Freddy R. Troya

9.4

Château Canon 2023 – Saint-Émilion Grand Cru, 1er Grand Cru Classé, BDX, France 🇫🇷

Overview
A poised and beautifully balanced Saint-Émilion showing depth of fruit, polished texture, and quiet structural authority, driven primarily by Merlot 70% with Cabernet Franc 30% support. Dark fruit concentration is layered with mineral tension and refined oak, delivering a wine that feels complete yet still evolving in the glass, inviting extended exploration.

Aromas & Flavors
Black cherry, ripe plum, blackberry compote, crushed stone, violet, subtle cocoa dust, graphite whisper, gentle spice and refined cedar.

Mouthfeel
Medium-plus body with supple entry, fine-grained tannins, excellent mid-palate density, seamless acidity integration, and a long, resonant finish that lingers with freshness and precision.

Food Pairings
Roast duck, lamb loin, mushroom risotto, beef tenderloin, truffle pasta, aged Comté or Gruyère.

Verdict
A composed, terroir-driven Canon showing purity, balance, and textural polish rather than brute force. The finish is especially compelling, signaling strong aging potential and classic limestone-driven Saint-Émilion finesse.

🍷 Personal Pick
This one pulls you back for a second lap, deep fruit framed by elegance, not excess, with a finish that keeps unfolding. It feels confident, grounded, and quietly powerful, exactly the kind of wine that rewards patience and attention. — 5 months ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.5

No wine for 5 days while recovering from a canker sore. Coming back strong. No formal notes but mineral and so focused. Great Rheinhessen weight and density. Nimble though. Super long finish. Unreal purity. — 9 months ago

Conrad Green

9.4

Lucid and supple. Rounded fruit. Contained. Not too hot with lovely purity. Great stuff. A little tight. Some dried herbs. Delicious. — a year ago

with Rick

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

Palate is so juicy and like icing on a cake. Gorgeous purity and depth and so clean. Wow. Nose of mineral and beeswax, butter and some grilled nuts. Wonderful rich texture and just the right amount of chewy. Dense and packed but so sleek and refined. The purity is stunning. Aromas of wet earth now and sweet oak. What energy and brilliance on the palate. — a year ago

Lee Pitofsky

9.6

Really cool to have this wine with age. A phenomenal vintage for Olivier Collin. It has evolved beautifully in bottle, seamlessly balanced between richness and elegance with stunning purity, depth and texture that wraps around the palate with a long, salty mineral laced finale. Killer bubbles. — 2 years ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.5

Hugely reduced out of the gates. Wow huge sulfur. Palate is red fruited, silky and so supple. Needs mega mega air. Wow what a nose now with air. Olive explosion. feral, meaty, charcuterie and so classic. Palate is so fresh, energetic and silky. So so supple. Amazing purity. Nose still not quite there but it’s going to get there. So silky and such refined tannins. Substantial but refined. Amazing presence. — 2 years ago

Ron Siegel

9.4

This was open & drinking well with its bright red fruits, earth, dried herbs & violet showing beautiful purity & seamless texture — 3 years ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.5

One of the best Girard 23’s. First time since April and it’s just as I remember. What a wine. Lush, giving cherry nose that just exudes purity and generousness. So inviting. Palate is lush and generous with unreal fruit. Black cherry, red cherry, blackberry. So dense, so explosive and fresh. Gorgeous, diamond cut tannins. Unreal wine. Wow. — 6 months ago

Freddy R. Troya

9.6

Chappellet – Signature Cabernet Sauvignon – 2022 🇺🇸
Pritchard Hill (Mountain Fruit) – Napa Valley AVA – California, USA

Overview
A cornerstone of Chappellet for over three decades, the Signature Cabernet Sauvignon continues to define what Napa Valley mountain Cabernet is all about: power, elegance, and longevity.
The 2022 vintage carries a subtly adjusted blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 9% Petit Verdot, 7% Malbec, 2% Merlot, featuring a touch more Cabernet Sauvignon and slightly less Petit Verdot and Malbec compared to the 2021 (see my v2021 notes).
This shift gives the 2022 an extra dimension of muscle and purity, heightening its mountain-driven character.

Aromas & Flavors
Undeniably dark and expressive. Notes of blackcurrant, dark cherry, plum, and cassis rise first, followed by cedar, sage, aged tobacco, thyme, and beautifully integrated toasted oak.
As it opens, deeper nuances emerge, espresso bean, cocoa, graphite, and subtle mountain herbs.

Mouthfeel
Full-bodied and impeccably structured.
The increase in Cabernet Sauvignon amplifies its power and linearity, while polished tannins deliver a glowing richness across the palate.
Flavors of black cherry, currant, chocolate, espresso, and warm spice saturate the mid-palate. The finish is long, confident, and built for aging.

Food Pairings
Prime rib, grilled ribeye, lamb with rosemary, venison, black-truffle dishes, or aged gouda/cheddar.

Verdict
A formidable yet seductively elegant expression of Pritchard Hill. The 2022 is slightly more commanding than the 2021, with enhanced Cabernet purity and structural depth. A true benchmark in Napa’s hillside Cabernets, age-worthy, expressive, and unmistakably Chappellet. Cheers!

Did You Know?
Pritchard Hill’s volcanic, iron-rich soils and elevation create Cabernets known for density, refinement, and remarkable longevity, which is why so many iconic Napa producers source or plant here.

🍷 Personal Pick Highlight
Among my personal favorites in the mountain Cabernet category. The 2022 delivers that unmistakable “whoa” moment, especially when shared with friends and family. — 7 months ago

Conrad Green

9.3

From mag. soft raspberry fruit. Slightly tart. Very good purity. A little light compared to the wines alongside — a year ago

with BOT, Matt and 1 other

Conrad Green

9.6

Meaty and intense. Lush with violets, a deep purity and smoothly intense. Really great stuff. A little more powerful than the 82 alongside but a whisper less refined — a year ago

with Walker and David

Jakub Kalinowski

9.1

Aromatic and so pure.
Honeysuckle, peach pie, a touch of lanolin and mandarin peel. And yet - this is retrained & quite cool. Warm slate emerges.
On the palate this is impeccably balanced, so poised. Juicy, just ripe, with purity of fruit and amazing tension. Finishes off with a slightly creamy mouthfeel (very Burgundian!) and a beautiful long mineral finish.
Drinking perfectly right now. Simply delish!
— 2 years ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

Ridiculous Rhini! What a nose. Red cherries and berries galore. You can smell the density. Gorgeous soil and limestone tones. Unreal expansiveness and so so aromatic. Just a crazy nose that has so much breadth. The clarity, purity and pinosity are off the charts. Palate is tangy and tense and as usual at chez Ziereisen it needs mega air but the structural architecture is there. A very red fruited expression of Pinot which seems to be the new direction this estate’s Pinots are going in which I am here for. Lovely bitter herbals on the nose now. Great freshness and acidity but needs to fill out. It will. I’ll be back. Fruit getting sweeter with air that classic hidden Rhini structure. Now with air the nose is super spicy and complex . Herbal and spicey. Fruit is so much sweeter and is like a squeegee on the palate and clings to the palate. So clean on the backend. Huge quality change on day 2. Nose is denser and cleaner with rich cherry fruits, pine resin, black forest vibes and spice. Wow. A 9.7 nose today. Palate is elegant and dense with that unreal Rhini elegant yet substantial structure and crazy complexity. Big but very very fine tannins. 9.5 to 9.6 overnight. — 3 years ago

Zach D

9.5

My first of the 2023’s. Really spectacular. Pours a medium yellow with some viscosity. On the nose such purity. Lemon pith, white flowers, mixed citrus, high toned and pure, the palate is silky like crème brûlée but with a lightness; beautiful oak framing. I think I’m a Brissett junky. The winemaking highlights everything I love about Chardonnay. @Lyle Fass — 6 months ago

Steven Heydemann

9.4

Showing so beautifully right now. Density and purity of dark berry fruit, olive wood smoke, sage and thyme notes. Terrific.  — 9 months ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.5

Nose is a spice bomb. Dried, desiccated leaves. Some mid season cherry, wet earth and everything about the nose says aged but with some youthful vigor. Palate is lush and rich, really good, with great concentration and freshness. Nimble and with wonderful acidity and such purity. Velvety sweet tannins and so focused. This is drinking so well. Terrific sweetness and love the classical structure. Long finish and still got some fuel to burn. Even better in 5-8 years. With air this gets so juicy and the energy really shines through. Wow the elegance shines through after 2 hours. 9.5 now. — 10 months ago

Norman

9.0

This is powerful sake. Thick on the palate with a lot of flavor. I get a bit more alcohol and even some heat than I prefer in sake. There is a long finish on this one. Bottled 12/22 — a year ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.2

Complex nose of spice, early to mid season cherries and tons of limestone. Needs air but so pretty for such a humble wine. Unreal fruit on the palate. Dense and explosive with great purity and superb minerality. Really impressive but does need air. 21 Pinots from Germany and so transparent but do need air. I will be back. Good concentration and sapidity with air. Lots of raspberry coulis today. 9.1 to 9.2 overnight. — a year ago

Conrad Green

9.6

Really pure and light and lifted. Soft floral notes and a steely spine underpinning it. Long and tense and perfectly balanced with a purity and deftness that is gorgeous. The best 96 I’ve had from them. — 2 years ago

with BOT, Matt and 1 other

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.4

closed, so elegant and refined. 13% alcohol. wonderful purity and freshness. so round and deep. but my goodness this was closed. some purple fruits and so so finesse driven. now with air and huge fruit and darker fruits. insane purity now. great freshness. killer length. great energy and depth. — 3 years ago