Neal Family Vineyards
Neal Family Vineyards
Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
Vieux Château Certan
Pomerol Red Bordeaux Blend 2004
The 2004 Vieux Château Certan was picked starting September 20. This is a little fuller on the nose compared to the 2002, with more fruit concentration, red plum and raspberry, wilted rose petals and a touch of thyme. This is very endearing and open, yet there is vigor. The palate is well-balanced with finely chiseled tannins. While not the most complex vintages of this decade, it is very well-balanced with a fine bead of acidity, lightly spiced with a dash of cracked black pepper on the finish. I have admired this Pomerol since first tasting it from barrel, and I still do. Drink now or over the next 12 to 15 years. Tasted at the VCC vertical in Etikhove, Belgium. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2024)
— 2 years ago
Château Léoville-Las Cases
Grand Vin de Leoville du Marquis de las Cases Saint-Julien Red Bordeaux Blend 1990
Tasting the 1990 Léoville Las Cases just a few days after the 1989, it is clear which is the best vintage…this one. It has a sublime nose of melted black fruit, tar, cedar and bay leaf that shrugs off the heat of that summer better than most others. At 33 years of age, you could just lose yourself in these aromatics. The palate is clearly holding up well: beautifully defined and supple yet with typical Las-Cases backbone and depth. It builds magnificently in the glass toward a harmonious finish that reminds me of the 1985 in terms of its fleshiness. Wonderful. Tasted at the Lia's Wings/book dinner at Medlar restaurant. (Neal Martin, Vinous, December 2023)
— 2 years ago
Château Palmer
Margaux Red Bordeaux Blend 1970
The 1970 Palmer is a vintage that I have tasted on several occasions, although recently, I have encountered some variation, including a rather rum example in 2015. The most recent example has an attractive tobacco-infused nose, perhaps more akin to a Saint-Julien than a Margaux. The palate is medium-bodied with a firm backbone, a slight dryness around the edges and fine salinity with lightly-spiced cedar and tobacco notes on the finish. This is a solid 1970 Margaux, though I would not keep it long-term. (Neal Martin, Vinous, August 2023)
— 3 years ago
Château Lynch-Bages
Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 1982
I tasted the 1982 Lynch-Bages twice within a month, both at a private dinner in London and at the château, from bottle and double-magnum on separate occasions. Both vindicate an exceptionally fine 1982, perhaps a bit overlooked in a vintage full of stars. Curiously, the bottle in Bordeaux does not fully deliver the mesmerizing freshness and energy compared to the bottle in London: pencil-lead-tinged black fruit intermixed with clove and freshly-rolled tobacco. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins, perhaps just a little austere compared to its peers. Yet, indeed, the bottle in London exudes class and composure with a detailed, mineral-driven vintage belying that year's unseasonably warm period. Superb. Tasted both in London at a private dinner and at the château. (Neal Martin, Vinous, July 2023) — 3 years ago
Château Calon-Ségur
Saint-Estèphe Red Bordeaux Blend 2020
The 2020 Calon-Ségur is allowed to open for over 90 minutes, unfurling in the glass with blackberry and bilberry scents, cedar and floral scents (almost identical to how it showed in barrel.) It just oozes pedigree. The palate is medium-bodied with svelte tannins and quite plush red fruit. It is very well balanced without the backbone and depth of say, Montrose or Cos d'Estournel. It has gained a bit of heft on the finish during its élevage. However, it fans out in assured fashion. This should drink beautifully for 25 to 30 years. (Neal Martin, Vinous, February 2023) — 3 years ago
Château Cantenac Brown
Margaux Cabernet Sauvignon Blend 2017
The 2017 Cantenac Brown is always a strong performer in this vintage. Here, it has quite an opulent nose that you could easily mistake for a 2018 with copious black cherries and violet scents. The palate is fleshy, rounded and fairly sumptuous with pure black fruits that disguise the backbone. There is a welcome marine influence with hints of shucked oyster shells developing on the finish. Give this several years in bottle. Tasted at the Cantenac Brown vertical at the château. (Neal Martin, Vinous, October 2022)
— 4 years ago
Neal Family Vineyards
Howell Mountain Estate Cabernet Sauvignon 2013
Merry Christmas!!
1hr-+ decant. Dark red color. Cedar, dark cherries, and subtle pencil shavings on the nose. Drinking at its apex! Could be mistaken for a high end Bordeaux. Silky texture, juicy but elegant with lovely terroir, and complex. Nice depth and long finish. This is right in my wheelhouse!!
Pairs perfectly with ham!! — 6 months ago
Château Batailley
Pauillac Cabernet Sauvignon 1975
The 1975 Batailley is a vintage poured at a vertical at the Pauillac estate with Frédéric Castèja a few months earlier, but perversely, this bottle shows better. There’s a strong marine influence on the nose, and kelp and crustacea intertwine with slightly rustic but attractive black fruit, austere, compared to recent vintages, albeit typical of that period for Batailley. The palate is gentle, perhaps a little angular, though this bottle exhibited a touch more black fruit on the finish to counterbalance its obdurate tannins, a trope of the 1975 Left Banks. The aforementioned vertical will appear this year. (Neal Martin, Vinous, April 2024)
— 2 years ago
Château Cheval Blanc
St. Émilion Red Bordeaux Blend 2008
The 2008 Cheval Blanc is one of the go-to wines of the vintage. Now at 15 years old, it has retained the energy and focus it displayed from the outset: black fruit, crushed stone, wilted violet petals and touches of forest floor cohere wonderfully in the glass. The Cabernet here is more expressive. The palate has a slight chewiness on the entry, but it "relaxes" in the glass. It shows off its delicate lattice of tannins and perhaps a bit more backbone than I have observed on previous bottles. It's very intense on the finish where, as before, the Cabernet Franc takes charge. Superb. Keep it another three to four years if you can. Tasted at the Lia's Wings/book dinner at Medlar restaurant. (Neal Martin, Vinous, December 2023)
— 2 years ago
Château Durfort-Vivens
Margaux Cru Classé en 1855 Red Bordeaux Blend 2015
The 2015 Durfort-Vivens has a perfumed bouquet with more ripeness and perfume than the previous vintage. Buoyant red berry fruit, blueberry and a touch of violet, there is perhaps more Margaux-like than the 2014. The palate is medium-bodied with supple tannins, fleshy with a fine acidity, a touch of white pepper and clove towards the finish and a hint of espresso on the aftertaste. This is a superb Durfort Vivens, arguably the finest up to that point. Tasted twice, both at the château and at Jascott's Bordeaux tasting in London. (Neal Martin, Vinous, August 2023)
— 3 years ago
Domaine Comte Georges de Vogüé
Cuvée Vieilles Vignes Musigny Grand Cru Pinot Noir 1993
The 1993 Musigny Vieilles Vignes Grand Cru was a real surprise given that I have meted out criticism for the wines from this era. It has a mesmerizing nose with wild strawberry, raspberry and rose petal scents that feel youthful and exuberant. The palate is fleshy and beautifully balanced, supple and has delightful, seductive rondeur. It crescendos towards the finish that is armed with killer delineation, completing perhaps the best Musigny that de Vogüé oversaw that decade. Tasted blind at the Wallace brothers' Xmas dinner. (Neal Martin, Vinous, March 2023) — 3 years ago
Château Beauséjour
Héritiers Duffau-Lagarrosse Saint-Émilion Red Bordeaux Blend 2020
The 2020 Beauséjour Héritiers Duffau-Lagarrosse is aged in around 60% new oak and made by Nicolas Thienpont and Stéphane Derenoncourt; Joséphine Duffau tweaked the blend when she took over in April of the following year. This was bottled at the end of May 2022. It has a perfumed nose, predominantly red fruit, sous-bois and a subtle Japanese nori scent. Quite "contained" at the moment, I can see this shutting down. The palate is medium-bodied with fine-grain tannins, dark cherries, bilberry and hints of black pepper and black olive (the latter is accentuated in the chateau bottle). Nicely balanced and persistent, this Saint-Émilion should age with class. Tasted twice with consistent notes. (Neal Martin, Vinous, February 2023) — 3 years ago
Neal Family Vineyards
Napa Valley Sauvignon Blanc 2019
Nice pick up for the house — 7 months ago
Neal Family Vineyards
Rutherford Dust Vineyards Zinfandel 2022
Opened some time prior to service; enjoyed over the course of an hour. The 2022 Zinfandel pours a ruby color with a nearly transparent core; medium+ viscosity with moderate staining of the tears. On the nose, the wine is youthful with notes of Bing cherry, black plum, red and purple flowers, tobacco and gentle warm spices. On the palate, the wine is dry with medium+ tannin and medium+ acid. Confirming the notes from the nose. The finish is medium. To my palate, this needs some years on its side to gain some complexity but the components are there. Drink now to experience its fruit dominated youth; best from 2027-2042. — 10 months ago
Château Latour
Premier Grand Cru Classé Pauillac Red Bordeaux Blend 1999
The 1999 Latour has a dark garnet color with little aging on the rim. The nose is closed initially and demands coaxing, eventually revealing blackberry, cedar and light pencil-shaving aromas. The palate is medium-bodied with soft tannins, displaying some secondary notes of clove, white pepper and a distinct earthiness that comes through on the finish. [Post-script: this is one of the few vintages I identified correctly!] Tasted blind from double magnum at a 20-year retrospective at the château. (Neal Martin, Vinous, February 2024)
— 2 years ago
Domaine du Clos de Tart
Monopole Grand Cru Pinot Noir 2019
The 2019 Clos de Tart Grand Cru has a wonderful bouquet of ebullient red berry fruit, hints of tea leaf and sous-bois, understated initially but unfurling with each swirl of the glass. The palate is very well balanced, with pure red fruit laced with white pepper and graphite, pleasing linearity, good focus and a saline finish. Persistent on the aftertaste, this is a compelling Grand Cru with a long and prosperous future ahead. Tasted blind at the Burgfest tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, December 2023)
— 3 years ago
Château L'Eglise-Clinet
Pomerol Red Bordeaux Blend 2013
The 2013 L'Eglise-Clinet has a clean and precise bouquet with black fruit, sous-bois, shavings of black truffle and hints of morels. The palate is medium-bodied with firm tannins on the entry, red fruit laced with mocha and delicate acidity with a harmonious, if simplistic (for this estate) finish. Fine. (Neal Martin, Vinous, August 2023)
— 3 years ago
Château Ausone
Saint Émilion Red Bordeaux Blend 2019
The 2019 Ausone has a perfumed nose with another Cabernet Franc-driven set of aromas, gravel and loam infusing the black fruit. Wonderful delineation. The palate is medium-bodied with fine tannins, a beautifully sculpted wine with a killer line of acidity and immense precision on the finish. This just sashays along with style. Fabulous. Tasted blind at the Southwold annual tasting. (Neal Martin, Vinous, February 2023) — 3 years ago
Château Les Carmes Haut-Brion
Pessac-Léognan Red Bordeaux Blend 2012
The 2012 Les Carmes Haut-Brion was the first vintage with whole bunches (40%) and 18 months in barrel. It was the introductory vintage under current winemaker Guillaume Pouthier. This is much more enticing on the nose after the 2011: well-defined black cherries, cola, peppermint, light rose petal scents and a hint of marmalade that emerges with time. The palate is medium-bodied with sappy black fruit, more freshness and tension than the 2011, and frankly, you would never be able to tell there was whole bunch here. This appears to be maturing with style and panache, but it will give another decade or more of drinking pleasure. Tasted at the Les Carmes Haut-Brion vertical at the château. (Neal Martin, Vinous, October 2012)
— 4 years ago
Paul J
1hr+ decant. Lovely dark red, maroon color. Well balanced with rustic elements integrated with dark cherries. Lovely texture. Always fantastic! — 3 months ago