2000 Carruades de Lafite, France, Bordeaux, Pauillac, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2000
Score: 
91
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$225.00USD

Tasted from a Magnum.  Purple in color with ruby swirls, opaque and bright.  The nose is earthy with cigar tobacco but plenty of fresh cassis.  The wine is mostly clean with just a hint of funk.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, there is tart cassis and cranberry fruit with underlying earthiness.  Showing some complexity.  Good finish.  In Magnum, this is drinking well today and probably close to peak.  This certainly could go another ten years but I doubt it gets better.  It will work better with food and went well with a tomato tart, but fatty meats would be a good choice.  

1986 Château Lynch-Bages, France, Bordeaux, Pauillac, Wine Review

Vintage: 
1986
Score: 
94
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$365.00USD

Great showing for this wine.  Drinking wonderfully at this time.  Seems fully mature, possibly, just slightly past (depending on your tastes).  Purple in color, ruby swirls, but no browning.  The nose is great with cigar box, earthy, some Bordeaux funk but still with some cassis left.  On the palate, this has faint tannins.  Very earthy with cassis, dried black raspberries some tobacco.  Complex.  The layers unwind in the glass.  Wonderful texture.  Long finish.  This drinks great on its own, but would be even better with food.  Roasted veggies or duck would be great.  At this age (34) ever

2002 Louis Latour Corton-Charlemagne, France, Burgundy, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2002
Score: 
91
Grade: 
A-

Drinking very nicely at this time.  Deep golden in color with a slight green hue.  The nose is tight but shows apples, pears and minerals along with just a touch of oxidation.  On the palate, this has slight tannins.  Tart apples with slightly bitter lemons (not in a bad way).  Good acidity although the wine comes off more rich/fat than lean/mean.  Nice finish.  This seems fully mature and these probably should be consumed in the next five to seven years.  

2002 Bollinger Champagne R.D. Extra Brut, France, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2002
Score: 
97
Grade: 
A+
Current Price: 
$200.00USD

Golden in color with a persistent stream of tiny bubble.  Frothy.  The nose is tight at first but opens to show ginger, peach, toast, slight nuttiness and minerality.  On the palate, this is dry and very crisp.  Mostly about minerals, but some peach comes thru.  With air, a slight strawberry note. An incredibly long finish.  Just a delicious and complex Champagne.  Drinking quite youthfully now, it should continue to drink well for the hext couple of decades.  This will work with any food.  

2017 Domaine du Grand Montmirail Gigondas Le coteau de mon rêve, France, Rhone, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2017
Score: 
93
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$30.00USD

Gigondas is a great place to find nice value in Rhone wines.  Montmirail is a good choice for producers in Gigondas.   This is a blend of 75% Grenache, 20% Syrah, and 5% Mourvèdre.  Purple in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has black cherries, black raspberries, black pepper, and some earthiness.  Medium to full bodied.  On the palate, the black cherry fruit dominates over an earthy/forest floor base.  Nice balance.  Mild tannins.  Good finish.  This is drinking well but may still get a bit better over the next five to seven years.  It will drink well for ten to twelve more years

1975 Taylor (Fladgate) Porto Vintage, Portugal, Wine Review

Vintage: 
1975
Score: 
92
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$300.00USD

This was decanted for about 2.5 hours prior to serving.  Very nice showing.  Ruby in color with just slight browning, clear and bright.  The nose shows some age but also some youth left.  Cherries, chocolate covered raisins, and a bit of dust.  Medium bodied.  On the palate, this has a nice layered complexity.  Drinking mature but not over the hill.  Layers of cherries and cranberries with slight milk chocolate.  Tasty.  This is the kind of Port that is probably better to drink on its own and contemplate life, but it did work well with chocolate tiramisu.  It probably should be consumed in

2017 Realm Cellars The Absurd, USA, California, Napa, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2017
Score: 
95
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$725.00USD

This is the top bottling offered by Realm.  They take the best lots in the cellar and blend them into a proprietary blend.  Very little is produced.  In 2017, the fires forced Realm to only utilize fruit that was picked early  on in harvest, so it is likely a different blend that typical.  This is purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with black raspberries, black cherries, spice and cedar.  On the palate, this is more about black cherries with some cherries and some black raspberries.  It has a wonderful texture.  Very concentrated.  Medium to firm tannins.  Nice finish. 

2008 Kapcsándy Family Winery Cabernet Sauvignon (Grand Vin) State Lane Vineyard, USA, California, Napa, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2008
Score: 
96
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$440.00USD

This was opened and allowed to slowly oxidize for 12 hours prior to serving, but that was not enough.  It needed more air/time.  It took over night to really open and was better on day 2.  Despite this being a Robert Parker 100 point wine, this is not what people think of when talking about "Parkerized" wines.

2017 Tenuta San Guido Bolgheri Sassicaia Sassicaia, Italy, Tuscany, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2017
Score: 
95
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$200.00USD

This showed well despite its youthfulness but its best days are certainly ahead.  A blend of 85 % Cabernet Sauvignon 15 % Cabernet Franc.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has cassis, cedar, and spice.  On the palate, plenty of cassis fruit.  Very firm tannins.  Lots of depth but its hard to see the bottom.  Tight but does show a lot of fruit with a very nice texture.  It is delicious today but would recommend 8 hours of air if opening.  This should continue to mature and improve over the next decade or more and drink well for ten to fifteen more after that.  Right now it

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