Search results for: 'eagle sweet function red blend'

99 Points! A blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc, and 3% Petit Verdot, the 2005 Dominus is deep garnet in color, with a touch of brick. It needs a lot of shaking to release notes of baked blackcurrants, fruitcake, and blueberry compote, plus hints of baking chocolate, licorice, dried mint, and pencil lead, plus a waft of wood smoke. The concentrated, hedonically styled, full-bodied palate is jam-packed with layers of black and blue fruit preserves, framed by wonderfully ripe, grainy tannins and well-integrated acidity, finishing very long, profound, and shimmery. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown MW

98 Points! This blend of 92% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot (note that rarely is any Merlot utilized at the historic Napanook Estate in Yountville). The alcohol, by California standards, is a relatively modest 14.1%. Blending the best of French savoir faire with the brilliant fruit purity and ripeness of Napa Valley, Moueix has turned in another tour de force that seems far superior today than it did when it was first released. This is one of the vintage’s greatest wines. Dense purple and youthful, with a glorious nose of earth, blackcurrants, sweet black cherries and incense, the oak is pushed way in the background, as it is in all of the Moueix wines, and the result is a wine of terroir, of great originality and authenticity. This full-bodied classic from Dominus can be drunk now, but really won’t hit its prime for another 4-5 years and last at least another two decades or more. - Robert Parker, robertparker.com

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98 Points! A 60-40 blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot, the 2021 Proprietary Red Wine Sugarloaf Mountain exudes sensual aromas of mocha and black cherries underscored by gentle hints of tobacco and sage. Full-bodied, plush and supple, with a long, softly dusty finish, this makes a compelling argument for non-Cabernet Sauvignon wines in Napa. - Joe Czerwinski, robertparker.com

97+ Points! Gorgeous blue fruits, mountain scrub brush, sage, espresso, black raspberry, and violet notes all emerge from the 2021 Proprietary Red Sugarloaf Mountain Vineyard, a blend of Cabernet Franc and Merlot that's full-bodied and has terrific overall balance, building, fine-grained tannins, and a good spine of acidity that carries through the finish. This is another gorgeous wine in the lineup that shines for its complexity, balance, and depth. - Jeb Dunnuck

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100 Points! A full-bodied, structured red with blackcurrant, violet, dark-chocolate and burnt-orange aromas. Walnut husk, too. Such precision and elegance. Firm, smooth tannins and a long finish. Really complex at the end. A stunning wine from Stags Leap District. Drink from 2023. - JamesSuckling.com

98+ Points! From the estate property around the new winery in Stags Leap, the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Estate Moonracer (there are normally small amounts of Merlot and Cabernet Franc in the blend) offers a glorious Napa Cabernet nose of crème de cassis, lead pencil shavings, dried flowers, and chocolate that develops beautifully with time in the glass. It doesn't lose a beat on the palate either and is full-bodied, with a layered, focused texture, building structure, and a great, great finish. It's a serious, age-worthy wine that needs 4-5 years of bottle age yet will evolve like a First Growth from Bordeaux. - Jeb Dunnuck

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98 Points, Dunnuck's #1 Cabernet Value of 2019! A blend put together by Bevan from the single vineyards, the Ontogeny cuvée is year-in, year-out one of the greatest values in Cabernet Sauvignon. His 2019 Ontogeny is no exception, revealing a dense purple hue as well as rock star notes of crème de cassis, violets, tobacco leaf, and chocolate. It’s a big, classic Bevan wine and has remarkable purity, silky, polished tannins, and not a hard edge to be found. Don’t miss it! - Jeb Dunnuck

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98 Points! Perfumed aromas of subtle currants, roses, lavender and sage, following through to a medium body with super-fine tannins that caress the palate and leave it fresh and inspired. A gorgeous and graceful 2022. Drinkable now, but better in 2028. - JamesSuckling.com

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96-98 Points! The 2012s made from Bordeaux varietals include their flagship wine, the 2012 Proprietary Red Les Pavots, a sensational blend of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc, 11% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot. A prodigious effort, it rivals some of the fabulous past vintages such as 1997, 2001, 2002 and 2007. The inky/purple-colored 2012 boasts classic notes of crème de cassis, roasted coffee, vanilla bean, cedar, forest floor and blueberries. Full-bodied and complex with sweet tannin as well as hints of charcoal and camphor, this opulent, multi-leveled, Bordeaux-styled 2012 can be drunk now or cellared for 25-30+ years. - Robert Parker, robertparker.com

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100 Points! Much anticipated vintage for Grange and it is a powerhouse of concentration and complexity. Aromas of orange and lemon peel to start, then graphite, blackberries, plum paste, black cherries, boundless sweet oak spice, fresh cedar, tar, mahogany, roasted coffee and chocolate - the list goes on. Such complexity. Classic Grange, offering such deep, dark intensity. The palate has immense richness and depth with a super succulent and very long, fleshy, deeply weighted array of dense, velvet-wrapped tannins that run so long. The fruit flavors sit in the blackberry, blood-plum and blueberry zone with succulent, long and assertive structure, carrying through in an utterly seamless mode. The finish is tightly wrenched, in spectacularly powerful style, locking this wine in for a very long haul. Best from 2030. - JamesSuckling.com Learn More

98 Points! Incredible aromas of pine tree, mineral, cigar box and tobacco leaf but then it turns to currants and black truffle. Forest fruit and forest floor. Soya. Full body, round and decadent with a combination of ripe fruit and earth, spice and long finish. The uniqueness of Pavot is streaming here. Drink or hold. - JamesSuckling.com

95 Points! The 2014 Proprietary Red Les Pavots (3,570 cases) is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc, 13% Merlot and 5% Petit Verdot aged in mostly Taransaud barrels with a small helping of Darnajou thrown in. This wine is fabulous in the vintage, although certainly less profoundly concentrated and extracted, as well as structured, compared to the 2013, which was off-the-charts fabulous. This is a brilliant wine, charming, with front-end loaded plum, blackcurrant and black raspberry fruit interwoven with graphite, tar and truffle notes. The wine has sumptuous texture, sweet, velvety tannin, and a long, full-bodied finish. It should drink well for at least two decades. - Robert Parker, robertparker.com

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98–100 Points – Jeff Leve, The Wine Cellar Insider
“Iris, violets, and roses might start the aromatics, but that's not all there is, as you also find cherries, currants, dried flowers, and hints of spice. The palate is the star of the show with vibrant, sweet, ripe, clean, and pure fruits coupled with vivid energy driving the long, seamless, elegant, and sensuous finish.” 

97–99 Points – Wine Advocate (William Kelley)

“One of the most refined and seamless wines of the vintage, the 2025 Palmer wafts from the glass with aromas of sweet blackberries, plums and licorice complemented by floral accents of violet and wisteria. Full-bodied, suave and layered, with a long, penetrating finish.”

97–98 Points – James Suckling
“Plush is the word to describe this red. Full-bodied and layered, with velvety tannins and a savory finish. Juicy at the end. Flashy and posh.”

97 Points – Georgina Hindle, Decanter
“Strongly perfumed aromatics with roses and blackcurrants. Instantly alive in the mouth with captivating energy. Aerial almost, yet with complexity and seamless structure.”

96–98 Points – Jeb Dunnuck
“A brilliant, dense purple-hued wine offering a massive array of red, blue, and black fruits supported by chalky minerality, liquid violets, and graphite. Full-bodied, with a round, sexy mouthfeel and a great finish.”

96–98 Points – Antonio Galloni, Vinous
“The 2025 Palmer is unusual in that Merlot drives the blend this year. Black fruit, lavender, menthol, licorice, gravel and chocolate build into a driving, potent finish.”

96 Points – Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux
“Clear spice, cumin, cloves, incense, wonderfully balanced, extremely slow unroll through the palate, floral Cabernet character dominant with crushed rose petals.”

95–97 Points – Neal Martin, Vinous
“Quintessentially Palmer on the nose with extravagant floral violet scents that blossom in the glass. Wonderful delineation and focus with impressive density and finesse.”

95–97 Points – The Wine Independent (Lisa Perrotti-Brown)
“The 2025 Palmer charges out with energetic notes of freshly crushed plums, red currants, and ripe blackberries with nuances of violets, rose buds, anise, and fertile loam. A real head-turner!”

 

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98 Points! This shows blackcurrants, blackberries, violets, lavender, pencil shavings and hints of metal shavings. Medium- to full-bodied with a firm and juicy character of extremely polished and integrated tannins that caress your palate. Compact and poised with tension and focus. A blend of 89% cabernet sauvignon, 10% merlot and 1% cabernet franc. 13.1% alcohol. Drink after 2029. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! Concentrated and characterful, layered and super-finely presented. Round and full, juicy and textured, more powdery than tense and grippy with almost blackcurrant skin texture, while juicy red and black cherry juice goes through the centre, added to by dried mint, wet stones, clove and liquorice. Serious, with power but poise, all the elements on show – perhaps not quite settled, but individually showing the complexity of this great wine in the making. - Decanter Magazine

95 Points! As to the Grand Vin 2021 Château Mouton Rothschild, this beauty is in the running for one of the wines of the vintage, and it brings more depth, richness, and texture than just about anything else in the Médoc. A blend of 89% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, and 1% Cabernet Franc that was brought up in new barrels, it sports a dense purple/plum hue as well as powerful aromatics of spicy black fruits, leafy tobacco, graphite, and freshly sharpened pencils. Medium to full-bodied on the palate, it has a building, layered mouthfeel and impressive concentration and intensity in its aromas and flavors, velvety tannins, and gorgeous finish. You'd be hard pressed to know this came from a challenging vintage. It's going to take at least 5-7 years to hit the early stages of its prime drinking window and will evolve gracefully over the following 20-25 years. Bravo. For tech geeks out there, this hit 13.1% alcohol, has an IPT of 59, and a pH of 3.73. - Jeb Dunnuck

 

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98 Points, James Suckling's #1 World Wine of the Year! This is really luxurious, showing blackcurrants and orange peel with cedar and dried-mushroom aromas following through to a medium to full body that grows on the palate. This has crunchy and lightly chewy tannins that are slightly austere but in an elegant, classical Bordeaux way. Chewy at the end. So much energy and vibe. So complex. Probably the greatest wine ever from here. A blend of 65% cabernet sauvignon, 30% merlot, 2% cabernet franc, 2% malbec and 1% petit verdot. Best after 2028 but already a joy to taste. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! The deep ruby/purple-hued 2022 Château D'Issan is rock star stuff, offering a massive array of red and black fruits, spring flowers, violets, smoky tobacco, and a beautiful sense of minerality. This full-bodied, powerful, concentrated Issan has a layered, seamless mouthfeel, beautiful tannins, and a great finish. The alcohol here is 14.6% and the pH is a solid 3.6. Give bottles 4-5 years if you can, and it will evolve gracefully over the following three decades. - Jeb Dunnuck

96 Points! Deep, heady, really quite seductive and aromatic on the nose, draws you in with bramble fruits, chocolate, exotic spices and perfumed floral nuances. Juicy and lively, pure and focussed, but such a vibrancy to this wine. Sweet and sour elements combine with really salty, chalky, powdery and quite filling tannins that give the nuance of flavour and texture. Bright yet serious, finessed yet layered. Lovely intensity of elements. On the more savoury side right now in terms of lingering flavour but there’s mouthwatering acidity giving the liveliness and sense of fun. I really like this, textured, upfront, forward, extremely drinkable and so approachable, but thrilling too. An exciting wine with great integration and finesse and still clear strength underneath. One of the most exciting wines this year. Stylish, potent and polished. I love it! A yield of 30hl/ha. Harvest 15 - 28 September. 1% PV planted in 1948, 12% press wine. 2% Malbet and 1% Petit Verdot complete the blend. Total acidity: 3.55. 50% new barrels. 3.67pH. - Georgina Hindle, Decanter.com

95 Points! The 2022 D'Issan has turned out beautifully, wafting from the glass with aromas of minty cassis, rose petals, pencil shavings and vine smoke. Medium to full-bodied, suave and velvety, it's deep, complex and well-balanced, with a sweet core of fruit and ripe structuring tannins. It's a blend of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot and the balance Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot. - William Kelley, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate

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98 Points! The Grand Vin 2018 Château Haut-Bailly checks in as 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, and the balance Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc. It spent 18 months in 60% new French oak. This is a beautiful, classic expression of this terroir, and its dense purple hue is followed by gorgeous black cherry and cassis fruits interwoven with ample tobacco leaf, cedary herbs, earth, truffle, and floral nuances. While 2018 was a hot, dry year (at the end of the season anyway), this shows a mix of cooler-climate, vibrant aromatics paired with a rich, concentrated, fresh style on the palate. It has plenty of tannins, flawless balance, and a great finish. A beautiful, elegant 2018, it's going to need 5-7 years of bottle age and keep for 3-4 decades. - Jeb Dunnuck, jebdunnuck.com

99 Points!  Complex and expressive nose, offering red and dark fruit, spices and pepper with wood and mushroom undertones. Fresh mussel shell and a hint of ink, too. Full-bodied with a fine texture and great balance between the acidity and the controlled, tannic structure. Very long finish. Goes on and on. Tiny production, 21 hectoliters per hectare. Try after 2025. - James Suckling, jamessuckling.com Learn More

100 Points! I finished my trip through Bordeaux with the 2020 Château Haut-Brion, and it was certainly a fitting cap to the trip. Revealing a deep ruby/plum hue, the 2020 exhibits extraordinary aromatics of ripe black fruits, scorched earth, cold fireplace, and acacia flowers. An absolute blockbuster on the palate, this structured, full-bodied, massively concentrated Pessac builds incrementally, with ultra-fine tannins, a deep, layered mid-palate, and a great, great finish. Richer and more concentrated than both the 2018 and 2019 (there are some similarities to 2010), this is a legend in the making. The blend is 42.8% Merlot, 39.7% Cabernet Sauvignon, and the balance Cabernet Franc, all of which will spend 15-18 months in 77% new French oak. Hide bottles for a decade, and it should evolve for 50-75 years. - Jeb Dunnuck

99 Points! The 2020 Haut-Brion is more aromatically demonstrative than La Mission Haut-Brion, bursting with aromas of blackberries and raspberries mingled with licorice, cigar wrapper, pencil shavings and nicely integrated new oak. Full-bodied, ample and fleshy, it's rich and layered, with an enveloping core of fruit that's girdled by plenty of sweet, powdery tannin. Despite checking in at a similarly lofty alcoholic degree to the 2019, its more granular tannic profile tempers the vintage's sweetness of fruit and lends the wine a more classically proportioned, and more classically structured, profile. - William Kelley, robertparker.com

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98 Points! The 2021 Pichon-Longueville Comtesse de Lalande is a towering wine. Just as it did en primeur, the 2021 dazzles from start to finish. The Cabernets are very high in the blend, and that comes through in a Saint-Julien endowed with ton of explosive vertical lift. Lavender, dried herbs, mint, spice, rose petal and a kick of orange peel are some of the notes that run through this striking Pichon Comtesse. The aromatics alone are compelling, but everything about the 2021 speaks to class personified. Bright saline notes extend the finish. In a word: sublime. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

97 Points! Fantastic aromas of blackberries, blackcurrants and graphite. Metal shavings. It's medium-bodied, with a classy center-palate of fruit and fine, velvety tannins leading to an almost endless finish. This has so much class, especially for the vintage. Very low production. Drink after 2028. - JamesSuckling.com

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98 Points WS Top 100 2021 #2 Wine of the Year! Offers a deep well of dark currant, blackberry paste and plum preserves fruit that needs time to unwind fully, as it’s shrouded in warm earth, tobacco, singed cedar, sweet bay leaf and savory notes. A ramrod of graphite adds to the strident, structured feel. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.  - Wine Spectator

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94 Points! The 1999 Eclipse (a blend of 66% Grenache and 34% Shiraz aged in American oak and bottled unfiltered) tips the scales at a hefty 14.9% alcohol. The wine has an opaque purple color as well as a fabulously sweet nose of blackberry and cassis liqueur interspersed with licorice, truffle, and vanillin. Full-bodied, heady, layered, ripe, pure, and sumptuous, it is a dazzling 1999 to drink over the next 15-16 years. P.S. Life is too short not to be drinking the wines of Drew Noon. - Robert Parker, robertparker.com

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99-100 Points James Suckling
"A high-definition wine. Wow. The aromas are incredible, with roses, strawberries and crushed stones. So perfumed. It's the magic of perfectly ripe Cabernet Franc. Medium-bodied with ultra-fine tannins and a firm and silky finish. Sublime length and mouthfeel. Cool, subtle, sophisticated and stunning."

97-99 Points Wine Advocate - William Kelley
"A blend of 65% Cabernet Franc, 30% Merlot and 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, the 2025 Château Ausone unwinds in the glass with notes of sweet raspberries and mulberries mingled with notions of mint, rose petals and blood orange. Medium- to full-bodied, lively and perfumed, with lovely energy, exquisitely refined tannins and a bright, precise finish. One of the most refined, classy Ausone vintages in recent years."

97-99 Points Lisa Perrotti-Brown, The Wine Palate
"The 2025 Ausone slowly unfurls to reveal ripe blackberries, red currant preserves, blueberry compote, rose bud tea, lilacs and crushed rocks. The medium-bodied palate is simply electric with intense fruit, very fine-grained tannins, incredible tension, and epic length and depth. Stunning."

97 Points Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux
"Nuanced layers of rose petals and iris flowers, knitted down, textural and expansive, will take its sweet time to uncoil and uncurl, but you can see exactly how rewarding it will be to follow its journey. A stunning example of Ausone."

96-98 Points Neal Martin, Vinous
"The 2025 Ausone represents the entirety of the vineyard this year. Beautifully defined and a little less precocious than usual, there is a sense of classicism here that I admire. Layers of blackberry and raspberry fruit, hints of white pepper and clove, with a very long peacock-tail finish."

95-97+ Points Jeb Dunnuck
"A very classic expression from this château, with ripe black cherries, graphite, classy oak, liquid violets, and chalky minerality on the nose. Rich and medium to full-bodied, with a straight, focused, beautifully concentrated mouthfeel, plenty of chalky tannins, and a great finish."

95-97 Points Antonio Galloni, Vinous
"The 2025 Ausone is powerful, dense and packed to the core. Readers will have to be patient. Time in the glass brings out hints of blood orange, rose petal, mint and raspberry jam. It will be fascinating to see how the 2025 ages."

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99 Points! So much sweet tobacco, stone, brambleberry and currant on the nose. The palate is full and compact with very polished tannins, yet they are solid and sturdy and run the length and width of the wine. Energetic acidity. Very structured and powerful, yet agile and impressive. Historic feel. From biodynamically grown grapes. This needs at least six years of bottle age to soften. Try after 2027. - JamesSuckling.com

99 Points! A blend of 53% Cabernet Sauvignon, 43% Merlot, and 4% Petit Verdot, the 2019 Palmer is deep purple-black in color. It needs a little swirling to reveal a powerful core of plum preserves, blueberry compote, and creme de cassis scents, leading to nuances of licorice, mocha, black olives, and lavender, with a waft of fertile loam. Medium to full-bodied, it is rich and generous in the mouth with a firm backbone of ripe, rounded tannins and seamless freshness, finishing long and fragrant. It maintains that flamboyance and opulence that is Palmer, yet with breathtaking restraint. - Lisa Perrotti-Brown, The Wine Independent

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98 Points! Pouring a dark magenta, the 2021 Grattamacco is fruity and floral with aromas of lavender oils, plum, mocha, incense, and sweet earth. Full-bodied, it has refreshing acidity, defined, ripe tannins, and a good finish. It has a lot of potential and should improve and stand the test of time. It’s fantastically detailed. Drink 2026-2050. - Audrey Frick, jebdunnuck.com

97 Points! This is at a different level, with blackcurrants, blueberries and Mediterranean herbs, such as rosemary and sage. Also tobacco and coffee bean. Medium-bodied with fine tannins and a persistent finish. Sophisticated and thought-provoking. A new quality level with this wine. - JamesSuckling.com

96 Points! Blueberry, black currant and pomegranate flavors are accented by oak spice, graphite and rosemary notes in this fresh, long red. Taut and vibrant, with terrific balance and a fine-grained band of tannins lining the finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sangiovese. - Wine Spectator

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