Off to a good start in Champagne. Some Initial as aperitif and V.O. with dinner at the House’s Hotel/Restaurant. Both wines are quite different but share the same oxidative intensity. Dried apricots and nuttiness on the Initial where the VO had an aged Riesling-like nose. Both have a deep gold colour. The next morning we attend a cellar tasting with the man himself. The ‘tasting’ started off closer to a Philosophy class than anything else; I loved it. The vines are seen as individuals who need to be cared for to be the best version of themselves. Each vine is unique and may have different needs than its neighbour. They are not things to be ben’t to their caretaker’s will; the caretaker sees himself as a midwife but not a parent. The deep roots depicted on the amphora show the ethos of the house. We then taste from the 1986 perpetual cask pre- 2nd fermentation. Still Substance but Substance still. A bottle is disgorged for is to try and Initial, VO, Rose, Les Carecelles, Le Bout du Clos follow. Carecelles was my favourite with its gentle and elegant effervescence. Something else, secret and stunning, was also shared. I doubt it will ever be released. Wine-wise it was an experience of a lifetime. Two days later I can still taste the wines.

For me, this really nails it.

I’ve never tried a 1945 Burgundy before, but it was said to be a great (albeit small) vintage, as in Bordeaux. We opened the left of these 2 bottles at a tasting. The bottles were slightly smaller (50cl) than modern equivalents. The cork came out almost intact with my Durand. I didn’t decant it. The wine had an amazing bouquet, including leather, caramel and coffee. It was surprisingly smooth and really easy to drink, but was soon gone.

First time poster, long time lerker!

I see some amazing wines on here but I’m a common person who loves wine, so on a Saturday night it’s a Cab Franc from Loire.

N - black currants, cherry, cinnamon.

P - cherry, pepper, strong on the oak

Being a Sauternes aficionado, I can never resist purchasing a decently priced older vintage of a 1st Growth - a forgotten bottle in a wine shop, or one well past its prime, just to add more tasting & scent notes to my knowledge base. My previous oldest bottle was a 1980 Climens, which had a fleeting moment of tropical fruit scents before the tertiary notes took over - so I was curious to find out what this 1975 Guiraud held for me. Stored at 45 degrees, with a bit of mold under the capsule and on the cork, but nothing worrisome. The cork put up a fight, and the Ah-so almost nearly got it out cleanly. In the end, had to use a cheesecloth for a clean pour without fragments of cork. Semillon/Sauvignon Blanc blend.

A brilliant color - vibrant reds and oranges, burnt sienna, just fire in the glass. Rust.

On the nose, well, all oxidative notes, to be expected at 50! Scents of smoke and roasted nuts at the rim, caramel and figs further in. You know the notes, that of some sherries.

On the palate, there's a good bit of acidity still hanging around! Medium body, still a little thick and cloying, and hanging on to some mild sweetness. Flavors of burnt wood, vanilla, butterscotch. Very, very faint orange peel. This needed some sort of baked pastry pairing, goodness, I would've loved a good pie with this. Smooth on its way down, with a decently lengthy finish. Clearly past its prime, but nevertheless a decent late night treat.

All my Chateau Guiraud experience is from the last 20 years, so I'm glad to add this one to my "notes bank". Still have a 1970 Suduiraut, 1983 d'Yquem, 1983 Suduiraut, and plenty of late 80's Lafaurie-Peyraguey's to get through! Really enjoyed the experience of savoring this wine.

Hey everyone! I've tried a few Italian wines before (mostly Chianti and Barolo), and I've really enjoyed them. I’m now looking to expand my palate and dive deeper into the world of Italian wine. There’s just so much out there, and it can be a bit overwhelming knowing where to start.

I’d love to hear your recommendations - whether it's a specific bottle, region, or grape variety. I’m open to reds, whites, and even sparkling. Bonus points if you have any food pairing suggestions too!

Grazie in advance

Let’s create a perfect wine list! Which producers make your heart beat a little faster when you see them on the list? Beyond the extremes of Costco/Two Buck Chuck and DRC/Screaming Eagle, let’s try to find a fine balance of classic and unicorn bottles. Please comment with producer names only under each regional category. Add as many as you remember. Come back and add some more. We’ll discuss specific wines & vintages later.

I’m doing some spring cleaning and reorganization of the wine collection. I’m looking for some tips on the best way to keep this collection organized. My fridges are currently empty and can (theoretically) hold 450 bottles - I should be around 300 bottles but not entirely sure.

Any tips from the pros on the best way to keep this thing organized - do you go by producer, varietal, region?

I love pairing wine with food, but I feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface. I usually go for reds with steak and whites with chicken, but I know there’s a lot more to explore when it comes to pairing.

What’s your go-to wine pairing with a particular dish? Any unique or unexpected combos you swear by? Would love some fresh pairing ideas to impress my dinner guests!

This year marked the end of my wine studies, after three years focused on production and marketing. To celebrate this final chapter, a group of close friends and I decided to organize one last serious tasting — something to mark the occasion properly. Every bottle came from our personal cellars, saved for special moments like this one. Everything was tasted blind. Here’s a recap of what we opened.

Marc Hébrart – Clos Léon A rich, dense Champagne, probably better suited to the table than as an aperitif. Still a bit young at this stage — it could easily spend another 5 to 10 years in the cellar. Promising but not yet fully expressive.

Lassaigne – Brut Nature 2014 A beautiful wine, though slightly reduced on opening with some lactic notes. It definitely benefits from a decant. With air, it became tense and fluid, showing citrus-driven freshness and great energy. A serious Champagne with aging potential.

Élise Dechannes – Essentielle Much more accessible and generous than the previous two. Round, with red fruit notes — easy to drink and very suitable as an aperitif. Less complex, but full of charm.

Hélicon – Frénésie 2021 From Constantin Vellis. Still marked by oak, with some youthful intensity. This one was probably opened a bit too early — there’s solid structure and potential, but it needs time to find balance.

Dagueneau – Pur Sang An iconic domaine, now run by the son. I’ve had mixed feelings about the new generation (especially regarding the prices), but this was a great surprise. A Sauvignon Blanc with rare freshness and a striking level of energy. A real standout.

Bouchard – Chapelle-Chambertin A beautifully aged Pinot Noir from a lesser-known domaine. Delicate floral notes, especially dried rose, and a sense of balance that suggests it’s at its peak right now. A lovely expression.

Bouchard – Le Corton In contrast to the Chapelle, this was more concentrated and youthful. Still fresh, with hints of sap and herbal notes — likely some whole cluster involved. A powerful Pinot with strong aging potential.

Famille Gauthier – Clos Nouveau The highlight of the tasting. Blind, everyone thought it was a concentrated Pinot from a warm vintage. In fact, it’s a Cabernet Franc by Rodolphe Gauthier, with incredibly precise élevage. It combines finesse, texture, and length, and could easily age for 20–30 years. Already excellent in its youth.

Gonon – Saint-Joseph 2021 A reference in the northern Rhône. This 2021 shows both elegance and depth, with tapenade notes and a great mouthfeel. Despite the challenges of the vintage, this wine showed impressive balance and concentration.

Forget – Domfront Poiré To end on a lighter note, a pear cider by Jérôme Forget, made from acid-rich local varieties. Only 4% alcohol, but remarkably delicate and clean on the palate. A fresh, uplifting way to close the tasting.

I hope you enjoyed reading this recap as much as we enjoyed living it. Wishing you a wonderful Sunday :)

Bursts open with a lush wave of bright red fruits—hawthorn, fresh young raspberry, and strawberry—immediately vivid on the palate. The acidity is sharp yet intriguing, a signature trait of Les Amoureuses.

Floral notes of peach blossom and dried wild rose add elegance, while a subtle earthiness. As it evolves in the glass, it reveals a delicate smokiness that adds depth and complexity.

This wine shows great potential and can easily age another five years.

A very talented wine making family that I've been a fan of every bottle I've tried. I was somewhat skeptical as it was not a village or cru level, but this was a really well made wine. They clearly are selective about their yields and grapes, and then are masters of winemaking.

Tasting notes:

Pale lemon colour

Nose: medium intensity of apple pie, citrus, honeydew melon, beeswax, and vanilla.

Palate: dry, medium acid, and full bodied. Pronounced intensity of apple, vanilla, honey, and almond butter. A bit of hazelnut, and stone fruit. Had a wonderful balance of fruit, oak, nuttiness, and pastry.

Rating: A very good wine. I would have called it outstanding except the finish wasn't as long as I'd have expected with such a pronounced pallete, and the nose didn't quite pop the way I'd have expected as well. I am getting over a head cold, so maybe I'll feel differently the next time I inevitably get another bottle.

I started trying different Bourgogne Chardonnays because I took a liking to the oak and lees flavors, but was determined to find something with a lot of those flavors that wasn't a cliche heavy oaked bread and butter. Which I'll admit, I do like. After trying a few, attempting to get more southern riper grapes with oak, I still hadn't found that level of oak, lees, and tertiary flavors I was hoping for. Glad I didn't give up and just accept that I just liked overly oaked California Chardonnays. This wine was the style of wine I'd been searching for. So I'm really excited to try more Village and Cru wines from the area. Hoping to get my hands on their Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru "Les Languettes" for a special occasion. As well as trying many more of their pinot noirs.

I bought this on Winebid for $20 and I’m very glad I did.

On the nose is leather, cedar, dried strawberries and cherries.

The palate is much more giving. Prune, fig, tart cherry, dried rosemary, rhubarb and a hint of fennel seeds. The tannins are soft and beautifully integrated. The acidity is a medium + but it’s teetering in perfect balance with the body of the wine, excellent tension for a 25 year old wine that probably sold for $10 retail at the time of release.

I love wines like this, nothing extravagant or outstanding but certainly pleasing and will be a great pairing with the steak I’m about to throw on the grill. For me, this is what Italy does so well, they produce so many fantastic wines at everyday prices that will go the distance.

TLDR: 25 year old, basic bitch Chianti from a great producer that is still throwing some heavy punches. Would spend $20 on this again and again.

It is a warm spring day in Spain here today, so here is something you don't see very often on here. A dry Moscatell.

The winery is Les Freses just outside Denia in Alicante, Spain. I visited back in January, as well as a few others near by such as Pepe Mendoza. As you can see from the bottle just 1200 produced. This area is known for dry Moscatell and Giro as well as a little Macabeo.

On the nose the subtle smell of a sweet Moscat with some additional notes of Mediterranean herbs and a slight lemon aroma

On the palette, nice acidity and more of those herbal notes with a nice freshness. Very easy going and delicious.

Ok, I had a dinner last night with some people I do know, and some new. The diner was in a very old fashioned restaurant, possibly the oldest in town. We went in wines first (byob) and picked foods around them.

Aperitif: Pol Roger Cuvée de Réserve Vinothèque Brut Rose 1999. I was very pleased with the color. Very developed and toasty aroma with rosehip, cherry, and that distinct aroma of dried apricots. Palate was delightfully fresh and balanced. Very cool experience, my mileage has varied a lot when talking about aged champagne.

Starters: Catena-Zapata Adrianna vineyard White Bones Chardonnay 2021. Very sharp aroma, that developed while drinking. Lemon zest and chamomile was expected, but the fresh peppermint aroma, which was quite strong was new to me. Stong body and fresh as ever, this really competes with the best burgundy whites. Highly recommend if You can get your hands on one.

Main course: Yalumba ’The Caley’ 2013. Blend of Barossa Shiraz and Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon. While not overly so, this was very concentrated and full bodied wine, that has many more years of potential. No really signs of agening, but the character was developed however (I’ve tasted 2012 like six years ago). Jammy, spicy, dark black currant and some menthol (the Coonawarra component). Lots of freshness still, and overall very nicely balanced wine, and very hard to pick anything to really complain about.

If only had these opportunities more often.

I purchased a bunch of this in 2007 for $7.99 per bottle. Amazingly, while certainly showing its age, there’s still some fruit on the palate and it’s a pleasant drink with our pizza dinner.

Cedric Bouchard / Roses de Jeanne Cotes de Val Villaine Blanc de Noirs

3rd bottle in last 6 months, again stunning with beautful citrus and toast on the nose with weightless transparency and a super long finish. Love this wine.

2017 Georges Mugneret Gibourg Clos Vougeot Grand Cru

Slow ox for 2 hours. Beautiful if slightly reticient nose, red fruits on palate. Tremendously enjoyable finish. Just beautiful. This will probably be better in 3-5 years, but is drinking ok now with some air.

Hi there. I wondered if anyone could help me identify the year of this wine? Reverse image search is coming up for bottles of this style from 1915 but they’re dated as such.

Opened a bottle of very old champagne (year unknown), and found this at the bottom of the cork… any idea what it is? It still had fizz and it tasted fine… but old. It’s a brut reserve fwiw. Thanks!

What it is: 90% Sangiovese and 10% Merlot. Aged in French oak for 12 months and bottle aged too. A premium chianti from Tuscany with 93 JS and 93 JD.

Nose: cherry and red fruit aromas.

Body: Medium with bright acidity, and tannins seemed not as pronounced. Tasted much less tannic after a few days, and flavors of ripe cherries, plums, and earthy notes.

Relative Value: picked this up for $40 at a wine store in little Italy Bronx. Seemed good complexity for its price point relative to some Bordeaux’s and Napa Cabs which can also be more bold. This one seemed bit softer but still balanced. A decent quality Tuscan wine. 4.4/5.0

I had a taste of this cannonau at the wine bar where I work,if you want to drink something with personality I suggest you this bottle. At first it was a bit close but with some air it expressed very nicely with red fruits and balsamic hints. In the mouth is very powerful,lots of acidity and tannin,not for everyone but I’d give it a shot if you want to try something different.

Just went live on our spring tasting menu. Would you enjoy this meal? Thoughts on pairings? How much would you pay for the food? Wine? Would love to know your thoughts!

Very nice and fresh wine. Gave it 8,5/10

Notes:

Still some mousse in the glass and the bottle had a pop! Medium yellow colour and not yet orange. Bigger bubbles in the mousse but round and balanced. Still young and definitely in its drinking window.

Smell of almond, dried apricots, some vanilla, orange, and some cake.

On the palate, a bit more acidic with some bitter tones, but nothing too annoying or distracting. Close to the smell in taste, but also some green apple and a crisp finish.