Estate Reviews

Crisply sweet, balanced, subtle. Honey, plum, hints of vanilla and roasted cacao nib in aroma and cup. Soft acidity; plush mouthfeel. Flavor carries impressively into a long, sweet, rich finish.

Balanced, lively. Aromatic cedar, apricot, walnut, roasted cacao nib, a hint of cinnamon in aroma and cup. Quiet, roundly tart acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Sweet-toned but crisp finish.

Crisp, balanced, delicately rich. Roasted cacao nib, caramel, fresh-cut fir, a hint of apple in aroma and cup. Round, quietly resonant acidity; syrupy mouthfeel. Flavor consolidates but rings on in a long, clean finish.

Delicate but intense. Roundly and sweetly pungent in aroma and cup: dark chocolate, hazelnut, fresh-cut fir, apricot-like fruit. Gentle but lyrically lively acidity; silky mouthfeel. Flavor consolidates in a lightly drying finish.

Sweetly crisp, briskly floral. Cedar, roasted cacao nib, pungently lavender-like flowers, peach-like fruit in aroma and cup. Clean, crisp acidity; lightly syrupy, lively mouthfeel. Long, flavor-saturated finish.

Pungent, rich, complex. Fresh-cut cedar, fruit-toned, bittersweet dark chocolate, blueberry, lily-like flowers in aroma and cup. Crisp, straightforward acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. The finish is slightly savory and salty but deeply sweet as well, with impressive flavor persistence.

Deep, pungent, savory-sweet. Orange, cedar, butter, flowers (jasmine, lavender) in aroma and cup. Delicate, sweetly brisk acidity; light, silky mouthfeel. A chocolate hint turns up in a balanced, gently rich finish.

Intensely and lushly pungent. Dark chocolate, cedar, lychee-like fruit, lilac in aroma and cup. Brisk, low-toned but vibrant acidity; full, satiny, lively mouthfeel. Flavor consolidates but persists in a rich, very mildly drying finish.

Crisply sweet, subtly refined. Apple, white raisin, delicate nut-toned chocolate, lavender and rose in aroma and cup. Richly brisk acidity; lightly smooth and syrupy mouthfeel. Flavor consolidates in a gently drying finish.

Sweet-toned, pungent. Honey, night-blooming flowers, fresh-cut cedar, cherryish chocolate in aroma and cup. Rich, dry acidity; syrupy mouthfeel. Chocolate and flowers carry into a complex but drying finish.

Evaluated as espresso. Pungently sweet. Fresh-cut cedar, caramelly dark chocolate, apricot, a hint of flowers in aroma and small cup. Light but smoothly silky mouthfeel; flavor consolidates in a rich finish. In three parts milk delicate and rather drying, with sweet chocolate notes nicely nuanced by apricot and flowers.

Deeply and sweetly pungent, complex. Brown sugar, raspberry and orange, honeysuckle, a hint of dark chocolate in aroma and cup. Bright, juicy acidity; lively, lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Sweetly tart, floral-toned finish.

Sweet-toned, crisply and delicately bright. Strawberry, orange, meadow flowers, roasted cacao nib in aroma and cup. Gently brisk acidity; light but very silky mouthfeel. Strawberry and cacao nib in particular carry into a tartly sweet finish.

Spectacular and juicy. The aroma starts quietly: orange, flowers, honey, a crisp hint of juniper. Round, sweet, brilliantly lively acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. In the cup lavish honey, orange, lychee, rose-like flowers, and a smoothing hint of chocolate. Rose and lychee in particular carry into a refreshing, resonant finish.

Richly and intensely floral throughout the profile, with supporting notes of crisp roasted cacao nib, cedar and apple. Round, sweet-toned, muted acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. The finish is impressive: long and deeply floral-toned.

Reviewed as espresso. Quiet, round, chocolaty. Butter, dark chocolate, plum/apricot and a hint of raisin in aroma and small cup. Smooth, lightly syrupy mouthfeel. A hint of chocolate carries into a delicate, drying finish. In three parts milk the dark chocolate continues to dominate, with a backgrounded apricot-like fruit.

Evaluated as espresso. In the small cup both Ken (91) and his co-taster (92) admired the bright, refreshing fruit (strawberry in particular) rounded by a fudgy chocolate, an impressively syrupy mouthfeel, and a flavor-saturated but clean finish. Vivacious in three parts milk: orange zest and caramel.

Evaluated as espresso. Ken (93) and his co-taster (88) went rather different ways on this deep, sweet, brandyish, lightly herby dried-in-the-fruit profile. Ken enjoyed the overripe, fermenty fruit notes in aroma and cup; his co-taster was not greatly impressed. Both had good things to say about the mouthfeel (co-taster: “huge and enveloping”); on the other hand, neither were impressed by the rather astringent finish. Ken admired the impact in three parts milk (“juicy and rich”) more than did his co-taster, who found it pleasantly berryish but a bit too tart.

Evaluated as espresso. Ken (91) and his co-taster (91) recorded identical scores and very similar readings for this lively, balanced espresso: in aroma and flavor sweetly tart fruit (orange, lemon, kiwi) rounded by flowers for Ken and “sweet pea” for the co-taster; smooth, lightly syrupy mouthfeel; most impressively a very sweet finish with chocolate and cinnamon suggestions. Delicately chocolaty in three parts milk (“pure milk chocolate” according to the co-taster).

Evaluated as espresso. Ken (92) showed considerably more enthusiasm for this intense dried-in-the-fruit profile than his only mildly respectful co-taster (89). The co-taster associated the usual fermented fruit notes with wine and spiced cider, Ken with bourbon whisky (which he likes). The co-taster found the fermented fruit notes complicated by “sweet hay and malt,” Ken by a more decisive “fresh-cut cedar.” Ken rated the lightly syrupy, perhaps buttery mouthfeel a bit higher than did his co-taster. Both found the shot pleasantly chocolaty in three parts milk, additionally nuanced by malt for the co-taster, by cedar for Ken.