Daniel M

9.0

Nice nose that reminds me of La Folle Noire d'Ambat from Domaine le Roc in Fronton. There is a bit of a wild thing on the nose, with nice cherry and black cherry notes, there is also an iron, metallic touch. Some savoury scents add some complexity. The palate is juicy, acid driven, with some width, some savoury notes all along, like worcestershire sauce. There is a bit of a tannic grip in the rear and a rather long and juicy, and grippy finish that goes on for a while and ends up with that umami flavour. This is very good and a great value at about 17 USD in equivalent local currency. Warmly recommended. 14% abv — a month ago

John W

9.8

Deep ruby coloration with zero translucency. Strong, jammy black fruits with oak and vanilla on the nose and mirrored on the palate with notes of spice. Long finish. Extremely rich and lush mouthfeel. — 6 months ago

Andy Thomson

8.9

Bought at the winery. Pleasant! — 4 years ago

with Cheryl

Daniel M

9.0

Château La Reyne - Cahors - grand vin - 2018

This is a complex wine! Cherry, chocolate, pencil lead on the nose. Wow this is inviting. The palate is showing a huge acid backbone, a great matter, some width with cherry all along, a good grip, that typical sandy, dusty tannin touch in mid palate before a very long fruity finish with that grain. One of the best value i recently came across! (6 euros in equivalent currency) — 5 years ago

Somm David T

Independent Sommelier/Wine Educator

9.5

The "Laird" is their flagship wine and a bit pricey. I think it's $300 Australian at the tasting room; which is about 28% less in US currency. It's a huge luscious wine with big, bold black cassis. Blackberries, blueberries, black plum, plum, a soft tarry presence, black coffee, mocha, caramel, not overly done vanilla, leather, liquid violets & a touch of lavender, softly understated earth/minerals & some toasted wood shavings. The body and mouthfeel are memorable. The bold structure, balance, big tension and long length are beautiful. The acidity is spot on and the finish is incredibly lush ripe fruit with big sticky tannins. Spent 32 months in oak. This is a 30 year plus wine. Photos are the private tasting room where we tasted and their olive trees as viewed out the front door. Their new Cellar Door was just completed two weeks ago. — 9 years ago

Gae Saccoccio - NdC

9.6

Really complicated on these so suspect days, expose themselves with concepts such as: tradition, terroir, identity without falling into the most sinister rhetoric if not sounds just trite and hypocritical as the counterfeit currency with which even large-scale industries - supported by marketing - pays back its inattentive mass audience riding the wave of the country of origin or protected typicality. A diabolical mechanism this one for which even the most noble ideas probably the right practices and good experiences completed in the scale of centuries to human measure and not on massive industrial scale, are trivialized by sleazy slogan, emptied of meaning to be more or less surreptitious thanks to barbaric persuasion techniques and brain-washing propaganda.
Yet with the Valentini's Trebbiano you may not groped to summarize in words if not by drawing on terms so appropriate to express it. Now concerning this iconic label we've got behind it a local grape variety, a real family and a great wine that collect in a bottle the past and present story of a side of Abruzzo who claims to defeats victories and sacrifices to dominate the abuses (on and of) nature, miseries and splendours of agricultural seasons. Places, people, vision, wines such as Valentini are here to remind us how each bottle stay so proudly standing as non-reproducible beauty and fermented goodness expressing all its artisanal uniqueness and authenticity which are just that suspect to industrial wine production in manufacturing chains on standardized quantities; wines that are all equal to themselves even though wine itself is not much left at the end of the day/cycle. Trebbiano d'Abruzzo Valentini 1998 is what we have to rate right now: rusticity with class; style, purity and glory of a local grape recognized by many admirers from all over the world: act local think global this is another slogan-cliché which in this specific Valentini's wine exemple could sounds a little less false and more effective. — 10 years ago

with Alberto and Giovanni

Daniel M

8.9

This is a great value ! Less than 15 euro in equivalent local currency. The nose is intense. There is a bit of funk, cherry, earth, leather, oak, coconut, meat juice. It's pretty intense and exciting. The palate is long, bright, broad and thick. It's not very subtle but it's very well made and quite structured and full-bodied. The mouthfeel is soft and silky at first, with cherry and savoury notes at first. There is a bit of a layer, some thick matter on the sides, and it turns into a massive wall which gives way to a strong drying layer all over the finish which is fruity, savoury, a bit bitter, drying and quite long. It's very good stuff considering the pricetag. Need to buy more. — 2 months ago

Daniel M

9.0

A biodynamic, organic, no sulfites, low intervention pinot noir from Alsace that's not just gimmicky but also a superb juice and has a complex structure. Where do I sign? I must confess that I don't really care for the esoteric aspect of biodynamic wines and I really don't like the philosophical background of the founder of biodynamic principles. But I like a good wine when I taste one and this one is clearly up my alley. Cherry, cherry liqueur, earth, black tea, bramble, soy sauce. The nose is quite complex ! The palate is pretty broad and bright, with sparkling notes of black cherry and cherry juice all along, great width, a super soft and nice mouthfeel that is disturbed by surprisingly playful tannins that give a gentle drying effect on the tongue, before a nice, juicy, slightly drying finish that goes on for a while and shows a bit of a mentholy touch, as well a tiny savoury note in the very end. I can taste the wine 30 seconds after having swallowed a sip. For around 25 EUR in equivalent local currency you get a serious alternative to a nice village Burgundy PN, that is showing concentration but focus too, bright fruit but complexity, layers of complexity and a savoury twist in the end. Give it at least 30 minutes in a decanter to shine and exhale a bit of co2. Great stuff! — a year ago

Jan de Weerd

9.3

21 year old Cote Rotie, produced at the change of the century 😁. Lots of herbal warm flavors added to the dark fruits. Meeting up with RiAnne and her friend Roberto learning about the hype around crypto currency. — 5 years ago

with RoAnne and Tammy

Peg Hanssen

9.2

White wine paying tribute to the Spanish currency, “La Peseta,” and in particular the coin of 500 Pesetas, popularly called Cien Duros. Make from vineyards located in the province of Valencia. The wine is fresh and fruity, ideal to accompany all types of meals in good company. Splash Wines — 6 years ago

Steven Toni

9.2

Worth every penny (or whatever currency you have lol) very nice wine . — 9 years ago

Alison Fisher

9.4

Sweet plum and a touch of licorice :-) — 10 years ago

David Kline

9.0

Whole wheat bread, honey tea, gold dust, ant nests, old currency and simultaneously... fresh rag paper. Weird dichotomy, like crisp bills in a bank envelope, handled by a warthog-woman. You can almost smell the feral collagen, but then: yeast cells, rice paper, dinner rolls, linen, match stick, and sweet, soft leather. She wears a fringe jacket and dates a Haüptling! Oktoberfest begins — 11 years ago

with Courtney

Daniel M

8.9

If you fancy a bit of butter then this one might be right up your alley. It's not a butter bomb though, and it's pretty well made. The nose is buttery but shows as well nice lemony and oaky notes. The palate shows some good acid drive, and that acid drive is what makes it a great tasting experience, actually. Nice buttery touches and texture all along, some nice lemony notes, a bit of grip in the rear. It's quite wide and ample but not as thick as what I was expecting. The finish is not very long and shows some oaky notes that make a come back, among other buttery and lemony notes. It's well made, clearly overpriced here (they ask for 50+ USD in equivalent local currency before discount) but it's a nice, enjoyable pour even on its own. — 3 months ago

Daniel M

9.0

Vignobles André Farjon, Cairanne, cru des côtes du Rhône 2022

I am still unable to take a proper picture episode 2600 something... 😂

This is a great côte du Rhône and a great value for less than 10 euro in retail in equivalent local currency. Organic wine. Blend of grenache and syrah.
The nose is textbook grenache with a bit of syrah twist : strawberry, blackberry, garigue, pepper, so gamey notes too. The palate is very well made with a great acid backbone, some lovely red fruit notes, some savory touches too, almost umami, a great width and a soft touch, no real tannins to speak of and a nice, rather long, fruity and savory finish. A real value here! — 3 years ago

Daniel M

9.0

Second try with this one in 2 weeks but now all my senses are back in full effect. Typical youthfull, playful nose with cherry and hay. The palate is well designed with sheer acid, a blooming cherry note all along, some nice width, a tannic wall in mid palate which kicks things up a notch, leaving a slighlty drying effect which lasts until the very end. The finish is fruity. A very lovely, yet simple wine. It's rare these days to find burgundy pinot for that price (equivalent to less than 10 euro in local currency) and that lovely. — 6 years ago

David Kline

9.3

Fine lacing like currency flourishes turn to stylized zy-ghosts. Grapefruit, dried apricot, marshmallow tinged fruit cup, with an emphasis on the pineapple bits Lily, magnolia sweet petrol and papaya aromas. White grapefruit with grill marks, white oak, soft paste of shell and Indian gum beyond the tangerine, ruby red, lemon curd and orange peel. #fiddlehead #beer #doubleipa #citrusbomb #hurricanebeer #pounder #irma #ipa #ale — 9 years ago

with Courtney

Steve Dettmar

9.5

14 wine tasters liked this. Very like Port. — 9 years ago

Adam Chesia

9.5

I have had several bottles of this over past 5 years and it's held up very well! — 10 years ago

Jonah Paul

8.9

Light easy and cool — 11 years ago