Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.4

2003 vintage. Opened (not decanted) and tasted after 1 hour and 3 hours. Perfect cork and fill. Immediate, perfumed nose upon the open as it couldn't wait to escape. Light-medium/medium body. A quiet, simmering intensity throughout. First tastes invited the pretty, berry flavors. Last tastes emphasized delicate tea and earth influences. Feel like another 5-spot might just find it tickling the top of the bell curve. Still climbing currently. 1.23.26. — 13 days ago

Tom Kobylarz

9.3

Wow, such a pleasure to drink this at this stage. Oodles of dark red and black fruits at the core with a frame of tertiary notes. Subtle spice and and savory notes too. The palate is med+ to full bodied with med+ long but fine grain tannin that are starting to resolve. Deep and pronounced on the palate with a long, and subtly structured finish. Really fun and really good! — a year ago

Debra Copeland, WSET3, CSWS

9.4

Dried cherries, figs and dark chocolate rounded out with baking spices and cedar. This wine is incredible and a perfect way to enjoy a quiet Eve of Christmas Eve before the family festivities — 2 years ago

Lyle Fass

Founder Fass Selections

9.6

Nose has the classic porphyry aromas and are just wonderful. It’s so expressive. Such mineral precision. Insane clarity of wet stone aromas. Nose is a bit quiet as well as it’s too cold. Palate is hauntingly elegant with unreal rockiness and sappy minerality. Not much fruit right now but the underlying architecture is perfect. Stunning purity. This is a rock star. Literally. What intense minerality on the finish but so so elegant. Just stunning. Some apricot now on the nose. Crystalline purity and just so well made and everything in its place. A stunner. — 3 years ago

Freddy R. Troya

9.3

Château Grand-Puy-Lacoste 2023 – Pauillac, Grand Cru Classé en 1855, BDX France 🇫🇷

Overview
A benchmark Pauillac delivering depth, precision, and classical balance at a very high level, driven by a 75% Cabernet Sauvignon–dominant blend with 20% Merlot, and 5% Cabernet Franc as a support. The wine shows beautifully layered red fruit, refined structure, and seamless integration, expressing terroir purity and composure from start to finish.

Aromas & Flavors
Blackcurrant, red cherry, wild raspberry, cassis, graphite, cedar, pencil shavings, subtle tobacco leaf, gentle cocoa and crushed gravel.

Mouthfeel
Medium-plus to full-bodied with finely polished tannins, excellent mid-palate density, vibrant yet controlled acidity, elegant grip, and a long, harmonious finish that remains lifted and precise.

Food Pairings
Prime rib, grilled ribeye, rack of lamb, beef Wellington, mushroom-forward dishes, aged hard cheeses.

Verdict
A beautifully executed Pauillac that balances power and finesse effortlessly. Everything feels aligned, fruit purity, structure, tension, and length, making this a top-tier reference for the appellation and vintage.

🍷 Personal Pick
This is Pauillac done right, deep fruit, flawless execution, and a finish that feels complete and satisfying rather than forced. A wine that earns admiration through balance and quiet authority. Hard to pass, even harder to forget. — 14 days ago

Conrad Green

9.3

Very polished and restrained. Grippy with chalk and cool lemon. Limestone. Poised and quiet but quite fleshy. — 2 years ago

with Tony, Jean-Francois and 2 others

Mike Saviage

9.3

A late evening pop and pour. Light canary gold color. Notes of citrus and white stones, tan spice. Nice mouth feel with ample acidity to match the nice fruit-forward nature of this wine. This was tight and quiet, given the lack of air it had. Still, a high-quality wine and bottles in condition like this have 10+ years in front of it. 93+ — 3 years ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.4

2018 vintage. Last tasted 1.31.25 (9.5) and 10.27.23 (9.4). Decanted and tasted after 1.25 hours. That quiet, yet confident, Spottswoode style...enduring and imprinting the palate gently. 12.5.25. — 2 months ago

Bruce Dunbar

9.2

Beautiful: dark, quiet, powerful. Nothing extraneous. Lead with minerals, graphite, tobacco on top of a layer of dry black and red fruit. Tannins were mild. Fit the room (The Grill, NYC) and the meal (Thanksgiving) perfectly. — a year ago

Scott@Mister A’s-San Diego

9.3

1998 vintage. Top-notch fill (almost too good) and perfect cork with very little lower-level saturation. Decanted and tasted over the course of two hours. Appropriate, chunky sediment. Last tasted 12.17.23 (9.2). Had some nice older leather, dry summer earth and ripe plum in the nose throughout with only a modicum of "funk" that blew off quickly. Medium body. Still vibrant color. Initially, the experience was front-loaded but, after 30 minutes or so, the fruit and structure began to fill in/slide back and balance out the mid-palate and finish. More consistent specimen than the one tasted almost 3 months ago. Don't feel it needs more time to knit/resolve affairs but can likely hold in this phase for 4-5 years without degradation. 3.10.24. — 2 years ago