At peak. Purple/ruby in color, ruby at the rim. The nose has nice cherries with some cassis and cigar box. On the palate, some complexity. Nice texture. Juicy cherries with some cassis and underlying slight cocoa dust and tobacco. Nice finish. This is about as good as this wine will be. Reasonably food friendly for medium and heavier foods.
Nice enough wine but seems to be a bit past prime. Ruby in color, slight bricking at the rim. The nose has black cherries, slight cedar and slight spice. On the palate, this is straightforward. Cherries. no tannins. Good balance. Very food friendly. A nice Bordeaux for the dinner table.
From Magnum. This has held up nicely and is drinking well. Like and older Bordeaux. Ruby in color, slight bricking at the rim. The nose is nice with cassis and cherries along with some tobacco and dust. On the palate, this has layers of fruit and earthy forest floor. Good balance. This seems very food friendly. Probably a bit past prime at this point, but still with lots to offer.
This is from Bill Harlan. At age 15, this wine seems to be at peak and is singing. Purple in color. The nose has cassis, slight smoke, slight vanilla and slight cigar. On the palate, this has a nice silky texture. Slight wispy tannins. Lots of cassis fruit. Plenty of depth and tight layering that unwinds in the glass. This drinks like a almost mature Bordeaux wine. Will work with meats and heartier foods.
Deep purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose is great with cassis, slight blueberries, soy sauce, and slight baking spices. On the palate, this is young, tight and tannic, but given that, it presents delicious drinking right now. Of course, give it five or ten years and there is definitely some upside. The palate has lots of cassis intertwined with a nice earthiness with some salinity. Good finish. Needs heavier foods right now. This has another 20 years in it depening how you like your wines.
This seems to be at peak at this point. It won't get any better not discounting bottle variation. Ruby in color, slight browning at the rim. The nose has cassis, cherries, slight baking spice, slight dried craisins, On the palate, there is good acidity here. Tart cherries, cassis with underlying dry forest floor notes. Nice finish. This will work nicely with meet based dishes. Give it 30 miutes of air to blow off the bottle stink and it is good to go.
09 was a pretty open vintage especially on the right bank. At age 9, this is drinking very well. That said, there is plenty of room for further improvement. Purple in color. The nose has black cherries, black raspberries, dark chocolate and char. On the palate, this is juicy with a full bodied texture. Black raspberries, layered with chocolate dust and slight oak notes. Long finish. This will work with roasted meats dishes quite well. Another five years in the cellar and this should come together quite well. If opening now, give it some air.
One of the great wines of Bordeaux well deserving of its second growth status. This is from a very hot vintage that many wine makers had some trouble with. Purple in color, ruby at the rim. The nose has cassis, black cherries, slight tobacco and slight fresh floral notes. On the palate, this is drinking quite well. Showing some development, it is close but not yet at peak. Layers of cassis and black cherry fruit, with some dry earthy forest floor. Wispy tannins at this point. Long finish. Would work well with roasted meats and other foods. Some possible upside still left.
Purple in color. This is drinking quite well now. Pretty classic right bank but perhaps still a skosh more room to develop. The nose is nice with cherries, some cassis, cigar box and chocolate shavings. On the palate, this has nice cherries, not super ripe, but nothing green. Undertones of tobacco and damp earth. Good balance. Drank over two nights and while different just as good on each night. Will work with most foods. Really everything you could want from this wine at this point.
Monte Bello is one of the great wines of California. 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Merlot, and 4% Cabernet Franc. Though 2011 was a difficult vintage in most of California, Ridge hit a home run (again) with Monte Bello. It might be drinking a bit earlier than other vintages, but it is a fantastic wine. Purple in color. The nose has cassis, cigar box, plums and char. Very nice. On the palate, this has a wonderful texture that is lush and full bodied but not over the top. Plenty of cassis and plum fruit with underlying earthiness and slight char. Good finish. Works with medium and heav
