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Wine Scores
Below is a listing of the wine review scores we frequently reference in our notes. While these sources remain an excellent source of information, we always recommend that you trust your own palate. Scores in these publications often represent the personal taste of an individual critic, which may not always coincide with your own. We have a huge team of excellent wine professionals that can match wines you've had in the past with new arrivals that meet your flavor profile.
- Allen Meadows - Burghound
- Connoisseurs Guide
- Gambero Rosso
- James Halliday
- James Suckling
- Malt Advocate
- Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
- International Wine Cellar
- Wine & Spirits
- Wine Enthusiast
- Wine Spectator
- The Wine News
- Malt Advocate
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Customer Reviews - AndyG
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AndyG
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Reviews |
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2008 Fonty's Pool "Single Vineyard" Pinot Noir Pemberton
(out of stock)
Review Date: 11-16-2010
What a disappointment after so much hype. I can taste the cherries, and maybe a bit of earth, but the dominant note is rotting compost. It's not truly terrible so much as mildly unpleasant -- kind of like going through the security line at the airport.
Price: $12.99
2008 Schloss Lieser Estate Riesling
(out of stock)
Review Date: 11-12-2010
It's usually a bad sign when the K&L blurb has a long paragraph about the history of the winery and the philosophy of the winemaker, and just a sentence or two about the wine itself. The first whiff of this wine was an unpleasant surprise: the dominant note was sulfur. The more typical floral and fruity elements of German Riesling are also evident, but there are better offerings available at this price point.
Price: $11.99
2009 Tilia Cabernet Sauvignon Mendoza
(out of stock)
Review Date: 11-8-2010
This is not a 91 point wine by any stretch of the imagination. It is perfectly drinkable, and at $7.99 would make a decent everyday red to wash down a double whopper with cheese.
Price: $5.99
2005 Fattoria il Gambero Tinterosse Pinot Nero
(out of stock)
Review Date: 11-5-2010
I'm a fan of pinot noir, and a fan of Italian wine, but the 2005 Fattoria il Gambero Tinterosse Pinot Nero is past its prime, if it had one. It's an aroma-free, brownish wine that tastes pruney with a root-like or medicinal note, as if one added a little root beer to a glass of diet Dr. Pepper and then waited for it go flat.
Price: $6.99
2008 D'Alessandro Cortona Syrah
(out of stock)
Review Date: 10-26-2010
A nice, well-rounded syrah that stands a cut above most offerings in this price range. It starts with subtle notes of leather and licorice and finishes with delicate fruit and flowery notes that I struggle to define -- perhaps violets and incense.
Drink from
2010
to
2012
Price: $10.99
2008 Clos Chanteduc Côtes du Rhône
(out of stock)
Review Date: 10-24-2010
The 2008 Clos Chanteduc Cotes du Rhone is 65% grenache and 35% syrah, so the Robert Parker review quoted by K&L may have been written about a different vintage. Regardless, this is a very nice Cotes du Rhone with more body and balance than the typical offering in this price range. The grenache provides bright berry notes, while the finish has characteristic licorice and white pepper notes from the syrah.
Price: $10.99
2009 Camino de Navaherreros Garnacha Vinos de Madrid
(out of stock)
Review Date: 10-14-2010
I was taken in by the lovely ruby color and the aromatics, which have the citrus and spice of a mulled wine. But the 15% alcohol level has an effect not unlike sterno. In this case more is less.
Price: $11.99
2008 Llai Llai Pinot Noir Bio Bio Valley
(out of stock)
Review Date: 10-9-2010
An astringent wine with some funky barnyard notes that reminded me of pinotage more than pinot noir. It was much improved two days after being opened and stored in the fridge, so this may benefit from decanting.
Price: $11.99
2008 Bodegas Volver Tempranillo La Mancha
(out of stock)
Review Date: 9-14-2010
I agree with the "raw intensity" and "assertive" comments from Wine Spectator. I disagree with the 90 points from Wine Advocate. To my palate, this wine is tannic, raw, and alcoholic. It's not bad, but it's not especially good.
Price: $12.99
2008 McKinlay Willamette Valley Pinot Noir
(out of stock)
Review Date: 9-8-2010
A dry, pleasant, and well-balanced pinot, a bit on the light side, with notes of cherry and tomato leaf. I've tried several Oregon pinot noir in the $15-$25 price range, and they always seem weak compared to offerings from Sonoma, Monterey County, or the Santa Maria Valley in California. The 2008 Mckinlay Willamette Valley Pinot fits that pattern, but it's a pretty good wine at this price.
Price: $16.99
2008 Perrin & Fils "Reserve" Côtes du Rhône Blanc
(out of stock)
Review Date: 8-18-2010
Simple, clean, fresh, restrained, and yummy. I found the flavors hard to pin down -- I didn't notice the peach, but there are minerals and certainly some fruit, maybe more like tart apple. Maybe that's why I like it so much: there's a balance and subtlety that make it superior in my mind to any other white in the under $12 price range.
Price: $7.99
2006 Lugagnac, Bordeaux Supérieur (some stained labels)
(out of stock)
Review Date: 8-17-2010
The 2006 Lugagnac is inoffensive but so thin and watery that it almost makes one wonder whether actual grapes went into it. It's a boring, inferior Bordeaux Superior.
Price: $9.99
2006 Viña Falernia Syrah Reserva Elqui Valley
(out of stock)
Review Date: 8-17-2010
An intriguing offering and a good value, but not a wine that one would want to drink every week. This is a brute with intense flavors of tar, leather, and licorice. It made me sit up and take notice, but it's a bit overwhelming.
Drink from
2010
to
2011
Price: $9.99
2007 Excelsior Cabernet Sauvignon Robertson
(out of stock)
Review Date: 8-17-2010
Upon opening the bottle, the dominant flavors were shoe leather and tar, not at all what I expected from a Cabernet. It was difficult to believe that it's just 8% syrah -- I would have guessed 80%. By the next day the unpleasant tarry notes had dissipated and the black currant fruit was dominant. This is a wine that cries out to be decanted or allowed to breathe for several hours.
Price: $7.99
2006 Clos du Gravillas "Le Rendez-Vous du Soleil" Vin de Pays Cotes de Brian
(out of stock)
Review Date: 8-16-2010
And now for something completely different: this carignan blend shows sweet fruit but also the characteristic notes of caraway seed/celery seed that I find off-putting.
Price: $9.99
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