Red Wines

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The 2008 Barolo (magnum) is a stunner, as it has always been. Intensely aromatic, silky and layered, the 2008 is so elegant. I especially admire its vibrancy and overall freshness, both signatures of the year. Plum, dried flowers, crushed rocks and lavender build in an undeniably sexy Barolo that hits all the right notes.Vinous Media | 98 VMMascarello’s 2008 Barolo is a wine of extraordinary elegance. A sweet, open bouquet leads to dark red fruit, mint, spices and licorice in this pretty, nuanced Barolo. The 2008 is all about detail and understated finesse. It boasts breathtaking purity in its fruit and fabulous overall balance. A textured, finely-knit finish leaves a lasting impression. The 2008 is very classic in style. It will require considerable patience, despite its deceptively medium-bodied structure. This is another dazzling wine from Maria-Theresa Mascarello. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2038.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RPGorgeous aromas of flowers, dried berries and fresh mushroom that open even more to flowers. Then goes to raspberries. Full to medium body, with a pretty austerity and raciness. Firm and sexy. The texture is very silky. Needs at least three to four year more in the bottle.James Suckling | 95 JSThere’s a dark element to this intense, juicy red, offering black currant and blackberry notes, with a violet accent. Harmonious and supple, revealing refined tannins and a long, fruit-filled finish. Best from 2015 through 2028.Wine Spectator | 92 WSTraditional Barolo of the highest order: a little firm yet will mature beautifully.Decanter | 91 DEC

Made in a more masculine style, the 2008 Dominus has all of that along with bigger body and more structure, fat, density and texture. Both are brilliant wines and they represent the finest back-to-back vintages for Dominus since 2001 and 2002 or 1990 and 1991. Both the 2007 and 2008 Dominus should drink well for 25-30 years.This estate, owned by Christian Moueix, includes the famed Napanook Vineyard that was the base of so many of the historic Inglenook Cabernet Sauvignons of the 1950s and 1960s. Interestingly, they have completely eliminated Merlot from the bottling. The 2007 Dominus is a 5,400-case blend of 94% Cabernet Sauvignon and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. There are 4,200 cases of the 2008 Dominus which is composed of 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot. Lower yields resulted in a denser, more concentrated wine. The remarkable thing about these cuvees is that they smell like a hypothetical blend of a top Napa Cabernet Sauvignon and a serious Bordeaux, possibly a cross blend of a Pomerol and Pauillac. Both wines possess silky sweet tannins, which is the big difference between Dominus post-1990 and the first seven vintages, where the tannin content was relatively high. About 40% new oak is used in their upbringing.P.S. In a couple of years, readers should be on the look-out for a new estate wine from Christian Moueix. One mile north of the Napanook Vineyard, Moueix has purchased a 36-acre, already planted parcel known as the Schmidt Ranch. I tasted some of the 2009 barrel samples and this appears to be another promising venture with a completely different personality a more obviously Napa Valley/Cabernet Sauvignon, ripe style of wine than the more elegant, complex Dominus. I’m not sure what the name will be, but it will definitely not be called the Schmidt Ranch.Robert Parker | 99 RPNow 30 years old, this venture is a Californian classic. But the real success is how Christian Moueix, proprietor of Pétrus, so fine-tuned his approach with Cabernet while turning his back on Merlot. The 2008 is 83% Cabernet Sauvignon, 13% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. While oak may be Napa’s mainstay, Dominus sees just 40% new barrels, leaving its fate more to a relentless focus on sorting and the Napanook vineyard’s sublime soils. A sweet floral edge enlivens creamy blackberry, sandalwood and gravelly mineral, with wellrobed tannins that only appear at the finish. For all the flesh, this has long-lived savoury nuance. Drinking Window 2013 - 2028Decanter | 97 DECThis is very pure fruit for Dominus. This will be interesting to see how it develops in the future. 2008 was a very small crop. Very perfumed and beautiful, with currants, flowers, and notes of mint. Full-bodied, with round velvety tannins that lead up to a chocolate and ripe berry finish. This is showing great fruit, and a great finish. Structurally this is like a 2005 La Mission. Best after 2014.James Suckling | 95 JSVery Bordeaux-like in its makeup and structure, this firm wine offers good acidity and tight tannins, delivering complex flavors of loamy earth, vivid dried currant and berry, with anise and mineral notes sprinkled in. My favorite young Dominus of late. Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2022. 4,500 cases made.Wine Spectator | 94 WS(a blend of 83% cabernet sauvignon, 13% cabernet franc and 4% petit verdot): Good full red-ruby. Fresher on the nose than the Napanook, showing raspberry, plum, mocha and tobacco aromas. Round and plummy in the mouth, with a restrained sweetness to the flavors of milk chocolate, mocha and licorice. A wine of moderate ripeness for the vintage, and in a shell today. Finishes with substantial dusty tannins and notes of plum, mocha and chocolate. I don’t find quite the structure or grip of the best years.Vinous Media | 93 VMA short crop of concentrated berries produced this grand vintage of Dominus, one that will need long aging to show its best. Decant it if you open the bottle now, allowing the initial cabernet franc scent of green herbs to integrate—Josiah Baldivino of Michael Mina in San Francisco described it as “adding a fine detail, like a pocket square in a suit.” Air brings out the full stature of the wine, its black cherry richness, violet scents and silken texture. For provençal lamb.Wine & Spirits | 93 W&SAnother fine Dominus, dry, well-structured and ageworthy. Lacks the flashiness of the dramatic 2007, but is still ripe and rich enough to drink now, and should develop over the next six years. Rewards for the depth of blackberries, cassis, blueberries and cedar, wrapped into plush tannins.Wine Enthusiast | 92 WE

Licorice, tar, menthol, spices and crushed rocks are some of the nuances that flow from the 2008 Barolo Ginestra Vigna Casa Mate. This dramatic, large-scaled Barolo impresses for its towering depth, complexity and sheer pedigree. Tar, menthol, licorice and spices wrap around the fleshy, deep finish. The Ginestra Vigna Casa Mate is considerably more powerful than the silkier Gavarini, but both wines represent the height of finesse in Nebbiolo. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2038.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98+ RPOne of the truly epic, reference-point wines of the year, the 2008 Barolo Ginestra Vigna Casa Matè lifts from the glass with the classic scents of Ginestra. Pine, menthol, smoke, anise, new leather and violets are just the prelude as the 2008 opens up. Dark, mysterious and totally seductive, the 2008 is simply magnificent. Grasso is one of the hottest growers in Piedmont today. This is a great example of the level of quality that is the norm at this small, family-run estate.Vinous Media | 98 VMThis is very minerally and stoney with hints of volcanic salt. Intense flavors. Full and juicy with a long finish. Gorgeous. Better in 2014.James Suckling | 95 JSSo graceful and harmonious, yet well-structured, with a lush texture covering the acidity and tannins. That provides the ideal foil for this red’s flavors of cherry, plum, spice and tobacco. Finishes long, with freshness and an accent of mineral. Best from 2014 through 2027. 1,200 cases made.Wine Spectator | 93 WS

The 2008 Barolo Brunate is beautifully balanced from start to finish. Freshly cut flowers, mint, licorice, hard candy and dark red fruit are layered in this utterly impeccable Barolo. Waves of fruit build toward a huge, dramatic finish supported by serious tannins, yet the Brunate remains one of the more understated wines here. The Brunate is all about length, weightless elegance and an elusiveness that is only matched by the greatest Burgundies. This is a dazzling effort. Readers should expect the Brunate to take the better part of a decade to become expressive. Following the Brunate over the course of several days was immensely rewarding. Anticipated maturity: 2018-2033.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 98 RPThe 2008 Barolo Brunate is beautifully balanced from start to finish. Freshly cut flowers, mint, licorice, hard candy and dark red fruit are layered in this utterly impeccable Barolo. Waves of fruit build toward a huge, dramatic finish supported by serious tannins, yet the Brunate remains one of the more understated wines here. The Brunate is all about length, weightless elegance and an elusiveness that is only matched by the greatest Burgundies. This is a dazzling effort. Readers should expect the Brunate to take the better part of a decade to become expressive. Following the Brunate over the course of several days was immensely rewarding.Vinous Media | 98 VMBlackberries with hints of coffee and dried flowers on the nose. Turns to mushrooms. Full body, with firm and chewy tannins and a flavorful finish. Tight and not giving much. Needs a couple of years to soften on the palate.James Suckling | 93 JSThe sweet cherry and floral core is accented by bouillon, soy and black tea flavors in this elegant, vibrant red, which persists with fine length and a finish of tea and tobacco. Racy. Best from 2016 through 2030. 266 cases made.Wine Spectator | 92 WS

The 2008 Sloan Estate is racy and totally elegant from start to finish. It shows gorgeous freshness and vibrancy in its expressive dark red fruit, flowers, licorice and tobacco. Today the 2008 comes across as a relatively understated, subdued vintage for this wine. It should be absolutely fabulous in another few years. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2028.Robert Parker Wine Advocate | 96+ RP(14.8% alcohol): Bright medium ruby. Pure and high-pitched if reticent on the nose, offering aromas of blackberry, licorice, violet, menthol and sweet oak lifted by an element of dusty stone. Wonderfully suave, fine-grained and light on its feet, with a sexy oak element complementing the black raspberry, mineral and spice flavors. Very dense but not at all heavy, showing terrific floral energy and a light touch for this bottling, with no sign of dehydrated berries. The fruit still conveys a distinctly primary character but the wine’s verve makes it delicious already--in fact, I’m tempted to say that anyone who doesn’t love this is a spoilsport or a masochist. Wonderfully harmonious wine with the underlying spine to support a long evolution in bottle. The substantial dusty tannins show some obvious new oak.Vinous Media | 95 VMA rich, maturing Napa cabernet sauvignon with rich redcurrant-jelly character and a lot of subtle notes, ranging from cedar to savory chocolate caramel. Then comes a much more serious structure on the palate than the nose suggested, the tannins firm but well integrated. Long finish with some mineral character. Drink or hold.James Suckling | 93 JS