Saint Emilion

It seemed like a bad idea opening such a young Bordeaux, but this was surprisingly still open and drinking well.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim, opaque and bright.  The nose has black cherries, cassis, chocolate and spice.  Medium to full bodied.  Medium tannins.  On the palate, black raspberry fruit with black cherries and underlying char.  Plenty of depth.  Complex.  Good finish with some milk chocolate notes.  This is delicious.  It will be interesting to see where this goes from here.  Does it shut down?  Does it develop more with cellaring.  In any event it is excellent right now. 

Nice showing for this wine.  In its youth, this was full throttle oak, but at age 23, the fruit, oak and tannins have all integrated and mellowed and come together.  Purple/black in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose has clay, black cherries, spice and chocolate.  Medium tannins.  Nice texture.  On the palate, nice black cherry fruit with a hint of black olives.  The finish is a bit bitter and drying.  Overall, this seems at peak.  Drink over the next five to ten years.  It will work better with food.  A nice wine with a burger.  

In a really special place right now.  Fantastic.  This is 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is great with black cherries, cherries, slight chocolate, tobacco, leather and slight funk.  Full bodied.  Velvety texture.  On the palate, this is vibrant but also showing layering and complexity.  Flavors of black cherries and cherries with underlying earthiness.  Some chocolate on the finish.  This is at peak but should drink well for another decade.  Great on its own as it is contemplative, but will work great with roasted fowl, meat or even vegetab

Gorgeous showing for this wine.  Purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose is wonderful with black cherries, chocolate, spice, cherries and slight funk.  Full bodied.  Lush texture.  On the palate, this is just about at maturity.  Plenty of vibrant fruit; cherries and black cherries but also starting to show some depth and complexity.  No hurry though.  This should drink well for another ten to twenty years.  Nice on its own, but better with food. Lamb would be a good match.

One of the few St. Emilion wines tried that didn't seem shut down.  Ruby/purple in color.  The nose has char, black cherries, and slight cedar.  On the palate, light black cherries.  Moderate finish.  Light tannins.  This is drinking nicely now and should continue for the next five to seven years.  A nice match with Mushroom Barley soup.  

Another of the better right banks that gave a disappointing performance.  This vintage seems to have shut down quickly.  Perhaps that's an excuse but it was pretty consistent in the better Merlot based wines.  Purple in color, mostly opaque if a bit flat.  The nose has cherries and spice along with a slight salinity.  Full bodied.  Firm tannins.  On the palate, this has nice cherry fruit but seems mono-dimensional.  In a group of eleven tasters, this finished at or near the bottom of a tasting of right bank wines.  It is likely shut down.  Still, given the quality of the producer and the vi

This should have been much better.  No obvious faults, but shut down tight as a drum.  Reviews here are base on how the wine drank, not its potential.  Purple in color, ruby at the rim.  The nose is tight.  Perhaps the slightest note of cedar and cherries.  On the palate, this has a wonderful, lush texture which gives hope that at some point, this wakes up more.  More open  on the palate, with black cherries, cherries and underlying char.  Long finish.  Don't touch this for another five years at least.  Based on the vintage and house, this should drink well for twelve to fifteen years after

Pop and pour with no decanting.  Purple in color, mostly opaque and bright.  The nose is great with cherries, barnyard, cassis and truffles.  Full bodied.  Complex and layered with light tannins.  This seems to be at peak.  On the palate, cherries, dried cherries, and slight tobacco.  Clean.  Long finish.  Contemplative on its own but better with a bit of food.  Although it will drink well for another  decade, it probably will start a slow slide down soon.  

This wine was controversial on release due to its ripeness and size.  At age 16, it is still a big wine but starting to settle down a bit.  Just a bit.  Inky purple in color, opaque and bright.  The nose has black raspberries, black cherries, toast, spice, black pepper and leather.  Full bodied.  Wonderful velvety/jammy texture.  On the palate, this is delicious.  Firm tannins.  Lots of black raspberry and cassis, some blueberries with spice and underlying leather.  It certainly may be atypical from St.

This is a blend of 70% Merlot, 17% Cabernet Franc, 7% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 6% Malbec.  Pop and pour, this took about an hour and then was drinking quite well.  Purple in color, thin ruby rim, opaque and bright.  The  nose is nice with black cherries, cigar box, slight dark chocolate, a bit of leather.  Medium to full bodied.  On the palate, cherries, black cherries and coffee with a bit of dried tobacco.  Good balance.  Seems to be almost or at peak at this point.  Great on its own, this will work well with prime rip or other roasted meats.  Drink over the next five to ten years.