Wine Reviews You can Use

  Nice intensely blackish hue with aromas of sweet perfume, lovely dark berry fruit, chocolate cake, with more sweet ripe berry notes.  Palate-lackluster structure, but nice fruit forward, mocha and black berry flavors, bold flavors, staying power in the mid-palate and a finish that hangs on more than one would expect for a wine at this price point. A friend just dropped this off having found it locally for less than $8 and as high as $14. For a California sourced wine, this is a decent quaff and a bargain at $8 so raise a glass!  Thanks Mark!  :)

  Lovely magenta intensity and nearly black. Aromas of stewed prunes, fresh raisins, a hint of anise,  Palate-Full bodied, hotter than usual, intense sweetness but the alcohol is overpowering the flavors of the fruit. The foundation is coarse rather than elegant. The finish is lovely with a long lingering fruity ending.  This *LBV (Late Bottled Vintage) Port is out of balance and really detracts from what the wine could be. AT $22 I would not get this again. I will enjoy it with friends and my wife's flourless chocolate tort.  It is an unbeatable combination.  I recently had the same wine in the 2008 vintage and it was to die for. (See that review here) *What is Late Bottled Vintage Port? Borrowing from Roger Voss with the Wine Enthusiast:  " The official definition says that it is a “ruby Port from a single year, chosen for its high quality and bottled after aging for four to six years in wood.” It is a vintage Port in style, but not in price." LBV is ready to drink when

Nice dark burgundy colored hue with aromas of Steel, minerals, fresh plum at *6:00 in the rim and vigorous savory spices at 3:00.  Palate--Rich savory fruit, black raspberry, plum, loamy foundation and chunky tannins. Finish has a lovely lingering blackberry ending that lasts a good while.  This was a gift from a friend for Christmas. It is lovely to go back to Bordeaux now and again to remind ones self of the vast difference between old world and new world wine. But even going to Bordeaux, there has been such a swing to vinification to the more modern, drink early palate, that the classic Bordeaux can be a challenge to find at an affordable price. Don't get me wrong, wine consultant Michele Roland can be a dirty word in some sectors of France but his consultations with French and Argentinian wineries made wine much more accessible to the "every-man" who wasn't about to shell out some hefty bucks only to lay a wine down for the next 10 years.  * when tasting wine, a l

  Nice rich looking, deep purple to black hue with aromas of sweet dark berry fruit, cigar ash, a savory edge Palate--Tart first impression, loaded with steel, austere, tightly wound, juicy, lip smacking tannins. This wine is just way too young to be drinking. There's a lot going for it but it simply isn't ready. It really needs another year or two but then again I just opened it, *it is at cellar temperature and it may surprise me as it warms up.  If it does, you'll read an addition here. At the $16 price point this is just young so I will grab a couple if I can and lay them for another year.   *Definitely opened up a bit with some airtime and warmth.  On second review though, I don't think this will improve all that much.