Light golden in color.  The nose is nice with lemon cream and some minerals.  A bit buttery and slightly oaky.  On the palate, this is nice acidity.  Lemon with cream.  Decent balance.  Works well with food.  Slight depth and complexity; probably won't get better.  Good drinking right now.  A nice compromise for those who like buttery/oaky and those who don't.  

Glass "cork" is very cool.  Purple in color.  This is a pretty classic Washington Cabernet.  The nose has cassis, black cherries, tobacco and slight bell pepper.  On the palate, this is in a good place if still a bit young.  Cassis layered with tobacco and earth.  Some tannins.  Slightly bitter in a good way.  Nice finish.  This works well with food.  Probably will continue to mature and layer, but not really get better, just different.  Very nice wine right now.  

Nice to revisit this wine.  It is starting to really hit its stride at this point although it did continue to open after popping the cork.  Purple in color.  The nose is deep with leather, iodine, boysenberries and a slight grilled meat component.  On the palate, this has a cooler climate profile.  Boysenberry fruit.  Layers of dry leather.  Good balance.  Medium to full bodied.  Would work well with a wide variety of foods.  It has depth and a nice complexity but also drinks easy.  Good finish.  

Produced at the Co-Op of Cave Vinicole de Kietzenheim-Kaysersberg in Alsace.  Light golden in color.  The nose is nice with slight lychee nut but also some tropical fruits.  On the palate, this is off dry (slightly sweet).  It has nice tropical fruit with a slightly viscous texture.  A slight minerality as well.  Good finish.  This retails for around $22.  Food friendly.   Drink in the next five to seven years.  Colorful label.  

This was an experiment Justin Smith did back in 2005.  He let the wine stay in barrels for 44 months before bottling it.  This extended ageing as it is called is interesting.  One might think the wine would be ready earlier but conversely, it seems to take even longer for the wines to be ready to drink.  This one is now in a great place and if you have one, consider popping the cork.  A GSM blend, but mostly Syrah.  Purple in color.  The nose is great with black raspberries, iodine, decayed meats, leather, slight bacon fat and an earthy/musk.  On the palate, this has a wonderful lightness a

Note:  Back label is pictured for this review.  This wine has reviewed many times but it been a few months.  Light golden in color.  The nose is big and bold and excellent.  Slight oxidation with clean and vibrant baked bread.  Much more vibrant than some prior bottles.  Also some slight ginger and a bit of apples.  On the palate, this is explosive.  Great balance.  Slight apples with a nice minerality.  Served at just cooler than room temp which was perfect (maybe 62F).  Complex and deep.  Food friendly.  If well stored bottles of this are still on the shelf, it is worth finding them and b

Deep golden in color, starting to show some oxidation.  The nose also shows it but still there is some honey quality.  On the palate, this  is slightly sweet.  Past prime but still with some life to give.  Honey and slight peach fruits.  A bit of acidity.  A nice finish to a meal.  

Wow!  Incredible.  Opened, decanted and it was singing and drained quickly.  Ruby in color, just a bit of browning on the edges.  The nose is ethereal.  Cherries, dried cherries, slight tar, dried roses in an intoxicating perfume.  On the palate, this is just getting to maturity.  A wonderful texture that is velvety yet slick.  Each sip makes you want another one.  On the palate, this still has light tannins; just enough to grip.  Great acidity.  Layers of fruit, tar and earth.  Long finish.  Worked great with food.  No hurry as this has a couple of decades left, but no regrets about drinki

This was a new wine for me.  Apparently, in some vintages it will have some Petit Verdot or other international varietals but in 2011 it was 100% Sangiovese.  They really nailed it in this very good if not great vintage.  Purple in color.  The nose is cherries with some sandalwood and slight vanilla.  Clean and bright if still young.  More open on the palate, but at the same time, this is quite tannic.  A very structured wine.  It needs some time flesh out but it is very deep and yet elegant at the same time.  Cherries, macerated cherries and slight coffee notes on the palate.  Good acidity

Pop and pour, this was pretty tight, so the wine was decanted which helped.  Still, it probably needs five more years but has a couple of decades of life left.  Drank side by side with the regular 1999 version of this wine.  Ruby in color with some purple, lighter than the 99.  The wine in general, however, is a much bigger wine.  The nose is gorgeous with cherries, black cherries, sandalwood and dry Earl Grey tea.  On the palate, this is tightly wound, but it already shows great layering and complexity.  A wonderful texture; slippery yet bold if that makes sense.  Great acidity.  Long fini