Extraordinary wine. Spice, dark berries, plush with a long finish and well integrated tannins. Opened several hours before drinking but did not decant. Didn’t get to see how it developed as it was too delicious and we finished it in an hour or so. Unable to form a view therefore on how it might develop with age but excellent now and still fruit driven rather than tertiary flavours but without any jammy notes.
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Regular dinner group (@ My place): Beautiful bouquet with dark berries, sweet spices and good oak. On the palate still a very firm wine with licorice, sweet spices, black fruits, black olives, firm acidity and tannin. My personal guess is the wine needs another 4+ years in the bottle to reach its peak.
Coming into its prime at ten years. Still a bit hot like an aussie whose power and muscularity can't ever be completely masked, but there is also an elegance to this wine that reminds me of a young cheval blanc. Strawberries and chocolate with a long finish. Will wait five years to try the final bottle. Great effort
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Like a hot Iberian, at a stage now that moves from being perhaps the best young red wine ever (the 2004) to a precocious great that now is going through its phases. 2 hours of decanting was not enough to dissipate the very high alcoholic bite. After an hour with a steak, it calmed down a bit. Heavy mint, thorough rich cherry and even a hint of maple, with incredible brambly tone amidst mossy and extracted sense of depth. A great wine to be sure but it in needs now another couple of years to witness its breeding ad to unfold again its complexity.
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Complex bouquet with ripe black fruits, smoke and beautiful exclusive oak in a perfect dose. Same on the palate. Silky soft tannin. All in perfect harmony. A truly great wine, already a great pleasure and certainly for several years to come. You might consider this to be a blockbuster, but it has so much elegance as well. This was my note for the Valderramiro and the Sanchomartin has the same characteristics and is even a little more luxurious. Great!
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this is one of the few great young reds I have tasted. UP there with 82 HAut BRion. A bit alcoholic still, the forward fruit is very well blended. The new world approach is not clumsy so that the incredible mint, plum,bright red nose is followed by a mellifluous large but nicely balanced collection of deep fruit with the typical red fruit center and smokey earthy ring. Old vines are evident as is the grape selection. Will be great in 15 years or now. Worth the approx 200 dollar list.
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5/12/2022 - Nontaco Likes this wine: 94 Points
This is in a really nice place. Zweder’s review below is spot on and I imagine this has only gotten better over last few years.
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2/5/2021 - Get Real Likes this wine: 94 Points
Extraordinary wine. Spice, dark berries, plush with a long finish and well integrated tannins. Opened several hours before drinking but did not decant. Didn’t get to see how it developed as it was too delicious and we finished it in an hour or so. Unable to form a view therefore on how it might develop with age but excellent now and still fruit driven rather than tertiary flavours but without any jammy notes.
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3/7/2020 - P257pax wrote: 92 Points
Spice, dark berries and ink on the nose. Licorice and blackberry on the palate with nice tannins. A very nice bottle, good to go now.
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4/20/2019 - Zweder wrote: 95 Points
Regular dinner group (@ My place): Beautiful bouquet with dark berries, sweet spices and good oak. On the palate still a very firm wine with licorice, sweet spices, black fruits, black olives, firm acidity and tannin. My personal guess is the wine needs another 4+ years in the bottle to reach its peak.
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10/9/2016 - NaperWino Likes this wine: 92 Points
Big powerful nose...dark fruit and a bit heavy on the alcohol side still...very masculine and screams for red meat
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1/23/2016 - prufrocksabogado Likes this wine: 95 Points
Coming into its prime at ten years. Still a bit hot like an aussie whose power and muscularity can't ever be completely masked, but there is also an elegance to this wine that reminds me of a young cheval blanc. Strawberries and chocolate with a long finish. Will wait five years to try the final bottle. Great effort
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8/27/2013 - Sotto325 wrote: 92 Points
Like a hot Iberian, at a stage now that moves from being perhaps the best young red wine ever (the 2004) to a precocious great that now is going through its phases. 2 hours of decanting was not enough to dissipate the very high alcoholic bite. After an hour with a steak, it calmed down a bit. Heavy mint, thorough rich cherry and even a hint of maple, with incredible brambly tone amidst mossy and extracted sense of depth. A great wine to be sure but it in needs now another couple of years to witness its breeding ad to unfold again its complexity.
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4/4/2011 - Zweder Likes this wine: 96 Points
Complex bouquet with ripe black fruits, smoke and beautiful exclusive oak in a perfect dose. Same on the palate. Silky soft tannin. All in perfect harmony. A truly great wine, already a great pleasure and certainly for several years to come. You might consider this to be a blockbuster, but it has so much elegance as well. This was my note for the Valderramiro and the Sanchomartin has the same characteristics and is even a little more luxurious. Great!
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11/10/2010 - beezer6 wrote: 95 Points
The Ultimate Wine Experience (Binny's South Loop - Chicago, IL): Excellent. Similar notes to last time tasted. Big ripe fruit. Lots of chocolate and oak. Massive wine with impeccable balance and precision. Masculine in style.
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7/31/2010 - Sotto325 wrote: 96 Points
this is one of the few great young reds I have tasted. UP there with 82 HAut BRion. A bit alcoholic still, the forward fruit is very well blended. The new world approach is not clumsy so that the incredible mint, plum,bright red nose is followed by a mellifluous large but nicely balanced collection of deep fruit with the typical red fruit center and smokey earthy ring. Old vines are evident as is the grape selection. Will be great in 15 years or now. Worth the approx 200 dollar list.
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