We happy that Bernard, who has sampled so many wines, has shared his notes with us. We do have, or have had for sale a few of the wines Bernard writes about, and we include a link to our stock page whenever it is a producer we carry (but since the stock page is kept up-to-date and the wines are sold, don't expect any but the newest of wines to show up in our stock!). Mostly though, since we specialize in County of Santa Barbara Wine and Central Coast Wine, we don't carry a lot of the wines Bernard writes about. But we think it is important that you be able to have an idea what they're like in case you are planning to buy some somewhere, or have them in your own collection. Enjoy.

Here are Bernard's notes from February 2, 2002:

96 Balnaves Cab/Merlot (Coonawara)—Closed, leafy nose. Tart, low tannin, cherry, tomato flavors. Sour cherry finish. 84.

98 Berry’s Bridge Pyrenees—Gorgeous nose: plush velvet, briar berries, vanilla, cocoa. Lush ripe black cherry, cola, milk chocolate. Long chewy finish, Integrated tannins. Yum! 93

97 Maglieri “Steve” Reserve (McClaren)—Toasty, gamy, aged meat, kirsch, cassis aromas. Lush, medium density fruit, high acid, very fine tannin. Chewy, toasty finish, but has a gap in mid-palate. 92

94 Orlando Lawson’s (Padthaway)—Smoky oak, cola nose. Sweet plumy, black fruit, some animal flavors. Puckery tannins, black olive, tar. Deep rich flavor, eucalyptus. Good length, tannic. Hold 5+ years. 93+

97 Mt Langhi Ghiran Langhi—Charred oak nose with some black currant liqueur. Creamy, salty, good acid. Red sour cherry. Tart finish, integrated tannins. Needs food. Drink over next 3-4 years. Could use more glycerol in mid-palate. 91

96 Fox Creek Reserve—Suave American oak, plush mixed red fruit, rose petals, patent leather bouquet. Lush rich suave textured. Seamless, deep plum, boysenberry, chocolate, black raspberry. Integrated tannins. Good length, tannic. Complete wine. Needs 3-5 years still. 94.

94 Hill of Grace—Big, aged meat, berry patch, skunky nose. Liqueur-like attack, good high acids, vibrant, fine tannins, elegant. Peppery, spicy mid-palate. This bottle seems to lack the intensity of previous bottles I’ve had. 94

96 Kay Brothers Block 6—Perfect New World syrah nose, almost CA in character. Sweet fruit, American oak, vanilla, cocoa bouquet. Super rich, sweet fruit. Red cherry flavor, cough syrup consistency w/o the medicinal quality. Lush, very rich, very long, cherry Popsicle finish. Good acid, balance. Wonderful, black raspberry liqueur. 97.

98 Jasper Hill George’s Paddock—Very dark. Liqueur-like bouquet. Super rich, sweet, classy, thick blueberry, mulberry flavor. Very long (45+ seconds). Fine tannic finish showing some charred wood. Perfect balance. Needs 6-8 years. 98

96 Yalumba “The Signature” (52% cab, 48% shiraz)—New world cab/oak nose. Sweet fruit, balanced. Good acid, puckery tannins. Needs 4-6 years. 92+

How could I drink all this shiraz without a bloody pulpit…

The 95 Balmoral seems now to have reached its plateau of maturity. This bottle doesn’t seem to have the tannic structure to age much longer. This would be a good wine with grilled seafood because of its high acidity.

This is the first time I’d heard of Berry’s Bridge, and for those of you who travel to Australia, look out for this winery—it is not imported to the US. The price is right, too, about $11 (USD). This would easily be a $45 wine if it shows up in Dan Phillips’ portfolio. Quite a superb discovery.

My previous experiences with 94 HOG were more profound. This bottle seemed to be holding back, perhaps suffering shock from its long voyage.

The Kay Brothers is very hard to find in the US, but it is worth every effort to seek this out. Great, world class wine!

The Jasper Hill I first tried at Hospice du Rhone. It was impressive then, but the extra half year has really elevated the wine. Fantastic!