Beautiful beet red in color. Peppery with a bit of Vietnamese cinnamon wet stone and leather on the nose, a bit tart in the beginning but after an hour to two of decanting, it had settled and it was pretty smooth on the palate. Full bodied with heavy tannins and a bit of acidity at the back of the tongue. Hints of spice and tannins as its finish lasts quite some time. I'd buy another bottle and store it for a few more years...

My friend was almost spiritual about this wine. Me, well I'm not all that much on VdT's...until now. This was superb. I've little experience with them so this rating may be off but I'm sure I'll hear about it if I'm wrong. Anyway, for $16US I'm sure this has got to be a deal. Dark ruby in the glass. The heady blackberry, blueberry and raspberry notes are huge but are equally met by coffee (he mentioned - I was still stuck on the fruit) and chocolate. It smells large and it's like the perserves shop in a bakery. On the tongue the alcohol is a little large - let it sit for awhile and it mellowed out and then it was a hit parade of fruit, smooth and deepened with the outstanding chocolate. I am impressed. Paul

I'm a sucker for the Mencia grape. It's not necessary for it to be hot for this to a great reminder of the Bordeaux blends of 15 yrs ago. At 12.5% this is laid back and elegant. We had pork and went well. Medium ruby in the glass. There is anise, blueberries and red bing cherry, with slight spice accents and subtle tannins with lively acidity. Man this is good. If you find this buy it. Enjoy this - alot. Paul

1st stateside gruner - I gotta say it -I liked it better. The first time that's happened. Same color in the glass, but the mineraltiy in this was amazing. Along with this you had the wonderful citrus and a little oak. The spice is driving right along with the minerality and the yellow fruits are really special. Thank you for this Alex. The salad was barely noticed (it was good) because of this wine - well done. Paul

I like gruners but haven't had this and I was really pleased. Was going to take the night off, but what the hell -friends, food and wine - right? A pale straw in the glass. Right away tangy notes of citrus jump right out. You get some herbal notes and a little lentyl. On the tongue, wow what a pop! That tangy citrus...well it was breath taking, lemon, lime and the minerality was great. The acidity gave it a great tartness that it should've had. Good wine. Paul