Ross Bathgate

9.5

Very impressive, took a long time to open up but was glorious rich and ripe with silky tannin structure — 3 months ago

Shay A

9.5

Again, these are love it or hate it style wines, and I fall on the “love it” side every single time. This was part of a blind lineup for “Rhône style wines”. These wines are a bit difficult not to identify in a blind lineup due to their distinctive aromatics.

My note here is pretty similar to the 2011 I opened a year and a half ago. In true to Christophe Baron style, this is a savory packed punch wrapped in elegance. Aromatically, it’s a heady display of soy, teriyaki, green olive, peppercorn crusted smoked meats, currant and spicy rhubarb. At 10yrs, the palate is almost a dead ringer for high end northern Rhône Syrah. The savory/iron driven components from the nose continue but there is great acid followed by stems, herbs de Provence and lots of wildflowers/potpourri for a floral finish. I found the 2011 to have a lighter/more floral profile, but this one certainly has more stuffing and aging potential. This seems to just now be entering a peak drinking window.

Also in the lineup was a 2014 Hors Categorie (also from Christophe Baron), and I found the 2012 HP to taste younger, while the 2014 HC had a bit more heft in the mid-palate. Love both. — 3 years ago

Jenny

9.4

Refreshing. Light. At HP bar & grill. — 6 years ago

Shay A

9.3

My choice for a Rhône style theme with my local group.

Definitely the oldest No Girls I’ve opened. As expected, these have a Burgundian flair to them in the way they are made when compared to Cayuse/HP/HC. Not as much depth/richness, but there is great acidity and the use of stems is clear. Faint ruby in the glass. Stemmy/green aromatics with herbs de Provence, black olive, Cayuse funk/iron on the nose. Saline, red and black berry driven on the palate with black pepper spice, truffle, beef jerky and big phenolics. Tart and acidic, I followed this over two days, and to my surprise, held up very well. Pop now. — a year ago

Gretchen Rogers

9.1

This is a great bottle of wine. 12.5. Drink 2. With a burger 🍔 at HP — 5 years ago

Shay A

9.7

Though not the same as it was pre-COVID -19, a handful of us were able to gather (while keeping our distance) to celebrate being back together and opened some fun wines to share. Wine is always better with good company.

A tour de force Syrah. Kudos to Christophe for not only the monumental effort here, but for also how it has its own profile away from Cayuse, Horsepower and No Girls. For me, this fell in between Cayuse and HP in the funk department, but it’s depth and concentration is unmatched. Pours dark in the glass with aromatics reminiscent of a bbq pit next to an herb garden. Teriyaki sauce, cherry smoked jerky, black currant, peppercorn crusted blackberries and classical funk. On the palate, it’s commanding with a vein of iron like savoriness down the middle, alongside licorice, potpourri, brambly dark fruits and herbs de Provence. We followed this out of the decanter for a few hours and it only got more powerful. Heck of a bottle, courtesy of @Keith Fisher . — 5 years ago

with joe, Dan and 2 others

Shay A

9.4

Even as someone who loves the funk, I find these HP wines to need every bit of 10yrs to really unfurl and balance out. In my opinion, the Syrah with similar age shows a bit more dark fruit whereas this was more red floral.

Double decanted an hour, then consumed over the next 2-3hrs. Last glass was the best, but not overly different from the first. There is still signature funk, crunchy and green stems, peppered raspberries, olive, and iron, but the red floral/potpourri notes started to jump alongside a citrus/pomegranate flair. Great nervy acidity and tannin. Desperately needs food (went well with charcuterie board). If you enjoy these with some balance, this is starting to enter that window. — 2 years ago

Alexis Sepkovic

10

Fav this summer- from Tilda or Holcomb HP — 5 years ago

Meg Moore

9.0

HP and Michigan — 5 years ago

Neil Valenzuela

8.9

Nice dark cherry skin color. Aromas of strawberry, cherry and a nutty cheese. Delicious flavors, can’t go wrong with an HP wine. — 7 years ago