Truly delightful, I love serving these to people who have been conditioned to expect steakhouse styled wines whenever they see this famous label. Unlike the modern iterations, this is 12% alcohol, with a pleasant green timbre to the rich fruit, ample tannin and acidity. Perhaps most interesting of all is the notable oak that still pokes out of this wine. It doesn't detract but this must have been pretty oaky through its youth?
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Day 4. Still holding up since being opened although it has lost a step. Deep plummy fruit with some black currant, lots of spice (some of it a remainder of the american oak), some herbal. This flirts with pruney at points but just manages to hold on. A little bit in the glass gets sweeter with some wild strawberry and a bit of heat and still the spice. The palate is similiar - dark fruit, spice, herbal - showing more green now. This is plush and deep - with the age and time opening showing bones a bit (heat and angularity), but still this is really enjoyable. The finish is red fruit, spice and a little varnish/VA. Last bottle (I think) from a case that dad bought near release - still had the $14.45 price tag on it. They don't make them like the used to ... that's for sure. A number of bottles of this from the early 90's to the late 00's were just killer. Nose - 5/6, palate - 5/6, Finish - 5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 16/20.
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Decanted and let sit for more than 2 hours, even then it was just starting to open. Had with dinner after being open 3-4 hours and it was sublime: complex nose with some fruit, leather, hints of mushroom? On the palate, silky smooth and complex: lots of layers into a medium finish.
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Ruby to light orange at the meniscus. Sediment. Nose is baked apricot, light cherry and raspberry, almost plastic candy smell. Wow. So many layers. All of the above, touch of tannin, smooth mouthfeel, long finish. Another treat to taste.
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Cork was intact but hard to remove. Filtered and decanted. Initially, very flat, almost nothing on the nose or palate. But after 90 minutes or a little more, it began to open up and was lovely until finished at 3 hours. After open, the nose had nice leather, spice and some fruit. Raisin, some dark fruit, hints of oak and leather on the palate. Very nice, just needs time to wake up!
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Decanted at 5 PM and drunk over the next four hours. Lovely medium dark garnet color with little sign of age just a hint of brick on the edge. Nose is prototypical Silver Oak with lots of vanilla, licorice, dark black plum and a hint of tobacco. The palate reflects the nose with the dark fruit, licorice, vanilla and an element of earthiness and richness that seemed best as the last glass or two was drunk. Delicious both with grilled steak and without food as well.
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Meh - another dried out wine. Not as bad as the Rivers Marie Pinot earlier, but still not great. Too bad since I've had more than half a dozen excellent bottles of this wine. The nose is a little raisiny, but still has some beautiful and creamy Silver Oak fruit, with nice spice and a little vanilla from the oak. The palate is similar, it's deep, with dark fruit and spices, leather, but again the dried out nature shows. Maybe it's another bad bottle or maybe it is on the way down, not sure. Nose - 4.5/6, Palate - 4.5/6, Finish - 4/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 14/20.
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Siver Oak Retrospective (Wayfare Tavern, San Francisco, California): Bricked medium dark red violet color; appealing, redolent, maturing, ripe cassis, baked cherry, raspberry, cedar, plum sauce nose; tasty, maturing but with signs of youth yet, tart cassis, tart currant, tart cherry, cedar palate; medium-plus finish (12% alcohol)
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1976 - The Paris Challenge Revisited (Bravin - Sao Paulo - Brazil): Perfect cork, probably reconditioned or recently released by the winery. Very alive, with some fruit and lots of mushrooms and leather. Silky and light bodied, some wood and dryness at the finish. Very good wine, surprisingly strong showing, but the Las Cases was a few steps above.
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Recent purchase (I think) from Benchmark - taken to Prime and Beyond in Fort Lee, NJ. Slight bricking again. Red-purple. Deep purple flavors - a little pruney and dried with some wood. A bit of heat. Violets. Soft again on palate w a touch of heat. Pruney fruit. Not as good as the bottles from dad's cellar but still nice. Enters soft and plush with dark berry fruit - almost jammy. Spicey and a little brambly. Nice and sweet on midpalate but shows some heat and prune on finish - a little Port-like or Amarone-like. As I said at the beginning, I think this is a recent purchase from Benchmark. My Dad had a case of this, purchased on release from Mills in Annapolis, MD (with the $12 price tags still on the bottles), and those bottles have been consistently awesome. This bottle was nice, but 2 steps down from those. Nose - 4/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 4/6, Je Ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 14/20.
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9/29/2022 - andtheodor wrote: 93 Points
Truly delightful, I love serving these to people who have been conditioned to expect steakhouse styled wines whenever they see this famous label. Unlike the modern iterations, this is 12% alcohol, with a pleasant green timbre to the rich fruit, ample tannin and acidity. Perhaps most interesting of all is the notable oak that still pokes out of this wine. It doesn't detract but this must have been pretty oaky through its youth?
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7/14/2020 - Seth Rosenberg Likes this wine: 92 Points
Day 4. Still holding up since being opened although it has lost a step. Deep plummy fruit with some black currant, lots of spice (some of it a remainder of the american oak), some herbal. This flirts with pruney at points but just manages to hold on. A little bit in the glass gets sweeter with some wild strawberry and a bit of heat and still the spice. The palate is similiar - dark fruit, spice, herbal - showing more green now. This is plush and deep - with the age and time opening showing bones a bit (heat and angularity), but still this is really enjoyable. The finish is red fruit, spice and a little varnish/VA. Last bottle (I think) from a case that dad bought near release - still had the $14.45 price tag on it. They don't make them like the used to ... that's for sure. A number of bottles of this from the early 90's to the late 00's were just killer. Nose - 5/6, palate - 5/6, Finish - 5/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 16/20.
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1/19/2020 - wgilbert3 Likes this wine: 95 Points
Decanted and let sit for more than 2 hours, even then it was just starting to open. Had with dinner after being open 3-4 hours and it was sublime: complex nose with some fruit, leather, hints of mushroom? On the palate, silky smooth and complex: lots of layers into a medium finish.
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12/24/2019 - Silkeyj Likes this wine: 93 Points
Ruby to light orange at the meniscus. Sediment. Nose is baked apricot, light cherry and raspberry, almost plastic candy smell. Wow. So many layers. All of the above, touch of tannin, smooth mouthfeel, long finish. Another treat to taste.
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1/20/2019 - wgilbert3 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Cork was intact but hard to remove. Filtered and decanted. Initially, very flat, almost nothing on the nose or palate. But after 90 minutes or a little more, it began to open up and was lovely until finished at 3 hours. After open, the nose had nice leather, spice and some fruit. Raisin, some dark fruit, hints of oak and leather on the palate. Very nice, just needs time to wake up!
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11/15/2014 - oldwines Likes this wine: 94 Points
Decanted at 5 PM and drunk over the next four hours. Lovely medium dark garnet color with little sign of age just a hint of brick on the edge. Nose is prototypical Silver Oak with lots of vanilla, licorice, dark black plum and a hint of tobacco. The palate reflects the nose with the dark fruit, licorice, vanilla and an element of earthiness and richness that seemed best as the last glass or two was drunk. Delicious both with grilled steak and without food as well.
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7/19/2014 - Seth Rosenberg wrote: 88 Points
Meh - another dried out wine. Not as bad as the Rivers Marie Pinot earlier, but still not great. Too bad since I've had more than half a dozen excellent bottles of this wine. The nose is a little raisiny, but still has some beautiful and creamy Silver Oak fruit, with nice spice and a little vanilla from the oak. The palate is similar, it's deep, with dark fruit and spices, leather, but again the dried out nature shows. Maybe it's another bad bottle or maybe it is on the way down, not sure. Nose - 4.5/6, Palate - 4.5/6, Finish - 4/6, Je ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 14/20.
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2/13/2014 - Wine Expresso Likes this wine: 93 Points
Tricky! It lost the competition but became WOTN an hour after scores given
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11/26/2013 - Cellarmann wrote: 91 Points
Color showed its age - brick. Gorgeous nose of earth, dried leaves, current. Tannins fully resolved and drinking very well. Earthy, round, lovely.
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5/22/2012 - rjonwine@gmail.com wrote: 93 Points
Siver Oak Retrospective (Wayfare Tavern, San Francisco, California): Bricked medium dark red violet color; appealing, redolent, maturing, ripe cassis, baked cherry, raspberry, cedar, plum sauce nose; tasty, maturing but with signs of youth yet, tart cassis, tart currant, tart cherry, cedar palate; medium-plus finish (12% alcohol)
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3/22/2012 - Flavito wrote: 92 Points
1976 - The Paris Challenge Revisited (Bravin - Sao Paulo - Brazil): Perfect cork, probably reconditioned or recently released by the winery. Very alive, with some fruit and lots of mushrooms and leather. Silky and light bodied, some wood and dryness at the finish. Very good wine, surprisingly strong showing, but the Las Cases was a few steps above.
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12/30/2011 - Seth Rosenberg wrote: 88 Points
Recent purchase (I think) from Benchmark - taken to Prime and Beyond in Fort Lee, NJ. Slight bricking again. Red-purple. Deep purple flavors - a little pruney and dried with some wood. A bit of heat. Violets. Soft again on palate w a touch of heat. Pruney fruit. Not as good as the bottles from dad's cellar but still nice. Enters soft and plush with dark berry fruit - almost jammy. Spicey and a little brambly. Nice and sweet on midpalate but shows some heat and prune on finish - a little Port-like or Amarone-like. As I said at the beginning, I think this is a recent purchase from Benchmark. My Dad had a case of this, purchased on release from Mills in Annapolis, MD (with the $12 price tags still on the bottles), and those bottles have been consistently awesome. This bottle was nice, but 2 steps down from those. Nose - 4/6, Palate - 5/6, Finish - 4/6, Je Ne Sais Quoi - 1/2 = 14/20.
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