Products tagged with 'rare'

1968 Blandy's - Madeira Sercial

2004 Chateau Ausone - St. Emilion

A dense purple color is accompanied by a celestial perfume of blue and black fruits, wet stones, flowers, and incense. On the palate, the wine exhibits exceptional power and concentration, but this historic terroir has also provided a surreal lightness to...

2010 Chateau Clos L'Eglise - Pomerol

1978 Chateau La Mission Haut Brion Pessac

There was one younger wine. The 1978 La Mission Haut-Brion is one of the best wines of that decade and did not disappoint. Still youthful and dark in hue, it has that wonderful bouquet of blackberries, gravel and black olive, here displaying a heightened ...

1982 Chateau L'Arrosee - St. Emilion

1996 Chateau Latour - Pauillac

A hot, dry August produced very concentrated grapes in 1996. However, it turned a bit rainy in mid-September through early October, making the vintage less consistent on the Right Bank and in Graves. But as the weather turned glorious from early October o...

2009 Chateau L'Eglise Clinet - Pomerol

Proprietor Denis Durantou has produced a blockbuster Pomerol from a blend of 85% Merlot and 15% Cabernet Franc, tipping the scales at just over 14.5% natural alcohol. A riveting wine, pure, elegant, but at the same time, extremely powerful and concentrate...

1990 Chateau Leoville Barton - St. Julien

Believe it or not, the 1990 Leoville Barton can actually be drunk - something that cannot be said about the broodingly backward, still excruciatingly tannic 1982. The exceptionally concentrated 1990 reveals more polished, sweeter tannins along with a big,...

1982 Chateau Leoville Las Cases St. Julien

I have had perfect bottles of this cuvee, but, perplexingly, the bottles from my cellar tend to be broodingly backward and require plenty of coaxing. This huge wine is, in many ways, just as massive as Leoville Barton, but it possesses a greater degree of...

1986 Chateau Leoville Las Cases - St. Julien

The 1986 Leoville-Las Cases is still so youthful in appearance after 30 years, with only a thin bricking on the rim giving away its age. The bouquet is magnificent: extraordinarily pure and delineated, bewitching black fruit laced with cedar and graphite,...

1982 Chateau Margaux - Margaux

Consistently scoring between 98-100, the superb 1982 Margaux may be slightly bigger, bolder, and more masculine than vintages produced over the last 15-20 years. Its dark plum/purple color is followed by notes of melted tar intermixed with sweet cassis an...

2008 Chateau Mouton Rothschild Pauillac

Tasted at the Mouton-Rothschild vertical in London, the 2008 Mouton Rothschild has always been in the shadow of the ensuing couple of vintages, but I was not the only person at this tasting that commented upon the class in show here. It replicated previou...

1982 Chateau Pavie - St. Emilion

1989 Chateau Pichon Lalande Pauillac

The second part of this tasting kicks off with the 1989 Pichon Lalande. Off the charts aromatic intensity, silky tannins and exceptional finesse give the 1989 much of its considerable allure. Crushed flowers, sweet red fruit, tobacco, cedar and incense ar...

2016 Conterno Fantino Barolo Sori Ginestra

Of these new Baroli from Conterno Fantino, the 2016 Barolo Ginestra Vigna Sori Ginestra shows the most underlying power, linearity and determination. While the other wines are a little softer and richer, especially on the mid-palate, this wine is all musc...

2016 Guigal - Cote Rotie La Landonne

The 2016 Cote Rotie La Landonne is showing a bit more grip than last time I tasted it, with hints of green coffee bean on the nose alongside ripe black cherries and a heap of dried spices. Medium to full-bodied, with ample concentration and plenty of tann...

2016 Guigal - Cote Rotie La Mouline

Picked later than the 2015, the 2016 Cote Rotie La Mouline shows more dark fruit in its profile?think cassis and black olives?plus licorice and peppery spice. It's full-bodied, rich and supple, with a long finish. It may be nearly as good as the 2015, yet...

2016 Guigal - Cote Rotie La Turque

Inky magenta. Candied cherry, blackcurrant, exotic spices, violet oil and a hint of olive on the powerfully scented nose. Velvety, seamless and alluringly sweet, offering palate-staining, mineral-laced black/blue fruit preserve, floral pastille, smoky bac...