1989 Château Angélus, France, Bordeaux, St. Émilion, Wine Review

Vintage: 
1989
Score: 
97
Grade: 
A+
Current Price: 
$525.00USD

Stunning showing for this wine.  Its about 50/50 Cabernet Franc and Merlot.  Still youthful and might indeed improve a bit more.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose is complex and enticing with black raspberries, dust, cherries and a slight cocoa note.  With air, a bit of char comes out.  On the palate, this has a "jelly-like" texture which is great.  Lots of black cherry fruit over and char and slight tobacco base.  Tightly layered, the layers unwind nicely in the glass.  It might improve more over the next five years, but should easily be at this level for ten to fifteen years mo

1982 Château Lynch-Bages, France, Bordeaux, Pauillac, Wine Review

Vintage: 
1982
Score: 
97
Grade: 
A+
Current Price: 
$320.00USD

A big surprise on the upside drinking this wine.  It was much younger and better than I expected (and I had high expectations).  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose is young with cassis, cedar, a bit of graphite and slight roasted herbs.  On the palate, what a lovely lush texture.  Still a lot of primary and secondary flavors.  Cassis, chocolate and then with air an underneath of dry forest floor.  Medium tannins.  Nice balance.  Long finish.  This bottle anyway, still needs around five to seven more years to peak, but again, at age 37, all bottles are different.  It would go great

1982 Château Calon-Ségur, France, Bordeaux, St. Estèphe, Wine Review

Vintage: 
1982
Score: 
94
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$225.00USD

This bottle was decanted for an hour and then double decanted back in the bottle.  It might have needed a bit more than that but that was good.  Ruby/purple in color.  Clear and bright.  The nose is a bit of a dusty attic at first.  With air, cherries and cedar come out.  Light tannins on the palate.  Cherries with sandalwood and slight forest floor on the palate.  This has a nice complexity with good layering.  This seems at peak now.  No hurry but it probably should be drunk by 2030.  It will work better at the table at this point, roasted meats, fowl or veggies would be great.  

1982 Château Ducru-Beaucaillou, France, Bordeuax, St. Julien, Wine Review

Vintage: 
1982
Score: 
96
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$320.00USD

Pop and pour, this probably should have been decanted.  It took some time to open up.  Purple/ruby in color.  The nose has cassis, pencil lead, cedar and tobacco.  Cherries come out with air.  This has a slight funk at first but cleans up with air.  A wonderful velvety texture.  Complex and deep.    Lot of cassis and cherries on the palate.  Some cherry cough syrup.  Tart acidity which begs for food.  Long finish.  This seems to finally be at peak though no hurry.  At least a decade more at this level.  This will go well with meat or fowl dishes though not too spicy.  

1986 Château Pavie, France, Bordeaux, St. Emilion, Wine Review

Vintage: 
1986
Score: 
91
Grade: 
A-
Current Price: 
$155.00USD

The first bottle that we opened was corked.  A second bottle proved quite fresh indeed.  This was a surprise as it showed quite well.  Still, in the older style.  The label was actually in very good shape as well.  Purple in color with just a slight bit of bricking at the rime.  Clear and bright.  The nose has cherry fruit, with a slight bit of funk.  With air it becomes a bit more cigar box.  On the palate, this is clean and fresh.  Certainly mature but nice cherry fruit, just a wisp of tannins with underlying barnyard.  The finish is a bit drying.  Older wines can be a gamble, mostly due

1982 Château Pavie, France, Bordeaux, St. Émilion, Wine Review

Vintage: 
1982
Score: 
88
Grade: 
B+
Current Price: 
$168.00USD

This is certainly not today's Pavie.  A very different style of Bordeaux.  Whether that is good or bad is subjective.  Ruby/brown in color though clear if a bit muted.  The nose is all about the earthy funk.  There is some slight mine and slighter cherry fruit.  Tart acidity.  On the palate, this starts out with thin cherries.  As it blows off bottle stink, it adds some weight but tastes old and past prime.  Certainly no sin for a 37 year old wine.  There is a lot of funk on this wine.  One of the people sharing this wine called it "dirty" which might (or might not) be a bit strong.  Still,

2004 Salon Champagne Blanc de Blancs Brut, France, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2004
Score: 
97
Grade: 
A+
Current Price: 
$460.00USD

Salon is my favorite Champagne.  Unfortunately, it's price makes it a very rare treat indeed.  Having tasted this wine on release, it didn't seem worth the price, but with some bottle age, this wine was spectacular.  It is, of course, 100% Chardonnay.  Silver gold in color with ton of very tiny bubbles.  The nose has slight toast, a slight amount of oxidation, plenty of green apples and just a slight ginger note.  Wonderful minerality.  On the palate, this has great acidity.  It is a very lively wine that dances across the palate.  Crisp apples, minerals and slight lime/lemon notes.  A long

2004 Michel Furdyna Champagne Blanc de Noir, France, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2004
Score: 
88
Grade: 
B+

Medium golden in color.  A nice head of tiny bubbles.  This is 100% Pinot Noir.  The nose is nice with slight toast, a bit of lemons, and slight ginger.  On the palate, a bit of strawberries play with the lemons.  Underlying yeast.  No hint of oak on this wine, it is clean and lean and very refreshing.  It will go well with most foods.  It probably is getting to the point where it should be drunk up in the next few years.  

2018 Sigalas Assyrtiko Santorini, Greece, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2018
Score: 
93
Grade: 
A
Current Price: 
$33.00USD

Assyrtiko is quickly becoming one of my favorite white grapes.  Light golden in color.  The nose is mostly about minerals and salinity but there are some pears as well.  The pears are a bit stronger on the palate, but the underlying minerality and saline finish are still present.  This is light bodied but very energetic.  Moderate acidity.  Medium finish.  Of course, this is made for seafood or lighter Mediterranean cuisine, but it drinks nice on its own.  I really have no idea if this will age but I would think it is better in its first couple of years.   

2015 Sineann Pinot Noir Reserve Wy'east, USA, Oregon, Columbia Gorge, Wine Review

Vintage: 
2015
Score: 
94
Grade: 
A

Sineann lost a couple of it's best vineyard sources but this vineyard seems better than ever.  Of course, this is a reserve bottling.  Medium/dark ruby in color.  The nose has cherries, sour cherries, baking spices, and cedar.  A slight dry earthiness comes out with air.  On the palate, this has a wonderful texture.  Sour cherries and cherries over spices with slight char.  Good finish.  This is a delicious wine.  It has a nice depth but will need to be aged a bit to show some delineations.  It will continue to get better for the next five years or so and be good for ten to fifteen after th

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