fruit and medium+ acidity, not a ton of earth, layers slowly unfolded. More than 24 hours later was its best. At least from this well-stored large format, not past prime: really good now.
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While quite enjoyable and fruit forward, this is beginning to show some early signs of fading. Fruit flavors are ripe wild raspberry with underlying earthy herbal tones. Good spices add some intrigue and enough lift to keep it from getting heavy. No rush to drink up, but this seems to be just a bit on the stewed fruit side vs vibrant side. I can see why some feels this comes across with some Grenache character.
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Opened one hour in advance. Aroma of tart cherry and dishwater. Rich cherry clove flavors up front, mild cola in the finish. Firm backbone, some complexity, good staying power.
Good, but pricey. This is definitely California style Pinot Noir, but a toned down version that avoids the elements (e.g. pronounced cola flavors) that tend to turn me off.
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Served blind and popped and poured for Tuesday night baked salmon on a bed of Basmati rice with home made Bob Gibson White BBQ sauce. Colour dark ruby with very sour rhubarb on the nose. Palate so imbalanced by a pervasive savoury element of garrigue and unripened green peppers, with an impossibly short finish.... all four of us at the table were repulsed and I immediately went for another bottle. Blind three of four of us thought grenache and one outlier went for a Oregon Pinot using a high percentage of whole cluster fermentation. All thought the wine to be about 5 or so years old. Revealed to be the Rhys San Mateo Pinot 2010 - recorked and placed in fridge, and reopened 8 days later. 8 days out and warmed to room temperature, the dark monster revealed a moderately stemmy nose, and a green pepper palate, but more civilized than on initial opening. I am not really a fan of unbridled whole cluster fermentation-particularly when the stems are no where close to being lignified and ripe-and especially when it overwhelms the entire contents of the bottle. DRC experience tells me that the cluster greenness generally dissipates at 20-25 years, but I can only imagine that the fruit of this monster may dry out by then. Not sure what the other tasters were drinking when describing this, but easily the worst Rhys we have had. Wish we had another bottle to age for another 20 years to see if Hogwarts time magic could civilize this very unpleasant beast !
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No formal notes, first of two bottles won at auction. Thought it was a goner, pushed up cork, signs of past seepage. Seemed off upon opening, but wouldn’t you know, with some air, still giving pleasure. Probably a bit advanced, red fruit, earthy, spice notes, rich flavors, but not cooked.
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Lovely nose of orange peel, sandalwood, rose petals and white pepper. Nice sweet cranberry/raspberry fruit on the palate with good balancing acidity. Very good wine for the price, but lacks some of the stuffing of the single vineyard wines. Not sure how much more complexity this will pick up with age, but should drink well for at least another 5 years.
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Loamy spicebox nose, with a bit of orange peel. Bing cherry fruit on the palate, with a pleasant tartness. A bit thin and one dimensional. Reminds me a lot of the Rivers-Marie Sonoma Coast, but not quite the same value.
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Black berry and cherry aromas with so much floral and spice support. Wonderfully rich, powerful and fresh with enough tannins to keep this well balanced. My only nit would be the whole cluster nature of the spice protrudes more than it harmonizes into everything else. This is a very impressive <$50 bottle, the first of a 6-pack I purchased upon release, and I expect it will continue to evolve and drink well through at least 2025, if not longer.
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Wasn’t sure what to expect from this 9 year old. Cork has that aged, permeated stain. Pours crimson. Nose is a tight integration of red fruits, white flowers, and white pepper. Palette shows racy yet controlled acid and a follow through of the nose. Very nice showing and vibrant.
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Going back to my first Rhys purchase here. REALLY glad I have a few more bottles! Just delicious. Great acids with a strikingly fresh nose of raspberries, strawberries, and blood orange. Super long finish. Ageing very well. No rush, but drinking beautifully right now.
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Initially tight and unyielding, but it unfurled fairly quickly to show lovely balance and drive, lush texture, and plenty of dark red fruit. Very nice.
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Consistent with my last bottle 2 years ago. Does not seemed to have aged. Cali Pinot, with some cake spice, very nice fruit and some Foresty Pine which brings a nice balance. Something keeps this together in a very nice balanced way. Lots of extract, super fine tannin, touch of oak.
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15 minute decant. This has fantastic aromatics with red fruit and roses coming through. The palate is simply delicious with a wonderful inner core of fruit sporting flavors of strawberry, raspberry, earth. Amazingly for an entry level wine after eight years this is still quite youthful and can continue to age gracefully for another five years but it’s so good now its hard to resist.
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Really complex nose showing tart cranberry, spice and a touch of sandalwood that is probably derived from the whole cluster fermentation. Tart palate, rich but with a saline infused character that adds interest and complexity. A little drying on the finish.
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Dark berries, cherries, earth, and a hint of leather on the nose. Nice acidity with red berries, cranberries, and some cedar flavors on the palate. Nice finish. This is in a beautiful spot right now! Wife: 93
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Nose: The nose takes a little bit to unwind, but as it comes into balance there is a tartness to the tones of pomegranate, raspberries, rhubarb, dark red cherries, violets, and baking spices.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium+ acidity and medium tannins. The tannins are silky and integrated with the acidity showing a refreshing side. The feel is balanced with pomegranate, raspberries, dark red cherries, baking spices, and violets.
Overall: This took about an hour of air to turn on. It becomes quite expressive with air as it is backed up with tart red fruits and some floral tones. This is drinking beautifully right now and will easily go for another 5+ years.
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Excellent. A somewhat big Pinot, unabashedly new world, but surprisingly balanced. Very harmonious. Dark and red fruit, forest floor, some spiciness, touch of orange zest, good enough acidity, and a most pleasant (and often absent in CA PN) minerality and earthiness. Some incipient signs of development and tertiary notes. Drinking at or close to peak.
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Guido nailed the descriptor. Well said. The tomato quality gives such a positive contrast to the intense fruit. This is an incredible over achiever in a sense. Still had some tannin to share.
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I agree with Guido - this stuff is amazing balls! Earth, pomegranate, seamless mountain fruit and plenty of acidity - really nice now. Only complaint is it is still a little fruity.
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I am once again amazed by the high-level performance of the San Mateo Pinot. The nose was beautiful, with sweet cola at first sniff, which was quickly followed by crushed strawberries (stems and all) with marine-influenced minerals, mint leaf and a hint of tomatoes on the vine. On the palate, I found juicy, soft textures with spice-laced fresh cherry, which washed across the senses, along with hints of orange and exotic inner florals. It finished long and fresh as the orange turned to hints of grapefruit and the cherry became more like cranberry, yet throughout the entire experience it was lifted, ripe without being sweet, and wonderfully fresh, as it's core of vibrant acidity kept the mouth watering. I wish I had bought cases of the wine.
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Tastes exactly like a mini Rhys. Just the right amount of herbaciousness with medium body and length, with forest floor and red fruit. Very nice and ready to go while waiting for the bigger cuvees.
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Terrific wine, just reached its peak and should remain here for a few years. Very balanced, great with grilled salmon. What you want a California Pinot Noir to be.
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Three years ago I thought this wine had the stuffing to go a long time. After opening another bottle, I might revise that to "several more years", but I won't be able to keep my hands off the last two bottles. So often when I open a vineyard-designated Rhys wine I am confronted with a wall that won't let me through. The wines need a ton of time. With this bottling there is already great drinkability, as well as complexity. Deep red fruit, spice, mineral, earth and even a bit of surprising but pleasing tobacco leaf all show on the aromatics. The palate is moving on towards silky, held together by its acidity. This is a lot of fun to drink.
very enjoyable. The tartness is more noticable now that the fruit flavors have further softened. Light, strawberry, rhubarb, and tart cherry with a lovely cola finish that lingers.
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Very, very good. A somewhat big Pinot, unabashedly new world, but surprisingly balanced. Very harmonious. Dark and red fruit, forest floor, some spiciness, good acid, and a most pleasant (and often absent in CA PN) minerality and earthiness. Some incipient signs of development, but still very young. Will cellar my other bottle for at least 2-3 more yrs. My guess is that some interesting tertiary notes will emerge. My first Rhys. Definitely will explore more of their wines.
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Dark for a pinot noir, mostly opaque. Characteristic varietal aromas, mix of red and black fruits, slightly sweet and acetic. Rich, concentrated flavors, medium to full-bodied, but very round, with excellent fruit. Tastes a bit hot on the long aftertaste. An excellent pinot. Perfectly mature and ready to go. Ric
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Bright red cherry, earthy spice and mineral notes on the nose and smooth palate with refreshing acidity on the moderate finish. Continues to drink beautifully!
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Bottle #1 of 6. Very high toned bright red fruits, tons of acidity, very long finish. Bright and detailed. I played with it for a few hours, and it seemed to drink optimally after double decanting, letting it sit corked in bottle at cellar temp for two hours, then warm for another hour. It was stupendous then, right about 65 degrees, but started to fade quickly and got sluggish as it sat open longer. So I think this will have a relatively short peak run. Maybe now to 9 years from now. Quite tasty in a bright red fruited way, and best with food given the acidity, could be a bit shrill for some otherwise.
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Last bottle was a bit over a year and a half ago and my current notes are very consistent. Red cherry, red berry, minerals and vanilla on the nose. Medium bodied (13.3% ABV), opened at cellar temperature (55F) and drank over the course of five hours. Accessible nearly from opening, but improved noticeably with the additional time. Red cherry and wildberry upfront, with raspberry behind and tart red cherry and berry towards the finish. Excellent mix of minerals, integrated spices and acidity make for a lengthy finish. The story of this wine is threefold: (1) excellent, rounded red fruit core with good complexity, (2) acidity based structure providing depth and length and (3) overall balance between the elements. Drinking beautifully now and a ridiculously good bargain for a Rhys pinot. This may continue to improve slightly going forward and certainly has several years left to it at this level based on how it has shown over the past two years.
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medium ruby color. developing, medium intensity nose shows strawberry, red cherry, violets, soy sauce, mushrooms, and minerality. dry, med body, med(+) acidity, med alcohol, med intensity palate shows similar flavor profile to nose. medium finish. Drinking well, this is starting to develop some tertiary notes, but should still hold for some time.
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Always loved this wine and showing even better from magnum. Slight stemless showing at first but faded with 45 min or so. As well as this is drinking today, from Magnum, this needs at least another decade to show its ultimate expression.
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Pop & pour: red berries on the nose. Color is a clear garnet showing some maturity. On the palate, red berries with loads of baking spices, and toast oak. Quite complex for a blend and not a SVD.
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Early on the fruit was bouncing out of the glass. Ripe red and blue fruit on the nose. In time the aromatics became more subtle with more emphases on darker tones. The palate has ripe fruits. Cranberries and cherries. Pretyy high on concentration. Medium/high acid. Tasty and a bit simple. I think I would drink now to 2018. The gambler should let this sleep for another 5-7 years.
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Medium garnet, almost opaque. Very pronounced raspberry-strawberry aromas, complex, with some toasty oak, very Burgundian. Excellent viscosity. Medium-full body, sweet red berry flavors, excellent balance, slightly hot finish, just a hint of bitterness on the back of the palate. Fully mature, it's wonderful now but should stay at its peak several more years. Ric
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PnP. Medium dark red. Lovely nose of black fruits, mineral, and spice. Quite smooth on the palate and finish. This bottle is completely different from the one of 6 months ago and tastes quite ready to drink. Much more enjoyable in this incarnation.
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Lean, cold-climate pinot noir. Minimalist. Bright red fruit, hints of meat. Soft tannic finish. Very elegant, but not very expressive. In a dumb phase?
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PopnPour, tasted over 3 hrs -solid med dark red with minimal clearing at rim -aromatic spicy ripe red fruits rhubarb beetroot and touch of stony minerality -med acidity, concentrated sweet sappy red-black fruits beetroot spice on middle weight frame, med- tannins and noticeable though not intrusive oak spice on respectably long finish -reminiscent of a Vosne Romanee, excellent complexity, drinking well now though would anticipate another few years of improvement to more fully integrate the wood and pick up more mature elements
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Bright, high-toned aromas of cherry, orange zest, and citrus over clove, baking spice, and underbrush. More pure, bright cherry on the palate, cut with a mineral spine. Mouth-tingling acidity and more baking spice on the finish. Great.
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crunchy, crunchy berries. Super high toned. I am guessing this is from the 80% whole clusters. A bit much for me in style. This reminds me of Cameron Clos Electrique. I have no idea if they do whole cluster, but so similar. The taste lingers on and this is an intense wine. Certainly high quality and well made, just not loving it, but liking it enough to keep drinking for the intrigue. Food would help me with this, but I am sipping without, so there you have it.
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-- popped and poured -- -- tasted a couple glasses non-blind over 1 to 1.5 hours --
Red fruited. Good acidity. Medium-light bodied. Not sweet. Touch of earthiness. Drinking well now. Probably best to drink now and over the next few years. Paired surprisingly well with grilled ribeye.
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Drinking really well now, medium weight, bright strawberry and a hint of cola. Some rhubarb and cherry notes as well, stems are only slightly present but gives character.
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Surprisingly excellent for a "village" level appellation wine. On the nose, fresh scents of cherry, lavender and underbrush mingle with a core of baking spice. The palate has black cherry, raspberry, cinnamon and pie crust, with loads of spice and a long finish. Superb.
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Pulling together but not an exceptional Pinot. Has a great acidic streak mixed with dark fruits with the oak/stems more integrated into a terrific spice profile. Lengthy finish. Quite concentrated and polished. Drink or hold.
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It starts a little tight, but then fleshes out with the spicy red fruit and tangy stems that I associate with this bottling, with plenty of structure to hold things together.
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PnP. Medium red. Somewhat restrained nose of red fruits, spice, and some funk. On the palate, lovely medium weight, nice flavors, but still a bit tight on the finish. Surprisingly restrained at age 5+. I don't think we have any idea what the aging curve on the Rhys Pinots will be.
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Lovely expressive perfumed nose with orange blossom notes. Tart, juicy, with generous fruit - very representative of the Rhys style and another confirmation for me that this is one of the best Rhys appellation level bottlings so far. Hitting on all cylinders.
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This opened up a fizzy, acidic mess. I double splash decanted and let it sit. Good idea for those opening now. Light colored and red fruited. Definitely tastes Burgundian. Maybe a good, village level Savigny. Lacks some layers but there is good flavor. Will improve over the mid term. (88)
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My first bottle from Rhys and my high expectations were exceeded. Very pretty nose of red fruit, earth and light spices. Medium bodied and exceptionally well balanced. There's a lot of fruit here, but there's also plenty of background structure and acidity which keeps this solidly OUT of the fruit-forward camp and places it in the elegant and balanced camp. Red cherry and wildberry upfront with just a touch of sour cherry behind along with raspberry and plum towards the finish. Good mineral qualities and acidity on the finish. This wine is just starting to come into its own and I expect further complexity and refinement in the future.
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Dark ruby, almost completely opaque. Burgundian style, with sweet strawberry-raspberry aromas mixed with subtle oak, already complex. Very viscous. Rich, concentrated berry flavors, concentrated, slightly hot from high alcohol, but very smooth and balanced. Long, somewhat hot but flavorful aftertaste. I would put this against a high-quality Burgundy! Ric
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Had some funky fizz on it that blew off by day 2. Day 2 brought a sub-par PN for what Rhys usually delivers with the SMC. Not at all elegant and light as usual.
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PnP. Medium dark red. Complex nose of wood, forest floor, spice, and black fruits. Medium full on the palate with a long finish dominated by the whole cluster fermentation. This is still young and an interesting blend containing Anderson Valley as well as Santa Cruz mountain fruit. Still needs time.
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Very sweet on pop & pour. Pretty one dimensional before food, improved slightly with mushroom pizza but still a little too sweet for me. Very clean and well made but really no soul in this wine. Not sure what time will do.
This was the wine of the weekend. Last of my three bottles, ashamed I didn't keep longer. Beautiful color, explosive nose. Pop and pour. The stems on the palate I wrote about in my first three tastings of this wine were here, but now in a beautifully integrated and slightly rounder fashion. Balanced fruit on the palate, balanced acidity. Light on its feet and very satisfying at the same time. Lingering finish. This has come together at a very high level.
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Nose: The nose is very attractive and perfumed with rhubarb, tart red cherries, baking spices, violets, and creamed strawberries. There is a tartness to the tones along with a warmth at the same time.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium acidity and silky tannins. The acidity has some real zip to it with tart red cherries, raspberries, rhubarb, and violets. The feel is polished yet youthful at the same time.
Overall: This is a fun and youthful Rhys. It certainly feels like it can get better and is worth holding back for another 2-3 years.
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Garnet to dark garnet color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of thistle, black pepper and cherries. Flavors of raspberries, berries and cherries. Medium acidity, medium tannin, medium to full bodied. Drink or hold.
My guess was this is a California Pinot Noir. No idea as to vintage or producer.
This wine came in 12th place out of 14 wines with 10 tasters participating giving an average score of 89.20.
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Tasted blind in a lineup of 14 double blind pinots. Slow-oxed 3-4 hours prior to the tasting. Wasn't able to take detailed notes on this as I was overwhelmed by green peppers on the nose and palate. The bottle had around 4 oz in it overnight and tasted again the next day with some of the green pepper replaced by spices but still showing mostly green peppers. Very different from the other bottles I have had. #12 wine for the group.
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Decanted for 3h. A-Just ripe blackberry/black cherries, blueberry, earth, bark and a bit of sous bois. P- seamless integration fruits with some earth and bark. Elegant with good weight - a bit more than I expected. Very enjoyable.
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With Pasticcio and salad. Medium ruby. Lovely nose - raspberry/cherry with a touch of earthiness, maybe a touch of spice. Mid-weight, earthy but still good fruit (not sure if there is such a thing as "earthy fruit"), maybe a touch of mushroom. Very good balance, and good length. This has developed nicely since we last tasted a year ago. An excellent wine.
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Didn't get to take detailed notes but this wine is open and showing well - exuberant fruit and spice balanced with a good level of acid. Doesn't show the earthy distinction of some of the top Rhys SVDs but a terrific, pleasing wine in its own right.
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Pnp. Went extremely well with salmon. Very balanced bright fruits. On the lighter side for california pinots and more feminine. Stems present but more balanced than last year. Great food wine
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Upon opening, very smooth, elegant and hot. Lots of cherry that became more bitter. It was great after 2-3 hours of decanting. By sixth hour open, it was quite acidic and some stemmy flavors coming through. This was a magnum, and I think it needs a couple more years in the bottle to mellow out.
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Ripe bing cherries, baking spice, pinot funk, sous bois. There's no mistaking this for burgundy, but it's still quite controlled for CA pinot noir. Great now, will likely also improve with age
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Signature california pinot cola nut scent on the nose. Stem inclusion is very evident on the palate as there is a stemmy goodness that balances out the fruit. As Keith noted, there is a vibrancy and gulpability to this wine that is unquestionable. Delicious stuff. Drink now.
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This needed a day open. Bit too stemmy first day. Day two is wonderful. It is smokey with some pinot funk and classic rhys stalkiness that has subdued considerably. This contrasts with the very refreshing fruit of cranberry and perfectly ripe light red cherry. Lacks any notable texture but has an ideal middleweight body. Not terribly complex, but so well balanced and composed to create pinot tone and refreshing acidity that marries smoothness on the palate. Excellent.
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PnP. Stems, stems and more stems. Plus some green pepper. With time, this starts to open some. Nose of green stems and green pepper, rhubarb, strawberry, stones. Palate is similar, light-medium bodied with decent acid. Quite clear and some supple aspects. Stems, green, rhubarb, strawberry, stones, herbs. The green stems and rhubarb carry through to the clear finish. Nose - 4.5/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 15.5/20.
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Even better than the previous bottle (a yr+ ago), and my guess is that it continues to improve. Too bad this was our last bottle and we won't be able to watch it evolve.
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Slow-ox 1 hr, tasted over 3 hrs -bright dark red with some purple, not quite opaque -moderately aromatic, cherry, cola, rhubarb/cranberry -med acidity, med+ concentration with med weight, mid-palate of moderate complexity with liqueur-like raspberry, black cherry, a touch of earth, slightly medicinal, med- tannins -very good, drinking well now but early in drinking window
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Very nice savory and spice nose, just a hint of coffee, stems. A juicy palate leaning to dark fruit, but with a hint of red; stems are evident but not obtrusive. Doesn't seem to have the structure or the depth of the SVDs, but still a very, very nice pinot, and still could use a couple years to develop.
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Had a glass on PnP at first, and on the nose picked up raspberry, rhubarb, forest floor and white pepper. On the palate, notes of tart raspberry and cranberry, loads of mineral, and a little spicy kick on the back end.
Then decanted, some thru the Vinturi, over 4 hours and consumed over 6+ hours in total. Althought still young, the extra time aerating and decanting allowed this to open up nicely. A bouquet of cherry, red berry fruit, stem spice, rhubarb, faint herbal tones and shades of chocolate-dipped raspberry underneath. On the palate, picked up notes of tart red berries, cherry, orange rind, abundant minerality and a trace of tea. Delicate on approach with very fine soft, tannins matched by good mix of acidity in a medium-bodied texture and a clean medium finish.
Think this will continue to improve over time, but is approachable with some good air time. Terrific effort and very much enjoyed. Can only hope and get excited trying the single VY designates when they're ready to pop. (92+)
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World Cup Final (Domaine Wine Storage - Chicago, IL): Young and powerful, there's a lot of potential here. Dark fruits, some spice, and floral notes layered together nicely. This will probably need some time to open up some, but all signs are pointing towards a beautiful bottle of wine.
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Taste: Medium bodied with medium acidity and silky tannins. There is a real round quality to the tones of red cherries, floral notes, rhubarb, and some spice tones.
Overall: It's really hard to keep my hands off of this right now. It's very attractive with a really nice red fruit core. While it's delicious now, I'd really like to see where this goes when the whole cluster influence completely comes together.
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Amazing nose on opening. I'd almost say worth serving as a pop-n-pour as that initial nose is just so so good. The taste isn't bad either, with good acidity, reasonable oak, and good structure/tannins. Over time, I actually thought it got a bit awkward, as if the frame couldn't quite handle all of the young fruit/oak. I think this is great to serve now, as that nose is just incredible. I'm also guessing this could be quite interesting in a few years once that fruit/oak calms down a bit.
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Structured, spicy and long on dark red fruit. This is very delicious right now, but has all the stuffing and structure to go on for a long, long time. Very impressive.
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1 hour decant. Bright almost explosive nose of cranberry, cherry, and spices. Juicy with mouth watering acidity but balanced well by the fruit. Big without being obnoxious but still young. Great tonight with the Copper River Salmon and grilled asparagus.
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Consistent with last notes, drinking much better an hour+ in. Still quite a bit of firmness and structure. Lots of stemminess on the palate. I'm hopeful that the fruit will last until the rest softens and completely comes together. A very nice and very complex drink. Super value on what I recall to be a very reasonably priced bottle of wine from the winery. Too bad for those who find it available for $100 on the shelves of retailers today. Would I be as fired up if I'd spent $100 for this bottle of wine? Hmmmmmmm......
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Nose: Well balanced with rhubarb, baking spices, dark red fruits, raspberries, strawberries, and a touch of purple florals. There is excellent depth and balance to this right now and the nose is coming together very well.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium acidity and silky tannins. There is a fatness and round quality to the feel with raspberries, strawberries, baking spices, purple florals, and some hints of earth tones.
Overall: This is really rounding into form. While a few more years of development, one wouldn't be faulted for opening a bottle right now.
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I loved the mushroomy, earthy, loamy complexity of this wine. My wife was put off by the green notes and sappy fruit; she prefers a less dense wine, and is very sensitive to any vegetal tastes or aromas. I'm hoping time will bring this to a point where we both enjoy it. She liked it better on day 3, but still not her fave.
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Gorgeous, lifted aromas of strawberry, raspberry, herbs and spice. Palate has medium body and is awash with balancing acidity and juiciness. Good precision, focus and balance. Punches well above its weight.
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Decanted for 2 hours. Fantastic sweet nose of ripe red strawberries, cherry pie and red plums, with light baking spices. Airy light body and dark ruby color, with intense, tangy red fruit. Just a pleasure; great now with room to improve.
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A complex nose showing a lot of earthy/loamy qualities mixed with black raspberry, sous bois and cranberry. Passing twice through a Vinturi rendered this remotely approachable on day 1, but still showed a lot of whole cluster/stemminess. Became more harmonious by day 2 and three, with a pleasing mixture of red and black fruits, earth and lively acidity. Different than just about any other pinot coming out of California, in a good way, and a good introduction to the Rhys style.
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Very bright and sappy upon opening with a bit of tartness and earth. Much improved on the second day with soil notes coming a bit more to the forefront. High quality and good value. Decant or hold.
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Cranberry rhubarb and some vanilla and spice on the nose - quite inside the Rhy's profile. A little green and stemmy, that lends me to believe it needs more than the 1 hour decant I gave it, or also just more time in the cellar. Nice acidic tartness on the palate. Good food wine.
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It smells like stems and seeds. Even on day two. The palate, however, is pleasant and very drinkable. Stemmy notes are there but there is nice ripe fruit with fair tartness. The issue is that there is not much beyond that. Pleasant but simple.
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With veal chops and whipped parsnips. Light crimson, clear, a pretty wine. Somewhat muted nose, a touch of cherry and earth. Medium body, dark red fruit and a touch of spiciness. Good length, very smooth, went nicely with the meal. Certainly a very good wine, not quite outstanding.
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Much better with air. At first the fruit is a bit sweet and rhubarby and the stems are very prominent and green. With air everything settles down, with the acid tightening up and the stems fading slightly. Good concentration and nicely expansive in the midpalate with good acidity, but not especially complex. This is very Rhys-y in style with and a decent version of a CA village wine. There's enough tannin to hold it together but there's not a lot of structure here.
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Dark red, clear. Smoky aromas, with leather, raspberry and black pepper. Moderate tannins with medium acidity. Sour cherry, oak, plum, BBQ meat on the palate. This is good, but it's a bit underwhelming. It just doesn't totally come together.
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Dee-freaking-licious. Right now this wine is surprisingly open. On the nose, red berry fruits dominate, with a touch of cola, and the whole cluster adds a floral orange blossom note to a perfumey nose. On the palate, this is smooth and silky, light and not dense, and a deft amount of oak lends a creamy edge to a wine that is mouth-wateringly tart, with the sum total being a delicious wine. While early in its window, this bottling is approachable and showing both nice sap to the fruit, and a touch of baking spice. This is a great representation of the Rhys style, in an appellation wine package, and tonight's showing is even better than some Rhys SVDs have shown in the past. Even though this is the San Mateo bottling, this reminds me of some very good Anderson Valley wines - Copain Voisins or some of the SVDs, or Anthill Farms, with some signature Rhys characteristics. Quite a bit better than the 09 Santa Cruz Mountains bottle I opened recently. If the appellation wines were always this good, I could live without ordering the SVDs at all.
Yikes, this wine had a green streak a mile wide. I like some green and earth in my pinots (I've really like the Alesia's I've had), but this was nearly undrinkable. Not just for me, but for everyone else at the table. It got dumped.
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Initial pour showed nice cherry and raspberry with some steminess. Next pour showed much tarter red fruits. Finally after about 90 minutes it seemed to settle down, but definitely think this needs more time to integrate.
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Although I really like the Alesia Pinots, I've had a hard time with almost every Rhys Pinot I've tried. And this one sums it up why. Powerful, but the core flavor profile is just too herbal and stemmy for my taste. Hard to enjoy.
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Loads of intense cherry and raspberry, forest just after rain on the nose. Stems are really showing but with plenty of fruit to back it up. Long finish. Lots of interesting flavors here but as a package it's not well integrated yet. I'd recommend letting bottles lie a couple years.
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Consistent with my previous bottle. Rich and concentrated fruit, with some saline and herbal tones. A touch of heat on the tail end. So while it was delicious, this didn't have the balance of other Rhys bottlings.
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Pinot Weekend - Second Willamette Valley Trip; 8/30/2013-9/2/2013 (Dundee, OR): Almost has some mint on the nose (which I assume is the whole cluster), spicy herbs, black fruits. Palate is rather smooth, with the stem inclusion standing out from the fruit. I was surprised how dark the fruit profile was compared to the Oregon Pinots (which I also thought had a blue-ish tone to the fruit) Lengthy finish. This is really going to be a nice pinot if I can stop drinking them. Best sip was the last, after about 4hrs air. 93+ Best bottle yet
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PnP. Garnet with slight violet/brown tinge. Red (cranberry-led) fruit with floral, spice and earth on nose. Almost precise fruit on palate with very good penetration, some tension and mineral. A little 'hollow' on midpalate, so lacks a bit of textural complexity. But this wine gives real pleasure on several levels. Nice with food ('Spanish' beans with morcilla, butafarra).
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Moderately rich blue fruit and exotic Indian spice, and some reductive notes. Very dry. Relatively finely-textured, with only very subtle astringency. Very tasty, if not quite ready due to a somewhat raw, astringent character. Alluring whole cluster aromatics, really delightful. I'll try to wait a couple of years before opening another bottle, hoping for additional tannin integration.
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Pulled this by mistake. I guess I need to leave some reading glasses in the cellar. Ruby/purple in color. Lots of dark cherries on the nose. More masculine that I was expecting. The palate matched the nose. Not a lot of complexity at this point, but very tasty and easy to drink.
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A nice bottle, but enjoyed a little less than our previous bottles from Rhys. More dark fruits vs red, more earthy, with a hint of charcoal, or smoke? Nice acidity and a vein of minerality running through it.
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nose-cranberry, strawberry mouth-cornucopia of light red fruits, or fruit punchy as i like to say, with intense acidity. good purity but sour. this showed considerably better on day two. i wouldnt be an any rush to drink these
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Generous nose has cranberry, black cherry, flora elements, potpourri notes, herbs and mineral. Palate is medium bodied with some plush cranberry and sour cherry fruit. Good grippy acidity on the mid-palate and into the fresh, minerally finish. There's some nice flavor complexity here for an appellation wine and excellent balance and precision. Quality stuff. Glad to be on this list.
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bah. emboldened by the last great bottle I popped another. Back to the tart and stemmy (green bean) wine I got the first time around. I should know better and not push my luck.
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I enjoyed this much more than my wife. Spicy herbal nose, with black cherry and a touch of citrus. Palate is dense with dark cherry, licorice, with a slightly rounder mouthfeel than a prior bottle. Solid depth, with plenty of lift to the fruit and a spicy edge that I assume is the whole cluster. Moderate length, with a slightly bitter edge, but adds a nice earthy note. Very good now, has plenty of structure to age.
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Pnp. See previous, no stems this time. The freshest pure cherry on the nose, with spice and smoke, pretty and intoxicating. Very accessible with tart and sour cherries on the palate with this incredible savory character that builds to a strong finish of truffle and bacon, so much umami in this wine. With time in the glass it is picking up floral notes and it is getting even more savory begging for something you've braised for the better part of a day. Complex spice notes accompany the tannic structure that builds with each sip, and yet continues to evolve in flavor. I underestimated this, what a bottle.
Day two-
Sharp and great aromas of macerated small cherries and very high toned spice. I had the remainder after an excellent meal and a Chateau Beaucastel. The gorgeous acid in this wine cleansed the palate and woke up all the great flavors just had, it was really impressive. There is something indescribable about the balance of earth, savory, acid, and fruit in this wine. Harmonious in just that right way to be delicious. As focused as this is I honestly cannot believe it is appellation level, these Rhys guys are either lucky or genius.
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First experience with Rhys and Wow!!! Decanted for 1 hr and the floral aromas and baking spices filled the room. On the palate a burst of red fruits and spice linger on and on with a medium bodied and beautiful mouthfeel. This is delicious now and look forward to the next bottle. Elegant and well made.
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Second try of this one, which was much more integrated this time around. Nose and palate profile were very similar to the previous bottle sampled 5 months ago - smoke, sandalwood, cherry fruit, wet autumnal leaves and sweet baking spice. The fruit is Cali, but the overall flavor profile reminds of OR. Very nice.
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Decanted 2+ hours prior to this note. Lovely dark berry nose, Vosne spice, deep and dark with some dense richness on the nose. Bittersweet coca, dark spice and maybe a touch of toast. Fruit profile on the nose matches the mouth. Dark mountain fruit, more of the lively backing spice with a bit of toast. Deep fruit flavors and lovely richness, a wine that can stratle the line of density and elegance. While it has great richness and density, it also possesses perfect texture and mouthfeel. Great acidity, nice tannic punch on the back end. This seems like something tht is stacked for some cellar time. An outstanding wine that shows its flashiness in its youth but also showcases its potential for future development.
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Tasted non blind at a dinner. Opened and slow-oxed around 12 hours before tasting. Only had around 1.5 oz so wasn't able to follow in the glass for very long. The aromas of mostly cherries and floral jumped out of the glass. The was also a hint of barnyard. Similar red fruit palate, some earth and stones also. Medium-long length finish. Nice acidity and very food friendly in a low ABV package. Seems to have plenty of life left but is accessible now with plenty of air.
Splash decanted and drank for the next couple hours, then finished the rest the next night. Aroma has black cherry and some plum, along with some sort of tobacco scent. Taste is more red cherry with some tartness to it. I would say to hold off for at least a year on this if you can.
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nose - sour plum, briar berry, slight funk, berry pie filling mouth - showing considerably better than a year ago, in my humble opinion, sour berry fruit, quite the tart yet with a sneak savory quality. clean crisp and true to varietal form, with good fruit concentration, and that extra savory oomph that makes some pinots worth remembering. try again in 1 year.
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Upon opening, this had a rather seductive nose of berries, flowers and some earth. On the palate, however, this is incredibly stemmy, so much so that it overtakes all other flavors. However, by day 2, this is in a much better place, which gives me faith that the wise folks at Rhys know what they are doing, but that patience will be required for these wines to show at their best. On day 2, there are still some stemmy notes, bordering on dirty, but also with lovely aromas of raspberry, lavender, and herbs de provence. The midpalate could use some filling out, and this is less structured than the SV bottlings, with less prominent acid, but it is an enjoyable wine nonetheless. Not screaming value at $45, however, and I do think the whole cluster component to these wines could be dialed back a bit without sacrificing structure and ageability.
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Spring field, clovers, dandelion, wild flowers blosssoming, like a mild sunny green valley. Some green and tart. A wild feeling similar to some Northern Rhone. Quite different from previous experiences with Rhys ( 2009 Family farm and 2006 Alpine), which probably were not as ready as this one. It is very refreshing as well ! Delicious.
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Drank this over three nights. Found the wine much more engaging on nights one and two. Wonderful nose, a bit austere, but striking minerality and finish. Perhaps a bit stemmy, but that should dissipate over time.
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Pop and pour and served blind with three other Pinots. All of the wines were placed in brown paper bags and labelled with the names of active volcanoes. This was name Batur, in Bali. This shows a green side, stems and seeds. A bit tart and the fruit is hidden. Lacking in complexity, this is a fairly simple wine with acidity but not the fruit to match.
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Delicious wine and a very characteristic example of the Rhys style. The last time Rhys bottled a San Mateo (which I think was actually an Alesia, from the Family Farm vineyard), the rationale for the declassification was obvious because it was clearly leaner and hollower than the Rhys norm, but that's not really the case here. The only thing that sets this apart from the cru bottlings is that it seems less structured (not much evident tannin) and more fruit than mineral, which isn't necessarily atypical at such a young stage anyway. The result is exceptionally drinkable, with an energy and vibrancy that almost feels like it has a foot in Beaujolais despite its rich concentration. So this is a great way to satisfy the fix for a Rhys without sacrificing something you planned to hold for the long term.
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13.3% ABV. This was initially tight and a bit austere so I left it open in the cellar for 24 hours and it seemed to open and soften significantly. Slightly tawny translucent garnet in the glass. Aromas of woodsy pine, tart cherry, and earth. Medium-full bodied with bright cherry and dry earth/mineral flavors on the palate. Good.
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Quite aromatic on first opening; woodsy, forest floor, and spice. On the palate this is quite intense with a smoke and spice and a somewhat tannic finish. With air this does smooth out and the fruit begins to appear with more dark than red fruit qualities. Intriguing wine which needs a few years to smooth out and integrate
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wow. for 'declassified' juice this is great stuff. vibrant, red fruits, sap, a hint of earth and spice on the nose the palate shows great acidic backbone surrounded with similar flavors of red fruit, sap, and spice. wish i bought a lot more of this.
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What a gorgeous glass of wine. The nose was slender yet beautifully focused with tart cherry and cranberry up front with a whiff of grapefruit, which was followed by a soothing note of nutmeg and contrasted by soil and florals tones. On the palate it was soft with medium weight and elegance; slowly revealing its layers as an initial burst of juicy red fruit gave way to citrus notes and inner floral tones. The finish was shorter than I anticipate, yet still completely satisfying with hints of red berries and an autumnal, earthy note that I usually associate with well aged Nebbiolo. What more could you as for?
With a two hour decant, this wine was singing. It was an immediate hit with everyone tasting it. What really stole the show was the bouquet, with it's fruit, earth and that beautiful citrus note that brought it all home. This was a real head-turner and a great introduction to RHYS for guests.
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Much better tonight than when I first tasted this at the winery last spring. Pop and pour, probably would have been better with some air as it was better an hour+ after opening. Was showing more fruit this time around. Big dose of stems that very nearly gave it a green pepper component...nearly. Great snappy acidity and lingering juicy finish. I'm going to give my other two a bit more time but worry that the fruit might fade.
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gave this several hours of air but it started out strong from pnp. Air turned the mouthfeel fine and added layers of complexity. Cherry with a bright zing of cranberry and a touch of citrus and pine on a long juicy finish. Really balanced with bright acidity and drinking very well right now. One of my favorite Rhys to date and one to drink while you wait on some of the other lineup.
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I really enjoyed the texture and complexity of this wine, which offered dark cherries, cranberries, flowers, herbs, orange zest and tree bark. Smooth and fine on the palate with mouth-watering acidity. A wine with quiet power and clarity.
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Odd experience here as the lip of the bottle cracked when I pulled out the cork. As a result, I poured it into a decanter and tasted over 24 hours. This was showing at its best after about 4 hours. The fruit had calmed down a bit and had gained a red profile (at opening it initially showed some black fruit and cola notes). The nose was predominantly cherry, red berries and mineral with a good dose of stems. The palate is well balanced showing a good amount of tannin, but the fruit is equal to it ad it also has enough acid to keep it fresh and vibrant. Nice smooth mouthfeel and full palate throughout.
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Pop and pour. Dark ruby. Nose of lavender and cedar. Very nice fruit, fairly viscous on the palate. Finish seems to fade then come back around again. Well balanced acidity. Suspect this will get better over the next 5 years.
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Tasted non blind at home over 3 hours. Nose of floral, red fruit and a hint of wet stones. On the palate, it has more floral, sour red fruit, earth and a touch of sweetness. Medium-long length finish with mostly sour red fruit and earth. I can't wait to see how this will evolve but drinking nicely now if you like having the fruit dominant.
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Vinturi'd half and saved the rest for day 2. Relatively dark, big aromatics and an abundance of fruit. I definitely see this more on the dark red fruit side than the sour cherry and cranberry one might expect from a producer many see as "Burgundian" Improved over time as fruit pulled back and minerality became more apparent.
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Opened up a bottle just cause it's so hard to lay off the new shipment. pure primary fruit at the moment.. gave it about 1 hour of decant time, probably could use 2 or 3 more... years.
Delish, but not worth the money at this point. need more time.
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My first Rhys Pinot, consumed across two days. An obvious babykilling. Very pure Pinot flavors. Mineral driven with lovely red fruit. Tight and brooding on day 1. Much more open and soaring on the second day. Obviously no real development to speak of at this stage, but this has amazing clarity and purity. I just finished the last glass, but thinking about the wine and writing this note has my mouth watering again.
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First Rhys and can't say I was disappointed given all the hype. Medium bodied, full of fruit, and very well balanced. Each glass got better. Gonna be tough not to open the rest of these.
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This was opened very young. It opened and became much more interesting over a four day period. This wine exists somewhere between a classic, or new world styled Burgundy. Much more earth and wood oriented flavors than most, even "burgundian" styled US wines. Very delicious and very promising for longer aging
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Popped and poured. This pinot started off unlike any other Rhys I’ve had with a very strong, really off-putting nose of smoke and sandalwood in the first glass. Fortunately that blew off after not too long and integrated much more on the nose and palate to provide a complementary mix of smoke, dark cherry, burnt embers, sandalwood, stems and spice notes. Overall, this can be enjoyed now but probably would benefit from a short decant. 90-91 pts.
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Solid wine. Like all Rhys I've had, this is primarily dark fruited. with some spice and oak. I really enjoyed the mineral-driven nature of this wine. The the flavors and nose did seemed muted. Expect this wine to improve with some bottle age.
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Double decanted about 4hrs. Elegant nose with a stemy green quality, cinnamon spice, cherry pit, and a touch of currants. Palate with medium concentration, fine acidity and tannins on the back end, fruit leaning towards the darker side. Earthy black cherry finish, touch of stone and spice. This is very nice, but seems a touch disjointed at the moment(just shipped this week). Not a QPR, but delivers as expected for it's price point. 90-92
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Pop and pour; drank it over the course of three hours. Intense floral aromatics, along with a spice note; very sexy and compelling, with an herbal background. On the palate it shows a more meaty side, accompanied by plush red fruit; good structure and a juicy finish. Very nice wine, though there seems to be a dissonance between the nose and palate, yet they both are lovely in their own way. In the end, this wine was a pleasure.
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nose: tight at first, but unwinds into very pretty tones of rhubarb, berries, dark red fruits and dark florals. Good balance with nice depth and shows the whole cluster influence right now.
taste: Smooth medium feel with medium acidity. Nice tannins that are there. Balanced with very nice tones of dark red fruits, berries, some strawberries and spice with a touch of herbal tones from the whole cluster.
overall: This needs a couple of years to fully come together. Still, it's a really pretty young rhys that should be very nice when it fully shows.
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Open into the decanter and drink immediately. Nice light ruby color. Great aromatics right off the bat. Cherries, flowers, slight green tinge (dill) and earth from the whole cluster. Great body and structure with perfect acid. Can drink now but will improve with continued bottle age.
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Upon opening, this initially presented some green herbalness and asparagus notes...the structure and density of the wine was significant, dominated by black fruit and rasberry...Overall, the wine was more about fruit than earth, it was more about density than elegance...Definitely new world in terms of density and extraction. Young, smooth tannin and limited astringency make the wine somewhat drinkable now. Certainly well made. Medium length. I'm always wanting these wines to be more Burgundian than they have presented themselves, but they are a lot like good Oregon Pinot....
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PnP. Great material in this one. Exotic floral, cherry, spice, nose, little stem when agitated. Flowers, red and black cherry, and what I assume is stem coming off as green bean. The green bean note is fading with an hour or two open. This needs to integrate the stems, but otherwise this is really nice stuff. Medium bodied, good balance of acid/tannin. I really think this deserves 1-2 yrs in the hole. 90+
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This wine gave a similar showing to a previously tasted bottle. This gives the impression that it will improve with a few years of additional bottle age.
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Opened and poured, this wine gave an excellent showing with aromatics of dark fruits, spice, stem and stone notes. The color is a medium to dark ruby. The medium bodied palate shows sufficient structure to balance the youthful fruit. Based on this showing, the wine will most likely benefit from an additional year or two of bottle age.
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April 2012 Rhys Visit--Taste The 2010s (Rhys Estate (At The Winery)): Listed alc 13.3%, with 66% whole cluster and 40% new wood. A blend of the various single vineyard parcels, the fruit that didn't make the single cuvee cuts. Starts out with a gamey, sauvage quality with floral dark fruit, both red and black. However, it's not for me the sweet black but instead more dark plum in tone. Also shows a soily, iron note. Not elegant or overly complex but shows a good push of solid fruit. Stems show in the aromatic, they add a pungence to the palate.
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Nose - clean, light, savory resin, forest floor, toasty, morello cherry, green peppercorn. Pert, lovely, dried savory herbs (basil, rosemary, thyme, summer savory), morello cherry and a touch of plum, touches of orange juice and zest, and a hint of mushroom.
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Tasted during pickup day. Opened by the elves ~12hrs before and recorked. Mixture of mostly Family Farm. Open, light fruity nose, with some sweet oak and perhaps a touch of eucalyptus. Light-medium in body, with noticeably less complexity, structure, and concentration of the normal Family Farm. Probably more pleasing to most than the 09 Santa Cruz in general. Will be released ~$45. Won't be as much of a value as the one-off, famed 2006 version, but there is still quality to be found here.
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Tasted at the pickup event. Nice red fruit, plush and soft, but with good background structure, some spice (cinnamon?), soft finish, already drinking very nicely.
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Tasted at the spring12 release, I believe this is from multiple vineyard declassified barrels. nose - cranberry, tea mouth - tea more so than fruit, slightly austere
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9/20/2023 - malbrecht wrote: 91 Points
Fruit forward, with notes of cherry, strawberry, and spices transitioning to some grassy notes and some minerality, with oak influence apparent on the finish. 13.3% ABV. Holding up well at 13 years old.
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8/10/2023 - JRB1 wrote: 93 Points
My recollection of this from 10 years ago that it was heavy on oak, somewhat monolithic, and toward the heavy body spectrum. While the bouquet now reminds me of the same wine, the oak has largely receded except on the finish, and this has a lively mouthfeel. Well done!
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4/10/2023 - gharter Likes this wine: 91 Points
In a really good place. PnP, no need to decant. aromas of black fruit, raspberry, pepper, herb, and earth. Still loaded with flavor. Medium bodied. Blackfruit, plum, raspberry, spice, herb, pepper, and earth flavors.. smooth , silky tannins in the long finish. Very good now, not sure it will improve, but I see no decline in the near future.
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1/12/2023 - gharter Likes this wine: 90 Points
PnP. Opens with black fruit, raspberry, pepper, herb, earth. Flavors of blackfruit, plum, raspberry, spice, herb, pepper, earth. Medium body with a smooth finish.
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9/17/2022 - hiroshisugi Likes this wine: 94 Points
Elegant nose, fresh and spicy. On the palate a very velvety, red fruit dominated character. Outstanding Pinot at its peak.
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12/30/2021 - Burgundy Al wrote: 89 Points
Lots of ripe black fruit throughout with even more spice. Good weight. Shockingly fresh, and my only nit is that I wish the whole cluster spice character softened more in the decade since release.
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10/22/2021 - davidstjean Does not like this wine:
Gross. Light, no taste, no body. Will let sit open for a while to see if it develops.
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7/25/2021 - WST Likes this wine:
As with Ceritas, I buy mostly their single vineyard wines. But like the Ceritas Costalina, every time I open the Rhys San Mateo I’m surprised how good it is. This was showing so signs age. Loamy black cherries, a little sappy but crisp.
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7/18/2021 - mclanew Likes this wine: 91 Points
Slow oxed for 20 minutes. Very attractive nose of plums, raspberries, violets and herbs. Medium bodied, with good poise, energy and acidity. At a great place right now. An excellent entry level wine.
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5/26/2021 - Cote d'Or wrote:
Tasted over 2 hrs
-nearly semi-translucent mild clearing
-fragrant stemmy spice rhubarb fruit and a whiff of maturity
-med acidity, med/med- weight gentle ripe sweet red fruit slightly smoky with a touch of spice and minerality, med- tannins
-drinking very well now with just a touch of maturity - has several more good years ahead of it
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4/5/2021 - pgb67 wrote: 93 Points
My first Rhys and now I am on the hunt for more. One of those pinots that tastes delicate on the entry palate, but then the long, mouth-coating finish really grabs your attention. Nose and flavors of ripe cherry, strawberry, Asian spices. Finessed and voluptuous.
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11/26/2020 - Scamber wrote: 93 Points
From magnum on Thanksgiving. Slow ox. Bit of bricking but still vivid ruby and slightly cloudy core. Initially tart and closed, opened and softened throughout the night and into the next day. Red fruit and medium+ acidity, not a ton of earth, layers slowly unfolded. More than 24 hours later was its best. At least from this well-stored large format, not past prime: really good now.
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11/21/2020 - KenK Likes this wine: 91 Points
While quite enjoyable and fruit forward, this is beginning to show some early signs of fading. Fruit flavors are ripe wild raspberry with underlying earthy herbal tones. Good spices add some intrigue and enough lift to keep it from getting heavy. No rush to drink up, but this seems to be just a bit on the stewed fruit side vs vibrant side. I can see why some feels this comes across with some Grenache character.
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11/15/2020 - wineshlub wrote: 91 Points
Opened one hour in advance. Aroma of tart cherry and dishwater. Rich cherry clove flavors up front, mild cola in the finish. Firm backbone, some complexity, good staying power.
Good, but pricey. This is definitely California style Pinot Noir, but a toned down version that avoids the elements (e.g. pronounced cola flavors) that tend to turn me off.
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10/13/2020 - ricardito Does not like this wine: 82 Points
Served blind and popped and poured for Tuesday night baked salmon on a bed of Basmati rice with home made Bob Gibson White BBQ sauce. Colour dark ruby with very sour rhubarb on the nose. Palate so imbalanced by a pervasive savoury element of garrigue and unripened green peppers, with an impossibly short finish.... all four of us at the table were repulsed and I immediately went for another bottle. Blind three of four of us thought grenache and one outlier went for a Oregon Pinot using a high percentage of whole cluster fermentation. All thought the wine to be about 5 or so years old. Revealed to be the Rhys San Mateo Pinot 2010 - recorked and placed in fridge, and reopened 8 days later. 8 days out and warmed to room temperature, the dark monster revealed a moderately stemmy nose, and a green pepper palate, but more civilized than on initial opening. I am not really a fan of unbridled whole cluster fermentation-particularly when the stems are no where close to being lignified and ripe-and especially when it overwhelms the entire contents of the bottle. DRC experience tells me that the cluster greenness generally dissipates at 20-25 years, but I can only imagine that the fruit of this monster may dry out by then. Not sure what the other tasters were drinking when describing this, but easily the worst Rhys we have had. Wish we had another bottle to age for another 20 years to see if Hogwarts time magic could civilize this very unpleasant beast !
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10/11/2020 - Maphill01 wrote:
No formal notes, first of two bottles won at auction. Thought it was a goner, pushed up cork, signs of past seepage. Seemed off upon opening, but wouldn’t you know, with some air, still giving pleasure. Probably a bit advanced, red fruit, earthy, spice notes, rich flavors, but not cooked.
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7/26/2020 - Backdoctor wrote: 92 Points
Medium bodied Pinot, still has good fruit on it. Love Rhys
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7/13/2020 - jreis Likes this wine:
Lovely nose of orange peel, sandalwood, rose petals and white pepper. Nice sweet cranberry/raspberry fruit on the palate with good balancing acidity. Very good wine for the price, but lacks some of the stuffing of the single vineyard wines. Not sure how much more complexity this will pick up with age, but should drink well for at least another 5 years.
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6/3/2020 - GrapeScott wrote: 89 Points
Loamy spicebox nose, with a bit of orange peel. Bing cherry fruit on the palate, with a pleasant tartness. A bit thin and one dimensional. Reminds me a lot of the Rivers-Marie Sonoma Coast, but not quite the same value.
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4/9/2020 - theharve wrote: 92 Points
very good much better than the Fam Farm. Tasting my was yhru the 2010s.
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1/13/2020 - millerarner wrote: 91 Points
Reliably tasty, and delivers a lot for the price, if not as elegant or interesting as their single vineyard offerings.
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11/29/2019 - Tubulus wrote: 90 Points
Cola, raspberry, high acid and also some sensation of sweetness.
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11/23/2019 - Burgundy Al wrote: 90 Points
Black berry and cherry aromas with so much floral and spice support. Wonderfully rich, powerful and fresh with enough tannins to keep this well balanced. My only nit would be the whole cluster nature of the spice protrudes more than it harmonizes into everything else. This is a very impressive <$50 bottle, the first of a 6-pack I purchased upon release, and I expect it will continue to evolve and drink well through at least 2025, if not longer.
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11/9/2019 - theRealPepe wrote:
Opened at a restaurant. Bit of a savory note and otherwise quite pleasant but not notable.
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11/6/2019 - andrewdodd86 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Drastically different then the sea smoke. All dusty cherry, touch of earth and forest floor, leaves. Browning from age. Higher acid.
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10/27/2019 - rustyRudy Likes this wine: 92 Points
Really nice glass of Pinot. Cherry spice, stone fruits, some minerals, moderate acidity, with strawberries on the finish.
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10/6/2019 - azb Likes this wine: 93 Points
Continues to be excellent, but this bottle was a bit cloudy. Should probably drink this year or next.
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9/16/2019 - Erik R. wrote:
I don't know if it's just me or just this bottle, but it presented overly weedy and stemmy.
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9/13/2019 - yaCellar Likes this wine: 92 Points
Wasn’t sure what to expect from this 9 year old. Cork has that aged, permeated stain. Pours crimson. Nose is a tight integration of red fruits, white flowers, and white pepper. Palette shows racy yet controlled acid and a follow through of the nose. Very nice showing and vibrant.
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9/4/2019 - BHP1994 wrote: 93 Points
Going back to my first Rhys purchase here. REALLY glad I have a few more bottles! Just delicious. Great acids with a strikingly fresh nose of raspberries, strawberries, and blood orange. Super long finish. Ageing very well. No rush, but drinking beautifully right now.
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8/7/2019 - xwine wrote:
Initially tight and unyielding, but it unfurled fairly quickly to show lovely balance and drive, lush texture, and plenty of dark red fruit. Very nice.
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5/31/2019 - gzim Likes this wine: 88 Points
Consistent with my last bottle 2 years ago. Does not seemed to have aged. Cali Pinot, with some cake spice, very nice fruit and some Foresty Pine which brings a nice balance. Something keeps this together in a very nice balanced way. Lots of extract, super fine tannin, touch of oak.
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3/4/2019 - mclanew Likes this wine: 94 Points
15 minute decant. This has fantastic aromatics with red fruit and roses coming through. The palate is simply delicious with a wonderful inner core of fruit sporting flavors of strawberry, raspberry, earth. Amazingly for an entry level wine after eight years this is still quite youthful and can continue to age gracefully for another five years but it’s so good now its hard to resist.
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11/23/2018 - beau11 wrote: 94 Points
Tannin fully resolved. Beautiful nose. Silky smooth. Drank over 4 hours.
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10/12/2018 - llink wrote: 92 Points
Really complex nose showing tart cranberry, spice and a touch of sandalwood that is probably derived from the whole cluster fermentation. Tart palate, rich but with a saline infused character that adds interest and complexity. A little drying on the finish.
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9/16/2018 - azb Likes this wine: 95 Points
Still great, a little bit cloudy, but this was a bottle that I took to a dinner so it was jostled.
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8/11/2018 - glou.sf Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dark berries, cherries, earth, and a hint of leather on the nose. Nice acidity with red berries, cranberries, and some cedar flavors on the palate. Nice finish. This is in a beautiful spot right now! Wife: 93
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6/22/2018 - KeithAkers wrote: 91 Points
Nose: The nose takes a little bit to unwind, but as it comes into balance there is a tartness to the tones of pomegranate, raspberries, rhubarb, dark red cherries, violets, and baking spices.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium+ acidity and medium tannins. The tannins are silky and integrated with the acidity showing a refreshing side. The feel is balanced with pomegranate, raspberries, dark red cherries, baking spices, and violets.
Overall: This took about an hour of air to turn on. It becomes quite expressive with air as it is backed up with tart red fruits and some floral tones. This is drinking beautifully right now and will easily go for another 5+ years.
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5/3/2018 - bravo.solares Likes this wine: 92 Points
Excellent. A somewhat big Pinot, unabashedly new world, but surprisingly balanced. Very harmonious. Dark and red fruit, forest floor, some spiciness, touch of orange zest, good enough acidity, and a most pleasant (and often absent in CA PN) minerality and earthiness. Some incipient signs of development and tertiary notes. Drinking at or close to peak.
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4/22/2018 - phishkidslovewine2 Likes this wine:
Guido nailed the descriptor. Well said. The tomato quality gives such a positive contrast to the intense fruit. This is an incredible over achiever in a sense. Still had some tannin to share.
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3/25/2018 - tbone wrote:
I agree with Guido - this stuff is amazing balls! Earth, pomegranate, seamless mountain fruit and plenty of acidity - really nice now. Only complaint is it is still a little fruity.
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3/25/2018 - Eric Guido Likes this wine: 93 Points
I am once again amazed by the high-level performance of the San Mateo Pinot. The nose was beautiful, with sweet cola at first sniff, which was quickly followed by crushed strawberries (stems and all) with marine-influenced minerals, mint leaf and a hint of tomatoes on the vine. On the palate, I found juicy, soft textures with spice-laced fresh cherry, which washed across the senses, along with hints of orange and exotic inner florals. It finished long and fresh as the orange turned to hints of grapefruit and the cherry became more like cranberry, yet throughout the entire experience it was lifted, ripe without being sweet, and wonderfully fresh, as it's core of vibrant acidity kept the mouth watering. I wish I had bought cases of the wine.
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3/24/2018 - Acohen Likes this wine: 90 Points
Nice earthy cherry with good balance
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11/24/2017 - Tree512 wrote: 90 Points
Tastes exactly like a mini Rhys. Just the right amount of herbaciousness with medium body and length, with forest floor and red fruit. Very nice and ready to go while waiting for the bigger cuvees.
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11/23/2017 - lolo66 wrote:
concentrated and needing air at first. Then explosive and fruit forward, but with oxidative elements. Some green. Big wine. Still young.
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11/10/2017 - xwine wrote:
As I recall, this was more on the savory side, but with some lively fruit backing it up. Drinking very well, though still a slight bit tannic.
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10/8/2017 - sfwineguy Likes this wine: 93 Points
Terrific wine, just reached its peak and should remain here for a few years. Very balanced, great with grilled salmon. What you want a California Pinot Noir to be.
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9/30/2017 - Rieslingfan wrote:
Three years ago I thought this wine had the stuffing to go a long time. After opening another bottle, I might revise that to "several more years", but I won't be able to keep my hands off the last two bottles. So often when I open a vineyard-designated Rhys wine I am confronted with a wall that won't let me through. The wines need a ton of time. With this bottling there is already great drinkability, as well as complexity. Deep red fruit, spice, mineral, earth and even a bit of surprising but pleasing tobacco leaf all show on the aromatics. The palate is moving on towards silky, held together by its acidity. This is a lot of fun to drink.
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9/11/2017 - dlstrauss wrote: 93 Points
Very nice
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8/30/2017 - d_chism wrote:
very enjoyable. The tartness is more noticable now that the fruit flavors have further softened. Light, strawberry, rhubarb, and tart cherry with a lovely cola finish that lingers.
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7/29/2017 - bravo.solares Likes this wine: 93 Points
Very, very good. A somewhat big Pinot, unabashedly new world, but surprisingly balanced. Very harmonious. Dark and red fruit, forest floor, some spiciness, good acid, and a most pleasant (and often absent in CA PN) minerality and earthiness. Some incipient signs of development, but still very young. Will cellar my other bottle for at least 2-3 more yrs. My guess is that some interesting tertiary notes will emerge. My first Rhys. Definitely will explore more of their wines.
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6/11/2017 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 94 Points
Dark for a pinot noir, mostly opaque. Characteristic varietal aromas, mix of red and black fruits, slightly sweet and acetic. Rich, concentrated flavors, medium to full-bodied, but very round, with excellent fruit. Tastes a bit hot on the long aftertaste. An excellent pinot. Perfectly mature and ready to go.
Ric
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5/24/2017 - gzim Likes this wine: 90 Points
Ripe red berries, touch of cinamin, oak in a nice cali kinda way.
very easy to drink, nice cake spice finish.
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5/13/2017 - JBVino wrote:
This bottle was rockin last night. Perfect old world Pinot weight, good length, secondary flavors provided great complexity on the palate.
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5/6/2017 - Erik R. wrote: 92 Points
cherry and garden herbs, then sappy stems with fruity, spicy base. long + finish.
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4/13/2017 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Bright red cherry, earthy spice and mineral notes on the nose and smooth palate with refreshing acidity on the moderate finish. Continues to drink beautifully!
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4/1/2017 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 90 Points
Dark but not opaque. Good varietal characteristics in the aromas and flavors. Quite ready. Enjoyable but not outstanding.
Ric
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2/20/2017 - sawira wrote: 91 Points
Bottle #1 of 6. Very high toned bright red fruits, tons of acidity, very long finish. Bright and detailed. I played with it for a few hours, and it seemed to drink optimally after double decanting, letting it sit corked in bottle at cellar temp for two hours, then warm for another hour. It was stupendous then, right about 65 degrees, but started to fade quickly and got sluggish as it sat open longer. So I think this will have a relatively short peak run. Maybe now to 9 years from now. Quite tasty in a bright red fruited way, and best with food given the acidity, could be a bit shrill for some otherwise.
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2/12/2017 - RGCM Gananda Likes this wine: 93 Points
Last bottle was a bit over a year and a half ago and my current notes are very consistent. Red cherry, red berry, minerals and vanilla on the nose. Medium bodied (13.3% ABV), opened at cellar temperature (55F) and drank over the course of five hours. Accessible nearly from opening, but improved noticeably with the additional time. Red cherry and wildberry upfront, with raspberry behind and tart red cherry and berry towards the finish. Excellent mix of minerals, integrated spices and acidity make for a lengthy finish. The story of this wine is threefold: (1) excellent, rounded red fruit core with good complexity, (2) acidity based structure providing depth and length and (3) overall balance between the elements. Drinking beautifully now and a ridiculously good bargain for a Rhys pinot. This may continue to improve slightly going forward and certainly has several years left to it at this level based on how it has shown over the past two years.
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1/20/2017 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
As delicious as previous bottles!
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1/14/2017 - ews3 wrote: 91 Points
medium ruby color. developing, medium intensity nose shows strawberry, red cherry, violets, soy sauce, mushrooms, and minerality. dry, med body, med(+) acidity, med alcohol, med intensity palate shows similar flavor profile to nose. medium finish. Drinking well, this is starting to develop some tertiary notes, but should still hold for some time.
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12/19/2016 - dougie Likes this wine: 91 Points
Nice. Improved over 4 hours. wait at least two years for next one.
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12/10/2016 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Bright red cherry, earthy spice and mineral notes on the nose and smooth palate with refreshing acidity on the moderate finish. Quite tasty!
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11/24/2016 - jrkennedy37 wrote:
Always loved this wine and showing even better from magnum. Slight stemless showing at first but faded with 45 min or so. As well as this is drinking today, from Magnum, this needs at least another decade to show its ultimate expression.
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11/19/2016 - tim_c wrote: 88 Points
Still very youthful, plenty of fruit.
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10/12/2016 - mdaniel wrote: 92 Points
Pop & pour: red berries on the nose. Color is a clear garnet showing some maturity. On the palate, red berries with loads of baking spices, and toast oak. Quite complex for a blend and not a SVD.
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9/10/2016 - jasonh wrote: 91 Points
Early on the fruit was bouncing out of the glass. Ripe red and blue fruit on the nose. In time the aromatics became more subtle with more emphases on darker tones. The palate has ripe fruits. Cranberries and cherries. Pretyy high on concentration. Medium/high acid. Tasty and a bit simple. I think I would drink now to 2018. The gambler should let this sleep for another 5-7 years.
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8/17/2016 - Backdoctor wrote: 94 Points
12 hour slow ox, big bold Pinot. As dark and opaque as most cabs. Dark red fruits on palate, great nose.. Drinking well now, still can cellar longer.
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8/1/2016 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 96 Points
Medium garnet, almost opaque. Very pronounced raspberry-strawberry aromas, complex, with some toasty oak, very Burgundian. Excellent viscosity. Medium-full body, sweet red berry flavors, excellent balance, slightly hot finish, just a hint of bitterness on the back of the palate. Fully mature, it's wonderful now but should stay at its peak several more years.
Ric
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7/28/2016 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
As delicious as previous bottles!
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7/6/2016 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
As delicious as the last bottle.
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7/2/2016 - rosenst1 wrote: 91 Points
PnP. Medium dark red. Lovely nose of black fruits, mineral, and spice. Quite smooth on the palate and finish. This bottle is completely different from the one of 6 months ago and tastes quite ready to drink. Much more enjoyable in this incarnation.
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6/14/2016 - grafstrb wrote:
-- opened approx. 4 hours before initial taste --
-- tasted non-blind over 1 – 2 hours --
NOSE: expressive; tart red berries; savory (stems).
BODY: medium-light bodied; slightly hazy – lots of superfine particulate matter present; blood red color of medium depth.
TASTE: high acidity; tart; red-fruited; savory; light hints of leather and dried herbs; open, and drinking well now; very good.
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6/3/2016 - cookie7 wrote:
More fruit forward than most Rhys.
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5/28/2016 - rmalloy Likes this wine:
Lean, cold-climate pinot noir. Minimalist. Bright red fruit, hints of meat. Soft tannic finish. Very elegant, but not very expressive. In a dumb phase?
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5/15/2016 - BillyRayValentine wrote: 90 Points
Agree with the excellent recent notes. Better with an hour of air. Can go a bit longer but no reason to hold. Nice Pinot.
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5/8/2016 - Cote d'Or wrote:
PopnPour, tasted over 3 hrs
-solid med dark red with minimal clearing at rim
-aromatic spicy ripe red fruits rhubarb beetroot and touch of stony minerality
-med acidity, concentrated sweet sappy red-black fruits beetroot spice on middle weight frame, med- tannins and noticeable though not intrusive oak spice on respectably long finish
-reminiscent of a Vosne Romanee, excellent complexity, drinking well now though would anticipate another few years of improvement to more fully integrate the wood and pick up more mature elements
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5/7/2016 - pjhr Likes this wine: 92 Points
Bright red cherry, earthy spice and mineral notes on the open nose and smooth palate with refreshing acidity on the moderate finish. Quite tasty!
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3/27/2016 - JOJ wrote: 93 Points
Bright, high-toned aromas of cherry, orange zest, and citrus over clove, baking spice, and underbrush. More pure, bright cherry on the palate, cut with a mineral spine. Mouth-tingling acidity and more baking spice on the finish. Great.
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3/19/2016 - lolo66 wrote:
crunchy, crunchy berries. Super high toned. I am guessing this is from the 80% whole clusters. A bit much for me in style. This reminds me of Cameron Clos Electrique. I have no idea if they do whole cluster, but so similar. The taste lingers on and this is an intense wine. Certainly high quality and well made, just not loving it, but liking it enough to keep drinking for the intrigue. Food would help me with this, but I am sipping without, so there you have it.
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3/5/2016 - grafstrb wrote:
-- popped and poured --
-- tasted a couple glasses non-blind over 1 to 1.5 hours --
Red fruited. Good acidity. Medium-light bodied. Not sweet. Touch of earthiness. Drinking well now. Probably best to drink now and over the next few years. Paired surprisingly well with grilled ribeye.
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3/5/2016 - d_chism wrote: 94 Points
Loved it. Smooth strawberry and rhubarb. Less acidic than the 2010 Bear swallow.
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2/20/2016 - angryphoton wrote: 91 Points
Drinking really well now, medium weight, bright strawberry and a hint of cola. Some rhubarb and cherry notes as well, stems are only slightly present but gives character.
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2/10/2016 - JOJ wrote: 94 Points
Surprisingly excellent for a "village" level appellation wine. On the nose, fresh scents of cherry, lavender and underbrush mingle with a core of baking spice. The palate has black cherry, raspberry, cinnamon and pie crust, with loads of spice and a long finish. Superb.
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1/8/2016 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Pulling together but not an exceptional Pinot. Has a great acidic streak mixed with dark fruits with the oak/stems more integrated into a terrific spice profile. Lengthy finish. Quite concentrated and polished. Drink or hold.
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12/31/2015 - MikeATL Likes this wine: 92 Points
It starts a little tight, but then fleshes out with the spicy red fruit and tangy stems that I associate with this bottling, with plenty of structure to hold things together.
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12/17/2015 - mye wrote: 86 Points
It's linear.. it's easy drinking wine.
lacks complexity and probably not worth the price..
nothing wrong with it.. totally fine as a weekday drinker
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11/13/2015 - rosenst1 wrote: 90 Points
PnP. Medium red. Somewhat restrained nose of red fruits, spice, and some funk. On the palate, lovely medium weight, nice flavors, but still a bit tight on the finish. Surprisingly restrained at age 5+. I don't think we have any idea what the aging curve on the Rhys Pinots will be.
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11/8/2015 - amateurwino wrote:
Lovely expressive perfumed nose with orange blossom notes. Tart, juicy, with generous fruit - very representative of the Rhys style and another confirmation for me that this is one of the best Rhys appellation level bottlings so far. Hitting on all cylinders.
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9/26/2015 - Acohen Likes this wine: 90 Points
Nice balance with earthiness, cherry and light spice
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9/26/2015 - kthornton78 wrote:
expressive, energetically red-fruited with focusing acidity. sadly, my last bottle.
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8/15/2015 - Tom Warden Likes this wine: 93 Points
Depth with balance...
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8/7/2015 - winopops3 wrote: 91 Points
Dark ruby,fantastic black cherry fruit, spice and hint of mineral. Long finish. Many years to go for this one, but drinking well now.
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6/30/2015 - dbkitc wrote: 88 Points
This opened up a fizzy, acidic mess. I double splash decanted and let it sit. Good idea for those opening now. Light colored and red fruited. Definitely tastes Burgundian. Maybe a good, village level Savigny. Lacks some layers but there is good flavor. Will improve over the mid term. (88)
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6/28/2015 - RGCM Gananda Likes this wine: 93 Points
My first bottle from Rhys and my high expectations were exceeded. Very pretty nose of red fruit, earth and light spices. Medium bodied and exceptionally well balanced. There's a lot of fruit here, but there's also plenty of background structure and acidity which keeps this solidly OUT of the fruit-forward camp and places it in the elegant and balanced camp. Red cherry and wildberry upfront with just a touch of sour cherry behind along with raspberry and plum towards the finish. Good mineral qualities and acidity on the finish. This wine is just starting to come into its own and I expect further complexity and refinement in the future.
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6/21/2015 - MRichman wrote:
Pretty with candied fruit, bright, friendly and easy drinking. Not a lot of complexity.
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5/27/2015 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 96 Points
Dark ruby, almost completely opaque. Burgundian style, with sweet strawberry-raspberry aromas mixed with subtle oak, already complex. Very viscous. Rich, concentrated berry flavors, concentrated, slightly hot from high alcohol, but very smooth and balanced. Long, somewhat hot but flavorful aftertaste. I would put this against a high-quality Burgundy!
Ric
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5/5/2015 - marka wrote: 87 Points
Had some funky fizz on it that blew off by day 2. Day 2 brought a sub-par PN for what Rhys usually delivers with the SMC. Not at all elegant and light as usual.
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4/21/2015 - rosenst1 wrote: 90 Points
PnP. Medium dark red. Complex nose of wood, forest floor, spice, and black fruits. Medium full on the palate with a long finish dominated by the whole cluster fermentation. This is still young and an interesting blend containing Anderson Valley as well as Santa Cruz mountain fruit. Still needs time.
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3/28/2015 - tbone wrote:
Very sweet on pop & pour. Pretty one dimensional before food, improved slightly with mushroom pizza but still a little too sweet for me. Very clean and well made but really no soul in this wine. Not sure what time will do.
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3/24/2015 - blaine Likes this wine: 92 Points
This was the wine of the weekend. Last of my three bottles, ashamed I didn't keep longer. Beautiful color, explosive nose. Pop and pour. The stems on the palate I wrote about in my first three tastings of this wine were here, but now in a beautifully integrated and slightly rounder fashion. Balanced fruit on the palate, balanced acidity. Light on its feet and very satisfying at the same time. Lingering finish. This has come together at a very high level.
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3/21/2015 - KeithAkers wrote: 91 Points
Nose: The nose is very attractive and perfumed with rhubarb, tart red cherries, baking spices, violets, and creamed strawberries. There is a tartness to the tones along with a warmth at the same time.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium acidity and silky tannins. The acidity has some real zip to it with tart red cherries, raspberries, rhubarb, and violets. The feel is polished yet youthful at the same time.
Overall: This is a fun and youthful Rhys. It certainly feels like it can get better and is worth holding back for another 2-3 years.
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3/2/2015 - wineismylife wrote: 93 Points
WIML93
Tasted blind as part of Blind Pinot Tasting.
Garnet to dark garnet color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of thistle, black pepper and cherries. Flavors of raspberries, berries and cherries. Medium acidity, medium tannin, medium to full bodied. Drink or hold.
My guess was this is a California Pinot Noir. No idea as to vintage or producer.
This wine came in 12th place out of 14 wines with 10 tasters participating giving an average score of 89.20.
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2/14/2015 - floydtp wrote: 88 Points
Tasted blind in a lineup of 14 double blind pinots. Slow-oxed 3-4 hours prior to the tasting. Wasn't able to take detailed notes on this as I was overwhelmed by green peppers on the nose and palate. The bottle had around 4 oz in it overnight and tasted again the next day with some of the green pepper replaced by spices but still showing mostly green peppers. Very different from the other bottles I have had. #12 wine for the group.
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1/26/2015 - James Kim wrote: 91 Points
Decanted for 3h. A-Just ripe blackberry/black cherries, blueberry, earth, bark and a bit of sous bois. P- seamless integration fruits with some earth and bark. Elegant with good weight - a bit more than I expected. Very enjoyable.
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1/25/2015 - bjschmitt Likes this wine: 92 Points
With Pasticcio and salad.
Medium ruby.
Lovely nose - raspberry/cherry with a touch of earthiness, maybe a touch of spice.
Mid-weight, earthy but still good fruit (not sure if there is such a thing as "earthy fruit"), maybe a touch of mushroom. Very good balance, and good length. This has developed nicely since we last tasted a year ago.
An excellent wine.
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1/10/2015 - BklynNeophyte wrote: 92 Points
A pretty, balanced wine. Wonderful red fruit. No funk, no cola, just rich and delicious. I'm certainly understanding the love affair with these wines.
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12/26/2014 - amateurwino wrote:
Didn't get to take detailed notes but this wine is open and showing well - exuberant fruit and spice balanced with a good level of acid. Doesn't show the earthy distinction of some of the top Rhys SVDs but a terrific, pleasing wine in its own right.
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12/11/2014 - beau11 wrote: 92 Points
Pnp. Went extremely well with salmon. Very balanced bright fruits. On the lighter side for california pinots and more feminine. Stems present but more balanced than last year. Great food wine
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11/27/2014 - Scamber Likes this wine: 91 Points
Upon opening, very smooth, elegant and hot. Lots of cherry that became more bitter. It was great after 2-3 hours of decanting. By sixth hour open, it was quite acidic and some stemmy flavors coming through. This was a magnum, and I think it needs a couple more years in the bottle to mellow out.
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11/23/2014 - Bakerbd Likes this wine: 92 Points
Ripe bing cherries, baking spice, pinot funk, sous bois. There's no mistaking this for burgundy, but it's still quite controlled for CA pinot noir. Great now, will likely also improve with age
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11/22/2014 - EhrlichDY Likes this wine: 92 Points
Signature california pinot cola nut scent on the nose. Stem inclusion is very evident on the palate as there is a stemmy goodness that balances out the fruit. As Keith noted, there is a vibrancy and gulpability to this wine that is unquestionable. Delicious stuff. Drink now.
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11/16/2014 - Lessthanzero wrote: 90 Points
A bit green. Nice stemmy cranberry acid. Good food wine. Solid.
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11/14/2014 - Zonk wrote:
Drank at Maialino. No notes other than it was very enjoyable and could have probably used an hour in the decanter before drinking.
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11/10/2014 - kenhoeve Likes this wine: 92 Points
This needed a day open. Bit too stemmy first day. Day two is wonderful. It is smokey with some pinot funk and classic rhys stalkiness that has subdued considerably. This contrasts with the very refreshing fruit of cranberry and perfectly ripe light red cherry. Lacks any notable texture but has an ideal middleweight body. Not terribly complex, but so well balanced and composed to create pinot tone and refreshing acidity that marries smoothness on the palate. Excellent.
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11/1/2014 - d_chism wrote: 93 Points
Strawberry, rhubarb, and cola. Very enjoyable
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11/1/2014 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Little movement from last year, Very nice pinot, Stem inclusion still needs to integrate.
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10/28/2014 - Seth Rosenberg wrote: 91 Points
PnP. Stems, stems and more stems. Plus some green pepper. With time, this starts to open some. Nose of green stems and green pepper, rhubarb, strawberry, stones. Palate is similar, light-medium bodied with decent acid. Quite clear and some supple aspects. Stems, green, rhubarb, strawberry, stones, herbs. The green stems and rhubarb carry through to the clear finish. Nose - 4.5/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 15.5/20.
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10/27/2014 - Backdoctor wrote: 92 Points
A great PN, hard to keep hands off these and let them age some
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10/7/2014 - domco wrote:
Even better than the previous bottle (a yr+ ago), and my guess is that it continues to improve. Too bad this was our last bottle and we won't be able to watch it evolve.
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9/28/2014 - Cote d'Or wrote:
Slow-ox 1 hr, tasted over 3 hrs
-bright dark red with some purple, not quite opaque
-moderately aromatic, cherry, cola, rhubarb/cranberry
-med acidity, med+ concentration with med weight, mid-palate of moderate complexity with liqueur-like raspberry, black cherry, a touch of earth, slightly medicinal, med- tannins
-very good, drinking well now but early in drinking window
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8/24/2014 - xwine wrote:
Very nice savory and spice nose, just a hint of coffee, stems. A juicy palate leaning to dark fruit, but with a hint of red; stems are evident but not obtrusive. Doesn't seem to have the structure or the depth of the SVDs, but still a very, very nice pinot, and still could use a couple years to develop.
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8/16/2014 - DRS-Inc wrote: 92 Points
Had a glass on PnP at first, and on the nose picked up raspberry, rhubarb, forest floor and white pepper. On the palate, notes of tart raspberry and cranberry, loads of mineral, and a little spicy kick on the back end.
Then decanted, some thru the Vinturi, over 4 hours and consumed over 6+ hours in total. Althought still young, the extra time aerating and decanting allowed this to open up nicely. A bouquet of cherry, red berry fruit, stem spice, rhubarb, faint herbal tones and shades of chocolate-dipped raspberry underneath. On the palate, picked up notes of tart red berries, cherry, orange rind, abundant minerality and a trace of tea. Delicate on approach with very fine soft, tannins matched by good mix of acidity in a medium-bodied texture and a clean medium finish.
Think this will continue to improve over time, but is approachable with some good air time. Terrific effort and very much enjoyed. Can only hope and get excited trying the single VY designates when they're ready to pop. (92+)
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7/13/2014 - tooch wrote: 90 Points
World Cup Final (Domaine Wine Storage - Chicago, IL): Young and powerful, there's a lot of potential here. Dark fruits, some spice, and floral notes layered together nicely. This will probably need some time to open up some, but all signs are pointing towards a beautiful bottle of wine.
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7/13/2014 - KeithAkers wrote: 91 Points
Getting Wine Geeky for the World Cup Final (Domaine Wine Storage, Chicago IL): Nose: The nose is very perfumed with red cherries, floral notes, rhubarb, spice notes, and some hints of pepper that creep in with some air. There is good warmth and balance to the tones with excellent depth too.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium acidity and silky tannins. There is a real round quality to the tones of red cherries, floral notes, rhubarb, and some spice tones.
Overall: It's really hard to keep my hands off of this right now. It's very attractive with a really nice red fruit core. While it's delicious now, I'd really like to see where this goes when the whole cluster influence completely comes together.
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7/11/2014 - Charlie Carnes wrote:
This had some grape juice perceptions, but was otherwise decent and unremarkable. Bottle was finished.
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7/9/2014 - Matt T Likes this wine: 90 Points
Consistent with prior bottles. Has some of the Rhys sap. Light ruby color. Very fruit forward and unmistakably California pinot.
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7/8/2014 - missionpk Likes this wine: 92 Points
Amazing nose on opening. I'd almost say worth serving as a pop-n-pour as that initial nose is just so so good. The taste isn't bad either, with good acidity, reasonable oak, and good structure/tannins. Over time, I actually thought it got a bit awkward, as if the frame couldn't quite handle all of the young fruit/oak. I think this is great to serve now, as that nose is just incredible. I'm also guessing this could be quite interesting in a few years once that fruit/oak calms down a bit.
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6/29/2014 - Rieslingfan Likes this wine: 91 Points
Structured, spicy and long on dark red fruit. This is very delicious right now, but has all the stuffing and structure to go on for a long, long time. Very impressive.
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6/6/2014 - BHP1994 wrote: 91 Points
1 hour decant. Bright almost explosive nose of cranberry, cherry, and spices. Juicy with mouth watering acidity but balanced well by the fruit. Big without being obnoxious but still young. Great tonight with the Copper River Salmon and grilled asparagus.
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4/20/2014 - blaine wrote:
Consistent with last notes, drinking much better an hour+ in. Still quite a bit of firmness and structure. Lots of stemminess on the palate. I'm hopeful that the fruit will last until the rest softens and completely comes together. A very nice and very complex drink. Super value on what I recall to be a very reasonably priced bottle of wine from the winery. Too bad for those who find it available for $100 on the shelves of retailers today. Would I be as fired up if I'd spent $100 for this bottle of wine? Hmmmmmmm......
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4/13/2014 - Nanda wrote: 92 Points
Consistent with my prior notes - drinking splendidly.
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4/12/2014 - KeithAkers wrote: 91 Points
Nose: Well balanced with rhubarb, baking spices, dark red fruits, raspberries, strawberries, and a touch of purple florals. There is excellent depth and balance to this right now and the nose is coming together very well.
Taste: Medium bodied with medium acidity and silky tannins. There is a fatness and round quality to the feel with raspberries, strawberries, baking spices, purple florals, and some hints of earth tones.
Overall: This is really rounding into form. While a few more years of development, one wouldn't be faulted for opening a bottle right now.
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4/8/2014 - WST wrote: 90 Points
I loved the mushroomy, earthy, loamy complexity of this wine. My wife was put off by the green notes and sappy fruit; she prefers a less dense wine, and is very sensitive to any vegetal tastes or aromas. I'm hoping time will bring this to a point where we both enjoy it. She liked it better on day 3, but still not her fave.
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3/23/2014 - Nanda wrote: 92 Points
Gorgeous, lifted aromas of strawberry, raspberry, herbs and spice. Palate has medium body and is awash with balancing acidity and juiciness. Good precision, focus and balance. Punches well above its weight.
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2/28/2014 - dgriffin3480 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Decanted for 2 hours. Fantastic sweet nose of ripe red strawberries, cherry pie and red plums, with light baking spices. Airy light body and dark ruby color, with intense, tangy red fruit. Just a pleasure; great now with room to improve.
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2/11/2014 - GrapeScott wrote: 91 Points
A complex nose showing a lot of earthy/loamy qualities mixed with black raspberry, sous bois and cranberry. Passing twice through a Vinturi rendered this remotely approachable on day 1, but still showed a lot of whole cluster/stemminess. Became more harmonious by day 2 and three, with a pleasing mixture of red and black fruits, earth and lively acidity. Different than just about any other pinot coming out of California, in a good way, and a good introduction to the Rhys style.
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2/9/2014 - Matt T Likes this wine: 90 Points
Very bright and sappy upon opening with a bit of tartness and earth. Much improved on the second day with soil notes coming a bit more to the forefront. High quality and good value. Decant or hold.
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2/9/2014 - Lessthanzero wrote: 89 Points
Cranberry rhubarb and some vanilla and spice on the nose - quite inside the Rhy's profile. A little green and stemmy, that lends me to believe it needs more than the 1 hour decant I gave it, or also just more time in the cellar. Nice acidic tartness on the palate. Good food wine.
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2/1/2014 - Uglypinga Likes this wine:
It smells like stems and seeds. Even on day two. The palate, however, is pleasant and very drinkable. Stemmy notes are there but there is nice ripe fruit with fair tartness. The issue is that there is not much beyond that. Pleasant but simple.
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1/25/2014 - bjschmitt wrote: 89 Points
With veal chops and whipped parsnips.
Light crimson, clear, a pretty wine.
Somewhat muted nose, a touch of cherry and earth.
Medium body, dark red fruit and a touch of spiciness.
Good length, very smooth, went nicely with the meal.
Certainly a very good wine, not quite outstanding.
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1/7/2014 - coremill wrote: 88 Points
Much better with air. At first the fruit is a bit sweet and rhubarby and the stems are very prominent and green. With air everything settles down, with the acid tightening up and the stems fading slightly. Good concentration and nicely expansive in the midpalate with good acidity, but not especially complex. This is very Rhys-y in style with and a decent version of a CA village wine. There's enough tannin to hold it together but there's not a lot of structure here.
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12/13/2013 - mhauser Likes this wine:
Dark red, clear. Smoky aromas, with leather, raspberry and black pepper. Moderate tannins with medium acidity. Sour cherry, oak, plum, BBQ meat on the palate. This is good, but it's a bit underwhelming. It just doesn't totally come together.
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12/12/2013 - cartime Likes this wine: 91 Points
Ripe black cherry, lavender, stemmy spices, mint, vanilla. Rich palate with nice acidity. Approachable now.
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12/3/2013 - amateurwino wrote: 93 Points
Dee-freaking-licious. Right now this wine is surprisingly open. On the nose, red berry fruits dominate, with a touch of cola, and the whole cluster adds a floral orange blossom note to a perfumey nose. On the palate, this is smooth and silky, light and not dense, and a deft amount of oak lends a creamy edge to a wine that is mouth-wateringly tart, with the sum total being a delicious wine. While early in its window, this bottling is approachable and showing both nice sap to the fruit, and a touch of baking spice. This is a great representation of the Rhys style, in an appellation wine package, and tonight's showing is even better than some Rhys SVDs have shown in the past. Even though this is the San Mateo bottling, this reminds me of some very good Anderson Valley wines - Copain Voisins or some of the SVDs, or Anthill Farms, with some signature Rhys characteristics. Quite a bit better than the 09 Santa Cruz Mountains bottle I opened recently. If the appellation wines were always this good, I could live without ordering the SVDs at all.
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11/28/2013 - ChrisR Does not like this wine: 75 Points
Yikes, this wine had a green streak a mile wide. I like some green and earth in my pinots (I've really like the Alesia's I've had), but this was nearly undrinkable. Not just for me, but for everyone else at the table. It got dumped.
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11/24/2013 - ssimpsonjr wrote:
Initial pour showed nice cherry and raspberry with some steminess. Next pour showed much tarter red fruits. Finally after about 90 minutes it seemed to settle down, but definitely think this needs more time to integrate.
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10/30/2013 - RobertDwyer wrote: 85 Points
Although I really like the Alesia Pinots, I've had a hard time with almost every Rhys Pinot I've tried. And this one sums it up why. Powerful, but the core flavor profile is just too herbal and stemmy for my taste. Hard to enjoy.
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10/26/2013 - Federsin Likes this wine:
Quite nice, darker in the glass, medium bodied with rich fruit, perhaps a touch of heat on the finish, needs a few more years
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10/14/2013 - MotoMannequin Likes this wine:
Loads of intense cherry and raspberry, forest just after rain on the nose. Stems are really showing but with plenty of fruit to back it up. Long finish. Lots of interesting flavors here but as a package it's not well integrated yet. I'd recommend letting bottles lie a couple years.
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9/28/2013 - rhit Likes this wine:
Consistent with my previous bottle. Rich and concentrated fruit, with some saline and herbal tones. A touch of heat on the tail end. So while it was delicious, this didn't have the balance of other Rhys bottlings.
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9/1/2013 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 93 Points
Pinot Weekend - Second Willamette Valley Trip; 8/30/2013-9/2/2013 (Dundee, OR): Almost has some mint on the nose (which I assume is the whole cluster), spicy herbs, black fruits. Palate is rather smooth, with the stem inclusion standing out from the fruit. I was surprised how dark the fruit profile was compared to the Oregon Pinots (which I also thought had a blue-ish tone to the fruit) Lengthy finish. This is really going to be a nice pinot if I can stop drinking them. Best sip was the last, after about 4hrs air. 93+ Best bottle yet
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8/31/2013 - thomaskeil wrote: 92 Points
PnP. Garnet with slight violet/brown tinge. Red (cranberry-led) fruit with floral, spice and earth on nose. Almost precise fruit on palate with very good penetration, some tension and mineral. A little 'hollow' on midpalate, so lacks a bit of textural complexity. But this wine gives real pleasure on several levels. Nice with food ('Spanish' beans with morcilla, butafarra).
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8/29/2013 - 5laton wrote:
Moderately rich blue fruit and exotic Indian spice, and some reductive notes. Very dry. Relatively finely-textured, with only very subtle astringency. Very tasty, if not quite ready due to a somewhat raw, astringent character. Alluring whole cluster aromatics, really delightful. I'll try to wait a couple of years before opening another bottle, hoping for additional tannin integration.
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8/22/2013 - Keith Levenberg Likes this wine:
Another chugalicious bottle.
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8/12/2013 - Loren Sonkin wrote: 91 Points
Pulled this by mistake. I guess I need to leave some reading glasses in the cellar. Ruby/purple in color. Lots of dark cherries on the nose. More masculine that I was expecting. The palate matched the nose. Not a lot of complexity at this point, but very tasty and easy to drink.
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6/30/2013 - domco wrote: 90 Points
A nice bottle, but enjoyed a little less than our previous bottles from Rhys. More dark fruits vs red, more earthy, with a hint of charcoal, or smoke? Nice acidity and a vein of minerality running through it.
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6/22/2013 - soyhead wrote: 88 Points
nose-cranberry, strawberry
mouth-cornucopia of light red fruits, or fruit punchy as i like to say, with intense acidity. good purity but sour. this showed considerably better on day two. i wouldnt be an any rush to drink these
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5/30/2013 - Nanda wrote: 92 Points
Generous nose has cranberry, black cherry, flora elements, potpourri notes, herbs and mineral. Palate is medium bodied with some plush cranberry and sour cherry fruit. Good grippy acidity on the mid-palate and into the fresh, minerally finish. There's some nice flavor complexity here for an appellation wine and excellent balance and precision. Quality stuff. Glad to be on this list.
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5/30/2013 - kenhoeve wrote:
bah. emboldened by the last great bottle I popped another. Back to the tart and stemmy (green bean) wine I got the first time around. I should know better and not push my luck.
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5/21/2013 - Nutty08 Likes this wine: 92 Points
I enjoyed this much more than my wife. Spicy herbal nose, with black cherry and a touch of citrus. Palate is dense with dark cherry, licorice, with a slightly rounder mouthfeel than a prior bottle. Solid depth, with plenty of lift to the fruit and a spicy edge that I assume is the whole cluster. Moderate length, with a slightly bitter edge, but adds a nice earthy note. Very good now, has plenty of structure to age.
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5/5/2013 - silton Likes this wine:
OK to drink now, but not as 3 dimensional as the Bearwallow at this time. 90+
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5/5/2013 - jdbcolumbus wrote: 90 Points
Sweet cherry, vanilla and spice on the nose. Juicy tart fruit with some oak and stem. Should have better balance with some age.
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5/4/2013 - kenhoeve wrote: 93 Points
Pnp. See previous, no stems this time. The freshest pure cherry on the nose, with spice and smoke, pretty and intoxicating. Very accessible with tart and sour cherries on the palate with this incredible savory character that builds to a strong finish of truffle and bacon, so much umami in this wine. With time in the glass it is picking up floral notes and it is getting even more savory begging for something you've braised for the better part of a day. Complex spice notes accompany the tannic structure that builds with each sip, and yet continues to evolve in flavor. I underestimated this, what a bottle.
Day two-
Sharp and great aromas of macerated small cherries and very high toned spice. I had the remainder after an excellent meal and a Chateau Beaucastel. The gorgeous acid in this wine cleansed the palate and woke up all the great flavors just had, it was really impressive. There is something indescribable about the balance of earth, savory, acid, and fruit in this wine. Harmonious in just that right way to be delicious. As focused as this is I honestly cannot believe it is appellation level, these Rhys guys are either lucky or genius.
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5/3/2013 - pedwards wrote: 93 Points
First experience with Rhys and Wow!!! Decanted for 1 hr and the floral aromas and baking spices filled the room. On the palate a burst of red fruits and spice linger on and on with a medium bodied and beautiful mouthfeel. This is delicious now and look forward to the next bottle. Elegant and well made.
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4/30/2013 - wineaux2 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Second try of this one, which was much more integrated this time around. Nose and palate profile were very similar to the previous bottle sampled 5 months ago - smoke, sandalwood, cherry fruit, wet autumnal leaves and sweet baking spice. The fruit is Cali, but the overall flavor profile reminds of OR. Very nice.
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4/11/2013 - tyvoodoo wrote:
Decanted 2+ hours prior to this note. Lovely dark berry nose, Vosne spice, deep and dark with some dense richness on the nose. Bittersweet coca, dark spice and maybe a touch of toast. Fruit profile on the nose matches the mouth. Dark mountain fruit, more of the lively backing spice with a bit of toast. Deep fruit flavors and lovely richness, a wine that can stratle the line of density and elegance. While it has great richness and density, it also possesses perfect texture and mouthfeel. Great acidity, nice tannic punch on the back end. This seems like something tht is stacked for some cellar time. An outstanding wine that shows its flashiness in its youth but also showcases its potential for future development.
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4/9/2013 - cookie7 wrote: 92 Points
Note after 24 hours - no gas or vacuum. Nose of sage and cloves. Forest floor, mushrooms and minerals on the palate. This is a really nice wine.
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4/9/2013 - condita1@gmail.com wrote:
Always a wine I rather not share.
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3/23/2013 - floydtp wrote: 92 Points
Tasted non blind at a dinner. Opened and slow-oxed around 12 hours before tasting. Only had around 1.5 oz so wasn't able to follow in the glass for very long. The aromas of mostly cherries and floral jumped out of the glass. The was also a hint of barnyard. Similar red fruit palate, some earth and stones also. Medium-long length finish. Nice acidity and very food friendly in a low ABV package. Seems to have plenty of life left but is accessible now with plenty of air.
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3/11/2013 - Matt T Likes this wine: 92 Points
Classic Rhys with zippy acid and excellent fruit.
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2/28/2013 - DuaneT wrote: 91 Points
Tasty, subtle, spicy, tart, red and black fruits. Nose is muted at this stage in development.
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2/26/2013 - Wine Sparty wrote: 89 Points
Splash decanted and drank for the next couple hours, then finished the rest the next night. Aroma has black cherry and some plum, along with some sort of tobacco scent. Taste is more red cherry with some tartness to it. I would say to hold off for at least a year on this if you can.
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2/18/2013 - elamasters wrote: 90 Points
Very nice Pinot. Very pure expression of focused, tart red fruit with a nice accent of minerality.
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2/9/2013 - soyhead wrote: 92 Points
nose - sour plum, briar berry, slight funk, berry pie filling
mouth - showing considerably better than a year ago, in my humble opinion, sour berry fruit, quite the tart yet with a sneak savory quality. clean crisp and true to varietal form, with good fruit concentration, and that extra savory oomph that makes some pinots worth remembering. try again in 1 year.
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2/7/2013 - GrapeScott wrote: 90 Points
Upon opening, this had a rather seductive nose of berries, flowers and some earth. On the palate, however, this is incredibly stemmy, so much so that it overtakes all other flavors. However, by day 2, this is in a much better place, which gives me faith that the wise folks at Rhys know what they are doing, but that patience will be required for these wines to show at their best. On day 2, there are still some stemmy notes, bordering on dirty, but also with lovely aromas of raspberry, lavender, and herbs de provence. The midpalate could use some filling out, and this is less structured than the SV bottlings, with less prominent acid, but it is an enjoyable wine nonetheless. Not screaming value at $45, however, and I do think the whole cluster component to these wines could be dialed back a bit without sacrificing structure and ageability.
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2/6/2013 - rralls wrote: 92 Points
91-92 for now. Certainly more open than some other Rhys' but I would give it a little more time.
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1/24/2013 - Pierre-Yves Likes this wine: 93 Points
Spring field, clovers, dandelion, wild flowers blosssoming, like a mild sunny green valley. Some green and tart. A wild feeling similar to some Northern Rhone. Quite different from previous experiences with Rhys ( 2009 Family farm and 2006 Alpine), which probably were not as ready as this one. It is very refreshing as well ! Delicious.
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1/21/2013 - jrkennedy37 wrote: 92 Points
Still heavy on the steminess, but the concentration is unbelievable. 92 now, but I anticipate this increasing over the next few years.
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1/20/2013 - AccaDacca Likes this wine: 90 Points
Drank this over three nights. Found the wine much more engaging on nights one and two. Wonderful nose, a bit austere, but striking minerality and finish. Perhaps a bit stemmy, but that should dissipate over time.
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1/18/2013 - t_moderne wrote: 85 Points
Pop and pour and served blind with three other Pinots. All of the wines were placed in brown paper bags and labelled with the names of active volcanoes. This was name Batur, in Bali. This shows a green side, stems and seeds. A bit tart and the fruit is hidden. Lacking in complexity, this is a fairly simple wine with acidity but not the fruit to match.
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1/16/2013 - Keith Levenberg Likes this wine: 92 Points
Delicious wine and a very characteristic example of the Rhys style. The last time Rhys bottled a San Mateo (which I think was actually an Alesia, from the Family Farm vineyard), the rationale for the declassification was obvious because it was clearly leaner and hollower than the Rhys norm, but that's not really the case here. The only thing that sets this apart from the cru bottlings is that it seems less structured (not much evident tannin) and more fruit than mineral, which isn't necessarily atypical at such a young stage anyway. The result is exceptionally drinkable, with an energy and vibrancy that almost feels like it has a foot in Beaujolais despite its rich concentration. So this is a great way to satisfy the fix for a Rhys without sacrificing something you planned to hold for the long term.
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1/14/2013 - OneLastSyrah Likes this wine: 91 Points
13.3% ABV. This was initially tight and a bit austere so I left it open in the cellar for 24 hours and it seemed to open and soften significantly. Slightly tawny translucent garnet in the glass. Aromas of woodsy pine, tart cherry, and earth. Medium-full bodied with bright cherry and dry earth/mineral flavors on the palate. Good.
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1/12/2013 - rosenst1 wrote: 91 Points
Quite aromatic on first opening; woodsy, forest floor, and spice. On the palate this is quite intense with a smoke and spice and a somewhat tannic finish. With air this does smooth out and the fruit begins to appear with more dark than red fruit qualities. Intriguing wine which needs a few years to smooth out and integrate
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1/11/2013 - Mike Dildine Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very tasty.
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1/11/2013 - fine137 wrote: 92 Points
2-3 hour decant, drinking lovely, great acid, great food wine.
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1/8/2013 - kthornton78 wrote: 93 Points
wow. for 'declassified' juice this is great stuff. vibrant, red fruits, sap, a hint of earth and spice on the nose the palate shows great acidic backbone surrounded with similar flavors of red fruit, sap, and spice. wish i bought a lot more of this.
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1/7/2013 - Eric Guido Likes this wine: 94 Points
What a gorgeous glass of wine. The nose was slender yet beautifully focused with tart cherry and cranberry up front with a whiff of grapefruit, which was followed by a soothing note of nutmeg and contrasted by soil and florals tones. On the palate it was soft with medium weight and elegance; slowly revealing its layers as an initial burst of juicy red fruit gave way to citrus notes and inner floral tones. The finish was shorter than I anticipate, yet still completely satisfying with hints of red berries and an autumnal, earthy note that I usually associate with well aged Nebbiolo. What more could you as for?
With a two hour decant, this wine was singing. It was an immediate hit with everyone tasting it. What really stole the show was the bouquet, with it's fruit, earth and that beautiful citrus note that brought it all home. This was a real head-turner and a great introduction to RHYS for guests.
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1/7/2013 - blaine wrote:
Much better tonight than when I first tasted this at the winery last spring. Pop and pour, probably would have been better with some air as it was better an hour+ after opening. Was showing more fruit this time around. Big dose of stems that very nearly gave it a green pepper component...nearly. Great snappy acidity and lingering juicy finish. I'm going to give my other two a bit more time but worry that the fruit might fade.
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1/5/2013 - fdaner wrote: 92 Points
gave this several hours of air but it started out strong from pnp. Air turned the mouthfeel fine and added layers of complexity. Cherry with a bright zing of cranberry and a touch of citrus and pine on a long juicy finish. Really balanced with bright acidity and drinking very well right now. One of my favorite Rhys to date and one to drink while you wait on some of the other lineup.
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1/2/2013 - Matt T wrote: 91 Points
Excellent example of Rhys. Really fresh with nice sappy acid. Much better on day one than day two. I think this will drink the best in the near term.
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1/1/2013 - mdefreitas wrote: 91 Points
I really enjoyed the texture and complexity of this wine, which offered dark cherries, cranberries, flowers, herbs, orange zest and tree bark. Smooth and fine on the palate with mouth-watering acidity. A wine with quiet power and clarity.
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12/27/2012 - gblacave wrote:
Odd experience here as the lip of the bottle cracked when I pulled out the cork. As a result, I poured it into a decanter and tasted over 24 hours. This was showing at its best after about 4 hours. The fruit had calmed down a bit and had gained a red profile (at opening it initially showed some black fruit and cola notes). The nose was predominantly cherry, red berries and mineral with a good dose of stems. The palate is well balanced showing a good amount of tannin, but the fruit is equal to it ad it also has enough acid to keep it fresh and vibrant. Nice smooth mouthfeel and full palate throughout.
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12/23/2012 - Griffin5416 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Very good once again. Pure, finesse are words that come to mind.
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12/21/2012 - winopops3 wrote: 91 Points
Pop and pour. Dark ruby. Nose of lavender and cedar. Very nice fruit, fairly viscous on the palate. Finish seems to fade then come back around again. Well balanced acidity. Suspect this will get better over the next 5 years.
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12/21/2012 - floydtp wrote: 91 Points
Tasted non blind at home over 3 hours. Nose of floral, red fruit and a hint of wet stones. On the palate, it has more floral, sour red fruit, earth and a touch of sweetness. Medium-long length finish with mostly sour red fruit and earth. I can't wait to see how this will evolve but drinking nicely now if you like having the fruit dominant.
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12/17/2012 - MCUBEB wrote:
Drank it over three days. Tasted the best on day 3. Precise and focused red fruit with notes of minerals, earth, and savory notes. Needs some time.
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12/11/2012 - Zonk wrote: 91 Points
Vinturi'd half and saved the rest for day 2. Relatively dark, big aromatics and an abundance of fruit. I definitely see this more on the dark red fruit side than the sour cherry and cranberry one might expect from a producer many see as "Burgundian" Improved over time as fruit pulled back and minerality became more apparent.
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12/10/2012 - mye wrote:
Opened up a bottle just cause it's so hard to lay off the new shipment.
pure primary fruit at the moment.. gave it about 1 hour of decant time, probably could use 2 or 3 more... years.
Delish, but not worth the money at this point. need more time.
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12/7/2012 - Eric Likes this wine: 90 Points
My first Rhys Pinot, consumed across two days. An obvious babykilling. Very pure Pinot flavors. Mineral driven with lovely red fruit. Tight and brooding on day 1. Much more open and soaring on the second day. Obviously no real development to speak of at this stage, but this has amazing clarity and purity. I just finished the last glass, but thinking about the wine and writing this note has my mouth watering again.
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12/5/2012 - Ex-Ray Likes this wine: 94 Points
Outstanding pinot noir, very aromatic and flavorful. Opened up nicely over three hours. Very drinkable now, smooth and balanced. Wish I had more!
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12/5/2012 - Griffin5416 Likes this wine: 92 Points
First Rhys and can't say I was disappointed given all the hype. Medium bodied, full of fruit, and very well balanced. Each glass got better. Gonna be tough not to open the rest of these.
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12/5/2012 - zheem Likes this wine:
This was opened very young. It opened and became much more interesting over a four day period. This wine exists somewhere between a classic, or new world styled Burgundy. Much more earth and wood oriented flavors than most, even "burgundian" styled US wines. Very delicious and very promising for longer aging
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12/2/2012 - wineaux2 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Popped and poured. This pinot started off unlike any other Rhys I’ve had with a very strong, really off-putting nose of smoke and sandalwood in the first glass. Fortunately that blew off after not too long and integrated much more on the nose and palate to provide a complementary mix of smoke, dark cherry, burnt embers, sandalwood, stems and spice notes. Overall, this can be enjoyed now but probably would benefit from a short decant. 90-91 pts.
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11/28/2012 - keelegl Likes this wine: 90 Points
A bit too early, but still enjoyable. Nice mix of earthy notes and red berry fruit.
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11/24/2012 - DuaneT wrote: 90 Points
Solid wine. Like all Rhys I've had, this is primarily dark fruited. with some spice and oak. I really enjoyed the mineral-driven nature of this wine. The the flavors and nose did seemed muted. Expect this wine to improve with some bottle age.
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11/22/2012 - ericbreece wrote: 82 Points
Drank way too young.
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11/22/2012 - Nutty08 wrote: 91 Points
Double decanted about 4hrs. Elegant nose with a stemy green quality, cinnamon spice, cherry pit, and a touch of currants. Palate with medium concentration, fine acidity and tannins on the back end, fruit leaning towards the darker side. Earthy black cherry finish, touch of stone and spice. This is very nice, but seems a touch disjointed at the moment(just shipped this week). Not a QPR, but delivers as expected for it's price point. 90-92
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11/20/2012 - Matt T wrote: 91 Points
Very nice. Nice sappy acidity with slightest note of petrol. Well balanced. Not much different on the second day.
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11/15/2012 - xwine wrote:
Pop and pour; drank it over the course of three hours. Intense floral aromatics, along with a spice note; very sexy and compelling, with an herbal background. On the palate it shows a more meaty side, accompanied by plush red fruit; good structure and a juicy finish. Very nice wine, though there seems to be a dissonance between the nose and palate, yet they both are lovely in their own way. In the end, this wine was a pleasure.
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11/11/2012 - KeithAkers wrote: 91 Points
nose: tight at first, but unwinds into very pretty tones of rhubarb, berries, dark red fruits and dark florals. Good balance with nice depth and shows the whole cluster influence right now.
taste: Smooth medium feel with medium acidity. Nice tannins that are there. Balanced with very nice tones of dark red fruits, berries, some strawberries and spice with a touch of herbal tones from the whole cluster.
overall: This needs a couple of years to fully come together. Still, it's a really pretty young rhys that should be very nice when it fully shows.
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11/11/2012 - fdub wrote: 93 Points
Open into the decanter and drink immediately. Nice light ruby color. Great aromatics right off the bat. Cherries, flowers, slight green tinge (dill) and earth from the whole cluster. Great body and structure with perfect acid. Can drink now but will improve with continued bottle age.
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11/11/2012 - mdavis wrote:
Upon opening, this initially presented some green herbalness and asparagus notes...the structure and density of the wine was significant, dominated by black fruit and rasberry...Overall, the wine was more about fruit than earth, it was more about density than elegance...Definitely new world in terms of density and extraction. Young, smooth tannin and limited astringency make the wine somewhat drinkable now. Certainly well made. Medium length. I'm always wanting these wines to be more Burgundian than they have presented themselves, but they are a lot like good Oregon Pinot....
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11/9/2012 - kenhoeve wrote: 90 Points
PnP. Great material in this one. Exotic floral, cherry, spice, nose, little stem when agitated. Flowers, red and black cherry, and what I assume is stem coming off as green bean. The green bean note is fading with an hour or two open. This needs to integrate the stems, but otherwise this is really nice stuff. Medium bodied, good balance of acid/tannin. I really think this deserves 1-2 yrs in the hole. 90+
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11/4/2012 - Mrbuzz Likes this wine:
Love the spice, dark red berry fruit...tasty!
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10/22/2012 - sehill wrote: 90 Points
This wine gave a similar showing to a previously tasted bottle. This gives the impression that it will improve with a few years of additional bottle age.
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9/25/2012 - sehill Likes this wine: 90 Points
Opened and poured, this wine gave an excellent showing with aromatics of dark fruits, spice, stem and stone notes. The color is a medium to dark ruby. The medium bodied palate shows sufficient structure to balance the youthful fruit. Based on this showing, the wine will most likely benefit from an additional year or two of bottle age.
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4/11/2012 - alanr wrote: 88 Points
Tasting at Rhys; 4/5/2012-4/11/2012 (Rhys Vineyards): Leads with a strong nose of whole cluster, then nice, darker raspberry/strawberry fruit, good structure, loamy spice, creosote, nice acidity.
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4/6/2012 - Frank Murray III wrote:
April 2012 Rhys Visit--Taste The 2010s (Rhys Estate (At The Winery)): Listed alc 13.3%, with 66% whole cluster and 40% new wood. A blend of the various single vineyard parcels, the fruit that didn't make the single cuvee cuts. Starts out with a gamey, sauvage quality with floral dark fruit, both red and black. However, it's not for me the sweet black but instead more dark plum in tone. Also shows a soily, iron note. Not elegant or overly complex but shows a good push of solid fruit. Stems show in the aromatic, they add a pungence to the palate.
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3/17/2012 - yhn wrote: 93 Points
Nose - clean, light, savory resin, forest floor, toasty, morello cherry, green peppercorn.
Pert, lovely, dried savory herbs (basil, rosemary, thyme, summer savory), morello cherry and a touch of plum, touches of orange juice and zest, and a hint of mushroom.
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3/17/2012 - jakuda wrote:
Tasted during pickup day. Opened by the elves ~12hrs before and recorked. Mixture of mostly Family Farm. Open, light fruity nose, with some sweet oak and perhaps a touch of eucalyptus. Light-medium in body, with noticeably less complexity, structure, and concentration of the normal Family Farm. Probably more pleasing to most than the 09 Santa Cruz in general. Will be released ~$45. Won't be as much of a value as the one-off, famed 2006 version, but there is still quality to be found here.
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3/17/2012 - xwine wrote:
Tasted at the pickup event. Nice red fruit, plush and soft, but with good background structure, some spice (cinnamon?), soft finish, already drinking very nicely.
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3/17/2012 - soyhead wrote: 85 Points
Tasted at the spring12 release, I believe this is from multiple vineyard declassified barrels.
nose - cranberry, tea
mouth - tea more so than fruit, slightly austere
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