I figured 20 years was long enough to wait from vintage to opening this bottle. It exceeded expectations! Lots of fruit and structure, with cassis and plum. Stone and cedar flavors as well. Last one, and quite enjoyed it!
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Blackberries, currants, and a touch of floral in the nose. Blackberries, black cherries, plums, and a hint of spice in the flavor. Medium body and a medium to long finish.
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Popped and poured...dark cherries on the nose, but also more than just a whiff of alcohol...medium body...decent mouthfeel, but also with some funk...almost Bordeaux-like in that respect...okay finish. Have had much better QC Red Wine.
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Not much change since last year. The 2003 is better than the 2004, but not by much (the balance is better in the 2003 as is the nose). The first glass was the best and subsequent glasses slowly decline. Bricking on the edges, medium body, dark cherry, vanilla, smoke and pepper. Hot finish, still a touch of tannins. It's not bad, it's just not worth $35. Drink within next 12-15 months - or hold for 5 years and see if a miracle happens.
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A nice wine that is finally, after 10 years, in balance. A great price at 35 or whatever, but it doesn't seem like a good deal to have to hang on to a wine for 10 years just to get rid of the oak, and have a qpr.
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Not horrible, but I was expecting more balance. This wine seems very new world, oaky and fruity. Other people at the tasting liked it even less than me.
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Annual Tasting Group Holiday Party (Porter Creek, Mpls, MN): Very dark, purple-red color. Followed 1 glass over 60 minutes. Even though this is not the flagship wine, I have to admit I expected more from a somewhat iconic producer with 10 years of bottle age. The fruit seemed to have faded and left us with a lot of oak, wood spice, and alcohol, that I had a hard time with. I have to hope and believe that this would have been better 3 or 4 years ago. Based on other's recent tasting notes, it appears this is not likely a bottle variation issue. Score withheld, disappointing.
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Not as good as it use to be. Losing fruit. I'd like these more if they had more complexity. Enjoyable, but a tad 'boring'. Drank over 2 nights...no improvement. Drink by 2015.
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Smooth, but underwhelming. I am quite certain I got caught up in the QC hysteria a few years ago. Hopefully, the QC Cabs shows better than the RTW when I open them. For the price, a good deal if one wants to wait 10 years for a 38 dollar wine to show decent. Personal preference....
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Big and full of dark cab primary and secondary flavors. Ripe but time is proving that it's not ripe to an extreme. No obtrusive oak sticking out anywhere. Things seem to be only improving and Greenblanket is starting to suspect that this big boy might be able to cross over to the other side.
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Big wine with plenty of "stuff" to keep going for sometime. Others tasting agreed that we had drunk this young and it was still coming together. Very smooth, tannins are mild but it definitely needed time after having been decanted for 2 hours. Wait if you can.
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Dark fruit, cocoa powder, I think this has years left in it. Drinking very well now, great with meat but you can hold. Lots of stuffing to go to the distance.
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Inadvertantly popped another one of these not realising that the last bottle was only 2.5 months ago. This was again an extremely enjoyable and pleasant wine, with floral notes upfront and a very smooth, approachable palate. Really smooth and silky, this possesses a sound balance between structure that indicates several years of life before this peaks, and both red and dark fruits. Really enjoying this, and you should too.
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Decanted and drunk over 4.5 hours. Cherry, violets and a whiff of blueberry were evident on the nose upon opening; as the evening progressed the nose was floral with wood and alcohol. Very smooth, and with airtime exceptionally smooth, with a silky layer of coating tannins giving way to ripe red fruit, some blackberry and a mild tartness. Oak is evident in the finish, but this is a great wine that goes well with food, and still has many years ahead of it.
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Similar to previous note. A big, heavy, juicy wine. Drank over 2 nights, excellent both nights. Lots of dark cherry, some tarry notes and light wood....great with steak. It's still in it's sweet drinking window...enjoy over next 3-4 years.
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Double decanted and poured and then consumed over 5 hours. Medium-bodied wine that is dark magenta/garnet in color. On the palate, dark berries, floral notes, and light wood smoke. On the palate, dark cherries, cocoa powder, and vanilla oak on an extremely long 40+ second finish. Well-balanced and still loaded with fruit, this wine has good structure and acidity. While not a wine that excites the passions perhaps, it is well-made, enjoyable, and pairs pretty well with food.
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The nose shows bright cherry, currant and mineral with a bit of peat in the background when first opened. The palate is mostly currant with some hints of sour pie cherry and a light cedar tannin finish. With air the nose builds up with some smoked meat notes and the palate has added some nice cedar baking spice to the finish. On day two the palate has developed semi-sweet chocolate and coffee notes on the palate and finish.
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Nose is nice but largely oak-driven. Palate is understated but the body and texture leave something to be desired. Some off-putting heat on the short-medium finish. Underwhelming overall and too much alcohol for the level of extract. I don't see this improving any further and I would question the longevity as well. This would be a good candidate for a double-blind when you can't see the pretty label.
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Crowd pleasing wine with ripe raspberries and blackberries in both nose and palate. Simple and straightforward. Medium to full weight and smooth as silk. Very good drink.
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Medium cloudy red color with a rust hue. Primary fruit has retreated leaving faint raspberries and spice notes. Mouthfeel is moderate, tannins are light with modest acidity remaining.
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Decanted for 30 minutes. I had high expectations of this wine, and I was just slightly underwhelmed. It was enjoyable, but I tasted some heat (not too suprising at 14.9% alcohol), which detracted from the experience.
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Has put on some weight since the first time I had it. A medium-bodied red-blend. The nose is still a bit shy at this point. Palate has black currant, dark cherries, and a hint of smoke. This is probably in it's peak drinking window now. Not incredibly complex, but it has nice rounded flavors, a pleasant texture, and it's very well balanced. Drink over next 4-5 years.
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Popped and poured. Medium-plus ruby/garnet hue. Initial whiff of funk on the nose, blows off after about 45 minutes to show forward aromas of sappy, red fruits, an intriguing floral note (violets?), tobacco, incense, and vanilla bean. Medium-plus body. On the palate, this wine shows the trademark QC flavor of blueberries along with black fruits, spice from oak, and a herbaceous tinge that has developed with bottle age. Tannins are silky on the finish. This could easily age for another 2-4+ years but is drinking quite nicely right now with aeration or a short decant. Nice expression of WA Cabernet Sauvignon.
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The nose had cherry and blackberry aromas. The palate had currant flavors with notes of earth. Quite a bit of heat here as well. Medium to full bodied with a medium length finish. I just wasn't overly impressed with this bottle. I should have drank it a couple years ago when I really was enjoying them. It just didn't seem very complex or distinctive. I know that this is a great value in comparison to Quilceda's flagship Cab, but I just think that there's a lot of other WA wines now that can play in the league of the Quilceda Red Wine at the same price.
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Dave & Becky brought over a bottle to our impromptu wine evening. This one was definitely past its prime, nose had nice floral and fruit, but the palate was very thin with little to no finish left. Perhaps just a bad bottle?
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Dark red/purple. decant for 30 mins. currant/fruit/earth on the nose, fruit on the palate. Well integrated tannins, smooth and well balanced acidity. Delightful, and enjoyed with a roast chicken, Penne dish. Loved it!
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2nd bottle with similar results. The wine showed hot with a bitter finish. It did not pair well with ny strips with cracked pepper. There was fruit but my palate was distracted by the negatives. Maybe not my cup of tea.
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Popped and aerated for about 60 minutes. Dark in glass with forward aromas of black fruits, red fruits, currant, and oak. Velvety, silken texture. The oak has definitely integrated, allowing the fruit to shine....and yes, the blueberry element is strong...but is complimented on the palate by a swathe of black and red fruits, vanilla bean, and spice. The tannins, although certainly present, are supple and well integrated. A touch of heat does detract but really, this is as phenomenal a 2nd wine as one can find for the money.
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Decanted 3 hours. Big nose of cassis. Flavors of cassis, red currant, Good & Plenty, and PB&J. Long finish. This will only get better in a couple of years.
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No formal note take, this wine was better then expected and continued to become much better throughout the night. I remember noting that it has at least 5 years ahead of it, probably more.
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From the dark color in the glass to the big bouquet of blueberry led dark fruit to the dense dark chocolaty palate to the long vanilla and fruit finish this is a new world Washington State big boy all the way. And that's OK because the pieces of this wine are starting to fit into place. The once obtrusive oak is now a fairly well integrated element and there is actually a good sense of balance between big fruit, smoothing tannin and bright acidity. Excellent and Greenblanket thinks there is still ample room for improvement.
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The color was a plum purple, almost black. The nose revealed blackberry, dark cherries and hints of vanilla & cedar. You could definitely tell the blend is predominately cab (and cab from a great year). On the palate there was dark fruits, cherry. It's a very dense, thick wine. On the palate the wood dominates. A little chewy at the start, but the tannins really smoothed out by the end of dinner.
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From the first sip, this has depth, and total earth. Amazing table wine. It sits on the midpalate like velvet...hard to convince myself to swallow...but when I do, it's pearls.
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This wine was a mess for me. Too much alcohol on the nose. Monolithic. The blueberry notes that characterize the 2003 QC Cab seem to be in this wine as well, but the excessive alcohol killed it. The label says 14.9%, but it smelled and tasted like 17%. Maybe this was consumed too early?
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The nose had that wonderful blue/black fruit aroma with some cherry notes. The flavors were a little darker and more resolved than I had experienced in earlier tastings. This is a really nice second label bottling.
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Dark purple wine with deep cherry, subtle cassis and cedary oak on the nose (prominent, but not overpowering). High toned and tight on the entry after a pop and pour. Noticeable tannins that are fine grained and do not detract from the experience. Powerful wine, tightly wound wine that balances the elements nicely.
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Decanterd 2 hours before drinking. Color: very dark red. Nose: Dark fruit, some floral hints. Palate: Blackberrys and cherry. On the palate the wood dominates. I will cellar my other 6 bottles for at least a year then try another.
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Decanted for 2 hours. Some sediment in bottle. Nose is a little hot and didn't detect the fruit. Big on the palate. Silky tannins, a little hot with lots of oak still to be integrated. Tasted from a reidel zin glass first then a reidel Cab glass and have to say the Cab glass made a huge difference. Finishes long and chocolately. Will be even better in a couple of years. 91 for now.
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This was slightly better than the first bottle in Oct06. Color was light purple, kind of like grape jelly; nose had subtle red fruit; palate was heavy on oak and alcohol. Got better after 20 minutes and it was at its best (which is not saying a whole lot) after 2 hours. Starting to wonder if QC if for me.
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Craig Vanderah's Annual BBQ (Pax, Kosta Brown, Beaucastel, Donjon, Turley, Loring, Neal): Bright ruby red color. The nose is dominated by red fruit and oak. Nice until Steve started mentioning a strong odor of urine. For a moment it reminded me of the SNL skip where the family is passing around spoiled milk and getting everone to take a big whiff. That really put the group off any further analysis. Seemed a bit lean on the palate, and was extremely tannic. The finish was pretty strong. Not rated as we dumped this and moved on after Steve's comment.
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Great color, great nose, but the heat was overtaking the fruit. Not real pleasurable to drink right now. Will hold off drinking another one for about a year. Hopefully will come back together.
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Decanted for 2 hours, consumed over the next 2 hours. Deep, dark red, clear hue. Lots of spicy oak on the nose, followed by very deep toned red and blue fruit. Similar notes of red and blue fruits, smoke, chocolate, mocha, tar on the medium length finish. Medium to full body. Showing a small amount of heat on the finish. Tannins have mellowed considerably. Lots of room for a higher score over the next 2-3 years. Very good value for the money.
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Opened for 4 hours prior to drinking, did not decant. Flavors changed often throughout the meal, ate with grilled sausages from organic meat vendor at farmer's market with red peppers. BIG, full-bodied and intense. First, started with butter and grass and alcohol, but after a few minutes the alcohol burned off and was softer with incredible complexity. Tasted GREAT, even though would go better with a tomato based meat sauce pasta.
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Dark garnet color with ruby rim. Nose of toasty oak, dark fruits and spice. Blue and Black fruit flavors with vanilla, spice and mocha. Nice mouthfeel and a long finish. Went well with duck, but not with the stinky soft cheese that I can't remember the name of anymore.
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Nose of dark red fruit, rasberry, and black cherry, mocha, with a hint of smoke (OAK). Smooth mouthful with rich taste of chocolate coffee, and cherry. Strong tannis on finish that lingers until your next drink.
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Dark cherries on steroids, tight bouquet and entry. Mouth drying tannins. Definitely could use some time, but very pleasurable today. Not incredibly complex, but good structure and mouthfeel.
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2007 Passport to Woodinville weekend; 3/31/2007-4/1/2007 (Woodinville, WA): Nose mocha, toast, and dark fruits. Blackberry and blueberry flavors with more mocha and some vanilla. Good velvety mouthfeel and a long finish. These are always a huge hit with our group, though there is always the dissapointment of knowing that it's not the real 2003 Quilceda Creek you're drinking. I can deal with that kind of dissapointment though.
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Started drinking upon opening -- needed a lot more time -- very tight and tannic at the start. Over a few hours, it opened up nicely and showed a lot of potential. Wish I could have been a lot more patient, certainly will be next time....
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What a fantastic wine. Decanted for 2 hours prior to drinking. Lots of sweet fruits (blackberry, blueberry, cherry) on the nose and palate. The oak was well integrated and not overdone. Very substantial wine here, full bodied. Lengthy, meaningful finish with little to no perceptible heat.
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My first QC. The nose was somewhat floral and delicate which belied some intense dark fruit on the palate. Velvety but with a bit of grip, the fruit was sweet and black (currant, cherries, plum). Some toast in there that should integrate better with time. The finish was long although mostly fruit driven. It should improve with some age when the fruit mellows and allows some more of the structure to come through. Not the most complex or deep fruited wine in the world, but a great value Cabernet and a pleasurable wine with food or without.
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Popped and poured. Opaque purple-red color. Flamboyant nose of oak and fruit (smelled more like an Australian shiraz than a Washington Cab). Same over-ripe, over-blown flavors on the palate. Well made but not to my taste.
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I opened and decanted the bottle an hour ahead of dinner and poured the wine back into the bottle. The color was a plum purple, almost black. The nose revealed blackberry, dark cherries and hints of vanilla & cedar. You could definitely tell the blend is predominately cab (and cab from a great year). It's 88% cab. On the palate there was dark fruits, vanilla, and cherry. It's a very dense, thick wine. The finish was 30+ seconds long. This wine is huge, especially for a $35 bottle of wine. I could have (should have decanted this 2 hours ahead of time. It was a little chewy at the start, but the tannins really smoothed out by the end of dinner. I plan on laying down the rest of what I have (only 2 bottles unfortunately) for a minimum of a year. A great bottle of wine.
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Improved immensely with two hours in the decanter. Initially disjointed, hot, and even a bit thin, with a surprisingly restrained nose. Later the nose opened up, the wonderful dark fruit comes out, blending very nicely with the oak. The initial heat also faded. With another hour or so the oak came to dominate the (now very open) nose. Not unpleasant to me, but would probably turn off those averse to lots of wood.
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Very disappointing. My first QC and it's nothing like the other tasting notes at all. Vegetal (cabbage, green peppers) with an incredible amount of oak and a bit of menthol, too. Tastes as if it is a ham handed attempt to mask poor quality fruit, grown in an unfavorable climate with a lot of oak. I hope I just had a "bad bottle." Otherwise, I would conclude that what Parker rated as 92 points and what was sent to me were two different wines.
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Very dark red / purple, opaque. Lots of oak on the nose. Dark fruit, cedar, and mint. Lots of nice cabernet character. Big structure on the palate. Lots of tannin, sweet fruit, some alcohol, and a low to moderate amont of acidity. medium-full body. Long finish with more oak and dark fruit. Straight forward and one-dimensional right now. This will be a really nice wine if some secondary characteristics develop with bottle age and all the oak iintegrates. 50 + 5 + 11 + 15 + 8
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Double decanted for one hour and consumed over five hours. Medium-bodied wine that is dark garnet in color. On the nose, reticent plums and toasted oak. On the palate, cassis, dark berries, and overt wood with a very long 30-40 second finish. The fruit is there, but this wine needs time to absorb the wood and relax the grippy tannic structure. I'll wait on the next bottle for at least 12-18 months.
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I won't even give this bottle a numeric rating. Ick...liquid oak. It was opened (the bottle stayed in 63 degree temp environment) and for four hours it was oak and alcohol or just oak on the palate. Consistent with a couple of the other TNs. I wish I had a bottle that some of the other TNs had. I'd never had a QC wine before and was looking forward to it...big disappointment. The remaining 5 bottles will rest in the cellar for a good amount of time.
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I enjoyed this quite a bit, and for the price, outstanding. It's almost like a "lite" version of the primary QC wine. A lot of red and black fruit -- plum comes to mind. The tannins are almost sweet. Long finish, albeit less complex than the main wine or most truly premier cabs. Drinking very well now.
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Deep ruby color leads to a closed nose with hints of black cherry and vanilla. The body is suprisingly open given the nose with classic cab flavors of black cherry, currant, and smokey vanilla. The finish last almost half a minute and shows little heat. This is enjoyable now the the possibility for improvement with age. A lot of wine for $30.
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Over powering oak and alcohol. Dry, puckering tannins and a lot of heat on the begining, mid and finish. The QC fruit is barely peeking through. Hope this wine integrates with time, but not likely. Enjoyed the 02 significantly more.(This was night 2 and only slightly better than 1st night)
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Very smokey on the nose with a hint of casis liqour and dark fruits. The palate has good balance with smoke, spice and a bit of dark cherry and blackberry. Good acidity as well with a 20-30 second finish. Not very complex, but very very good for the price IMO.
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Popped and poured, and drank over the course of 3 hours. On the 1st taste the alcohol was very dominant. I let it sit in the glass for 45 minutes and came back to it. The alocohol had blown off and the wine started to show its stuff. Nice nose of dark fruits, some floral hints, and a little bit of vanilla and oak. On the palate, this all follows through, nicely integrated with a great feel and finish. It was fun to try one of these tonight, but the rest will sit for another couple years.
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Well made with rich chocolate, berries and oaky vanilla on nose and palate. Fine tannins. I find the oak is a bit overbearing to warrant a higher score.
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Pop and pour, consumed over 45 minutes (group dinner). Dark fruits, fine-grained tanins deposited in your mouth, this was a very approachable and enjoyable wine. Smooth mouthfeel, 20+ second finish, great value.
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1/14/2023 - BobbaWA Likes this wine: 92 Points
I figured 20 years was long enough to wait from vintage to opening this bottle. It exceeded expectations! Lots of fruit and structure, with cassis and plum. Stone and cedar flavors as well. Last one, and quite enjoyed it!
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3/1/2022 - ayalao3 wrote: 90 Points
Declining or past it’s prime. Drinkable, long decant may help.
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8/13/2017 - buckeye76 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Blackberries, currants, and a touch of floral in the nose. Blackberries, black cherries, plums, and a hint of spice in the flavor. Medium body and a medium to long finish.
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8/10/2017 - mebarry Likes this wine: 92 Points
Deep dark color, dark stone fruit and cassis flavors. Balanced and lasting on the pallette.
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6/19/2017 - King of all vines wrote: 90 Points
A couple of years left to enjoy.
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2/5/2017 - hanasowner wrote: 87 Points
On the decline in my opinion.
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10/26/2015 - jwebtx wrote:
Sweet red cherry candy. Simple. Medium body. Strong oak smell. Tongue numb after a few sips. Glad it was my last one. Drain.
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9/23/2015 - wine4ever wrote: 88 Points
Last one. Same notes as previous bottle.
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4/15/2015 - JayAAllen Likes this wine: 88 Points
Tannins were well integrated. Some fruit still evident, with a hint of leather on the finish. Time to drink up.
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9/7/2014 - hanasowner wrote: 87 Points
Popped and poured...dark cherries on the nose, but also more than just a whiff of alcohol...medium body...decent mouthfeel, but also with some funk...almost Bordeaux-like in that respect...okay finish. Have had much better QC Red Wine.
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8/29/2014 - wine4ever wrote: 88 Points
Not much change since last year. The 2003 is better than the 2004, but not by much (the balance is better in the 2003 as is the nose). The first glass was the best and subsequent glasses slowly decline. Bricking on the edges, medium body, dark cherry, vanilla, smoke and pepper. Hot finish, still a touch of tannins. It's not bad, it's just not worth $35. Drink within next 12-15 months - or hold for 5 years and see if a miracle happens.
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8/8/2014 - dkstar1 wrote: 86 Points
meh. maybe an 87 a few years ago.
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4/10/2014 - marka wrote: 88 Points
A nice wine that is finally, after 10 years, in balance. A great price at 35 or whatever, but it doesn't seem like a good deal to have to hang on to a wine for 10 years just to get rid of the oak, and have a qpr.
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12/22/2013 - galewskj Does not like this wine: 88 Points
Not horrible, but I was expecting more balance. This wine seems very new world, oaky and fruity. Other people at the tasting liked it even less than me.
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12/21/2013 - rocknroller wrote:
Annual Tasting Group Holiday Party (Porter Creek, Mpls, MN): Very dark, purple-red color. Followed 1 glass over 60 minutes. Even though this is not the flagship wine, I have to admit I expected more from a somewhat iconic producer with 10 years of bottle age. The fruit seemed to have faded and left us with a lot of oak, wood spice, and alcohol, that I had a hard time with. I have to hope and believe that this would have been better 3 or 4 years ago. Based on other's recent tasting notes, it appears this is not likely a bottle variation issue. Score withheld, disappointing.
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11/30/2013 - GA_Seattle wrote: 86 Points
Faintly floral nose. Very little fruit remaining, somewhat austere, probably over the hill. Don't hold any longer.
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9/3/2013 - wine4ever wrote: 89 Points
Not as good as it use to be. Losing fruit. I'd like these more if they had more complexity. Enjoyable, but a tad 'boring'. Drank over 2 nights...no improvement. Drink by 2015.
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7/6/2013 - marka wrote: 87 Points
Smooth, but underwhelming. I am quite certain I got caught up in the QC hysteria a few years ago. Hopefully, the QC Cabs shows better than the RTW when I open them. For the price, a good deal if one wants to wait 10 years for a 38 dollar wine to show decent. Personal preference....
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11/6/2012 - greenblanket wrote:
Big and full of dark cab primary and secondary flavors. Ripe but time is proving that it's not ripe to an extreme. No obtrusive oak sticking out anywhere. Things seem to be only improving and Greenblanket is starting to suspect that this big boy might be able to cross over to the other side.
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8/10/2012 - SeaSmoke wrote: 90 Points
Big wine with plenty of "stuff" to keep going for sometime. Others tasting agreed that we had drunk this young and it was still coming together. Very smooth, tannins are mild but it definitely needed time after having been decanted for 2 hours. Wait if you can.
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2/11/2012 - BonnieM wrote:
Dark fruit, cocoa powder, I think this has years left in it. Drinking very well now, great with meat but you can hold. Lots of stuffing to go to the distance.
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10/11/2011 - davidandrose wrote: 94 Points
Inadvertantly popped another one of these not realising that the last bottle was only 2.5 months ago. This was again an extremely enjoyable and pleasant wine, with floral notes upfront and a very smooth, approachable palate. Really smooth and silky, this possesses a sound balance between structure that indicates several years of life before this peaks, and both red and dark fruits. Really enjoying this, and you should too.
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8/11/2011 - phantphant wrote: 92 Points
LOVELY ...this is really tasting great. Deep, intense, earthy....yumm.
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7/23/2011 - davidandrose wrote: 92 Points
Decanted and drunk over 4.5 hours. Cherry, violets and a whiff of blueberry were evident on the nose upon opening; as the evening progressed the nose was floral with wood and alcohol. Very smooth, and with airtime exceptionally smooth, with a silky layer of coating tannins giving way to ripe red fruit, some blackberry and a mild tartness. Oak is evident in the finish, but this is a great wine that goes well with food, and still has many years ahead of it.
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7/3/2011 - Knicksfan wrote: 91 Points
Pleasantly surprised by this wine. Big cab flavor of cherry and raspberry but good structure and long finish.
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6/18/2011 - wine4ever wrote: 91 Points
Similar to previous note. A big, heavy, juicy wine. Drank over 2 nights, excellent both nights. Lots of dark cherry, some tarry notes and light wood....great with steak. It's still in it's sweet drinking window...enjoy over next 3-4 years.
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6/7/2011 - DFC wrote: 91 Points
Double decanted and poured and then consumed over 5 hours. Medium-bodied wine that is dark magenta/garnet in color. On the palate, dark berries, floral notes, and light wood smoke. On the palate, dark cherries, cocoa powder, and vanilla oak on an extremely long 40+ second finish. Well-balanced and still loaded with fruit, this wine has good structure and acidity. While not a wine that excites the passions perhaps, it is well-made, enjoyable, and pairs pretty well with food.
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4/28/2011 - luchavino wrote: 90 Points
The nose shows bright cherry, currant and mineral with a bit of peat in the background when first opened. The palate is mostly currant with some hints of sour pie cherry and a light cedar tannin finish. With air the nose builds up with some smoked meat notes and the palate has added some nice cedar baking spice to the finish. On day two the palate has developed semi-sweet chocolate and coffee notes on the palate and finish.
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3/7/2011 - DollarMenunaire wrote: 88 Points
Nose is nice but largely oak-driven. Palate is understated but the body and texture leave something to be desired. Some off-putting heat on the short-medium finish. Underwhelming overall and too much alcohol for the level of extract. I don't see this improving any further and I would question the longevity as well. This would be a good candidate for a double-blind when you can't see the pretty label.
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3/4/2011 - Uglypinga wrote:
Crowd pleasing wine with ripe raspberries and blackberries in both nose and palate. Simple and straightforward. Medium to full weight and smooth as silk. Very good drink.
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1/23/2011 - Marc McSorley wrote:
used for heathers chocaltes for her 40th
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12/19/2010 - Philly-O wrote: 91 Points
wine4ever was spot-on in their description.
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10/1/2010 - GA_Seattle wrote: 88 Points
Medium cloudy red color with a rust hue. Primary fruit has retreated leaving faint raspberries and spice notes. Mouthfeel is moderate, tannins are light with modest acidity remaining.
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8/29/2010 - BonnieM wrote:
No heat, medium body wine. Drinking nicely but could probably hold for a bit longer. Dark fruit, acid and tannin well integrated.
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7/19/2010 - phantphant wrote: 93 Points
This is terrific right now. Total depth...reminds me of the bigger QC vintages. Yummmmmmmmy! And long lasting.
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3/24/2010 - sossher wrote: 87 Points
Decanted for 30 minutes. I had high expectations of this wine, and I was just slightly underwhelmed. It was enjoyable, but I tasted some heat (not too suprising at 14.9% alcohol), which detracted from the experience.
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2/6/2010 - TomH wrote: 87 Points
Decent richness and good persistence, but no real character or distinctiveness. Alcoholic heat is noticeable. Decanted for two hours.
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12/25/2009 - wine4ever wrote: 91 Points
Has put on some weight since the first time I had it. A medium-bodied red-blend. The nose is still a bit shy at this point. Palate has black currant, dark cherries, and a hint of smoke. This is probably in it's peak drinking window now. Not incredibly complex, but it has nice rounded flavors, a pleasant texture, and it's very well balanced. Drink over next 4-5 years.
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10/22/2009 - *Vine* wrote: 91 Points
Popped and poured. Medium-plus ruby/garnet hue. Initial whiff of funk on the nose, blows off after about 45 minutes to show forward aromas of sappy, red fruits, an intriguing floral note (violets?), tobacco, incense, and vanilla bean. Medium-plus body. On the palate, this wine shows the trademark QC flavor of blueberries along with black fruits, spice from oak, and a herbaceous tinge that has developed with bottle age. Tannins are silky on the finish. This could easily age for another 2-4+ years but is drinking quite nicely right now with aeration or a short decant. Nice expression of WA Cabernet Sauvignon.
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10/19/2009 - twielar wrote: 90 Points
Good to go. drink over the next 1-2 years
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10/4/2009 - dea wrote:
Seamless, smooth and silky. Drinking well but don't think it will get but so much better.
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7/25/2009 - last chance wrote: 90 Points
The nose had cherry and blackberry aromas. The palate had currant flavors with notes of earth. Quite a bit of heat here as well. Medium to full bodied with a medium length finish. I just wasn't overly impressed with this bottle. I should have drank it a couple years ago when I really was enjoying them. It just didn't seem very complex or distinctive. I know that this is a great value in comparison to Quilceda's flagship Cab, but I just think that there's a lot of other WA wines now that can play in the league of the Quilceda Red Wine at the same price.
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7/10/2009 - davidandrose wrote: 92 Points
Pop and pour. Slightly tannic, great blue fruits. Typically excellent with years ahead of it.
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5/24/2009 - Philly-O wrote: 92 Points
it did not besmeerch it's fine reputation.
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4/5/2009 - SeaSmoke wrote: 90 Points
Wine still coming together. Fruit is evident, tannins are mild.
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2/2/2009 - phantphant wrote: 92 Points
WOnderful, tasty and fruity juice.....
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1/31/2009 - GA_Seattle wrote: 83 Points
Dave & Becky brought over a bottle to our impromptu wine evening. This one was definitely past its prime, nose had nice floral and fruit, but the palate was very thin with little to no finish left. Perhaps just a bad bottle?
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1/27/2009 - brynmair wrote: 89 Points
An approachable wine but just not up to the standard of the others being poured that night.
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12/31/2008 - mye wrote: 92 Points
Dark red/purple. decant for 30 mins. currant/fruit/earth on the nose, fruit on the palate. Well integrated tannins, smooth and well balanced acidity.
Delightful, and enjoyed with a roast chicken, Penne dish.
Loved it!
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12/26/2008 - jwebtx wrote:
2nd bottle with similar results. The wine showed hot with a bitter finish. It did not pair well with ny strips with cracked pepper. There was fruit but my palate was distracted by the negatives. Maybe not my cup of tea.
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10/15/2008 - *Vine* wrote: 91 Points
Popped and aerated for about 60 minutes. Dark in glass with forward aromas of black fruits, red fruits, currant, and oak. Velvety, silken texture. The oak has definitely integrated, allowing the fruit to shine....and yes, the blueberry element is strong...but is complimented on the palate by a swathe of black and red fruits, vanilla bean, and spice. The tannins, although certainly present, are supple and well integrated. A touch of heat does detract but really, this is as phenomenal a 2nd wine as one can find for the money.
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10/12/2008 - DianeR wrote: 92 Points
Wonderful wine. Very well-integrated, with notes of cherry and tobacco. Wish I had more - and it's hard to believe that this is declassified juice.
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10/8/2008 - EricBe wrote: 92 Points
Delicious with roast chicken. A bit earthy and tannic without being chewy. Fruit forward but not all fruit. Delightful.
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10/8/2008 - phantphant wrote: 90 Points
Should have decanted it. Did not live up to the QC expecations I had!
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8/11/2008 - borneman wrote: 93 Points
Decanted 3 hours. Big nose of cassis. Flavors of cassis, red currant, Good & Plenty, and PB&J. Long finish. This will only get better in a couple of years.
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7/23/2008 - pakabear wrote: 92 Points
No formal note take, this wine was better then expected and continued to become much better throughout the night. I remember noting that it has at least 5 years ahead of it, probably more.
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7/22/2008 - nvandyk wrote: 93 Points
Drinking very well now
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7/13/2008 - phantphant wrote: 94 Points
YUM YUM YUM YUM YUM
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6/23/2008 - greenblanket wrote:
From the dark color in the glass to the big bouquet of blueberry led dark fruit to the dense dark chocolaty palate to the long vanilla and fruit finish this is a new world Washington State big boy all the way. And that's OK because the pieces of this wine are starting to fit into place. The once obtrusive oak is now a fairly well integrated element and there is actually a good sense of balance between big fruit, smoothing tannin and bright acidity. Excellent and Greenblanket thinks there is still ample room for improvement.
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6/16/2008 - dawgdaze wrote: 88 Points
The color was a plum purple, almost black. The nose revealed blackberry, dark cherries and hints of vanilla & cedar. You could definitely tell the blend is predominately cab (and cab from a great year). On the palate there was dark fruits, cherry. It's a very dense, thick wine. On the palate the wood dominates. A little chewy at the start, but the tannins really smoothed out by the end of dinner.
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5/21/2008 - Zinlady wrote: 91 Points
this wine was delicious with a steak, so rich tasting, balanced, full bodied. It had a long finish
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3/9/2008 - phantphant wrote: 94 Points
From the first sip, this has depth, and total earth. Amazing table wine. It sits on the midpalate like velvet...hard to convince myself to swallow...but when I do, it's pearls.
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2/3/2008 - scorpiojoe wrote: 89 Points
This wine was a mess for me. Too much alcohol on the nose. Monolithic. The blueberry notes that characterize the 2003 QC Cab seem to be in this wine as well, but the excessive alcohol killed it. The label says 14.9%, but it smelled and tasted like 17%. Maybe this was consumed too early?
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1/19/2008 - RJonesUSC wrote: 93 Points
Decanted 2 hours. Still tastes very young. Good acidity, tannin, fruit with fair amount of oak. Very good wine, very well balanced, great QPR.
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1/1/2008 - jwcnd69 wrote: 88 Points
Drank with a few older Bordeaux and it was overpowering. Better by itself.
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12/22/2007 - johnnyo wrote: 92 Points
A great wine.
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12/21/2007 - last chance wrote: 92 Points
The nose had that wonderful blue/black fruit aroma with some cherry notes. The flavors were a little darker and more resolved than I had experienced in earlier tastings. This is a really nice second label bottling.
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11/21/2007 - SeaSmoke wrote: 91 Points
Very nice bottle. I would wait for a year or two before drinking. This has a long way to go.
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9/27/2007 - bubbachumps wrote: 90 Points
Dark purple wine with deep cherry, subtle cassis and cedary oak on the nose (prominent, but not overpowering). High toned and tight on the entry after a pop and pour. Noticeable tannins that are fine grained and do not detract from the experience. Powerful wine, tightly wound wine that balances the elements nicely.
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9/13/2007 - dawgdaze wrote: 88 Points
Decanterd 2 hours before drinking. Color: very dark red. Nose: Dark fruit, some floral hints. Palate: Blackberrys and cherry. On the palate the wood dominates. I will cellar my other 6 bottles for at least a year then try another.
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8/28/2007 - pakabear wrote: 93 Points
This has gotten much better after a year, very smooth and silky with the tannins much softer then last year.
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8/18/2007 - borneman wrote: 91 Points
Decanted for 2 hours. Some sediment in bottle. Nose is a little hot and didn't detect the fruit. Big on the palate. Silky tannins, a little hot with lots of oak still to be integrated. Tasted from a reidel zin glass first then a reidel Cab glass and have to say the Cab glass made a huge difference. Finishes long and chocolately. Will be even better in a couple of years. 91 for now.
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8/17/2007 - marka wrote: 87 Points
This was slightly better than the first bottle in Oct06. Color was light purple, kind of like grape jelly; nose had subtle red fruit; palate was heavy on oak and alcohol. Got better after 20 minutes and it was at its best (which is not saying a whole lot) after 2 hours. Starting to wonder if QC if for me.
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8/17/2007 - rsepulve wrote: 91 Points
Ripe dark fruits complemented by smoke, cedar and vanilla. Dark chocolate and coffee on the long finish. Good balance.
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8/11/2007 - Dave Dalluge wrote:
Craig Vanderah's Annual BBQ (Pax, Kosta Brown, Beaucastel, Donjon, Turley, Loring, Neal): Bright ruby red color. The nose is dominated by red fruit and oak. Nice until Steve started mentioning a strong odor of urine. For a moment it reminded me of the SNL skip where the family is passing around spoiled milk and getting everone to take a big whiff. That really put the group off any further analysis. Seemed a bit lean on the palate, and was extremely tannic. The finish was pretty strong. Not rated as we dumped this and moved on after Steve's comment.
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6/30/2007 - DaveF wrote: 80 Points
Great color, great nose, but the heat was overtaking the fruit. Not real pleasurable to drink right now. Will hold off drinking another one for about a year. Hopefully will come back together.
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6/30/2007 - incident wrote: 90 Points
Decanted for 2 hours, consumed over the next 2 hours. Deep, dark red, clear hue. Lots of spicy oak on the nose, followed by very deep toned red and blue fruit. Similar notes of red and blue fruits, smoke, chocolate, mocha, tar on the medium length finish. Medium to full body. Showing a small amount of heat on the finish. Tannins have mellowed considerably. Lots of room for a higher score over the next 2-3 years. Very good value for the money.
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6/27/2007 - olm2000 wrote: 88 Points
pleasant, but a bit unbalanced...decent qpr
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5/27/2007 - garthbernstein wrote: 97 Points
Opened for 4 hours prior to drinking, did not decant. Flavors changed often throughout the meal, ate with grilled sausages from organic meat vendor at farmer's market with red peppers. BIG, full-bodied and intense. First, started with butter and grass and alcohol, but after a few minutes the alcohol burned off and was softer with incredible complexity. Tasted GREAT, even though would go better with a tomato based meat sauce pasta.
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4/20/2007 - last chance wrote: 91 Points
Dark garnet color with ruby rim. Nose of toasty oak, dark fruits and spice. Blue and Black fruit flavors with vanilla, spice and mocha. Nice mouthfeel and a long finish. Went well with duck, but not with the stinky soft cheese that I can't remember the name of anymore.
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4/13/2007 - Rico Suave wrote: 90 Points
Nose of dark red fruit, rasberry, and black cherry, mocha, with a hint of smoke (OAK). Smooth mouthful with rich taste of chocolate coffee, and cherry. Strong tannis on finish that lingers until your next drink.
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4/8/2007 - bubbachumps wrote: 91 Points
Dark cherries on steroids, tight bouquet and entry. Mouth drying tannins. Definitely could use some time, but very pleasurable today. Not incredibly complex, but good structure and mouthfeel.
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3/31/2007 - last chance wrote: 91 Points
2007 Passport to Woodinville weekend; 3/31/2007-4/1/2007 (Woodinville, WA): Nose mocha, toast, and dark fruits. Blackberry and blueberry flavors with more mocha and some vanilla. Good velvety mouthfeel and a long finish. These are always a huge hit with our group, though there is always the dissapointment of knowing that it's not the real 2003 Quilceda Creek you're drinking. I can deal with that kind of dissapointment though.
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3/19/2007 - johnnyo wrote: 91 Points
excllent wine for the price. rich velvety with plenty of complexity. Should cellar well for several years.
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3/4/2007 - flashvictor wrote: 92 Points
This has put on some weight over the last 6 months.
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2/7/2007 - epml wrote: 91 Points
Had at group dinner at n9ne steakhouse LV. This could use some more time but showed a lot of potential.
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2/5/2007 - mgoblue1994 wrote: 89 Points
Started drinking upon opening -- needed a lot more time -- very tight and tannic at the start. Over a few hours, it opened up nicely and showed a lot of potential. Wish I could have been a lot more patient, certainly will be next time....
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1/30/2007 - phantphant wrote: 93 Points
Awesome taste...this is deep in earth and explosive in leathery bliss.
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1/21/2007 - Ecbatana wrote: 92 Points
What a fantastic wine. Decanted for 2 hours prior to drinking. Lots of sweet fruits (blackberry, blueberry, cherry) on the nose and palate. The oak was well integrated and not overdone. Very substantial wine here, full bodied. Lengthy, meaningful finish with little to no perceptible heat.
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1/11/2007 - bsherwin wrote:
My first QC. The nose was somewhat floral and delicate which belied some intense dark fruit on the palate. Velvety but with a bit of grip, the fruit was sweet and black (currant, cherries, plum). Some toast in there that should integrate better with time. The finish was long although mostly fruit driven. It should improve with some age when the fruit mellows and allows some more of the structure to come through. Not the most complex or deep fruited wine in the world, but a great value Cabernet and a pleasurable wine with food or without.
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12/26/2006 - tomandlu wrote: 88 Points
Popped and poured. Opaque purple-red color. Flamboyant nose of oak and fruit (smelled more like an Australian shiraz than a Washington Cab). Same over-ripe, over-blown flavors on the palate. Well made but not to my taste.
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12/18/2006 - bubbachumps wrote: 91 Points
Very nice cab for the money. Tannins present, but buttressed with abundant fruit. Blackberry and and dark cherries. Should improve with some age.
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12/16/2006 - wine guy wrote: 93 Points
I opened and decanted the bottle an hour ahead of dinner and poured the wine back into the bottle. The color was a plum purple, almost black. The nose revealed blackberry, dark cherries and hints of vanilla & cedar. You could definitely tell the blend is predominately cab (and cab from a great year). It's 88% cab. On the palate there was dark fruits, vanilla, and cherry. It's a very dense, thick wine. The finish was 30+ seconds long. This wine is huge, especially for a $35 bottle of wine. I could have (should have decanted this 2 hours ahead of time. It was a little chewy at the start, but the tannins really smoothed out by the end of dinner. I plan on laying down the rest of what I have (only 2 bottles unfortunately) for a minimum of a year. A great bottle of wine.
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12/12/2006 - randomly wrote: 87 Points
Do not touch for at least 12 more months
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12/11/2006 - jim dixon wrote: 90 Points
Improved immensely with two hours in the decanter. Initially disjointed, hot, and even a bit thin, with a surprisingly restrained nose. Later the nose opened up, the wonderful dark fruit comes out, blending very nicely with the oak. The initial heat also faded. With another hour or so the oak came to dominate the (now very open) nose. Not unpleasant to me, but would probably turn off those averse to lots of wood.
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12/8/2006 - rothdog wrote: 83 Points
Very disappointing. My first QC and it's nothing like the other tasting notes at all. Vegetal (cabbage, green peppers) with an incredible amount of oak and a bit of menthol, too. Tastes as if it is a ham handed attempt to mask poor quality fruit, grown in an unfavorable climate with a lot of oak. I hope I just had a "bad bottle." Otherwise, I would conclude that what Parker rated as 92 points and what was sent to me were two different wines.
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11/26/2006 - ChiWineGuy wrote: 92 Points
Dark fruits, cassis and vanilla nose. Sweet tannins and berries on the palate. Very nice wine that has a good future.
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11/25/2006 - EricBe wrote: 89 Points
Had with roast beef - quite nice
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11/22/2006 - kris.h wrote: 89 Points
Very dark red / purple, opaque. Lots of oak on the nose. Dark fruit, cedar, and mint. Lots of nice cabernet character. Big structure on the palate. Lots of tannin, sweet fruit, some alcohol, and a low to moderate amont of acidity. medium-full body. Long finish with more oak and dark fruit. Straight forward and one-dimensional right now. This will be a really nice wine if some secondary characteristics develop with bottle age and all the oak iintegrates. 50 + 5 + 11 + 15 + 8
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11/10/2006 - DFC wrote: 90 Points
Double decanted for one hour and consumed over five hours. Medium-bodied wine that is dark garnet in color. On the nose, reticent plums and toasted oak. On the palate, cassis, dark berries, and overt wood with a very long 30-40 second finish. The fruit is there, but this wine needs time to absorb the wood and relax the grippy tannic structure. I'll wait on the next bottle for at least 12-18 months.
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11/4/2006 - marka wrote:
I won't even give this bottle a numeric rating. Ick...liquid oak. It was opened (the bottle stayed in 63 degree temp environment) and for four hours it was oak and alcohol or just oak on the palate. Consistent with a couple of the other TNs. I wish I had a bottle that some of the other TNs had. I'd never had a QC wine before and was looking forward to it...big disappointment. The remaining 5 bottles will rest in the cellar for a good amount of time.
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11/3/2006 - nvandyk wrote: 93 Points
I enjoyed this quite a bit, and for the price, outstanding. It's almost like a "lite" version of the primary QC wine. A lot of red and black fruit -- plum comes to mind. The tannins are almost sweet. Long finish, albeit less complex than the main wine or most truly premier cabs. Drinking very well now.
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11/2/2006 - jameswm13 wrote: 89 Points
Wait a few more years.
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10/29/2006 - flashvictor wrote: 90 Points
Deep ruby color leads to a closed nose with hints of black cherry and vanilla. The body is suprisingly open given the nose with classic cab flavors of black cherry, currant, and smokey vanilla. The finish last almost half a minute and shows little heat. This is enjoyable now the the possibility for improvement with age. A lot of wine for $30.
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10/27/2006 - Rob A wrote: 86 Points
Over powering oak and alcohol. Dry, puckering tannins and a lot of heat on the begining, mid and finish. The QC fruit is barely peeking through. Hope this wine integrates with time, but not likely. Enjoyed the 02 significantly more.(This was night 2 and only slightly better than 1st night)
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10/27/2006 - pakabear wrote: 91 Points
Very smokey on the nose with a hint of casis liqour and dark fruits. The palate has good balance with smoke, spice and a bit of dark cherry and blackberry. Good acidity as well with a 20-30 second finish. Not very complex, but very very good for the price IMO.
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10/26/2006 - MTC wrote: 91 Points
Refined. I do not find the big fruit nose but the wine is balanced. Slightly musky.
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10/24/2006 - ChillyWino wrote: 90 Points
Popped and poured, and drank over the course of 3 hours. On the 1st taste the alcohol was very dominant. I let it sit in the glass for 45 minutes and came back to it. The alocohol had blown off and the wine started to show its stuff. Nice nose of dark fruits, some floral hints, and a little bit of vanilla and oak. On the palate, this all follows through, nicely integrated with a great feel and finish. It was fun to try one of these tonight, but the rest will sit for another couple years.
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10/23/2006 - WST wrote: 88 Points
Well made with rich chocolate, berries and oaky vanilla on nose and palate. Fine tannins. I find the oak is a bit overbearing to warrant a higher score.
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10/21/2006 - last chance wrote: 92 Points
Nose of mocha, light earth, and dark fruits. Berry flavors with mocha and vanilla. Really enjoyed this bottle.
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10/21/2006 - davidandrose wrote: 92 Points
Pop and pour, consumed over 45 minutes (group dinner). Dark fruits, fine-grained tanins deposited in your mouth, this was a very approachable and enjoyable wine. Smooth mouthfeel, 20+ second finish, great value.
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